Those who protect the poor also need protection in difficult times | Bharat Dogra

The poorest and most vulnerable sections of the population living in remote villages frequently face injustice and sometimes even violence. Those responsible for this injustice and violence use their resources and influence to try to turn the scales of justice against the victims. In such circumstances the role of those social activists who sincerely try their best to help these victims, to make available legal help to them and to ensure that truth prevails and justice is done becomes very important.

However the powerful persons and forces try to hit back against these protectors in various ways, as they feel that as long as these persons or organizations remain active they will continue to oppose the arbitrary exercise of power by them. In such conditions, it is important for the administration to come to the timely help and rescue of these protectors. Such honest and sincere persons willing to work in difficult and adverse conditions in remote areas for bringing justice based change in peaceful ways can also be of considerable help to the administration for improving the implementation of various pro-poor and welfare schemes.

An organization which has been playing such a protective role in Banda district of Uttar Pradesh is Vidya Dham Samiti (VDS) which has been the local partner for some prestigious social organizations over the years. They as well as several respected local teachers, lawyers, activists and hundreds of community members, particularly the poor and women, whom I have met in the course of my travels in the area as a journalist and development consultant, have spoken repeatedly in praise of the important protective role performed by VDS, its sister organization Chingari and particularly by the VDS coordinator Raja Bhaiya.

This fact has been recognized by several senior officials of the region, as well as by the National Human Rights Commission which came to Raja Bhaiya