Dipankar Ghose

Speaking at the inauguration of a three day National Tribal Dance Festival organised by the Chhattisgarh government, he also said the country could never benefit “if brothers are made to fight brothers.”

The Congress leader's remarks came against the backdrop of nationwide protests against the controversial Citizenship (Amendment) Act and the proposed National Register of Citizens (NRC).

Ramanna joined the Maoists in 1982 and arrived in Bastar in 1988. He is seen by many as the man who built the Maoist organisation in Bastar — the most left wing extremism-hit area in the country.

Baghel said that while the BJP came to power riding on the “surgical strike”, they are yet to tell the country how the Pulwama attack came to pass and “how RDX reached the spot”.

Four days ago, security agencies in Bastar picked up wireless chatter from intercepts which suggested the death of Ramanna.

On June 28, 2012, 17 people were killed in Chhattisgarh in what was then called “the biggest Maoist encounter”. With a judicial commission now punching holes in the official version of the incident, The Indian Express travels to Sarkeguda and finds that while much has changed in these years, some things haven’t — the memories of that night, and the wounds that refuse to heal

The encounter in question occurred in June 2012, in which 17 people were killed and 10 were injured after security forces claimed they were attacked by a Maoist meeting and opened retaliatory fire in Sarkeguda village. 

Baghel said, “It is unfortunate that there was no FIR or action taken then (in 2012). Seven years later, a report like this has come. Whoever is responsible will be punished.”

Sources told The Indian Express that the state government decided to table the report after a hurried Cabinet meeting late Saturday. During the meeting, sources said, at least two ministers claimed the Cabinet had been “misled” earlier about the contents of the report.

The idea, the state government said, was to fix accountability on the state health infrastructure itself, and to lessen the amount of public money that was going to the private sector under the insurance model.

Security forces fired in panic, 6 of them injured in friendly fire, one villager shot next morning: Justice V K Agarwal

In the Assembly on Tuesday, Baghel said that “nothing could stop farmers from getting their Rs 2500 per quintal”.

Earlier this month, Baghel met Union ministers, arguing that this leeway was given to the previous BJP government led by Raman Singh in 2016-17 and 2017-18. The Centre, however, has said that keeping the fiscal balance in mind, this is not possible.

The cabinet has also moved to remove educational qualification as a requirement for panch members.

In 2016, the district administration of Bijapur, one of India’s worst Left-wing extremism-related violence-hit districts in the country, decided to invest in sports by opening a sports academy in the district headquarters, to bring children out of the cycle of violence.

Civil society activists said that the government's priorities were skewed, and there was little difference between the Congress and BJP governments.

According to Ibrahim and Anjali, both from Dhamtari district in Chhattisgarh, they married secretly last year as they anticipated opposition from their families.

The draft envisages a "Register of Mediapersons" for which an "Authority for the Registration of Mediapersons" will be set up, including senior journalists and officials of the Department of Public Relations.

The committee will also look into allegations that residents of the state have been subject to snooping, officials said.