Sanyal’s suicide a signal to Maoists to shun violence?

The suicide of Kanu Sanyal, founder of the Naxalite movement, might prove to be an eye-opener for the educated but disillusioned young Maoists who have unleashed terror in different parts of the country.

Veteran Naxalites, many of whom have closely worked with Sanyal, feel by taking the extreme step, the legendary leader wanted to tell ultra-red forces that what they are doing is not right.

Azizul Haque, one of Sanyal’s closest confidants in the violent days of the sixties and seventies, said, “His death is not a simple case of suicide. It is a protest by a born revolutionary. It is a message to modern-day Maoists that what they are doing ultimately affects the poorest sections of society, for which they claim to have taken up arms.”

Haque said whenever he met Sanyal in his last couple of years, their discussions always revolved round the ongoing violence by ultra-red guerrillas and the counter action by the security forces.

“Kanuda could not bear what is happening in the name of Mao Zedong. He would say they [Maoists] are killing poor people who do not subscribe to their violent ways to strengthen grip on the red corridor and the combined forces are countering the offensive, again at the expense of the poor. In both cases, the ultimate sufferers are the tribals. This thought kept troubling him and he ultimately decided to take the extreme step in protest,” he said and hoped Sanyal’s death would open the eyes of Maoists.

Educationist and economist Probir Mukherjee, who had also received Sanyal’s blessings, agreed with Haque but struck a different note. Undoubtedly, the Maoist uprising is a result of years of exploitation, he said, adding that instead of highlighting the real reasons for the insurrection, Maoist groups are highlighting violence.

“Whatever popularity or [media] coverage they have received is because of their nuisance value, not because of the cause for which they are supposedly fighting. In this, the main reason for the feeling of deprivation among tribals always goes unnoticed. What keep floating in the minds of people are insurgent actions and in a way, that leads to negative publicity for the reason for the uprising,” Mukherjee said.