Amit Shah's ultimatum to naxals: 'Surrender or face all-out operation soon'

Home Minister Amit Shah has vowed an all-out operation against naxalism if the naxalites fail to lay down guns. He also revealed the 2026 deadline set by the Centre to eliminate this issue

Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Friday warned Naxalites that they must surrender or be prepared to face an all-out operation soon, reiterating the Narendra Modi government’s resolve to eliminate Naxalism from India.

While addressing 55 victims of Naxal violence from Chhattisgarh at his New Delhi residence, Shah said: “If Naxals don't listen to my appeal to give up violence, we will soon launch an all-out operation against them.”

Claiming that the Centre has been able to eliminate Naxalism from entire India except for four districts in Chhattisgarh, Shah said that a deadline of March 31, 2026, has been set to completely eliminate Naxalism.

 

#WATCH | Union Home Minister Amit Shah says, "We will uproot Naxalism and the idea of ​​Naxalism from this country and establish peace...The Narendra Modi government has been successful in ending Naxalism in the entire country except for 4 districts of Bastar. The date of… https://t.co/fvlyVxH52u pic.twitter.com/xlyxTFgG67

— ANI (@ANI) September 20, 2024

At the Delhi event, Shah met and interacted with the Naxal violence victims from Chhattisgarh. Bastar district has been a hotspot for Naxal activities, carried out by far-left radicals adhering to Maoist ideology. In an effort to address this menace, the Centre had come up with a ‘National Policy and Action Plan’ in 2015 to tackle left-wing extremism.

As part of the policy, more than Rs 1,600 crore has been disbursed to states for security-related expenditure since 2018-19, which includes Rs 587.96 crore for Chhattisgarh. To strengthen security infrastructure, an additional Rs 969.80 crore has been provided, including Rs 276.20 crore for Chhattisgarh, according to a press release issued by the home ministry in December 2023.

Govt data on left-wing extremism

According to data from the ministry, left-wing extremism has significantly declined over the past decade, decreasing by 76 per cent in 2022 compared to 2010. The data also states that deaths resulting from Naxal violence have dropped by 90 per cent during the same period, with a total of 98 casualties recorded in 2022. These include both security forces and civilians.

A comparison of official data from 2018 and 2022 revealed that Naxal-related violence in Chhattisgarh decreased by 22 per cent. Consequently, casualties dropped by 60 per cent during the same period.