In 2013, a Maoist attack in Jhiram Valley, Chhattisgarh, resulted in the deaths of 27 people, including prominent Congress leaders like Vidya Charan Shukla, Nand Kumar Patel, and Mahendra Karma. On September 16, 2026, a special National Investigation Agency (NIA) court in Jagdalpur declared the case 'rarest of rare' and imposed death sentences on all 10 convicted Maoists. The court emphasized that life imprisonment would be insufficient given the severity of the crime, citing precedents from Supreme Court rulings. The judgment detailed that the attack had been meticulously planned over three months, culminating in a coordinated operation led by Barse Sukka, alias Deva, who later surrendered in Telangana. Despite some mitigating factors, the court ruled that the intellectual maturity of the accused did not reduce the gravity of the crime.
Bias read (Center): The article presents a factual account of a legal ruling regarding a Maoist attack, focusing on the court's decision and reasoning. There is no evident ideological framing or biased language; the content remains neutral, detailing the legal process and outcomes without favoring any political side.





