Volume 4, No. 7, July 2003

It was the morning of July 2, 2002. The hills of Sankenaboru near Nerella village of Dharmapuri Mandal in Karimnagar district, the mother to hundreds of Naxalites, became witness to the deceit and cowardliness of traitors, and the blood-thirstiness of the rulers.

Based on information given by a traitor, coupled with a high tech plan hatched at Hyderabad and under direct leadership of SP Pravin Kumar (Karimnagar), hundreds of policemen surrounded the Sankenaboru hills. With definite and complete information about the small group of seven guerrillas taking rest on the hills, the policemen, equipped with ultra-modern weapons, advanced directly towards Comrades Padma and Sagar and started firing from all sides. Before they realised what was happening to them, Comrades Sagar, Manasa and Vikram collapsed there. But Comrade Padma soon came out of this shock and started to resist with her AK weapon. Because of her heroic resistance the other three comrades were able to retreat.

Com. Padma

The objective of this Narella action was to eliminate Nizamabad Division Secretary and People’s War State Committee leader, Com Padma. The hundreds of weapons targeted her alone. Comrade Padma, who had successfully resisted a number of such attacks and saved her fellow comrades with her heroic fighting and swiftness in the past, got wounded and fell into the hands of the enemy.

The land, wet with the warm blood of revolutionaries, reddened trees and a howling wind, became witness to yet another brutal fascist act in Naidu’s ‘hi-tech’ State. The cruel police tortured her in a most inhuman way. Her tortured body was witness to the cruelty of the ruling classes. The mighty state, with all its ultra-modern weaponry and cruel policemen had to bow down before the wounded guerrilla fighter as they couldn’t get even a small bit of information from her through the horrifying torture. Police officials, who had bitten dust in the past, at the hands of this heroic fighter, sadistically tortured this wounded fighter and then killed her most brutally. In this way they proved to be the real successors of the Nazis.

The original name of Comrade Padma was Nyalakonda Rajita. Her native place is Jammikunta in Karimnagar district. At the time of her martyrdom, as Secretary of Nizamabad Division and a member of the NTSZC, she was discharging her state level responsibilities in the party. After 14 years of underground life she came back to Jammikunta, as a dead body.

After the drama of a postmortem her dead body was handed over to her family members at night. From the wee hours of the morning, people from far away villages started coming to Jammikunta to have a last look of their beloved leader. Comrade Padma who caused many a sleepless night to the police officials when she was alive, didn’t let them relax even after her death. Fearing that her dead body may inspire the people, the police fortified the entire town of Jammikunta obstructing people from coming to the funeral. Even buses were stopped far away. They obstructed and forced the people coming from neigh-bouring villages to return. With video cameras, check-ups and secret police at every step, they created terror in the town. In spite of all these efforts, breaking through the obstacles created by the police, thousands of people, including women, children and old, flooded the town of Jammi-kunta to pay their revolutionary respects to Com Padma. During the funeral ceremony, with Jammikunta town closed in her memory, speech after speech portrayed the heroic deeds of this woman guerrilla fighter, and her exemplary communist values.

Rajita was born 33 years ago in the year 1969. It was a year where a spark from Naxalbari was spreading like wild fire throughout the country. She was born in Karimnagar district. At that time, Karimnagar was witnessing the sweep of the anti-feudal Jagityala movement which later grew to engulf entire AP.

In 1985, the State and Central governments jointly started an undeclared war on the revolutionary movement. Entire Telangana became a pool of blood. Fake Encounters became a regular feature. During the period 1985-89 hundreds of revolutionary leaders, activists, sympathisers and common people were killed. And particularly Karim-nagar was seriously affected. It lost many of its precious sons, from Khairi Gangaramm to Sayini Prabhakar.

This ordinary village girl Rajita, started her political activities during these turbulent times. And by 1989, she completed her studies and joined the peasant squad as Comrade Padma.

Rajita belonged to a middle class family who were financially comfortable. When she was studying in her school finals, she was much influenced by the waves of agrarian revolution rising in the surrounding villages and the surging radical student movement in her town. And naturally she was attracted to the revolutionary movement from her school days.

From childhood she was critical about any injustice around her. Even during her school days she was surprised to find a gap in lifestyles between her classmates. She also discovered discrimination between boys and girls. And she wanted that this discrimination go.

As a college student she competed with the boys in every sphere and dreamt of completing higher studies. Fortunately she got every support from her family. In this unjust and crisis-ridden society, where everything is irrational, she hoped to bring change by studying very hard. In this way, she was trying to find individual solutions to social problems. But college life changed her outlook and made her look towards the social roots of the problem. Under the influence of the RSU in the college, she began to travel in the same path of other great revolutionaries like Palle Kanakiah, Modepu Ramulu, Ramakant, Ilanna, Nalle Adi-reddy etc., who too were students of this college. The then student orga-niser Com. Masani Ravinder became her first guru in revolutionary politics. Under his leadership she developed systamatised revolutionary politics and dedication towards the people and revolution. She was so influenced by him that she used the initials of his name (MARA) as her pen name.

In 1988, she completed her degree, and her life was now at the cross-roads. Whether to choose the life of marrying a person selected by her family and settle down to a comfortable life, or to become a part of the struggle going on to change the world. On the one side there was her love for the family, and on the other side the aspiration to sacrifice her life for the people and revolution. Com.Rajita took little time in coming out this dilemma. She left the house to dedicate herself for the revolution in 1988. Since then she never looked back. In spite of many ups and downs in the revolutionary movement, she stood with the people and revolution at every step of her life. She considered revolutionary interests as her interests. The process of transformation of a middle class educated woman into a seasoned revolutionary fighter started in this way.

As per the Party decision she went to Hyderabad and joined an MSc course. There she was under the contact of the regional committee. In December 1988, with the martyrdom of Ilanna and Rajamallu she lost Party contact and came back to her district. In less than a week she got yet another blow; her first political guru, Comrade Masani Ravinder became a martyr in the first week of January 1989. These incidents affected her badly. Yet, she stood firm, with her determination even stronger.

After a brief period of work in the town she join the peasant guerrilla squad. During that time women were normally not taken into the squads that worked in the plain areas. Because of the severe repression at that time squad movements were only during the nights, taking shelter with poor and middle class families. The entire squad had to remain in the same room and they were not allowed to go outside even to answer nature’s call. That is why it was very difficult for women comrades to work in such squads. Rajita strongly argued that if men comrades can overcome such problems why cannot women do so. Though the Party initially refused to admit her into the squad, due to her persistent demand she finally got admitted. With this, in May 1989, Rajita joined the squad and started her new life with the name Padmakka. She was one of the first women comrades who joined the plain area squads of NT.

By the time Rajita joined the squad, the revolutionary movement had successfully overcome the serious test of defeating the enemy’s undeclared war and taking the North Telangana revolutionary movement into a guerrilla zone. Because of the growing people’s upsurge, the government was forced to give some respite from repression, even if this was temporary.

These conditions provided a good opportunity for Com.Padma to develop her political and organizational capabilities. Despite her urban background and comfortable life, she did not take much time to understand rural life, class struggle, people and their problems. Without any hesitation and by overcoming her middle class background, she made determined efforts to declassify herself and transform into a proletarian revolutionary activist. Though she was well educated, she whole-heatedly accepted the illiterate peasant comrades as her teachers and prepared to learn from their life and political struggles. Because of this correct Marxist method of learning from the people, she became a leader of the masses. Besides, she developed a good theoretical understanding, linking her knowledge to the movement.

Between 1989-91, there was a large scale upsurge of people’s movements through out the state. Husnabad area in Karimnagar district was one of the important centres of the people’s movement. The famous martyrs’ column, in the memory of the martyrs of Karimnagar district, was built during this period. As a squad member of this area, Com.Padma played an active role in mobilising people into struggle and organisation. From the people’s courts conducted extensively during this period she tried to understand the contradictions among the people and how to resolve them from a class outlook. She used to note down the people’s problem and analyse them by discussing with the other comrades. This had helped her to correctly understand the people’s problems.

Her development process was not a smooth one. She had faced many pro-blems in her initial days. It was very difficult for her to lead the tough squad life. But with her strong determination she overcame these difficulties.

In the meantime, the movement in Jagityal suffered a serious set back. All its leadership became martyrs. In that difficult time Com. Padma was transferred to the Jagityal squad. In these days no one was willing to go to Jagityal because of the unfavourable conditions. But comrade Padma went to Jagityal without any hesitation.

From the beginning of 1992 a new and further intensified attack was started by the State. This time the enemy specially concentrated to destroy the mass organisations, which are the eyes, ears, hands and legs for the Party. Mass organisation leaders and activists were hunted out throughout Telangana. In Husnabad alone 45 persons were shot dead in the year 1992. In such circumstances Com.Padma took up the leadership of squad in Husnabad. She was the first woman Commander in the State. After taking the responsibility of commander of the squad, Com.Padma immediately real-ised the necessity of complete secret organisation. And within one year, by 1993, she was able to organise people’s struggles in the Husnabad area. In a very short time she got recognition as a good organiser and effective political leader. By actively participating in the self-defense and counter attack campaign, she also proved herself an effective military leader.

In May 1995, she became District Committee member of Karimnagar. She was the first woman to become a Party District Committee member in North Telangana. In the same year she attended the AP State conference and was later elected as a delegate to the All India Conference, as a woman’s representative. In this way, 1995 was a turning point in her revolutionary life.

After returning from the Conference with renewed enthusiasm, she took up leadership responsibilities of the Peddapalli–Manthani areas. There, in 1996, she was seriously wounded in an ambush, which resulted in the permanent disability of her left arm. Even after having been seriously injured in the clash with the police, with enormous will-power and courage, she dragged herself to safety, with blood oozing from her wounds all the way. Due to a police man-hunt she was not even able to get proper medical treatment for over a month. Yet, she never allowed this disability to affect her in carrying out her responsibilities.

In 1997, the Karimnagar district movement suffered a severe set-back with the surrender of the District Committee secretary Bhumanna and another DCM Bheemanna. In such a situation she again took up the responsibility of Jagityal in February 1998.

In 1998, the Karimnagar movement suffered a big blow with the martyrdom of its secretary, Malkhapuram Bhaskar, in a covert operation. Within a few months, another district committee member, Sammi Reddy, surrendered. In this way it was a difficult time for the Karimnagar district leadership. But Com. Padma, undeterred by these set backs and with strong determination, spent all her energy in the direction of rebuilding the movement in the district. Whether it was Jagityal, or the Peddapalli–Manthani area or the Sircilla – Koddimaala area; wherever she went she succeeded in instilling confidence among the cadre and people with her inspiring leadership. Because of her leadership qualities she was unanimously elected as the District Committee Secretary (DCS) for Western Karimnagar in 2000. She became the first woman to become a DCS in the People’s War Party.

In December 2000 the PGA was formed just prior to the Party Congress and the SZC (Special Zonal Committee) conference reviewed the North Telangana movement and reorganised the entire party and military structures in North Telangana. As part of this a single division was formed by combining West Karimnagar and Nizamabad districts. Com. Padma took up the responsibility of secretary for the Nizamabad division formed. She was a delegate to the historic Ninth Congress of the Party held in 2001 and played an active political role in the discussions. On most issues she would voice her opinion.

While recollecting Com. Padma we must look at her qualities as a teacher, as an organiser, as a leader, politically and militarily; and about her determination to overcome the difficulties.

As a true revolutionary guerrilla fighter she never hesitated to take up challenges. She took up responsibilities under severe difficult conditions. First it was Jagityal, then Husnabad, then Manthani and finally Nizamabad division. She went to organise the movement in these places when the movement in these areas were facing severe repression and leadership crises. She not only accepted the responsibility but showed results in a very short time. She never let down the Party who had shown confidence in her, and the people, who loved her. Her simplicity, joviality, unassuming nature, and vitality, endeared her to the masses.

As a teacher, she always tried to educate fellow comrades and the people. Right from day one when she started her life as a squad member, she took up the task of educating the people. First she taught her fellow comrades in the squad to read and write. And then later, she continued to educate cadre and masses with politics. Even with her hectic schedule, she never neglected study. She spent all her time either in learning or in teaching.

Comrade Padma was the first woman to rise to the level of State Committee in the Party. She reached this position due to her dedication and determination to work for the people. She became an inspiration to many comrades in the state. However, as a woman, she had to struggle hard to overcome difficulties and limitations. She fought against patriarchal ideology, both inside and outside the Party. She raised the issue of patriarchal thinking within the Party, at both the NT State conference and again at the Congress. Because of the efforts of Padma and some other comrades, the steering committee at the Congress recognised patriarchy as one of the non-proletariat trends in the Party and included it in the rectification campaign.

In military aspects also she proved as an able and competent commander. She led the squad under difficult conditions. As a guerrilla fighter she knew the importance of military training. And as a Commander she led from the front, and not only successfully resisted the enemy on many occasions, but also inflicted serious losses to the enemy. In her total revolutionary life she faced enemy attacks about 15 times. In one incident in 2000, Com Padma was outside the camp taking a bath when the enemy attacked. Without any hesitation she came back to the camp and organised the resistance. After giving stiff resistance for 35 minutes they retreated from the place. Like this, in many other incidents due to her swiftness and alertness, she saved lives of many during enemy attacks.

The wound created by the Martyrdom of Comrade Padma in the heart of "People’s War" will continue to bleed. This wound may be heeled but its impression will last and remind us about her life, her sacrifice and her path. In the present situation it was a serious loss for the North Telangana movement to loose a great fighter, and exemplary communist, like Comrade Padma. But as has been repeated again and again, people’s heroes are immortal. They may die but their ideals and sacrifices will live forever. Comrade Padma is not only a model communist for all women revolutionaries but also for the entire revolutionary camp. Let us revolutionaries of India emulate her spirit as the best homage to this immortal communist.

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