The Naxal Menace

The biggest threat to the general election does not come from terrorists in Jammu and Kashmir with their Kalashnikovs and rocket-launchers. It is the spectre of Maoist violence that is worrying security agencies. Thousands of central and state security personnel will be stretched to their limit during the election as they fight a cat and mouse game with men and women who still swear by the dream of proletariat rule. Maoist or Naxalite violence is of serious concern in 12 of India's biggest states.

Who are the Naxalites?

The Naxalites, also sometimes called the Naxals, is a loose term used to define groups waging a violent struggle on behalf of landless labourers and tribal people against landlords and others. The Naxalites say they are fighting oppression and exploitation to create a classless society. Their opponents say the Naxalites are terrorists oppressing people in the name of a class war. Last year Naxalites accounted for nearly 88 percent of organised violence and killings in the country. Who do they represent? The Naxalites claim to represent the most oppressed people in India, those who are often left untouched by India's development and bypassed by the electoral process. Invariably, they are the Adivasis, Dalits, and the poorest of the poor, who work as landless labourers for a pittance, often below India's mandated minimum wages.

Who do they target ?

In 2003, there were 1,671 Naxalite attacks, in which 95 security personnel and 422 civilians were killed. In the same period 250 extremists were also killed. The threat is spread across the 'Compact Revolutionary Zone,' which stretches from the Nepal border to Tamil Nadu. Fifty-three districts have been identified as 'highly affected' by the threat of violences by the Naxalites, while 17 are 'moderately affected.' Fifty-two districts are 'less affected' and 21 are possible targets. The targets are the same: police stations, police informers, government machinery, landlords and moneylenders, etc.

"Election as an entire process is a target. We have a tough challenge on our hands," says a BSF officer. Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, Jharkhand and Chhattisgarh are the worst affected; Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Orissa, Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal are partially affected.