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A newly constructed road between Gangalur and Nelsnaar snakes through the forests of Bijapur in Chhattisgarh’s Bastar region. The 54 km stretch, completed in June 2024, was built under the watch of local officials, State police, and central paramilitary forces. The project, aimed at improving connectivity in a region long marred by Maoist insurgency and bloodshed, was touted as a success. But it took the sharp eye of a local journalist to uncover the cracks— both literal and figurative—in the newly laid road.
His reward? A brutal end to his life. His alleged crime? Simply doing his job: exposing the shoddy work in a place where accountability remains as elusive as peace.
Mukesh Chandrakar, 33, who worked as an independent journalist, went missing on New Year’s Day. His mutilated body was recovered two days later, on January 3, from a newly roofed septic tank on the property of a contractor, Suresh Chandrakar, 40, who was responsible for the road’s poor construction. They are said to be cousins.
On January 6, Suresh, who was on the run for three days, was apprehended by a Special Investigation Team (SIT) in Hyderabad following a huge media outcry. Earlier, the police had arrested three other accused, including a person who was a common friend of Mukesh and Suresh.
According to the post-mortem, the victim endured severe injuries including multiple head fractures. His neck and ribs were broken, liver split in four, and heart ripped out. The chilling incident has once again exposed the grim daily reality faced by reporters, who dare to hold power to account in some of India’s most volatile regions, where truth often comes at an unthinkable cost.
Of late, the entire Bastar belt has witnessed a significant surge in anti-insurgency operations, as the Central government has pledged to eradicate Naxalism by March 2026. On January 6, at least eight District Reserve Guard (DRG) jawans and a civilian driver were killed when Naxals detonated a powerful IED, blowing up their Scorpio in Bijapur, a region with a 73 per cent tribal population.
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The role of grassroots reporters like Mukesh Chandrakar takes on greater importance in such conflict-ridden zones. Senior security officers, who have served in the region, privately acknowledge a stark reality: “Maoism can be eliminated at any time through military operations. However, the real challenge lies in the lack of effective administrative services and corruption-free development efforts, which fail to complement short-term military victories over insurgents.”
Mukesh Chandrakar’s murder has evoked reactions from all quarters. While media organisations and both mainstream political parties, the Congress and the BJP, have condemned the incident, the Communist Party of India (Maoist) too has condoled the death. Demanding a thorough probe into his murder, the proscribed organisation stated in a press note: “Mukesh was born and brought up on a tribal land and as a local reporter, he made his identity. He exposed several political, social, cultural issues through media reports and played his role responsibly.”
Mukesh, a contributing reporter for NDTV, exposed corruption in the Rs.120 crore road project with a report aired on December 24, 2024, that triggered an official probe. On January 6, a team of reporters found that the patchwork eventually done on the road was substandard, with material peeling off when scratched. As per media reports, the Chhattisgarh Public Works Department suspended the registration of Suresh Chandrakar as construction contractor on January 7.
“This kind of corrupt business is common in Bastar, and the involvement and blessings of politicians and government officials is a known fact,” said Sunil Kumar, editor of the Raipur-based Hindi daily Chhattisgarh. Claiming that the accused contractor involved in this case is a major player, Kumar elaborated: “In Bastar, many contractors have unexpectedly got massive projects beyond their previous economic capacity, often with the involvement of senior police officers. Due to Naxal violence and threats in the region, construction contracts cannot be completed without special police protection and assistance. In the past, big contractors from neighbouring States would stay at the residence of a senior IG in Bastar, where all the contracts were arranged.”
Kitchen to chopperSuresh Chandrakar, who rose from humble beginnings, became one of Bastar’s top contractors in just a few years, securing government construction projects in Maoist-affected areas. In 2008, he reportedly worked as a cook in the police department, earning just Rs.1,500 a month. He began small-scale contracting in 2012, and his rise to prominence drew significant attention on December 23, 2021, when he hosted an extravagant wedding in Bijapur. He arranged for a private helicopter to transport the bride’s family and hired Russian dancers for the celebration. Visuals from the wedding went viral, as the extravagant celebration at the Bijapur stadium was an unprecedented event in Bastar.
The land of Suresh Chandrakar, the contractor and main accused in the murder of journalist Mukesh Chandrakar, was bulldozed in Bijapur district, Chhattisgarh, on January 4, 2025. Three persons were arrested in connection with the murder. | Photo Credit: PTI
Suresh was the State vice-president of the Scheduled Caste wing of the Chhattisgarh Pradesh Congress. The Congress, however, has claimed that he quit the party. “We have pictures that show Suresh Chandrakar joined the BJP. Over 10 days ago, he visited the Chief Minister’s house and the CCTV camera footage should be made public,” said Congress spokesperson Sushil Anand Shukla. Former Chief Minister and senior Congress leader Bhupesh Baghel alleged that it was under the protection of the BJP that Suresh Chandrakar got the strength to murder the journalist.
Mukesh lost his father at a young age. Like many other families displaced by longstanding conflict between security forces and Naxals, his family moved from one migrant camp to another. His mother, an Anganwadi worker, took care of him and his brother, Yukesh, according to his journalist friends. She would also collect and sell forest produce to make ends meet. However, after his mother passed away from cancer in 2009, Mukesh and Yukesh were forced to take up menial jobs to survive before they eventually took to freelance journalism.
Bytes from BastarMukesh ran a YouTube channel called “Bastar Junction”, which garnered 1,70,000 followers and became a vital source of news from the heart of the troubled region. His investigative reporting focused on exposing corruption in local development projects, while his ground reports painted a stark picture of tribal life in Bastar. He documented the daily struggles of people trapped in conflict between security forces and Naxalites, highlighting the senseless violence, the absence of basic services, dysfunctional schools, and the false narrative about economic progress in the region.
Reporting from both the camps of security forces and Naxalites, he provided an unfiltered view of life in one of India’s most volatile areas. One of the 480 videos on his channel featured a rare glimpse into the modest, tiled home of Madvi Hidma, a commander of the People’s Liberation Guerrilla Army Battalion Number 1, who carries a bounty of Rs.1 crore on his head, in Puvarti village, Sukma district. His work went beyond reporting. He played a crucial role in negotiating the release of security personnel andvillagers abducted by Maoists.
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The murder has shaken journalists in Raipur, Delhi, and other parts of the country. Many have pointed out how local reporters in Bastar do their routine job despite the lack of institutional and financial support. The region has seen such murders and persecution of journalists in the past as well. In 2013, at least two freelance journalists were killed by unidentified assailants in Chhattisgarh. Nemi Chand Jain, who worked for Hindi-language dailies including Hari Bhoomi, Nayi Duniya, and Dainik Bhaskar, was stabbed to death in Sukma district; Sain Reddy, a prominent journalist working with Deshbandhu, one of the oldest newspapers of Chhattisgarh, was stabbed to death in Bijapur district. In 2018, a video journalist with Doordarshan, Achyutananda Sahu, 34, was killed in a Maoist attack as he was accompanying a police patrol in Dantewada district.
In fact, journalists working in the State are frequently targeted by the security forces on suspicion of being Maoist sympathisers. In 2016, Somaru Nag, a Bastar-based journalist from the tribal community, was acquitted by the court almost a year after police arrested him on charges of having Maoist links. Similarly, the National Investigation Agency court in Jagdalpur acquitted Santosh Yadav, a freelance journalist, in 2020, almost four years after he was framed in a case for allegedly helping Maoist militants. In August 2024, at least four independent journalists who had travelled to Konta in south Bastar to investigate the alleged smuggling of sand to adjoining Andhra Pradesh were arrested on charges of smuggling cannabis. Later, Ajay Sonkar, who was in charge of the Konta police station was suspended and arrested for hatching the conspiracy.
“The threat to journalists in Bastar will not end with the punishment of those responsible for murdering Mukesh. Political parties must take steps to publicly distance themselves from business interests.”Sunil KumarEditor of Raipur-based Hindi daily ‘Chhattisgarh’
“The threat to journalists in Bastar will not end with the punishment of those responsible for murdering Mukesh,” said Sunil Kumar. “Political parties must take steps to publicly distance themselves from business interests. It is crucial to examine the issue in its entirety, not just as a criminal case awaiting court verdicts. We need to reflect on how we can create an environment where quality journalism can thrive in Bastar.” Local journalists often work without salary, relying on advertisement commissions, explained Sunil Kumar.
Several journalist organisations such as the Press Association, the Editors’ Guild of India, the Indian Women’s Press Corps, and the Press Club of India condemned the killing, urging the Press Council of India to take up the matter with the State government.
The murder also highlights the curtailing of press freedom across the country, with journalists and media organisations facing intimidation. India ranked 159 out of 180 nations in the 2024 Press Freedom Index by Reporters Without Borders.
Devesh Amora, a journalist from Raipur, quoted Pradeep Saini’s poem “Sthaniyata”, which captures the perils faced by grassroots journalists: “Criticising the Prime Minister is easy; criticising the Chief Minister is a bit harder; criticising an MLA certainly brings danger; criticising a village head almost guarantees a beating… But complaining about a tractor transporting sand and gravel from a nearby river? That could be life-threatening…”
Mukesh Chandrakar disregarded all these potential dangers as a local reporter, pursued his passion for journalism, and paid with his life.