PM’s worrying dog whistle about ‘Dimagi Naxals’ and promise of a ‘civil defence force’

Towards the end of his ‘shortest ever’ Independence Day address on 15 August 2026, prime minister Narendra Modi patted his own back for ridding the country of Maoist violence. However, he went on to add that though one group of armed rebels have been eliminated, there were still people with a ‘naxal’ mindset who needed to be identified and isolated. Individuals with Maoist ideology had made their presence felt in the corridors of power in the country, he claimed, even as ‘advisors’ to the government. Maoist ideology determined the government’s policy, he said, without elaborating.

To quote from his speech in Hindi, rendered in English on the website narendramodi.in, the prime minister then went on to say, “We have succeeded in eliminating armed Naxals from the forests and liberating the country from that menace. However, while the armed Naxals are gone, the mental Naxals remain, and these mental Naxals are on the lookout for an opportunity. They are looking for ways of violence and anarchy. They are resorting to various tactics to drag society onto the wrong path. We must identify these mental Naxals, isolate them, and steer the nation's youth toward the mainstream effort of transforming India into a developed nation.”

The PM appears to have the country’s youth in mind, who he believes are susceptible to influence exerted by the ‘mental Naxals’. While the PM has not cleared the air about the identity of these ‘mental Naxals’, it is open to interpretation. The worry is that the dog whistle will embolden vigilante groups already on the rampage to identify target groups and take the law in their hands. The prime minister and the Ministry of Home Affairs need to clarify who these ‘mental Naxals’ are and what specific threats they pose to the country and the youth. What possible mischief are they capable of?

The enigmatic reference to ‘mental Naxals’ was followed in the speech by a commitment to rebuild the civil defence network, . The civil defence network of citizen volunteers, which included the Red Cross, was built to help maintain peace and order in turbulent times. The volunteers were trained to enforce black outs, provide first aid to the injured in times of disasters, evacuate and rescue citizens in distress and enforce early warning systems. While the ‘Modi Government’ more or less dismantled the structure, the PM has now pledged to re-invent the wheel.

Again, to quote from his speech, the PM said, “The civil defence systems that have developed in our country in accordance with the wars of the last century have become outdated and hence, I am announcing today from the Red Fort that, in the coming days, we will create a vibrant network of civil defence. We will familiarise them with modern systems. What arrangements can be made to protect citizens from modern crises? We are going to create a huge voluntary force of civil defence to overcome modern challenges.”

Modern crises? Modern challenges? They cannot be earthquakes, floods, landslides, riots or even war, none of which is new or modern. So, what are they? Modern systems? What does the PM mean? What are the systems other than satellite phones that he could be talking about?

The prime minister’s Independence Day speech can scarcely be taken lightly. Last year he had spoken of large-scale infiltration changing the demography in border districts. He had announced a task force and a committee to study it. But even before such a study was completed, we have seen what has happened under the Special Intensive Revision of Electoral Rolls (SIR) by the Election Commission. The Home Ministry had also issued an advisory to the states to identify infiltrators, especially from Bangladesh, and police in several states have been busy rounding up ‘citizens’ who appear suspect. Some were even pushed into Bangladesh by force.

Critics of the government obviously need to be worried. The ominous threat to deal with the ‘Naxal mindset’ can be interpreted freely in the absence of more clarity. People leading the students’ protests around the country, mostly the youth, and those who lend them a helping hand could also be in the government’s crosshair. Who knows for sure?