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Synopsis

CJI Chandrachud led bench of the Supreme Court on Tuesday dismissed a plea of the National Investigation Agency (NIA) challenging the second FIR registered by the state of Chhattisgarh into the 2013 naxal attacks wherein 29 people were killed, including leaders of the state's Congress unit.

The bench also comprising of Justices JB Pardiwala and Manoj Misra has also refused the NIA's request to transfer the investigation into the second FIR to the central agency.

"We are not inclined to entertain the Special Leave Petition under Article 136 of the Constitution. The Special Leave Petition is accordingly dismissed.", the order said.

The impugned second FIR was filed in 2020, on the basis of a complaint by the son of one of the deceased Congress leaders.

Inter alia it was alleged that the larger political conspiracy behind the incident had not been examined by the NIA when it conducted its probe into the matter.

Additional Solicitor General SV Raju, appearing for NIA, told the bench that the larger conspiracy angle should be investigated by the NIA as the main FIR was originally investigated by it.

When the Chhattisgarh Police refused had to hand over the records to the NIA, the agency had moved the trial court, which rejected the plea. Thereafter, the high court had also dismissed the plea against the trial court order on March 2, 2022. 

In May 2013, Naxals had attacked a convoy of Congress leaders in Jheeram valley in Darbha area of Bastar district, killing 29 people, including then state Congress chief Nand Kumar Patel, former leader of opposition Mahendra Karma and former Union minister Vidyacharan Shukla.

The deadly ambush by heavily armed Naxals had taken place when the political campaigning for the then assembly elections was on.

Case Title: NATIONAL INVESTIGATION AGENCY NEW DELHI vs. THE STATE OF CHHATTISGARH & ORS.