Kidnapped Chhattisgarh Cong chief, son found dead, toll 27
Update
Raipur, May 26 (PTI): The bullet-riddled bodies of Chhattisgarh Congress chief Nand Kumar Patel and his son Dinesh, who were kidnapped by Maoists, were today found 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 yesterday has climbed to 27, police sources said.
32 people have been injured in the attack, DGP Ram Niwas said today.
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.
Senior Congress leader Mahendra Karma was killed and former union minister V C Shukla injured when heavily-armed Maoists ambushed a convoy of party leaders inside a dense forest in Chhattisgarh's Bastar district yesterday.
Congress Vice President Rahul Gandhi, who arrived here in the wee hours today, 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.
"I met V C Shukla and other injured leaders at a hospital. As soon as his condition becomes stable, he'll be sent to Delhi," he said.
"Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Congress President Sonia Gandhi will also be visiting the state," Gandhi said.
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. We all are in shock".
Soon after the attack yesterday, 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 April 12 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.
Earlier Report: May 25
Raipur, May 25 (PTI): Striking in a big way, heavily-armed Maoists today shot dead senior Congress leader Mahendra Karma and injured former union minister V C Shukla who is said to be critical having sustained three bullets in an ambush in a dense forest in Chhattisgarh's Jagdalpur district.
The Maoists also kidnapped PCC chief Nand Kumar Patel and his son Dinesh after attacking a convoy of Congress leaders in Darba Gati Valley, police said.
A former Congress MLA from Rajnandgaon Udya Mudaliyar was 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.
There were unconfirmed reports of some policemen and other Congress acitivists being killed in the attack.
Karma, a former Home Minister who was a guiding force behind "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.
The Personal Security Officers of the Congress leaders returned the fire but soon ran out of bullets becoming sitting ducks.
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 April 12 in the state where Assembly elections are due by year end.
Chhattisgarh Congress media cell president Shailesh Trivedi said it was matter of investigation whether Naxals were involved in the attack. He alleged the state's BJP government did not provide adequate security to Congress' Yatra despite opposition from Naxals.
"Naxals have opposed both BJP's Vikas Yatra and Congress' Parivartan Yatra. However, the state government provided security only to BJP's Yatra and not to the one organised by Congress. Had it been provided security, today's incident would not have happened," he said.
Soon after the attack, Congress activists came out on the streets and staged demonstrations in several districts of the state condemning the Maoist attack.
Chief Minister Raman Singh convened an emergency meeting of the cabinet to discuss the situation arising out of the Maoist ambush and the fate of the kidnapped PCC chief and his son.
In New Delhi, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh held a meeting with Congress chief Sonia Gandhi and party Vice President Rahul Gandhi to discuss the situation in the state following the major attack.
Singh spoke to Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Raman Singh and enquired if the state needed additional forces to cope with the Maoists and to launch a combing operation.
The Union Home Ministry said it was rushing additional paramilitary personnel to the state to launch an anti-Maoist combing operation.