Ex-Maoist Leader Bhupathi Appointed to Tribal Rights Role in Gadchiroli
· India · Hindustan Times, The Hindu
Former Naxal commander Mallojula Venugopal Rao, known as Bhupathi, has been hired as a coordinator for an administrative programme in Gadchiroli, Maharashtra. The former CPI central committee member will work at the district's Tribal Research Centre on a three-month contract with a monthly honorarium of ₹30,000. His responsibilities include assisting gram sabhas with documentation for the Forest Rights Act and the Panchayat Extension to Scheduled Areas Act. Bhupathi surrendered to local police last year alongside 60 other Naxalites after years of supervising operations along the Maharashtra-Chhattisgarh border.
Why it matters
The appointment marks a significant transition for a high-ranking former insurgent into a role facilitating government-to-villager communication regarding land and legal rights in a conflict-prone district.
Read the original report — Hindustan Times
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