“...Unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains a single grain; but if it dies, it bears much fruit” (Jn 12/24).
CONTENTS
I INTRODUCTION
II RELIGIOUS BACKGROUND
CONTENTS
I INTRODUCTION
II RELIGIOUS BACKGROUND
I AN INNOCENT CHILD
II A RELIGIOUS CANDIDATE
III A TEACHER
IV A SOCIAL WORKER
V A CHAMPION OF THE SANTHALS
VI MARTYR FOR A CAUSE
VII A HIDDEN TREASURE
VIII A TRUE DAUGHTER OF THE CHURCH
IX VALSA DIDI AMAR RAHE!!!
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INTRODUCTION
A prophet is not a common phenomenon, rather extremely a rare one in the annals of human history. It was after an absence of three hundred years Israel saw a prophet in the person of John the Baptist. But the very presence of a prophet sends a lightening vibration down the spine on everyone close to him because he fearlessly challenges the society and invites it to take a critical look at its age-old practices. And the prophet is fully aware that he is sent with a ‘mission’ the price of which is his own life. Jesus in his life time prophesied three times about his imminent death before it actually happened. Fully knowing that one has no escape from this destiny, every prophet tries to assimilate it however unpleasant it might be. Death takes an uppermost place in his thinking, comes into his dreams uninvited, spills over his conversations, and still like a coward he does not retreat from it. He goes ahead with his ‘mission’ courageously thereby anticipating his own death.
This is what Sr. Valsa John Malamel was and did in her fifty-three years of God-given life. She felt the ‘call’ somewhere in her youth and immersed herself fully in it as an adult, carrying it in her subconscious mind a feeling of her own elimination from the scene, because her commitment and adherence to the ‘cause’ disturbed not a few around her. Jesus said once: ‘...no prophet is accepted in the prophet’s own hometown’ (Lk 4/24). How true it was! After having done all that she could do to give a dignified life for a group of people far away from her place of birth, people whom she made ‘her own’ placed on her head the last stroke collaborating with those from outside for whom she was a ‘disturbance’. How she simply stands head and shoulder above all of us!! It is the desire of everyone closely associated with her that this saga of the greatest love on earth be not hidden away in the dusty pages of police files, but be kept alive for the future to read her life and be inspired by her heroic martyrdom, challenging at least one among many who read this book to repeat her story in the years to come. In life I did not understand her, at least in death let me try to know her a little.
First Death Anniversary Of Sr.Valsa John
1.RELIGIOUS BACKGROUND OF SR.VALSA
1.RELIGIOUS BACKGROUND OF SR.VALSA
“Reading history is good. However it is better to help making history”.
– Jawaharlal Nehru
Valsa John’ call to a dedicated life was not born out of blue, but rather it was an off-shoot of her background - ecclesial, religious, and family - in which she grew up. This multi-faceted background plays a great role in the life of everyone, especially the great ones who are not only the products of their history but who also create history by their most unconventional living. Therefore before we enter into her life proper, it would be useful and highly insightful to have a brief look at Valsa’s religious background.
A Brief History of Syro-Malabar Church in Kerala
Valsa was a daughter of Syro-Malabar Catholic Church which is an East Syrian Church in full communion with the Catholic Church and one of the 22 sui iuris Eastern Catholic Churches in the Catholic Church. It is the largest of the St. Thomas Christian denominations with around 4 million believers and traces its origin to the evangelistic activity of Thomas the Apostle in the 1st century A.D. It is also the largest Eastern Catholic Church in communion with the Bishop of Rome.[1]
According to a very strong Indian tradition, Thomas, one of the twelve apostles of Jesus, came to India soon after His ascension into heaven with the Good News of Jesus Christ. He is believed to have travelled by sea along with spice merchants and landed in Kodungalloor, the capital of the then Chera Empire about the year 52 A.D. Kerala spices were well known all over the world and merchants had been combing the land for the best spices and probably Thomas or his disciples might have travelled along with one of such groups. The travelers could come by ship and land on the shores of Kerala through the backwaters of Munambam and Azhikode which provided a natural sea port for the ships. Therefore it is not totally unbelievable that Thomas did come to Kerala and there is a very strong tradition to back it. After his initial preaching of the Good News of Jesus Christ he is also believed to have received a few Hindu families who were belonging to the upper caste, namely the Brahmins, in Kodungalloor and Palayur (Trichur dt.) to the faith he brought thereby founding the first community of Christian believers. Subsequently this group came to be known as ‘St. Thomas Christians’ since they attributed the origin of their faith to St. Thomas, the apostle. From there he is believed to have moved to Coromandal, Chennai and suffered martyrdom near the Little Mount (known as chinna malai) in Chennai, Tamil Nadu. His body was brought to the town of Mylapore and is buried in a holy shrine over which a huge Basilica was built at a later stage. There is also a strong belief among the Christian community in Kerala that St.Thomas in his sojourns, used to climb the Malayatoor mountain in the archdiocese of Ernakulam-Angamaly to pray alone on the top of it as was the habit of Jesus. Eventually this became a pilgrimage centre of St. Thomas in Kerala, perhaps the biggest one. Throughout the year, particularly during the season of Lent and Easter Octave, thousands make a pilgrimage to this holy place walking miles and miles, often carrying a heavy wooden cross, after forty days of fasting and abstinence after the manner of Ayyappa devotees of Sabarimala. Year by year this outward expression of piety and devotion is growing by leaps and bounds.
St.Thomas is believed to have converted 17550 people of whom 6850 were Brahmins. He ordained priests and consecrated two persons as bishops, Kepa as the bishop of Kodungalloor and Paul as the bishop of Mylapore. The Apostle also gave them a way of worship suited to their culture in their own native language.
The Community of believers began to grow fast and built many churches all over Kerala. St. Thomas himself is believed to have built seven churches in different parts of Kerala, namely at Kodungalloor, Niranam, Kollam, Chayal, Kottakkavu (North Paravur), Kokkamangalam and Palayur[2]. From 4th century onwards the Church in India established communication with the Church in the Middle East and soon began to introduce their books and share their rites of liturgical celebration. Thus the Indian Church became a member of the Syro-Chaldean Patriarchate. The head of the Indian Church was then called “The Metropolitan and Gate of All India” and had jurisdiction all over the country. When the Chaldean prelates came to India as the spiritual heads of the independent Metropolitan provinces under the East Syrian Patriarch, the administration of the Indian Church was done by a native priest. As soon as the sea passage at the close of 15th century offered a link with their fellow Christians of the West, the union with them was spontaneous. Thereafter it has never severed from the communion with the Church of Rome, in spite of the enormous geographic distance that prevails between these two churches.
It is not our intention here to delve into details of the events that have taken place in the Syro-Malabar Church in Kerala during the past twenty centuries. Some of them are definitely shrouded in mystery and obscurity in spite of the claims of some to their historicity. What is more important is that even before formal establishment of the exclusively Syro-Malabar Hierarchy in 1923 by Pope Pius XI, the Syro-Malabar Church was very active and vibrant in every way- in faith, in charity, in the establishment of schools, in the erection of centres of higher learning and social work, in missionary orientations etc. At present the Church has 30 eparchies including those outside Kerala and outside India. Some of these are exclusively created to serve the migrant Syro-Malabar Christians outside Kerala like those of Kalyan diocese in Mumbai and Chicago in the Unites States; some others are in the mission areas of India with mission orientations like Sagar, Bijnor, Rajkot, Chanda etc. Thousands of priests and religious serve these dioceses.
Besides, a good number of priests and religious of Syro-Malabar origin have been very active in the Latin Church all over India and the same trend continues to be even today. There are a number of Prelates, Major Superiors in the Latin Religious Congregations and Heads of Commissions of the Latin Church throughout India and abroad. A good number of Priests, Brothers and women Religious are working in India and abroad as missionaries having membership in Congregations of Latin origin.
Syro-Malabar Church in Kerala always promoted vocations to priesthood and religious life from its inception. It was true not only when the families were big, with more than six children, it is true even today with nuclear families consisting of one or two children. In spite of the materialistic tendencies in the world as a whole, high socio-economic aspirations of the middle class in Kerala, occasional scandalous lives of the dedicated persons, projection of one sided negative media reports to down play the Church at any cost, exaggerated publicity given to a few deviant behaviors of important personages in the Church etc., vocations to dedicated life have not gone down in numbers. Even today a Christian family in Kerala considers it a rare honor to have a religious sister or a Priest in the family and the parents are only happy if one of their children expresses his/her desire to dedicated life in the Church. So there is no wonder that when Valsa expressed her desire to embrace religious life, giving up the profession of a teacher, the family did not stand in any way against her wish.
St.George Forane Parish, Edappally
St. George Forane Parish of Edappally, just ten kilometers away from Kochi to which Valsa belonged is one of the ancient Churches in Kerala, built in the year 594 A.D., 300 years after the martyrdom of St. George. Originally the Church was dedicated to Blessed Virgin Mary, later it came to be known as St. George Forane Parish. It was re-built in the year 1080 A.D. and thereafter, it was renovated many times down the centuries. On the first day of the 3rd millennium the foundation stone was blessed by Pope John Paul II and was laid for the new Church which is believed to be the most spacious among all the churches in Asia, capable of accommodating 5000 people. Mother Theresa paid a visit to this famous shrine on 18 January1994 when the Parish was celebrating the 14th centenary of its first establishment[3].
St. George, the Patron of this Parish was born in 269 A. D. His father was a Greek from the town of Cappadochia, in Asia Minor and mother from Lydda, a Greek city in Palestine. St. George was a soldier in the royal cavalry of the Roman Empire. He was an ardent and fervent Christian and remained true to his faith. During the religious persecution of Emperor Diocletian, he stood up for his faith and was put to death. From that time onwards he came to be known as Saint George and thousands of Churches sprang up in Europe and elsewhere in his name. He is venerated not only in the Catholic Church, but also in the Anglican, Eastern Orthodox and Oriental Orthodox Churches[4]. He is the official patron of England and his cult is extremely ancient. The name of St. George is very popular in Kerala like those of St. Sebastian and St. Antony of Padua. The pictures of St. George along with that of Bl. Virgin Mary are a common sight in the Jacobite homes of Kerala.
In the Catholic world of Kerala, we have three famous shrines dedicated to St. George, namely those in Aruvithura, Edathua and Edappally where thousands come to pray for his protection. The statue of St. George kept in the Edappally Parish presents him as mounted on a horse, with a spear in his hand piercing the head of a monstrous serpent. According to an Italian myth a damsel had to be given as daily food for the monster but St. George rescued her by instantly killing the serpent. This may be the reason why St. George is invoked in cases of dangers from the poisonous snakes that roam about everywhere in Kerala. St. George is a symbol of Christian faith and courage and is known for his kindness and dependable source of succor on account of which thousands of devotees, Christians and non-Christians throng to his altar with their woes and worries of daily life[5].
The Parish of Edappally with direct access to the Arabian sea at that time was a small hamlet, part of the princely kingdom Elangallor, and the people lived a very simple life, the comforts of life unknown to them at that time. The parish had a small congregation, descendants of those believed to have been converted directly by St. Thomas the Apostle. The simple rural people of the ancient parish with their ardent faith in the Lord used to have recourse to the saints whenever they were in trouble. Even today when the feast is being celebrated in the month of April-May, people come in thousands even from outside the state to seek his favor or to thank him for the favors already received.
Edappally is no more the same as it was a century back. Now it is part of the cosmopolitan city of Kochi with greater splendor and elegance of the modern city, surrounded by a number of big institutions, highways, multi-storied buildings, shopping malls and educational institutions. The geography and demography of the place have been completely changed with the advent of new highways and the people of all languages and cultures who fill the Smart City and IT Park surrounding the town. But in spite of the materialistic culture that reigns supreme around the parish, the significance of the Shrine has not in the least diminished. The steady flow of devotees into the Shrine throughout the year is a clear proof that St. George of Edappally still holds the central place in the hearts of the people of Kerala. This spiritual centre is also indirectly promoting ‘vocation’ inspiring boys and girls to devote themselves to the Church.
Malamel Family, Edappally
Malamel in Malayalam means ‘on the top of a hill’. Origin of the Malamel family to which Sr. Valsa belonged is believed to be from Hindu Vaishnavite Namboothiri families of Kannur. Some 2400 years ago some of them had migrated to South Paravur (called also as Parur). The name ‘Paravur comes from two words, namely Paravam (ocean) and ur (country side)[6]. Paravur was a seaport where there were many merchants including Jews. So probably St. Thomas might have also come to South Paravur. It is strongly believed that among the Brahmins whom St.Thomas converted there were also Hindu Malamel families. According to another tradition, the Nambuthiris from South Paravur used to visit the market of Pallipuram where they met some converted Brahmins and this gave an impetus to those of South Paravur also to receive Christian faith[7]. The tradition tells that in course of time Malamel families - both Christians and Nambuthiris - migrated to many places like Pala, Pravithanam, Edappally etc. and they came to be known by different names such as Vellaringhat Malamel, Vellamaruthu Malamel, Kakkanatt Malamel, Pazhambally Malamel, Panjikunnel Malamel etc. attaching an additional name to their house name. Those who are settled in Edappally alone are known by the original name ‘Malamel’ without a prefix.
In the 12th century one family of Ouseph, his wife Kunjnalchi and their children from Pulakkavu Malamel of South Parur came to Edappally and settled down in a land in front of the Church. The place where they lived was known as Malamel parambu. Besides land, they had many shops around the church and they handed over these to the Parish and then came down to Thrikkakara and settled there. There is also another tradition that in the year 1790, when Tippu of Mysore was trying to capture the territory of Kerala many ran away to different places like Pala, Pravithanam and one such family might have come to Edappally[8]
Malamel family has many illustrious priests like Mar Yohannan Kassisa who built St. John the Baptist Church in South Parur in the year A.D. 802, Fr. Geevarghese Malamel who re-built St. George Forane Church, Edappally in the year 1837 etc. Malamel family of Edappally has also many priests and religious nuns who are working in different dioceses. At present Malamel family of Edappally has a family yogam, called Malamel Family Union which has 54 families and they have regular get-togethers.
This multi-faceted religious background of Sr. Valsa which bubbles forth with deep religious sentiments in everyone close to the Shrine of St. George was planting the seed of vocation in her heart much before she recognized it.
2. SR. VALSA- AN INNOCENT CHILD
“Now the Word of the Lord came to me saying, ‘Before I formed you in the womb I knew you and before you were born I consecrated you; I appointed you a prophet to the nations”
-Jeremiah, 1/5
Birth
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| St.George Forane Church, Edappally. |
Valsa John was born in the famous Forane Parish of St. George, Edappally, Ernakulm dt., Kerala, on 19th February 1958 as the 7th child of John Malamel and Elikutty. She was baptized on the 8th day of her birth as was the custom in those days and was given the name Valsa, the dear one.
Parents
Her father John, affectionately known as Lonakunju, was from the ancient Malamel family, Vazhakala, Edappally and mother Elikutty, known at home as Kunjnalchi, from Vazhappilly family, Nayarambalam of St. Mary’s parish, Narakal both belonging to the Syro-Malabar Archdiocese of Ernakulam-Angamaly.
Valsa’s father was the only child of their parents and his father died when John was two years old. Therefore his mother with her two year old child went back to her mother in Kuzhuppilly and thus he spent his entire childhood and adolescence with his mother and grandmother. He came back to their house in Vazhakala only when he had grown up to pick up a job and he was lucky enough to get a job in Indian Aluminum company, Kalamassery.
He was a generous man and would help anyone in need through money or recommendations. It is told of him that when he used to get his salary in the beginning of every month, he would give part of it to those who solicited for a little financial help even though he had a large family to look after. He was interested in politics, though his involvement in active politics was very much minimal. He was a hard working person and would care for his children like a loving father. The children were always free with him and would interact with their father like close friends. He died on 16th November 1982.
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| Sr.Valsa's parents |
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| Funeral of Sr. Valsa's father |
Elikutty, was a quiet and pious woman and a very obedient person to her husband. She would never raise her voice in the family; she brought up all her eight children with great difficulties in the traditional Christian faith. We, her elder sister’s children from Narakal, had many opportunities to stay in her house during Onam and summer vacations while studying in the middle and high school.
She considered all of us as her own children and would treat us affectionately even more than her own children. She did not study much because in those days it was not a practice to send the girl children to the school. Though pious and devout she never had any extravaganza in her religious practice, but was keen to attend Mass practically every day walking almost two kilo meters from her home in Vazhakala to St. George Church, Edappally until she was no more physically able to go due to old age and protracted illness of sugar complaints etc. She died on 30th January 1999 exactly three months after her own elder sister Annamkutty was brutally murdered in her house, Narakal, on 30th October 1998 by thieves who came to steal on a broad day light. It was an unbearable shock for her although the cause of her sister’s death was never been told to her directly; but she might have guessed that something was wrong somewhere from the subdued conversations of the people that were roaming around. Ever since that tragic event she became silent until death as one by one from her family, first her only brother, then two of her own sisters, followed by her eldest son, and her husband had already departed from this world.
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| Funeral of Sr.Valsa's mother |
Siblings
Valsa’s parents had altogether eight children.
Jose, the eldest son, died at the age of 17 on 29th October 1963, by a road accident at Edappally on the way to St. Albert’s College, Ernakulam where he was doing his pre-degree course. It was a deep shock to everyone in the family and his father never recovered from it.
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| Jose, Sr.Valsa's eldest brother |
George, affectionately called Vava, the second son worked in a private firm and is now retired, but still keeps himself engaged with LIC works. He got married to Chinnamma of Kanjur who though retired still works as a teacher in a private school and they are blessed with two daughters and one son.
Annie the third in line got married to Mathew of Chunamgamvely and had three children of whom one died at an early age. The other two remaining children, a boy and a girl, are happily settled down in family life.
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| Sr.Valsa's elder sister and brother-in-law |
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Sr.Valsa's brother
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Anto, the fifth, got married to Reetha from Vallam and is blessed with two boys. Antappan joined the Indian military service after his pre-degree studies and served the army for long 20 years. After his retirement from the military service he worked in a private firm until the age of 58. Within six months of his retirement he died of cancer of the lungs on 11th August 2011.
Baby, the sixth one, lives now in the ancestral house (tharavadu) which he re-built a few years back. He got married to a teacher Mary from Alappuzha. Baby is working in HINDALCO, an aluminum company in Kalamassery. They have two children, a boy and a girl.
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| Sr.Valsa |
Valsa was the seventh child who joined the Sisters of Charity of Jesus and Mary in 1983 while working as a teacher in St.George High School, Edappally.
Leena, the last child, got married to James who worked in the veterinary department and she works as a teacher in Thoppil school. They have two children, a boy and a girl.
Thus God had gifted Valsa’s parents with eight loving children, of whom the Lord has already taken four. Now there are only four, two sons and two daughters.
Life at home
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| Sr.Valsa's ancestral house |
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| St.George's High School, Edappally |
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| Bharatha Mata College |
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| St.Albert's College, Ernakulam |
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| Sr.Elaise- Sr.Valsa's colleague |
As a teacher no doubt she endeared herself to her management, the staff and students. She had a close friend in the school in the person of Sr. Elaise and another as a spiritual father, Fr.Nirappel both of whom might have been influential in her life in choosing a consecrated life, but we are not sure of it.
Valsa as a child
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| First Holy Communion |
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| Sr.Valsa John |
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| Sr.Valsa taking part in a cultural event |
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| Sr.Valsa taking part in a cultural event |
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03 SR.VALSA- A RELIGIOUS CANDIDATE
“...The prophetic and eschatological function of the religious life demands that you should be a loving testimony, a sign of the message of justice and freedom which Christ has brought to the world”.
-Pope John Paul II to the Italian Religious Major Superiors.
A Candidate
Valsa joined the convent of the Sisters of Charity of Jesus and Mary, at Thoppil, Edappilly as a candidate a few months after the death of her dear father. Probably she joined in the month of June 1983, at the beginning of the academic year, recalls her younger sister Leena. She remained there about six months as a candidate.
This Congregation to which Valsa was drawn, was briefly known as SCJM, and it was founded on 4th November, 1803 in a little village of Lovendegem in the diocese of Gent, Belgium by the Parish Priest, Fr. Peter Joseph Triesti.
It was in the aftermath of the French Revolution which left so much poverty and misery especially that of the children. French Revolution itself was an inevitable consequence of the division of the society into the bourgeois and the proletarians. The former including the royal family and the upper class clergy lived a luxurious life while the latter i.e. the peasants and manual laborers, had to satisfy themselves with etching out a living with meager resources. The blood that flowed over the streets of Paris during the Revolution was an expected corollary of the repressed anger and frustration of the vast majority of French people, leaving on its trail massive poverty and division in the society beyond imagination. It was against this backdrop the new congregation took its birth to care for the victims of Revolution.
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| Fr.Peter Joseph Triesti |
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| SCJM Congregation |
The Indian wing of this Congregation had started a convent at Thoppil, of Edappally Parish around 1980s, very close to Sr. Valsa’s house, in view of getting fresh vocations and initial formation and it was there she joined them.
Until that time sisters of this Congregation were practically unknown to the people of Kerala. Since Valsa had been looking forward to a religious congregation that would give her an opening to work in North India, she might have felt that this would be the best in the present circumstances to realize her personal aspirations as she did not want to join in any of the religious Congregations of Kerala origin on account of their rigid and orthodox character. When she approached the SCJM to know more about the works and activities of this Congregation, she learnt from them that the Sisters worked in the rural areas, mainly among the marginalized people of North India. This was exactly what she wanted, namely to work for those who sit on the periphery of the Indian society.
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| SCJM Convent, Thoppil |
After staying about six months or so at the Convent at Thoppil, Edappally, learning English, and something more about the history and charism of the SCJM, she, along with others, was sent to do her Postulancy and Novitiate training in the Formation House of their Congregation in Amritsar in the diocese of Jalandhar, Punjab where along with eight others she was trained in the spirit and charism of the Sisters of Charity of Jesus and Mary. It was either towards the end of 1983 or towards the beginning of 1984 she reached Amritsar.
First Profession
At the end of the Novitiate training in Amritsar she made the First Profession on 4th November 1987. Fr. Varghese Puthussery SJ who preached the retreat for her batch in the novitiate before their first profession writes about Valsa, the novice: “She came across to me as a mature person at that time itself ”[1] Some of her family members and the present writer were present at this religious ceremony that took place in their house of formation in Amritsar.
This four year long religious preparation gave Valsa the needed trust and confidence in her own powers to work among the poor.
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4. SR. VALSA, A SCHOOL TEACHER
“The true test of civilization is not the census, nor the size of the cities, nor the crops, but the kind of people the country turns out”
-Emersion
Noadih, Bihar
Immediately after her first profession in the year 1987 she was sent to Noadih- a remote village community situated in the middle of a thick forest, in the district of Palamau, in the diocese of Daltonganj in Bihar. She taught in their Hindi medium school for a few years after which she was transferred to Una in Himachal Pradesh where she managed the kitchen for some time.
Khagaul, Patna
Sr. Valsa did not want a routine life in the convent, but had something else in mind. She wanted to do something for the abandoned people. With this intention she approached the Superiors to grant her permission to be part of a group that engaged in social work and it was granted. She arrived in Khagaul, Patna in 1990 as a participant in the one-year training program in social work. She had received first guidance and inspirations in its basics from the Jesuit fathers and her friendship with them remained till the end of her life. Her first initiation into social action was by Fr. Philip Manthara SJ of Patna Jesuit Province who pictures her as someone with an indomitable spirit[2]. She remained there for one year and found it fulfilling.
Danapur, Patna
As a part of the preparation for the final vows she had to do a program called tertianship in the year 1991. It is some sort of an exposure to village life or to the hard realities of the downtrodden people.
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Since life in an institution does not give a direct experience of the people living on the boundaries of the civilized society, and since every reasonable need of the candidate is well taken care of in the formation house where they undergo their religious training, a program called ‘exposure-immersion’ is introduced in the religious formation houses where candidates are given formation to priesthood or religious life. It is actually an offshoot of liberation theology. This program helps candidates to be on their own, manage their life by themselves and come to know the struggles of everyday life for those who belong to the weaker section of the society on account of their low social and economic status, physical handicaps, discrimination, up-rootedness etc. Most of the scheduled castes and scheduled tribes come under this category. It was in that connection Sr.Valsa came to Danapur, in the district of Patna. Sr. Sudha Varghese SND was already working in there for many years among these people, when Sr.Valsa joined her with two other companions. Sr. Valsa and companions started working with her in the same area of Danapur block in Patna district among the Musahar tolas of the villages. It was their first interaction with dalits, especially with the Musahars.
The Musahar are a Scheduled caste found in the Gangetic planes of Bihar and Utter Pradesh in India and Terai. Good many of them are living in ghettoes in the outskirts of villages of Patna. The term Musahar comes from Sanskrit mushahara, meaning rat eater[3]. Musahars of Bihar are at the bottom of the social ladder, according to Sachin Parashar. Musahars are the most exploited and deprived caste in Bihar and Jharkhand; they are landless laborers, living in grinding poverty and sub-human conditions for centuries. Musahar tolas are small hamlets where Musahar communities live and where nobody likes to stop even for a cup of tea.
Musahars are also known as Arya or Bambasi[4]. They have three hierarchical sections or sub-castes, namely, the Bhagal, the Sakatiya and Turakhia. They work for higher castes, landowners and contractors. Often they are exploited and tortured. When there is no work in the farms they go to the forests to collect honey and to make plates with leaves. Or women brew illicit liquor and men gamble and eat rodents, like rats. Many among them are like bonded laborers. Endogamy is practiced by the community. In the recent past, there had been many who worked among them and are still working for their social and economic welfare. Two of the well known names among them are: Sr.Sudha Varghese who worked in their midst for 21 years & Mr. J.K. Sinha, a retired IPS officer who decided to do something for Musahars after his retirement.
Here in Danapur she was not only face-to- face with them, but also was living amidst them. Before long, she began to organize their women and children. The youth got Sr. Valsa’s attention most. She was ready to mix with them and never hesitated to share their meager meals including, of course, rat-meat. It was like a new world unfolding itself before her eyes.
They were rat-eaters and were belonging to the lowest strata of the civil society. Sr.Amala SND who was part of the social action team of Manthan, in Khagaul, recalls her experience of Valsa among the Musahar:
“We had a programme of exposure and experience of one for Sisters who felt a call to enter into Social Action ministry....One year Sister Valsa joined us for the programme. I would go around the villages and visit these Sisters for timely help and encouragement. I would see Valsa teaching the Musahar children and enjoying it to no end. The children would be half or fully naked sitting on the ground on their sacks or pieces of plastic, ready to run at any little distraction. If a rat came by, the whole group would disappear like a wind. But they would return to share with didi, a portion of the catch after they managed to cook it. Valsa would laugh heartily at their mischief enjoying the humanness which she could touch beneath the running nose, muddy feet, bulging stomach and soiled hands. Valsa was human to the core!”[5]
According to Sr.Amala, occasionally some children would disappear from the villages. When such cases were reported to Sr.Valsa, she would investigate the matter and bring out the truth. These children were kidnapped for human sacrifices!![6] She would follow up the cases until the real culprits were brought before the Law. Many certify that in such cases she was not afraid of the consequences of her action.
This hard life gave her and her companions a needed exposure to the real world of the dalits and their life situations towards which Valsa and companions were looking for. For her it was not a text-book learning but a learning by living it. Sr.Valsa with her natural congeniality and amiability built up very fast a very good relationship with the people of the surrounding villages and became familiar with their daily struggles. She always approached them with much joy conveying her great happiness to be with them. Sr.Sudha recalls her experience of that time: “In no time Valsa built up good relationship with the people and became familiar with their struggle to make both ends meet. She always approached them with much joy conveying her great happiness to be with them”[7]
After one year Sr. Valsa had to return to her convent to spend more time in preparation for her Final Vows.
Final vows
After one year of intense spiritual preparation and being equipped with knowledge and skill to work among the poor in the rural areas of Bihar (The state of Jharkhand was not yet formed at that time), she made her Final Vows in Amritsar in the month of June 1993. From that day onwards she was longing to dedicate herself for the poor and she shared her heart’s innermost desire with one of her close friends on the day she made her perpetual commitment. According to her friends, Valsa was not a person who would compromise with what she was convinced of, i.e. she believed that her life was going to be with the poor[8]. She had already set it as the first priority in the center of her heart and never backed out from it in her entire life, though at this stage she was not very clear exactly what she would do for them.
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5. SR.VALSA, A SOCIAL WORKER
“Leo went once to a famous ascetic who disciplined himself by living on the top of a tree. ‘Give me some advice, holy father’, Leo said. ‘Go as far as you can’, came the reply. ‘Give me some more advice, holy father’. ‘Go further than you can’, was the reply”
-Nikos Kazantzakis, in God’s Pauper
Kodma
Soon after her final vows, Valsa moved into action. In 1993 with kind permission and blessings from her Provincial Superior, she moved to Kodma in Sahibganj district of Bihar (now in Jharkhand) 150 kilometer away from Dumka to work among the Santhals with Fr.Tom Kavala SJ who had been already working in that village, in Santhal Pargana. Before we proceed further along Valsa’s work among the Santhals, perhaps it may be good to know something more about this tribal group.
Who are the Santhals?
The Santal (also spelled as Santhal, Sontal or Sonthal), are the largest tribal community in India, who lives mainly in the states of Jharkhand, West Bengal, Bihar, Odisha, and Assam. There is also a significant Santhal minority in neighboring Bangladesh, and a small population in Nepal. The Santhals belong to the Proto-Australoid group, and may have arrived in India soon after the Negritos.
Paul Olaf Bodding, (born at Gjøvik, Norway on 2nd November 1865, died at Odense, Denmark on 25th September 1938), was a Norwegian missionary, linguist and folklorist. He served in India for 44 years (1889–1933), and operated mainly from the town Dumka in the Santhal Parganas-district. Bodding created the first alphabet and wrote the first grammar for the Santali-speaking native people in eastern India. In 1914 he also completed the translation of the Bible into the Santali language. Paul Olaf Bodding had studied theology at the University of Oslo. He was a celebrated scientist, and he is still well known among the Santhals living in the states of Jharkhand, Bihar and Assam as well as in Bangladesh and the Scandinavian countries.
A yearly round of rituals connected with the agricultural cycle, along with life-cycle rituals for birth, marriage and burial at death, involves petitions to the spirits and offerings that include the sacrifice of animals, usually birds. Religious leaders are male specialists in medical cures who practice divination and witchcraft. Similar beliefs are common among other tribes of northeast and central India such as the Kharia, Munda, and Oraon.
A total of 12 clans is found among the Santhals. They are Nij-Hansdak, Marandi, Soren, Hembrom, Tudu, Kisku, Baskey, Besra, Core, Pauriya, Donka and Murmu. The clans are normally exogamous with a few exceptions. The Santhali clan system is not rigid and thus the society is comparatively free from untouchability, non association and other ill effects of harsh class laws.
Educated Santhals in the modern India have taken up profession practically in every field. Today there are a good number of Santhali doctors, engineers, and government servants in India. The opening up of new avenues after the arrival of the Christian missionaries and the English education have changed their old lifestyle and made it typically urban. After the creation of Jharkhand state, the government has been turning its attention to improve the quality of life of all the people living in the state, creating more educational and job opportunities.
Santhals have preserved their native language, despite waves of migrations and invasions such as Aryan, Hun, Mughals, Europeans, and others. Santhali culture is depicted in the paintings and artworks in the walls of their houses. Local mythology includes the stories of the Santhal ancestors Pilchu Haram and Pilchu Bhudi.
Before the advent of the British in India the Santhals resided peacefully in the hilly districts of Mayurbhanj Chhotanagpur, Palamau, Hazaribagh, Midnapur, Bankura and Birbhum. Their agrarian way of life was based on clearing the forest; they also engaged themselves in hunting for sustenance. But, as the agents of the new colonial rule claimed their rights on the lands of the Santhals, they peacefully went to reside in the hills of Rajmahal. After a brief period of peace the British operatives with their native counterparts jointly started claiming their rights in this new land as well. The simple and honest Santhals were cheated and turned into slaves by the zamindars and the money lenders who first appeared to them as business men and lured them into debt, first by goods lent to them on loans. However hard the Santhals tried to repay these loans, they never succeeded in it. Through corrupt measures of the money lenders, the debts multiplied to an amount for which a generation of the Santhali family had to work as slaves. Furthermore, the Santhali women who worked under labor contractors were disgraced and abused.
First Rebellion
On 30 June 1855, two Santali rebel leaders, Sidhu and Kanhu Murmu, mobilized 30 thousand Santhals and declared a rebellion against British colonists. Soon after the declaration, the Santhals took to arms. In many villages the zamindars, money lenders and their operatives were put to death. The open rebellion caught the British Government by surprise. Initially a small contingent was sent to suppress the rebels and this further fueled the spirit of revolt. When the law and order situation was getting out of hand the British Government finally took a major step and sent in large number of troops assisted by the local zamindars and the Nawab of Murshidabad to quell the Rebellion.
A number of skirmishes occurred after this which resulted in large number of casualties for the Santhals. The primitive weapons of the Santhals weren't a match against the musket and cannon of the British. Troop detachments from the 7th Native Infantry Regiment, 40th Native Infantry and others were called into action. Major fighting occurred from July 1855 to January 1856, in places like Kahalgaon, Suri, Raghunathpur, and Munkatora.
The revolt was brutally crushed, the two celebrated leaders Sidhu and Kanhu were killed. Elephants supplied by the Nawab of Murshidabad were used to demolish Santhal huts and likewise profound atrocities were committed by the British army in quenching the Rebellion[9]
Valsa at work with the Santhals
This is the background of the people among whom Sr.Valsa pitched her tent.
After having settled down in her new abode, she applied herself fully to the task ahead of her. She knew very well that to work anywhere in the world, one needed to master the local language and get acquainted with the customs and traditions of the place and the people. If it was with Musahars in Danapur she worked, it would be now with Santhals in Kodma. Therefore she took up language learning seriously and began to mix freely with tribal people. Already there was an organization called ‘Sona Santal Samaj Samiti’ formed after the martyrdom of Fr. Anthony Murmu. The Samiti welcomed Sr.Valsa into their midst.
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| Sr.Valsa with the villagers |
In the year 1997 she took part in a protest march in Dumka along with about 400 Santhal women demanding immediate justice for Fr. Christudas, Principal of Guhayasori Mission High School and sat in dharna as part of a protest against parading him naked in the streets by some disgruntled persons in collaboration with the city administration. Valsa strongly believed that, in order to solve the problems of the people, prayer alone was not enough, but one needs to switch on to non-violent means of protest, as advocated by Gandhiji and thereby put pressure on the administration to get justice for them. This was her strong belief and continued the same style of functioning later in other places. At that time it was unthinkable for a woman religious to enter such a field. When she was asked whether it was right for a Religious Sister to sit in dharna and lead a morcha, her reply was simple and straightforward one:”I find meaning in living for the people because in their struggle I find Jesus”[10].
Jiapani:
In 1998 she was appointed as Sister-in-charge of the community of SCJM at Jiapani, Amrapara of Pakur district of Jharkhand and as a teacher in their school.
It was a painful moment for her to accept the decision of the Superiors, for her heart was aching to work among the people who were exploited by the rich and powerful rather than to teach in a School. However, she submitted to the decision of the Superiors to be a full time teacher that kept her in the school from morning till 4.00 p.m. in the afternoon. After the classes, she would tour the villages as she did in Kodma though it was physically tiring. She did the same for a longer period on school holidays and return back to the convent often after sun-set. As a result of these long touring of the surrounding villages day by day children began to increase in the school because she succeeded in convincing the illiterate parents why they should allow their children to be educated.
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| Sr.Valsa John |
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6. SR.VALSA- CHAMPION OF SANTHALS
“I have seen the misery of my people who are in Egypt; I have heard their cry on account of their taskmasters, indeed, I know their sufferings and I have come down to deliver them.....So come, I will send you to Pharoah to bring my people, the Israelites, out of Egypt”
-Exodus 3/7-9
It was in one of these sojourns in the surrounding villages, she noticed a camp of Geological Survey in the village of Baromasia. She came to know that the officers were there to acquire the land of the tribal region in view of extracting coal from there. She further learnt from these officers that this would be supplied to another state for producing electricity. This disturbed her, because the Santhals had been living in this land for centuries and all of a sudden they would be evicted out of this land mercilessly since the village people were illiterates. Law and muscle-power always remained with the administration and they could do anything with these for their own benefits. The officers who never imagined that this slender lady on a bicycle with no political power behind her would turn out to be a staunch resistance wall against the mighty Company and the government simply told her the truth. After reflecting a lot about it and without wasting much time, she requested the Superiors to relieve her from the post of the Principal of the School and began to concentrate more time with the Santhals and planning how to foil the vested interests of the Company and the Government.
Change of residence to Pachuara
Since she thought that a shift of residence would be of a great help, she changed her residence in the year 2003 from Jiapani to Pachuara, a village seven kilometers away from it, 75 kilometers away from the nearest town Dumka, in the district of Pakur and 400 kilometers away from Ranchi, the present capital of Jharkhand and lived in the house of the Pargana, head of the village. It was a simple hut, like those of the adivasis. At home and in her different convents where she lived there were the usual conveniences that a middle class family could give very easily to its members. She even had a teacher’s job with a steady salary by which she could afford to have a normal decent life; but she did not want it as she had her own priority in life. She refused all these ‘comforts’ in order to share the miseries and privations of the people among whom she pitched her tent just as Jesus did.
She helped the people to organize themselves against the coal mining company acquiring the land of the villages. The area was known as Santhal Pargana consisting of 32 villages. The headman was an aged person. Valsa without much support from her religious congregation began resistance movements and guided the people’s struggle to block the move of acquiring the land for mining purpose. Kataldih village near Amrapara block in Pakur district had reserves of good quality of coal on a very large scale. The local government had the power to dispose it in any way they would like it even though from the beginning onwards the land was actually belonging to the tribals. The government even could give the right to any private company for the same purpose. This had led to major confrontations with the police in the past, and the administration often sided with the companies.
PANEM Coal Mines
Sr.Valsa made a detailed enquiry about the project and began to inform the people about the intentions of the government. She also came to know that the government was negotiating with a private company to grant permission to mine coal for Punjab State Electricity Board (PSEB) and for that purpose it was planning to acquire the land of the tribal to give to a company called PANEM Coal Mines.
PANEM Coal Mines Limited is a joint venture of Eastern Minerals and Trading Agency (EMTA) in joint venture with PSEB to produce, supply, transport and deliver coal from the mines of Pachuara Central Block exclusively to PSEB thermal power stations. They acquired 1704 acre forest land spread over nine villages for the purpose of extracting 1000 ton coals a day. The Company was planning to give 60 lakh ton coal to the thermal plant in Punjab Guru Hargovind Bhatinda thermal power plant. Pachuara Central Block which had very fine coal was spread over 13 kilometers of which 400 hector land was agricultural where 510 families lived. The company had already acquired permission in 1998 to do mining. In the beginning the price of coal was Rs.300 per ton and within no time it reached up to Rs. 3000 per ton. A huge amount had to be given to the Jharkhand government as annual royalty. A share of this profit also went into the hands of the politicians and Maoists.
The Santhals had their own sentiments about their land. They had been living there for a long time. As mentioned earlier, their forefathers had sacrificed their lives and had won for them freedom from oppression. Besides Sido and Kanhu, their brothers Chand and Bhairav, sisters Phulo and Jhano and other followers also sacrificed their lives in 1850s to free their people from the oppressors and gave them an identity. Fr. Anthony Murmu another martyr for the cause of the tribal had worked in the interests of the tribal and was martyred by the fanatics. 
But all of a sudden, like a bolt from the blue, they heard that someone was coming to enter their land and was going to oust them. The tribal community as a whole was a cohesive community with its communitarian mode of living, interaction and decision-making. We have already seen that the people depended on a life close to nature with its rivers and forests with agricultural fields and grazing lands, places of communitarian gatherings for festivals and villages functions. It also had its ancestral abode right in its midst. It was in this socio-cultural phenomenon the tribals lived and carried on with their day-to-day affairs. Their homes were made of mud walls and grass roof but they had a beauty and functional practicality of their own. Land was their most valuable asset and imperishable endowment. Sr. Valsa only articulated strongly this tradition of Santhals’ more than a century old struggle to preserve their land and culture by identifying with them and with their sentiments. All throughout this struggle Valsa remained with the villagers. She ate with them, walked with them to the hills, sometimes even stayed under the trees, and slept on river beds after nightlong deliberations. She respected the traditional authority of the tribal. She did not lead the movement but encouraged the traditional leadership to be in the forefront. It is the traditional leaders who negotiated and guided the movement.
Up against the Company
Once again she began to tour the villages, informing the villagers, mobilizing the people to resist the company from acquiring their land. Sr. Valsa inspired them, stood by them and animated them.
The result was their decision to form a Samiti called ‘Rajmahal Pahad Bachavo Andolan’ (Rajmahal Hill Protection Movement) against the Company’s move to acquire their land and the stir was carried on for five years. She created a tribal organization to stop the expropriation of land sought by the powerful coal lobbies. One of these lobbies tried to buy out nine villages and Sr. Valsa mobilized the local people.
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| Rajmahal Pahad Bachavo Andolan- Movement against the company |
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But these coal barons lodged 33 complaints against her and her supporters. It was a tough time for Sr. Valsa to work in this manner. Tense moments, feelings of betrayals and accusations from every corner began to flow against Sr. Valsa and her close companions, but they stood firm against all the onslaughts.
Once Sr.Valsa was even jailed but before long came out on bail. Her people had been picked up from weekly markets, false charges were made against them and were jailed. At times she along with their close associates had to flee to the forests to escape arrest and to live under plastic sheet canopies, eating what the forests could give, and drank from the streams. When Mr. Shaji, a press reporter from Kerala, based in Delhi came to know about the activities of Sr. Valsa in Pachuara, he came forward to give full support to her cause and timely advice. In fact he was a great help for her till her death. He was someone on whom she could count for support and consultation at any moment of the struggle.
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| Sr.Valsa- under arrest |
Memorandum of Understanding
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Meanwhile the Company began to recruit the tribal youths and used them to convince the elders to cooperate with the Company. They were made to believe that the Company would give jobs to the tribal youths and compensation to the families for the land given up. Many began to fall into this trap and a division was made among the tribal organization. This rift within the Samiti weakened the Movement badly; in-fights among the villagers began to increase day by day. It was really a testing time for Sr. Valsa to see the Movement declining. It looked like the sun was setting before they could achieve their goals. However she did not lose faith in the cause she was fighting and she began to consult her close supporters like Mr. Shaji as to what course they should follow in the present scenario. After a prolonged consultation with everyone concerned, the Samiti approached the Court believing the Court would stand by the provisions of the Constitution. Instead the High Court ruled in favor of the Company and the government and the Supreme Court recommended for an out of Court settlement. With increasing dissatisfaction among the Samiti members and set-back from our own country’s legal system, she had no other option except to go for a compromise on the issue. As someone said, it was a compromise between no mining and all mining. Hence a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) was signed between the Company and the Samiti in the year 2006. Stephen Marandi, former Deputy Chief Minister of Jharkhand and a friend of Sr. Valsa was present when the agreements were drawn up. The main provisions of the compromise were:
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Meanwhile the Company began to recruit the tribal youths and used them to convince the elders to cooperate with the Company. They were made to believe that the Company would give jobs to the tribal youths and compensation to the families for the land given up. Many began to fall into this trap and a division was made among the tribal organization. This rift within the Samiti weakened the Movement badly; in-fights among the villagers began to increase day by day. It was really a testing time for Sr. Valsa to see the Movement declining. It looked like the sun was setting before they could achieve their goals. However she did not lose faith in the cause she was fighting and she began to consult her close supporters like Mr. Shaji as to what course they should follow in the present scenario. After a prolonged consultation with everyone concerned, the Samiti approached the Court believing the Court would stand by the provisions of the Constitution. Instead the High Court ruled in favor of the Company and the government and the Supreme Court recommended for an out of Court settlement. With increasing dissatisfaction among the Samiti members and set-back from our own country’s legal system, she had no other option except to go for a compromise on the issue. As someone said, it was a compromise between no mining and all mining. Hence a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) was signed between the Company and the Samiti in the year 2006. Stephen Marandi, former Deputy Chief Minister of Jharkhand and a friend of Sr. Valsa was present when the agreements were drawn up. The main provisions of the compromise were:
1. The company acknowledged that the land belonged to the people and it would be returned, filled with mud once the coal extraction is over.
2. The company would pay crop compensation of Rs.6000 per acre per year to the owners of the land.
3. The people would not be displaced and if needed they be resettled in the vicinity itself. Concrete houses would be built for them.
4. Children of the project affected people would be given free education.
5. The Company also would open a school and a hospital in the area for the people within a year.
In course of time an school was built and a dispensary started functioning. An ambulance would go round the villages to bring the patients to the hospital.
With these agreements the Company continued mining coals in the year 2006. The role of Sr.Valsa was to see that these promises were carried out in letter and spirit. She saw to it that the money reached the beneficiaries directly. Money would be given by the company only in the hands of Sr.Valsa when all the beneficiaries were present and she would hand over it to the son of the headman to distribute it to the people. This precaution was to make sure that no one appropriated part of this amount for himself.
The company built in course of time concrete houses for the dislocated people and she was offered one, but she politely declined the offer and preferred rather to stay in the traditional hut of the tribals.
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| Concrete houses built by the company for the dislocated villagers. |
At this juncture, one may ask the question, why did the Samiti make a compromise with the company? Was it not a set-back? Some felt that for the survival of the tribal and to stop displacement compromise was the only choice. The people fought valiantly for six long years preventing the company or any political party from entering into the area. The youth were constantly guarding the village day and night with bow and arrows. But they were of no avail since the Court and the Law did not stand by them. Moreover persons with vested interests and muscle power were determined to break the movement.
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Sr.Valsa continued to stay in
her hut.
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After the MoU, Valsa continued to stay back in the village, though she could have easily moved out to another safer area as she had reached some sort of a conclusion of her long years of arduous labor. But perhaps, she might have thought that her presence in the village was very much needed since the Company could go back on their words, or others with vested interests may tamper the smooth functioning of the distribution of the funds. Therefore she decided to stay back to oversee the materialization of the provisions contained in the Memorandum of Understanding.
Her relationship with the Congregation
Meanwhile her relationship with her religious congregation was becoming a strained one. Officially she was still a member of SCJM. But since long time she was not staying in any of their convents, rather she was living among the people of Santhali village of Pachuara. The Congregation began to mount pressure on her to come back and lead a regular convent life since superiors were aware about the death threats against Sr. Valsa’s life from many quarters. Probably one could also reasonably guess that the opposition forces might have been pressurizing the authorities of the congregation to call her back. Thus she was becoming a ‘headache’ to many around her. In this situation, superiors of any religious congregation or the Church authorities would have done the same thing since it was totally unconventional for a religious sister to live alone in a village, that too in a remote adivasi village without any facility for daily Mass etc., and to take part in the political struggles of the people. It was unconventional for a religious sister to take part in dharnas and morchas organized by the people to get their demands.
But Sr. Valsa was fully convinced that staying with the tribal people, living like them and taking part in the struggles of the people were part of her thrust and commitment to God and to His Church. Therefore she refused to obey the superiors to go back to the convent. This defiance could not have been due to any grudge or ill will towards them rather it was on account of her desire to answer to her own ‘inner call’. Listening to the inner voice of God constantly ringing in her heart was more important to her than just adhering to the age-old traditions and conventions of religious life including blind and instant obedience to the superiors for which she knew she had to pay heavy price. Such persons who live in the post-conventional morality are extremely rare in the religious history. Valsa used to share these things with us whenever she was at home. The superiors also tried to impress upon the family members to press upon her to go back to the convent since she was constantly under threat from various sectors of the society - police, politicians and the criminals. But the family members consistently refused to act upon that request since they were convinced that their sister was grown up enough to take her own decision in this matter. Therefore, it was natural that her relationship with her congregation was becoming a strained one day by day.
In this context the words of John Dayal are very significant: “Even religious communities, barring perhaps some of the more radicalized ones, also do not understand the importance of the work their own members are doing. The result is that often enough, the Priest or Nun is isolated and forced to work all alone with the rest of his or her companions in the community looking at him/her with amusement or with bewilderment. Worse, some communities see their activist members as a threat to the equilibrium whose actions will bring about the wrath of the political and administrative forces on their institutions, making their normal working charism under threat[11]. Further he tells: “It is time for the communities, religious and secular, to come out of this almost paranoic fear complex that they will be targeted if they speak for the common man”[12]. Fr.Thomas Kavalakkat SJ certifies that Sr. Valsa was often misunderstood first and then understood, was criticized then appreciated and had a lone journey of life.[13] But to be understood and appreciated by people close to her she had to wait until her death.
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7. SR. VALSA- A MARTYR FOR A CAUSE
“If God accepts the sacrifice of my life, may my death be for the freedom of my people. You can tell the people that if they succeed in killing me, that I forgive and bless those who do it”.
-Archbishop Oscar Romero
Anyone who dares to change the society and its centuries old beliefs and practices has to pay for it with his/her life. Jesus is the best example of it who challenged the practices of his own religion, and his own people pulled down the curtain over him. The same was with Sr. Valsa who almost single handedly dared to change a practice that was being perpetuated by everyone and to bring justice to the persons of Santhal Pargana and she also met with the same fate. The pot was already boiling within for years and a spark was enough to burst it. That was what actually happened. A look into the remote reasons for eliminating her from the face of the earth will convince us of this statement.
Greed for power & money
The remote reasons for killing came from the greed for power and money. MoU drawn up between the Company and the villagers brought in ready cash into their hands that they had never seen in their life up to that time. The free flow of money made some blind and brought among them a yearning to be powerful overnight, forgetting the Cause for which Sr. Valsa stood and fought. Some of them had bought tipper lorries and were already transporting coals from the mine to the site on behalf of the Company. Those who wanted to become super rich over night began to find fault with Valsa’s way of transparency and sense of justice. It was customary that whenever the community got funds from the government or from the company, a share of it would go to the village leaders. But Valsa saw to it that each one got his/her due without anyone putting his hand in it. Moreover there were also some disgruntled persons who were not happy with the agreement drawn up. But we are not sure of the extent of their role in the conspiracy to eliminate her. She also had begun to care for the Paharia community[14], another down trodden group around the vicinity of Pachuara. Some of the Santhals who are comparatively well off resented this help to them.
Probably the people with vested interests fanned up the discontentment of the Santhali youth already existing. The middle men, government servants and local aspiring politicians began providing various allurements once again to the youth of the Samiti so as to bring about a rupture in the existing order and to break the united movement of the Santhals. And to great extent they succeeded in it. They spread the rumor that the old iron trunk Sr. Valsa had in her room contained money she received from the company on behalf of the villagers and that she had joined the extremists. The company also had given vehicles to the elders of the villages to entice them towards their side. However, the presence of Sr. Valsa and her people’s trust in her became an obstacle to these disgruntled elements of the society. At the same time they felt that somehow they had to eliminate her from the scene for which probably they were looking for different ways and means.
Some of the motives that gradually prepared for her elimination also came from the vested parties who wanted to extract levy, to control the people, and to silence their demands to have political hegemony in the area. The extremists were very much interested in entering that area but due to Valsa’s presence and popularity among the people they were not successful. As long as Valsa was alive she was an obstacle to fulfill their ambitions. Naturally she had to face the displeasure of the extremists, besides that of the bureaucrats, company agents and some aspiring Santhali youths.
Sr. Valsa knew very well that she was living with a warrant on her head, years before it actually happened and she used to share her apprehensions with her brothers and sisters at home. Thus a number of events were happening during her eleven years of tenure as a champion of the Santhal’s cause, before death reached her in the form of a cruel murder on that fateful night.
Recent events preceding her death
The opportunity came when Sr.Valsa had to go to Kerala in the month of July, 2011 to be at the bedside of her brother Antappan, ailing with last stage of cancer and opponents began to spread the news that she had gone away once for all and they formed a bethal Samiti of their own and promised that they would not allow didi’s return. Some tribal youths supported by the politicians were taking over the affairs of the Samiti and the ordinary people were helpless to do anything. They also began to spread rumors that didi was bought by the company, that she had gone home with a huge amount of money, had built a mansion in Kerala for herself and invested money in a resort.
When Valsa returned to Jharkhand after the death of her brother she spent some time in Ranchi with one of her close friends. The situation was not conducive for her to return to the village of Pachuara. Many advised her to wait for some time though her heart was longing to be with her people. When she thought that the situation was safer, she insisted to go back and thus reached Pachuara on the 7th of November 2011.
Soon she came to know all that were happening in the village in her absence and the rumors that were spread about her among the people. She might have been really pained and disturbed by all these happenings. But she stood firm and did not think of pulling back like a coward from the whole affair.
Rape in the village
The immediate spark for her killing might have been the wrath of a group of local criminals for seeking justice for a raped tribal girl. One of the girls working with Sr. Valsa, was picked up in Alubera weekly market by a group of youth and was mass-raped on the night of 9th November 2011. The main accused was a youth from a village two kilometers away from Pachuara. Parents went to the police station next day and wanted to file a case. The police refused to file it and chased them away. When they approached Sr. Valsa she managed to get an appointment with District Collector for the rape victim for 16th November 2011. Probably this infuriated the culprits fearing imprisonment in the jail and they planned once for all to remove her before the matter reached the Collector.
Martyrdom
Sr. Valsa was always aware that her enemies would try to take away her life, but she did not know when and in what manner it would happen. Her brother Baby said to the media soon after her death: “When she came home in July 2011 to look after her ailing brother, she had mentioned about certain threats, but we never thought that the mafia would finish her off.....I told her not to go back after she told me about threats she had received.”
Since past thirteen years she was saying the same thing and therefore no one in the family actually imagined the threat she was speaking was imminent. Whenever she would go home she would be seen phoning up to someone or the other in Jharkhand in a very subdued tone and also would tell everyone that she was under constant surveillance from the police and the politicians, and that even Kerala was not a safe haven for her. She even requested the family members not to tell anyone where she was. She really believed that agents of her enemies in Jharkhand would be following her trail.
But no one in the family knew accurately the type of life she was leading, and the cause she was fighting for, except that she was working for the tribals and was facing innumerable obstacles from those who considered her presence a hindrance for their vested interests and that she was not being supported by her co-religious in her fight against the exploited. She was not in the habit of sharing the details of her work with anyone at home nor had anyone from her family gone to Pachuara to see her work and activities when she was alive.
Agnes Hembrom who was Valsa’s close companion from the beginning onwards narrated about the last day of Sr. Valsa’s death:
“Didi called me to teach in the school which didi started in 1998. I came here in 2001. After one year I started going with didi to the village organizing people to fight against coal mining in the area. When I got a government job as a para- teacher, didi happily sent me for that. Thus I went to Jumu Pahari village in Godda Dt. around 70 k.m. away from Pachuara and started living there. Whenever possible I used to come and help didi. Thus I kept close contact with didi though I was far away from Pachuara village. On 15th November 2011 didi rang me up thrice, the first time it was around 8 a.m. asking me, ‘How are you, you must be getting ready to go to school”. Then for a second time, she called me around 2 p.m. ‘Have you heard about any conspiracy here in the village? I am feeling something is not ok”. I replied, ‘I haven’t heard anything like that didi’, to which didi responded, ‘Then it is ok’. Again at 8 p.m. didi called me and said, ‘Did you have your dinner? Keep your mobile on when you go to sleep’ to which I replied, ‘Okey, didi’. Around 11.30 p.m. my husband woke me up and shared the dream he had: didi was asking him to start a shop to sell weapons like sickle, axe etc. I tried to call didi at that time but there was no response. We thought that she must be sleeping. In the morning again I tried to call didi but there was no answer. I was feeling disturbed. Next day morning around 08.00 a.m. one youngster from Pachuara who had come to his wife’s house in Jumu Pahari brought the news about didi’s murder”[15]. 
It was terribly shocking to everyone in the family when a phone call came around 01.30 a.m. just after midnight on 16th November from the SCJM at Jiapani to her brother Baby’s phone in Vazhakkala, Edappilly that his sister Valsa was no more, that she was brutally murdered a few hours back. Slowly the details began to pour in. Around 40 to 50 young men armed with rods, swords, axes and other crude weapons surrounded the village on Tuesday 15th evening around 10.30 p.m. Some of these formed a protection force around the house with bows and arrows for the persons assigned to kill her so that no one would come to her rescue. A few youths who were in the village were caught and were tied down. Then five of them entered the headman’s house where Sr.Valsa had lived for the past many years, but ousted from it by headman’s son. Then they found Sonaram Hembrom, the owner of the house where she was staying at the time of her death. They dragged him out and tied him and threatened to kill him if he did not hand over Sr. Valsa to them. His answer was that she was not there. They thrashed him and got into the house and entered the room where she was lying covered with blankets and bed sheets, pulled her out and murdered her with axe, sickle and spear and just walked away from the house. In the words of Sonaram Hembrom, they pulled her from her bed. One of them stabbed her in the neck while another hit her with a sickle on the head. They continued stabbing her till she died[16]. She had two wounds on the head, one on the cheek and a spear wound on the back.
The incident took place around 11.30 p.m. in the night and the whole operation was over just within five minutes. While getting out of the house the men threw some Maoist leaflets; two of them got into the waiting jeep and drove off while the others went to the nearby stream and washed themselves. The bloodstained floor of the room bore testimony to the violence that preceded her ghastly murder. Coincidently 15th November was the birthday of Jharkhand, the day when the state was rejoicing at the birth of the state carved out of Bihar exclusively for the tribals in the year 2000[17]. And next day 16th November was the 29th death anniversary of her father John.
Three years she grew in sun and shower:
Then nature said, ‘a lovelier flower
On earth was never sown:
This child I to myself will take;
She shall be mine, and I will make
A lady of my own
Thus nature spake- The work was done-
How soon my Lucy’s race was run!
She died, and left to me
This heath, this calm and quiet scene;
The memory of what has been
And never more will be
-William Wordsworth
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Burial
The police were informed about the incident by the villagers but they came only next day morning at 07.00 a.m. After the FIR was prepared by the police the body was taken to the hospital for the post-mortem after which the body was received by Sr. Ranjana, of Holy Cross congregation, Stephan Marandi and Fr. Tom SJ at 01 p.m. on 16th November and since there was no mortuary nearby, the body had to be kept in a room of St. Ursula Hospital, Buksi Bandh Rd, Dumka for the night with ice packs around the body after the body was washed by Sr.Ranjana and her companions and they kept company for Valsa the whole night. Meanwhile many sisters of Valsa’s congregation and others had come from Ranchi and other places to the hospital to pay their homage to their beloved. Next day the body was received by SCJM sisters and was taken to Dumka for burial.
The funeral Mass was arranged in the Cathedral on that day on 17th at 10 a.m. Fr. Nirmal Raj, the Jesuit Provincial, Fr. Emmanuel, Vicar General of the diocese and around 30 priests concelebrated in the Mass. About 700 people were present for the funeral including a good number of sisters from her congregation and other religious congregations, priests, about 200 people from Pachuara village and her close friends.
Sr. Valsa was laid to rest at 01.00 p.m. on Friday 17th November 2011 at the Christian Vijaypur cemetery, two kilometers away from St. Paul’s Cathedral, Dumka. Her brother Baby, and two of her nephews - Nirmal from Vazhakkala & Nidhish from Chunamgamvely - were present at the funeral service.
Sr. Valsa was laid to rest at 01.00 p.m. on Friday 17th November 2011 at the Christian Vijaypur cemetery, two kilometers away from St. Paul’s Cathedral, Dumka. Her brother Baby, and two of her nephews - Nirmal from Vazhakkala & Nidhish from Chunamgamvely - were present at the funeral service.
At the time when the funeral was taking place in Dumka, a requiem Mass was celebrated for her at St. George Forane Parish Church, Edappilly, officiated by Fr. George, her first cousin, attended by her immediate family members, close relatives and a few friends and neighbors. During the Mass the celebrant read out Jesus’ words: “...Unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains a single grain; but if it dies, it bears much fruit” (Jn 12/24). He spoke a few words to the people present in a short homily. He said:
“Today a martyr is born in the family of Malamel, in the parish of Edappilly, in the Catholic Church of Kerala, and in fact in India. Every woman in the world should feel proud that a woman has laid her life in the most tragic way as the price for trying to bring dignity and honor for a group of people marginalized and exploited for centuries by the powerful in the society. And we, the family members, should not cry but rather feel proud of having given one member from our family as a Martyr for a noble Cause!!! What is more important at the present moment is, not holding condolence meetings and passing a number of resolutions, but making a vow to continue fighting injustice and exploitation wherever they exist, starting within our own homes and institutions”.
He also quoted the famous words of Pope John Paul II to his countrymen not to disturb the great moral eloquence of his death, at the death of a young Polish Priest, Fr. Jerzy Popieluszko, aged 37, who was dragged from his parish and shot dead and his body thrown on the street out of the city of Torun on 19th, October, 1984 for speaking in his Sunday homilies against the injustices of the Polish Regime.
Arrest of the culprits
Seven persons believed to be involved in the crime were taken into custody soon after the murder of Sr. Valsa. Pycil the son of the Elder of the village, strongly believed to be one of those involved in the murder of Sr. Valsa was among the seven. Banarasi Prasad in charge of Amrapara police station had been placed under suspension for his negligence in his duty. Sr.Valsa had informed the Police regarding the threat against her, but he failed to give protection to her. Though the murder took place at 11.30 p.m. in the night, the police reached only next day around 07.00 a.m. in the morning.
False information spread
Some extremist literature and a spade were left behind the scene of the murder possibly to mislead the people that the killing was the handiwork of the Maoists. The report of her death as it appeared in most of the local dailies and news channels was very much biased. One political leader went to the extent of saying that she was killed for her greed for money! One of the local TV News channel was constantly showing the house of Baby, Valsa’s youngest brother, as though it was her house, built with money she received from the company. Such statements and rumors were spread to hide the truth and to divert the attention of everyone.
Her belongings
After her death many persons went to see the room and the spot where she was axed to death. The room had a very low roof with tiles, a single door, and a ventilator. It was worse than a cow-shed in Kerala. One needed a candle even in broad day light to see what was in the room as the village had no electricity. The wall was built with mud and bamboo sticks.
The visitors could see in it only an iron trunk with a few old woolen blankets, a small transistor radio that worked with battery, a kerosene lamp, a few books and files, two aluminum pots, a frying pan, some glasses and plates, a few sarees and panchis (advasi sarees), a crucifix, a picture of Jesus and a copy of the Constitution of India and there was no money at all in the trunk as the people were made to believe by her detractors. It was said by the villagers that some agents of the company had come early in the morning and took away some important files from the trunk containing the names of the beneficiaries. Even after one year the visitors could still see these items along with a few jars and bottles of salt, chilly powder etc. placed on a plank fixed on the wall as the villagers do everywhere.
There was a cot made up of bamboo sticks and ropes on which she used take rest. According to some, the women of the village placed this cot over her after having made her lie down on the night of her murder so that the culprits might not see her. But that was of no avail.
The visitors could see in it only an iron trunk with a few old woolen blankets, a small transistor radio that worked with battery, a kerosene lamp, a few books and files, two aluminum pots, a frying pan, some glasses and plates, a few sarees and panchis (advasi sarees), a crucifix, a picture of Jesus and a copy of the Constitution of India and there was no money at all in the trunk as the people were made to believe by her detractors. It was said by the villagers that some agents of the company had come early in the morning and took away some important files from the trunk containing the names of the beneficiaries. Even after one year the visitors could still see these items along with a few jars and bottles of salt, chilly powder etc. placed on a plank fixed on the wall as the villagers do everywhere. 
There was a cot made up of bamboo sticks and ropes on which she used take rest. According to some, the women of the village placed this cot over her after having made her lie down on the night of her murder so that the culprits might not see her. But that was of no avail.
“I am a poor beggar. My kit consists of six spinning wheels, jail utensils, a tin of goat’s milk, six loin clothes, a towel and my reputation which I do not think is worth much”.
He knew that at any moment of his life he could end up in prison and he was always prepared for it mentally and physically.
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8. SR.VALSA-A HIDDEN TREASURE
“While you chase your dreams and rise to lofty heights in the world, please remember- greatness comes from living for a cause larger than you and leaving our world better than you found it”.
-CRI, Patna [18]
The World speaks out
Just as Sr. Valsa was hidden in the hamlet of Pachuara village, shut away from the urban society, she was also hidden from the mainstream of the society and media until her martyrdom. No award came in search of her into that secluded village. No organization came to honor her for what she had done for ‘her people’ almost singlehandedly when she was alive[19].
She was known only to her family members, her close friends, and a few of the members of her religious congregation, and of course to the people of Pachuara and the neighboring villages. When the world came to know about Valsa’s life and activities for the Santhals of Pachuara soon after her violent and tragic death, many persons from every walk of life, some known to Valsa and others unknown, sprang up from nowhere and began to organize condolence meetings and candle light vigil services and to give expressions to their natural sentiments and feelings
against such cruel atrocity. The media, both national and international, highlighted what she was doing for 24 years as a religious sister, particularly what she did for the past 13 years for the advasis. She became the focus of attention of the world. Newspapers, journals and television channels, both foreign and Indian 
Soon after Valsa’s murder a candlelight vigil was observed on 18th November 2011 at New Delhi’s Sacred Heart Cathedral by the religious and lay people in her memory. Another candlelight vigil service was conducted along with a condolence meeting around the same time in the Renewal Centre at Kaloor in which Cardinal Oswald Gracious of New Delhi;
Archbishop Albert De Sousa and many other prominent persons took part. Rt. Rev. Dr. Francis Kallarackal, the Archbishop of Varapuzha offered a requiem Mass in the Basilica avenue along with many priests of Latin diocese, followed by a condolence meeting in which many prominent persons spoke in high appreciation of Sr.Valsa. Cardinal Oswald Gracious, the President of CBCI; Dr. Albert D’Souza, the Archbishop, Dr. Bosco Puthur, the Curia Bishop;
Mr. Oomen Chandi, the Chief Minister of Kerala; Mr. K.M. Mani, the Finance Minister of Kerala; and dignitaries and office bearers of Kerala Catholic Bishops Conference, prominent political parties and religious communities, persons from socio-cultural groups, press world, reporters of T.V. channels and even persons from Jharkhand among whom was Stephan Marandi, the ex-Deputy Chief Minister of Jharkhand paid visit to her family at Vazhakkala, not only just to sympathize with the family members at the loss of one of their dear members but more than that, it was to convey their heartfelt appreciation for Sr. Valsa for what she did to the nation and to the Church.
K.C.Y.M. in their condolence meeting at Kochi condemned such cruelties against unity and indivisibility of India and affirmed that the murder of Valsa was against our Indian heritage. Amnesty International had requested the Government to give an assurance that an objective and impartial enquiry into the murder of Valsa would be carried out[20]. Bishop Julius Marandi of Dumka Diocese told Asia News:
“Her violent death was a terrible shock and a great loss to the Church. We seek justice, but while we mourn this loss her mission for the poor, the weak and voiceless will continue, strengthened and renewed by the blood of Sr. Valsa who now intercedes for human rights, justice, dignity and hope of these people.
Sr. Valsa paid for her struggle for the poor and defenseless, against the interests of the powerful coal mafia with her life. The Church of Dumka and all Jharkhand pray that her martyrdom will renew the mission of the Church to be a witness of faith”[21].
Sr. Valsa paid for her struggle for the poor and defenseless, against the interests of the powerful coal mafia with her life. The Church of Dumka and all Jharkhand pray that her martyrdom will renew the mission of the Church to be a witness of faith”[21].
Major Archbishop and head of the Syro-Malabar Church, Mar George Alenchery said that Sr.Valsa had “given her life to the poor and fought a long battle to safeguard their rights. She had shown the world how to care for the poor and dedicated her life to the Church and her faith”[22]. President of Kerala Regional Latin Catholic Council, Archbishop Maria Soosai Pakiam
said: “With her exemplary life and courage to fight evil, Sr. Valsa John has shown us that we need to rededicate our lives for our faith and work for the poor”[23]. Archbishop Andrews Thazhath, the president of the Kerala Catholic Bishops’ Council on behalf of all the members of the Council expressed their ‘deep sorrow’ at the murder of Valsa John and extended condolences to her family and to the congregation of SCJM[24]. Bro. Mani Mekkunnel, National Secretary of CRI observed: “...Let it strengthen the commitment of thousands of others for the poor and marginalized of our country”[25].
said: “With her exemplary life and courage to fight evil, Sr. Valsa John has shown us that we need to rededicate our lives for our faith and work for the poor”[23]. Archbishop Andrews Thazhath, the president of the Kerala Catholic Bishops’ Council on behalf of all the members of the Council expressed their ‘deep sorrow’ at the murder of Valsa John and extended condolences to her family and to the congregation of SCJM[24]. Bro. Mani Mekkunnel, National Secretary of CRI observed: “...Let it strengthen the commitment of thousands of others for the poor and marginalized of our country”[25].
Fr. Tom Kavala, the Director of the Social Action Centre at Kodma, Sahibganj, in Dumka diocese, and who had worked for over 15 years with Sr.Valsa, told Asia news:
“Sister Valsa created a tribal organization to stop the expropriation of land sought by the powerful coal lobbies, including helping them to obtain compensation from companies. Six years ago, one of these lobbies tried to buy out nine villages and Sister Valsa mobilized the local poor people. These coal barons lodged 33 complaints against her and her supporters, and many of them ended up in prison”[26].
“Her murder is a shame for all of us in Jharkhand” said Cardinal Telesphore Toppo of Ranchi[27]. He also said, “The poor have lost a benefactor. The religious sister was serving the poor, especially tribals, and fighting for justice”[28] Mr.K.V.Thomas, the Minister at the Center wrote a letter to the Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Home Minister Chidambaram to make an inquiry into the death of Sr. Valsa. John Dayal, a member of the National Integration Council, wrote:
“It was proper that the candlelight vigil in memory of Sister Valsa John of Dumka, Jharkhand, on November 18 at New Delhi’s Sacred Heart Cathedral became a celebration of her life, the work of Christian activists in defense of the rights and dignity of the poor, the tribal, the dalits and marginalized”[29].
Jacob Kany, Chief editor of Indian Currents, Delhi, wrote in his editorial of the weekly:
“In Sr. Valsa, we see a missionary who gave a new definition to her vocation. In her we see the Christian principles of love, charity and compassion taking an activist’s role which is fraught with dangers. She proved herself right when she brought much benefit for the displaced tribals among whom she worked”[30]
A meeting in Delhi was organized by the Delhi Catholic Archdiocese, the CBCI Office for Women, Media House, the All India Catholic Union, the All India Christian Council, Sadbhavana and PILLAR on the occasion of the first Martyrdom anniversary of Sr. Valsa. It was a panel discussion in which persons like Most Rev. Vincent M. Concessao, the Archbishop of Delhi; Dr. Dominic Emmanuel, the spokesperson of the Delhi Catholic Archdiocese; Dr.John Dayal,
Sr.Helen Saldhana, the Secretary of the CBCI Commission for Women; and many others took part. The speakers spoke highly about the role of Sr.Valsa in getting the due for the displaced tribals of Santhal Pargana. They pointed out her non-compromising attitude and demand for a better bargain with the mining company for the rights of the people which ultimately brought her tragic death[31]. Joel SCN writes after a visit to the place of murder:
“As far as I knew Valsa, she was a direct, uncompromising, deeply committed and totally compassionate person. To me she tried to live the Gospel of justice, liberation and love like her Master. As I looked at the bloodstains on the floor and saw the little mud walled room I was humbled by Valsa’s dedication and uncompromising commitment to change the selfish greedy and rotten system and to side with the less popular and unknown little people”[32]
Fr.Abraham Puthumana SJ has this to say about her:
“My first contact with Sr. Valsa John, as I recall now was when she was a tertian. I facilitated a workshop for them. She was one of the young tertians participating in the workshop. She showed a good degree of social concern. Beyond that there was nothing special about her attitudes at that time. Later on at Atma-darshan, we had special retreats for those involved in Social Action. Probably in one of these retreats I got to know her a little better. Since that time we continued to have occasional contacts with each other. What drew me towards her was her warm hearted and loving nature, her total dedication to the poor, her courageous and uncompromising stand for their rights, her unflinching courage in the face of difficulties and problems, her readiness to face opposition from the powerful and mighty in the civil society as well as in the Church. In a way she was an inspiration for me for taking a stand for justice and in speaking out in defense of the voiceless and marginalized.....Many times she mentioned about the intuition she had that some attackers or police would be coming to take her away. ....then she would slip away with some of her youth volunteers into the forest. Within minutes of her leaving the search party usually arrived”.[33]
Martyrs in Line:
Sr.Valsa was not the first to be cowed down for fighting for the rights of the helpless and the exploited, on behalf of victims of human right violations or Right to Information. Ever since the proliferation of Liberation theology in the 1960s, a good number of social activists, including Christian Priests, Sisters and lay persons have been working for the rights of the poor and the exploited, all over the world. Dr.Martin Luther King Jr. a black American clergy man and an activist and leader in the African-American Civil Rights movement was shot dead on 4th April 1968 while he was about to lead a peace march in Memphis, Tennessee. Ever since that incident his famous speech ‘I have a dream...’ has been energizing every black person to demand equal rights with the White in the United States. We also recall at this point the heroic death of Oscar Romero, the Bishop of El Salvador, Latin America who was shot dead on 24th March 1980 while celebrating Mass at a small chapel, located in a hospital, called la Divina Providencia[34]. The same history is repeated also in India too. In areas of Bihar, Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh, Orissa and Andhra and to a lesser extent in the forests and mining areas of Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and Maharashtra Fr. A.T. Thomas was tied to a tree and beheaded in Hazaribagh for taking up the cause of the oppressed against the rich and powerful. In August, environmental activist Sheela Masood 35, was shot dead in Bhopal after trying to expose environmental violations of urban infrastructure projects and challenging mining plans in Madhya Pradesh. Fr. Mathew Uzhuthal, the pastor of Mokama parish and Vicar General of the diocese of Patna was murdered in 2005 because he declined to give money to a criminal. Nadeem Sayed, a Gujarat-based activist was stabbed to death in November 2011 after he testified on behalf of the victims of the Naroda Patiya massacre case in which 95 persons had been killed during the 2002 Gujarat anti-Muslim riots. In March, Jharkhand based social activist Niyamat Ansari was abducted and killed after he used the Right to Information legislation to expose local contractors and officials who had embezzled funds earmarked for the rural poor[35]. Mahender Singh in Jharkhand was killed for exposing the callous selfish system which is controlled by the ruling elite and the mafia. Sr. Rani Maria of Franciscan Clarist Congregation hailing from Pulluvazhi, near to Muvattupuzha working among the adivasis of Indore was stabbed many times in a passenger bus in Uday Nagar, Indore on 25th February 1995 by a person named Samanthar Singh, hired by her detractors since she challenged the jamindhars (land-owners) of the place and made arrangements for the direct sale of the agricultural products of the adivasi farmers that irritated the land-owners. That the killer years later after having served the jail term, overcome by remorse for what he had done came to her house in Kerala is the anti-climax of the story. Rarely does it take place![36] Dr. Graham Stuart Staines a missionary from Australia and his two sons, Philip aged 10 and Timothy aged 6 were burnt alive at Manoharpur village, in Keonjhar, Odisha on 22nd January 1999 while sleeping in their jeep. Graham Stuart and his wife Gladys were working among the leprosy stricken persons in Odisha for the past 34 years[37]. Malala Yousafzai, aged 11, is a Pakistani school pupil, and an advocate for girls’ education for which she was shot by the Taliban on 9th October 2012 in the head and neck on her way back from the School. On account of the prayers of the whole world she survived the attack and has started going to the school again.
The blood of these martyrs not only builds up the world and the Church, but also the oppressed advasis, dalits, the entire people of God and the cosmos. Faith works through love and love needs to be tied down to justice and human dignity. During her last visit when Sr.Valsa shared about the death threats she was facing from the mafia, her own brothers and sisters told her to come back home, but her answer was: “No, I must go back. I have my way and you have yours. It is there where I am called to live and I will die there. Surely you will make my death a big celebration”. It was almost like a prophesy that turned out to be true!! Her martyrdom was celebrated with full vigor all over India!
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9. SR.VALSA- A TRUE DAUGHTER OF THE CHURCH
“Life yields only to the conqueror. Never accept what can be gained by giving in. You will be living off stolen goods, and your muscles will atrophy”.
–Dag Hammarskjold
Misgivings about Sr.Valsa
There had been many misgivings from the part of some of her own family members and the wider ecclesial circle about Sr.Valsa’s style of life and her deep involvement in the cause she held dear to her heart. She was living a most unconventional life for the last few years of her life, leading almost an independent life, living in a hut of the adivasis, in a non-Christian set-up where regular religious practices were not possible. She was associating frequently with politicians, government officials, social activists and other lay men and women. She defied the requests of her legitimate Superiors to come back, instead decided on her own to stay back in the village. Even some thought that she had left the Congregation but they were not very certain about it. Should she as a religious sister assume such a pose of defiance and follow a mode of life unfamiliar when she was supposed to live her life within the margins assigned to her by the Church and her religious congregation?
The answer can be found among the meager belongings she left behind her that contained also a Bible and a copy of the Constitution of India. That gives a clue to her conviction regarding her own life as a dedicated person of God and regarding all those who are called to lead a dedicated life in the cause of God and His Church. She believed firmly that justice can be brought to the helpless and illiterate only by executing the provisions of the Constitution of India. But in reality those who are to execute these are the real violators of the same. Therefore it is unavoidable for anyone who is serious about bringing justice to the people that he/she has to see that these provisions do not remain idle in the Constitution. In practice it would mean that one has to approach the Court and take legal measures for the realization of this dream. In such a situation Valsa had no other option except to approach the Court for justice and take other legitimate courses of action allowed in a democratic country in order to put pressure on the government. By choosing this way of life it would also mean that the traditional ways of living of a religious sister would be impossible. That is, within the framework of regulations of the Church and Constitutions of the religious congregations one has to surmount many hurdles to achieve them.
The sheer number of condolence meetings that were conducted throughout India, and the plethora of persons from ecclesiastical, civil, cultural, political and religious arena who visited Valsa’s family to pay their homage to her and to pay their condolences to her dear ones at the demise of their beloved sister speak volumes of high appreciation for the style of life she adopted and the work she did in her life-time. Most of them did not know Valsa personally, but when they came to know about her through media and persons close to her and why she was killed, they found in it a just cause. That alone speaks about the justifiability of her life going beyond the conventional religious life.
Social involvement & the Church
A serious reflection about her social involvement makes it amply clear that she was living just what the Church taught for the last many centuries through many social encyclicals and a beautiful document on the Church by Vatican II (Gaudium et Spes) regarding the Church’s involvement in the human society and its transformation in accordance with the teachings of Jesus Christ. Should the Church remain a silent spectator against manifold forms of injustice reigning in the world and in the Church itself and blatant exploitations of the helpless people down the centuries, even by the Christian world? Whenever Sr.Valsa used to come home she used to tell us that we as religious and priests should live for the people. Therefore, let us try to understand her style of life from the teachings and practice of the Church.
Social Involvement and Liberation Theology
Valsa’s social involvement is to be assessed against the background of Liberation Theology. It is in 1960s a movement started among the black community in Latin America, i.e. a re-reading the teachings of Christ in relation to hard social realities around. It was the time of colonialism in the West. People from the Western countries and North America, almost all Christians, found a new source of enrichment in the continent of South America. Black people from Africa in thousands were caught, hand-cuffed, chained and shipped to the new Continent to work in the estates owned by the White people. Alexander Haily’s famous novel, The Roots, gives a graphic description about the long route of his fore-fathers from the jungles of Africa to the estates of South America. Basic rights of these persons to a decent living, food and shelter were all denied. The reluctant ones were beaten, treated with unimaginable tortures, shot dead, and their women raped[38]. The houses where these slaves lived were shanties made up of tin sheets and other cheap materials. Imagine how they survived many bitter cold winters and hot summers in these inhuman conditions! They ate, begot children and discussed their problems- all under the same roof!! It was against this backdrop of social phenomenon, liberation theology sprang fourth after reading of the Gospel with the help of a different magnifying glass.
Liberation theology represents both a social and a theological movement. The social movement responds to the massive poverty of the continent which is due to the active subjugation and oppression of the indigenous population during the colonial period and their continued neglect of the socio-economic repression in modern times. The gross statistics of poverty malnutrition, lack of housing, unemployment and non-existing health services inadequately reflect the social human suffering across the many different cultures, nations and societies of the south. Since Vatican II many Christians explicitly motivated by Christian values have aligned themselves with this social movement.
Liberation theology in a narrower sense is a disciplined understanding of Christian faith, and an interpretation of reality as mediated through the symbols of Christian tradition, that has grown out of this commitment to the social movement of the poor and on behalf of the oppressed[39].
Among the many causal factors the most fundamental explanation of liberation theology lies in the historical social situation of the people in Latin America. Bishop Tutu of Africa tells,
“Liberation theology is more than any other kind of theology issued out of the crucible of human suffering and anguish. It happens because people cry out, ‘Oh God, how long? Oh God, why?’ All liberation theology stems from trying to make sense of human suffering when those who suffer are the victims of organized oppression and exploitation when they are emasculated and treated as less than what they are, human persons created in the image of the Triune God, redeemed by the one Savior Jesus Christ and sanctified by the Paraclete?”[40]
One of the pioneers and an articulate spokesman of liberation theology, Gutierrez Gustavo writes:
“How are we to talk about a God who is revealed as love in a situation characterized by poverty and oppression? How are we to proclaim the God of life to men and women who die prematurely and unjustly? How are we to acknowledge that God makes us a free gift of love and justice when we have before us the suffering of the innocent? What words are we to use in telling those who are not even regarded as persons that they are the daughters and sons of God?”[41]
The same author continues:
“Our task is to find the words with which to talk about God in the midst of the starvation of millions, the humiliation of races regarded as inferior, discrimination against women, especially women who are poor, systematic social injustice, a persistent high rate of infant mortality, those who simply ‘disappear’ or are deprived of their freedom, the suffering of people who are struggling for their right to live, the exiles and the refugees, terrorism of every kind and the corpse-filled common graves of Ayacucho. What we must deal with is not the past but, unfortunately, a cruel present and a dark tunnel with no apparent end”[42]
Social involvement & the Clergy
Though this movement originated in Latin America, very soon it spread its dendrites to India and to other parts of Asia. Many of the clergy and the religious began to reflect seriously the harsh realities of India with her centuries old caste system and exploitation of the people by the Christian invaders and living of our Christian faith. Unfortunately they found a big chasm between these two elements of our living and felt that something should be done to be true to their ‘Call’. That is how a good number of the religious and priests in India turned to a new way of living their call, i.e. to give expression more to the prophetic dimension of their vocation by opting to be for the poor and to be with the poor than to its sacramental dimension. There were many seminars oriented towards conscientization of the people; and many forums were formed to work towards a more just India. They targeted people who needed their intervention, such as the tribals, the dalits, the economically and socially poor, the under-paid domestic workers, women etc. Since the Administration and the powerful often looked towards their own betterment, even to the exploitation and manipulation of the weaker sections, these religious and priests felt that they needed to fight for justice and human dignity in the Court and bring about new legislations that would do justice to them. In view of that, many began to take courses in LLB and LLM and membership in the Bar Association, even to enter into active politics. In the beginning the bishops and the major superiors of the religious were suspicious about this new trend among their members, but gradually the higher-ups in the Church also began to think along the same lines and to initiate various program for the uplift of the weaker sections in the society in their dioceses and religious congregations. However, since the Church had many establishments that needed the support of the administration and the powerful, they did not go so far as to risk their concerns. But a few did dare to venture a field that others feared to tread whatever be the consequence.
I was hungry and you formed a humanity’s club and
and discussed my hunger
I was imprisoned and you crept away quietly t your chapel
and prayed for my release
I was naked and in your mind
you debated the morality of my appearance
I was sick and you thanked God for your health
I was lonely and you left me alone to pray for me.
You seem so holy, so close to God,
but I am still very hungry and lonely and cold
So where have your prayers gone?
what have they done?
What does it profit a man
to page through his book of prayer
When the rest of the world is crying
for his love and help?
- Bob Rowlands
|
What inspired and still keeps inspiring these social activists is the life and teachings of Jesus himself. Sr. Manju Kulapuram SCSC of the editorial board of Forum of Religious for Justice and Peace writes in the editorial of the same magazine:
“The profound experience of God and humankind empowered Jesus to identify himself with the poor and the outcasts and live in constant solidarity with them. It is this experience that led him to confront the rich and the powerful with prophetic courage and conviction. The forces that would not let the poor live would not allow Jesus to continue his challenge to their oppression of the poor and the disadvantaged of the society”[43].
George M. Soares Prabhu, a Theologian of Papal Seminary, Pune, says that the spirituality of Jesus is a spirituality of solidarity and struggle[44]. In the document of Vatican Council II, called Gaudium et Spes (GS), the Church tells us that in order to realize her identity, the Church has to discern under the inspiration, strength and direction of the Holy Spirit, the will and action of God in the events, needs and longings of people, and then do God’s will and cooperate with his action. The parable of the Rich man and Lazarus remained dormant in the Gospels for centuries. But like the dry bones of Ezekiel that assumed flesh and breath all of a sudden (Ez 37) it resurrected itself and the Christians began to understand that this parable was actually a symbol of the world divided into haves and have-nots and read in it a clarion call to the Christians to bridge this gap between the two. Sr. Valsa went one step ahead of this by actualizing the identity of the Church among the Santhals by identifying with them in every way. She discerned in the needs and aspirations of the oppressed Santhals of Pakur district, God asking her to set them free from the exploitation of the sinful nexus of the State, the PANEM Company and the middlemen with vested interests. That the new Pope, Francis took the name of a poor, mendicant of Assisi who lived in 12th century as his official name as a Pope and that he articulated his stand on the Church as the poor Church and the Church of the poor strongly demonstrates the ultimate destiny of the Church- namely a movement towards the periphery of the society where thousands of the church members live and die.
‘Vocation’ of Sr.Valsa
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Sr.Valsa had gone to Kodma to work among the tribals. At that time Fr. Tom Kavala SJ was the director of Social Service Centre that was involved in the uplift of the tribals. He says that for Sr.Valsa, religious life was a personal call to follow Jesus by being with and at the service of the most deprived people. She was very clear that she joined the religious life to be with the poor and to help them to regain their rights and human dignity. She could not tolerate the poverty of the people and their exploitation was a new challenge for her. She was fully convinced of what she wanted of her life. So she never got conditioned to the comfortable set-up of religious life and the securities it provided. Many religious also found her businesslike, serious, pre-occupied with what she thought important: the problems of the people. She was consistent in her response to the poor. She was always courageous and never wavered to tell the men in power and position how they had let down the people. In her personal life she clung to nothing material as she was always on the move; no structures could tie her down.[45] He continues:
“She was very critical of her companions whom she felt did not live up to their commitment. Hers was a prophetic life, experiencing Jesus very personally, living what she believed and inviting every religious to live a life committed to the most deprived people”[46].
These words are coming from someone who knew her personally for a long time. Fr.Varkey Chena from West Bengal certifies that Valsa had the conviction that her religious life was to enhance the life of those who were deprived of it. Therefore she lived like Jesus, with the poor and marginalized, participating in their sorrows and joys, struggles and fears[47]. According to Rasquinha her religious was a sharing the suffering and the struggle of God to overcome dehumanization.[48].
Sr. Sudha Varghese, long time friend of Valsa from 1991 onwards recalls after her death:
“Valsa gave herself so totally to the people that she was very sensitive to their needs. She found joy in being with her people. She was a fearless activist; she was not frightened of the administration, politicians, mafia, or any other persons with vested interests; her very presence was a challenge to them because she would not allow them to bluff the people. I see this as the reason for Valsa’s murder. She gave herself fully to the cause of justice and right”[49].
Fr.Philip Manthara SJ, Patna, speaking of her religious motivation, writes:
“To be with the marginalized people, their struggle for human dignity had become her cause; they were her people, and their cause was her cause. She would not abandon her people because of threat to her life. Only death would take her away!!. ....What was the source of her courage? It was the spirituality she lived. She saw Jesus in the struggles of the people of Pachuara. Their land, livelihood, dignity and all that they cherished, were robbed by exploiters of all kinds. It is here that she incarnated herself completely, becoming one like the Santhals and led them to confront the exploiters. She knew before hand that confrontation with the powerful, would eventually lead to her crucifixion”[50].
But her spirituality would not allow her to back out from it.
Spirituality built on adherence to a set pattern
brings no initiative.
Spirituality built on image building
does nothing heroic.
Spirituality built on over-protection
brings out babies, not adults.
Spirituality built on complete security
needs no God to survive.
Spirituality where poverty is virtue and love is sin
produces people with complexes.
Spirituality which sanctifies the past without appreciating the present
takes one back to stone age.
Spirituality where preservation of institutions is the only preoccupation
destroys the individual’s ‘inner call’.
Spirituality which makes one blind to the outside realities
fails him to reach one’s God-given destiny.
|
Sr.Valsa’s apostolic religious life, especially from 1998 to 2011 culminating in her martyrdom can be interpreted as sharing in the suffering and the struggle of God to overcome dehumanization and sin with their root cause. It is a participation in God’s work to establish justice in a situation of injustice and oppression experienced by the Santhals of Pakur and reaffirm and re-establish their dignity, communityhood, peoplehood and identity[51].
Spirituality of Valsa convinced her that she should live with the poor and live like them. Fr. Tom Kavala SJ recalls an incident when she came to his centre to work for the poor. On the second day of her coming to Kodma to work among the tribals she disappeared from our Social Service Centre. She was with the women of the neighboring houses, talking to them, listening to them and having a bath in the stream with them. This was her capacity to identify with the marginalized[52]. Though many teams from outside Pachuara visited the village on different occasions after the tragic incident, it seems most of them did not dare to spend even one night in that village, much less in that hut where she was knocked down, but were too anxious to get out of the place before the night fell which alone shows that none of us would ever reach to the stature of Sr.Valsa. Some of them went to the place probably out of curiosity to see the village and the coal mines under heavy police protection, and not by being inspired by her life. But if anyone really did dare to stay back in the village and took part in the struggles of the people, they really understood the cause Valsa cherished in her heart!
In the light of these reflections, one could find a meaning in the life-style she adopted for herself. She was not living a luxurious life, was not amassing wealth through social work, and was not keen on getting publicity for the work she was doing. But rather, like Jesus she was living a life of itinerant poverty with her meager belongings, a life of radical commitment to the cause of the marginalized, a life of intimacy with Jesus through karma-marga.
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10 “VALSA DIDI AMAR RAHE”!!!
“I am not afraid of these things. I don’t mind if my life goes in the service of the nation. If I die today, every drop of my blood will invigorate the nation”
- Indira Gandhi
It is an age old belief which every autocrat cherishes in his heart that when the voice of dissent is shut down, it is shut down for ever. History is full of such persons, the most conspicuous of whom is King Herod who tried to shut the mouth of St. John the Baptist for daring to tell the King that it was not right for him to have his brother’s wife. However history itself has proved it the other way. Whenever a dissent is raised by any one for a just cause, and if it is shut down with a mighty hand, it resurrects itself later in the mouths of thousands of people with greater might than it was. This is what happened in the case of Sr. Valsa John also.
The enemies thought ‘the trouble’ was over once for all on the night of 15th November 2011 with her elimination from the face of this earth in a most gruesome manner. But what the family members, Mr.Shaji and many others observed on 15th November 2012 was a resurrection of Sr. Valsa, more powerful than when she was alive. The forests of Pachuara was continuously reverberating with
“Valsa didi, amar rahe!!!” from the mouths of thousands of men, women and children of Santhal Pargana. It was the fulfillment of what the Samiti wrote in their news letter soon after her death where we read: “Only her body has been interned; her spirit would live ever in the hearts of the poor and the marginalized and in the hearts of the all the people of good will”[53]
The enemies thought ‘the trouble’ was over once for all on the night of 15th November 2011 with her elimination from the face of this earth in a most gruesome manner. But what the family members, Mr.Shaji and many others observed on 15th November 2012 was a resurrection of Sr. Valsa, more powerful than when she was alive. The forests of Pachuara was continuously reverberating with 
“Valsa didi, amar rahe!!!” from the mouths of thousands of men, women and children of Santhal Pargana. It was the fulfillment of what the Samiti wrote in their news letter soon after her death where we read: “Only her body has been interned; her spirit would live ever in the hearts of the poor and the marginalized and in the hearts of the all the people of good will”[53]
First symptoms of Valsa’s resurrection
Resurrection of the spirit of Sr.Valsa was first observed on 12th April 2012 when an open air meeting was held from 03.00 to 05.00 p.m. in the village of Pachuara, near to the school, built by Sr.Valsa.
It was an informal gathering of a few close associates of Sr. Valsa, like Agnes Hembrom, Mathai Marandi, her husband, Predeep; the teacher, Dr.Anil Murmu, a close associate of Valsa who helped in digging and removing the blood stained mud from the room where Valsa was murdered; and people from nine villages, about 1200 in number. It was a sort of bhandan in memory of Sr.Valsa.
There were seven speakers- four women and three men, among whom only one was literate. It was unbelievable for the outsiders to witness how bold they had become within five months of the murder of their dear didi. Just a few months back they were gripped with deathly fear and frightened like little children in front of a monster, but now boldly and clearly they began to articulate all that their didi did for them, how didi ate with them, lived with them, becoming just like one of them, and how she spent with them in the jungle sometimes more than a month to escape arrest, bearing courageously the freezing cold of winter and the torrential rain of monsoon with a bare plastic sheet over their head.
The slogan that was repeated by everybody in the meeting which was not pre-panned was ‘jan denge, jamin nahi denge’ (We will give our life, not our land).
It was an informal gathering of a few close associates of Sr. Valsa, like Agnes Hembrom, Mathai Marandi, her husband, Predeep; the teacher, Dr.Anil Murmu, a close associate of Valsa who helped in digging and removing the blood stained mud from the room where Valsa was murdered; and people from nine villages, about 1200 in number. It was a sort of bhandan in memory of Sr.Valsa. 
There were seven speakers- four women and three men, among whom only one was literate. It was unbelievable for the outsiders to witness how bold they had become within five months of the murder of their dear didi. Just a few months back they were gripped with deathly fear and frightened like little children in front of a monster, but now boldly and clearly they began to articulate all that their didi did for them, how didi ate with them, lived with them, becoming just like one of them, and how she spent with them in the jungle sometimes more than a month to escape arrest, bearing courageously the freezing cold of winter and the torrential rain of monsoon with a bare plastic sheet over their head. 
The slogan that was repeated by everybody in the meeting which was not pre-panned was ‘jan denge, jamin nahi denge’ (We will give our life, not our land).
The speakers said:
“Now didi is no more with us physically. Didi finished her work very well on earth and so she went to her eternal home. But her spirit is with us. It is her living spirit that is with us. Now it is for us to continue the work we started with her. We need to throw away our fear and come together and strengthen our unity and continue our struggle to get our rights. Our fight is not with weapons, but with the paper”[54].
After the speech, Mariam Hembrom showed the copy of MoU and read it in front of the villagers. Manju Kulapuram who was present at this gathering expressed her sentiments of that moment in the following words: “It was a resurrection experience for me. After the brutal murder of Valsa didi on 15th November 2011 people were terribly frightened, scattered, had became leaderless. They became like sheep without a shepherd”. Her friend and collaborator Agnes Hembrom herself had said to the visitors soon after the murder of Sr. Valsa:
“They killed our didi, now they will kill us also”. But on 12 April 2012, they gathered together again from all the nine villages. They were able to articulate so well all that they had in mind without any fear. They experienced the strength of Valsa didi’s living spirit. It was a sign of great hope. Fr. Philip Manthara concludes the death of Sr.Valsa in these words:
“Valsa’s blood was shed not in vain. It has given a new life to thousands of people in Pachuara and beyond”[55]
“They killed our didi, now they will kill us also”. But on 12 April 2012, they gathered together again from all the nine villages. They were able to articulate so well all that they had in mind without any fear. They experienced the strength of Valsa didi’s living spirit. It was a sign of great hope. Fr. Philip Manthara concludes the death of Sr.Valsa in these words:
“Valsa’s blood was shed not in vain. It has given a new life to thousands of people in Pachuara and beyond”[55]
This meeting was followed by a prayer session in the room where Sr. Valsa was murdered. Agnes Hembrom who too had taken part in cleaning the blood stains from floor and the wall after the killing of Sr.Valsa, placed a photo of her didi in front of the room with candles and agarbathis.
Most women were weeping all throughout the prayer session and after it.
Most women were weeping all throughout the prayer session and after it.
A repetition of the resurrection experience
This new Pentecost was once again witnessed by many, on the 15th November 2012 when the first anniversary of Valsa’s Martyrdom was celebrated at Dumka, continued next day at Pachuara. The holy Eucharist was celebrated at 09.30 a.m. on that day at the altar that was erected inside the Vijaypur
cemetery, Dumka Twenty five priests took part in the con-celebration of the Eucharist along with eleven family members of Sr.Valsa,
many religious, a good number of people from Pachuara and Kodma villages where didi had worked most of her life and from nearby parishes. Stephen Marandi, former deputy Chief Minister of Jharkhand, himself was present for this function[56]
cemetery, Dumka Twenty five priests took part in the con-celebration of the Eucharist along with eleven family members of Sr.Valsa,
many religious, a good number of people from Pachuara and Kodma villages where didi had worked most of her life and from nearby parishes. Stephen Marandi, former deputy Chief Minister of Jharkhand, himself was present for this function[56]
This was followed by the first of the series of Valsa Memorial lectures at Johar, the Social Action centre of Jesuits. Next day family members along with good many religious, priests and lay persons left for Pachuara where they were welcomed by the children of the school which was started by Sr. Valsa, with flags in their hands bearing the picture of Sr. Valsa in her tribal dress. With their traditional dance, the villagers led them to the room where Sr. Valsa was killed a year ago. It was close to the house of the village headman, where Valsa lived her last 8 years of life.
This was followed by a public meeting. Mrs. Mary Baby Malamel, sister-in-law of Sr. Valsa, recalls the memories of that day in the following words: “We were wonderstruck with the posters, banners, flags, and placards with the pictures of Valsa didi which told us silently the great intimacy that existed between the villagers and their didi”[57].
What impressed the visitors was the repetition of the Pentecostal experience, the Spirit empowering the human gathering of the people. One year later they threw overboard their fear complex and took their life in their own hands. There was a deep transformation within them during this one year. The power within them had already begun to overflow like a river. At the meeting Babulal Marandi, the former CM of Jharkhand; Stephen Marandi and many others spoke vigorously with courage. Joel Urumpil SCN recalls,
“Just after Valsa’s murder, I saw the people of Pachuara in deathly fear and helpless. But after a year I see the transformation; the power within has erupted like from a volcano!”[58]
The meeting was soon followed by an indefinite dharna demanding the full implementation of the MoU signed by the people, government and the Company. All, including some religious, sat under the same banner of Rajmahal Pahad Bachao Samiti with the slogan, “Valsa didi amar rahe!!!.
Their demand was, “immediately implement the Memorandum of Understanding in letter and spirit”. It contained the charter that assured most of their rights: land, environment, compensation etc, while allowing mining which would benefit both the owners of the land and the mining Company.
The crowd squatted on the road to block the transportation of coal from the mines. This continued for three weeks. On 8th December 2012, the 21 day old struggle of thousands of Santhali men and women and even children brought PANEM Company to the negotiating table to assure them that the MoU will be honored in letter and spirit. Fr. Philip Manthra concludes, “The cry ‘Valsa didi amar rahe” was the one magic that propelled this movement. This energized the people and will continue to inspire, strengthen and guide them in the future”[59].
Their demand was, “immediately implement the Memorandum of Understanding in letter and spirit”. It contained the charter that assured most of their rights: land, environment, compensation etc, while allowing mining which would benefit both the owners of the land and the mining Company.
The crowd squatted on the road to block the transportation of coal from the mines. This continued for three weeks. On 8th December 2012, the 21 day old struggle of thousands of Santhali men and women and even children brought PANEM Company to the negotiating table to assure them that the MoU will be honored in letter and spirit. Fr. Philip Manthra concludes, “The cry ‘Valsa didi amar rahe” was the one magic that propelled this movement. This energized the people and will continue to inspire, strengthen and guide them in the future”[59].
Sr.Valsa’s indomitable spirit is more alive today than ever before. Her blood was not shed in vain. It has given life to the villagers. How correctly Jesus said, “Very truly I tell you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies it remains just a single grain; but if it dies, it bears much fruit!!!” (Jn 12/24).
.........................
Epilogue
It is not our preoccupation at this moment, when will the Church put her seal of Sainthood on Valsa and present her to be venerated on the altar by the believers. She is already installed on the altar built in the hearts of the people of Pachuara and the neighboring villages for whom she is already a Saint. They have seen her love unto the level of the Cross, offering herself as a holocaust for people whom she made her own just as Jesus did.
Sr.Valsa John Malamel
A Martyr For Our Times
-Fr.George Menachery
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[1] Varghese Puthussery, Valsa’s Commitment to the poor, FORUM of Religious for Justice and Peace, January 2012,15, p.8
[2] Ref. FORUM of Religious for Justice and peace ,18,Jan-Apr 2013, p.9
[3] http://:en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Musahar, accessed on 25 June 2013
[4] Ibid.
[5] Sr.Amala SND, Remembering Valsa, FORUM of Religious for Justice and Peace, Jan 2012, 15, p.6
[6] Ibid.
[7] Sr. Sudha Varghese, Valsadidi Amar Rahe!, Ibid, p.9
[8] Ibid.
[9] http:// en.wikipedia.org- Santals, accessed on 2nd May 2013
[10] Mary Scaria, Tribute to the Beloved, Indian Currents, 2011, XXIII,48, p.9
[11] John Dayal, Remembering the martyrs, Indian Currents, 2012, XXIII, 50, p.30
[12] Ibid.
[13] Fr.Thomas Kavalakkatt SJ, Following Jesus in the Struggling Masses, FORUM of Religious for Justice and Peace, Jan 2012, 15, p.5
[14]Paharia is a tribal community, divided into Mal-Paharia and Sauria –Paharia. Mal-Paharia live in the southern hills of Damin-i-koh and in the south, and in the east of Santhal Pargana. They Survie on agriculture and forest produce. For details Ref. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mal_Pahari_ People & en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sauria_Paharia_People. accessed on 28 June 2013
[15] Manju Kulapuram, A Resurrection Experience, FORUM of Religious for justice and peace, Sep-Dec 2012,17, p.8
[16] A Martyr for Tribal Rights, ,Indian Currents, 2011, XXIII, 48, p.10
[17] Jharkhand which means the Land of Forests, has an area of 30778 sq miles, sharing its border with Utter Pradesh, West Bangal and Odisha. Ranchi is the present capital of Jharkhand.
[18] Ref. Salomi ICM, Reflection on Sr.Valsa at Navjyoti Niketan, FORUM of Religious for Justice and Peace, Jan 2012, 15, p.11
[19] A group of persons representing a prominent Newspaper from Kerala had approached her as part of their finding the Woman of the Year, but later they declined for reasons known to them alone, and went for another .
[20] Malayala Manorama daily, 18 November 2011
[21] A Martyr for Tribal Rights, Indian Currents, 2011, XXIII, 48, p.10
[22] Ibid.
[23] Ibid.
[24] Hindu, 17 November 2011
[25] A Martyr for Tribal Rights, Indian Currents, 2011, XXIII, 48, p.11
[26] Ibid. p.11
[27] FORUM of Religious for Justice & Peace, Jan 2012, 15, p.2
[28] A Martyr for Tribal Rights, Indian Currents, 2011,XXIII, 48, p.10
[29] John Dayal, Nun’s murder, a poser to State, Church, Indian Currents, 2011, XXIII, 48, p.12
[30] Jacob Kani, The nun who re-defined the mission work, Indian Currents, 2011, XXIII, 48, p.25
[31] Bindu, V.K. Cry for justice, Indian Currents, 2012, XXIV, 50, pp. 31-32
[32] Joel CSN, Murder of Sr.Valsa John, unfolding of the events, Forum for Religious for justice and peace, January 2012, 15, p.15
[33] Sr.Valsa John SCJM- An appreciation, FORUM of Religious for Justice and Peace, January 2012, 15, p.8
[34] http:// en.wikipedia. org- Oscar Romero, accessed on 1 May 2013. He was shot dead one day after the sermon in which he denounced the policy of repression and violation of basic human rights by the ruling junta.
[35] John Dayal, Nun’s murder – a poser to state, Church, Indian Currents, XXIII 48,p.17
[36] For details, read: Giuppe Segalla, Sr.Rani Maria, Snehathinte Rakthasakshi (Malayalam translation by Jnanadas Chirathalackal OIC), (Karukutty: Grey Friars Publications), 2010.
[37] For details, ref. http:// en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Graham_Staines.
[38] Ref.Frederick Douglass, A Narrative of the life of Frederick Douglass, An American Slave.(Malayalam translation by Pathmaraj R., (Thiruvananthapuram: Chinta Publishers, 2011) Read also: Sebastian Pallithodu, Karutha Gandhi-Martin Luther King Jn, (Kozhikode: Sophia books, 2010)
[39] Joseph A. Komonch, Mary Collins & Dermot A.Lane, The New Dictionary of Theology,(Bangalore: Theological publications of India,1993), pp 570-571
[40] Gutierrez Gustavo, On Job (Quezon City: Claritian publications, 1987) pp.xiv-xv
[41] Ibid.
[42] Ibid.
[43] Manju Kulapuram, Forum of Religious for Justice and Peace, , Sept-Dec, 2012,17, pp.8-9
[44] As quoted in the Editorial of FORUM of Religious for Justice and Peace,, Jan 2012.15, p.2
[45] Fr.Thomas Kavalakkatt,Following Jesus in the Struggling Masses, FORUM of Religious for Justice and Peace, Jan 2012, 15, p.5
[46] Ibid.
[47] Varkey Chena, Glimpses of Sr.Valsa John as I knew her, FORUM of Religious for Justice and Peace,
Jan 2012,15, p.7
[48] Dionisius Rasquinha, The Apostolic Life and Death of Sr.Valsa: A Theological Response, FORUM of Religious for Peace & Justice, Jan-Apr, 2012, 15, p.15.
[49] Sr.Sudha, Valsadidi Amar Rahe!, Forum of Religious for Justice and Peace,Jan 2012, 15, p.9.
[50] Fr.Philip Manthara, The Spirituality of Valsa John, Ibid, p.6
[51] Dionysius Rasquinha, The Apostolic life and death of Sr.Valsa, A Theological response, FORUM of Religious for Religious and Peace, January 2012, 15, pp 9-10
[52] Fr.Tom Kavala, Following Jesus in the Struggling Masses, FORUM of Religious for Justice and Peace., January 2012, 15, p.5
[53] Valsa’s Struggle with the Poor Tribals, Rajmahal Pahar Bachao Andolan’s news letter, November, 2011.
[54] Manju Kulapuram, A Resurrection experience, FORUM of Religious for justice and peace, Sept-Dec 2012, 17, pp 8-9
[55] Ibid.
[56] Manju Kulapuram, First Anniversary of Sr.Valsa’s Martyrdom, Forum of Religious for justice and peace, Jan-Apr, , 2013, 18, p.18
[57] C.B.Mary, A tearful remembrance of Sr. Valsa John, Ibid. p. 9
[58] Joel Urumpil, The eruption of a Volcano from within, Ibid.
[59] Philip Manthara, An Unforgetable experience, Ibid.
Sr.Valsa John Malamel
A Martyr For Our Times
-Fr.George Menachery
Sr.Valsa John Malamel
A Martyr For Our Times
-Fr.George Menachery
