War crime? Global NGO compares Central Indian counterinsurgency with Palestine, seeks ceasefire

By A Representative

In a strong statement echoing international concern, the People's Coalition on Food Sovereignty (PCFS) has condemned the Indian government's ongoing militarization and brutal operations in Central India, comparing the situation to the siege of Palestine. The coalition asserts that the Indian state is waging a full-blown war against its own people—particularly the Indigenous Adivasi communities—in order to facilitate corporate exploitation of mineral-rich lands.

According to PCFS, Central India—especially the regions of Bastar in Chhattisgarh and the Karegatta Hills in Telangana—has become a warzone under the guise of counter-insurgency operations targeting Maoist rebels, also known as Naxals. However, instead of targeting armed insurgents, the Indian security forces are alleged to be primarily attacking civilians. The statement highlights mass human rights abuses including extrajudicial killings, sexual violence, illegal arrests, burning of villages, and even aerial bombings.

“Over 400 extrajudicial killings, including children and the elderly, have occurred in Bastar alone since January 2024,” the coalition reported. “More than 300 villages have been torched and countless women have been subjected to mass sexual violence.”

The PCFS -- a global network of grassroots organizations, small food producers, indigenous peoples, and advocacy groups working to advance food sovereignty and social justice -- accused the Indian government of using the conflict to clear the way for neoliberal development projects and foreign investments. It said, laws like the Forest Rights Act (FRA) are being manipulated to dispossess Adivasi communities of their ancestral lands under the false banner of legal recognition.

The coalition particularly denounced Operation Kagar in Bastar and Operation Black Forest in Karegatta Hills—ongoing state-led military offensives—as efforts to suppress Indigenous resistance and clear ground for extractive industries. It also condemned the killing of top Maoist leaders even after they had declared a unilateral ceasefire, calling these actions war crimes.

“These state-led offensives do not address the root causes of conflict but rather escalate violence and deepen hunger, displacement, and poverty,” the statement said. “There would be no need for armed resistance if people's rights to food, land, and dignity were upheld."

The coalition called for:

- An immediate ceasefire and initiation of peace talks

- Suspension of counter-insurgency programs

- Accountability for human rights violations and war crimes

- Genuine development based on the needs and rights of local communities

Comments

Gujarat minority rights group seeks suspension of Botad police officials for brutal assault on minor

By A Representative A human rights group, the Minority Coordination Committee (MCC) Gujarat, has written to the Director General of Police (DGP), Gandhinagar, demanding the immediate suspension and criminal action against police personnel of Botad police station for allegedly brutally assaulting a minor boy from the Muslim community.

On Teachers’ Day, remembering Mother Teresa as the teacher of compassion

By Fr. Cedric Prakash SJ It is Teachers’ Day once again! Significantly, the day also marks the Feast of St. Teresa of Calcutta (still lovingly called Mother Teresa). In 2012, the United Nations, as a fitting tribute to her, declared this day the International Day of Charity. A day pregnant with meaning—one that we must celebrate as meaningfully as possible.

Targeted eviction of Bengali-speaking Muslims across Assam districts alleged

By A Representative A delegation led by prominent academic and civil rights leader Sandeep Pandey visited three districts in Assam—Goalpara, Dhubri, and Lakhimpur—between 2 and 4 September 2025 to meet families affected by recent demolitions and evictions. The delegation reported widespread displacement of Bengali-speaking Muslim communities, many of whom possess valid citizenship documents including Aadhaar, voter ID, ration cards, PAN cards, and NRC certification.

A comrade in culture and controversy: Yao Wenyuan’s revolutionary legacy

By Harsh Thakor* This year marks two important anniversaries in Chinese revolutionary history—the 20th death anniversary of Yao Wenyuan, and the 50th anniversary of his seminal essay "On the Social Basis of the Lin Biao Anti-Party Clique". These milestones invite reflection on the man whose pen ignited the first sparks of the Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution and whose sharp ideological interventions left an indelible imprint on the political and cultural landscape of socialist China.

Gandhiji quoted as saying his anti-untouchability view has little space for inter-dining with "lower" castes

By A Representative A senior activist close to Narmada Bachao Andolan (NBA) leader Medha Patkar has defended top Booker prize winning novelist Arundhati Roy’s controversial utterance on Gandhiji that “his doctrine of nonviolence was based on an acceptance of the most brutal social hierarchy the world has ever known, the caste system.” Surprised at the police seeking video footage and transcript of Roy’s Mahatma Ayyankali memorial lecture at the Kerala University on July 17, Nandini K Oza in a recent blog quotes from available sources to “prove” that Gandhiji indeed believed in “removal of untouchability within the caste system.”

'Govts must walk the talk on gender equality, right to health, human rights to deliver SDGs by 2030'

By A Representative With just 64 months left to deliver on the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), global health and rights advocates have called upon governments to honour their commitments on gender equality and the human right to health. Speaking ahead of the 80th United Nations General Assembly (UNGA), experts warned that rising anti-rights and anti-gender pushes are threatening hard-won progress on SDG-3 (health and wellbeing) and SDG-5 (gender equality).

Is U.S. fast losing its financial and technological edge under Trump’s second tenure?

By Dr. Manoj Kumar Mishra* The United States, along with its Western European allies, once promoted globalization as a democratic force that would deliver shared prosperity and balanced growth. That promise has unraveled. Globalization, instead of building an even world, has produced one defined by inequality, asymmetry of power, and new vulnerabilities. For decades, Washington successfully turned this system to its advantage. Today, however, under Trump’s second administration, America is attempting to exploit the weaknesses of others without acknowledging how exposed it has become itself.

Bhojpuri cinema’s crisis: When popularity becomes an excuse for vulgarity

By Vidya Bhushan Rawat* Bhojpuri cinema is expanding rapidly. Songs from new films are eagerly awaited, and the industry is hailed for its booming business. Yet, big money and mass popularity do not automatically translate into quality cinema or meaningful content. The market has compelled us to celebrate numbers, even when what is being produced is deeply troubling.

What mainstream economists won’t tell you about Chinese modernisation

By Shiran Illanperuma China’s modernisation has been one of the most remarkable processes of the 21st century and one that has sparked endless academic debate. Meng Jie (孟捷), a distinguished professor from the School of Marxism at Fudan University in Shanghai, has spent the better part of his career unpacking this process to better understand what has taken place.

Counterview

Search This Blog