Red-letter moment as Bihar’s Chormara declared Naxal-free, villagers to vote locally after two decades

JUMAI(Bihar): In a major step towards eliminating Naxalism, for the first time in over 25 years, residents of Chormara village in Bihar’s Jamui district can now vote peacefully in their village after it was declared free of Naxal influence.

Voters in Chormara will now cast their votes at Polling Station Number 220, set up at Chormara Primary School.

Earlier, due to security concerns, electors had to travel about 22 kilometres to Koywa School under Barhat block to exercise their franchise. The new polling station within the village has sparked excitement among residents, who say the change has reduced travel time by over 20 kilometres.

Locals expressed hope that the end of Naxal dominance would bring long-awaited development to the area, including electricity, better roads and improved connectivity.

Resident Sitaram Kora expressed happiness at being able to vote again after 25 years. “The area was completely under the control of Naxalites. The situation was really bad before. People used to be forcibly taken; they used to come at night. Even children were taken away to join the organisation. Now people are coming back too; elections also will happen after 30 years. We are very happy that this is happening,” Kora said.

There were attempts to run for office in 2004, including Rajendra Singh, a Munger resident, but by 2005, the situation worsened as Naxalites tightened their grip, kidnapping villagers accused of being police informants and executing them in so-called ‘Jan adaalats’ or kangaroo courts. Polling stations were attacked, forcing authorities to move voting booths far from the village.

In 2005, Munger Superintendent of Police KC Surendra and six others were killed in a blast triggered by Naxalites in the forest area.
Another resident, Sahodri Devi, recalled witnessing violence during those years.

“I have seen around 10-20 people being killed here. So many people I have seen being shot, cut up”, “Now Naxalites don’t come here, the government has finished them. Now voting is going to happen after 25-30 years. We are very happy, there is no electricity, no roads, nothing, now we can get those,” she said.

She also recounted how villagers who protested against forced recruitment were executed, saying, “From 2005 to 2017-18, the Naxalite organisation was active in this area, and they forcibly recruited young men and women into the organisation, putting guns in their hands to fight against the government. When these people protested, they were given the death penalty after a kangaroo court trial. Women were also exploited, and the same thing happened to her child; her son was being forcibly recruited into the Naxalite organisation.”

Around Chormara village, there are multiple other areas that were enveloped with Naxalism and are now getting free from its grasp, including Gurmaha, Jamunia, Bichlatola, and Hanumanthan.

The Jamui Assembly constituency, which falls under the Jamui Lok Sabha seat, will go to polls in the second phase of the Bihar Assembly elections on November 11, a red-letter moment for Chormara voters.

According to the Election Commission of India, there are 523 women electors in the village, with 488 men.

According to the Ministry of Home Affairs in 2024, there are a total of 38 districts affected by Left Wing Extremism (LWE) in the country, with over 60 districts being free from LWE in the last 5 years. District like Bihar’s Arwal, Aurangabad, Banka, East Champaran, Gaya, Jehanabad, Kaimur, Lakhisarai, Munger , Muzaffarpur and others have gotten significant improvements in their security situation.

Currently, Jamui is going to see a triangular contest between Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) candidate Shreyasi Singh, Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) candidate Mohammad Shamsad Alam and Jan Suraaj Party candidate Anil Prasad Sah.

Both the RJD and Jan Suraaj Party are looking for an upset against the incumbent BJP MLA, Shreyasi Singh. (ANI)