Silent Memory: How Political Parties Have Forgotten Adivasis Lynched In The Name Of Beef

"Hasn't the tribal society elevated Lord Ram to the status of Purushottam Ram? The Congress party has done nothing for the tribals in the five to six decades after independence." 

As PM Narendra Modi continues his campaign trail in the Adivasi region of Madhya Pradesh, which is going to polls on November 17, the question of his silence over the atrocities against Adivasis in the state is taking centre stage. Adivasis, with almost 22 per cent population share and domination in 82 seats, including 47 reserved seats, play a determining role in the assembly elections. 

PM Modi's address at Seoni district today is another effort by the BJP to gain in the Mahakoshal region, which is mostly considered a Congress bastion, think political analysts. 

The enthusiasm over the political rhetoric of Modi might find some resonance in the city where he addressed the rally, but 50 km away from the Simariya village in Barghat assembly, Phulwati Devi, in her 40s, can't forget the night two years ago when her husband Dhansha Inwati was pulled out of his room and lynched allegedly by 15-18 Bajrang Sena and Ram Sena members who got the 'tip' that they were storing beef. 

In May 2021, the brutal lynching of two Adivasi men became national news, but gradually, with time, people started forgetting it. 

While recalling the horrific night, Phulwati Devi says, "It was around 2 am. I heard some sounds; I woke up and found that people with masks were taking away my husband and hitting him. They were chanting ‘Jai Shree Ram’. When I went to resist them, I was also beaten up." 

However, it was only the next morning that she got to know that Dhanshah was killed. "The attackers accused us of storing beef. But believe me, there was nothing like it," she adds. The only support Phulwati Devi and the family received from the government was a compensation of Rs 8 lakh 25 thousand.

"We were promised a pucca house. Kamal Nath even promised Rs 3 lakhs, but that never happened," says Jayprakash Inwati, Dhansha's elder son. Jayprakash only got a compensatory job as a peon in a nearby village. But since then, nobody ever came to us, he laments. 

The situation worsens further for them as all they have is 6 acres of land where accessibility to water is a big issue. "The corn and wheat produce are not enough to survive," adds Phulwati Devi. 

The issue of Seoni lynching that got so much traction in 2021, nevertheless, is no longer an issue for the political parties. The sitting MLA and known Adivasi leader of Barghat Ashok Khakhoriya created enough ruckus in 2021, pushing the administration to arrest some people. "Most of them are now out on bail. From Seoni to Sidhi, Adivasis are facing regular atrocities," says Kailash Wickey, the leader of Birsa Brigade, a pressure group that has been keeping this issue afloat for the last two years. "Neither Congress nor BJP thought of the condition of Adivasis," he adds.

But why is it not becoming an election issue? Khakoriya says, "We don't want to use their lives as an electoral weapon. But people know what the BJP, Ram Sena, Bajrang Sena and Sangh have done to them. We are still fighting for the issue so the families get justice." 

As per the data of NCRB, the attacks on Adivasis in Madhya Pradesh increased by 25 per cent in 2020. In 2018, Congress won 31 of the 47 ST reserved seats, and BJP won the rest. BJP's Adivasi MLA candidate from Jhabua of another Adivasi-dominated Malwa Nimar region, Bhanu Bhuriya, says that BJP will get 40 seats in the reserved seats this time. However, regional journalists think Congress will retain its position. "Congress has worked on its organisation this time. And their focus on agricultural distress would help them to gain Adivasi votes," says Mohammad Zakariya Khan, a journalist based in Seoni. 

While the Inwati family continues to stay in Simariya village, the widow of the other deceased has left. "This should be the electoral issue. But nobody cares," laments Phulwati Devi while feeding her cattle. 

Modi's rally is still going on. Although the sounds of large mics don't reach here, the echoes of despair do.