A quiet life in the mainstream for these former left-wing extremists

But for a few hitches, 13 left-wing extremists, rehabilitated by Karnataka government over the past 7 years, lead peaceful lives with families

June 10, 2017 09:34 pm | Updated June 11, 2017 10:26 am IST - Chikkamagaluru

Changed circumstances: Rizwan Begum and her husband, Parashuram, at their home in Bengaluru.

Changed circumstances: Rizwan Begum and her husband, Parashuram, at their home in Bengaluru.

Nothing about Hagalaganchi Venkatesh gives away his past. The farmer leading a quiet life with four acres of land — which he tends to along with his wife and son — was a left-wing extremist in the ‘red zone’ (underground member) who decided to join the mainstream in September 2010.

The government offered him ₹1 lakh as a surrender package, most of which he spent on fighting three pending cases. Usually a calm man, he gets worked up only when he talks of how the government has failed to develop Maoist-affected villages as promised. “Over 50 houses at Menasinahadya village do not have power supply. The government did not install electricity poles citing that the area was part of a national park,” he rues.

Mr. Venkatesh is among the 13 left-wing extremists who have joined the mainstream under the Karnataka government’s policy to rehabilitate them over the last seven years. While a couple of them have continued with their struggle against inequality, the rest are leading a quiet life with families, struggling to find livelihoods.

Interestingly, a majority of them refused to accept the rehabilitation package offered as cash and faced the legal battle on their own. All they expected from the government was: it should not object to their bail pleas when they came before the courts.

Among them Nilaguli Padmanabha, who faces 19 cases, is still in judicial custody in Chikkamagaluru; Rizwan Begum got bail only two weeks ago; and Kanyakumari, who joined the mainstream a couple of days ago, is in judicial custody.

Varale Jaya, Mallika and Komala, who were in the ‘grey zone’ (unlisted underground members), were given ₹50,000 each. Ms. Mallika of Kundurumane is now a D-group employee in the Revenue Department. Ms. Jaya got two acres of land. Ms. Komala took training in tailoring. “I am with my parents at Meguru–Edagunda and earn by stitching clothes. The money I got was spent for court-related expenses. Now, I am free of cases,” she said.

Sirimane Nagaraj and Noor Zulfikar assimilated into the mainstream in December 2014, after the rehabilitation policy was revised. The Shantigagi Nagarika Vedike, headed by freedom fighter H.S. Doreswamy, took interest in revising the policy. Now, both of them have been involved in activities concerning welfare of Dalits, agricultural labourers and tribal people. While Mr. Nagaraj lives with his wife in Bengaluru, Mr. Zulfikar spends most of his time travelling. They said they were happy because they take part in protests and activities seeking land and houses for the poor.

Mr. Padmanabha, who lost a leg in an encounter with the police in 2004, joined the mainstream with his wife Renuka, and Parashuram and Ms. Begum. As he faced serious charges, he was sent to judicial custody. Of the 19 cases against him, he has got bail only in a few. Ms. Renuka told The Hindu , “Since I came out, I have been engaged in court matters. So far he has got bail in five cases. I have a two-year-old baby and we stay at a relative’s place at Uppalli in Chikkamagaluru. I visit my husband in the prison once a week.”

After giving up the armed struggle, Mr. Padmanabha was earning a livelihood by working as a carpenter. Ms. Renuka knows tailoring. “We are also interested in involving ourselves in activities in the interests of the poor, but now I am focusing only on my husband’s release. His health is getting worse in the prison,” she said.

Earning a living

Ms. Begum, a native of Raichur, her husband, Mr. Parashuram, and their two daughters are now settled in Bengaluru. Ms. Begum, who is facing cases in Chikkamagaluru and Raichur, was in judicial custody for six months.

“I work as a driver, while Begum knows tailoring,” said Mr. Parashuram. Initially, a few people objected to their presence in the neighbourhood. “However, the owner had no problem and he understood that we have come out of it,” he said. “We have to begin a new life now as I recently came out of the prison,” said Ms. Begum.

The most recent ones to give up the armed struggle are Ms. Kanyakumari, Shivu and Chinnamma alias Suma, who joined the mainstream in Chikkamagaluru earlier this month. Ms. Kanyakumari, who is facing serious charges including that of murder, has been remanded in judicial custody, while others were let off after their statements were taken.

K. Annamalai, Superintendent of Police, Chikkamagaluru district, said, “A Dy.SP rank officer has been designated as a nodal officer and these people have to inform him about their whereabouts once a month. This will go on for two years.” The officer said the department had no reports of these 13 people returning to the armed struggle.

“The rehabilitation policy has worked well. Importantly, there has been no fresh recruitment of naxal cadre,” he said.

0 / 0
Sign in to unlock member-only benefits!
  • Access 10 free stories every month
  • Save stories to read later
  • Access to comment on every story
  • Sign-up/manage your newsletter subscriptions with a single click
  • Get notified by email for early access to discounts & offers on our products
Sign in

Comments

Comments have to be in English, and in full sentences. They cannot be abusive or personal. Please abide by our community guidelines for posting your comments.

We have migrated to a new commenting platform. If you are already a registered user of The Hindu and logged in, you may continue to engage with our articles. If you do not have an account please register and login to post comments. Users can access their older comments by logging into their accounts on Vuukle.