Former Maoists Reluctant to Accept Aid
By VK Lakshmi Gayatri
Published: 29th December 2015 05:16 AM
VISAKHAPATNAM: As they face threat to life from the Maoists, a large number of surrendered rebels and militia members are reluctant to receive government’s financial assistance in the north Andhra region. On humanitarian grounds, the police officials do their bit to make the payments even after bidding farewell to arms long back.
The police face tough time as the payments to the surrendered rebels must be done only through banks. As the surrendered Maoists do not have any identification proof like Aadhaar and ration cards, the bankers refuse to open the accounts. The police take personal initiative to help open the accounts. Even then several former comrades do not come forward to take the money as they cannot put to use the aid for personal needs at their dense forest hamlets.
As a strategy, the government offers some financial assistance, as per their rank in the Maoist movement, to the surrendered rebels for rehabilitation. Recently, the government increased the incentive from Rs 5,000 to Rs 10,000. There are several cash rewards ranging from Rs 25,000 to Rs 4 lakh. During the past one decade a large number of Maoists, militia members and also sympathisers, for several reasons, surrendered before the police in the Visakhapatnam region.
According to the strict guidelines in the Maoists party, the surrendered persons should not receive any type of government aid like cash rewards and houses. Majority of the surrendered persons site health reasons to the Maoist leadership before bidding farewell. But the Maoists keep a tab on the lifestyle of the surrendered rebels and their revenue sources. There are several occasions when the Maoists severely beat up some of the surrendered Maoists for receiving cash awards. The Maoists impose various punishments on the surrendered persons, including excommunication.
“There is serious check from the Maoists on their former comrades’ lifestyle. If they find that the surrendered rebel purchased land or buffalo to lead a comfortable life, the Maoists take stringent action on them. Surrender is not a crime in the Maoist party, but it will be treated as a serious offence if they receive government aid. Once the lifestyle of surrendered rebels changes for the better, the Maoists fear that it may encourage other rebels and militia members to surrender. So they impose ‘killing’ as punishment,” a senior police officer lamented.
Meanwhile, the surrendered rebels do not have any identity proof like ration, voter and Aadhaar card. In order to hide their identity when they are in the movement, the Maoists do not register their names in any government records. Though the government plead with the bankers to open more branches in the 11 agency mandals of the district, the banks are reluctant because of poor financial transactions and extremist threat. The cheques which were issued in the name of the surrendered persons lapse as they are not deposited in the banks before due date.
The police open accounts in only one nationalised bank in Visakhapatnam city in favour of the surrendered rebels for encashing cheques. Though the money is credited in their accounts, they are not utilising it.
“Where and how can they utilise. If a surrendered person uses money at his/her tribal village, the Maoists brand them as police informers. How they will keep their passbooks with them? During some friendly policing and community policing programmes, banners are displayed announcing that the surrendered Maoists received aid from the government and they join the hit-list,” said a senior police official engaged in the anti-Maoist operations in the agency. Police superintendent K Praveen confirmed the same and said that due to the threat from the Maoists, the surrendered persons do not receive the government financial assistance. The surrendered rebels are scared of Maoists if at all they receive money from the government. After receiving the money their lifestyle changes, provoking the Maoists. The surrendered rebels, who leave their tribal village, accept the aid.