On May 25, 2024, Anjana Ahirwar, a 20-year-old Dalit woman, mysteriously “fell” to her death as she was returning with the body of her 26-year-old uncle Rajendra Ahirwar – murdered in a brutal attack orchestrated by the dominant “lambardars” of Baraudiya Naunagir. This was the third death in the same family of Dalit labourers within 10 months. Anjana was at the forefront of the family’s struggle for justice in the murder of her younger brother Nitin and her uncle, Rajendra Ahirwar.
A fact-finding report released by a citizens group of Madhya Pradesh in July 2024 – to which this author belongs – highlighted how the police and Madhya Pradesh government continuously deprived this family of Dalit labourers their right to justice, how Sagar police hurriedly closed the investigation into Anjana’s death, and concluded that Anjana purportedly jumped to her death. The police’s conclusion has been indignantly rejected by Anjana’s family. Anjana’s mother asks, “Why would Anjana, who was fearlessly fighting for justice for her murdered brother all the way to the Supreme Court, give up her own life?”
Sagar (MP): Baraudiya Naunagir village of Sagar district of Madhya Pradesh is part of Bundelkhand – a region of Madhya Pradesh with a long history of feudal oppression, one which continues to be in the news for atrocities against Dalits in recent years as well. Sagar, is an important centre of political power in the state; and is home to three prominent ruling Bharatiya Janata Party leaders and former ministers, like Gopal Bhargava, Bhupendra Singh, and Govind Singh Rajput.
The “lambardars” (a term dating from colonial times to denote village elites) of Baraudiya Naunagir – the Thakurs – reportedly own 1000 bighas of land (~630 acres), and most labourers must work on their fields when called for. They dominate village proceedings and decision-making, their influence strengthened by their close familial ties to Khurai MLA, Bhupendra Singh. Bhupendra Singh is an influential BJP leader who has earlier been a cabinet minister in the Shivraj Singh government.
In contrast, Anjana’s family own about 3.5 acres of land. Her father, Raghuvir Ahirwar worked as a security guard in Pithampur, Dhar. Her brothers Vishnu and Nitin Ahirwar often migrated to find better work in cities, unlike others in the village who worked for the Thakurs as and when the lambardars demanded. Anjana was a bright second-year undergraduate student. At the time of her death she was 20 years old. She was leading her family’s struggle against the gruesome murders of her brother in 2023 and her uncle this year – but her struggle against the stifling dominance of the lambardars began back when she was just 15 years old.
This story was originally published in thewire.in. Read the full story here.