The Kondamodalu Tribal Movement A More than 50 Years Journey Overcoming Many Obstacles
( This is the continuation to the article published in CS January , 2024 issue )
During Emergency :
There was intense oppression on activists of mass organisations during emergency . At the same time the government spread illusions of reforms on a large scale . A positive atmosphere developed among the girijans about the promises of the government . Even in the tense situation of emergency the party organisers mingled with the people of Kondamodalu . In this period of confinement , they starved for food that was being supplied late by the tribals . They suffered from diseases like malaria . They steadily made the adivasis aware of their problems . A book was published exposing the land reforms proposed by the government . Pamphlets were widely circulated asking the people not to believe the deceptive promises of the rulers and to strengthen the girijana sangham . They educated the people to insist on the implementation of the promises of the government . They sent girijans to the officials with individual petitions to implement the 20-point programme announced by Indira Gandhi and very soon people understood the real nature of reforms promised by the government . Kondamodalu comrades proved in practice that working in the mass line means to work is not only when the masses are marching ahead but work with much determination when the people ’ s movement lags behind and must strive to generate their consciousness . The political work during the emergency in removing the illusions about the government showed a direction to adivasis to agitate for their lands .
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During the emergency organisers were arrested in Dwarapudi , Kakinada etc . Comrades A . V . Rami Reddy , P . V . Ramanareddy who are looking after the agency , Comrade Jaswantha Rao in charge of Kakinada unit of the party , the courier of state leaders of UCCRI ( M . L .) Comrade U . Sambasivarao , party leader of plain area Comrade Gubbala Subbarao , Agency Comrade Kundla Gangaraju were arrested at different places . East Godavari Conspiracy Case was registered on them along with Comrade Viswam ( Simhadri Subbareddy ) who was not arrested . All these who were arrested in 1976 were released on bail in the middle of 1978 . From 1976 to 1978 Comrade Somayya ( Nakkala Moshe ) was incharge of the movement in the agency . After Emergency Until 1982 :
Open activities started soon after the lifting of emergency . Public activities increased after the release of comrades from prison . In the month of August 1978 public meetings were held under the auspices of girijana sangham in 11 centres . The girijans of Kondamodalu became active in getting back their lands . In the sowing season of 1979 , they took seize of 60 acres of banjar land from landlords .
Agency Girijana Sangham Conference was held in 1980 . It gave a call to take control of lands and be ready to face the oppression from the government . Adivasis moved accordingly . They cultivated 100 acres during 1980 . All that time the police camp that was started in 1969 continued in Kondamodalu . By 1981 the district police officers came with additional force . They negotiated with adivasis by deploying the police around them .
They asked the adivasis to approach courts and get the orders in their favour . If such orders are given by the court , they promised to hand over the lands along with crops . Some adivasis bent towards going to the court . The party leadership told them that nothing will come out from the court . But at the same time , decided to go to the court also . Within a short period , people understood that this cannot be solved in the courts . So , they decided to solve the problem by going into the lands .
In this period there was a split in the UCCRI ( M . L ) party which was leading this movement . The split came because of the party leader Comrade Devulapalli Venkateswara Rao and his followers . The educated comrades working in the East Godavari Agency movement were influenced by this split . P . V . Ramana Reddy , one among them , supported D . V . ( of course , afterwards he was in several other groups ). Another comrade A . V . Ramireddy lost faith in the revolutionary movement and became passive . These developments took place when the adivasis were ready to take the movement to a higher level . Comrade Somayya , who had the proletarian base stood firm in the midst of this split . At that time , Comrade Viswam ( Subbareddy ) was in higher responsibility in the party . In addition to those responsibilities , he constantly guided Comrade Somayya and thus supervised the Kondamodalu movement . The state committee of the party sent organisers to agency and plain areas . From then onwards Comrade Ramakrishna and other comrades worked in the revolutionary movement of the agency .
Class Struggle