Naxalite–Maoist insurgency

The Naxalite–Maoist insurgency, a conflict waged by left-wing extremist (LWE) groups following a Maoist political ideology and claim to be fighting a rural people's war against the Indian government, began with the 1967 Naxalbari uprising and the subsequent split from the Communist Party of India (Marxist), leading to the formation of a Marxist–Leninist faction that later splintered into smaller groups. Declared terrorist organisations under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act of India (1967), the Naxalites' armed wing, the People's Liberation Guerrilla Army, has been responsible for the deaths of over 4,000 civilians and 2,500 security personnel since the 2000s.

Due to government's people-oriented infrastructure development and counter-insurgency efforts, Naxals' influence zone – the red corridor in Central and East India – has shrunk dramatically from a peak of nearly 180 districts in the late 2000s to just 12 districts by 2025, with over 10,000 insurgents surrendering between 2015 and 2025.

In 1967, a faction of the Communist Party of India (Marxist) led by Charu Majumdar, Kanu Sanyal, and Jangal Santhal called the "Siliguri group" wanted a protracted people's war in India similar to the Chinese Communist Revolution and Majumdar wrote the Historic Eight Documents which became the foundation of the Naxalite movement. The party was part of a coalition government in West Bengal. Majumdar believed that the party would support his doctrine with other leaders like land minister Hare Krishna Konar who had been supporting his rhetoric suggesting that "the militant confiscation of land was integral to the party's programme." However, the party did not approve of the armed uprising, which led to internal conflict with the sympathizers of the group.

In March 1967, a few peasant workers seized a plot of land from its jotedar. In May 1967, the Siliguri Kishan Sabha, of which Santhal was the president, declared their support for the movement initiated by Sanyal and their readiness to adopt an armed struggle to redistribute land to the landless. The group advocated initiation of armed struggle and in Naxalbari in West Bengal, the peasants fought when a sharecropper of tribal background, who had been given land by the courts under the tenancy laws, was attacked by the previous landlord's men. When the police arrived, they were ambushed by a group led by Santhal, and in the ensuing fight, 11 people including a police inspector were killed. In November 1967, a group led by Sushital Ray Chowdhury organised the All India Coordination Committee of Communist Revolutionaries (AICCCR).

The uprising led to the formation of Communist Party of India (Marxist–Leninist) (CPI-ML) in April 1969, which was announced by Sanyal at a mass meeting in Calcutta. It inspired similar movements in states like Odisha, Madhya Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh and Kerala. In 1971, Satyanarayan Singh revolted against the leadership and split the CPI-ML into two, forming a separate provisional committee. The Naxalites gained presence among the radical sections of the student groups in Calcutta. Students left school to join the Naxalites and Majumdar declared that the revolutionary warfare was to take place not only in the rural areas as before, but now everywhere and spontaneously. He also declared an "annihilation line" and issued a dictum to assassinate individual "class enemies" such as landlords, businessmen, teachers, police officers, politicians and others.

In response, the Government of West Bengal instituted countermeasures against the Naxalites. The insurgents clashed with the West Bengal Police and CPI-M cadres. With the public rejection of Majumdar's calls for extrajudicial killings, Naxalites alleged human rights violations by the state government, which responded that "the state was effectively fighting a civil war and that democratic pleasantries had no place in a war, especially when the opponent did not fight within the norms of democracy and civility". With the support of the central government, Operation Steeplechase was launched with the aid of the paramilitary forces of the Indian Armed Forces, which resulted in the killing and imprisoning of suspected Naxalites and their cadres, including senior leaders. In July 1972, Majumdar was arrested by the West Bengal Police and he later died in police custody. After his death, the CPI-ML split into further factions such as the Mahadev Mukherjee faction and the CPI-ML Liberation in 1972. By 1973, the main leaders of the Naxalites were either eliminated or arrested. As a result of both external repression and a failure to maintain internal unity, the movement degenerated into extreme sectarianism and the original party fractured into more than 40 separate small groups.

The late 1970s saw the spread of Naxalism to other states of India. Though the first wave of insurgent violence ended badly, it did not eliminate the movement altogether. The insurgency arose in South India in the early 1980s and on 22 April 1980, the Communist Party of India (Marxist–Leninist) People's War, commonly called as People's War Group (PWG) was founded by Kondapalli Seetharamaiah. He sought a more efficient structure in attacks and followed the principles of Majumdar. The insurgents kidnapped landlords and forced them to confess to crimes, apologize to villagers, and repay forced bribes. By the early 1980s, the insurgents had established a stronghold and sanctuary along the Andhra Pradesh–Orissa border.

In 1985, the Naxalites began ambushing police forces and killed N.Yadagiri Reddy, a sub-inspector of police in Warangal district of Andhra Pradesh. In response, a special task force called the Greyhounds was formed by the Government of Andhra Pradesh. The governments of Andhra Pradesh and Orissa quelled down the rebels with a variety of counterinsurgency measures. The states established special laws that enabled police to capture and detain Naxalite cadres, fighters and presumed supporters. They invited additional central paramilitary forces, set up organisations to attract youth away from the Naxalites, started rehabilitation programs for those who surrendered. In the 1990s, several incidents of mass murders happened in Bihar wherein Maoists killed members of the land-owning Bhumihar community, who then retaliated through militias.