An NIA court convicted 10 accused in the 2013 Jhiram Ghati Naxal attack that killed 29 people, including senior Congress leaders. The defence will appeal the verdict, which the Congress party has termed 'incomplete justice'.
A Special NIA Court in Jagdalpur on Saturday convicted 10 accused in the 2013 Jhiram Ghati Naxal attack that claimed the lives of 29 people, including senior Congress leaders. After holding all 10 accused guilty under various sections of the Indian Penal Code, the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA), and the Arms Act, the National Investigation Agency (NIA) court has reserved the announcement on the quantum of punishment until September 16, defence lawyer Arvind Choudhary said.
The case pertains to the deadly ambush on a Congress convoy on May 25, 2013, in Jhiram Valley, Bastar, which resulted in the deaths of around 29-32 people, including several senior Congress leaders and security personnel. Armed Maoists had ambushed the convoy of Congress leaders returning from a 'Parivartan Yatra' ahead of the 2013 Assembly Elections. Congress leaders, including then state Congress chief Nand Kumar Patel, former Leader of Opposition Mahendra Karma and former Union minister Vidya Charan Shukla, were among those killed in the attack.
Defence to Challenge Ruling
Arvind Chaudhary, the advocate representing the defence, confirmed that all 10 accused were found guilty on all counts but stated that the defence plans to challenge the ruling in the High Court. “In Bastar, in the Jhiram Ghati-related cases, I have argued for the defence. And today the decision has come. The Court said they have been found guilty. Regarding how much punishment will be given, the Court has reserved the decision and scheduled it for September 16. On that day, the defence will also be heard on the question of punishment. Currently, we are aggrieved by the guilty verdict given by the honourable court, and we will appeal this in the honourable High Court. There are 10 accused, and charges were filed under Section 302 and other sections of the UAPA Act and also the Arms Act. So, they have been found guilty under all sections,” Chaudhary said.
Congress Calls Verdict 'Incomplete Justice'
Speaking on the court’s decision, the Chhattisgarh Congress has termed it "incomplete justice". Avadhesh Jha, an office bearer of the Congress Legal Cell in Chhattisgarh, alleged that the investigation ignored crucial aspects of the attack. “On behalf of the Congress party, we want to say very clearly that this is incomplete justice. Our martyrs will get justice only when the points that the Congress party has been demanding since day one are addressed: whether this incident happened as part of a political conspiracy, and secondly, who were the people involved in the security breach. If the investigation and trial do not include those points, then we will consider it incomplete justice only,” Jha stated.
Jha further criticised the handling of the case, claiming that the primary perpetrators remain at large while local villagers were made to face trial. “The big Naxals who were the masterminds of this incident, they have all joined the mainstream today. They were welcomed with a red carpet. But by conducting a trial on the innocent tribals of the village, it is being claimed that the Jhiram incident trial has been done. The Congress party still stands by its demands from day one. We had two main demands: first, who were involved in the security breach that occurred, and second, if this incident happened as part of a political conspiracy, there should have been a detailed investigation into who was involved in that political conspiracy,” he added. (ANI)
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