Conflicts among Maoist group didn't lead to murder, claim reformed naxals

Reformed naxals have strongly objected to the attempts to link journalist-activist Gauri Lankesh’s murder to conflicts among Maoist groups.

“This is a deliberate propaganda to protect the right wing. Nothing can be more heinous than this type of propaganda,” Noor Sridhar, a former naxal activist, whom Gauri had convinced to return to the mainstream, told DH.

“Conflicts among Maoist groups did not claim her life, rightist ideology did. I am sure about this not just 100%, but 2 lakh%. Never in the history of India, any naxal group has ever eliminated anybody due to ideological differences,” Sridhar said.

According to Sridhar, systematic campaign to link Gauri’s murder to conflicts among naxal groups began hours after the incident.

“A few rightist techies used social media and began the propaganda only to save right wings which are strongly suspected to be involved in the incident,” he said.

Presently, there are over 50 factions across the country in the Maoist movement.

Each of these factions parted ways due to ideological differences, but none of the factions targeted anybody over ideological issues, he claimed.

It was in December 2014, Sridhar along with Sirimane Nagaraj, Padmanabh Niluguli, Rizwan Begum, Parashuram, Bharati, Chennamma and Kanyakumari returned to the mainstream.

“We are greatly indebted to Gauri for our return to democratic way of struggle. She left behind an innovative model for naxals to return to mainstream,” he said.

Gauri ahd installed CCTV cameras outside her house so that her killers be known in case if she was murdered like rationalist Prof M M Kalburgi, he claimed.

Sirimane Nagaraj said such efforts are attempts to mislead the investigation. Shivasundar, who worked with Gauri for over a decade, also echoed similar views. “The right wing ideology has claimed Gauri. Rightists had attempted to prevent her speeches in Davangere in March this year,” he said.

“Naxal movement has weakened as its leaders were either killed or jailed. How could they kill Gauri?,” questioned another reformed naxalite.

According to writer-activist Prof Chandrashekhar Patil, fundamentalist organisations are behind the murders of Govind Pansare, Narendra Dabholkar and Kalburgi. Same organisations might have killed Gauri Lankesh too, he suspects.