‘Armed struggle has failed in India… We urge all to come out’: Ex-Maoist ideological head in first interview

Excerpts:

IE: You joined the Radical Students’ Union (RSU) in your youth and then became a Maoist. What made you do that?

Mallojula Venugopal Rao: I joined the RSU owing to my family’s political background – my father was a freedom fighter and my mother held progressive views. My elder brother Koteshwaralu (Kishenji) was a key figure in founding the RSU. The social conditions in Telangana, particularly North Telangana, which was under an oppressive feudal landlord system, too prompted me to join the RSU.

I realised I became a party member by 1980 when my seniors told me. I felt happy. From then until October 13, 2025 (Rao surrendered on October 14), I worked at various levels as a member of the CPI (Maoist).

IE: You lived inside the forest for about 50 years. What was it like?

Mallojula Venugopal Rao: My life in the forest movement remains a golden chapter. My life intertwined with the lives of those people who are considered ‘uncivilized’, who seemed to be cast away… I (met) those people almost half-a-century ago. They were tribals. The Forest Department’s atrocities against them were severe. They did not have enough food… or clothes… Education and healthcare were out of reach.

The Maoist party believed that they (the tribals) should have authority over the forests, that they are the rightful owners of those resources. The party chose that region as the starting point for empowering the oppressed classes… Working in such a region… brought me great happiness and satisfaction.

But our party could not advance the movement due to the mistakes it made over the past half century.

IE: What was the point at which you felt it was enough, that you should surrender?

Mallojula Venugopal Rao: I never thought of surrendering owing to the struggles (of underground life). But we (the party) failed to enrich our ideology and practice according to changing conditions. The conditions of the 1980s are no longer present in the 21st century. Even in the past 25 years, significant changes in the country’s economic system (part of the world imperialist system) have taken place. Our Central Committee (CC) detailed these changes in two consecutive documents called ‘MOP (Mode of Production)’ and CBB (Comprador Bureaucratic Bourgeoisie)’.

Facing losses upon losses, as the movement weakened and hopes and beliefs faded, we realised that stubbornly sticking to armed struggle… would be unwise. Our party’s general secretary Comrade Basavaraj (Basavaraju) decided on a temporary cessation of armed struggle. In the process of implementing it, he lost his life in a brutal police encounter, leading us – who ideologically, politically and organisationally agreed with him – to take this ‘surrender’ decision collectively as his trusted comrades. I have had differences with my party’s stand for the past quarter of a century.

IE: When Kishenji was killed in 2011, you did not surrender. What went through your mind then?

Mallojula Venugopal Rao: At the time of my brother’s death, none of us… thought of surrendering. However, by then, I understood some of the party’s basic mistakes. I wanted to work as a member of the CC and Politburo to rectify them. I presented my opinions… before the CC in 2020. The CC unanimously rejected (them). But later, the CC not only recognised my opinions but also prepared to rectify the mistakes. However, by then, the situation had gone completely out of hand.

At this critical juncture, our general secretary decided on a temporary cessation of armed struggle. However, he did not boldly and openly announce his decision, causing the party to pay a hefty price, including with his life. In such a situation, to fulfill the duty he started, and left midway, we collectively made this decision, with the support, encouragement and motivation of comrades who stood by him (Basavarju) during the peace negotiations process.

IE: You were known as the ideological head of the CPI (Maoist). Now you are being called a traitor. Are you scared for your safety?

Mallojula Venugopal Rao: For many years, our movement has not been progressing in any state in the country. Even in the relatively strong Dandakaranya (the Maoist hot bed), the movement had faced setbacks by 2020. In such a situation, preserving the remaining forces became the most important duty before us to continue the movement in another form.

I was never afraid of my personal safety but for the party’s security. The Indian armed movement has reached extremely adverse conditions, all avenues to rectify it are closed, and there are no opportunities to protect its people – if I had made this decision out of fear for my own life, I would have made it long ago. I was not afraid, why should I be afraid? But I thought of protecting everyone’s lives and thereby preserving the revolutionary movement.

I would be happy if any of those who call me a traitor read the last circular written by our Politburo and the 22-page document I released. Some people claim that revolutionary conditions in the country are better than before and that Maoism is invincible, but they are only speaking theory and showing their pen power on paper and in front of microphones. If they are real revolutionaries, they would first understand the changing conditions across the world and realise our blunders.

Those calling me a traitor are not seeing the sun. They are only looking at the fingers pointing at the sun. They have not understood the revolutionary movement at all.

IE: For the longest time you were away from home. What is home for you now?

Mallojula Venugopal Rao: Yes, I left home in my youth. For nearly half a century, I was away from my home and relatives. Even now, I want to be among the people. Until yesterday, I was unknown. Now, I want to be known. I want to be known among the people. My home and relatives are people of this country.

IE: How, according to you, did the Maoist party lose its base among the people?

Mallojula Venugopal Rao: Due to the mistakes of the Maoist party, its foundation among people deteriorated. People’s base means a consolidated mass base. Our party’s biggest mistake was not having an underground (cadre) capable of leading the people under adverse conditions. Comrade Lenin said in one sentence, ‘That there is no revolution without a revolutionary party’. I believe that is what happened in India. Our party underestimated the power of the Indian State. We rejected the legal opportunities to unite the broad masses.

IE: When you heard of Madvi Hidma being killed (on November 18), what went through your mind? Were you close to him?

Mallojula Venugopal Rao: I learned about comrade Hidma’s death through media reports, like everyone else… I recalled immediately the resolutions made by Hidma and two other CC members and four Special Zonal Committee members at a special meeting in August. They realised that we could not stay in Dandakaranya. They considered splitting into three groups. One decided to go to a place with opportunities and survive for at least two years. The second considered going to neighbouring states. The third, a small group, decided to stay in Dandakaranya. I think that Comrade Hidma went outside Dandakaranya as part of this plan. I felt that it was a wrong decision.

Hidma was a very close comrade of mine. He was a brave and perfect guerrilla military commander. I knew him for almost 20 years. Our party failed to save him and so many other brilliant youngsters. It failed to comprehensively develop such active young comrades.

IE: There seems to be an ideological rift between those who say we should join the mainstream and those who believe armed struggle should continue. What is the future of the CPI (Maoist)?

Mallojula Venugopal Rao: I realised that it was not possible to rectify the long-time shortcomings in the party while remaining armed amidst the current ‘encirclement and annihilation’ attacks (Operation Kagar of the security forces). My assessment has proven correct. Those insisting on continuing the armed struggle will inevitably be pushed into more mistakes and losses, leading to irreparable damage to the Indian people’s movement, as evidenced by the recent loss of Comrade Hidma.

Continuing on that path means no future for the party. Our past mistakes and the losses in the current attacks are crystal clear. The ‘outsiders’ blindly wielding swords in the air do not understand this. I request them to stop these malicious attempts.

IE: What is your advice or message to Thippiri Tirupathi a.k.a Devuji and other underground CC and Politburo members?

Mallojula Venugopal Rao: Even now, party workers and leaders who want to continue the armed struggle and work towards area-wise seizure of power are refusing to see the experience of the past five decades. This experiment has not succeeded anywhere in the country. It is not succeeding in semi-colonial, semi-feudal countries worldwide. They are shedding a lot of blood and making unparalleled sacrifices. They are not learning from those sacrifices. There is nothing to do but lament the stubbornness of those unwilling to understand the historical truth that sacrifices are in vain. I have repeatedly appealed to them to abandon that path and come out.

We are using every resource available to us to request all those on that path to come out. Through you, my appeal is the same. We urge them all to lay down arms, leave the underground life, and come to the vast masses, (and stop) listening to anyone who has been misguiding us for a long time, and (stop) clinging to false prestige.

IE: You are a Brahmin by birth. How does caste work within the Maoist party?

Mallojula Venugopal Rao: When you mention that I was born a Brahmin, it reminds me of the comments I faced regarding my habits in the party. I have a habit of bathing daily, if conditions permit. It is good for your health. However, my leader, comrades mocked me, calling it a ‘Brahmin habit’. Perhaps there is no weapon greater than caste in our country.

IE: The CPI (Maoist) has always fought against mining. Now the government’s rehabilitation policy for Maoists is attached to employment in mining firms. Does this worry or create a conflict of interest for you?

Mallojula Venugopal Rao: It is true that we opposed indiscriminate mining. We opposed it to protect our country’s resources and forests and to prevent people from becoming homeless. It is necessary to understand how the government rehabilitation policy is related to it. The state needs mining. The destruction faced by Native Americans once is being faced by our country’s tribals and oppressed people now. It is a historical process. It did not start today. It is, in a way, a continuation of the colonial history of the past two centuries. The accumulation of capital needs destruction.

IE: What do you envision yourself doing in the next few years? How can you merge with the ‘mainstream’?

Mallojula Venugopal Rao: Wait and see.

IE: Your wife Vimala Chandra Sidam, a.k.a Tarakka surrendered before you. How did that happen?

Mallojula Venugopal Rao: The revolutionary movement had brought us together and led to our marriage. For nearly four decades, we maintained our marital bond and shared our lives amidst the revolutionary struggle… When it became impossible to protect her, many senior members and the sick in the forest, we had no choice but to send them out with great sorrow, pain and grief. Leaving them in the forest… would mean sacrificing many more young and promising forces, which we had no right to do. With this understanding, I took responsibility and, despite their reluctance, explained the party’s helpless situation and sent them out… The same thing was done by other CC members after six months.

IE: Where do you see yourself and your wife in the next 10 years?

Mallojula Venugopal Rao: The future will decide.

IE: When faced with State repression, some say it is not okay to run away. What is your response to such people?

Mallojula Venugopal Rao: Ultimately, the party and its leadership have reached this stage due to their own mistakes. The CC must take full responsibility for this unfortunate situation. I accepted my share of the responsibility, publicly admitted my mistake before the people, and emerged from a life of anonymity. I urged the remaining leaders to do the same.

IE: Will you contest elections in the future?

Mallojula Venugopal Rao: First, I want to clarify that the party has given strategic importance to boycotting elections, whereas it is against Leninist doctrine. Tactically, elections can be used by anyone to advance their task.