Wed Mar 19 03:30:17 UTC 2025: ## Chhattisgarh’s “Operation Kagar”: Critics Claim Adivasi Displacement for Corporate Gain

**Visakhapatnam, March 19, 2025** – A seminar held in Visakhapatnam on Tuesday condemned “Operation Kagar” in Chhattisgarh, alleging that the operation, ostensibly aimed at eliminating Maoists, is a pretext for displacing Adivasi communities and handing over their mineral-rich lands to corporations.

Speakers at the seminar, organized by the CPI State committee, included prominent figures like Prof. G. Haragopal, V.S. Krishna, Ganjivarapu Srinivas, and Rama Rao Dora. They argued that the extensive violence employed is unjustified, particularly given the availability of less destructive technologies for targeting Maoists.

Prof. Haragopal highlighted a Chhattisgarh Chief Minister’s statement to a financial daily, expressing the government’s intent to remove obstacles to mineral exploration. He questioned the need for such widespread violence and stressed the importance of resolving the conflict peacefully within constitutional limits. He also raised concerns about the erosion of civil liberties, with civil rights leaders facing increasing restrictions on their freedom of speech.

V.S. Krishna referenced past recommendations from an expert committee led by K. Balagopal, suggesting that the government could address Maoist violence within the existing legal framework.

The speakers collectively accused the operation of serving corporate interests, aiming not only to suppress the Maoist movement but also to force Adivasis from their ancestral lands to facilitate mineral exploitation. The seminar concluded with a call for a peaceful resolution to the conflict and a condemnation of the alleged human rights abuses.

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