CBI told to file report on torching villages

The Supreme Court on Friday sought a status report from the CBI on the cases ordered to be registered by it in 2011 on torching of some villages in Chhattisgarh.

A social justice bench of Justices Madan B Lokur and U U Lalit directed the CBI to file a detailed progress report within four weeks after Additional Solicitor General P S Patwalia submitted that the investigating agency had almost completed its probe in as many as two cases.

The apex court had on July 5, 2011 directed the Centre and Chhattisgarh government against employing tribal aas Special Police Officers (SPOs) to take on Maoist and Naxal activities, terming it as “unconstitutional”.  The court had then taken strong view of the violent attack on social activist Swami Agnivesh on his visit to the state and directed for a CBI probe into events including torching of a few villages.