The
fake encounter
Special Report
Bhavanipur Massacre in Mirzapur District of UP
The
fake encounterUntil recently Bhavanipur was just another obscure village in the southeastern hinterland of Uttar Pradesh. However, since that fateful day on the eve of Holi, when the festival of colours was drowned in the blood of more than a dozen rural poor militants and innocents in this village, Bhavanipur has hit the national headlines and has become standing testimony to the emerging police state in UP under Rajnath Singh’s saffron dispensation.
Located about 40 kms away from Mirzapur district headquarters, Bhavanipur falls in the strategic Vindhya range, stretching from Jharkhand in the east to Madhya Pradesh in the south, covering Sonbhadra, Chandauli, Mirzapur, and some parts of Allahabad. Tribals are a majority in certain areas within this region. This area is rich in natural resources, especially minerals. It also has some modern industries. But tribals and dalits face ruthless exploitation in this region.
The shocking news came on 9 March evening that 16 naxalites had been killed in a fierce encounter that was still continuing. A CPI(ML) team led by Comrade Akhilendra Pratap Singh, State Secretary, rushed to the spot immediately on 10th morning, the day of the Holi festival. This team was the first to break the news that it was a cold-blooded massacre of rural poor activists. Police had hurriedly disposed of the dead bodies, refusing to hand them over to the family members. Chief Minister Rajnath Singh rushed to Varanasi to claim credit for “complete cleansing of naxalites from this zone”. He announced lakhs of rupees worth of cash awards for the “brave policemen”. The policemen, faking injury, were promoted and rewarded with Rs.5 lakh each by Rajnath Singh. Returning from Bhavanipur, Comrade Akhilendra addressed a press conference in Varanasi, questioning Rajnath’s version and challenging him to establish the identity of those killed. The police had massacred 16 dalits and adivasis after they surrendered to the police. Giving out details, he asserted that it was not an encounter but a case of cold-blooded killing under the directive of Inspector General of Police, VK Singh, who later admitted to being present at the spot during the incident. A handpicked acolyte of the Chief Minister, he has been specially deputed there to tackle the “naxalite menace” and the “deteriorating law and order situation”.
Comrade Ramkrit Kol, elder brother of Deonath Kol (claimed by the police to be the Maoist Communist Centre incharge of the entire zone, and declared dead in the “encounter”), who is the CPI(ML) secretary of the Naugarh block area, was present in the press conference. He said that none of the photographs of the dead published by the police in the newspapers was that of Deonath as claimed by them. Picking up the lead some sections of the media also pursued the story and the administration’s cooked-up version of a fierce encounter with the naxalites fell flat. The administration could not substantiate its “encounter” version because it was unable to explain why there was a 14-year old boy, a student of class VII who had gone to visit his relatives to attend a function, among killed. This became sort of a ‘bone in the throat’ for the police. They came up with different versions. One was that he was an informer for naxalites. Secondly, they asked why was he staying with naxalites if he was innocent. Another version was that he was killed in crossfire and succumbed to naxalites’ bullets. The Chief Minister was forced to say that if some innocent person had been killed, a magisterial enquiry would be instituted. VK Singh, the IG of Police, however, said the present drive would continue for another three months.
One of the persons, identified as Suresh, from a neighbouring village, claimed by the police to have been killed, appeared at the protest meeting of the CPI(ML) at Mirzapur Collectorate on 14 March. He is a member of Revolutionary Youth Association (RYA), the youth wing of CPI(ML). The unfortunate one who was among those killed was another Suresh, a student of class IX, and the son of a railway employee, who had come to Bhavanipur to watch a video film. By now it was clear to the administration that Lalvrat and Deonath had not been killed as claimed by the police. For about three weeks the officials were not in a position to release the names of those killed. When they finally managed to release the names, there were no police records against any of those killed.
In protest against this massacre, CPI(ML) called for a week-long state-wide protest from 14 to 20 March which culminated in a general strike and a Poorvanchal bandh in the three adjoining districts of Mirzapur, Chandauli and Sonbhadra on 21 March. A judicial enquiry, immediate action against the policemen involved in the massacre and a compensation of Rs.5 lakh to the families of those killed were demanded. Around 1,000 comrades were arrested in Chandauli district while there were impressive demonstrations in Robertsganj and Duddhi. About 1000 people in Naugarh, 350 in Chakia, 350 in Mughalsarai, 100 in Chandauli, 200 in Sakaldiha, 250 in Kamalpur, 500 in Duddhi and 1000 in Robertsganj participated in mass protests on the bandh day and enforced the bandh. In Mirzapur, a large procession of more than a thousand people was led by Comrade Akhilendra Pratap Singh, which concluded in a large mass meeting in Wasliganj. The main market of the town was closed. Agricultural labourers, brick-kiln workers and other sections of rural and urban poor, dalits and adivasis, and in some districts traders and minorities, participated in the bandh.
Attempts were made to widen the horizon of protests by inviting other left and democratic forces. A People’s Union for Human Rights (PUHR) team led by Chittaranjan Singh and Krishnavtar Pandey visited the site and PUCL state chief Ravi Kiran Jain, a prominent lawyer, filed a petition in the High Court holding the Chief Minister directly responsible for the massacre and demanding that he be tried in the court of law. Prominent democratic personalities of Lucknow, like the former vice chancellor of Lucknow University Ms. Ruprekha Verma, KN Kakkar, a cultural personality, Akhilesh Mishra, PK Tandon, a peasant leader, Shabbar Hussain, a COI(ML) leader, Rakesh, secretary of IPTA, Ajay Singh of JSM and CB Singh participated in a day-long dharna before the assembly in protest against the massacre.
The role of other left parties left much to be desired. At CPI(ML)’s initiative a state-level joint meeting took place. CPI(M) was initially unwilling to participate in any protest, and was not prepared to issue even a statement condemning this under the plea that it was not clear to them whether those killed were innocents or whether they belonged to the MCC. Subsequently, apprehensive of a joint move by CPI and CPI(ML), the CPI(M) changed its position and its state secretary participated in the meeting. There was an agreement that a protest programme would be taken up on 14 March which would be followed by a weeklong campaign. However, the participation of CPI(M) in the protest programmes of Chandauli, Sonbhadra and Mirzapur was token. Later on it was agreed that the three left parties would observe a bandh on March 31 in Mirzapur zone. However, the CPI(M) backed out at the last moment and prevented their cadres from participating in the bandh.Yet, some of their cadres took part, defying instructions from the leadership. CPI(M) was once a formidable force in this area, and in an earlier election, their candidate polled nearly 40,000 votes in the Rajguru assembly segment. He was an ex-CPI(ML) person and he continued to have good relations with us. He was killed in 1997 by the feudals and the CPI(M) did nothing to effectively protest this. Hence the party is fast losing grounds to radical forces here.
Why such a gory massacre, coming as part of an intensified anti-naxal drive in eastern UP, where naxalism, known to be a Bihar-specific phenomenon, was never witnessed until recently? Following Advani’s promise of generous assistance from the Centre to curb naxalism, the local administration had demanded a staggering amount of Rs.1,700 crore in the name of a “Karmnasa Package” (named after Karmnasa river). More importantly, this entire exercise is targeted at suppressing the rising militancy of the rural poor, who are increasingly being mobilised under the political banner of CPI(ML). The adivasis and Dalits of these areas have long been subjected to feudal oppression with the connivance of the local administration. They have been deprived of their land, forests and ponds by the local landlords and contractors. Gradually, there has been a new awakening among them on class lines. The earlier caste mobilization, which was championed under the leadership of BSP has been giving way to class solidarity amongst the rural poor where the question of land, liberty and dignity have come to the forefront. Political parties like the SP and BSP have been steadily losing their social base in the wake of this heightened class-consciousness. In fact, politics here has transcended the old caste based framework and is signalling a revival of revolutionary communist movement under the leadership of CPI(ML) in U.P. Sensing this potent political challenge, which has the potential of redefining the political discourse, the BJP has been gearing itself to crush this movement under the pretext of curbing naxalism. Actually, it is CPI(ML) which the state power wants to crush in the name of extinguishing the fast-spreading fire of naxalism. What else could be the reason behind the phrase-mongering of curbing naxalism without mentioning the name of the specific organization involved?
Apart from a spate of mass actions, CPI(ML)’s growing political influence is also reflected in the performance of the Party in the elections to the local bodies. CPI(ML) won a Zilla Parishad seat in the neighbouring Moghulsarai and, on 8 March, Comrade Basmati Kol won the Block Pramukh seat in Naugarh block falling in the heart of the so-called “naxal-infested area”. She got 13 votes in the Block Development Committee whereas the BJP candidate, supported by BSP, got 4 and six were invalid votes. This victory of a militant tribal woman leader from CPI(ML) is a setback for the administration. Her victory was declared on 8 March and the carnage was performed on 9 March.
It was precisely for the same reason that Mayawati and Kanshi Ram, the self-proclaimed leaders of the dalits preferred to maintain complete silence on this massacre. Apart from behind-the-scene parleys with the BJP for a post-poll alliance with the party, the BSP at the grassroots level is also busy wooing the upper caste feudals and musclemen. Mulayam Singh of the Samajwadi Party also did not condemn this massacre. The Congress also maintained a stony silence for understandable reasons. It is none other than the BSP leader Govind Singh who visited the spot along with a posse of policemen and claimed to have identified the dead bodies of Deonath and Lalvrat. Govind Singh is incidentally a Rajput landlord of this area who is spearheading a crusade against radical forces and the rural poor with the active support of the police and criminals. CPI(ML) has launched a vigorous campaign to expose this rank opportunism of the BSP.
It was in the backdrop of growing assertion of the rural poor under the banner of CPI(ML) in this area, the Chief Minister Rajnath Singh visited this area soon after assuming power. He hails from Chandauli district and was active in politics in Mirzapur town before rising to the state level leadership. About two months ago, an SHO of the police was killed in Naugarh block of Chandauli district by naxalites belonging to the MCC. The Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh Rajnath Singh while on a visit to the site of the killing had incited the police ‘to kill four Naxalites for every policemen killed by them’ (Liberation, Feb. 2001). Enthused by this provocation, the state administration and the local police launched a witchhunt to decimate naxalism and, in return, they were rewarded with promotions and cash awards. The CPI(ML) immediately condemned this statement of Rajnath Singh saying that it sounded like a “statement by the chief of some terrorist outfit rather than from the head of a democratically elected government”.
Exhorted by the Chief Minister, the police, in connivance with the feudal forces and criminals, started its killing spree. Many tribal and dalit youth were booked under the gangster and goonda acts, NSA and the arms act. Their kith and kin were tortured and were even beaten to death. One Gulab was killed in a fake encounter on February 8 and the police dubbed him to be the area commander of the MCC, whereas he had contested zilla parishad elections only a few days back. It is well known that the MCC boycotts elections and how its “area commander” could have contested elections is a question to be answered by the police. In fact, he had a political standing of 20 years and Comrade Akhilendra challenged the government and the police to prove Gulab’s connections with the MCC. Earlier one Rameshwar, an innocent and apolitical dalit youth, was murdered by the police in a case of mistaken identity, citing similar reasons. Bhavanipur massacre was only a sequel to this continuing campaign.
Criminal gangs operating in this area are being used by police for their anti-naxal crusade. One Jaswant Singh moves around openly in police uniform and threatens to organise the lumpenised elements from among the Yadav kulaks as Lorik Sena, to suppress the naxalites. In fact, the government tactics was to attribute all armed criminal activities to the MCC and then generalise it as a “naxal problem”. Their aim is to delegitimise and defame naxalism in general this way to seek social sanction for suppressing the rise of the rural poor as a class under the political leadership of the CPI(ML). Anarchist acts of the MCC have come in handy for them to implement this gameplan. To counter the nefarious design of the government, the CPI(ML) has launched a vigorous campaign, with a two-pronged strategy: on the one hand, to establish the legitimacy of naxalism and its representative voice in UP, the CPI(ML), as the revolutionary wing of Indian communist movement, under whose leadership the communist movement is being revived in the state; and on the other, to mobilise the support of various democratic forces and civil libertarians to take on the government raising question as to whether the government and the police had any right to kill people who believed in naxalism or were associated with the MCC, whatever be its ideology, even if they possessed arms for their self-defence.
It is also questioned as to how the police could shoot and kill a person without trial, even if he or she happened to be a criminal. Comrade Akhilendra dared the CM to issue a White Paper on the criminal activities in that zone, He alleged that most of such activities were perpetrated by history-sheeters patronised by mafia ministers comprising the Cabinet. The most notorious mafia don of eastern UP, Brajesh Singh enjoys the direct patronage of the Chief Minister himself.
The Bhavanipur and Kanpur massacres, taking place in quick succession, are the two facets of the emerging saffron police state in UP which has let loose a reign of terror against the rural poor and minorities. Notwithstanding the impotence or collusion on the part of major opposition parties, notably the SP and the BSP, we on our part are committed to a strong resistance, by forging an alliance of all radical, democratic and civil libertarian forces. A convention organised by the CPI(ML) in Lucknow on 26 March on the theme “BJP’s Police Raj: Challenges for Democracy” in which different shades of democratic forces participated adopted a resolution to this effect. A massive protest programme has been planned before the Assembly on the first day of the coming Assembly session.
(Based on reports from Lal Bahadur Singh, Prashant Shukla, Yashwant and Dinkar Kapoor)