More than 13 years after the deadly Jhiram Ghati Maoist ambush in Chhattisgarh, a special National Investigation Agency (NIA) court in Jagdalpur has sentenced all 10 convicts who were on trial in the case to death. The verdict was delivered on Wednesday, September 16, 2026, completing the sentencing stage of one of the most important Maoist attack cases in the state.
The Jhiram Ghati attack took place on May 25, 2013, when Maoist cadres ambushed a Congress convoy travelling through the Jhiram Valley of Bastar. The convoy was connected to the Congress party’s Parivartan Yatra ahead of the Chhattisgarh Assembly elections. Congress leaders, security personnel and others were killed. The total death toll is 29 in the attack, though the NIA case record and some more detailed reports refer to 27 people.
Among those killed were then Chhattisgarh Congress chief Nand Kumar Patel, his son Dinesh Patel, former Leader of Opposition Mahendra Karma, former Union Minister Vidya Charan Shukla and senior Congress leader Uday Mudliyar. The attack wiped out a large part of the Congress leadership of the state at the time and was one of the most prominent incidents of Left Wing Extremism in Chhattisgarh.
The NIA took over the investigation soon after the attack. Based on the case record of the agency, the investigation was listed as the Darbha Jheerum Ghati Attack case. An initial chargesheet was filed in September 2014 against nine of the arrested accused, and a subsequent chargesheet was filed against other accused in September 2015. The case was also opened against a larger number of people in September 2015, including some who remain in the missing persons’ list.
The court had convicted the 10 accused earlier this month, on September 5, after a trial that went on for more than a decade. The 10 surviving accused who went through the trial were sentenced to death on September 16. An 11th accused died during the trial, and a number of other people named in the chargesheet are wanted, according to current reports.
The court found the convicted accused guilty under various provisions of the Indian Penal Code and the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act. The death sentences were imposed on charges including criminal conspiracy and murder. The 10 convicted individuals have been identified in court reporting as 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.
The attack itself was described by investigators as a coordinated ambush. Maoist cadres surrounded the convoy after blocking the road and triggering a landmine explosion, according to the NIA chargesheet cited in court reports. Gunfire and grenades were then used against the trapped vehicles. The NIA case record says 38 people were injured, and weapons and other equipment were also looted from the security personnel during the attack.
The legal process has dragged on for more than a decade. There were hundreds of hearings; The Indian Express reports that there were at least 294 hearings before judgment and subsequent sentencing. The lengthy filings were a testimony to the scale and complexity of the investigation, the number of accused and the continued pursuit of people who were beyond the reach of investigators.
The September 16 sentencing is a major step in the judicial process for the 10 accused who had been tried before the special NIA court. However, the Jhiram Ghati case is also not limited to these 10 people; a number of others were also named in the investigation and are still wanted. Also, there has been further investigation into absconding accused, according to the NIA’s case report.
The Jhiram Ghati attack is a significant chapter in Chhattisgarh’s political and security history. More than 13 years since the ambush, the death sentences awarded to the 10 convicted accused are the latest step in the long-term legal proceedings surrounding the 2013 attack.
