End equivalence

The Maoist landmine explosion in Dantewada on May 17 targeted a private bus,killing at least 24 civilians and 11 special police officers. The massacre has provoked criticism from civil society,condemning Naxalites for targeting innocent civilians. The comparison to the SPO deaths,or to the earlier killings of state officials by Maoists,is stark. The argument is that both Maoist as well as state violence must be condemned. This equivalence has an implicit reverse. Since police officers,CRPF personnel,and even unarmed state functionaries are combatants in the war against Naxals,their deaths dont count. At best,they are inevitable targets,at worst they are legitimate ones. It is this argument that needs testing.

To begin with,we are not talking about an abstract war in distant climes. We are talking about a struggle in the heart of India for its democratic soul. There can be debates over the grievances that some claim motivate the Maoist rank and file,but their partys explicit definition of success is a totalitarian regime untroubled by free and fair elections,pluralism,and dissent. Those who dont wish to take sides have the luxury of doing so,secure from the everyday brutality of Maoists or the seriousness with which civil administration is being challenged in the red corridor. Besides,since Maoists are unlikely to overthrow the Indian state,the true horror of their vision can easily be wished away.

In any liberal democracy,it is the duty of a free press to expose government abuse; this newspaper has gone out on a limb to condemn violations by state officials. But that does not mean equating Maoists with a legitimate state. The killing of Indian officials,whether armed or unarmed,is indefensible. The tragedy in Dantewada was not just that 24 civilians died in a landmine blast triggered by Naxals. It is that 11 special police officers also died,and they died fighting for the luxuries and ideals we enjoy,we cherish. To clinically dimiss them as combatants and shroud their bodies in indifference would be considered treason elsewhere. Even in a liberal polity as relaxed as ours,some lines must be drawn.