Chhattisgarh CM, BJP had deal with Maoists: Digvijaya Singh

The Congress leader also paid homage to the Central Reserve Police Force men killed in the ambush.

New Delhi, April 25: Senior Congress leader Digvijaya Singh on Tuesday stirred a controversy by reiterating that Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Raman Singh and the BJP had a "deal and understanding" with the Maoists in the state. He called for talks with all stakeholders to bring Maoist violence under control.

"Chief Minister Raman Singh ji and the Bharatiya Janata Party win elections from there because they had a deal and understanding with the Maoists. I have said this before, and I am stating it again," Singh told reporters here.

His statement came after Home Minister Rajnath Singh on Tuesday dubbed Monday's massacre of 25 CRPF personnel by Maoists in an ambush in Chhattisgarh as "cold-blooded murder" and said the Centre will review its anti-Maoist strategy.

The Congress leader also paid homage to the Central Reserve Police Force men killed in the ambush. Digvijaya Singh said unless the state's tribal villagers are taken into confidence, Maoist violence cannot be brought under control. "The government should talk to all the stakeholders. Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his government only believe in 'jumlas' and have been indulging in it since May 2014," he said.

IANS