Maoists Get Death Penalty for 2013 India Attack

A special National Investigation Agency court in Jagdalpur, Chhattisgarh, sentenced all 10 convicted Maoists to death on September 16, 2026, for their roles in the 2013 Jhiram Ghati attack that killed at least 27 people, including senior Congress leaders. The verdict, delivered by Special Judge Ajay Singh Rajput, came after a trial spanning more than a decade and nearly 300 hearings. The attack occurred on May 25, 2013, when over 150 Maoists ambushed a Congress Parivartan Rally convoy on a national highway in the Bastar region. The assault began with an IED blast, followed by indiscriminate gunfire and grenade attacks. Among the dead were then-state Congress chief Nand Kumar Patel, his son Dinesh, former Leader of the Opposition Mahendra Karma, former Union minister Vidya Charan Shukla, and senior Congress leader Uday Mudliyar. The NIA's investigation established that the attack was part of the banned CPI Maoist's Tactical Counter Offensive Campaign. The 10 convicts, including two women, were found guilty on September 5 under various sections of the Indian Penal Code, the Arms Act, the Explosive Substances Act, and the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act.