Raipur: The conflicting statements of two top Congress leaders has created question marks over the counteroffensive strategy against Naxals in the state.
The anti-Maoist operation in Chhattisgarh was "poorly designed and incompetently executed", said Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, a day after a CRPF senior official denied "intelligence failure" after 22 security personnel were killed in an ambush in the Naxal stronghold Bijapur.
"If there was no intelligence failure then a 1:1 death ratio means it was a poorly designed and incompetently executed operation," the Congress leader tweeted tagging a news clipping of CRPF DG Kuldiep Singh's "no operational and intelligence failure" remark.
"Our Jawans are not cannon fodder to be martyred at will," he mentioned in his tweet.
Meanwhile, Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel while speaking to the media at Raipur airport on Monday denied any intelligence failure in the Bijapur incident.
He said, it was a war not merely an encounter, here jawans directly countered the Naxals. They attacked jawans because now security forces are giving them a tough fight in their safe dens. We are raising police camps, will keep establishing camps, anti-Naxal operations will continue. Developmental works will be carried out at full pace.
Naxals have been forced to remain confined in 40x40 square meters area only, the CM said.
Earlier, Naxals used to carry out attacks on camps, now the fights have converted into man-to-man fights, CM Baghel said.
While after Rahul Gandhi’s tweet, CM Baghel modified his stand. A better strategy would be adopted in this fight against Naxalites, the CM stated on Monday. Sacrifice of our jawans will not go in vain, the CM while he visited CRPF’s Basaguda camp in Bijapur along with Union Home Minister Amit Shah.
Our jawans have fought the Naxalites with indomitable courage and bravery, causing great damage to the Naxalites. We are proud of their martyrdom, the CM added.
