Illiterate Gond tribal behind Cong defence in Chattisgarh

Konta (Chhattisgarh), Dec 9 (PTI) It's checkmate for Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) for the last more than one decade in this Naxal den of Konta assembly seat, which has withstood the saffron party's second consecutive "onslaught" in the central Indian state of Chhattisgarh.

Congress has been able to protect its bastion here in the
last three elections and behind its defence is an illiterate
Gond tribal who has proven himself by scoring a hattrick as a
three-time legislator in the Chattisgarh assembly.

Forty-five-year-old Lakhma does not know how to speak
English or Hindi and has never even tried writing his name in
his native language. For him, the thumb impression is more
than enough whenever and wherever there is the necessity.

In complex situations like writing applications, he takes
help of school teachers in his locality. "As nobody in my
village is educated, I get the applications written by the
school teachers," Lakhma told PTI a few days before the
election.

He, however, claims that "despite being illiterate, I got
rules the changed in the state including the one related to
re-introduction of the contract system in Tendu leaves."

Till today, trousers and shirts are alien to Lakhama, who
had learnt to wear dhoti-kurta for the first time when he
became a sarpanch.

Narrating a humourous episode involving his father during
the 1998 assembly elections in the then undivided Madhya
Pradesh, Lakhma said, "My father Hadma went to the polling
booth and voted on the lotus symbol (BJP). Back home, he said
he did it because the flower was looking nice. He had no idea
that I was contesting and that he should vote for me. It was
the first time, my father had cast his vote."

"My mother died without ever casting her vote. My three
brothers still do not go to vote for me though the entire
village now campaigns in my favour during the election. My
wife, too, has no idea of politics," he added.

The ST reserved Konta assembly segment, which Lakhma won
in two earlier elections, borders the south-eastern
state of Andhra Pradesh and eastern state of Orissa.

After more than a decade in active politics, Lakhma has
learnt the tricks of the trade. Considered to be close to
former Congress Chief Minister Ajit Jogi, Lakhma went hammer
and tongs against the BJP-led Raman Singh government in the
state during the election.

As internal dissension in the party threatened to turn
the applecart of Lakhma in the initial days of campaigning,
Lakhma used the "emotional jargon" to the hilt.

"Everything is in the hands of people. I do not know
whether they find me fit to serve them for the third time or
not. But I want to win the election as some of the work I
planned for the welfare are still to be completed. I want to
fight for the poor till my last breath," Lakhma had said.

"I know the feelings of the poor. I had myself plucked
Tendu leaves, dug soil, ploughed fields and sold cattle to
earn a livelihood before getting into politics," he added.

This time, Lakhma managed to scrape through by a slender
margin. He got 21,639 votes which is 31.40 percent of the
total 68,889 valid votes polled. BJP candidate Padam Nanda
gave him a tough fight and secured 21,438 votes, accounting
for 31.12 percent of the total votes.

Communist Party of India's (CPI) Rama Sodi also finished
as a close third securing 20,751 votes which is 30.12 percent
of the total. Bahujan Samaj Party's (BSP) Hunga Ram Kartami
secured 5,070 votes (7.36 percent votes).

This is the third consecutive defeat of CPI at Congress'
hands in Konta. This time CPI had changed its candidate and
its former candidate Manish Kunjam, who had lost from Konta
twice contested from the adjacent Dantewada seat.

Konta has been a Congress strong hold. In 2003, Lakhma
secured 32,067 votes to win the Konta seat, defeating the
nearest rival Manish Kunjam of CPI by a margin of 17,398 votes
out of the total 62,218 votes polled in the election. PTI AMR
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