• Chapo_is_Red [he/him]
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    edit-2
    3 years ago

    They've been active for over half a century and might number in the tens of thousands (in a country of 1.3 billion). India is big, not just population wise, but territorially. The Naxals are active in rural, forested tribal areas where state reach is weak. Their continued resistance is impressive, but I'm not sure its indicative of anything.

      • Chapo_is_Red [he/him]
        ·
        edit-2
        3 years ago

        I think there's reason to be optimistic; I just think things can go either way and will take a while to develop. Kerala continues to provide a socialist model of state development. Communists are active in every state (even where they don't have any political offices), and they are connected to national organizations. Moreover the leftist electoral parties mostly act in unity (regularly, left unity in India means several parties all espousing Marxism-Leninism forming a coalition lol). Leftist parties also engage beyond elections in mass work, providing aid and public service.

        If you want to see why things are on a knife's edge, then look at the forces of reaction in action. In Tripura where CPM barely lost control in the last election, the BJP has violently attacked communists.

        I'm not an expert, but I agree with the sentiment that the farmer's movement has shown people what mass action can do. So new things can develop, and the struggle of the farmers has led to deeper organization and class consciousness among the farmers. But the future is still a big question mark.