Naxalites expanding urban influence ?

[scarletghoul]

It seems like it. In addition the uncovering of a Naxal library in Mumbai, there were arrests of senoir Maoists organising workers in Kolkata, and also this-

Are Maoists in India changing warfare tactics?


Report by Kishor Dash; Malkangiri: With the month-long Peoples Liberation Guerrilla Army (PLGA) is on from December 2, hundreds of Maoist posters put up at several places across South Orissa reveals many information about it’s warfare strategy. More than anything else, the Maoist posters gives an indication of change in warfare strategy by the red rebels in the years to come.

After sticking up to its Guerrilla warfare for the past many more years, the red rebels are now going to switch over to urban warfare as a part of it’s long-term war against the prevailing political system in the country. The many posters put up at Machhkund & Lamtaput in Koraput district and Motu & Kalimela in Malkangiri district says that the party is on the job to change it’s warfare strategy from it’s guerrilla warfare one to urban warfare soon.

The rebels in their posters have asked the cadres to work hard to expand their bases from rural to urban areas while consolidating their positions in many urban areas. The Peoples Liberation Guerrilla Army (PLGA), which is the striking force of the CPI (Maoist), would be known as Peoples Liberation Army (PLA) soon, the posters said.

A series of meetings reportedly held in many remote places in Koraput, Rayagada and Malkangiri and attended by the top Maoist cadres during the last six days also gives an indication in this regard. An unconfirmed report, says that the rebels are mobilizing the tribal youths to join the PLGA for fighting against the state. The Maoist top leaders are reportedly telling the tribal people about the failure of the government in various fronts and how they are being exploited at the hands of rich.

Malkangiri was remained to be cut-off from the rest of the state as the buses remained off the road on the 6th day of the month long PLGA celebration. Postal services, vehicular traffic, paddy procurement and Public Distribution system has also been affected due to the disruption of road communication between Malkangiri-Jeypore, Malkangiri-Kalimela-Podia-M.V-79-Motu, Malkangiri-Mathili-Govindpalli, Malkangiri-Korukonda-Balimela, Balimela-Kudmulgumma-Khairput-Govindpalli route since Dec 2.
Mean while, in a fresh banner put up at ‘Govindpalli ghat’ area, some 60 km from the Malkangiri headquarter town on Monday, the Maoist rebels have asked the youth masses to join PLGA during the month long celebration.
http://orissadiary.com/CurrentNews.asp?id=22914

[red cat]

The Maoist movement in India has always had a firm urban mass-base. Since it is almost totally clandestine, very few official reports are found on it. However, the presence of urban Maoist strongholds is well known among Indian citizens, and many other leaders have been arrested from cities before. The reports from several other self-proclaimed leftist groups which state that the Indian Maoists do not have any base or support among the urban working class, are deliberate anti-communist propaganda.

[Red Future]

Excellent , I had hoped they intended to expand into the urban areas and this has just proven it is in their objectives.Good luck to them!

[Sentinel]

This situation is extremely interesting due to the size and thus importance of India. I know embarassingly little about it, though. Is it known how large an geographic area the guerilla can be said to actually control?

I've only found maps online about the Indian districts they are active in, and they do look rather impressive. Wikipedia says:


According to Judith Vidal-Hall (2006), "More recent figures put the strength of the movement at 15,000, and claim the guerrillas control an estimated one fifth of India's forests, as well as being active in 160 of the country's 604 administrative districts."[5][6]

Do comrades think this might be correct?

[red cat]

This situation is extremely interesting due to the size and thus importance of India. I know embarassingly little about it, though. Is it known how large an geographic area the guerilla can be said to actually control?

I've only found maps online about the Indian districts they are active in, and they do look rather impressive. Wikipedia says:



Do comrades think this might be correct?

The numbers are unknown, but definitely much higher than that. PLGA members are recruited from from the peoples' militia. The peoples' militia usually consists of a member from each family from the Maoist dominated areas. In the attack on the house of a revisionist leader of the parliamentary party CPI(M) in Lalgarh last year, a militia unit 10,000 strong was involved. In around the same area, an all-women's militia unit about 50,000 strong was involved in the attempt to attack and occupy a town this year. Last year, a renowned philanthropist and human rights activist estimated the number of Maoist activists in the district of Bastar alone to be around 115,000.

[scarletghoul]

As for controlled territory, reports from a few years ago (before Operation Green Hunt) said the Naxals had control over 40,000 square kilmeters, (about the size of Switzerland). The situation is slightly different now with the massive Green Hunt offensive. As the enemy advanced the Naxals retreated, and a news story this year claimed the government had took 10,000 km back. But its hard to know what levels of control the government or Maoists have in the guerilla zones

[Homage To Catalonia]

Lets break with old ideas comrades, death to the oppressors.

Lets hope the maoists insurrection plunges into the urban areas, where the forces can unite, both urban and rural, and knock these motherfuckers on their asses.

[t.shonku]

Insurrection in urban areas of India is inevitable because the India government has privatized and ruined public education and health care system and sold them out to the corporates making it impossible for ordinary people to …………..

Workers in Mumbai and Ghaziabad have been forced to live in slums in sub-human condition.

Cost of food , fuel and power is sky rocketing. Working class is boiling with rage . It’s just a matter of time. …….

[bricolage]

The reports from several other self-proclaimed leftist groups which state that the Indian Maoists do not have any base or support among the urban working class, are deliberate anti-communist propaganda.
I think people have always accepted there is urban support for the Naxalites but the question is what kind of support?


there were arrests of senoir Maoists organising workers in Kolkata, and also this-
What does this mean? Are they organising them as workers to take industrial action? Are they organising them to act within the communities that they live? Or are does it mean they are encouraging them join militias and fight the army?

[red cat]

I think people have always accepted there is urban support for the Naxalites but the question is what kind of support?

After the initial militant movement started in Naxalbari, at one point the working class had tried to seize power in the big cities as well. Needless to say, due to the absence of a powerful red army in the countryside, the revolutionaries were crushed. But this resulted in the revolutionaries proving themselves to be the vanguards of the proletariat and hence enjoying unconditional support from most of the urban revolutionary classes ever since. Since then, according to police reports, there has been a steady flow of urban working class members to the countryside joining the people's war, and also a clandestine network of the communist party educating and organizing the urban revolutionary classes for mass movements. In the past years, as the people's war has weakened the foundations of the government, their mass movements have emerged very rapidly in big cities.

[RED DAVE]

After the initial militant movement started in Naxalbari, at one point the working class had tried to seize power in the big cities as well.Could you give details about this?


Needless to say, due to the absence of a powerful red army in the countryside, the revolutionaries were crushed.(1) Details about this; (2) what urban organization existed?


But this resulted in the revolutionaries proving themselves to be the vanguards of the proletariat and hence enjoying unconditional support from most of the urban revolutionary classes ever since.If this were true, there would be evidence of urban activity. This sounds like cant.


Since then, according to police reports, there has been a steady flow of urban working class members to the countryside joining the people's warDetails of this, including some numbers.


and also a clandestine network of the communist party educating and organizing the urban revolutionary classes for mass movements.Details of this.


In the past years, as the people's war has weakened the foundations of the government, their mass movements have emerged very rapidly in big cities.Details of this.

Are there any indications that the Naxalites in fact are organizing workers as workers? Given the history of Maoism, this can't be taken for granted.

RED DAVE

[red cat]

Could you give details about this?

(1) Details about this; (2) what urban organization existed?



The CP itself as well as other organizations associated with the movement had their branches in the cities. Workers gathered in huge mass meetings in the open.

The urban military struggles of the working class could not cope up with the experience and tactics of the ruling classes. In many cases the revolutionaries were successfully infiltrated by spies, or even cut off from the arsenal. This (http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/kolkata-/Documentary-to-relive-Baranagar-killings/articleshow/9004157.cms) is an example of the massacres that followed. In that specific incident, the real death toll was many times higher than what was reported, and the local river had literally turned red from the blood of revolutionaries whose corpses were thrown into it or who died fighting near the banks.


If this were true, there would be evidence of urban activity.

Learning from their initial defeat, the Indian communists have mostly refrained from organizing any workers movement that directly supports them, fearing subsequent massacre of workers. But if you are looking for urban activities that have been alleged to have Maoist influence, then you can have a look at the India-thread.




This sounds like cant.

No wonder, given that you consider Maoists to be traitors to working class movements in the first place.


Details of this, including some numbers.

Numbers are unknown. But officers of state forces have said (http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/New-CRPF-chief-claims-Maoists-enjoy-urban-support/articleshow/6703255.cms) this again and again. Recently several big leaders and cadres have been caught in the cities, some from workers residential areas. About a decade ago, several urban organizers were jailed or murdered. I will try to find relevant links.


Details of this.

After the rapid development of urban mass movements, the police has alleged that these type of organizations have existed since the 60s. This (http://southasiarev.wordpress.com/2008/11/23/india-remembering-anuradha-gandhi/) article on Anuradha Gandhi gives some instances of Maoist organizing urban workers.


Details of this.

Please follow the main thread on India.


Are there any indications that the Naxalites in fact are organizing workers as workers?

What exactly do you mean by this ?


Given the history of Maoism, this can't be taken for granted.

RED DAVE

After the defeat of each revolution, its history is distorted by revisionists and the bourgeois ruling class. Even when the Indian revolution is getting stronger by the day, we have seen some people trying to spread utterly false propaganda (http://www.revleft.com/vb/india-losing-maoist-t117578/index.html?p=1566660#post1566660) against it right here in this forum. There is no doubt that if the Indian revolution is defeated, decades from now we will hear from self-proclaimed "communists" how the Naxalites were agents of the bourgeoisie and engaged in brutal mass-murders of workers, peasants and somehow ruined a revolution that was being organized by "true communists" who never did anything other than writing worthless articles and maintaining websites.

[DaringMehring]

This is encouraging. Good luck to the CPI comrades -- go for the throat, smash capitalism!