Report: Aditya Rai The dispute related to tribal identity and religious change has once again taken a violent form in the Bastar division of Chhattisgarh. In the Amabeda area of the Kanker district, the controversy arising out of an attempt to bury the body of a converted tribe in the village in a manner contrary to rules has rocked the entire area. After the imposition of curfew, more than 20 policemen, including DIG and ASP, were injured, while many tribals also fell victim to violence. This incident becomes a new threat to the internal security of Bastar, where hundreds of such disputes have taken place in the last three years. Amabeda violence: Curfew and list of injured The dispute that started on December 16 in the Amabeda village of Kanker took a violent turn on December 18. After the death of a Christian convert, his family members tried to bury his body on private land in violation of Gram Sabha rules. This enraged the tribal community. Disputes increased between both sides. It is alleged that stone pelting was started by those who buried the bodies. After which the dispute escalated and sticks came out from both sides. The police had to resort to laticharge to disperse the large crowd, but the situation got out of control. DIG Kanker said that more than 20 policemen were injured in the violence, including ASP and many constables. Dozens of people from the tribe’s side were also injured. Curfew was imposed for 48 hours and additional forces were deployed. The police detained more than 50 people. Hundreds of disputes and four major clashes in three years. This is not a new problem regarding the burial of corpses. From 2022 to 2025, hundreds of such cases were registered in Bastar, in which large-scale violence occurred four times. On 20 December 2022, the illegal burial of a body in a village in Narayanpur sparked controversy, which turned into stone-pelting. Exactly 12 days later, on January 1, 2023, a violent clash took place between the tribals and the Christian community in Narayanpur. During this, the head of District SP Sadanand Kumar was injured, more than 60 policemen were injured and dozens of villagers from both sides were injured. In late 2023, the same issue heated up in Amravati village under Kondagaon police station. Here, many policemen, including SDOP, were injured and both the communities set fire to each other’s houses. In 2024, FIRs were registered in more than 50 cases in seven districts of Bastar, including Jagdalpur. This includes collisions resulting from attempts to bury corpses. Now violence has broken out in Amabeda. In 2025, the incident that started from December 16 in Amabeda changed the cycle again. First, on December 17, more than 300 Christian supporters along with Bhim Sena attacked the tribes. They entered houses and were beaten and there was fighting. On December 18, a mob armed with sticks was summoned through messages in WhatsApp groups, where violence broke out again. After this, thousands of tribes gathered and churches were targeted by stone throwing and arson. Now there are more than 300 cases and hundreds of tribals including IPS officers and policemen have been injured in these incidents. According to statistics, more than 300 cases have been registered since 2021, raising alarm bells for the peace of Bastar. Herein lies the root of the dispute. The root of the dispute lies in repentance. The tribal community considers crematoria and graveyards as ‘Devasthali’, where their deities reside. These gods provide shelter to the soul after death. During conversion, Christian missionaries pressure the person to renounce the old gods and undergo baptism (purification). Tribesmen believe that the converted person blasphemes the gods, whereby when his cremation takes place at the shrine, the tradition is broken and the gods become angry. Therefore, from 2010, the Gram Sabha in every village of Bastar unanimously decided to build a separate cemetery for Christians. This decision came from joint meetings of tribal organizations and the Christian community, so that there is no cultural clash. But many convert families violate the rules of Gram Sabha and bury them on private land or in the old temple, which becomes a cause of controversy. The same happened in Amabeda, where an attempt was made to bury the body on private land. What is PESA legislation? Gram Sabha has been given expanded powers under the Panchayat (Extension to Scheduled Areas) Act PESA in Scheduled Tribe Areas. According to the Fifth Schedule of the Constitution, the Gram Sabha can take independent decisions on tribal culture, tradition and land management, which are binding on the administration. All villagers above 18 years of age are members of the Gram Sabha, and decisions taken by majority vote are implemented. The decision of separate cemetery in Bastar is based on this majority. Under PESA, the Gram Sabha is supreme in land use, social customs and dispute resolution. Supreme Court’s strict stand: Burial on private land is illegal Due to non-compliance of Gram Sabha rules, many Christian families have started burying on private land, which is legally invalid. The Chhattisgarh High Court has clarified in several petitions that burial on private land is prohibited without the consent of Gram Panchayat and Collector and without change of land use. In the petitions of Somaru Nag in 2024 and Ramesh Baghel in 2025, the petitioners cited constitutional rights, but the court rejected them. The court ordered that burials will only have to be done in Christian cemeteries within a radius of 20-25 km. There is a danger of disturbing regional peace due to private burial, so permission cannot be given. In these cases, the bodies were kept in the morgue for several days, but were eventually buried in Christian cemeteries according to court orders. Supreme Court in more than 20 cases Gave only one decision, strengthening the demand of the Gram Sabha. MP’s demand, letter written to Amit Shah Bastar MP Mahesh Kashyap termed these recurring disputes as a ‘threat to internal security’ and demanded an inquiry from Union Home Minister Amit Shah and the state government. He says, “International conversion forces are behind this. Rules have been made, the Supreme Court has given orders, but controversies are created by conspiracies, which incite violence.” Kashyap wrote a letter to the Center and State. IPS-IAS alert Earlier, in 2021, the then Sukma SP IPS Sunil Sharma had issued a circular asking to keep an eye on the suspicious activities of Christian missionaries. He warned that conversion due to greed could lead to violence. In 2023, Bastar divisional commissioner GR Churendra wrote a letter to all the collectors calling conversion the ‘biggest threat’ and asking them to list the activities of the missionaries. These warnings are coming true today. Conspiracy of Bhim Army and Christian Community Revealed Through WhatsApp Chat! Police investigation revealed big things through WhatsApp chats. Messages inciting violence have been circulating in the official groups of Bhim Sena since December 16. On December 18, people were armed with sticks and called ‘Bade Tevda’. The tribals who were present in small numbers were beaten twice on December 17 and 18 after entering their houses and making them run around. Incited by this, the tribes arrived in thousands and started stone-throwing and arson. It is clear from the conversations that the violence is pre-planned, which harms community harmony.
