Revolution ‘imposed’ on Adivasis by Maoists, intellectuals: ex-Bastar IG

Nearly three months after he was told to go on leave and was then shifted out following  allegations of human rights violations, former Bastar IG SRP Kalluri  on Saturday claimed “intellectuals” sitting in Raipur and Delhi had imposed the “revolution” on innocent adivasis of Chhattisgarh, who, he added, otherwise, are content with their lives. He also claimed that he had been “presented as a villain and devil in the public domain by these Maoists and intellectuals across the country”.

The senior police officer  known for his strong-arm tactics against Maoists and human rights activists, was addressing a seminar at the Indian Institute of Mass Communication (IIMC) in Delhi.

“The intellectuals sitting in Delhi and Raipur have created a very wrong perception about the Adivasis of Bastar. They have portrayed them as a totally deprived community, however, they are really happy in their lives. They don’t need any Kranti (revolution). It has actually been imposed on them by the so called intellectuals and the Maoists from Andhra Pradesh,” Kalluri said.

“The 40 lakh Adivasis of Batsar are voiceless and ambition-less. But these handful of people propagating wrong information about them are really vocal and ambitious,” he added.

Kalluri was sent on leave in February following which the state government appointed IPS officer P Sunder Raj as DIG Bastar. He has not been given any position yet. He was charged with threatening journalists and human rights activists in Bastar and was also summoned by the National Human Right Commission (NHRC) over alleged hostility and abuse of power against human rights defenders in November last year.

“I have been presented as a villain and devil in the public domain by these Maoists and intellectuals across the country. But I challenge you if you go to Chhattisgarh and ask about me hardly four-five people will say anything wrong about me,” he claimed.

Kalluri’s visit at IIMC drew huge criticism from a section of alumni,  who protested outside the institute demanding him to go on “long leave” till NHRC completes inquiry against him. “The person, who hounded journalist and human rights activists for raising voice against him, has been invited at a journalist institute,” Rohin Verma, an IIMC alumnus said.

Fearing students’ agitation, Kalluri was brought in from the back gate of the institute even as heavy security was deployed at the campus since early morning.  A group of JNU students including Varsity’s students’ union president Mohit Pandey also participated in the protest.

Slamming students for creating a chaos outside the campus, IIMC DG KG Suresh called them “children of Marx and Macaulay (British historian).” “Why should I stop him? Why not Kalluri? If we can listen to the Hurriyat leaders, who are separatists, why can we not listen to Kalluri?” he asked..

The Seminar on “nationalist journalism” organised at IIMC in collaboration with a media organisation—Media Scan, triggered outrage among a section of alumni. The Seminar was preceded by a two-hour long “yagna”. “Those who are trying to teach me secularism should know that I know what it means. Other religions also have liberty to perform their rituals at IIMC. Even Muslims can perform Namaz, Sikhs can take up their rituals,” he said.

He also alleged a section of media of behaving like "mafia" who label people praising RSS as “Sanghis”. "When I was a reporter I reported on work taken up by the RSS in certain incidents and later was tagged a Sanghi," Suresh said.