Naxals claim to be pro-poor and pro-tribal, but is this true?

Tribals in Chhattisgarh's Bastar district recently spoke about their objection to Naxal related violence and exposed the modus operandi of the latter.

Speaking on condition of anonymity, one tribal said, "Naxals took us and forced us to take up arms. They lured us into believing that we could form our own government and country.They (Naxals) said the government constructs roads but will not allow them to."

Another tribal said, "The Naxals summoned our village before an open court and killed him brutally. They cut his body into several pieces. This is the standard of Naxal brutality."

A third tribal said, "The Naxals don't want schools to be constructed in the area. They force villagers not to send their kids to government schools. They provoke villagers to oppose any road and bridge construction. The Naxals misguide villagers about forests disappearing with these projects. We are now living in a camp. The Naxals even threaten to kill us if we return to our village.

The Naxals are not only misleading innocent villagers, but also are obstructing development projects in the state. They carry out attacks on workers engaged in road and bridge construction.

However, their real face has been exposed and tribal villagers have realized the importance of development.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)