States: Bihar: The Lust for Blood

India Today, February 8, 1999
Feb 8, 1999

BIHAR
The Lust for Blood

The cycle of caste violence continues with the killing of 23 Dalits by the Ranbir Sena.

By Sanjay Kumar Jha

Vinod Paswan edged closer to his mother, seeking some body warmth. Even as the infant settled back to sleep, over 100 men were moving into his village, armed to the teeth. Within minutes they surrounded the first cluster of mud huts and opened fire indiscriminately. When the half-hour-long nightmare ended, six-month-old Vinod lay in a pool of blood, shot in the stomach. Beside him was his seven-year-old sister Gyanti, shot in the head.

Shankarbigha: The carnage could have been averted had notice been taken of the Ranbir Sena's intent to attack the Dalits January 25 is not a date the residents of Shankarbigha village will forget easily. In yet another frenzy of caste violence, eight Dalit families in this village located in Bihar's Jehanabad district were targeted in one of the worst carnage in recent times. "We have seen massacres where women and children were spared. In this case the mob wanted a higher head count than any previous killing," says a senior police official investigating the crime. The objective was well-achieved. By the time the gunmen left, shouting "Ranbir Sena zindabad", over 23 people were dead, including nine children and five women.

Rajkumar Paswan, 35, managed to save himself. The rest of his family was not so lucky: his children Gyanti and Vinod, father Bishnupat Ram, mother Janaki Devi, brother Santosh and sister Sharda were killed. The toll in other families was equally high: Sonajhari lost six relatives and Sukhender Sah four. "They were set for a major massacre but left on hearing shots from the nearby Dhabai village," says Bhairav Rajbanshi, who lost his wife and two daughters in the incident.

The tragedy perhaps could have been avoided. For some time now, the Ranbir Sena has been threatening an attack and as recently as a fortnight ago Sena founder Brahmeshwar Singh said: "A major massacre will take place soon. The target has been selected and all preparations made. Only the mahurat (auspicious time) is pending." Shankarbigha was also an ideal soft target since, unlike other neighbouring villages, there were no militant Dalits guarding the village through the night. It has no electricity and the nearest road is three km away. The police were informed only after two hours and the last rites of the deceased were delayed by over 20 hours until Chief Minister Rabri Devi arrived.

When she did, she was greeted with protest banners reading "Garibon ke hatyare Rabri Sarkar istifa do (Killers of the poor, Rabri Government resign)" and "Bhajpayi Ranbir Sena ko sanrakshan dena band karo (Stop protecting the BJP's Ranbir Sena)", courtesy supporters of the CPI(M-L). Shankarbigha residents are convinced that while the killers came from outside, they were helped by "insiders" from nearby Dhobibigha village in identifying supporters of the CPI(M-L). The chief minister, who has announced the setting up of a special court for a speedy trial, was quick to blame the BJP for supporting the Ranbir Sena. She has also declared compensation for the bereaved families: Rs 1.4 lakh per dead person, six months' free ration, a government job and pucca houses. Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) President Laloo Prasad Yadav added: "If I had my way, I would shoot down the killers. But the law restrains me."

Officials are still trying to figure out the reason behind the bloodbath. According to villager Ramadhar Rajvanshi, land troubles may be a cause. About 50 acres of disputed land in Dhobibigha have been occupied by local Naxalites, the Ranbir Sena's arch enemy. That may have triggered the massacre, although District Magistrate Pratyay Amrit denies it. "They were all poor farmers and had no enmity with anyone," he says. Meanwhile, the police raided Dhobibigha and arrested six persons, including the main accused Butan Singh and Baban Singh who were named by Shankarbigha residents.

Bihar's politicians are set on extracting the maximum possible mileage from the massacre. The Opposition in the state is already gunning for the RJD, Rabri and her husband Laloo. Says Samata Party General Secretary Premchand Mishra: "The Jehanabad incident appears to be only the logical culmination of years of misrule which has totally discredited the administration and allowed criminals and armed gangs to hold sway over a state which is on the brink of anarchy." Now Left parties allege the Government has taken a lenient view of the Ranbir Sena's growing clout. Declares Mahendra Singh, deputy leader of the CPI(M-L) in the Bihar Assembly: "Laloo is just fostering a feudal system which wants to stamp out the resurgence of the Dalits."

The six-year-old Ranbir Sena is essentially a private army formed by the Bhumihars to counter the Naxalite threat. It helps the landed gentry secure their land holdings from claims made by landless labourers and counter demands for higher agricultural wages. The Sena draws inspiration from a soldier in the Mughal army, Ranbir Chaudhary, who freed the Bhumihars from the Rajputs' atrocities. Ironically, the organisation has now forged an alliance with the Rajputs to fight a common enemy.

The terror reign of Naxalites in Bihar is in its third decade. The Ranbir Sena is now the only private army remaining in an area once overrun with armed gangs fighting the Naxalbari. In 1986 the government banned all private armies and Naxalite outfits. While the senas disintegrated, Naxalites remained active because the police had little information about them. In Bhojpur, Jehanabad, Gaya and Palamau, several thousand acres of fertile land lay fallow for years as the ultra-leftist imposed economic sanctions and refused to let anyone work the fields.

With an estimated one lakh members, the Ranbir Sena has a strong presence in 16 districts across central Bihar and is fast emerging as a powerful political force. Social scientist Saibal Gupta of the Patna-based Asian Development Research Institute says: "The Ranbir Sena struck at Jehanabad to establish its supremacy in the region and to foster its importance in the electoral market."

This isn't the first time the Ranbir Sena has struck. In December 1997, it gunned down 58 Dalits in Laxmanpur-Bathe village, barely 10 km from Shankarbigha. The latest episode is believed to be in retaliation for the killing of seven Bhumihars in Rampur Chauram by Naxalites in January 1998. Says Brahmeshwar: "It is a fight for survival, we are only defending our rights. We don't like bloodbaths either. But the Government and the Naxalites want it continued, so it will continue."

The bloodshed is more than likely to continue, only this time the killers may come from unexpected quarters. Prabatia Devi, a survivor of the January 25 carnage, has never seen a firearm. She now wants one. "Give me a gun and I will kill Bhumihars," she told Rabri. The Jehanabad massacre has deepened the caste divide in Bihar and hatred, more than grief, is the overwhelming emotion at Shankarbigha right now.

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