With no fresh recruitments and issues, and the security forces gaining an upper hand, the outfit appears to be on the back footAfter almost five decades and surviving many ups and downs, the Naxalite, or Maoist movement, now led by the banned CPI (Maoist), is going through a critical phase. Documents recovered from the encounter sites and the surrendered, or arrested Maoists reveal that the Central Committee, the highest body, has repeatedly used the terms “critical phase” and “setbacks”. As per the documents, the leadership has pointed out that the movement is “highly critical” in the plain areas (urban pockets) and in the key strongholds such as the Dandakaranya Special Zonal Committee (DKSZC), the Andhra Odisha Border Special Zonal Committee (AOBSZC), and the Telangana State Special Zonal Committee (TSSZC). Post globalisation and the opening up of opportunities, the Maoist ideology has no takers, particularly among the students in Andhra Pradesh and Telangana. These leaders hailed from reputed institutions such as NIT-Warangal, Andhra University College of Engineering, Osmania University, and JNU, and had led the movement ideologically.

Source: The Hindu July 24, 2021 18:22 UTC