The long dark tea time of the soul

This is a video interview with the Sarpanch of Santoshpur, Ganga Emla. Emla is also an SPO, an offshoot of Salwa Judum, a kind of private militia that is armed and funded by the state. The interview is in references to the alleged fake encounter of 6 tribals at Santoshpur, Bastar. What happenned in that village on 31st March 2007 can be read here, here, here, here, here and here.

Emla not only claims that the murder of innocents took place in Santoshpur on that fateful day, he also describes how they had tried desperately to save the life of their fellow villagers. Chhattisgarh DGP OP Rathore (who incidentally died today) now claims that the naxalites killed the villagers in police garb. May his soul rest in peace.

Transcript of the interview:

31 39 Q Please tell on that day what time did you start your journey from here ( towards the village

A : From here, we started at 0430. 0430 we went from here.

31 52 : So what happened after that?

31 53 : When we went their, there were Sangham people. We caught them. When we surrounded them, one slipped away.

32 03 After that ?

32 04 : One slipped away, we got hold of one and were returning with him. We saw a party was coming from the other side. The party took us back. They called us back.

32 : 22 Second party, was it a police party

32 : 24 Yes

32 : 25 What happened after that?

32 27 : After that the second party came, the police party from Cherpal side. We waited for that party. They brought Sangham people with them from wherever they got and then after bringing them in the village killed them

32 50 How were they killed?

32 53 by axe

32 55 How many people were killed?

32 57 6 people

32 58 6 people were killed, so who were the killers, police?

33 03 SPo people

33 05 SPOs killed them. So you didn’t stop them that they should not be killed?

33 08 We asked them not to kill Sir. We said they are our village people, we need to save them. But they said who are you to save them?

33 17 So the killing was done only by SPOs ?

33 22 DF ( District Force) people were also there.

33 27 Why were they brought to Santoshpur to kill ?

33 30 That I don’t know sir. This is known to the second party Sir.

33 39 Villagers say some of them were collecting Mahua?

33 44 Yes Sir, some of them had baskets with them. They also had mahua in those baskests.

34 01 These are the people who were killed

34 05 Yes

34 06 So they were Sangham members or Mahua collectors ?

34 07 One or two were Mahua collectors. Rest were Sangham members

34 10 Rest were Sangham members ? After this silence

34 17 : What is your full name

34 20 Gangaram Emla

34 20 You are from Santoshpur, what is your post there?

34 25 I am the sarpanch of Santoshpur

34 26 Are you sarpanch or a panch

34 35 Sarpanch

Salwa Judum has destroyed entire villages in Dantewada. The people of Dantewada are paying a heavy price with the pursuance of this mindless strategy of countering naxals.