New Delhi: BJP and NDA members in the Lok Sabha on Monday launched a scathing attack on the previous UPA government, accusing it of failing to contain Naxalism, while the Congress said it made several efforts to curb left-wing extremism and lost several of its top leaders to red terrorism.
Initiating the discussion on “efforts to free the country from left-wing extremism (LWE)”, Shiv Sena member Shrikant Shinde said under BJP rule, the “red corridor” has shrunk significantly and has been replaced by a growth corridor.
“….had the earlier governments timely intervened, the situation would have been different..because the government was not ‘mazboot’ (strong) but ‘majboor’ (helpless). A lack of political will to fight naxalism and policy paralysis were your (Congress) shortcomings…efforts were on to weaken the country from inside; foreign conspiracies were working, and Congress compromised with national security when it was in power,” he said.
Citing data, Shinde claimed that last year, 317 naxalites were killed, 862 were arrested, and 1,900 of them surrendered.
“In 2024 and 25, at least 28 naxal leaders were killed…including six members of the central committee. In 2026 so far, 630 cadres have shunned the path of violence and these statistics show that we have covered the distance from bullet to ballot,” he said.
TDP MP Byreddy Shabari told the House that she lost her family to left-wing extremism (LWE).
“There were highest number of Naxal attacks during the Congress rule, but thanks to the policy of PM Narendra Modi and relentless efforts by Home Minister Amit Shah that Naxalism is now on its way out,” she said.
Saptagiri Ulaka of Congress hit back, saying that the UPA government had launched operation green hunt and had created the Commando Battalion for Resolute Action (CoBRA) to deal with the Naxal threat.
Congress lost its entire top leadership in Chhattisgarh due to Naxalism, and the party has been a victim of LWE, Ulaka said, adding that the UPA government laid equal emphasis on welfare and security and believed that bullets alone cannot stop Naxalism.
Participating in the debate, Sambit Patra of the BJP said the main difference between the NDA and the UPA government was the approach in dealing with a threat.
He claimed that the Modi government has clarity and resolve while the UPA suffered from “confusion” and “collaboration”.
Patra claimed that an intellectual close to the Congress had described Naxals as “Gandhians with guns”.
He alleged that the Sonia Gandhi-led National Advisory Council had “urban naxals” as its members.
Referring to a reported affidavit filed by the then UPA government in court, he claimed that the Home Ministry had then admitted that there was a vacuum in development and security, which had led to a rise in Naxalism.
He claimed that the UPA government tried to mainstream Naxalism instead of curbing it.
TMC’s Mahua Moitra wondered why the House was having a discussion on Naxalism when a much worse crisis in West Asia was directly affecting the country.
She said while the government wants to pat its own back, people were suffering due to a shortage of LPG and fuel and skyrocketing airfares.
Union Home Minister Amit Shah had announced that the Naxal menace would be completely eliminated by March 31, 2026.
A fresh evaluation of the Naxal violence-affected regions has brought down the number of LWE-hit districts in the country to seven from eight in the December 2025 review.
The Union government recently reviewed the ‘National Policy and Action Plan to address LWE’ across 38 districts in nine states, comprising Jharkhand, Bihar, Andhra Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Odisha, Telangana and West Bengal.
