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A nun-cum-activist, who was beaten to death two days ago in Jharkhand, was killed by the local tribals, police said yesterday, ruling out the possibility of the Maoists or the coal mafia being involved in the killing.
“It seems she was killed by tribal people,” deputy inspector general of police of Sathal region V K Pandey said.
Chief Minister Arjun Munda has said that if needed a probe, separate from police, could also be ordered. “Police is investigating the matter. If needed, a high-level probe team will be constituted in the murder of Valsha John,” Munda said.
The police revealed that around 40 people raided the Pachuwara village in Jharkhand’s Pakur district - 500km from here – on Tuesday night and hacked to death Valsa John, 52, from Kerala’s Ernakulam district.
Asked about the possibility of the coal mafia or Maoists being involved in the killing, Pandey said: “There is no possibility of the coal
mafia or Maoists killing her.”
John came to the Pakur district nearly a decade ago as a teacher in a mission-run school. Later, she opened a school and taught students up to class IV. Jon had in 2006 spoken out in support of people who were opposing the Panam coal mine. She subsequently earned the respect of the tribal people for spearheading the movement against the Panam coal mine, the officer said.
Police claim that she later developed ties with the coal company and began staying away from the district. “It seems the local people developed some grudge against her as she was staying away from the district. She had arrived in Pakur from Kerala in the first week of November and had to face protests by tribal people,” Pandey said.
However, her family claims that John had been receiving death threats from gangsters linked to the coal mining industry. Police added that no arrests had yet been made.
Meanwhile South Asia director for Human Rights Watch, Meenakshi Ganguly, called on the government to act immediately. “This kind of brutal killing needs to be urgently investigated and the perpetrators prosecuted,” she said. “The government must also take into account the repeated attacks on civil society activists, including those who are highlighting incidents of corruption,” she added.
India’s mining sector has been plagued by reports of massive corruption and protests from impoverished local communities who receive little to no benefit from the booming industry. In an effort to address growing anger, the government approved a draft law in September which would force coal mining firms to share profits with villagers.