2 weeks ago
Rijiju Clarifies 'Dimagi Naxals' Remark; Chidambaram 'Proud To Be One'
India's leader, PM Narendra Modi, gave a big speech on Independence Day.
In the speech, he talked about people with a 'Naxal mind' and called them 'dimagi Naxals'.
He said these people should be found and kept away so the country can move forward.
Some people thought he was talking about Opposition leaders who disagree with him.
A minister named Kiren Rijiju said no, the PM was not talking about the Opposition.
He said the PM meant only people who support Maoists, do not follow the Constitution, support Article 370, or want to cut a thin strip of land called Chicken's Neck.
That strip is a 22-kilometer-wide corridor in West Bengal that links India's northeast.
A Congress leader named P. Chidambaram said he was 'proud to be a dimagi naxal.'
Another Congress leader, Jairam Ramesh, said the PM had earlier called his opponents 'urban Naxals', and this was a sign of desperation.
Modi also said India had stopped armed Naxals and remembered the sacrifice of thousands of security personnel.
PM Narendra Modi used the term 'dimagi Naxals' in his 80th Independence Day address, saying people with a Maoist mindset should be 'identified and isolated'.
Union Minister Kiren Rijiju clarified that Modi did not refer to Opposition leaders, saying the term covers Maoist supporters, Constitution rejecters, separatists backing Article 370, and those who want to cut off Chicken's Neck.
Congress leader P. Chidambaram responded on X: 'I am proud to be a dimagi naxal!'
Congress called the remark provocative, with Jairam Ramesh saying it followed the earlier 'urban Naxals' reference and was 'a sure sign of his desperation'.
Modi said India had curbed armed 'hathariya' Naxals and remembered the sacrifice of thousands of security personnel.
- Who
- Prime Minister Narendra Modi made the 'dimagi Naxals' remark; Union Minister Kiren Rijiju clarified it, while Congress leaders P. Chidambaram, Jairam Ramesh, and Renuka Chowdhury, and CPIML(L)'s Dipankar Bhattacharya responded with criticism.
- What
- Political controversy over PM Modi's 'dimagi Naxals' remark and Rijiju's clarification that the term referred to Maoist supporters, Constitution rejecters, separatists backing Article 370, and those who want to cut off Chicken's Neck — not the Opposition.
- Where
- India; the PM's address was delivered from the Red Fort, and the clarifications and reactions took place on social media platform X.
- When
- During PM Modi's address on India's 80th Independence Day (Saturday); Rijiju's clarification and political reactions came the following day, Sunday, August 16, 2026.
- Why
- Modi said people with Maoist thinking should be identified and isolated so the youth can be connected with the mainstream and the country can move forward, while Congress leaders saw the remark as aimed at them.
Congress / Opposition
Government / BJP
Target of 'dimagi Naxal' remark
Congress / Opposition
Congress leaders say Modi is using increasingly provocative labels against his political opponents; Chidambaram declared he is 'proud to be a dimagi Naxal'.
Government / BJP
Rijiju says Modi did not refer to Opposition leaders; the term applies only to those who support Maoists and reject the Constitution, back separatists and Article 370, or want to cut Chicken's Neck to separate the Northeast from India.
Pattern of political labels
Congress / Opposition
Jairam Ramesh says Modi first called opponents 'urban Naxals' and now 'dimagi Naxals' — a sure sign of desperation; he noted the government previously said there was no definition of 'urban Naxal' and later accepted demands it had dismissed as such, like a caste census.
Government / BJP
Modi warned that people with Maoist thinking, even in public life and government committees, are seeking opportunities for violence and must be identified and isolated so youth can be connected with the mainstream; BJP MP Brij Lal backed Modi, saying 'dimagi Naxals' live in cities as professors, NGO operators and intellectuals spreading violent ideology.
Key facts
- Speaker
- Prime Minister Narendra Modi
- Term used
- 'dimagi Naxals'
- Occasion
- 80th Independence Day address, delivered from the Red Fort
- Clarification by
- Kiren Rijiju, Union Minister for Parliamentary Affairs
- Congress response
- P. Chidambaram: 'I am proud to be a dimagi naxal!'
- Jairam Ramesh's criticism
- 'A sure sign of his desperation' after the earlier 'urban Naxals' label
- Chicken's Neck
- 22-km-wide land corridor in West Bengal linking India's northeast
- Sharjeel Imam
- Jailed student leader in judicial custody under UAPA; Rijiju shared his clip on cutting off Assam via the Siliguri corridor
Quotes
Senior Congress Leader Jairam Ramesh
Congress leader critiquing Modi’s terminology
“"PM @narendramodi ji didn’t say opposition leaders were Dimagi Naxals. Only following are Dimagi Naxals: 1. Who support Maoists and reject Indian Constitution. 2. Who stand with separatists & support Article 370. 4. Who want to cut chicken neck to separate North‑East from India (sic)."”
livemint.com
thehansindia.com
NDTV
indianexpress.com
“"Only following are 'Dimagi Naxals': Who support Maoists and reject Indian Constitution, those who stand with separatists and support Article 370 and those who want to cut chicken neck to separate North-East from India."”
thehansindia.com
Brij Lal
BJP Rajya Sabha MP and former Uttar Pradesh DGP
“"These Dimagi Naxals don’t live in forests or bear arms, fire bullets; they only use their brains. They live in cities in the garb of professors, lecturers, NGO operators, intellectuals, poets… write articles, conduct conferences, seminars and… especially in the minds of the youth, fill their violent ideology."”
indianexpress.com
Sources
PM Modi didn't refer to Opposition as 'dimagi Naxals': Kiren Rijiju clarifies amid heated debate
Maoist, separatist backers are ‘dimagi Naxals’: Rijiju
Did PM Modi label Opposition as 'Dimagi Naxal' in his I-Day speech? Kiren Rijiju clarifies amid row
Kiren Rijiju Says PM Modi Did Not Call Opposition Leaders ‘Dimagi Naxals’
Kiren Rijiju Shares 'Dimagi Naxals' List. 'Proud To Be One', Says P Chidambaram
‘Not aimed at Opposition leaders’: Kiren Rijiju clarifies PM Modi’s ‘dimagi Naxal’ remark
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