Bihar
Bihar (; ) is a state in eastern India. It is the 2nd largest state by population in 2019, 12th largest by area of , and 14th largest by GDP in 2021. Bihar borders Uttar Pradesh to its west, Nepal to the north, the northern part of West ...
Government of India
The Government of India (ISO: ; often abbreviated as GoI), known as the Union Government or Central Government but often simply as the Centre, is the national government of the Republic of India, a federal democracy located in South Asia, ...
. He also fought against the upper-caste landlords for the cause of lower-caste people. Mahto, also called Master Saheb, was a member of the Bihar State Committee of CPI(M–L) and one of the founding leaders of the party in Bhojpur.
Life
Jagdish Mahto was born in
Ekwari
Ekwari is a village in the Sahar Block of the Bhojpur district in the Indian state of Bihar. Bhojpur district is a part of the Patna division.
Surroundings
Ekwari is on the district border and adjacent to Arwal district to the southeast a ...
,
Bihar
Bihar (; ) is a state in eastern India. It is the 2nd largest state by population in 2019, 12th largest by area of , and 14th largest by GDP in 2021. Bihar borders Uttar Pradesh to its west, Nepal to the north, the northern part of West ...
. He was a member of
Koeri
The Koeri (spelt as Koiry or Koiri) and also referred to as Kushwaha and Maurya in several parts of North India are an Indian non-elite caste, found largely in Bihar and Uttar Pradesh, whose traditional occupation was agriculture. According ...
community. Mahto established a newspaper called ''Harijanistan'' ("Land of Dalits") in order to voice support for the rights of the
Dalit
Dalit (from sa, दलित, dalita meaning "broken/scattered"), also previously known as untouchable, is the lowest stratum of the castes in India. Dalits were excluded from the four-fold varna system of Hinduism and were seen as forming ...
s.
The Naxalite challenge developed in the central districts where some agricultural development was producing an objective base to challenge the bonds of ex ploitation they called "semifeudalism." Its first mass leader was Jagdish Mahto, a koeri teacher who had read Ambedkar before he discovered Marx and started a paper in the town of Arrah called "Harijanistan" (dalit land), even leading a march of dalits on this demand. This was similar to innumerable assertions throughout India at the time, but Bihar contradictions drove Mahto in a more violent direction. Beaten up after supporting the CPI in the 1967 elections, he turned to Naxalism and began to organize murders of landlords and their gang ster henchmen in the area around his native village. The issues on which dalits were stirring were not only those of their abominably low wages, but also izzat, social honor, and especially honor defined in terms of the unrestricted and arro gant access of the upper castes to dalit women. In 1971, before he was killed, Mahto told a fellow teacher, "Brother, I know that I am going to die one of these days. But I will die partly satisfied. For one change that our movement has brought about is that landlords now do not dare to touch the women of the poor." Shri Bhagwan Singh Kushwaha, a former Minister in the
Government of Bihar
The Government of Bihar, known locally as the State Government, is the supreme governing authority of the Indian state of Bihar and its 9 divisions which consist of 38 districts . It consists of an executive, led by the Governor of Bihar, a ju ...
, is Mahto's son-in-law.
Prior to his involvement in the Naxalite movement, Mahto taught science at Harprasad Das Jain College,
Arrah
Arrah (also transliterated as Ara) is a city and a municipal corporation in Bhojpur district (formerly known as Shahabad district) in the Indian state of Bihar. It is the headquarters of Bhojpur district, located near the confluence of the G ...
. Later in his life, he developed an interest in politics and was inspired by the writing of
Karl Marx
Karl Heinrich Marx (; 5 May 1818 – 14 March 1883) was a German philosopher, economist, historian, sociologist, political theorist, journalist, critic of political economy, and socialist revolutionary. His best-known titles are the 1848 ...
. Later, he became an
Ambedkarite
Ambedkarism is called as the teaching, ideology or philosophy of B.R. Ambedkar, an Indian econonist, polymath, barrister, social reformer, human-rights advocate, and the architect of Indian Constitution. Ambedkarism includes the principles of Nava ...
after reading the philosophy of
B. R. Ambedkar
Bhimrao Ramji Ambedkar (14 April 1891 – 6 December 1956) was an Indian jurist, economist, social reformer and political leader who headed the committee drafting the Constitution of India from the Constituent Assembly debates, served ...
. Mahto was a staunch supporter of the rights of the
Dalit
Dalit (from sa, दलित, dalita meaning "broken/scattered"), also previously known as untouchable, is the lowest stratum of the castes in India. Dalits were excluded from the four-fold varna system of Hinduism and were seen as forming ...
s. He was also against many of the privileges that the upper castes enjoyed, particularly those who had been "twice born"(
dvija
Dvija (Sanskrit: द्विज) means "twice-born" in ancient Indian Sanskrit. The concept is premised on the belief that a person is first born physically and at a later date is born for a second time spiritually, usually when he undergoes the ...
). When
Bengal
Bengal ( ; bn, বাংলা/বঙ্গ, translit=Bānglā/Bôngô, ) is a geopolitical, cultural and historical region in South Asia, specifically in the eastern part of the Indian subcontinent at the apex of the Bay of Bengal, predom ...
and
Punjab
Punjab (; Punjabi: پنجاب ; ਪੰਜਾਬ ; ; also romanised as ''Panjāb'' or ''Panj-Āb'') is a geopolitical, cultural, and historical region in South Asia, specifically in the northern part of the Indian subcontinent, comprising a ...
experienced a Dalit upsurgence in 1967, the Bihar region saw no similar uprising from the oppressed sections of the society. Scholars attribute this lack of uprising to prevalent landlordism and the dominance of upper castes in the area, creating fear within lower castes. The first spark of Naxalism developed in Mushari, but it was soon extinguished by feudalistic forces.
Communist upsurge under Mahto
In the 1967 election, Mahto was supporting his friend
Ram Naresh Ram
Ram Naresh Ram (16 August 1924 – 26 October 2010); popularly known as Parasji, was a member of Bihar Legislative Assembly between 1995 and 2010, representing Sahar Assembly constituency from CPI-ML Liberation party.
Political career
Ram Nare ...
Bhumihar
Bhumihars, also called Babhan, are a Hindu caste mainly found in Bihar (including the Mithila region), the Purvanchal region of Uttar Pradesh, Jharkhand, the Bundelkhand region of Madhya Pradesh, and Nepal.
The Bhumihars claim Brahmin stat ...
s. When Mahto went to the polling booth, he saw that a Bhumihar youth was preventing voters from casting their votes. Mahto spoke out against this and was beaten badly by other Bhumihars. He was admitted to the hospital, where he remained for several months. After being discharged, Mahto decided to initiate the movement once again which was extinguished in 1930 without any result. Mahto met
Charu Mazumdar
Charu Majumdar (Bengali: চারু মজুমদার; 15 May 1918 – 28 July 1972), popularly known as CM, was a Communist leader from India, and founder and General Secretary of the Communist Party of India (Marxist-Leninist). Born int ...
during this period, who had led a "communist uprising" in
Bengal
Bengal ( ; bn, বাংলা/বঙ্গ, translit=Bānglā/Bôngô, ) is a geopolitical, cultural and historical region in South Asia, specifically in the eastern part of the Indian subcontinent at the apex of the Bay of Bengal, predom ...
and had travelled to Bhojpur to deliver a speech against the landlords.
Mahto formed an alliance with other like-minded youths, including Ram Naresh Ram and Rameswar Ahir. They assembled their supporters under the
Communist Party of India (Marxist–Leninist) Liberation
The Communist Party of India (Marxist–Leninist) Liberation (abbreviated: CPI(ML)L or CPI-ML(L) or CPIML Liberation) also referred to as the Liberation Group, is a Communist political party in India.
History
In 1973 the original Commun ...
. They began organising murders of landlords and their henchmen. According to author Bernard D'Mello:
By the end of the 1970s, a large number of landlords were killed. The movement pushed for economic reforms (e.g., eliminating unpaid labour of the Dalits for their masters) as well as increased respect for the Dalits. Prior to the movement, there were virtually no consequences for landlords who engaged in unwanted sexual contact with Dalit women. The Dalits were mostly landless labourers who were fighting under Jagdish Mahto for their honour.
Associates
One of the most notable associates of Mahto was Ganeshi Dusadh, who is described as an outstanding guerrilla fighter. He was the son of a landless bonded peasant from the Chauri village of the Sahar block. Under the leadership of Dusadh, the CPI-ML guerrilla fighters made several attacks on the regional landlords. They killed landlords as well as moneylenders, which was followed by the confiscation of their lands and the organisation of peasants to sow those lands. In addition, the grains of large trading companies were seized and distributed by the guerrillas. For at least six months in 1973, the Chauri village remained under the control of the Naxalites' revolutionary committee. On 6 May 1973, the armed police force entered the village along with the henchmen of the local landlords. The battle that ensued saw the villagers and CPI-ML guerrillas under Ganeshi Dusadh fighting the police and henchmen of the landlords. After a twelve-hour-long conflict, Ganeshi Dusadh was killed.
Participation in revolutionary uprisings across Bhojpur
Jagdishpur
Jagdishpur is a nagar panchayat town of the district Bhojpur of the state of Bihar in eastern India. It was the capital of the eponymous Jagdishpur estate, ruled by Rajputs of the Ujjainiya clan. One of its rulers, Kunwar Singh, was a major f ...
was a stronghold of
Rajput
Rajput (from Sanskrit ''raja-putra'' 'son of a king') is a large multi-component cluster of castes, kin bodies, and local groups, sharing social status and ideology of genealogical descent originating from the Indian subcontinent. The term Ra ...
landlords and Thana Singh, one such landlord, had committed several offenses against the Musahars and
Chamar
Chamar is a Dalit community classified as a Scheduled Caste under modern India's system of affirmative action. Historically subject to untouchability, they were traditionally outside the Hindu ritual ranking system of castes known as varna ...
s of the village. Two-thirds of the land in the village was controlled by these landlords, including Charichan Singh and Madho Singh. A sentiment against the poor condition of the lower caste in the village began brewing in 1957 but was suppressed by the landlords through the use of brute force.
In 1962, the ongoing skirmishes between the lower castes and the landlords led to the deaths of peasant leaders Shivratan Yadav and Bhikhari Yadav and the offenses against lower-caste women continued. According to Kalyan Mukherjee, the village was so unpopular among the Dalits that no Dalit family of another village would want to have a family member married to a resident of the village. The tipping point to revolt was the sexual harassment of the wife of Ramayan Chamar, who used to work as an agricultural labourer in the fields of Charichan Singh, by the sons of her landlord. Chamar's complaint to Charichan Singh led to his physical assault by the men of Charichan Singh. The disgruntled Chamar joined the "Jagdish Mahto group", also called as ''Ekwari ke Master Saheb ka group''. In the retaliation by Mahto and his armed group, who were invited to the village by Chamar, Thana Singh was assassinaed; another landlord, Hari Singh, was injured and killed later by the rebels.
Activism and anti-landlord activities in Bhojpur
On 14 April 1970, Mahto, along with Rameswar Ahir and Latafat Hussain, organised a massive rally and candle march in support of
Harijan
Dalit (from sa, दलित, dalita meaning "broken/scattered"), also previously known as untouchable, is the lowest stratum of the castes in India. Dalits were excluded from the four-fold varna system of Hinduism and were seen as forming ...
istan, a separate territory to be inhabited by the lower-castes. The rally was supported by a large number of landless labourers and backward-caste peasants. Mahto also ran a drive against the concept of
untouchability
Untouchability is a form of social institution that legitimises and enforces practices that are discriminatory, humiliating, exclusionary and exploitative against people belonging to certain social groups. Although comparable forms of discrimin ...
in the villages of Inrukhi, Baruna and Koshiyar. Anti-landlordism prevailed in the village of Ekwari, a few kilometres away from
Arrah
Arrah (also transliterated as Ara) is a city and a municipal corporation in Bhojpur district (formerly known as Shahabad district) in the Indian state of Bihar. It is the headquarters of Bhojpur district, located near the confluence of the G ...
.
The village of Ekwari was known for its fertile land and the feudal dominance of the upper-caste who exploited the lower-caste. The women of the lower caste were raped with impunity to such an extent that it was accepted as a social norm. The
Naxalbari
Naxalbari (also spelled Naksalbari) is a village in the Naxalbari CD block in the Siliguri subdivision of the Darjeeling district in the state of West Bengal, India. Naxalbari is famous for being the site of a 1967 revolt that would eventua ...
revolt in
West Bengal
West Bengal (, Bengali: ''Poshchim Bongo'', , abbr. WB) is a state in the eastern portion of India. It is situated along the Bay of Bengal, along with a population of over 91 million inhabitants within an area of . West Bengal is the fou ...
motivated Mahto and his friend Ramnaresh Dusadh, who were joined by a
bandit
Banditry is a type of organized crime committed by outlaws typically involving the threat or use of violence. A person who engages in banditry is known as a bandit and primarily commits crimes such as extortion, robbery, and murder, either as an ...
called Rameswar Ahir, to lead an armed uprising against the exploitative
Zamindar
A zamindar ( Hindustani: Devanagari: , ; Persian: , ) in the Indian subcontinent was an autonomous or semiautonomous ruler of a province. The term itself came into use during the reign of Mughals and later the British had begun using it as ...
s. In a bid to find like-minded youths for rebellion against the upper-caste landlords, the three men came together and organised the youths belonging to the lower castes for an armed rebellion. The tipping point in the rebellion was the assault on Gora Chamar and Chandrika Dusadh by the landlords. A group of
Koeri
The Koeri (spelt as Koiry or Koiri) and also referred to as Kushwaha and Maurya in several parts of North India are an Indian non-elite caste, found largely in Bihar and Uttar Pradesh, whose traditional occupation was agriculture. According ...
s and
Dusadh
The Paswan, also known as Dusadh, are a Dalit community from eastern India. They are found mainly in the states of Bihar, Uttar Pradesh and Jharkhand. The Urdu word ''Paswan'' means bodyguard or "one who defends". The origin of the word, per the ...
under Jagdish Mahto met with the Sub-Divisional Magistrate and a police office was established in the village to handle any future skirmishes.
Rameswar Ahir, who joined Mahto in the struggle against the landlords, started his career as a communist rebel by leaving all of his land claims and joining the underground society of communists along with Mahto. On 23 February 1971, a landlord named Shivpujan Singh, who was accused of raping a
Harijan
Dalit (from sa, दलित, dalita meaning "broken/scattered"), also previously known as untouchable, is the lowest stratum of the castes in India. Dalits were excluded from the four-fold varna system of Hinduism and were seen as forming ...
women in a village called Inrukhi, was assassinated by the Mahto group. The assassination followed the murders of a number of other landlords, namely Jagdish Singh, Dudheswar Singh, Mangal Singh, and Paramhans Singh. The attempt by some of them to organise a counter revolution against the communists under Mahto failed. These incidents popularised Ekwari as the "Naxalbari of Bhojpur". Mahto and his wife went
underground
Underground most commonly refers to:
* Subterranea (geography), the regions beneath the surface of the Earth
Underground may also refer to:
Places
* The Underground (Boston), a music club in the Allston neighborhood of Boston
* The Underground ...
, and by 1971 the Ekwari village was divided on a class line between two groups, one containing the influential landlords and the other containing poor peasants and the
Dalit
Dalit (from sa, दलित, dalita meaning "broken/scattered"), also previously known as untouchable, is the lowest stratum of the castes in India. Dalits were excluded from the four-fold varna system of Hinduism and were seen as forming ...
s.
Death
Mahto was killed after being beaten by a Musahar mob who mistook him for a ''
dacoit
Dacoity is a term used for "banditry" in the Indian subcontinent. The spelling is the anglicised version of the Hindi word ''daaku''; "dacoit" is a colloquial Indian English word with this meaning and it appears in the ''Glossary of Colloquial ...
'' (bandit). Before dying, Mahto is said to have told one of his comrades that, though he was dying, the upper caste landlords wouldn't dare to touch Dalit women in future. According to Arun Sinha, Mahto was never given the respect due to him by the upper castes. Mahto's wife was later defamed as a prostitute, and the pro-capitalist administration attempted to hide the conflicts at Naxalbari.
In an interview with the media outlets in
Delhi
Delhi, officially the National Capital Territory (NCT) of Delhi, is a city and a union territory of India containing New Delhi, the capital of India. Straddling the Yamuna river, primarily its western or right bank, Delhi shares borders ...
, Ram Naresh Ram, an associate of Mahto, discussed the conflict that had taken place for decades in Bhojpur between landed gentry and the subordinate tenants. The caste strife came to an end years later owing to the killings of the core Naxal leaders and retirement of their subordinates.
In popular culture
Jagdish Mahto became a notable figure among people of Ekwari and several books were written to commemorate his struggle against the landlords for the cause of poor and the deprived. Some of the biographical accounts of Mahto are ''Bhojpur Mein Naxalvadi Andolan'' (Kalyan Mukherjee and Rajendra Yadav), ''Master Saab'' (
Mahashweta Devi
Mahasweta Devi (14 January 1926 – 28 July 2016) ''
Chhatradhar Mahato
Chhatradhar Mahato ( bn, ছত্রধর মাহাতো) (born 1964) is an Indian political activist and convict from Lalgarh, West Bengal. He was the convener of the ''Police Santrash Birodhi Janasadharaner Committee'' ( – PCAPA) dur ...
*{{cite book, url=https://books.google.com/books?id=TD9uAAAAMAAJ , title=Agrarian Struggles in India After Independence
, author=Akshayakumar Ramanlal Desai
, publisher=
Oxford University Press
Oxford University Press (OUP) is the university press of the University of Oxford. It is the largest university press in the world, and its printing history dates back to the 1480s. Having been officially granted the legal right to print books ...