Indian State Terrorism in Perspective: The Case of Naxalite/Maoist Movement

Abstract

While terrorism studies have extensively addressed non-state and sub-state terrorism, the issue of state terrorism remains notably under-explored. Although this bias has been critically addressed within the field, there remains a significant gap in the study of state terrorism perpetrated by developing democracies against their own citizens in the context of insurgent movements. This paper employs a qualitative research method to examine the questionable counter-insurgency tactics used by the Indian state against the Naxalite/Maoist movement. The analysis shows that the Indian state's counter-insurgency measures largely rely on extra-judicial killings, sexual violence against tribal women, extensive village destruction, widespread displacement, and dispossession of tribal communities from their ancestral lands. The study also uncovers the enactment of laws that offer impunity to state agents such as police and paramilitary forces, and the deployment of heavy-handed force through state-sponsored vigilante groups. Given their nature, the state's counter-insurgency measures can be reasonably classified as acts of state terrorism. These acts are executed by state agents, inherently violent, and incite fear among the unarmed tribal population. Importantly, they send a message to a broader tribal audience beyond the immediate victims of violence. This paper thus aims to provide an insight into state terrorism within the context of a developing democracy, using the Indian state's response to the Naxalite/Maoist movement as a case study.