Left Wing Extremism (LWE) is a concept and a major internal security challenge in India, referring to a violent insurgency driven by Maoist or Naxalite ideologies. It is commonly known as Naxalism in India.
The movement originated from the Naxalbari uprising in West Bengal in 1967, led by figures like Charu Majumdar and Kanu Sanyal. It was created as a response to deep-seated socio-economic inequalities, land disputes, and the neglect of tribal populations in rural areas. The problem it sought to solve, according to its proponents, was the overthrow of the democratic state through armed revolution to establish a classless, communist society.
LWE works through an armed insurgency, with the primary outfit being the Communist Party of India (Maoist), formed in 2004 by the merger of the People's War Group and the Maoist Communist Centre of India. Their mechanism involves guerrilla warfare, armed attacks, extortion, and the establishment of parallel governance structures in remote, underdeveloped, and tribal regions, historically known as the "Red Corridor". The armed wing of the Naxalites, the People's Liberation Guerrilla Army, is listed as a terrorist organization under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA).
LWE connects directly to the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA), which oversees the government's multi-pronged strategy to combat it. This strategy is formalized in the National Policy and Action Plan to address LWE approved in 2015. The government's counter-LWE mechanism is encapsulated in the SAMADHAN Framework, which stands for Smart Leadership, Aggressive Strategy, Motivation and Training, Actionable Intelligence, Dashboard for Key Performance Indicators, Harnessing Technology, Action Plan for Each Theatre, and No Access to Financing.
LWE has changed recently, showing a significant decline in its geographical spread and violence. The number of LWE-affected districts has drastically reduced from 126 in 2018 to 38 in April 2024, and the government aims for its complete elimination by March 31, 2026. The core strategy, which combines security operations with development initiatives, has stayed the same since the 2015 National Policy, but its implementation has been intensified, including the construction of Fortified Police Stations and the streamlining of schemes like the Security Related Expenditure (SRE) Scheme.