Jharkhand: Maoists’ kin, victims of violence meet, share their stories

Centred around the theme “Ugravad se kya khoya, kya paaya (What did we gain or lose due to extremism)”, the meet was aimed at creating awareness among the “misguided” people to return to the mainstream.

While nearly hundred immediate relatives of victims across Simdega attended the meet, more than a dozen close relatives — including wife and mother of a PLFI sub-zonal commander Ramu Ganjhu — were present at the event.

Family of another sub-zonal commander, Santosh Bhokta, also assured that they will appeal to Maoists to lay down arms.

Speaking to The Indian Express, Simdega SP Rajiv Ranjan Singh said: “As far as we know, this is the first initiative of such kind in an LWE area anywhere in the country. We need to make people realise that whether they are on this side or that, they end up being victims.”

The preparation for the event began three months ago. “We had to identify the victims …Then, we had to trace them. Further, the difficult part was finding and convincing the family members of the Maoist cadres…They needed a lot of assurance that nothing bad would happen to them,” the SP said.

Referring to the July surrender of Special Area Committee member Balkeshwar Oraon and others in his address, Singh said: “It is only in a democracy that the DGP of a state hugs a man, accused of killing some 50 people, including a few policemen, and provides for his rehabilitation.”

Simdega Deputy Commissioner Vijay Kumar Singh told the gathering that, out of the 86 cases, at least 27 dependents of the victims’ families had already got jobs, while recommendations for another 48 had been made.

IG (CRPF) Sanjay Anand said: “We are expecting that such a meet would have a deep impact as far as creating awareness against violence is concerned. The manner in which people were openly speaking up against this kind of violence indicates that those involved in these operations have lost credibility on the ground.”

Extending his complete support for such initiatives, JMM MLA Poulus Sureen from Torpa (in Khunti, a major Maoist-affected district), said after the meeting: “I feel this is the first real initiative with regard to weaning away people from violence. This should be replicated in all districts.”

Simdega’s BJP MLA Vimla Pradhan said: “Government has devised a good surrender policy. But, if they (administration) remain lax in implementation, people will lose faith. It was for the first time that I got to know about the problems of families from both the sides.”