Maoist-turned-jawan who died in line of duty fighting his former abductors

Since his village is still under Naxal control, Oyam was given a guard of honour by his colleagues, but his family were warned not to bring his body home

Raju Oyam, from remote Bogra village inside the Bhairamgarh forest in Bijapur district, was abducted by Maoists before he’d turned 10. For the next six summers, the boy shared bunks and broke bread with extremists — brainwashed and trained to wage war against Indian security forces.

Raju Oyam (HT Photo)

On the morning of March 20, in a poetic yet tragic twist of fate, Oyam was the only Indian jawan shot dead in sniper fire during a 10-hour-long gunfight in Bijapur’s Andri forest area