This is the story of Mr. Ramsanehi of Morena in Madhya Pradesh and his lifelong crusade against the evils of Bedia tribes that celebrate deflowering of virgins and for whom prostitution is religion.

At the age of 15 he took up the cause of fighting prostitution of the Bedias, in Morena, formed social organisations, opened schools, institution, tool help of the police, government and still continues to do so at the age of 65. He faced many difficulties including false charges by those for whom he was working, but nothing deterred him. He was proactive in the true sense, more proactive than what Stephen Covey suggests.

• 120 of the 265 Bedias families of Morena have abandoned prostitution. Another 58 have returned for want of alternative sources of livelihood.

• The school opened by him is perhaps the best school in Morena and has 9 teachers. The numbers of children Ram Sanehi has saved from prostitution by weaning their mothers from despicable lives would run into thousands

But this is certainly not an easy task and demands high level of leadership capability, looking into the state of affairs in India.

In his words, "None of the powerful really wanted prostitution to end". It served the interest of many, including the political leaders. And the police were hand in glove with the pimps, frequently alerting them before conducting raids.
Another problem was rehabilitation of those willing to turn a new leaf.
He further says, "if you have roti in your hand, stray dogs will follow you in street. In the same way there are plenty of dogs in government departments, who delay my files for want of kickbacks". But, he still succeeds.

The Anatomy of his Leadership suggests following leadership qualities:

• Passion and Integrity
• Direction
• Steely Determination
• Honesty and Dedication
• Proactive
• Courage to fight

Previous Article	Next Article