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Red Terror or Dead Terror  Ft. Sandeep Unnithan

Red Terror or Dead Terror Ft. Sandeep Unnithan

India Today16 hours ago

Inside India's Fight Against Naxalism | Is This the End of Red Terror? | Ft. Sandeep Unnithan
In this deep-dive episode of In Our Defence, veteran defence journalist Sandeep Unnithan joins host Dev Goswami to unpack India's decades-long battle with Left Wing Extremism (LWE) — often called Naxalism or Red Terror — and the recent decisive push to eradicate it by March 2026.
Dev and Sandeep explore the evolution of the Naxal movement from its origins in Naxalbari in 1967 to its spread across India's infamous 'Red Corridor', and the multi-pronged strategy that has brought the insurgency to its lowest levels in decades.
Key topics include:
The historic neutralisation of CPI (Maoist) General Secretary Basavaraju in Operation Black Forest
The spike in encounters and surrenders in 2024–25
Why counter-insurgency in jungles is as deadly — and complex — as high-tech border warfare.
Why the Indian Army was never deployed against Naxals — and what could have happened if they had.
The role of urban intellectual support in sustaining the movement — and why that's now faded.
This episode is an eye-opening look at one of India's longest-running internal conflicts, now seemingly entering its final phase. Tune in.
Produced by Garvit Srivastava
Sound mixed by Rohan Bharti

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MP: Four Naxalites, Including Three Women, Killed In Balaghat Encounter
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MP: Four Naxalites, Including Three Women, Killed In Balaghat Encounter

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Three women among four Naxalites killed in encounter with police in MP's Balaghat
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Three women among four Naxalites killed in encounter with police in MP's Balaghat

In a post on X, the CM said, 'Under the guidance of Prime Minister Narendra Modi ji and Union Home Minister Amit Shah ji, the state has achieved a major success in the campaign to eradicate Naxalism by March 2026.' 'One male and three female armed Naxalites have been killed in an encounter during a joint operation of Hawkforce, District Force and CRPF in the forests of Pachmadar and Katejhiriya,' he said. A grenade launcher, a self-loading rifle (SLR), two .315 bore rifles, other weapons and material were also recovered from the site, he said. Balaghat (MP), Jun 14 (PTI) Four Naxalites, including three women, were killed in an encounter with security forces in a forest area of Balaghat district in Madhya Pradesh on Saturday, Chief Minister Mohan Yadav said. The search operation, in which a large number of police officers and jawans are engaged, is still underway, he said while congratulating the police force for eliminating the Naxalites. 'Hearty congratulations to our indomitable, courageous soldiers and senior police officers of the state for this success,' CM Yadav added. Talking to PTI over the phone, Balaghat Zone Inspector General of Police Sanjay Kumar said efforts to identify the deceased Naxalites were on. The operation against the Naxalites is still on, he said from the spot located in the Roopjhar police station limits, about 40 km by road from the district headquarters. The operation was launched following intelligence inputs about their movement received last evening, he said. Balaghat is a Maoist-affected district in the state and shares a border with Maharashtra and Chhattisgarh. PTI LAL MAS NP This report is auto-generated from PTI news service. ThePrint holds no responsibility for its content.

Maharashtra may dilute public security bill after legislators, civil society raise red flag
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Maharashtra may dilute public security bill after legislators, civil society raise red flag

The Maharashtra government is considering diluting several provisions of the controversial Maharashtra Special Public Security Bill, 2024, after opposition legislators and civil society activists questioned the necessity of such a law when existing legislations like the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) already addresses terrorism and Naxalism. The proposed bill grants sweeping powers to the state to act against alleged Left-wing extremism. It has faced widespread backlash for being 'repressive' and potentially prone to misuse against dissenters and government critics. A 26-member joint select committee, comprising legislators from across political parties is presently reviewing the bill. It has received more than 12,300 objections by civil society groups and social organisations across the state. Despite government sources claiming the changes, the revised draft has yet not been signed by the legislators of the joint select committee. The next and final meeting is scheduled on June 25 where the said draft is likely to be presented. 'If the amendments are not as per the discussion, it will be difficult for us to sign. We may have to submit the dissent note in that case,' said a legislator from opposition who was part of the Joint Select Committee. The state government in May 2024 introduced the said bill. It gives sweeping powers to the state government to clamp down Naxal activities. It was opposed by civil society groups as well as opposition parties in the state saying those opposing government will be targeted using the bill by labelling them as involved in Naxal activities. 'One of the questions we raised was about allegations of malpractices in arresting several individuals to call them Naxal. There are allegations of planting digital evidence, hacking their e-mails. The law can be misused by agencies as proposed bill gives freedom to government agencies to use unlimited power to target individuals,' said a legislator from legislative council. The legislators also pointed out that existing UAPA has been used against Naxals in many cases. 'We asked that why can't the same be used? Why do we need this new law?' he said. According to another opposition MLA, the government was also asked about how agencies will differentiate between anti-government and anti-India protests? 'What if there is an act of violence in a protest against a government project by organisations? Will they be tried under this new law or existing ones? How will you differentiate?' the MLA asked. The demand of defining 'who is a Maoist' has also been raised, which has no clear answer in the present form of the bill. 'What constitutes a Maoist according to the government? We pointed out that if an affiliation to an organisation makes one Maoist, then we already have laws to deal with it,' the MLC said. Government sources have claimed that in a revised draft of the bill, amendment has been introduced to try only organisations and not individuals under the new law. In addition, the word 'unlawful activities' in the objective has been changed to 'unlawful activities of Leftist extremists.' 'The bill is now related to unlawful activities of Naxal or Leftist organisations. While I have demanded to remove the word Urban Naxal, I can comment on it only after seeing the draft of the bill,' said NCP-SP MLA Jitendra Awhad, a member of the committee. Another legislator Satej Patil of Congress sounded cautious. 'We have to wait until we see the draft. We have not yet signed it. We have raised valid questions in all three meetings and held deliberations for hours. We expect a positive response from the government,' he said.

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