Senior Congress leaders among 28 killed in Maoist attack

RAIPUR, May 26: At least 28 people, including senior Congress leader Mahendra Karma and PCC chief Nand Kumar Patel and his son Dinesh, were killed and former union minister V C Shukla and 19 others injured when heavily-armed Maoists ambushed a convoy of party leaders inside a dense forest in Chhattisgarh's Bastar district.

The Maoists attacked the convoy of Congress leaders in Darba Gati Valley near Jagdalpur, headquarters town of Bastar district, police said on Saturday.

The bullet-riddled bodies of Chhattisgarh Congress chief Nand Kumar Patel and his son Dinesh, who were kidnapped by Maoists have been found today along with those of eight others in Jiram valley in Bastar.

With the recovery of the bodies, the toll in the lethal Maoist attack on a convoy of Congress leaders on Saturday has climbed to 28.

32 people have been injured in the attack, DGP Ram Niwas said on Sunday.

The bodies of Patel, his son Dinesh and eight others, mainly security personnel, have been recovered from Jiram valley in Bastar division, the sources said.

The Maoists had kidnapped Patel and his son Dinesh after attacking the convoy of Congress leaders.

Heavy rains in the area is hampering the operations of the security forces.

84-year-old Shukla underwent an operation in Jagdalpur hospital for the three bullets he had received in the attack to be taken out of his body.

Congress President Sonia Gandhi said in New Delhi that Shukla was hit in his stomach.

Raman Singh said the condition of Shukla was stated to be stable.

Besides Karma, former Congress MP Gopal Madhavan and ex-MLA from Rajnandgaon Udya Mudaliyar were also shot dead and prominent woman tribal leader Phulo Devi Netam, Bastar, wounded by the Maoists who attacked the convoy at around 1730 hours when they were returning from the party's "Parivartan" rally.

Karma, a former Home Minister and founder of "Salwa Judum" (anti-Naxal operation by vigilante groups), was surrounded by about 100 to 150 Maoists who peppered his body with bullets.

The Maoists had put up road blocks by felling trees before triggering a landmine blast that hit one of the vehicles in the convoy and opening fire, police sources said.

After carrying out the attack, the ultras set nearby trees on fire.

It's an attack on democracy, says Rahul

RAIPUR, May 26: Congress Vice President Rahul Gandhi, who arrived in Raipur in the wee hours on Sunday, said the party cannot be cowed down by such attacks and will continue to move forward.

"It is not an attack on Congress. It is an attack on democracy. But, we'll not fear from such an attack and continue to move forward with enthusiasm," Gandhi said.

Gandhi also met V C Shukla and other injured leaders at a hospital.

In the wake of the deadly attack, security has been stepped up at the Congress Bhavan in Raipur and other vital installations in the state.

State Congress Spokesperson Rajesh Bissa said, "The body of Nand Kumar and his son have been found. If the state government would have taken care of security during Parivartan Yatra, then this incident would not have happened.

Soon after the attack on Saturday, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh had spoken to Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Raman Singh and offered all help in rescue and relief operations.

He strongly condemned the "dastardly" Maoists attack on Congress leaders and workers in Chhattisgarh.

The Maoist attack took place in a dense forest near National Highway 202 connecting Chattisgarh with Naxal-hit Bhadrachalam district in adjacent Andhra Pradesh.

Opposition Congress' Parivartan Yatra, comprising senior party leaders, had launched Parivartan Yatra on 12th April in the state where Assembly elections are due by year end.

The Centre has rushed more than 600 CRPF personnel, including elite CoBRA anti-Maoist commandos, to sanitise and take control of the Naxal attack site in Chhattisgarh.

The Centre has mobilised the CRPF personnel to not only take control of the area but also launch search and rescue operations as it is suspected that some people may be present in nearby jungles.

I won’t be soft like my mother, says Rahul

NEW DELHI, May 24: Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi sent out an unusually blunt message to his party colleagues on Thursday, promising to be tougher than his mother in dealing with factionalism and indiscipline.

“I will not be soft like my mother. I will stringently deal with factionalism,” Gandhi told the state Congress leaders, according to party sources.

Meeting Congress MPs, MLAs, councillors and party functionaries from Delhi at the state Congress office, Gandhi said he would tackle indiscipline with an iron hand.

With early Lok Sabha elections a possibility and Delhi assembly polls due in November this year, Gandhi insisted on strengthening the state leadership and better coordination between the party and the government.

“He woke up all of us. We will fight elections together,” Delhi chief minister Sheila Dikshit told reporters after the meeting.

Gandhi’s call for better co-ordination between the party and the Delhi government comes after reported differences between Dikshit and Delhi Pradesh Congress president and MP Jai Prakash Aggarwal.

Aggarwal, however, insisted the differences had been resolved.

“We had differences. It is a family and there was nothing unusual in having differences. But today, the differences were resolved. We will work together,” Aggarwal said.

Premier Manmohan boasts of powerful India

NEW DELHI, May 24: Just weeks after the recent Chinese incursion in eastern Ladakh, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Thursday said significant additions have been made to “land forces” to protect India’s borders, even as sources said the Union finance ministry is all set to clear the proposal to establish a mountain strike corps of the Army in the eastern sector despite the high financial implications.

The mountain strike corps will for the first time give the Indian Army offensive capabilities vis-a-vis China. The proposal is now expected to be sent to the Cabinet Committee on Security for final clearance.

“India’s defence and security are a fundamental obligation of the government to our people. Our government has attached the highest priority to these tasks,” the Prime Minister said on Thursday at the foundation stone-laying ceremony of the Indian National Defence University in Gurgaon.

Speaking also about the Indian Ocean Region, the Prime Minister said India is “well positioned, therefore, to become a net provider of security in our immediate region and beyond”.

The recent controversy over bribery allegations in Italy regarding the VVIP helicopter deal of 2010 also seemed to find an echo in the concerns of the Indian political leadership.

“We have also been guided by the objective of making our defence acquisition transparent, smooth, efficient and less vulnerable to unethical practices,” Dr Singh added.

Averse to frisking, Meira Kumar shoots down Ukraine visit

NEW DELHI, May 24: Lok Sabha Speaker Meira Kumar shot down a bilateral meet at Kiev after Ukraine refused to exempt her and accompanying six MPs from frisking.

Although India enjoys close ties with Ukraine, Kiev could not give any written assurance to New Delhi that Kumar and other MPs would not be subject to security checking.

The tour was finalized almost two months ago but as Ukraine dithered till the last moment over the touchy issue of security checking, Kumar decided at the last moment not to go to Ukraine.

Her husband, Manjul Kumar was also accompanying her for the tour.

Initially, the delegation was slated to tour Belarus and Ukraine from May 20 to 27. But the delegation returned from Belarus last night.

“Whenever any foreign parliamentary delegation comes to India, we ensure that their members are not subject to checking. This is the courtesy we extend to them and we expect the same for us,” said an official source.

While this is Kumar’s first such decision to call off a tour at the last moment, her predecessor Somnath Chatterjee refused to go to many countries including the US on the same ground as he too, fiercely tried to protect the dignity of parliamentary delegation.

For New Delhi, frisking has been a sensitive matter and even became a major diplomatic issue with Washington when former president APJ Abdul Kalam was frisked at New York’s JFK Airport. US later issued an apology to Kalam.

Sources added that Ukraine reportedly pointed out that a part of Kumar’s tour was out of the official agenda but Lok Sabha secretariat refused to buy this argument.

Kumar, who once faced security check while touring an African nation, had decided to only to those countries where local government can assure security exemption for Indian parliamentary delegations. Kumar was accompanied by BJP, Congress, JD(U), Shiv Sena MPs.

Congress returns to power in Karnataka

BANGALORE, May 8: Congress swept to power in Karnataka with 121 seats in a House of 225, while the BJP and JD(S) were tied at second spot with 40 each. It is after 14 years that voters have handed an absolute majority to the Congress to govern without the baggage of coalition partners. Congress last enjoyed unfettered power in 1999, while it shared the government with Janata Dal (Secular) between 2004 and 2006.

In the results declared on Wednesday, Congress swept with 121 seats in a House of 225, while the BJP and JD(S) were tied at second spot with 40 each.

The Congress hugely benefitted from a split in BJP votes and multi-cornered contests in almost every region, gaining more than 40 seats over its 2009 tally. The BJP lost 70 seats, struck by strong anti-incumbency and a division of votes.

Rebel leader and former chief minister BS Yeddyurappa snatched large vote chunks from BJP by fielding his own nominees to avenge his removal from the CM’s post, and refusal thereafter by BJP leaders led by Ananth Kumar to let him play any role in the party. His Karnataka Janata Paksha (KJP) got only seven seats but inflicted heavy damage on BJP.

Twelve ministers of the outgoing Jagadish Shettar cabinet, including his deputy KS Eshwarappa, bit the dust. Industries minister Murugesh R Nirani, in two minds till the last minute on joining Yeddyurappa, also lost.

Other ministers who lost included V Somanna, BN Bache Gowda, Revunaik Belamagi, A Narayanaswamy, Sogadu Shivanna, SA Ramadass. Among prominent Congress candidates who lost was former civil aviation minister CM Ibrahim.

The results were a big setback for Gujarat chief minister Narendra Modi who campaigned for the BJP in an effort to see that even if it was not re-elected, it at least stopped the Congress from gaining a majority.

After a reluctant start, Modi targetted the Gandhi family and Congress during campaigns in Bangalore, Mangalore and Belagum but voters refused to be persuaded by him to overlook BJP's mistakes. His polarising speeches may also have pushed Muslims, who make up for more than 10%, solidly into the Congress fold, analysts said.

Reacting to the Congress's victory, PM Manmohan Singh said, "I congratulate Congress for working hard. Certainly, the electorate sent a message against corruption by the BJP. Corruption is a big issue for the country."

He said the people vote for governance and "if you stop governance, people will vote you out".

Congress president Sonia Gandhi said, "I am happy with the victory. It's a joint effort and legislators will decide the leader."

JD(S) leader HD Kumaraswamy, who had hoped to be the kingmaker, blamed the media for rooting for a Congress win and influencing voters. "We will be happy to be the main opposition in Karnataka. We will play our role well," he said.

An interesting highlight was the Samajwadi Party opening its account in Karnataka with its candidate CP Yogeshwara winning from Channapatna, about 60 km from here. He defeated Kumaraswamy's wife Anita.