It is not an ordinary thing to return to normal life after wandering in the dark streets of violence for years after being associated with the Maoist.

However, some did that extraordinary thing, laid down arms, served sentences spening a long time in jail, and finally started off their life afresh with a noble cause, setting an example at least for those, who still wish to get out of the crime.

IANS tried to peep into the lives of some of such personalities who have become an inspiration for the others.

Ramchandra Rana, a resident of Chunukdiha village of Tundi area under Dhanbad district of Jharkhand, is known as the largest producer of mangoes in the area. Now, he has come out of his past, but when he was 19, he used to wander in the jungles with a gun on his shoulder.

There was no means of employment in the village. Influenced by the Maoist, he joined the outfit and started considering the police as the biggest enemy.

In 1993, his name figured in two cases- in murder of area chief Tikait Singh Chaudhary and in attack on police. In 2001, Rana was also named in eight Maoist incidents, including killing of 13 police personnel, looting weapons, blowing up the police party in Topchanchi block office premises of Dhanbad.

One day when he had come to his village, the then SP of Dhanbad, Abdul Ghani Mir surrounded him with 500 policemen and arrested him. His house was also damaged.

In 2008, after coming out of jail, Rana resolved to restore the image of the village defamed because of him. He associated himself with farming. Along with the people of the village, he met the top officers of the district and pleaded to connect the village with a paved road and to open a government school in the village.

Not only did he give his land for the road, he also convinced the villagers for it. The village was connected to the road five years ago. School also started in the village. Meanwhile, Rana planted more than 100 mango trees on his land. Last year, he sold 100 quintals of mangoes.

The house of Vijay Singh, a resident of Untari road block in Palamu district, was blown up by Maoists in the 1990s. Enraged by this, he joined a banned organisation called Sunlight Sena. The organisation made him the area commander. In those days, more than 18 people were killed in the massacre in Malwaliya village of the block.

The name of the Sunlight Army came to the fore in the massacre. Vijay Singh was an accused in this case. Apart from this, he was also named in about 48 cases. For almost 10 years, he dealt with the world of bomb-guns, violence. Jharkhand Police had declared a reward of Rs 25,000 on him. In 2003, he surrendered in Palamu Court, stayed in jail for 5 years.

In 2007, he came out of the jail. He got inclined towards spirituality while being in jail. He returned to his village Sildili. There is a Mahavir Mandir Math in the village, which was built during the British rule by Zamindar Tarak Nath Sarkar who had given 14 acres of land for it.

There was a dispute in the area regarding its land and no priest was ready to worship in the temple. The villagers held a meeting regarding this and it was decided that it should be handed over to a trust. Then people went to Gaya Peethadhishwar Jagadguru Swami Venkatesh Prapannacharya in Bihar, he took the Mahavir temple under his control, but no one was ready to become a Mahant.

Swami Prapannacharya garlanded Vijay Singh in the meeting of the villagers and ordered him to serve Hanuman ji. Vijay Singh took ‘diksha’ from him and his name was given as Balabhadracharya. Since then, he took a vow to devote his whole life to the service of God. Now he spends his all time in worship, spirituality and temple arrangements.

Daniel Lakra, a resident of Dhanamunji village of Bhandra block of Lohardaga district, decided to return to the mainstream on the persuasion of his wife and family members after being the Maoist organisation for nearly seven years. In 2013, he surrendered before the Jharkhand Police. When he was released from jail after almost nine months, he befriended Hal-Kudal.

According to the policy of the government, he got the help of Rs 2.5 lakh on surrender. He worked hard in agriculture and horticulture along with his wife and today he is known as a very successful farmer of the area. Under the MNREGA scheme, he planted many varieties of mangoes like Amrapali, Himsagar, Malda, Jardalu, Sonpari on about two acres of ancestral land.

Now, he earns about Rs 1.5-2 lakh rupees every year through horticulture. He is also cultivating chillies and other vegetables by taking three acres of land on lease.

In March last year, Suresh Singh Munda, the zonal commander of the Maoist organization, surrendered before the police in Ranchi. After spending almost 25 years in the world of ammunition and guns, he was inspired to return to normal life by none other than his school-going daughter. His daughter had sent an emotional letter to the father.

Pained by the letter, he decided to lay down his arms. While surrendering to the police, Suresh Singh Munda had said that he hoped to get out of jail and after that he would spend the rest of the time helping the needy people of the society. He had said that after reading the daughter’s letter, he realised that the society can never be changed through the path of violence.

A person named Sadhu Kisan, a resident of Mahuadand block of Latehar district, also had been with the Maoist organisation for a decade. His position in the organisation was that of area commander. About a decade ago, he decided to return to the mainstream.

After walking out of jail, he started taking active part in social work. Last year in June, in the panchayat elections, the people of the village elected him as a member of Ward No. 10 in Netarhat Panchayat. Now he is a participant in the development schemes run in the panchayat as a ward member.

Ram Poddo does tailoring work in Ranchi’s New Police Line. He stitches the uniforms of the policemen. He earns enough to fulfil his family’s needs. But before 2013, his life was not like this.

He used to be a part of the Maoist organisation. He used to wander through the jungles carrying a gun. He then decided that nothing is to be gained from this. He surrendered his weapon before the police. He stayed in jail for some time and then came out and associated himself with the employment of tailoring.

(The story has been published via a syndicated feed.)