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The Rediff Interview/ Dipankar Bhattacharya

'The RJD and BJP have been indulging in the politics of dalit corpses'

Dipankar Bhattacharya, general secretary of the Communist Party of India-Marxist Leninist, appears to be a typical Communist, with a luxuriant beard and intense, piercing eyes. However, there is no fire and brimstone kind of rhetoric in him, but his speech is clear and lucid, and underscores his party's determination to reject the "bourgeoisie parties' half-hearted measures" to prevent the recurring onslaughts of the upper caste hirelings", the Ranvir Sena.

He mentions the BJP and the RJD as the main parties which have been sustaining and harbouring the Ranvir Sena whose ghastly attacks against the unarmed and poor dalits is fast assuming legendary proportions, Bhattacharya believes the Congress too "has its share in encouraging the Ranvir Sena," although there is a perceptible sign that the party is regaining some popularity in Bihar.

However, he points out that Congress president Sonia Gandhi's visit to Narayanpur might have given some comfort to the relatives of the victims of the recent massacre, but "there is no question of her giving a healing touch." An interview he gave Tara Shankar Sahay.

How do you assess the impact of Sonia Gandhi's visit to Narayanpur?

Look, there is no question of her giving a handling touch to the helpless victims of the Narayanpur massacre. Of course, she has promised Rs 10,000 to the relatives of the victims. That is all very well. The grieving women of Narayanpur are looking for solace and comfort and Sonia provided it, that is all very fine. But do you know, our information is that in the Shankarbigha and Narayanpur massacres of Dalits by the Ranvir Sena, the Congress party's lobby in Jehanabad has been instrumental in giving refuge and encouragement to these armed murderers. Therefore, Sonia Gandhi has to answer many questions on this account, whether her party is harbouring the Ranvir Sena or not.

It is now also clear that the imposition of President's rule in Bihar has come about because of a tacit understanding between the BJP-led central government and the Congress. Sonia Gandhi has not yet made her party's stand clear on this vital issue.

Can you explain why the Ranvir Sena targeted Narayanpur this time?

Narayanpur's inhabitants mostly comprise Ravidas dalits like in Shankarbigha. These cowardly attacks, where the victims don't get a chance to retaliate, are done with the connivance of the haves, the rich landlords who hatch a political conspiracy along with those who are in power. My information is that in Narayanpur and Shankarbigha, there had been no problems like land dispute between the haves and the have-nots. These massacres have been planned by the Ranvir Sena and its masters to repress the increasing and legitimate claims of the landless labourers in central Bihar, especially Jehanabad district. I think the Ranvir Sena might have attacked Narayanpur after perceiving that its inhabitants are weak, unarmed and cannot retaliate.

Some politicians, including RJD president Laloo Prasad Yadav, have spoken about bringing the culprits to book. What do you think?

The people cannot be foiled any more. Four of the accused who had been arrested following the Narayanpur massacre, have been released on bail. Is this the way you deal with the Ranvir Sena? The Ranvir Sena is spreading its tentacles all over Bihar and this cannot be done without the collusion of the rich and the powerful.

The Ranvir Sena has been carrying out a survey to find out which dalit villages are vulnerable to attacks and these goondas prey accordingly. It is becoming clear that the killers wanted to make an example out of the Narayanpur massacre because they went inside the house of the victims and individually gunned them down. In Shankarbigha, the Ranvir Sena shot the victim in groups but in Narayanpur, they sought to make an example. They wanted to terrorise the Narayanpur villagers out of their wits.

One Shamsher Bahadur Singh, said to be a spokesman of the Ranvir Sena, has warned that more villages in the Jahanabad district having a concentration of Dalit labourers would be attacked. What are you doing about it?

Yes, we have taken note of this warning and it is our endeavour to be alert to safeguard those threatened. The warning by the Ranvir Sena has been well publicised in the media and the authorities are also aware of it. They must take appropriate measures to effectively discourage the perpetrators of such carnage. The poor dalits must be given arms and the unlicensed weapons of the wealthy farmers must be seized.

So your party still believes that bourgeois parties like the BJP and RJD are aiding and abetting the Ranvir Sena?

Most definitely, these bourgeois parties like the RJD and BJP, one a former ruling party and the other a Opposition party which is now ruling by proxy with the imposition of President's rule, are the main culprits. They have been indulging in the politics of dalit corpses ( garib logon ki rajniti).

You have left the Congress out?

No. I told you the Congress has been known to have a hand in encouraging the Ranvir Sena in central Bihar, especially Jahanabad. But primarily, the culprits are the RJD and the BJP.

You have said that you are alert to the Ranvir Sena's threat. Is that enough?

No. By saying that we are alert, I meant \we are keeping a vigil on the vulnerable dalits in central Bihar. We have stressed on the importance of unified armed resistance by the dalits. You will remember that after killing 63 dalits in Baathe, the Ranvir Sena had sneaked into Shankarbigha with the resolve of killing 100 dalits. However, the killers were forced to beat a hasty retreat because about four hundred dalits from the nearby Dhiwad village rushed to Shankarbigha after grabbing whatever weapons they could lay their hands on. That is why many lives were saved, otherwise the entire populace of Shankarbigha would have been wiped out.

Are you confident that armed resistance by the dalits in Bihar will gain momentum?

I can tell you, the dalits of Dhiwad village, by rushing to help their community members in Shankarbigha have started a positive trend. We are endeavouring to consolidate this trend. Also, we have told the government that if it can set up village defence committees in Jammu and Punjab, there is all the more reason for them to be set up here in central Bihar. If this is done, the poor dalits will not be killed by the Ranvir Sena, they will be ready. The distribution of arms by the government to the village defence committees in Bihar will repel the Ranvir Sena. If this is done by the government, the terrified dalits in Jehanabad, Bhojpur, Gaya and Patna districts will be transformed.

Several social scientists in Patna say that while the Ranvir Sena is supported by the upper caste Bhumihars, intermediate castes, after becoming the ruling elite since the last 15 years, have joined hands with the Bhumihars in a bid to suppress the dalits. Do you think it is true?

I think this is quite true, it is symptomatic of the emerging reality. You had the old feudal hegemony of the upper caste landlords in Bihar. This hegemony got eroded a bit and what has happened is that a section of kulaks, rich farmers coming from backward castes, particularly the Yadavs, have consolidated their grip on Bihar society. As a result, a new kind of equilibrium has come to the fore where the social composition of Bihar's ruling elite has changed. In place of the old, upper caste hegemony, you now have a certain backward caste representation in the ruling elite's social base. But beyond that, the reality remains that the overwhelming majority of the extreme backward castes continue to be exploited, oppressed and under-privileged.

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