C. K. Janu Biography 
C. K. Janu is a social worker and activist from Wyanad district, Kerala who works for the welfare of tribal people, known as Adivasis. She is the leader of Adivasi Gothra Maha Sabha, which fights for the redistribution of land to the landless tribal people in Kerala, a social agitation started in 2001. She once represented India at a United Nation Conference of the tribal leaders from all over the world and is the winner of several honours including ‘The best Scheduled Tribe Social Worker’ by Kerala Government in 1994. However she declined the award as her demands were not fulfilled.
She was associated with the well-known tribal agitation - Muthanga incident in 2003 which caused violence and resulted in the death of a tribal. Since then she came to limelight among Kerala people. Janu had to undergo imprisonment and face 75 cases filed against her. But the agitation was a great success which resulted in the redistribution of over 4,000 hectares of land to nearly 10,000 tribal families who were landless. 'Janu: The Life Story of CK Janu’ is her autobiography work published in 2003.
She was born into a tribal family of Thrissileri Chekot colony, near Vellamunda of Wyanad district in 1970. Janu didn’t go to school. But she learnt to read and write during the literacy mission held throughout Kerala in the early 1990s. Born into a very poor family, she started her career as a domestic maid at the age of only seven! After five years as a maid, she started working as a labourer for a daily wage of rupees two. Later she learnt tailoring and opened a shop. Yet she had to close it down following financial troubles.
During her younger age, she got influenced by the leftist ideas of Arikkad Varghese, popularly known as Naxal Varghese, who fought against the exploitation of Adivasis in Wyanad. Very soon she started a social life, working for the benefits and rights of Adivasi people. Since the Muthanga incident in 2003, her name is counted among the top adivasi leaders of Kerala, who fights against the exploitation of dalits.
Published: N/A
Updated: January 18, 2016
