Jagdish Mahto

Jagdish Mahto was an Indian communist activist. He was a naxal leader who led the 1970 Bhojpur uprising in the landlord-dominated Bhojpur region of Bihar. He was a member of the Communist Party of India (Marxist–Leninist), an organisation which was leading the Naxalite insurgency in Bihar. He also fought against the upper-caste landlords for the cause of lower-caste people. Mahto, also called Master Saheb, was a member of the Bihar State Committee of CPI(M–L) and one of the founding leaders of the party in Bhojpur.

Life Jagdish Mahto was born in Ekwari, Bihar. He was a member of Koeri community. Mahto established a newspaper called Harijanistan ("Land of Dalits") in order to voice support for the rights of the Dalits. Shri Bhagwan Singh Kushwaha, a former Minister in the Government of Bihar, is Mahto's son-in-law.

Prior to his involvement in the Naxalite movement, Mahto taught science at Harprasad Das Jain College, Arrah. Later in his life, he developed an interest in politics and was inspired by the writing of Karl Marx. Later, he became an Ambedkarite after reading the philosophy of B. R. Ambedkar. Mahto was a staunch supporter of the rights of the Dalits. He was also against many of the privileges that the upper castes enjoyed, particularly those who had been "twice born"(dvija). When Bengal and Punjab experienced a Dalit upsurgence in 1967, the Bihar region saw no similar uprising from the oppressed sections of the society. Scholars attribute this lack of uprising to prevalent landlordism and the dominance of upper castes in the area, creating fear within lower castes. The first spark of Naxalism developed in Mushari, but it was soon extinguished by feudalistic forces. When Mahto went to the polling booth, he saw that a Bhumihar youth was preventing voters from casting their votes. Mahto spoke out against this and was beaten badly by other Bhumihars. He was admitted to the hospital, where he remained for several months. After being discharged, Mahto became sympathetic to radical ideas. Mahto met Charu Mazumdar during this period, who had led a "communist uprising" in Bengal and had travelled to Bhojpur to deliver a speech against the landlords. According to author Bernard D'Mello: Reportedly, the Master would prevail upon his Dalit followers to go forth to "force [their] acceptability as human beings." His practical lesson was: "This is a gun, the weapon of subjugation. Hold it straight, [and] go and deliver justice."

Activism and anti-landlord activities in Bhojpur On 14 April 1970, Mahto, along with Rameswar Ahir and Latafat Hussain, organised a massive rally and candle march in support of Harijanistan, a separate territory to be inhabited by the lower-castes. The rally was supported by a large number of landless labourers and backward-caste peasants. Mahto also ran a drive against the concept of untouchability in the villages of Inrukhi, Baruna and Koshiyar. Anti-landlordism prevailed in the village of Ekwari, a few kilometres away from Arrah.

The village of Ekwari was known for its fertile land and the feudal dominance of the upper-caste who exploited the lower-caste. The women of the lower caste were raped with impunity to such an extent that it was accepted as a social norm. The Naxalbari revolt in West Bengal motivated Mahto and his friend Ramnaresh Dusadh, who were joined by a bandit called Rameswar Ahir, to lead an armed uprising against the exploitative Zamindars. In a bid to find like-minded youths for rebellion against the upper-caste landlords, the three men came together and organised the youths belonging to the lower castes for an armed rebellion. The tipping point in the rebellion was the assault on Gora Chamar and Chandrika Dusadh by the landlords. A group of Koeris and Dusadh under Jagdish Mahto met with the Sub-Divisional Magistrate and a police office was established in the village to handle any future skirmishes. Before dying, Mahto is said to have told one of his comrades that, though he was dying, the upper caste landlords wouldn't dare to touch Dalit women in future. The caste strife came to an end years later owing to the killings of the core Naxal leaders and retirement of their subordinates.