This post has been published by me as a part of the Blog-a-Ton 49; the forty-eighth edition of the online marathon of Bloggers; where we decide and we write. To be part of the next edition, visit and start following Blog-a-Ton."On the great occasion of 15-August we got to surrender 3 dreaded Naxalites. They are convinced that the way of Guns is not the right way, but democracy is the right way. Development can only be achieved through a democratic process. I appeal all the naxalites to drop their guns & join the main stream." The minister was going on & on.
It was a great coupe of sorts. To get these three to surrender was not an easy task but it was made possible by the efforts of the team. Six months back the sources had informed them about these three getting tired of the jungle life. The cat & mouse game with the security forces was bugging them. .
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The State government had launched a scheme for the surrender of Naxalite cadres, it was a true initiative with good intents & the team included all sorts of people.... the psychologists, Doctors, Bankers, Social workers, Policemen, Teachers...people from every walk of the society. It had given a certain believability to the whole thing.
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Rohitash was a sensitive student activist & was drawn to the romanticism of Communism. The adivasi lands were rich with minerals & for the governments the Naxalites Movement was only an obstacle to reach the riches. The Adivais only had a token presence for the government whose governance existed only for the city folks. He got sucked into the movement during the Salwa Judum ** initiative of the state government. He... like many others could not see the poor Adivasis fighting amongst each other. Day to day Life in hundreds of villages was uprooted. There was no end to the sufferings of women & children. It was not difficult to see through the designs of the state government movement & he knew something needed to be done.
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Years passed & the futility of the movement got to him. He was not worried about his own life but the movement was not achieving anything substantial. There was hardly any change in the life of an average Adivasi. In a strange way the movement had given them some aim & purpose in life but then this was far far away from what he thought it should be. No wonder... they were sceptical about both the sides the security forces & the naxalites but they always looked at the movement as their own. But no matter what there would be occasions when the common advisai would find reasons to blame the movement but there was no way to express the anguish. The other day he saw what happens when the anguish was expressed.
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Two villagers were executed by his team for suspicion of being police informers. He could not believe his eyes when he saw that the two lost their lives just on suspicion. That was the moment of Truth for him & he decided to leave the movement. That was not easy but his mind took the decision although his heart kept thinking about it. His friends warned him that the movement would consider him an enemy once he leaves but he was not the one to get afraid..
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The minister was still continuing with his speech. There was silence around. There were lots of things going on in his mind. He had become nostalgic, he went down the memory lane & suddenly.....that one memory came in flashing.........
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It was the final day of the College festival & Professor Chandra was thundering in the Microphone....... "Leave your Family when the Society calls you. Leave your society when the state calls you. Leave your state when the nation calls you & leave your nation when the World calls you"..
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His eyes became moist....the words kept roaring in his ears.....he could hardly see anything around.....But surely he decided something....he stood up & just went for the gun of the policeman standing close by. He mumbled, " I am sorry Comrades....please forgive me". In one swift motion he directed the gun to his temple & pressed the trigger. Before anyone knew he was gone forever.........His body was lifeless but eyes were closed with a certain contentment.
**Salwa Judum : http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Salwa_Judum
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