Ramdular Gond’s rise from a village headman to MLA was meteoric and surprising for many in Sonbhadra. The BJP MLA from the Duddhi seat was, on Tuesday, held guilty for rape and criminal intimidation under the POCSO Act. He is all set to lose his Assembly membership, after the quantum of punishment in the case is announced on Friday by the Sonbhadra MP/MLA court. The case dates back to November 4, 2014, when a 15-year-old girl told her brother that Ramdular Gond, the husband of the village head Soortan Devi, had been raping her for over a year. The case was registered at a police station in Sonbhadra district under IPC sections 376 (rape), 506 (criminal intimidation) and relevant provisions of the POCSO Act. During the course of the trial that lasted over nine years, eight prosecution and three defence witnesses were examined by the court. The victim, now 25 years old, lives with her husband and in-laws outside Sonbhadra district. Ramdular, 51, who comes from a modest background, started his political innings by working for seven-time MLA and former minister Vijay Singh Gond, in the late nineties. Vijay is currently with the Samajwadi Party (SP) after stints in the Congress and the BSP. “Ramdular used to work for Vijay. He would manage his election campaigns and do other work for him. After the rape case was lodged, the two had a fall-out and Vijay sacked him in 2018. That was when Ramdular joined the BJP, and has since grown in stature – eventually getting a ticket in 2022 to contest the Duddhi seat on a BJP ticket,” said an SP leader in Duddhi. In the polls, Ramdular was pitted against Vijay, who contested on the SP ticket. He defeated his mentor by 6,297 votes, even as the BJP swept the state. Another factor that was said to have favoured him was perceived anti-incumbency against Vijay. In UP, Gond is listed in the ST (Scheduled Tribes) category, for whom two seats are reserved including Duddhi. Tribals make up nearly 60% population of this constituency in Sonbhadra district. “The party (BJP) gave him the ticket because of his caste credentials and his experience in handling poll campaigns, which he did for years while working under Vijay Singh Gond,” said a BJP leader in Duddhi. Ramdular was also backed by a senior RSS leader in Sonbhadra, who has close ties with BJP leaders. “Even though he wasn’t part of the RSS, he was backed by the Sangh because of a senior leader in Sonbhadra,” said another BJP leader. Ramdular is a two-time village headman. His wife Soortan Devi was elected as a village pradhan once in 2012, when the seat was reserved for women. He was also elected as a member of the local Block Development Committee in 2021. “He is well known in the area because over the years, he was seen with Vijay Singh and everyone knew Ramdular was backed by him. Plus, he had been the village head twice, while his wife was elected once,” added the BJP leader. As per his 2022 election affidavit, Ramdular has studied till Class 12, owns movable assets worth Rs 14.64 lakh, and immovable assets worth Rs 86 lakh. His wife owns movable assets worth Rs 16.43 lakh, and immovable assets worth Rs 1.23 crore.
