Decode Politics: Why a ‘red book’ has seized Maharashtra poll discourse

What is the reddish book?

Fadnavis seemed to beryllium referring to the publication Quotations from Chairman Mao Tse-tung, a postulation of statements and aphorisms from the antheral credited with the enactment of the People’s Republic of China, which helium ruled till 1976.

Over the years, Mao’s publication has travel to beryllium called the ‘Little Red Book’ owed to its agleam reddish cover, a colour associated with the Communist Party, and its tiny size.

The publication was published primitively by the People’s Liberation Army Daily, the paper of the People’s Liberation Army (PLA), and yet became cardinal to Mao’s ideology and personality.

Thousands of copies of the publication were printed and distributed to citizens. As per the publication Mao Cult: Rhetoric and Ritual successful China’s Cultural Revolution (Cambridge University Press, 2013), written by modern Chinese historiographer Daniel Lesse, implicit a cardinal volumes of the publication were printed betwixt 1966 and 1969. By 1971, Lesse noted, the publication was translated into thirty-six languages, including Braille script, and published astir 110 cardinal times abroad.

In the foreword to the 2nd variation of the publication successful 1966, past Chinese vice-premier Lin Biao wrote: “The wide masses of the workers, peasants and soldiers and the wide ranks of the revolutionary cadres and the intellectuals should truly maestro Mao Tse-tung’s thought; they should each survey Chairman Mao’s writings, travel his teachings, enactment according to his instructions and beryllium his bully fighters.”

What is successful the book?

The publication contains Mao’s quotes and is divided into sections specified arsenic The Communist Party, Classes and Class Struggle, War and Peace, People’s War, Unity, among others.

Some of its celebrated quotes include: “The unit astatine the halfway starring our origin guardant is the Chinese Communist Party. The theoretical ground guiding our reasoning is Marxism- Leninism”; “Every Communist indispensable grasp the truth, ‘Political powerfulness grows retired of the tube of a gun’”; and “The seizure of powerfulness by equipped force, the colony of the contented by war, is the cardinal task and the highest signifier of revolution.”

How is it linked to the Naxal question successful India?

A section successful Mao’s Little Red Book: A Global History (Cambridge University Press) notes however the publication gained popularity astatine the outbreak of the Naxalite Movement successful 1967. It began with a section Communist-unit led peasants’ protestation against the section gentry, successful the hamlet of Naxalbari successful West Bengal’s Darjeeling, and past grew into the movement.

The section notes however Naxalbari person Charu Majumdar treated Mao’s quotations “like gospel”, insisting that the “comrades support a transcript of the Little Red Book connected their persons astatine each times”. This was to beryllium studied successful “indoctrination classes” and besides work aloud to assistance the illiterate peasants.

But the book’s popularity successful the question dipped aft Majumdar’s decease successful 1972.

Who does the BJP telephone ‘urban Naxals’?

The BJP has been utilizing the word regularly, peculiarly since the high-profile arrests of activists successful 2018 successful the Elgar Parishad case.

Speaking successful Parliament successful February 2022, Modi accused the Congress of being “trapped by the municipality Naxals”, and said its “thought process has been captured by municipality Naxals”, making it “destructive”.

However, successful a reply to a written question, Minister of State for Home G Kishan Reddy told Parliament successful March 2020: “The operation ‘Urban naxals’ is not utilized by the Ministry of Home Affairs, Government of India.” Reddy went connected to adhd that the government’s National Policy and Action Plan addresses Left Wing Extremism “in each its manifestations”, including municipality activities.

This peculiar violative against Gandhi seems aimed astatine checkmating the Opposition communicative of “threat to the Constitution” nether the Modi government, which proved palmy for it successful the Lok Sabha polls.

What precisely did Fadnavis say, and however has Congress reacted?

Fadnavis said: “My allegations against Rahul Gandhi astir his inclination towards municipality Naxals person proved true. He showed the reddish publication and tried seeking assistance (politically) from municipality Naxals and anarchists.” He accused Gandhi of indulging successful play regularly and “insulting the Constitution”.

Jairam Ramesh, the Congress wide caput in-charge of communications, countered: “This publication which Mr Fadnavis is taking objection to is the Constitution of India, of which Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar was the main architect. This is the precise aforesaid Constitution of India which the RSS had attacked successful November 1949 arsenic not having been inspired by Manusmriti. It is the precise aforesaid Constitution of India that the non-biological PM wants replaced.”

Vanchit Bahujan Aghadi president Prakash Ambedkar, who is the grandson of B R Ambedkar, besides got into the debate, saying it was “unfortunate to spot the Indian Constitution being painted successful antithetic colours”.

“The transcript of the Indian Constitution successful Parliament is leather bound and is achromatic embossed with a signifier successful gold… The Allahabad publishing location simultaneously came retired with a Constitution transcript with hardcover successful a reddish-brown (the transcript Gandhi carries) that has go fashionable arsenic it is smaller successful size and handy.”

Meanwhile, determination is different enactment brewing. The BJP has questioned the Congress implicit organisation of blank notebooks with a reddish screen saying the Constitution, astatine Gandhi’s caller Nagpur Samvidhan Sammelan. The assemblage was meant to question these arsenic the Congress person did the aforesaid from the dais.