Ratna Kodiyam was elected as sarpanch in 2015. Less than a year later, her husband Dharmendra Kodiyam was killed by Maoists. “They first surrounded the house and then told my children to run away before tying and putting a cloth in my mouth, while killing my husband with a knife,” said Ratna Kodiyam, who is still based in the village of Turempara near metapal in katekalyan. Police had killed one of the Maoists a few months earlier and the killing was viewed as retaliation on the grounds that Dharmendra was a police informer. However, Ratna believes Dharmendra was killed for pushing the district administration to make a bridge, which provided easy access to their village.

The Maoists killed Dharmendra on 15^th December 2016 at 7 pm, while he was making food in the kitchen for the family (according to their culture, women do not cook on the days they have periods). Ratna had a good working relationship with her husband, who would often represent the problems of the village before the district administration while she would liaison with the villagers to understand their needs.

Ratna’s term as sarpanch concluded in 2019. She received Rs. 500,000 (USD1650) as compensation money upon her husband’s murder, which has been put as a fixed deposit until her kids need the money for higher education. However, despite approaching the government 4-5 times, she has still not been given a job in the local administration, legally due to all victims of Maoist violence.