• Dr. Vinutha M S

This paper examines Arundhati Roy’s Walking with the Comrades, focusing on her portrayal of Naxalites as subaltern groups whose struggles arise from prolonged state-driven displacement, exploitation, and violence. Roy’s first-hand account of travelling through the Dandakaranya forests reveals how tribal communities—historically oppressed by colonial rulers, landlords, and post-independence development policies—were forced into armed resistance. Through detailed narratives of comrades, especially women of the PLGA and KAMS, Roy highlights issues of police atrocities, sexual violence, land alienation, and the destructive impact of projects such as mining and steel plants. The paper underscores how the Naxal movement functions as both a protective force and a social reform initiative addressing tribal rights, gender oppression, and exploitation. Ultimately, it argues that state militarization without addressing structural injustices only escalates conflict, leaving marginalized communities with no alternative to rebellion.

Naxalites; Subaltern Studies; Tribal Displacement; Arundhati Roy; Resistance Movements.

"Portrayal of the subalterns (Naxalites) in Arundhati Roy’s ‘Walking with the Comrades’", International Journal of Emerging Technologies and Innovative Research (www.jetir.org), ISSN:2349-5162, Vol.12, Issue 12, page no.a278-a282, December-2025, Available :http://www.jetir.org/papers/JETIR2512036.pdf

"Portrayal of the subalterns (Naxalites) in Arundhati Roy’s ‘Walking with the Comrades’", International Journal of Emerging Technologies and Innovative Research (www.jetir.org | UGC and issn Approved), ISSN:2349-5162, Vol.12, Issue 12, page no. ppa278-a282, December-2025, Available at : http://www.jetir.org/papers/JETIR2512036.pdf