Naxalites Surrender in Dantewada | 06 May 2024

Why in News?

Recently, 35 Naxalites surrendered in Chhattisgarh 's Dantewada district. These cadres were tasked with digging roads, felling trees to block roads and putting up posters and banners during shutdowns called by Naxalites.

Key Points

  • According to the officials, these naxalites were part of Bhairamgarh, Malanger and Katekalyan area committees of the Maoists in south Bastar.
    • They were impressed by the police's rehabilitation drive 'Lon Varratu' (return to your home) and disappointed with the hollow Maoist ideology.
      • Maoism is a form of communism developed by Mao Tse Tung. It is a doctrine to capture State power through a combination of armed insurgency, mass mobilization and strategic alliances.
  • These Naxalites will be provided facilities as per the government's surrender and rehabilitation policy.
  • With this, 796 Naxalites, including 180 carrying rewards, have so far joined the mainstream in the district under the police's Lon Varratu campaign launched in June 2020.

Lone Varratu

  • This campaign means ‘Come back home’.
  • This campaign was launched for those Naxalites who intended to leave the path of red terror and join the mainstream of society.
  • Under this campaign many Naxalites left the path of terrorism.

Naxalism

  • The term Naxalism derives its name from the village Naxalbari of West Bengal.
  • It originated as rebellion against local landlords who bashed a peasant over a land dispute.
  • The movement soon spread across Eastern India in less developed areas of states such as Chhattisgarh, Odisha and Andhra Pradesh.
  • Left-wing extremists (LWE) are popularly known as Maoists worldwide and as Naxalites in India.
  • Objective:
    • They advocate for the overthrow of the Indian government through armed revolution and the establishment of a communist state based on Maoist principles.
    • They view the state as oppressive, exploitative, and serving the interests of the ruling elite, and seek to address socio-economic grievances through armed struggle and people's war.