Naxalism will be wiped out by March 31: Amit Shah

Asserting that the menace of Left-Wing Extremism (LWE) will be completely eradicated by March 31, Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Sunday here said security-centric strategy, infrastructure development, and disruption of Maoist financial networks have yielded results in the fight against the menace.

He made these remarks after chairing a high-level security review meeting on LWE, weeks ahead of the Centre’s March 31 deadline to eliminate Maoist insurgency. “Today in Raipur, I held a review meeting with the Chhattisgarh Government and officials on anti-Naxal operations. The security-centric strategy, infrastructure development, targeting of the Naxal financial network and the surrender policy have yielded positive results, and Naxalism will be completely eradicated before March 31,” the home minister posted on X. Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Vishnu Deo Sai, Deputy Chief Minister Vijay Sharma, Union Home Secretary, Director of the Intelligence Bureau (IB) and Special Secretary (Internal Security) in the Ministry of Home Affairs attended the meeting, an official said.

Directors general of the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF), Border Security Force (BSF), Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) and National Investigation Agency (NIA), as well as Chhattisgarh, Odisha, Maharashtra, Jharkhand and Telangana, along with several senior officers, were also present, he added.

Chhattisgarh’s Bastar region, comprising seven districts, shares borders with Maharashtra, Telangana, Andhra Pradesh and Odisha, and has long been considered the strongest bastion of Maoists. However, the region has witnessed intensified anti-Naxal operations over the past few years, considerably weakening the extremist movement.

Since January 2024, more than 500 Naxalites, including top cadres such as CPI (Maoist) general secretary Nambala Keshava Rao alias Basavaraju, have been killed in encounters in Chhattisgarh, while around 1,900 Naxalites were arrested and over 2,500 surrendered during the same period in the state, as per police.