Calling the Maoists who butchered Congress leaders in Chhattisgarh’s Darba on Saturday “terrorists”, Union rural development minister Jairam Ramesh challenged the Naxals for an electoral fight “if they are so confident of their ideology”. He claimed Saturday’s “carnage” will be a turning point in the battle against the Naxals.
Mr Ramesh, who has often visited the Naxal belt, more so after taking charge of rural development, warned left-leaning intellectuals not to “romanticise” Maoists, “who are terrorists as they spread terror”. Speaking to television channels on Tuesday, Mr Ramesh said the extremists “have no faith in the Constitution, democracy or democratic institutions”.
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Cong calls on Raman to quit over massacre
Age Correspondent
New Delhi, May 28
The Congress Party on Tuesday asked Chhattis-garh chief minister Raman Singh to quit for failing to protect people from Maoists, who it called “criminals”. It also demanded responsibility be fixed for this tragedy.
The Congress made it clear it will not abandon the “parivartan yatra” even after 28 people, including senior party leaders, were gunned down last Saturday. Saying that the Maoists were “scared” of the Congress even though it had been out of power in the state for nearly 10 years, party insiders suggested the Maoists had been soft on the BJP, which helped it in the last Assembly polls.
“Raman Singh should step down”, Congress spokesman Bhakta Charan Das said on Tuesday.