It is a very strange time and society we live in where we have plenty of people who find it fashionable to talk about flattering issues like women rights (feminism) and human rights. But what do they do? They are never serious. Today I am writing this because, I feel about the issue that shook my soul and may touch yours, too.
This incident happened in 2015, but I am sure you have not read or heard about it much from the Lutyens media or the activists. I fail to realize that, every people in media, who have always spoken about women rights, human rights, dignity, freedom of expression, where were they? For whom slogans like “Bharat tere tukde hoonge” “jang rahegi zari Kashmir ki azadi tak”, is something FOE, won’t they speak about someone’s Freedom of Living a Life? A big contingent from the same fraternity, who find talking and writing about Malala Yousafzai was something noble, empowering and in vogue, where were they? Today when I write this I hope some of these people get up from their slumber.
Today I want to talk about a girl who belonged to a backyard state of India. A girl from very poor background. She is “Sanjeeta Kumari” aka “Guddi”. Sanjeeta Kumari or Guddi was a young girl of around 11 years when she was picked up and made to get into a “dark red world of Naxalism”. She came from Gumla district of Jharkhand.
Being from an immensely poor family, Guddi was lured into the “Red dark zone” by her neighbor, Savita Didi. At 11, she was brought to cook food for the comrades, who were hardcore Naxalites.
These people are generally supported by a fraternity called liberal progressive society, generally they presume themselves to be the most intellectual and enlightened carrying a leftist mindset. The ideological supporters have made its base in universities like JNU, HCU and other such universities. They love being students till late forties (when ordinary people start planning retirement). And then they become lecturers and professors in these universities so that they can create a new carder.
This pseudo intellectual creed, to a large extent, forget about these small little girls, whom these Naxalites have taken into their carder. But the fact remains that these small girls are forced to live life like a slave, they are used, abused and misused. They are forced to indulge into cooking, cleaning and dirty jobs. If that is not enough, these girls are also forced to have sex with the men around, though it is termed as consensual sex with men double their age working as Commandos for the RED REVOLUTION.
When I first read about this, I felt like yelling out loud, where are the Human Rights? Where are children’s right?
I Feel like asking all those people who sit down in classy surroundings, showing concern in dramatic setup of JNU, do they actually care about the these girls, these children who are taken over by these groups! They go through living under barbaric conditions. But then all of this happens under the barb of “Lal Salam” hence they will not speak against it, but where is the right of the child?
For the first time when I read about her and I started finding more things. I find it to be very painful as a child was turned into a sharp shooter. She was very good with the Insas rifle and carbines. I somehow wonder was she good at studies, was she good in some sports, with dolls, with kitchen sets? Never know!
But what happened with her once, when she was fighting for the “red forces” in the Latehar jungles, she got shot, a bullet pierced through her foot. With that hurt foot, she ran and walked for 8 days and nights, till she reached a safe place with these people of the “red army”. This incident is probably 6-7 year old. At that time she would have been not more than 16 to 17 years old.
Where are those liberals who today talk about freedom of expression human right and on other such subjects, vanish in thin air when issues like this come into light? Do those, who support “Bharat Tere Tukde Honge” “Jung Rahegi Jung Rahegi Azadi tak” slogans, have any consideration for such children? A child may have some dreams, some aspirations, some desires to be somebody.
What I’ve read about her and her parents is disturbing. Sanjeeta Kumara in one of her talks to a news reporter had said, “In the usual practice a basic commanders of these Naxal groups, generally take in young girls and make them subject through all cruelties and child labor. It is a fact that not just that they expect these girls to do housekeeping and cooking but they also force these minor girls to serve the commanders and Naxal fighters to with physical sexual services to the members of Red Army”.
When her parents had spoken to undercover press reporters, the facts that surfaced compelled me write this piece. Her parents said, “My daughter wanted to study! Learn job oriented skills to be independent, live life with dignity. We work hard as labourers and sent money to her occasionally. The Maoist leader always pressurized her to return to their fold”.
In 2013, Guddi or Sanjeeta Kumari was fed up of this red Army system, wanted to lead a normal girl’s life. Mr Tiwari a social worker gave her shelter and helped her getting an admission to a plus-two School. Sanjeeta Kumari started going to school. This is what is an elementary catalyst for bringing down the “Red Army”.
Sanjeetha Kumari’s parents and siblings were always threatened that their daughter would be killed. Not just because she was going to school but she was giving hopes to numerous other girls, who are in the trap of this red Army. It is shocking to read what Guddi had told, when she escaped the camp in April 2013. There were 23 minor girl in the zonal commander’s (Nakulji) camp, where some of them were as young as just 10 years old.
Another thing that Guddi said and which again was very painful and touching was about the conduction and plight of women in these camps. She said, “Maoist commanders regularly exploit women sexually but it is often projected as consensual sex. Abortions are fairly common as female commanders cannot become mothers”.
So now what is Sangeeta Kumari doing? To start with, she is NOW DEAD.
Now coming back to Guddi, she started studying and she was told that she should not visit her parents and siblings. But she made a fatal error of visiting her parents. She was picked and taken to a hill near her village, where, possibly she was raped and then slaughter to death. Her body was found in blood. She was termed by Maoist as a traitor, a police informer. But the fact of the matter remains unchanged. As per superintendent of police Gumla, “She was not a spy and we do not know of any Maoist related cases against her name so far”.
So what was this? This all is what I can easily say, “Forgotten Malala from my backyard”.
I find so many people who think it fashionable to write about Malala Yousafzai because she was presented by the West! It was in vogue to talk about her. It was always and it would always be a fashion statement to speak on such issues. If one leave this pseudo feminist, pseudo intellect crusaders, there are people who run a Cabal that operates a sustained effort to demean the part of society that stands for cultural nationalism and patriotism. Abusing a religion in particular of its belief and history, saying it’s a religion that divides society. Still I would ask them what have you done till date about this “Forgotten Malala from my backyard”.
