NIA chargesheets 11 armed Maoists in explosives loot case

The National Investigation Agency (NIA) has submitted a chargesheet naming 11 armed CPI (Maoist) cadres who were involved in looting around 4,000 kg of explosives during its transportation to a stone quarry in Odisha’s Sundargarh district.

According to a statement issued by NIA, all 11 cadres of the banned organisation have been charged under various sections of Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, Arms Act and Explosive Substances Act.

During investigation, the NIA had found the accused to have been actively involved in the criminal conspiracy, planning and execution of the loot of around 200 explosive packets, each containing 20 kg of explosives, it said.

“The explosives were being transported from Itma Explosive Station to the Banko stone quarry on May 27, 2025. The driver, along with the vehicle, was taken into control by 10-15 armed Maoists and was taken to their stronghold,” the agency further said.

The agency, which took over the case from the local police in June, found during investigation that the huge quantity of explosives had been looted for use against the government machinery, including police and security forces, through the commission of terror acts. The loot was part of a conspiracy of CPI (Maoist) to disturb the nation’s security and stability, said the NIA.

The CPI (Maoist) cadres who were arrested included Jarja Munda alias Kulu Munda, Anmol alias Sushant alias Lalchand Hembram, Ramesh alias Pritam Manjhi alias Anal Da.

The NIA is continuing with its investigation in the case.