In an interview with the TOI on Saturday, spokesperson for the Bihar Jharkhand North Chattisgarh Special Area Committee (BJNCSAC) Gopal Jee said Ansari was not known to the Maoists as MGNREGA whistle blower but as a middleman between timber mafia and villagers.
Justifying Ansari’s killing, Gopal Jee accused him of fooling villagers by making false assurances of providing them with land rights. "He (Ansari) often took money ranging between Rs 3,000 to Rs 5,000 from villagers promising them land rights in return. Being a broker, Ansari not only violated the Forest Prevention Act but also befooled poor villagers," the spokesperson said.
Gopal Jee added Ansari was not killed straightaway but was given several chances to defend himself. "When the matter was brought to our attention by Latehar sub-zonal committee of the party, the BJNCSAC issued several notices summoning Ansari to the Jan Adalat. But he never paid any heed to the notice," he said adding that Ansari’s non-participation in the "Jan Adalat" was like challenging the party’s diktat, which was not acceptable.
The rebel leader iterated that anyone challenging the party’s diktat would be subjected to the similar treatment.
Ansari, a resident of Kope gram panchayat in Latehar district, was killed by a group of alleged Maoists on March 2. He was killed a few days after he and others exposed a flagrant MGNREGA scam in Rankikalan gram panchayat. The exposure had led to the lodging of an FIR against Rankikalan’s BDO Kailash Sahu and local Panchayat Sewak Basudev Nagesia.