Joseph Marvin Oliver and Suryansh Deo Srivastava, June 11th 2021
Born in the municipality town of Kirandul in Dantewada, thirty-year-old Nanda (name changed) is father to three young children. He sincerely hopes that their childhood will turn out different from the one he went through.
Some seventeen odd years ago, Nanda had been forced into joining the Maoist cause. Weapons blazing, the Naxalites would go village to village rounding up its inhabitants. Keeping an eye out for recruits was an important part of this exercise. It was an extremely volatile situation where saying no was not an option. Thus, he was forced to join Bal Sangam, the children’s militia wing of the Maoist Party. Post joining, Nanda’s training began. Of all the skills he was taught to pick up, he became proficient in stick combat. Being part of the group for over a decade, he climbed up the ranks a fair bit. By the time Nanda surrendered in October 2020, he was a part of the Dandkarnya Adivasi Kisan Mazdoor Sangathan. His duty, he says, mainly involved keeping the villages in check. With force and threats, of course. The same threats that had forced him to join the organisation. The villagers are made to contribute to the cause, whether they are in favour of it or not. In most cases, Nanda adds, the recruits hardly understand the ideology of the party or their mission. The naxalites claimed to be working towards tribal welfare. Hence, each family was required to offer one person to the workforce or face severe consequences. “The party is no longer as powerful as it used to be”, he says. Nanda recalls having walked for days to reach Naxal strongholds in Maharashtra as well. He has seen encounters up-close and even lost a few comrades along the way. Fortunately, that phase of his life is in the past. After a point, Nanda could not take that life anymore. It took too much–from both him and the people around him. While he was never discouraged from having a family of his own, it was not a space to have one since there was always the danger of violence looming over his head. So, as soon as he came to know that there was a bounty on his name, Nanda surrendered. For the sake of his family, and people. While they are yet to avail a few benefits offered to them, it’s a major improvement for his family. He is provided with basic necessities and a promotion or two will make him eligible for government accommodation as well. He feels he made the right decision, as he did not wish a life of militancy for his children. And perhaps with this shift, a chain of violence and pain is broken. Share on facebook Facebook Share on twitter Twitter Share on whatsapp WhatsApp