The chargesheet presented by the authorities provides a comprehensive account of how members of the banned Maoist group, including armed cadres, collaborated and plotted with their senior leadership to assassinate an Indian soldier during a bustling village fair in Chhattisgarh in the year 2023. This incident has been linked directly to a larger Maoist conspiracy aimed at instilling fear and demonstrating their violent influence in the region.
The National Investigation Agency (NIA), which is India’s premier anti-terror investigative body, has officially filed a chargesheet against five identified Maoist operatives for their alleged involvement in the brutal killing of an Indian Army jawan in the Kanker district of Chhattisgarh.
In its supplementary chargesheet that was submitted before the NIA Special Court in Jagdalpur, the agency formally named the accused individuals as Bhawan Lal Jain, Suresh Kumar Salam, Shailendra Kumar Baghel, Anduram Salam, and Sonu Hemla. These five have been booked under multiple legal provisions, including sections of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), the Arms Act, and the stringent Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA).
The case revolves around the murder of Army jawan Motiram Achala, who was tragically shot dead by armed Maoist operatives while attending a village fair in Amabeda during February 2023. At the time of the incident, Achala was on leave and had returned home to spend time with his family, making the attack both shocking and symbolic in nature.
According to the findings of the NIA’s investigation, four of the accused—Jain, Salam, Baghel, and Anduram—were functioning as sleeper cells for the banned Communist Party of India (Maoist). Meanwhile, Hemla was identified as an active member of the Kuyemari Area Committee under the Maoists’ North Bastar Division. Working in coordination with a senior Maoist leader, this group allegedly identified Achala in the crowded marketplace and carried out the assassination in full public view to maximize fear and exert psychological control over the local population.
All five of the named accused were arrested by authorities in March 2024, shortly after the NIA assumed control of the investigation from the local police. It is worth noting that even before this supplementary chargesheet, in June 2024, the NIA had already filed a chargesheet against another accused, Ashu Korsa, establishing his connection to the crime.
The NIA has clarified that the investigation into the broader Maoist network and the larger conspiracy behind the killing is still ongoing, with efforts being made to uncover the full extent of the involvement of senior Maoist leaders and their underground operatives.
