Former ‘Bandit Queen’ Kusuma Nain dies at 61

LUCKNOW: Notorious former Chambal bandit Kusuma Nain, who once spread terror across Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh, passed away due to illness at the KGMU in Lucknow on Saturday, jail officials confirmed.

According to Etawah District Jail Superintendent Kuldeep Singh, Kusuma Nain, who was serving a life sentence for over 20 years, was suffering from tuberculosis for the past two months. On February 1, she was admitted to Dr Bhimrao Ambedkar Government Hospital in Etawah after her condition worsened. Due to the severity of her illness, she was referred to Saifai Medical University, which later transferred her to KGMU in Lucknow. She succumbed to the disease on Saturday afternoon.

Kusuma Nain, once a feared name in the Chambal Valley, was a key associate of dreaded dacoit Ramasare alias Fakkad Baba. Kusuma hogged the limelight in 1984, when she, along with dacoits Lalaram and Shriram, executed 12 villagers by lining them up and shooting them in Asta village located in Auraiya district.

She then set fire to the village, leading to the deaths of a mother and her five-year-old son. The govt later built a memorial in honour of the victims.

This was done as a revenge act for the Behmai massacre of 1981, where Phoolan Devi and her gang shot 20 men execution-style, sending shockwaves across the country. In retaliation, Asta village, home to Phoolan's caste members, became the target. Nain and her associates ruthlessly executed villagers and burned down homes in vengeance.

On June 8, 2004, she, along with Fakkad Baba and their entire gang, surrendered unconditionally at the Rawatpura outpost of Damoh police station in Bhind, Madhya Pradesh, before then Superintendent of Police Sajid Farid Shapoo.

Kusuma Nain's gang was involved in over 50 criminal cases in Uttar Pradesh and 35 in Madhya Pradesh, including murders, kidnappings, and dacoities. The Uttar Pradesh Police placed a bounty of Rs 20,000 on her arrest, while the Madhya Pradesh Police announced a Rs 15,000 reward.

Following her death, her mortal remains were taken to her native village, Tikri in Jalaun district, where she was cremated.

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