My rebirth for Jharkhand and country: Munda

Anupam Sheshank/ Vijay Deo Jha

Ranchi 

He is a theist but he is now very strong in believing that divinity exists beyond the point of human perception after he survived deadly chopper crash a month back.

There is no better person than Chief Minister Arjun Munda to tell us presence of divine during those 70 minutes in air when his chopper developed perilous technical snags enough to perish life.

He miraculously escaped from the jaw of death with multiple close injuries, fracture and burns on his left hand, right leg and spinal cord. He has recovered from psychological trauma of crash, though; his face slyly twists out of pain. He is recovering from injuries at the CM House following seven weeks of complete bed rest prescribed by the doctors. Visitors keep flocking to wish him and he attends all with his usual smile. So many things have changed in his life after the crash: both at the level of perception and personality. 

In an exclusive interview with The Pioneer Munda shared those moments of battle between life and death. “I survived because of grace God,” Munda said. He soon turns enigmatic: “But why God gave me a new lease of life. It must not be without reasons. Almighty probably wanted me to serve my people. It is my rebirth. It is for Jharkhand,” he says.

He survived, may be out of sheer luck or may be because of blessings of divine that wants him in a new role. Munda may be right since the history of chopper crash of such magnitude in India and elsewhere has not offered any instance of survival of that kind.

“In the last one month I read a lot of incidents of chopper crash in the past where none survived. My wife (Meera Munda inside the chopper) became nervous and asked me to call some of our close to take care of our children in case we don’t survive. I just switched-off my cell phone and told her keep patience that nothing is going to happen. But I knew that chances of survival are less in such cases since the chopper was flying at the speed of 90 nautical miles per hour…pilots had lost control over speed. It was not possible to land with that speed. We survived. Why?” he said.

Arnuchal Pradesh Chief Minister Dorjee Khandu, Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Y S Rajasekhara Reddy, Congress leader Madhavrao Scindia are some of instances to prove his points.

A tactile change has appeared in Munda. His personality has got some other layers, not known before, which he accepts. “I have been serving people. I am not the master of this life of mine. God has given me an opportunity to serve people in better way that I will do,” Munda says.

An avid reader and quick learner, Munda has developed deep interest in philosophy of Chanakya over polity and governance. He has brought CDs of 48 episodes of TV serial Chanakya which he has been watching regularly besides reading books. Munda talks less about mundane affairs of state and politics, he is more metaphysical than political.

“One takes birth after nine months in the womb. I am in the bed, waiting for rebirth. I don’t know how much time I am to like this. But I will come back. It’s God’s design that I must follow,” he says.   

Doctors have advised him a complete bed rest as he suffered injuries in vertebra during crash. But those, who are concerned about his vertebra, have forgotten the man has a formidable spine. He is discharging his duties as Chief Minister, taking minute to minute details of administrative affairs in the bed.

He will soon put a bone to his back, like a warrior would put sword to scabbard, and stride into the field of slaughter, unbothered about what happened in the past.