Home Ministry asks states to provide vasectomy reversal surgery to maoists

NEW DELHI: To check Maoists practice to forcibly sterilise its cadre, the home ministry has sent an advisory to Naxal-affected states that vasectomy reversal surgery should be offered at the government's cost to those willing to undergo the operation after they surrender.

The advisory has been issued after seven CPI (Maoist) cadre who surrendered in Kanker, earlier this year, and two Maoists who surrendered recently said they had quit the Naxal movement because they were forcefully sterilized by the Maoist leadership, with the intention to keep the tribal cadre perpetually battle fit and foreclose the option of an alternate family life, away from the Maoist fold.

The two who surrendered recently underwent a vasectomy reversal surgery at a private hospital.

Information collected through interrogation reports of arrested/surrendered CPI (Maoist) tribal cadres disclose that this practice is quite widespread.

However, this matter has not been seriously addressed by the government till now and requires immediate and sensitive attention.

There is a need to address this issue within the ambit of the existing Surrender and Rehabilitation Policy for Maoist Cadres.

No rehabilitation is complete if the Maoist cadres cannot return to normal family life and have children.

Hence there is a need to ascertain the status of the surrendered/arrested Maoist cadres, and wherever necessary, facilitate their return to normal family life. This, process will also reduce the temptation of the cadres to return back to the Maoist fold.