“Will neither forget nor let Chhattisgarh forget “: BJP’s Raman Singh vows to fight back after killing of a worker

Days after another Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader was killed by the Naxals (Maoist) in poll bound Chhattisgarh, former chief minister (CM) of the state Raman Singh pledged that he will not forget the killing of his party functionary. Taking to Twitter, the former CM, after meeting with the family of the deceased BJP leader Birjhu Taram, wrote in a post, “It’s my promise to you, sister neither I will forget this scene nor I will let Chhattisgarh forget it.”

Further, while attacking the state government, the saffron party’s stalwart from the tribal (Vanvasi)-dominated state said, “Those undemocratic and communal cowards who killed Birjhu are protected by this government, and we will overthrow them.” Earlier, Singh along with other leaders interacted with the family members of the deceased BJP leader and assured that justice will be served.

The former CM also took part in the last journey of the deceased BJP functionary and challenged the ‘undemocratic powers’ to do whatever they can, quoting that the tears of people of Mohla Manpur will turn you into ashes.

Killing of Birjhu Taram

It is to be noted that in another incident of targeted killings of the BJP functionaries in the state by the Maoists, the former office bearer of the party in Mohla Manpur, Birju Taram, was killed by suspected Maoists in Sarkheda village under the Aundh police station limits of Mohla Manpur on Friday, October 20.

According to the reports, the BJP leader was killed when he was returning home after offering prayers at Durga Pandal in the village when armed men opened indiscriminate fire upon him, leaving him dead. Birjhu was said to be on target of Maoists and some other people after he re-installed the Durga idol near the village, which was earlier stolen and set ablaze by some unknown people.

Notably, this is not the first time that the Maoist have deliberately targeted and killed any functionaries of the saffron party and similar incidents of targeted killings of the BJP workers had also occurred in the poll bound state in recent months.

Recent Killings of BJP leaders in Chhattisgarh

The first brutal murder in the series was of Neelkanth Kerrekam, the then BJP president of Usur Mandal of Bijapur. Neelkantha had arrived at his ancestral home when three armed cadres of the People’s Liberation Guerrilla Army (PLGA) dragged and brutally hacked him to death in front of the family members while hundreds of Maoists surrounded the village on February 05 this year.

The second murder in the series was of Saagar Sahu the then BJP vice president of Narayanpur district. Saagar was shot dead at his home by two armed cadres of the outlawed outfit, who barged into his house and shot him from close range before fleeing the spot on the evening of February 10.

The third brutal assault on a BJP functionary occurred on the next day when a former village head associated with the saffron party was hacked to death near Handawada waterfall of Dantewada district on February 11. The deceased BJP functionary Ramadhir Aalmi was travelling from Murumwada to Hitameta village when around 5-6 cadres of the banned Maoist group hacked him to death.

Earlier, the body of another BJP leader, Budhram Katram, was also recovered near a culvert on Jagdalpur Geedam Highway in January this year. It was then alleged by the family members that Budhram was also killed by the Maoists.

Mohla Manpur Region

It is to be noted that the Mohla Manpur region of the state is considered a hotbed of the Maoist insurgency, where the extremists have time and again carried out targeted killings of civilians and political representatives. In the past, the Maoists have also threatened the BJP leaders of the regions, which led to demands of tightening security and a tug of war between the opposition BJP and the ruling Congress party.

Notably, earlier, a local leader, Sarju Tekam, while addressing a gathering near Vashisht Chowk at Manpur, had also threatened the BJP leaders not to come in the Vanvasi-dominated regions to seek votes.

(Read the full report here 🙂

Giving an open call to stab the BJP leaders, Sarju had said that “if the BJP people came into tribal regions during elections, you should stab them and send them naked, I take the guarantee.”

The BJP state unit, after the incident, demanded the arrest of Sarju Tekam and action against the local Congress MLA. The party, after the incident, alleged that while as many as five BJP workers have been killed in Mohla Manpur, Congress workers are openly threatening the BJP party workers.