Supreme Court’s recent directive to dismantle Salwa Judum (SJ) — tribal militia formed in Bastar to fight the Maoists — camps are likely to put the Chhattisgarh government in a tight spot with the SJ members appearing determined not to return to their villages.

The Chhattisgarh government on Sunday decided to review its anti-Naxal strategy in view of the new tactic adopted by the Maoists recently to target senior administrative and police officers.

Army on Tuesday ruled out any confrontation with Maoists, if the proposed training centre of the army comes up in Chhattisgarh’s Abujhmad forest, considered the Naxal headquarters.

Chhattisgarh chief minister Raman Singh on Saturday dropped broad hints of taking the initiative to start a fresh peace talks with Maoists, even as eminent social activist Swami Agnivesh said, “Time is now ripe for resolving the age-old Naxal problem”.

Sending a strong message to red rebels, chief minister Raman Singh on Wednesday unfurled the tricolour at Jagdalpur in Chhattisgarh’s Bastar region, a Maoist heartland, to mark the 62nd Republic Day.

Suspected Maoist militants on Tuesday abducted five jawans of Chhattisgarh Armed Force (CAF), an elite anti-Naxal wing of the state police, and a civilian from a passenger bus at Mehrabeda in the insurgency-hit Narayanpur district, about 450 km from here, the police said.

The Chhattisgarh high court will continue hearing of the petition by jailed rights activist Binayak Sen seeking suspension of his life sentence awarded to him by the trial court in Raipur on December 24 on sedition charge, and bail for him, on Tuesday.

International agencies — Nobel Peace Prize winner Medicines Sans Frontiers (MSF) (popularly known as Doctors without Borders) and Indian Red Cross Society — are under scanner of the Chhattisgarh police for allegedly “aiding Maoists” in Bastar region, the epicentre of Naxal activities in the country, senior police officers said on

In a decision that has the potential to spark a political as well as a racism row, Guru Ghasidas Central University at Bilashpur, nearly 130 km from here, has rusticated Craig Mcleod, son of Ingrid Mcleod, nominated Anglo-Indian member of the Lok Sabha, for allegedly manhandling two professors, university sources said on Monday.
The vice-chancellor announced the rustication of Craig Mcleod, a second-year student of engineering, on Sunday.

Finally, the Indian Army has set its foot on the conflict zone of Bastar, arg-uably the strongest military base of outlawed CPI(Maoist) in Chhattisgarh.
A reconnaissance party of Indian Army on Saturday evening landed at Kondagaon in Bastar division’s Narayanpur district to pave way for deployment of the Infantry Division of the Central Command, Lucknow, to establish an Army training centre in the area.