OUTLAW
Dalit dawn
By Kanhaiah Bhelari
Story Dated: Monday, October 31, 2011 14:52 hrs IST
Dhulu Mahato, the 35-year-old MLA from Baghmara, Jharkhand, likes to
watch gangland movies on the big television screen in his residence in
Chitahi. The villains appear to have influenced Mahato, who, many say,
is fast emerging as the don of the coal belt around Dhanbad, 30km from
his village.
Unlike Dhanbad's pyjama-clad dons of yore, Mahato likes wearing
T-shirts and jeans. That he is spreading his income among his
supporters has made him popular. Says a leader of his Jharkhand Vikas
Morcha (JVM): "He distributes half his earnings among his supporters,
who are well below the age of 40." It is said that Mahato makes about
020 lakh a day from illegal activities, an allegation that he does not
deny outright. "Bhagwan kare meri kamee 20 lakh per day ho jai [May
God help me make that much money]," he says. Mahato's rise has been
spectacular. In 1994, after he completed his Intermediate, the dalit
joined the Sinidih colliery of Bharat Coking Coal Limited as a general
labourer. Soon, he became the leader of the labourers who loaded the
railway wagons and trucks at the colliery. In early 2000, Samresh
Singh, a minister in the Rabri Devi government in Bihar, recognised
Mahato's 'potential' and made him head of the Tiger Force, a group
which Singh had formed to collect 'tax' from the coal belt. Seven
criminal cases were registered against Mahato during his stint as the
Tiger Force chief. "Whenever we arrested Tiger Force members involved
in collecting rangadari tax, Mahato would force us to release them,"
says a police officer.
In 2005, Mahato contested the Assembly election from Baghmara as
Jharkhand Vananchal Congress candidate. Though he lost, he surprised
poll pundits by securing 25,000 votes. Just before the 2009 elections,
he joined the JVM, led by former chief minister Babulal Marandi. He
contested from Baghmara again and won by a margin of 30,000, felling
Jaleshwar Mahato, former minister who had twice represented the
constituency. "With the help of local administration and the police,
Mahato is bankrupting BCCL," says Jaleshwar.
Local people say Mahato's supporters have since grown manifold. When
he moves around in his Toyota Fortuner, a dozen vehicles carrying his
supporters follow. "At least, 30,000 bikers participated in a
procession when his wife [Savitri Devi] filed her nomination for the
post of mayor of Dhanbad," says Aftab Alam, a fruit seller. Savitri's
nomination, however, was rejected because she was too young—below
30—to be mayor.
Sources say if Mahato's influence continues to grow—senior police
officers and businessmen say it will—Suresh Singh, the present don of
Dhanbad, will lose his hold. And for the first time in the coal belt's
rich mobster history, a dalit will be ruling Dhanbad. Says local BJP
leader Kumar Abhishek: "Out of 50 coal loading centres in Dhanbad, 25
are under Mahato's control. In the days to come, he will take control
of the remaining, too." Abhishek claims Mahato has purchased a dozen
AK-47s and AK-56s from Nunoo Naushad, an arms dealer of Kolkata.
Mahato's influence in the coal belt can be gauged from the fact that
Sanjiv Singh of the Singh Mansion, house of the erstwhile dons of
Dhanbad, had to seek Mahato's permission to take delivery of coal
allotted to him by BCCL last year. Says a BCCL employee: "Every month,
Mahato grabs nearly 20,000 tonnes of coal at floor price from the
mines in his constituency. He has been doing this for the past two
years for companies belonging to his close aides. He makes at least
Rs:1,200 per tonne."
When BJP MP P.N. Singh complained to the deputy commissioner about the
illegal toll collection from heavy vehicles by Mahato's men at several
centres in Dhanbad, an enraged Mahato allegedly dared him to stop the
collection. Allegedly, Mahato also makes money by overloading trucks
carrying coal.
The police say Mahato, a teetotaller, has never been involved in any
case of murder, rape or kidnapping. According to a senior income tax
officer, Mahato is an aspiring don who wishes to win the hearts of
Dhanbad's poor and the downtrodden. Mahato, too, insists that he is
not a criminal. "I am a very simple human being and have nothing to do
with the money-making strategies my opponents say I indulge in. I do
not have any desire to become the don of Dhanbad. But I would like to
say that my Tiger Force will teach a lesson to people who try to harm
the poor."
Reportedly, Mahato's growing influence has brought his enemies
together. Before Suresh, the Singh Mansion's Suryadeo Singh was the
don of Dhanbad. Suryadeo died of a heart attack in 1991, and Suresh
grabbed his mantle. The police say Suresh engineered the killing of
Rajiv Ranjan Singh, the eldest son of Suryadeo. The Rajputs, who have
been warring since, have now come together to stop Mahato's ascent.
But a top police officer in Jharkhand says they are unlikely to
succeed. "No one can stop Dhulu Mahato from becoming the first dalit
don of Dhanbad,"
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