After the opposition Bharatiya Janata Party sought safety for its Parivartan Yatra, Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel stated on Saturday that all political activities in the state’s Naxal-affected districts will be given complete security ahead of elections, news agency PTI reported. The BJP on Friday sent a letter to the state’s Director General of Police requesting safety for its Yatra, which is set to begin on September 12 in Naxal-affected Dantewada. It did not trust the state’s Congress government, stating that BJP leaders were being targeted and assassinated in the Bastar area.
Assembly elections are scheduled to be held in the state by the end of this year.
When questioned about it on the sidelines of an event, CM Baghel said: “Complete security will be provided to all political parties. We have lost our leaders in Jhiram Ghati in 2013.”
“During the recent meeting of the unified command (of security forces), we have clearly directed that all the political programmes should be provided full protection in Naxal-affected areas,” he informed reporters.
On May 25, 2013, ahead of the assembly elections, Maoists attacked a convoy of Congress leaders during the party’s ‘Parivartan Rally’ in the Jhiram valley in Bastar district, killing 29 people, including then-state Congress chief Nand Kumar Patel, former leader of the opposition Mahendra Karma, and former Union minister V C Shukla.
When questioned regarding the ongoing G20 summit, CM Baghel stated: “When (former prime minister) Indira Gandhi had hosted a convention, the heads of more than 100 countries attended it. Some heads of state are not attending this event. Even the opposition has not been invited….Till now no results of the meeting are visible, we will see what is its outcome in the coming days.”
When questioned by reporters on Friday if he would attend a G20 dinner scheduled for Saturday, Baghel replied he couldn’t since Delhi had declared a no-fly zone.
The Union Home Ministry stated on Saturday that no limits had been put on governors and chief ministers flying on state aircraft to Delhi or neighbouring places.