Chhattisgarh’s new Bastariya
Battalion evokes memories of disbanded force, and of concerns associated
with it. But CRPF says these personnel have been trained far better, will give
the force a clear human edge
What is the Bastariya
Battalion?
On Monday, Union Home
Minister Rajnath
Singh and Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Raman Singh attended the
passing-out parade of a newly formed battalion of the CRPF, the Bastariya
Warriors, at the Anti- Naxal Training School in Ambikapur. The battalion,
numbered 241, is unique: all the 549 recruits come exclusively from four
districts in Bastar, and several relaxations in physical attributes
were granted to them during the recruitment process. Following the completion
of the 44-week training programme, the battalion is expected to be
deployed soon. According to the CRPF, the battalion will be
immensely helpful in operations, as its recruits are familiar with
the local terrain and language. It will also help bridge the disconnect
between the CRPF, which comprises personnel from all over the country, and the
local population.
So why are concerns are being
expressed about the new force?
Essentially because it revives
memories of the Salwa Judum, the now disbanded militia force.
What was the Salwa Judum? Why
is its story integral to the Bastar narrative?
Salwa Judum was mobilised in
2005 by the late Congress leader Mahendra Karma, who was assassinated
by Naxals in 2013, and deployed in parts of Chhattisgarh. Those in favour of
the idea claim that the Judum was a “spontaneous uprising” of tribal people
against Maoist violence in Bastar, and helped in countering Naxals in
the region. Yet, by the time the force was banned by the Supreme Court in
2011, it had acquired a bloody and controversial reputation. The
state government allegedly supplied arms and tacit support to the Judum, which
had turned into a vigilante group, recruiting poorly trained youth
as “Koya Commandos”, or “SPOs (Special Police Officers)”. Many of the
volunteers were former Maoists. Many people were killed, there were
numerous allegations of the Judum entering and burning villages, several
accusations of sexual assault, and of thousands being displaced from their
homes. For the trapped villagers in Bastar’s forests, there were only two
options: either stay put and be declared a Maoist, or move to Salwa
Judum camps set up by the state. Thousands left their homes never to
return. These camps still dot Bastar, with settlements in neighbouring Andhra
Pradesh and Telangana as well, and many are still too afraid to return to their
villages for fear of Maoist reprisals.
And how similar is the
Bastariya Battalion to the Salwa Judum?
Activists argue that like the
Judum, the Bastariya Battalion seeks to pit tribals against tribals and
could again cleave tribal society. They say recruitment could again
force that choice between life and death, so prevalent during the Judum days,
as tribals are inevitably trapped between two hostile forces. If a
villager was to join the Battalion, activists say, their families would be
threatened by Maoists. Senior CRPF officials told The Indian Express that
members of the families of two new recruits had been killed over the past year,
with several others had been told to ensure that their children return, or face
a boycott. This situation, activists fear, will be exacerbated by the fact that
the Bastariya Battalion will be used exclusively for operations in Bastar.
“This experiment has been
tried before and has failed at a terrible cost. Why is the government
returning to something that created such a deep and painful divide, and
was not successful at all?” Isha Khandelwal of the Jagdalpur Legal Aid Group
said. Activists also argue that the period during and after the Judum saw a sharper-than-usual
increase in Maoist recruitments, and in villagers seeking security from
government-sponsored vigilante groups.
Human rights workers point out
that there have been problems with the District Reserve Group (DRG), a
similar unit of Chhattisgarh Police, that has former Maoists in its ranks. They
allege that the Judum was never really disbanded, its SPOs were made auxiliary
armed constables, and eventually brought in to the DRG. While Chhattisgarh
Police claims that the DRG has been an unqualified success, with local
expertise sharpening operations and intelligence, activists point to several
cases in which villagers have accused the DRG of human rights violations.
What is the government’s
argument for raising the battalion?
The government argues that the
battalion will give the security forces an operational dimension, for which the
CRPF has been completely dependent on the state police. The knowledge of the
terrain and language, and ability to spend long hours in the forest, will
be of immense help to the CRPF. Yet, the major difference between the Judum and
Battalion 241, CRPF officials say, is in the “training”. A senior
officer said, “We cannot shy away from the fact that there is a conflict. But
these men are not poorly trained… They filled up forms… and have been given a
44-week training, which included not just modules on jungle warfare and
weapons training, but also civic responsibilities and human rights. They
are CRPF constables like any other, and not a vigilante group. Every
single one of them filled forms to apply for this. Can we say we shouldn’t give
the chance to tribals from Bastar to be employed by the CRPF of their own
volition? After they do, the target for every force has to be efficiency
within the confines of the constitution. And posting them here is a step
towards that.”
Officials also argue that the presence
of locals will increase the sensitivity of the CRPF, especially with one-third
of the recruits being women. “Because of the language problem, and a
complete disconnect with the local culture among personnel who come from
thousands of kilometres away, we do often have a problem of understanding.
Their (locals’) presence makes us much more sensitive. The women in our force
help towards that end, and also increase our ability to counter fake
allegations that come our way. In fact, if you look at the last few years,
the CRPF gets stuck with allegations of human rights violations as part of the
“forces”, when the accusations are often against other units like the DRG. We
are a disciplined force, and the Bastariya Battalion will be the same.
We have taken special care in our training process,” a senior officer said.
What happens next?
The Bastariya Battalion will be
deployed in Bastar in a little over a month, after a period of leave, and
pre-induction training in the sectors they will be active in. The scars that
the Salwa Judum left behind in Bastar are deep, its wounds have still not
completely healed. CRPF officers say that the first six months will be crucial
to the success of the new battalion. Yet, the success or failure of the
Bastariya Warriors in Chhattisgarh will be judged not only by their
“operational successes”, but also by their human rights record. They will
be under constant scrutiny of civil society, the press and, most importantly,
the adivasis who live in the forests in Bastar’s conflict zone.
Credit: Indian Express Explained
(http://indianexpress.com/article/explained/is-the-salwa-judum-back-bastariya-battalion-crpf-chhattisgarh-5190001/)
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