Polls in shadow of red terror in Jharkhand

The common grouse of people in 3 Jharkhand seats that will go to poll on April 29 is that the sitting MPs were largely conspicuous by their absence over the last five years
While the BJP swept 12 of the 14 Lok Sabha constituencies in the 2014 elections, the battle this time is likely to be a lot closer | PTI FILE
While the BJP swept 12 of the 14 Lok Sabha constituencies in the 2014 elections, the battle this time is likely to be a lot closer | PTI FILE

MEDININAGAR (PALAMAU): The drive to Palamau from Ranchi takes one through rugged mountains — part of the Vindhya ranges — and dense forests. At Chandwa, halfway through the journey in Chatra district, it is considered foolhardy to enquire about the Maoists as they are everywhere.

Up ahead at Balumath is a quaint police station, which seemingly stands aloof, from the sparsely frequented market. The police station could not even lodge cases a decade back for fear of riling the Maoists, even as the Leftist outlaws dispensed crude justice in the most vexing cases at kangaroo courts barely 100 metres away.

Such was the extent of Red Terror in the area that the ‘thana’ (police station) merely existed and did little in the way of fighting crime, locals said.

However, those days, though not in the past, seem a blur now as the rebels have been pushed deeper into the interiors. However, that shouldn’t, for a moment, lull one into a false sense of complacency that the Red Terror in the state is on the wane, as the rebels still strike at will further inland. While continuing to unleash terror on schools, community halls and hospitals with alarming frequency, the rebels, as if by routine, also blow up symbols of state infrastructure — roads or bridges or culverts — which are key to mobilization of security forces.

While encounters in forests may not be as frequent as a decade ago, jackboots tread the terrain watchfully, wary of stepping into a landmine. And, ahead of the fourth phase of polling for the Lok Sabha on April 29, the forces are busy securing the forested terrain through routine area domination exercises.

“With proactive policing, the security situation in Jharkhand is limping back to normal. But then, managing the elections is never easy,” said an SP-rank officer in the anti-Maoist cell.

Palamau, Chatra and Lohardagga, which are going to polls in the state’s first phase on April 29, lie in the Maoist arc. These are among the least developed of all Jharkhand districts, with drought and migration adding to the woes of locals. A common grouse among locals is that the incumbent MPs were largely unseen. The MPs conceded as much, saying their visits are often deemed a security risk as ‘Maoists lurk everywhere’.

Sitting Chatra MP Sunil Kumar Singh had to fend off bouncers from the locals who asked he had been. “It is ironical that even after staying away from the constituency for so many years, he (Singh) still has the cheek to ask for votes,” Suryakant, an angry businessman in Chatra, said.

“People even tried reaching him on the phone. But it proved useless,” he said.The Maoist threat has forced candidates to stick to towns and semi-urban areas.

While the BJP has gone to people promising better infrastructure and more industries, the Opposition, in the shape of a Mahagathbandhan (grand alliance), picked from diverse strains of politics — Lalu Prasad’s RJD, Congress, Shibu Soren’s Jharkhand Mukti Morcha and Babulal Marandi’s Jharkhand Vikas Morcha — senses an opportunity this time. The BJP’s ‘threat’ of taking over tribal land by amending the Santhal Pargana and Chottanagpur Tenancy Acts, brought into force by the British, could put the opposition at an advantage. 

While the Congress has fielded Barhi MLA Manoj Yadav from the seat, RJD put Subhash Yadav in fray, dealing a blow to Opposition unity and making the job easier for the BJP candidate.
In Palamau, an area hit by recurrent drought, people are not happy with sitting BJP MP Vishnu Dayal Ram, an ex-DGP, for barely showing up in his constituency over the last five years. The locals are also battling under-development, with most villages lacking water, power and roads.
The other issue is that the Mandal Dam, for which PM Modi ordered resumption of work, is perceived as more of use to Bihar.

“The PM just wanted to count it as an achievement. No work has started in five months,” Binod Kumar, a student in Medininagar, said.

In Lohardaga, another district affected by Left Wing Extremism (LWE), issues related to Chhotanagpur Tenancy (CNT) Act and Santhal Pargana Tenancy (SPT) Act could decide the polls this time. 
Noted academician Dr Karma Oraon, said, “There is a huge undercurrent in tribal- areas, and it will have a significant impact on voting.”

Related Stories

No stories found.
The New Indian Express
www.newindianexpress.com