We want to share here excerpts which were published from an interview of the Indian magazine "People's March" with the In-charge of the Central Military Commission (CMC) of the CPI (Maoist), Comrade Devji, on the occasion of the 20th anniversary celebrations of the People's Liberation Guerilla Army (PLGA) in a Guerilla Zone. He speaks about the role of the PLGA in the Indian revolution, the objectives, successes and politics of the PLGA within People's War.
The excerpts.
– People’s March – Red Salutes Comrade Devji! Firstly tell us about the present occasion.
Devji – Red Salutes! The Central Committee of the CPI (Maoist) decided to celebrate the 20th Anniversary of People’s Liberation Guerilla Army (PLGA) for one year starting on 2nd December 2020. I thank ‘People’s March’ for giving me an opportunity to speak about our glorious PLGA on this occasion.
PM – How do you define PLGA?
Dj – Our great Marxist teacher Karl Marx stated that revolution will be violent. Our Party decided that the basic problems of the people of the country originating from this rotten social system will be solved only by destroying it and bringing down the exploitive classes of imperialists, comprador bureaucratic capitalist and feudal landlords and establishing the new democratic state of all the oppressed classes, social sections and nationalities, i.e., a genuine democratic new state through Protracted People’s War. PLGA emerged with the glorious legacy of the Naxalbari revolutionary peasant uprising and such struggles like Kanksha, Sonarpur, Srikakulam, Bhirbhum, Lakhimpur-Kheri.
When the struggles took a consolidated and militant form in the later decades under the proletarian leadership of the Communist Party guided by the theory of Marxism-Leninism-Maoism, in the process, the PLGA took shape as the People’s Army. It is one of the three magnificent weapons in the hands of the Party. PLGA is a political army that works in the interests of the workers, peasants and other oppressed classes, oppressed social sections and oppressed nationalities of the country. This shall develop into the People’s Liberation Army (PLA). It establishes liberated areas in the rural areas through guerilla war, mobile war and positional war and ultimately encircle the towns and establish people’s state power all over the country. Now there are different levels of guerilla formations in 13 states out of the total 17 states of revolutionary movement in the country. There are higher formations of PLGA in places where class struggle and guerilla war are intense and dealing with power question practically.
PM :– What is the role of PLGA in Indian Revolution?
Dj – We can understand the role of PLGA in Indian Revolutionary Movement from the specific characteristics of the Indian society. 72 years of formal or fake independence in our country did not solve any of the basic problems of the various oppressed classes, social sections and nationalities. There is severe exploitation and cruel oppression of the entire laboring masses including industrial workers. Crores of workers are pushed on to the roads. Nearly half of the rural population is landless. 85 per cent of the landed peasantry belong to the poor and lower middle classes with less than 5 acres per family. More than three lakh farmers committed suicide in the country in the past three and a half decades of imperialist globalisation. Poverty is rising sharply. The students and the youth of the country are frustrated with rising unemployment. The micro, small and medium type industries in the MSME sector suffer heavily due to the aggressive policies of the Modi government that are in favor of the imperialists and their compradors in the country.The oppressed sections are increasingly being attacked by the Brahmanic Hindutwa fascist policies. There is a day to day rise in the atrocities on women.There is a rise in the inhumane and shameless attacks on the Dalit people. Millions of tribal people and peasants are pushed away by the fascist state from their lands that they have been cultivating for the past centuries. All oppressed nationalities are under the iron heel of Indian expansionists who are curbing their just struggles for right to selfdetermination.
PM – Tell us the experience of the PLGA and the people in fighting back the series of counter revolutionary offensive campaigns in two decades by the fascist state through their mercenary central and state forces.
Dj – The state has been following the LIC policy of the US imperialists in attempting to wipe out the revolutionary movement in the country. It has been unleashing one counter revolutionary offensive after on the revolutionary movement i.e. the party, PLGA and the people to destroy their valuable fruits of revolution in vain. Various Counter Guerilla forces such as the DRG, DVF, DF at the district level, State level Commando forces such as the Greyhounds, C-60, Hawk Force, STF, SOG, Jaguar and Thunderbolt, COBRA of the CRPF have been formed apart from all other Para-military forces such as CRPF, BSF, ITBP, SSB, CISF and Central Reserved Battalions together amounting to above 6 lakhs. In addition to these forces the ruling classes deployed special units of the Indian Army in disguise in 2020. The PLGA is able to heroically fight back with the support of the masses all these forces. 4,520 comrades shed blood to advance the People’s War in India in the past two decades. It fought back white militia such as the Jan Jagaran, Sendra, Peace Committee, Harmad Vahini and Salwa Judum in various states of the revolutionary movement. All these counter revolutionary offensives turned futile in eliminating the revolutionary movement in the country. Then the Indian ruling classes once again started an all India offensive that started in 2009 in the name of Operation Green Hunt (OGH). Under the guidance of the Party, relying on the people and with their active participation the PLGA is succeeding in fighting back each and every of these barbaric enemy campaigns. With the heroic resistance of the people and the PLGA, the central and the state governments once again failed in achieving their goal through this counter revolutionary Operation Green Hunt. With the intensifying guerilla war in several parts of the country the ruling classes of the country needed another counter revolutionary offensive. As a part of the economic crisis all over the world the imperialists are bent on further looting the natural resources of countries like India. The comprador rulers made hundreds of agreements with the imperialist Multi-National Corporations. The increasing resistance of the oppressed people of the country under the guidance of the CPI (Maoist) and its magnificent weapon the PLGA came in the way of the exploitive classes. In a bid to wipe out the revolutionary movement they started the multipronged counter revolutionary strategic “SAMADHAN” offensive in 2017.The people know they will have to fight until they win final victory over the enemy classes by destroying this evil social system and set up their new state power. People are with the Party and the PLGA. This is the real strength of the people and this is the real strength of the Party and the PLGA.
PM – Explain the successes and failures of PLGA.
Dj – The successes of PLGA are based on the politicomilitary line of the Party. Our line was tested and steeled in PPW. Basing on the line the PLGA gives utmost importance to build mass base and makes war to wipe out the enemy forces to the possible extent as well as to preserve the revolutionary forces. Seizure of state power is the central task of revolution that needs force. We destroyed the local authority in several rural areas of the country where the PLGA strongly fought back the enemy forces and established organs of people’s state power. This is a significant political success. We are developing the PLGA by creatively applying the theory of PPW in the direction of transforming it into People’s Liberation Army (PLA). We are relentlessly striving to accumulate our subjective strength, our fighting capability and expand areas of the movement by political and organisational work and expansion and intensification of guerilla war and procuring armaments from the enemy. In the process we took up several big Guerilla actions in the past 20 years that possess the characteristics of mobile war. We wiped out the enemy forces in relatively large numbers in ambushes such as Mukram and Kajara in DK and BJ in which a platoon of the enemy forces was wiped out and in Mukaram we wiped out a company of the CRPF. In almost all these major battles our people’s forces seized large number of armaments from the enemy forces and armed itself. Certain characteristics of mobile war came forth in these big guerilla battles. In the past 20 years PLGA wiped out 3,058 and injured 3,604 Central and State armed forces and seized 3,240 arms and 154,247 rounds of ammunition from them (up dated numbers). The actions temporarily contain the aggressiveness of the mercenary armed forces to an extent. Minapa ambush in 2020 March is a new and higher experience for the PLGA in which the enemy forces included a special unit of the Indian Army in the guise of the central and state forces. This is another significant success. Armaments are one important factor in any war and PLGA develops them. Com. Arvind (Com Dev Singh, PBM and CCM martyred in 2018 March) stood exemplary in preparing Improvised Explosives with the help of the guerilla forces. He made experiments with chemicals in the guerilla zones of Bihar- Jharkhand and spread these valuable experience to all areas. Although the state is encircling all the main areas of the movement since the OGH, deprived civil and military supplies and is attacking the people, Party and the PLGA, we are preparing several kinds of Improvised weapons and Explosive material basing on local resources and making guerilla war. PLGA is able to procure material for making war through the people in spite of severe blockades of the state. This is anotherachievement of People’s War. These are the major successes of the PLGA and the people. We are confident that we can fight back any number of fascist offensives of the enemy in the coming days basing on these positive experiences. Coming to the major failures, PLGA fails whenever it is negligent towards the implementation of the rules of guerilla war. It is a failure of PLGA to not able to protect its strength by avoiding unnecessary losses. We lost our cadres in large numbers in major attacks of the enemy in several areas of the country. We mainly suffered losses since 2011. Losses show a negative effect. They affect recruitment, few cadres lose confidence, weak elements surrender to the enemy and some even turn traitors. We are reviewing the situation time and again and trying to rectify the mistakes in our practice. We will certainly overcome our weaknesses and shortcomings. But we are undeterred with the failures. People’s war in invincible and People’s Army is invincible.
PM – How does PLGA integrate with the people?
Dj – PLGA’s sole interest is to serve the people and fight against the enemy to establish people’s state power. The People’s Army propagates relentlessly that the three classes – Imperialism,Comprador Bureaucratic Capitalism and feudalism are the main enemies of the broad masses of the people and as a part of rousing them in revolutionary politics, mobilises them in class struggles and organizes them for their liberation from exploitation and oppression and building a genuine democratic society. The CPI (Maoist) creatively applied the theory, laws and tasks of PPW formulated by the great teacher of international proletariat Comrade Mao, to the concrete conditions of our country. It not only respects people and people’s culture but also extensively participates in people’s cultural activities. It strictly follows class line and mass line. It serves the people in many ways. It provides health care. It participates in their agricultural production activities. It lends a hand in collecting forest produce. It achieved the enormous love and affection of the people. The people send their dear young boys and girls into PLGA as their responsibility in strengthening it and advancing people’s war. People are very close to PLGA and do not hesitate to criticize its mistakes. Thus the PLGA is being steeled and steeling further step by step as a real and strong People’s Army. In the process it strengthens the Party and the United Front.
PM – There are reports about the heroic deeds of women cadres of PLGA. How could you achieve the development?
Dj – Women are the most oppressed social section in the society. They are half of the society. They possess enormous strength. Our Party and PLGA led many class struggles against the enemy including patriarchy and brought a change in the society to some extent. Our Party is making strenuous efforts to shed patriarchal values among the cadres in three fronts, the Party, the PLGA and UF organisation and explore the strength and creativity of women cadres. The fact that women constitute almost twenty to half percent of PLGA in the country reveals their aspirations. We have the task of developing them into leading cadre at all levels in all the fronts.
PM – What is the policy of PLGA in military actions?
Dj – The Party formulated the policy in military actions basing on class line-mass line. The PLGA follows it. The armed forces of the exploitive ruling classes are constituted mostly with the oppressed masses. Therefore the Party and the PLGA appeal to the armed forces to aim their arms against their masters and not on the people. And it also repeatedly appeals them to quit. PLGA does not eliminate the surrendered enemy personnel. It treats the injured enemy. But whenever the armed forces make brutal attacks on the people and the PLGA cadres we ferociously retaliate. It also eliminates the diehard police informers and class enemies. One of the political and organisational task of the Party is to organize the enemy forces as like any oppressed class or section. The Party Committee takes disciplinary action on those violate the military policy.
PM – Does PLGA have relations with the People’s Armies of the Maoist parties of other countries?
Dj – Our Party and PLGA hail proletarian internationalism. It has ideological relations with the People’s Armies of the Communist Parties that are ideologically together with our Party. PLGA imparted training to the PLA cadres in Nepal years ago. Our Party supports the fight of the North East armed organisations. We are studying the experiences of the People’s War in the Philippines, Turkey, Kurdistan and other such armed struggles. PLGA is ideologically hand in hand with the New People’s Army (NPA) of Philippines and TIKKO, the Guerilla army of the TKP (ML).
PM – What is your message to the Party, PLGA and the people?
Dj – The entire Party and PLGA must study the theory of PPW and its laws and the experiences of the Bolshevik revolution, the PPW in China, Vietnam and the ongoing PPWs in several countries through which it can learn, enhance its understanding and initiative and efficiency in conducting people’s war. The Party Committees and the Military Commands must give utmost importance to the creative application of the rules of Maoist theory of PPW in concrete revolutionary practice. They must also study the invaluable experiences of our revolutionary movement in the past 50 years, especially the experiences of guerilla war in the past 20 years after the formation of PLGA and master political work, mass work and military work and regain and accumulate strength and expand the PPW to all corners of the country according to the changing conditions. Only thus we can overcome the temporary setback and pave the way to achieving great successes. The people of the oppressed classes, social sections and nationalities must understand the aims and objectives of our party, its political line, unite in a genuine democratic united front to become a mighty force. It is the only way for the emancipation of the 13 billion vast masses of the country.
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