Naxals free villagers, kill construction company employee

Comes ahead of the PM's visit to the region

After a day-long drama, Naxals released all the 250 villagers abducted in the morning before killing an employee of a construction firm engaged in a road project in the area.

The abduction of 250 villagers from Marenga under Tongpal block in Sukma district stunned the authorities as the incident took place ahead of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Bastar visit today. He was on a day-long visit to Naxal hotbed of Dantewada.

Initial reports said that rebels abducted the villagers coming to attend Modi's programme.

Later it became clear that Naxals had abducted a few people engaged in the road project and held back the 250 villagers who had approached them for their safe release.

The Naxals had expressed their strong protest against the road construction work going on in the area. They had even threatened the villagers supporting the project.

Bastar Inspector General of Police SRP Kalluri said the rebels held Jan Adalat (kangaroo court) and conducted a trial on Sadaram, who was working as a supervisor with the road construction firm.

The rebels awarded a death sentence to Sadaram, a native of Marenga village. They later slit his throat.

The 250 villagers carrying the body were on their way to the village. Kalluri said the details would be known once they reached the village.