The police in Chhattisgarh have booked a case against two Delhi professors and eight others in connection with the murder of a tribal man in Sukma district in the state.
Shamnath Baghel was attacked with sharp weapons and killed at his residence in Nama Village, around 450 km from Raipur. His attackers were allegedly a group of Maoists.
PTI reported that DU Professor Nandini Sundar and JNU professor Archana Prasad and eight others were charged under Sections 120 B (criminal conspiracy), 302 (murder), 147 (punishment for rioting), 148 and 149 of the IPC in the FIR filed at Tongpal police station.
“An FIR was lodged against DU Professor Nandini Sundar, Archana Prasad (JNU Professor), Vineet Tiwari (of Delhi’s Joshi Adhikar Sansthan), Sanjay Parate (Chhattisgarh CPI (Marxist) State Secretary) and others along with Maoists for the murder of Baghel based on the complaint of his wife on Saturday,” Inspector General of Police (Bastar Range), SRP Kalluri, told PTI.
According to the police, Baghel was spearheading anti-Maoist movements in the Nama village area since April and had lodged complaints against Sundar. Shamnath’s wife has alleged that Baghel received threats since the time he lodged a police compliant against Sundar.
Baghel alleged that Sundar and others were inciting tribal people to support Maoists and maintain an anti-government attitude.
“As per the complaint lodged by the victim’s wife, her husband had been getting threats from Maoists since he and other villagers had complained against Sundar in May this year. Even armed Maoists were referring to that complaint and anti-Maoist demonstrations while attacking Baghel on Friday,” the IG told PTI.
“Following the development, according to villagers, Sundar and others went in the village to allegedly threaten them not to oppose the Maoists,” the IG added.
Sundar has been an active campaigner for human rights of adivasis in Chattisgarh. In 2007, Sundar had filed a petition in the Supreme Court against the Salwa Judum, the state government-appointed and central government-funded anti-Maoist armed group. This led the Supreme Court in to ban the militia group in 2011.
Recently, Sundar had also published a book titled “The Burning Forest: India’s war in Bastar” on the Maoist conflict in Bastar.
