Chhattisgarh

Raipur: President of Chhattisgarh Congress Committee and MLA Bhupesh Baghel has been sworn in as Chhattisgarh CM.

Baghel was nominated by the party after a 36 hour party discussion.

Soon after the nomination; Baghel announced waving of farmers’ loan, and investigation of Geerum Valley attack by Nuxals.

Raipur, Dec 16 (PTI) Senior Congress leader and state party chief Bhupesh Baghel will be the new chief minister of Chhattisgarh.

The decision was taken at the Congress Legislature Party (CLP) meeting held here on Sunday.

He will take oath at 5 PM tomorrow, AICC observer Mallikarjun Kharge said.

Congress president Rahul Gandhi had held several rounds of discussion with the four aspirants for the post -- T S Singh Deo, Tamradhwaj Sahu, Bhupesh Baghel and Charan Das Mahant -- at his Tughlaq Lane residence in New Delhi on Saturday.

Raipur, Dec 12 (PTI) The constituencies with high population of Scheduled Tribe (ST) and Scheduled Caste (SC) communities in Chhattisgarh, have contributed hugely in steering Congress towards a thumping victory in the state.

The state has 29 seats- in the 90-member assembly- reserved for ST candidates, and the Congress won 25 of them, besides bagging seven of ten SC reserved seats.

Raipur, Dec 12 (PTI) ANaxalitewas killed in an encounter with security forces in Chhattisgarh's Bijapur district on Wednesday, a senior police official said.

A cache of improvised explosive devices (IEDs), frequently used by Naxals to target security personnel, was also recovered from the encounter spot, he said.

The skirmish took place around 9 am near Tarrem village, located nearly 450 km from the state capital Raipur, Bijapur Superintendent of Police Mohit Garg told PTI.

Raipur (CG), Dec 5 (PTI) A contractor engaged in mining-related work was killed by Naxals who slit his throat Wednesday before torching his SUV in Chhattisgarh's Dantewada district, the police said.

The incident occurred at around 11 AM near Kamaloor railway station under Bhansi police station limits, around 450 kms from here, Dantewada superintendent of police Abhishek Pallava told PTI.

The officer said the deceased Ganesh Naidu was engaged by Jindal company for carrying out a prospective survey work for iron ore mining in Pandewar area near Kamaloor.

Rajnandgaon, Dec 2 (PTI) A 28-year-old farmer was killed in Chhattisgarh's Rajnandgaon district by Naxals who accused him of being a police informer, an official said Sunday.

Naresh Salame was shot dead Saturday night by a group of Naxals in Belgaon village in Kohka police station limits, the official said.

Salame was watching television in his home when the ultras barged in and dragged him on to the street outside and shot him, he added.

Prior to shooting him, Naxals had accused Salame of being a police informer, the official said.

Raipur, Nov 27 (PTI) A special court in Durg district of Chhattisgarh has sentenced a man to life imprisonment for sodomising a 12-year-old boy last year.

Special Judge under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act, Subhra Pachouri, held Monu Yadav (21) guilty under Section 377 (unnatural sex) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and provisions of the POCSO Act on Monday, Additional Public Prosecutor Kamal Kishore Verma told PTI.

Raipur, Nov 26; PTI: Eight Naxals and two police personnel were killed in an encounter between ultras and security men in Chhattisgarh's Sukma district on Monday, police said.

The gunbattle took place at a forest in Kistaram area bordering Telangana, around 500 km from here, when a team of security personnel was out on an anti-Naxal operation, Sukma's Superintendent of Police Abhishek Meena told PTI.

Eight bodies of Naxals have been found at the encounter spot, he said.

Raipur, Nov 25 (PTI) Two Naxals were killed and a police personnel was injured in encounters in Chhattisgarh's insurgency-hit Bijapur district Sunday, police said.

The gun-battles took place when teams of police's District Reserve Guard (DRG) of and Special Task Force (STF) were out on anti-Naxal operations in Gangaloor and Madded areas.

Superintendent of Police Mohit Garg told PTI that a combined squad of DRG and STF was cordoning off the jungles between Nilamadgu and Korinjed in Madded area, 450 km from Raipur, when it came under fire from the rebels.

Raipur, Nov 21 (PTI) Voter turnout of 76.35 per cent was recorded in the Chhattisgarh Assembly election which concluded Tuesday, poll authorities said.

It was a little less than the previous 2013 polls when 77.40 per cent of voters had exercised their franchise.

The election to the 90-member Assembly was held in two phases -- November 12 and 20.

The incumbent Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is in power for the last 15 years.