While China uses Chairman Mao as a figurehead it has embraced a kind of capitalism. But Maoists in India? Yes. Not only there but also in neighboring Nepal where they overthrew the age-old monarchy. But the Maoists main stage is in India. A cascade of grievances has produced various revolts across the country. One of the largest is in central India straddling several states but centered in Chhattisgarh. It is Maoist. That term is used as well as Naxalite. What do they want? They declare their aim is “to build a truly democratic society built on justice, equality, free from the chains of imperialism and semi-feudal bondage.” And to achieve that through “guerilla war.” Will capitalism in India or anywhere else for that matter, tolerate societies living outside its control?

Arundhati Roy is the celebrated author of The God of Small Things and winner of the prestigious Booker Prize. The New York Times calls her, "India's most impassioned critic of globalization and American influence." She is the recipient of the Lannan Award for Cultural Freedom. She's the author of many books including The Checkbook & the Cruise Missile, Field Notes on Democracy: Listening to Grasshoppers, and Walking with the Comrades.