The tradition of giving justice, to the injustice done to human beings, through the judicial system has always been there. But some people are unable to trust the judicial system after the severity of injustice done to them. Those who take their revenge by taking the laws in their hand, their image is created in the society in two ways. Phoolan Devi is one such name, which makes one think that what form of opinion about her is appropriate. For some, Phoolan Devi was a goddess, while for some she is still a notorious dacoit and murderer of many people. Before forming a general opinion, let’s try to delve into the aspects of her life.
Phoolan Devi, popularly known as the ‘Bandit Queen’ was born on 10th August 1963 into a poor family in a small village of Ghura Ka Purwa in Jalaun District, Uttar Pradesh at times when being a girl was considered a burden and unfortunate. She was a Mallah (boatmen) in caste. She had to face poverty, child marriage, abusive marriage and caste difference in her life. Who would have imagined that she would grow up to be known as the Bandit Queen fighting for women rights and her death would create an international impact?
Phoolan was bold and rebellious from childhood. At 11 years, she fought with her father’s elder brother’s son regarding property after the death of their paternal grandparents. She did a dharna on the land and did not budge. A few months after this incident, when Phoolan was still eleven, she was married to a man named Puttilal Mallah who was in his 30’s, three times her age. He used to physically and sexually abuse her. So after several attempts, she ran away to her family. But Phoolan’s family sent her back to her abusive husband and in-laws with gifts as compensation for Phoolan’s fleet. But Phoolan returned to her parents and her in-laws returned the gifts stating they won’t accept Phoolan back again. A wife leaving her husband is a serious taboo in rural India and the year was 1979, so Phoolan was marked as a social outcast.
After her final sojourn in her husband’s house, she fell into the company of a gang of dacoits but how this happened is unclear. Some suggested that she was kidnapped by them as her outspoken rejection of her husband, spirited temperament and estrangement from family members attracted them, while others suggest that she just walked away from her life. In her autobiography, she says that “kismat ko yehi manzoor tha”. Even in the gang, she was brutally raped for three days by the gang leader Babu Gujjar. The second in command of the gang Vikram Mallah killed Babu Gujjar and saved Phoolan from the torture. They fell in love with each other and began cohabiting together as both were already married. She also learnt to use a rifle from him. According to a legend, Vikram taught her, “If you are going to kill, kill twenty, not just one. For if you kill twenty, your fame will spread; if you kill only one, they will hang you as a murderer,”
Phoolan along with Vikram attacked the village where his husband lived. She dragged him out of the house and stabbed him in front of the villagers. The gang left him to die by the road with a note warning old men not to marry young girls. The man survived, with a scar for the rest of his life, as a recluse.
Phoolan was the only woman in the gang of dacoits. The gang used to attack and loot villages with upper caste people, kidnap prosperous people for ransom and commit casual highway robbery. After every crime, she would visit a Durga temple to thank the goddess for her protection.
Two upper-caste brothers were released from the jail and came back to the gang which created chaos coupled with caste differences. They were angry that the former leader Babu Gujjar was killed in the hands of low caste Mallaah and held Phoolan responsible for it. Tensions arose between the brothers and Phoolan which resulted in a gunfight between the gang, they murdered Vikram Mallaah and Phoolan was captured by victorious upper-caste men.
Phoolan was locked up in a room in one of the houses of Behmai village, where she was raped, tortured, beaten and humiliated by many upper-caste Thakur men for three weeks. They also paraded her naked body around the village to humiliate her. But fortunately, with the help of a few low caste men including Man Singh Mallah, she escaped from them.
Phoolan and Man Singh became lovers and founded a new gang solely comprised of low caste Mallaahs. Phoolan returned to Behmai to take her revenge. On 14th February 1981, she marched into the village and ordered her two main tormenters to be present before her. They could not be found so she rounded up twenty-two young men and killed them. This incident known as the Behmai Massacre created havoc and provoked outrage across the country resulting in the resignation of the then Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh, V.P. Singh. A failed police manhunt was launched against her. She had the support of the poor people in the region and was portrayed as Robin Hood by the media. It was then that she was given the name of ‘Bandit Queen’, an underdog woman struggling to survive in this patriarchal world. Even after two years, the police could not catch her.
The Indira Gandhi government decided to negotiate a surrender. Phoolan was in poor health and most of her gang members were dead or injured so she accepted surrendering to the Madhya Pradesh police but with few conditions: a) she would lay down her hands only before the picture of Mahatma Gandhi and Durga Maa, b) promise that no death penalty will be imposed on the surrendered gang members, c)term of other gang members not to exceed eight years, d)give her a plot of land, e)her entire family to be escorted by the police to witness her surrender ceremony. A crowd of around 10,000 people and 300 policemen along with the then chief minister of Madhya Pradesh, Arjun Singh witnessed the surrender of Phoolan Devi and her other gang members.
Phoolan was accused of up to 48 offences, including thirty counts of dacoity (banditry) and kidnapping. Her trial was postponed for eleven years, during which time she was held as an undertrial in prison. She was operated on for ovarian cysts and had a hysterectomy during this time. "We don't want Phoolan Devi spawning more Phoolan Devis," the hospital's doctor reportedly joked. This sentence alone shows a disregard for her reproductive rights. Forced sterilisation is a typical form of abuse against women who are social outcasts or have been labelled criminals. After the intervention of Vishambhar Prasad Nishad, the leader of the Nishadha group (another name for the Mallah community of boatmen and fisherfolk), she was finally released on parole in 1994.
All charges against her were dropped by the Uttar Pradesh government, led by Mulayam Singh Yadav. This move astounded the country and sparked public debate and controversy. She then stood for election to parliament as a member of the Samajwadi Party and was twice elected to the Lok Sabha as the Member of Parliament for Mirzapur in 1996 and 1999. At 1:30 p.m. on 25 July 2001, Phoolan was fired by three concealed shooters outside of her Delhi cottage. She was hit multiple times, differently in the head, chest, shoulder and right arm. She was taken to Ram Manohar Lohia hospital but was proclaimed dead. She was killed by Sher Singh Rana whose family had been butchered at the Behmai massacre by her gang. On 14 August 2014 Rana was condemned to life imprisonment by a Delhi court. He claimed that he learnt to take revenge from Phoolan herself.
People have different opinions about Phoolan Devi. Some see her as a genocider, while for others she was the goddess of destruction of the wicked. But here we need to think first that who is to be blamed for whatever Phoolan Devi did in her life? Her father who tied her to a middle-aged man at a young age? Or the man who did not show mercy to a child? Or the people who constantly abused and harassed Phoolan? Or the society at large? For me, Phoolan Devi is a symbol of rebellion for self-respect and dignity. She raised her voice against patriarchy, caste inequality, oppression and injustice. She is an inspiration to women all around the world. It is high time that the women today bring out the Phoolan Devi inside them for their safety and raise their voices, as even Draupadi’s five husbands could not save her from harassment.
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About the Author:
Sakshi Chhetry is pursuing her graduation from Daulat Ram College, Delhi University. You will mostly find her sleeping, eating or obsessing about Harry Potter. She is a very talkative and extroverted person. She is a big Bollywood buff. You can talk to her about anything except science and electronics.
It's awesome sakshi!
Wonderfully written!
Thankyou for writing this blog! Loved reading about her vast contributions 💕