ABSTRACT
The present-day Maoist movement in India is the continuation of the extreme left-wing movement of the late 1960s which commenced in Naxalbari. The victims of Maoism are often the very people the movement seeks to protect. Any battle for the minds of the people against the Maoist movement and for restoration of democratic governance in Maoist-controlled areas would have to adhere to what Bertrand Russell had to say about the fight against communism: Communism is a doctrine bred of poverty, hatred and strife. The source of Maoist violence in the 1960s and 1970s can be partly attributed to the dismal failure of the land reforms movement in India. The liberalisation of the Indian economy and its opening up has speeded up the demand for the lands on which our tribes and marginalised groups live. Bauxite, gold, and now, platinum finds in India’s tribal belts only accentuate the continuing misery of the displacement of the population from their lands.
