This article is written by Shivani Nair, from Manipal University Jaipur. This is an exhaustive article which deals with the topic of the Laws for Naxalism in India and the reforms that are needed to tackle the issue of Naxalism in India.

Introduction

Democracy has been noted as the strongest voice of the people, be it for the tangible interests of the people or the intangible interests of the people. The term Naxalism has been used as an expression of the socio-economic view of understanding. The young and fierce ideology of the rebel minds caused a surge in the movement, giving it the name of Naxalism in India. It was the beginning of a movement that would create a “liberated zone”. 

Naxalism in India 

The term “Naxal” derives from the village named “Naxalbari” which is situated in the state of West-Bengal, from where this movement originally came into existence. These groups of people are considered to be far-left radical communists that support the Maoist political sentiment and ideology. The origin of the Naxalites can be traced back to the split in the Communist Party of India (Marxist), which led to the formation of the Communist Party of India (Marxist-Leninist). In the beginning, the movement had its origins in West Bengal followed which it spread to the lesser developed areas of the rural southern and eastern Indian territory such as Chhattisgarh, Odisha, and Andra Pradesh. For the last ten years, it has grown and displaced the tribal areas and the natives’ lands who are fighting against corruption and exploitation from the major Indian Corporations. 

The generic terms that are used to identify them are “Naxalites”, “Naxals” and “Naksalvadi”. These groups have been declared as terrorist organisations by the government of India under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act of India, 1967. The leaders of these Naxal movements have their hideouts in China. The Indian Government has made measures to curb Naxalism and rehabilitate the affected populace. The problem was not in the laws made against them. The problem has always lied in the fact “how can we communicate these laws and provisions to the local and the isolated masses, who have no means of communication, in a substantiated way. The attempt lies in finding the solution to this problem. 

Causes of the Naxalite Movement

The main reason for the beginning of this movement was the lack of human development and the resentment amongst the people. The people have felt alienated and excluded. In addition to this fact, people were exploited by the local elites of the areas that resulted in torture of the poor tribals. The people who belong to the Naxal groups have received the most of their support from the tribals living in the areas, i.e., the Dalits and the Adivasis. The reasons for their support are manifold. What is common amongst these groups is the degree of unemployment and qualification. The recent forest policies made by the government which has restricted their livelihood, the cultural humiliation they face, not being able to access good healthcare, education, and power, the atrocities they face on a daily basis, the political marginalisation and the protests that they do, can also be included in this. The states that have surfaced as the hotpots for the Naxalites have a substantially high record of the crimes that have been committed against the neglected groups that include the Dalits and the Adivasis. 

It has also been shown that a large number of neglected groups were not given opportunities in government’s services. The attempts made by the government to increase its influence in the backward areas have resulted in the repression of the inhabitants. The authorities of the state such as the forest officers have subsequently disrupted their social bond. 

The most Naxal affected states are Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh, Bihar, Andhra Pradesh, and Madhya Pradesh. Each of these states are rich in natural resources. Such an abundance of natural resources has been one of the reasons for the promotion of the Naxal movement in these states. The reasons why this movement has grown could be enumerated. 

Such as, the very slow implementation of the reforms related to the land could be one of the major reasons. The landlords, who have generally been termed to be corrupt, have frequently moved to the courts to get these reforms delayed. They are also known to have connived with the local politicians to make the land reforms process slow and cumbersome. The reforms related to the land have thus failed to come into play. 

The second reason could be the social structure of the areas where the Naxal activities are prevalent. Most of the problem arises in the areas where there are poor people as the residents who have absolutely no or minimal resources to meet their ends. However, it would not be appropriate to include just one caste in the society who are marginalised. The sections which are poor have been known to be of many castes. However, the reason why they have been in support of the Naxalites is that they have often been neglected and do not even have the basic education or the healthcare facilities and by the government’s rules, their livelihoods have also been affected. 

In addition to this, the people in rural areas want to have the same infrastructural facilities and other facilities that are available in the urban areas. They are able to draw the distinction in the facilities they are being provided with and the facilities that they should be provided with.This highlights not only the situation of the areas but also the situation where it shows the failure of the government to provide anything to the rural areas. Despite having an abundance of schemes, they are unable to help the people living in those areas because of the lack of proper implementation of these schemes. 

Laws made to tackle Naxalism

There have been a few laws made by the government that are intended to curb Naxalism. These are:

• National Rehabilitation and Resettlement Policy, 2007– the main function of this Act was to reduce the displacement of the people of these affected areas as well as to provide good alternatives for the dispersal of the people. The government had made this policy for the people whose land is acquired by the government for industrial growth. Under the said policy, in exchange for land, an employment opportunity shall be given to at least one member of the family along with the vocational training and the housing facilities. 
• Forest Rights Acts, 2006– This Act has acknowledged the rights of the forest dwellers and the scheduled tribes who have been living in the forest areas but their rights have not been recognised. 
• Chhattisgarh Special Public Securities Act, 2006– this act has provided for the definition of the unlawful activities that have been prevalent in these areas and have also declared certain organisations as unlawful. This act gives the government the power to form an advisory board, wherever the state government feels that it needs to be established. It also states its procedures, formation of such a board and penalties with punishments. Even for not committing a crime, the power to notify the place that is being used for an unlawful purpose, whilst taking note of the place and bar/revision against the intervention of the courts lies with the government.
• The Chhattisgarh Special Public Securities Bill of 2005– It provides for the fact that the District Magistrate of any district has an unconditional power to notify those places he thinks are being used as places for unlawful activities without any notification that has to be stated priorly. There is no requirement such as the production of the evidence in such a case to prove that the place which the District Magistrate has marked unlawful, actually conducts these unlawful activities. This bill has provided that any revision petition against the order of the government and the District Magistrate can only be filed at the High Court. Also, this petition has to be filed within 30 days and no court has jurisdiction against the order of the decision made by the High Court. Any sort of revision petition or the application or any form of injunction by a court or the officer except for the High Court or the Supreme Court related to any action that has to be taken, has been completely barred in this Bill. 

The sad part of this bill is that it is a blatant violation of the principle of natural justice and the fact that the aggrieved parties have no right to be heard is another violation. Therefore, it can be stated that the Bill has been completely uncalled for and has only been brought to have control over the poor people. 

Are these laws effective?

Now that we know about the laws, the question that now arises, and perhaps the most important question is, are these laws that have been made, really effective?

The primary answer that on behalf of the government would be, yes. But the ground reality states otherwise. These laws have caused a lot of problems for the people who belong to the scheduled tribes and the scheduled castes. The Acts that provide a “land for a land” has turned out to be nothing but a nightmare for the people as well as the government and has also blocked the industrialisation in the Naxal areas. 

What reforms are needed?

The complex causes of the problem related to the Naxals as well as their implications for both the external as well as internal security reasons reflect a multidimensional solution. This calls for a collaboration between the center as well as the states. In order to completely eradicate the threat of the Naxals, the government has to ensure that they dig deep into their root causes and address the issues. This problem now calls for a three-parted solution. These are:

• Socio-economic Development- the Naxalites are fueled by the discontent by the governmental bodies, therefore it is important to address these issues. When the national budget is being made, the first priority is to be given to these poor regions through initiatives regarding the health and safety provisions whilst providing them social reforms as well as educational developments. The service delivery of the government must be improved in these areas. The regulations of providing minimum wages and other basic needs must be implemented. If these issues are addressed, then there will be no discontent on behalf of the Naxalites. 
• Multilateral Dialogue- The government should initiate proper dialogues with these groups that have been marginalised, the Naxalites and the local leaders of the areas. Communication is the key to the feeling of being heard. The only reason why these groups supported the Naxalites was because the government has been unaware and indifferent to their claims. By communication, their views will be taken into consideration and they would not need to resort to violence. 
• Military- the main instrument that the government uses currently is the military force. This has increased the deployment of the military in Naxal areas. It has also reduced its territory to those areas where there could be potential threats instead of the Naxal areas. While some amount of military force is still needed to keep them under check, it should not be the only form that is required to combat the Naxalites. Coercion by the state will only provoke the groups to rebel even more. 
• Governance- The growth of such a group also discloses the flaws in the structure of the government and the rules and regulations made by them. The government has the overall responsibility to address the threat and hence the states need to come together with the Union to combat the issues in a multidimensional way. Both the organisations must support and complement each other’s strategies and ideas. 

Conclusion

The state must start to tackle issues legally and try to minimise the collateral damage that has been caused. They should strengthen the leader and the security as well as the peace-keeping forces. The security forces could be used to protect the local populace instead of merely targeting the Maoists. Until the governments implement the laws in these states, it will be very difficult to tackle such issues. 

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