Poems: 'Naxalite' And 'Culprits'

Through 100 pages of 'Poetry as Evidence', Outlook presents a selection of poems and verses that have moved us, and we feel these serve as evidence of our bleak times and lives. The poems below are the 67th and 68th from the series.

Updated on: 7 February 2024 7:46 pm

Tribal people dance in protest against the poor implementation of the Forest Rights Act in Bhubaneswar in 2016

Naxalite

Yes, Naxalite Naxalite
If I say something, they call me a Naxalite
If I ask for my rights, they call me a Naxalite
If I breathe, they call me a Naxalite
They kill me and call me a Naxalite

They can바카라�t stand my songs
When I protest, they beat me with batons
They run from public service
Shooting in the back, they won바카라�t fight me to my face

Ask for your rights, you won바카라�t get them
Success comes from serving the people
No (Sarna Dharma) Code, no vote
I swear on my mother, no black notes

Siddhu-Kanhu, Chand-Bhairo, Veer Tana Bhagat
I forge my path with a pen, not a weapon

I fight, I die, I fall, I rise, I go on
Will never leave my mother-soil, and forest
I sip of my toil, I live on it
I swear on Sarna Mai, that is the truth

Naxalite Naxalite, oh yes, Naxalite Naxalite

바카라�Translated from Hindi by Kaushika Draavid

नक्सली

हां नक्सली नक्सली

कुछ बोलो तो कहे ना नक्सली

हक मांगों तो कहे ना नक्सली

सांस लेबे तो कहे ना नक्सली

जान लेके कहे ना नक्सली

मोर गाना के सहे नय पारे ना

धरना देबे तो लाठी से मारे ना

जनता सेवा से इ मन भागै ना

गोली पीठ पीछे सामने लड़े नय पारै ना

हक कर बात मांगे नई मिलेला

जनता कर सेवा से सफलता मिलेला

कोड नही, तो वोट नहीं

माय कसम ब्लैक नोट नहीं

सिद्धु कान्हू, चांद भैरो, वीर ताना भगत

मोर हाथ में हथियार नहीं कलम से आगे बढत

मोय लड़त मरत गीरत उठ आगे बढ़त

माय माटी जंगल के कभी नहीं छोड़ब

पीयत जीयत मोय मेहनत कर घूंट

सरना माय कसम बोलबो नय झूट

नक्सली नक्सली हां हां नक्सली नक्सली

Aman Kachhap, Jharkhand

(Aman Kachhap is a tribal rapper from Jharkhand.)

Tribals rally against the establishment of the Vedanta plant in Niyamgiri Photo: Sanjib Mukherjee

Culprits

Governor, How loud should I speak?!
I am indigenous to this land
This land, this forest, these plants and trees
On these Flora-fauna, mountains, rivers and little ponds
My heart resides
There바카라�s a little right that I have over these!

A tribal young man바카라�
With folded hands
Was requesting the government officer.
His wife in torn clothes
Lay prostate in front of the police van
His naked children were crying

Bastard! you are anti-national바카라� Criminal!
The police -hitting them with batons바카라�
Sent the Adivasis to the jail바카라�

They had their eyes on the Adivasi women바카라�

The naked children kept crying바카라�

바카라�Where there are no such vultures바카라�
Take us there, Mother바카라�in the lap of nature
Or else바카라�
The way they tore apart Mom and Dad
Similarly we
would be torn apart by tomorrow바카라�s first rays바카라�
Culprits바카라�Culprits바카라�⿒�

바카라�Translated from Hindi by Pratyush Pushkar

गुन्हेग��र

सरकार, कितलाक नल्ला तानू रं...

हायी भूमीना मय मुलमालक सं

हायी, भूमीवर, जंगलवर, झाडझूडपसवर

आठला चीडामुंगीवर, डोगर, नदी, तलाववर

मन जीव रमना सं

तश्या जरुका हाक्क मन्हा तेस्नावर सं

कवला उम्र मं थोबाडाना चामडा वढायल

हाडकूला मुसडान्हा

आदिवासी जीवान

रक्षकण्या रावण्या करी रयनात

डोका आन् पोट झोडी रयनाल

तेन्ही फाटका खांडोल्यामधली बायको

पोलीस गाडीसामन आडीधट पडी रयनील...

नागड पोर रडी रयनलत...

भडवा तू देशद्रोही आहेस, गुन्हेग��र आहेस !

सोटाघाई ढूरसा मारीसन पोलीस

आदिवासीस्ला कच्चुरीम ली गेत कोंडाला

तेसनी नजर आदिवासी बायासवर आसील

उघड, नागड, उघड आदिवासी पोरस्ला रडू फूटता...

माडे जठे आस गिधाड नाहा,

तेठे पली जाऊत... निसर्गमं...

नाहात... माय 바카라� बावनागत आमना कथडा तोडीत...

उगवणारा सूर्य ना कालमं

आमनीबी नाव री... बापनागत...

गुन्हेग��र.... गुन्हेग��र....

Sunil Gaikwad, Maharashtra

(Author of 12 books, Sunil Gaikwad is an Adivasi poet from the Bhil community. His works have documented the struggles of the Adivasi community and have upheld the values of Adivasi lives, far beyond the deterministic civilisational ethos.바카라�바카라�바카라�바카라�바카라�바카라�바카라�)