Naxalites

​My good friends

Like woman in the Bible I knocked at the door of our Director General to give me permission to visit the Naxalite barrack. At last I got it and established a good relationship with them through my constant visits . There were about 85 men and 32 women naxalites. The men were in a barrack for their own. The women were along with the other women with theirmore than half a dozen children. I got admitted five of their children aged between five and seven in different mission schools and hostels.

One Sunday when I went to the prison, the Dy. Supdt. told me to meet Amrutha wife of a naxalite who is innocent in the same prison and speak to her , for she is preganat and the child in the womb should not be affected with her condition.. Well every Sunday I used to spend atleast half an hour speaking to her. One day I got a call from Dy. Supdt saying that Vanaja is taken to the hospital. I left everything and rushed to the hospital. By the time she was already taken to the labour room. Within ten minutes I heard the cry of the baby and with the permission of the nurse I went inside and took the child in my hand. Since then every Sunday I used to carry and pet the child, a lovely boy.

It is a custom in Andhra to celebrate the 21 day of the birth of the child. On that day the family prepare a function to give the name to the child and place the child in the cradle The lady Jawans asked me to do the same ceremony for the new born baby. I asked permission from the Supdt. , but he refused . Again I spoke to him pros and cons of the ceremony conducted in the prison, finally he gave permission. The cradle ceremony day was fixed. With the permission of our DG . I invited the judge from the court, Magistrate, doctor from the M.G.M. hospital and a few advocates, who were the parents and grandparents of my students. A bus load of teachers and students reached with the new dresses for the parents and presents for the baby. I had already asked the Supdt. to allow the father of the baby to be called for the function.

The function started with singing by my students and gave the new dresses to the parents. I had to give the name to the baby, Supdt. Said. I asked my Hindu teachers and they said, Krishna was born in the prison, so we give the name Krishna Kanth. I called out the name loudly and one of my teachers laid the baby in the cradle.Next was distribution of home-made sweets prepared in the prison kitchen itself. After that I asked the father of the baby to tell us , how he became a naxalite. He explained the whole story which led him to be a naxalite and by the time he was caught by police with his wife, he got involved in 13 murder cases. The father Sree Kanth studied upto x class. He was the eldest in the family. The father was only a pune in a private bank having very megure income . Sree Kanth went in search of a job the whole day and comes back home to get scolding from his father. He had three sisters younger to him at home. Finally one day he left the house at night . While sleeping on the verandah of a shop a few youngsters approached him, heard his pathetic story and took him to underground. Once you are in the gang you have to do what ever the leaders tell you. This got involved in the murder cases.

While taking his pregnant wife to a doctor at 4.30. a.m. , both were caught by police and put them in the prison. Then I spoke to the assembly my opinion. It is because of unemployment, poverty, dispute are some of the reasons for all these, hence I requested the eminent members to begin to do something for these problems. Well Sree Kanth and Amrutha with their baby got released before the time of punishment . Praise the Lord !