‘Proud to be a dimaagi naxal’: Opposition leaders after PM Modi's ‘isolate them’ remarks

Modi on Saturday warned against “dimagi Naxals”, saying that people sympathetic to the ideology were still looking for opportunities to “brainwash” the youth.

Updated on: Aug 16, 2026, 14:17:07 IST

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The Opposition has made some sharp criticism day after Prime Minister Narendra Modi made ‘dimaagi naxal’ remarks in his Independence Day speech at Red Fort.

Modi on Saturday warned against what he described as “dimagi Naxals” (intellectual Naxals), saying that while the government had won against armed Maoists, people sympathetic to the ideology were still looking for opportunities to influence and “brainwash” the youth. He said it is imperative to identify and isolate such ‘dimaagi Naxal.”

The remarks set off a political slugfest withe Congress leaders labelling the new terminology a “sure sign of desperation.

Modi's remarks draw Opposition criticism

Taking a swipe at the PM, senior Congress leader P Chidambaram said, "I am proud to be a dimagi naxal".

Congress General Secretary Jairam Ramesh labelled PM's remarks as a “sure sign of desperation,” noting Modi’s evolving rhetoric against his critics.

“First he called his opponents ‘urban naxals’. Now he calls them ‘dimaagi Naxals’. It is a sure sign of his desperation,” Ramesh posted on X, adding that the prime minister frequently ends up adopting policies advocated by those he criticizes. “It is not for nothing that the PM has an MA being the ‘Master Abuser’ in Entire Political Science that he is.”

Ramesh said that those Those who oppose the government are called 'Dimagi Naxal'.

“These 'Dimagi Naxals' had demanded that there should be a caste census. For four years, they kept saying it would not happen. Then, on 30 April 2025, they announced that a caste census would take place… Anyone who raises questions or challenges them is labelled with something. Is demanding social justice ‘Dimagi Naxal’?" he was quoted as saying by ANI

Cockroach Janta Party's Saurav Das rejected the Prime Minister’s classification of critical youth. “Dimagi Naxal or whatever is not going to work, Prime Minister. How could you loosely brand educated young people ‘Naxalis’ etc.? Just because they question your government? Sheer arrogance! Sheer incompetence at resolving their problems?” Das said in a statement on X.

Advocate Prashant Bhushan also criticised Modi's ‘dimagi naxal’ remark and said, "Who is Modi ji calling "intellectual Naxals"? Is it our youth who were demanding the resignation of the Education Minister at Jantar Mantar? Or the children protesting today who are demanding proper functioning in schools?"

What PM Modi said in I-Day speech

Addressing the nation from the ramparts of Red Fort on Independence Day, the prime minister said Maoists did not believe in the Constitution and noted that thousands of security personnel and police officers had been martyred fighting the insurgency.

He said that while security forces successfully dismantled the armed Maoist insurgencies in the forests, individuals carrying an ideological Naxal mindset are quietly seeking opportunities to drag society down the wrong path.

“We must isolate these dimaagi (intellectual) Naxals and connect the country’s young generation to the mainstream of transforming our nation into a developed nation.”

Meanwhile, Parliamentary affairs minister Kiren Rijiju on Sunday hit out at opposition parties over their criticism of Modi's "Maoist mentality" remarks and said that the PM did not refer to opposition leaders as people with a Naxal mindset.

Rijiju in a post on X said that "Dimagi Naxals" refers only to those who support Maoists and reject the Indian Constitution, those who stand with separatists and support Article 370, and those who advocate cutting off the Chicken's Neck corridor to separate the North-East from India.

"PM @narendramodi ji didn't say opposition leaders as 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," said Rijiju.

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