The families of two villagers in Sukma, who were gunned down and described as Maoists by the security forces last week, have alleged that the encounter was “fake”, while also questioning claims that they were members of any banned outfit in the first place. The Chhattisgarh Police, however, dismissed the allegations.
According to the police, around 6 a.m. on September 5, Sodhi Deva (Sodhi Kosa, according to the families, and used henceforth) and Rava Deva were killed in retaliatory fire when they fired upon a party comprising a joint force of District Reserve Guard, District Force, and Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF).
In their statement, the police had further said that the two residents of Tadmetla village in south Bastar, one of the worst hit by Maoist insurgency in the country, were involved in the murder of a shikshadoot (teacher), Kawasi Sukka, and the current deputy sarpanch of the Tadmetla panchayat, Madvi Ganga, on June 28 and August 31, respectively.
