Nearly 7,000 protestors, mostly adivasis, had gathered at Chhattisgarh's Sarkeguda village, Bijapur on the nights on 27 and 28 June, to mark the anniversary of the 2012 police shootout in Sarkeguda, and remember the victims of this act of brutality.
Many had walked for over a week to reach the site of the protests, carrying their rations and tents through the almost immovable terrains of Bastar’s forests.
The demonstration comes nearly two years after the Judicial Commission's rejection of police claims in 2019. The commission had observed that those killed at Sarkeguda were ordinary citizens, and not "Naxalites" – the narrative put forth by the police.
'COVID-19 Forced Us to Witness Police Oppression'
Munna Punem, hailing from Korcholi in Bijapur, is a student of Class 8.
Speaking to The Quint, Punem said, “Since the COVID-19 lockdown, that was imposed last year, I have been witness to police oppression. Earlier, my parents used to hide all these things from me and other children of my village. We were asked not to pay attention to these things and focus on our studies. But since this COVID lockdown forced us all to come back home, we have witnessed police oppression first hand."
“During summer last year, my mother went to pick and gather Mahua (Madhuca longifolia) when she crossed paths with the police and was beaten up by them. It is a regular occurrence in my village. The police come, asks people about Maoists, and then frightens us, beats us up and the worst, kills us. Who would want to be beaten?”Munna Punem
The Shootout in 2012
On 28 June 2012, security forces had opened fire in Sarkeguda village, killing 17 people – three of whom were children. Later on, the security forces termed it a gunfight and labeled the dead as 'Maoists'.
Owing to the onslaught of public indignation, the state government ordered a judicial probe into the encounter, the report for which was submitted in 2019.
Consequently, seven years after the incident, the brand of ‘Naxalite’ was erased from those killed at Sarkeguda and the commission found security forces guilty of killing tribals in cold blood.
'They Kill Adivasis Freely'
Joga (name changed) who walked along with 86 other fellow villagers from Singaram, Sukma for eight days to reach Sarkeguda said, “In 2016, security forces took my father from the home and killed him some 200-300 meters away from us. I have come to Sarkeguda to find solace for my loss. I am not the only victim of police oppression. There are many like me and talking to them, being with them makes me escape the pain.”
“For us tribals and people of Bastar, there is no well-wisher. Our family members are dragged away from our homes and killed in the name of Naxals. I have seen how the forces disrupt the lives of tribals that is why I have come here to discuss and empower the protest."Joga
In Joga’s village, the sarpanch is the wife of the local police station-in-charge, which has made the situation worse.
Speaking about this, Joga says, “We are even terrified to talk to the sarpanch, let alone her policeman husband."
"There is no place for our voice, our opinions. I tried to get an FIR registered against the killing of my father but was ridiculed and sent home. They kill adivasis and roam freely and we can’t do anything about it”.Joga
At the protests in Sarkeguda, a demonstrator lamented, “It has been close to two years since the Judicial Commission’s report on Sarkeguda termed the security forces guilty of killing innocent adivasis. Yet no FIR has been registered. The culprits and murderers still wear the uniform and the rampage continues. They are not determined to punish one of their own. It will expose them to the core and hence all pomp but no show."
An Unrelenting Fight Against State Oppression
The ‘Aam Sabha’, which was actually a ‘Khas Sabha’ to meet and discuss state oppression against the tribals, was organised by Mool Niwasi Bachao Manch. This young organisation emerged out of the Silger protest that escalated after security forces opened fire on the protesting tribals on 17 May 2021, killing three and injuring 17.
Led by young adivasis like Raghu Midiyami, Unga Mochaki, Gopi Lekam, Deepak Sawlam, Sunita Pottam and Soni Punem among others, the organisation is showing the path for the tribal fight against state oppression.
Speaking to The Quint, the president of the organisation, Raghu Midiyami said, “First of all, we are educated and that changes a lot. We know our rights, we know what we deserve. Killing, raping, and beatings are not on that list. We want schools, hospitals, colleges, we want our forests, our lands, and our rivers to be the way they are."
"The government is trying to use brute force to fight Maoists and in the process, it has been killing adivasis. We are done with the Sarkeguda killings, we are done with the Silger killings, we are done with all forms of state oppression. ‘Mawa Nate Mawa Raj’ (our village our rules) is what we will be fighting for.”Raghu Midiyami, Aam Sabha president
“This organisation has taken birth from a peaceful protest which was turned into a bloodshed by the security forces. What else is needed to prove that we adivasis are being tortured and killed in the name of Maoists?” he added.
'Governments Have Been Trying to Sabotage Tribal Lives'
The Aam Sabha president went on to assert, “We demand that all police camps are shut down and schools and hospitals be built in every village of Bastar. We demand an inquiry into the Silger police shootout and action against the security forces guilty of killing tribals, including children, and then branding them Maoists."
"We demand that the state stop acquiring forest lands and tribal lands without the consent of tribals. We want tribals languishing in jails on false charges to be freed. Their families have suffered a lot, every adivasi has suffered a lot. We want the government to put an end to this and respect our rights and our voices."Raghu Midiyami, Aam Sabha president
Munna Punem too had something similar to say.
“I am in class 8, I want to be a doctor. I want my village to have roads but not highways. Highway-sized roads are useless for the villagers. Do you see any of us driving trucks in our villages? These big roads are for the corporate guys like Ambani and Adani. They will use these roads to carry away our mountains and forests and leave us with nothing," he says, with anger in his eyes.
He asserts, "That is why, we are here at Silger and Sarkeguda. We are the next generations... we will fight. We will not tolerate another Sarkeguda incident or Silger incident.”
State Doing All in Its Power: Police
Reacting to the claims of protestors at Sarkeguda, Bastar IG P Sundarraj told The Quint, “With regard to the report of the judicial commission, the state is figuring out legal entanglements, and once it is done, appropriate action would be taken."
He added that the compensation has already been paid and that the state is doing all in its power to get things done.
"As far as the FIRs are concerned, they are being registered and there is hardly any hurdle. In some cases, there might have been a delay but we are here to serve the people and we are taking all measures to ensure that the people of Bastar live their life peacefully," he asserted.
He added, “This is the modus-operandi of Maoists, wherein they compel the villagers to do certain activities, failing in which results in heavy fines and even costs the tribals their life. We are pledged to solve the issue and eradicate the presence of banned CPI (Maoists) outfit so that people of Bastar do not live in fear."
'Govts Ignoring Rights of Tribals'
The Aam Sabha has witnessed the participation of several social activists, lawyers, and politicians including Arvind Netam, former Union minister from Congress.
Addressing the press at Sarkeguda, Netam said, “All governments are duplicitous. They say something and do the other. Governments have been trying to sabotage tribal culture, tribal lives and they do not know its importance in tribal lives.”
Amid the protests, Bela Bhatia, a lawyer and activist in Bastar, also spoke to The Quint, saying that the state of affairs in the region is continuously deteriorating.
"Governments see armed strikes as the sole option to counter Maoists and have been ignoring the rights of tribals. It is a hurdle to get even an FIR registered in Bastar... to talk of actions and punishing the guilty would be absurd. People are here to fight against this behaviour of the government,” Bhatia stated.
She added, “People have built a memorial out of rocks and they see it as a memory of injustice and also as a sight of hope, people fighting for the tribals and their rights. Governments should ponder on initiating talks at a higher level with the Maoists and stop killing ordinary villagers and tribals in their name."
'Armed Action, Killings Not a Solution'
Meanwhile, a local journalist requesting anonymity said:
“Bastar has seen countless lives slain in the name of Maoists and there is no end to it. Governments do not have a clear plan of action. In fact, they only have one plan of action that is armed forces. They think they can kill anyone anytime and that would help them eradicate Left-wing extremism. This isn’t the solution."
He added, "The tribals are being exploited by both sides and they have to understand this, find their leaders and put an end to bloodshed from both sides."
According to the journalist, Mool Niwasi Bachao Manch has given a fresh life to the tribals' fight against police oppression and brutality. "However, until each and every household joins the fight, gets educated and understands the history of brutality on tribals from both sides, the struggle seems a long way from the end," he added.
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