‘PM Modi didn’t say…’: Kiren Rijiju shares ‘dimagi naxals’ list after Opposition’s ‘proud to be’ jibe
Parliamentary Affairs Minister Rijiju Publishes Criteria for Modi's 'Dimagi Naxal' Label
Bharatmorningnews.com – Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Independence Day address from the Red Fort ramparts on Saturday ignited a fresh round of political controversy when he urged that so-called "dimagi naxals" — individuals harbouring a Maoist mindset — be identified and isolated across the country.
The following day, Union minister of parliamentary affairs Kiren Rijiju moved to clarify what the Prime Minister had meant, pushing back against opposition claims that the remark was aimed at rival party leaders. In a post on X, Rijiju stated flatly that Modi had not labelled opposition politicians as people with a Naxal mentality.
"PM @narendramodi ji didn't say opposition leaders as Dimagi Naxals. Only following are Dimagi Naxals: 1. Who support Maoists and reject Indian Constitution. 2. Who stand with separatists & support Article 370. 4. Who want to cut chicken neck to separate North-East from India," Rijiju wrote.
Modi's Original Remarks
In his Saturday speech, the Prime Minister drew a distinction between armed Naxal insurgents in the jungles — whom he said have been eliminated — and ideological counterparts operating in other spheres of public life. He warned that these "dimagi naxals" were scanning for openings to push violence and steer the nation down an incorrect trajectory.
"For years, people with Maoist thinking were there in public life, even in government committees; this thinking had affected various institutions and initiatives. My dear countrymen, we have been able to curb and free the country from 'hathariya naxal' (armed naxal)," PM Modi said.
"Even if these naxals are gone, the 'dimagi naxal' (people with naxal thinking), are looking for an opportunity, looking to see ways of violence, and trying to drag the country down a wrong path. We need to identify these dimagi naxal, isolate them, and bring the youth together for a developed country," he added.
Congress Pushback
The party's response was swift. Senior Congress leader Jairam Ramesh dismissed the terminology as empty political theatre, noting that the Home Minister had previously told Parliament no formal definition existed for the analogous phrase "urban naxal."
"Two or three years ago, he (PM Modi) called his political opponents 'Urban Naxals'; at that time, the question arose in Parliament as to what the definition of 'Urban Naxal' was. The Home Minister replied that there is no such thing as an 'Urban Naxal,' nor is there any definition for it. Today, the Prime Minister is using the term 'Mental Naxal' (ideological Naxal) for his political opponents from the Red Fort," Jairam Ramesh alleged.
Ramesh went further, accusing the central government of routinely denigrating critics before later adopting the very policies those critics had championed. He cited the caste census as a case in point: Modi had once branded the demand "Urban Naxal" thinking, yet announced a caste-based enumeration roughly a year ago.
"The reality is that he eventually accepts the issues and demands raised by the very people he labels as 'Urban Naxals.' He had dismissed the idea of a caste census as 'Urban Naxal' thinking, yet a year ago, he announced a caste-based census. First, you make derogatory remarks--calling them 'Urban Naxals' or 'Mental Naxals'--but later, you accept the very demands your political opponents were making... Even after 12 years, there was nothing new in his political speech," the Congress leader said.
Congress as a party likewise condemned the Red Fort address, characterising the warnings against ideological Naxals as hollow rhetoric devoid of substantive content.
A Personal Jibe
Earlier on Sunday, veteran Congress figure P Chidambaram took to X with a pointed reply: pointing at the Prime Minister's speech, he declared himself "proud to be a Dimagi Naxal," turning the label into a badge of ideological conviction.
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