The story so far: A National Investigating Agency (NIA) court in Dantewada on July 15 acquitted 121 tribals, including a woman, who were arrested in connection with a suspected 2017 Maoist attack that claimed the lives of 25 security personnel in Chattisgarh’s Sukma district. Barring a few, all the arrested had spent over five years in jail by the time the acquittal order came. At least 108 have been released following the court order, while the others remain jailed as they are accused in other cases. One of them died during the trial last year. Most of the acquitted tribals are from the interior villages of Sukma and Bijapur and are aged between 20 to 60.
What led to the arrest?
On April 24, 2017, a combined patrolling party — comprising 72 jawans from the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF)’s 74th battalion and district police — were guarding a road cum bridge construction in Sukma’s Burkapal when they were ambushed by a large group of 200-250 alleged Maoists. The attackers fired and hurled explosives at the jawans following which 25 of the security personnel were killed and seven others injured. This was the second deadliest Naxalite attack in terms of casualties. Some of the Maoists were also killed in the crossfire when the security forces retaliated.
