All India Trinamool Congress (TMC) Member of Parliament Saugata Roy on Monday defended former Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti after she publicly described herself as a 'dimagi Naxal', arguing that the term simply refers to those who wish to change the existing system — and that such views are entirely legitimate in a democracy. Roy's remarks added fresh fuel to a political controversy that erupted following Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Independence Day address on 15 August.

What Saugata Roy Said

Roy questioned why holding reformist views should be deemed objectionable in a democratic country. 'Naxal' means people who want to change the system; then what is wrong if someone has such thoughts? This is a democratic country, and people can have their own thoughts, he said. He argued that citizens in a democracy are entitled to hold divergent political and ideological positions, and that labelling them with provocative terms amounted to political targeting.

Roy also drew a comparison to the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)'s earlier use of the phrase 'tukde-tukde gang', which he said was similarly deployed to discredit political opponents. 'The BJP used to talk about the tukde-tukde gang earlier. Now they have introduced a new term, dimagi naxal. I do not believe in this at all. Mehbooba Mufti is a good leader, and if she has said it, then she has said the right thing,' he added.

Why Mehbooba Mufti Used the Term

Mehbooba Mufti, president of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), described herself as a 'dimagi Naxal' on Sunday in apparent reference to her sustained advocacy for the restoration of Article 370 of the Constitution, which granted special status to Jammu and Kashmir before it was abrogated in August 2019. Her self-identification was widely seen as a direct response to the Prime Minister's Independence Day remarks.

The Origin: PM Modi's Independence Day Warning

The controversy traces back to PM Modi's address from the Red Fort on 15 August, during which he acknowledged progress in eliminating armed Naxalism but warned of a subtler ideological threat. 'We have succeeded in getting rid of armed Naxals in the jungles, but dimagi Naxals (those with a Naxal mindset) are looking for opportunities to create violence, unrest... They want to drag society on the wrong path. These dimagi Naxals have to be identified and isolated, and we must connect the youth with the mainstream,' Modi said.

The remarks were interpreted by several Opposition leaders as a broad attempt to tar political dissenters with an extremist brush, triggering sharp pushback from multiple parties.

Opposition Reaction and the Broader Pattern

The political response from Opposition parties has been swift and pointed. Several leaders accused the BJP of deploying inflammatory labels to silence dissent and delegitimise those who hold contrarian views. Critics argue this is part of a recurring pattern — from 'urban Naxal' to 'tukde-tukde gang' — where pejorative political coinage is used to frame ideological opponents as threats to national security. Notably, this is not the first time a PM speech has generated such a definitional dispute; the term 'urban Naxal' sparked a similar debate in 2018.

As the row deepens, it raises a fundamental question about the boundaries of political discourse in India — and whether the state's legitimate concern over Maoist violence is being conflated, deliberately or otherwise, with mainstream political opposition.