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Jharkhand nun’s brother says she had sensed danger
Sister Valsa John, the prominent tribal rights activist, who was murdered in her sleep by unidentified men on Tuesday night, was buried at Dudhiyani in Dumka on Thursday morning.
Sister Valsa John, the prominent tribal rights activist, who was murdered in her sleep by unidentified men on Tuesday night, was buried at Dudhiyani in Dumka on Thursday morning.
Valsa, a member of the Sisters of Charity Jesus and Mary congregation, had led agitations against the PANEM coal mines of Pakur district in 2005 and 2006 wherein she supported the tribals who refused to part with their land.
The burial ceremony was attended by Valsa supporters and eminent people of the area, including former deputy chief minister Stephen Marandi.
Marandi hinted at PANEM's involvement in the murder. PANEM company survey officer Gautam Kumar, however, said, “It is very difficult to say who was behind her killing. It is a matter of investigation.”
Her brother MJ Baby, who had come from Kerala to attend the last rites, said Valsa had spoken of her strained relationship with Binoj Hembrom, the head of a cluster of villages, when she visited Kerala last. Baby said he had urged her not to return to Pakur. “Had she listened, she would have been alive.”
