RAIPUR: A special National Investigation Agency (NIA) court in Chhattisgarh’s Jagdalpur Wednesday sentenced 10 Maoists to death for their involvement in the 2013 Jhiram Ghati ambush in Bastar.The Jhiram attack took place when Maoists blocked the Congress convoy in the Darbha area and launched a coordinated ambush. It became one of the most consequential Maoist attacks in Chhattisgarh, wiping out several senior Congress leaders in a single strike.According to the NIA’s official case records, 27 people, including 10 police personnel, were killed and 38 injured when Maoists ambushed the Congress Parivartan Yatra convoy in Jhiram valley on May 25, 2013.Among those killed were then Chhattisgarh Congress president Nand Kumar Patel and his son Dinesh Patel, former leader of opposition Mahendra Karma and former MLA Uday Mudliyar. Former Union minister Vidya Charan Shukla, who was critically injured, died later.Special NIA judge Ajay Singh Rajput pronounced the punishment Wednesday. The Special Judge convicted the accused under several provisions of the (IPC), Arms Act, Explosive Substances Act and Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act.The court handed down the death penalty under Section 120B (criminal conspiracy) and Section 302 (murder) of IPC.The 10 convicts are Pramila Modiyam, Chaitu Lekam alias Munna, Sumita alias Punem Modiyam, Mukka Mandvi, Kosa Kavasi alias Kosaram, Aayata Markam, Madkami Deva, Joga Madkami, Banjami Sanna alias Chamru, and Mahadev Nag.One accused died during the trial, and 28 others named in the chargesheet remain wanted. A total of 101 prosecution witnesses were examined during the trial and several documentary pieces of evidence were presented.The ambush occurred on May 25, 2013 near the Bastar-Sukma border. Over 150 Maoists targeted the 20-vehicle convoy, killing Salwa Judum founder Mahendra Karma, state Congress chief Nand Kumar Patel, his son Dinesh, and former MLA Uday Mudliyar.
