7 Maoists Killed in Chhattisgarh; Rights Groups Allege Custodial Executions

Why the Allegations Deserve Scrutiny

June 8, 2025

Seven Maoist leaders were killed over three consecutive days in armed encounters in Chhattisgarh’s Bijapur district, according to police. Civil rights organisations have alleged that at least some of them were picked up from a village, held in custody, tortured and then executed.

The rights groups, including the Civil Liberties Committee and the Committee for Release of Political Prisoners, claim that 10 Maoists were taken into police custody from Parshagarh village inside Indravati National Park on June 5, as reported by The Wire. Seven are now dead, while the other three remain in custody, according to them. The claim is also that they were in civilian clothes, unarmed and not engaged in combat.

The police have offered a different version, saying that those killed were part of an armed group of Maoists that had gathered in the forest, and that the deaths occurred during a combat operation based on intelligence input. Only two of the seven bodies have been formally identified.

The allegations made by rights groups deserve attention despite the operation being conducted as part of a national security effort.

German sociologist Max Weber said that what makes a state a state is that it alone has the legal right to use force, through the police or army, within its own borders. But this right is not guaranteed by default. It only becomes legitimate when the state uses that force through proper legal channels — meaning through laws, courts and procedures that people accept and recognise as fair.

In a democracy, this means that government power – for example, to enforce laws, and, when necessary, use force – must be exercised through public institutions like the judiciary, and it must follow rules and procedures that apply equally to everyone. These rules and procedures include prohibition of torture and custodial violence, presumption of innocence until proven guilty, and the right of accused persons to be tried in a public court, by an independent judge, without bias or political interference.

If the police or security forces start using violence without going through the legal process — for example, arresting people secretly or killing them without trial — then the state begins to lose the trust and authority it is supposed to have. It is no longer using power lawfully, it is simply using force because it can. That changes the state from being a protector of rights into something much more dangerous — a system that controls people without answering to them.

Even if some of those killed held senior ranks in the Maoist movement, this cannot be a justification for circumventing due process. The state cannot claim legal authority while denying legal procedure. Public trials and convictions serve both justice and deterrence. Custodial or extra-judicial executions serve neither.

In Punjab during the 1980s and 90s, the police conducted thousands of shootouts against suspected militants. Many were later found to be fake encounters. Sadly, the officers involved received awards or promotions, while families of the disappeared searched for justice for decades.

Chhattisgarh is rich in mineral resources, and tribal people have long resisted their exploitation. It should be acknowledged that the state’s operations in these areas are perceived by many local communities as efforts to displace them in favour of mining interests.

When civil rights groups issue alerts, name detainees and express concern for their lives, state authorities have a duty to respond with facts and clarity. Otherwise, the signal it sends is that violence carried out by the state is beyond scrutiny.

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