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Jharkhand
Panchayat Polls: 3,000 backed by Maoists win unopposed
Saturday December 04, 2010 04:41:23 PM,
IANS
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Ranchi:
The Maoists might not believe in the democratic process but close
to 3,000 candidates supported by them - many of them their wives
or kin - have been elected unopposed in the ongoing Jharkhand
panchayat polls, sources said.
Heartening though this might be for the Maoists, the rebels have
been caught in an unenviable position. The polls have exposed
their double-speak. On one hand they have called for a boycott of
the polls and on the other hand their own relatives are contesting
the elections. According to police sources, the rebels are forcing
rival candidates to withdraw from the fray to help their relatives
and friends win posts.
Take the example of Manju Devi, wife of jailed zonal commander
Kuldeep Ganju. She is fighting for the panchayat chief's post at
Hurnali of Palamau district. In the same district, Raj Kumari is
contesting for the panchayat chief's post from Ichak. She is the
wife of Dilchand Ganju, commander of Tritiya Prastuti Committee (TPC).
There are also examples of relatives, particularly wives, of the
Left-wing ultras being elected unopposed in the current panchayat
polls. In Lawalong block of Chatra district, Mamta Devi, Neelam
Devi Hedum, Ramkali Devi and others have been elected panchayat
chiefs unopposed. All of them are married to Maoist guerrillas.
Due to Maoist threat, more than 3,000 candidates have been elected
unopposed for different posts in the state. According to police
sources, majority of these candidates have the support of the
rebels.
Even political parties do not have any objection over this trend.
"The motive behind panchayat polls is to strengthen the grass-root
level democracy. We should appreciate if Maoists are ready to join
the mainstream of the society by reposing faith in the democratic
system," Ramesh Puskar, a Bharatiya Janata Party leader, told IANS.
Jharkhand is holding its first panchayat polls after it was carved
from Bihar in 2000. The five-phase panchayat polls began Nov 27.
The last panchayat polls took place in 1979 when Jharkhand was
part of Bihar. The polls were delayed in Jharkhand due to legal
battle over reservations fro tribal people in the scheduled areas,
notified tribal areas.
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