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Jhiram Ghati Attack Verdict : 10 Maoist Convicts Get Death Sentence After 13 Years
Jagdalpur, Chhattisgarh : More than 13 years after the deadly Jhiram Ghati Maoist attack of May 25, 2013, a Special NIA Court in Jagdalpur has sentenced all 10 convicted accused to death for their involvement in the attack on a Congress convoy in Bastar. The court had convicted the 10 accused on September 5, 2026, and announced the quantum of punishment on September 16.
The attack took place when Congress leaders were returning from a Parivartan Yatra ahead of the Chhattisgarh Assembly elections.
Maoists ambushed the convoy in the Jhiram Valley area, killing 29 people, including several prominent Congress leaders and security personnel. Among those killed were then Chhattisgarh Congress president Nand Kumar Patel, his son Dinesh Patel, veteran leader Vidyacharan Shukla, Congress leader Uday Mudliyar, and Mahendra Karma, a prominent political figure associated with the Salwa Judum movement.
The case was investigated by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) and continued for more than a decade. Eleven accused faced trial, but one died during the proceedings, leaving 10 to face the final judgment. The court found the surviving accused guilty of offences connected with the killings and attempted murders.
Reports said the trial involved hundreds of hearings before the court delivered its conviction and later announced the death sentences.
The Jhiram Ghati attack remains one of the most significant Maoist attacks involving senior political leaders in Chhattisgarh. The latest court order brings a major development in the long-running legal proceedings, although a death sentence awarded by a trial court is subject to confirmation by the High Court under Indian law.
Mudasir Maqbool
