When Secessionism is described deceitfully as ‘right to selfdetermination’, when overthrow of lawfully elected government is professed as ‘revolution’, when violence is justified as ‘struggle’, when anarchy is marketed as ‘uprising’, when unnatural individualism is sold as ‘rights activism’, when opposition to norms of social decency are branded as ‘rebellion’... Beware! For, those getting attracted to such terminology may be becoming pawns in the great game of political violence masqueraded as an ideological fight One may find some resemblance of this description with certain developments in India. Of course, if one studies the ideological statements of certain organisations, one may not be surprised that such organisations were banned.

 

There are several such organisations including the Communist Party of India (Maoist), the Popular Front of India (PFI), the Babbar Khalsa International etc. In case of the Maoists, the Government of India has launched an offensive following which many of the Red terrorists are either getting killed in encounters or surrendering before the police. But, even the surrendered Maoist cadres and the underground cadres of other banned organisations have been saying that the ideologies of respective organisations may not die.Why? Because, those selling the provocation of violence with a sugarcoat of ideology are still out there, mostly scot-free. Against this backdrop, it becomes necessary to understand what could be called ‘ideology-violence tango’.

 

As has been proven by world history, those preaching ideology but advocating violence have political intentions -- either to come to power by overthrowing a mighty opponent or to stay in power by overawing the relatively weaker opposition. This kind of ideological preaching ferments for a long time till it gathers enough numbers to rally with. Many, who support overthrow of a government but do not themselves have wherewithal to do so, keep giving covert support to violence inherent in such destructive ideologies. They stay below the radar and hence cannot be booked directly by the authorities due to technical points, which highlights inadequacies of the existing laws.These nefarious elements take advantage of this situation and continue operating. But, these elements cannot be corrected. For, those professing an ideology with violence inherent in it, are actually blinded by their own justifications of undemocratic means. They do not recognise any rules, laws, norms, conventions, Constitutional and democratic values upon which is based the lawful functioning of a government, country, organisation, or a society.When the government responds to such a menace by way of declaring an organisation as a proscribed one, only the overtly violent elements vanish from the scene as they go underground. But, the sympathisers and professors of ideology continue working under the garb of academia, activism, and civil society. They ensure that justification for violence they want stays alive with the coat of ideology.

 

This proves their political intentions shorn of belief in democratic and Constitutional values of a country. These so-called ideologues resort to a campaign aimed at erosion of faith in the existing system, do handshake with forces inimical to own country, devise newer terminology to vilify the ruling dispensation and majority, adopt selectivism, promote cancel culture, cloud popular thinking on issues of importance, create stigma about standing with right causes, associate guilt with cherished values like nationalism and culture, and hide behind the shield of human rights that they do not actually mean to uphold for every section of society. In short, these elements develop, and work on, a monochromatic vision. They fail to see the colourful rainbow of unity in diversity. Because, they are only interested in dividing a society to deplete its strength so as to create conditions that suit the dark agenda. The Left Wing Extremism and organisations like the PFI, their secret funders, international patrons put together form an ecosystem that wears the mask of dissent to hide the real character of violence.

 

Those supporting such forces attract people with epistemological idealism, dream of change, and rally them towards achieving their own goal of destabilising a country or a society. With the world growing more complex, onslaught on a nation’s sovereignty and peace is bound to be marketed to gullible segments as blueprint for ‘revolution’. Though the government agencies and intelligence apparatus may be able to sense this, ordinary people including even the celebrated academicians and activists and intellectuals may not be able to realise that the forces inimical to a country are selling provocation for violent overthrow of democratically elected government under a Constitutional mechanism. For, such provocation is being sold with a sugarcoat of ideology and promise for closure of some historical wound.

 

Particularly the Indian society needs to refine its thinking to protect its own socio-cultural and socio-political values from being assaulted in the name of some modern-sounding but monochromatic anarchic ideas. Because, while the so-called ideologies ingrained with violent action tend to disconnect people from one another, the Indian cultural ethos has the inherent character of finding unity through shared connection.This Indian thought can indeed defeat ideology-violence tango with the philosophy-culture Classicism. The only requisite is collective resolve for positive outcome.