Congress makes deals with Maoists: Modi

Bemetara (Chhattisgarh) – Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi on Thursday accused the Congress Party of entering into secret deals with Maoists in Chhattisgarh.

Calling Congress president Sonia Gandhi and her son Rahul Gandhi as ‘Madam’ and ‘Shehzade’ (Prince), the Gujarat Chief Minister, who was addressing a rally in Bemetara, said: “The Congress lacks the courage to fight Maoists. They do backdoor deals with them. But (Chief Minister) Raman Singh is fighting them.”

“The Government in Delhi doesn’t have the courage to fight Naxalism, whle Raman Singh is fighting it alone without Delhi’s help,” claimed Modi

“Even after Maoist warnings, and the politics of pistols, seventy percent people voted in first phase of elections in Chhattisgarh. They have showed their faith in demaocracy. The Maoists killed BSF jawans during first phase of polling. Some jawans are still in hospital,” the BJP prime ministerial candidate said.

“They (BSF) are not just there for security during polls, they are protecting democracy,” he added.

Modi was reacting to Sonia Gandhi’s recent criticism of the law and order situation prevailing in Chhattisgarh under the leadership of the BJP and Chief Minister Raman Singh-led Government on

“Like other Naxal affected states, full assistance has been provided by the Central Government to Chhattisgarh. The Naxal attack on Congress leaders in May this year is a matter of shame for the BJP-led Chhattisgarh Government. What measures have they taken to protect the people from Naxalism,” Sonia Gandhi had asked on Tuesday during a Congress rally.

Chhattisgarh, which witnessed a voter turnout of 67 percent in its first phase on Monday, will go into its second phase of polls on November 19, for the remaining 72 constituencies.