Raipur: Following allegations by BJP president JP Nadda that insurgent attacks in Chhattisgarh increased under the Congress tenure, Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel refuted the saffron camp's allegation on Sunday. "On Saturday, JP Nadda came to Bastar, and paid homage to the martyrdom of those who died in the Maoists' attacks, this is commendable, but he included the road accident victim in the insurgent attack victims' list. The driver of the vehicle, who killed the victim, was caught in Jagdalpur, and he admitted that the car had met with an accident. How did he (Nadda) include this in the Maoist attack list ?" he asked.
Replying to the BJP President's claim that Maoist activities have been on the rise under the Congress regime, Baghel noted that 600 villages in the state had been reclaimed from the control of Maoists under the Congress rule. "You will see from records that we have freed about 600 villages from Maoists' control. This is the strength of our soldiers and our strategy. Earlier Maoists used to attack collectively, but now they rush into houses and fire shots, killing and escaping from the area. This indicates that they have become weak," the CM stated.
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"In all, 300 schools reopened in Bastar, schools which were closed during the BJP regime, if we look at last year's figures, the least number of civilian casualties have come to the fore, and the same trend can be observed when it comes to jawans. There has been a reduction in casualties and incidents of weapon looting. This has been successful because of our policy of security, trust and development," he further added.
Asked about his stance on BJP's demand for a judicial inquiry into the killings of party workers, Baghel said he had no reservations about even a Central probe. "Tell me what is the conspiracy in this. When our police were investigating the murder of Bhima Mandavi, they (the Centre) sent the NIA. Does anyone know what was in the NIA report? If it wants, the NIA can take over this investigation as well. I have no objections," he said.
This comes after Nadda, during a massive rally in Bastar, alleged the rise in Maoists attacks. "It exposes the administration here. When Raman Singh (BJP) was in power, there was peace here and the problem of law and order did not exist," he said while addressing the crowd. Referring to Congress as a synonym for failure, the BJP president also noted," It is the policy of the Congress to stall, block and divert work. On the contrary, we are made for development. They (Congress) block development and their aim is to divide and rule," he further noted.
