By The Editor

The recent attack and killing of our jawans in Chhattisgarh has refreshed people’s mind of a problem about which we pay heed for only one or two days in every three or four months. It’s like living with Cancer and the government hopes that turning a blind eye will cure the disease. The surprising part is that except the official home ministry statements no major figure in government, not even prime minister discussed this tragedy with public.

 The primary concerns here are not socio-economic problem, nor government stand or ideology of the ultras and reds but what about family of those constables and soldiers who died in the line of duty. These people weren’t there to settle some old score with Naxals, nor were any senior official in the government against whom these rebels might have had a beef but were mere foot soldiers following orders. Time will move on, new recruits will replace them and this cycle of violence will continue as it had for decades but what about those who lost their father, husband and breadwinner of the family. This callous attitude of not taking care of our own is the demoralizing cause.

Abraham Lincoln was one of the few leaders in world history who use to visit his soldiers on the frontlines regularly during the American Civil War. The man use to personally sign many of the letters expressing condolence to the family members of the soldiers who fell in the line of duty and sometimes use to write those letters himself, we ask a lot less from our leaders. Now coming to the deployment of army in fighting Maoists, from Communist China to Stalin of communist regimes had used armies to suppress dissent whether its sending people to Gulags or rolling over tanks on protesters in Tiananmen square but this is no dissent we are facing, this is lunacy. Government should stand by its soldiers no matter how wrong or right our side is. Indira Gandhi used armed forces to suppress Naxal insurgency. The government has an obligation towards its citizens and these are the times when it should show its commitment towards its people. There are rallies with Pakistani flags in Kashmir, one has to ask where all this is going?

 Now coming to the people in focus itself, the issues for which ultras are fighting against is in fact has lot to do with our political failure in bringing impoverished, disenfranchised people in mainstream. Factionism, casteism, feudalism and many other factors lead to the situation we are in today but after decades of violence did it bring any answer to the questions rebel are fighting for. Disagreement is not taken well within communist ideology but did all this bloodshed bring them anything, any change towards a better future. There are other ways to bring a change besides bullet. The anti government ideology works in certain part of the country but most of the Indians despise violence especially against civilians and troops. No matter how strong once forces are, how well defined the strategy is, no one can fight forever.

 No country will accept peace at cost of its sovereignty but there should be an end to the cycle of violence.  Thousands of families have been affected because of this carnage, young men who could have made a difference died fighting other people’s war. How far one has to go to realize that this has gone too far?