Raipur: 2:58 pm: Congress Vice President Rahul Gandhi called the Jagdalpur massacre an attack by the Naxals on the ideals of India. "I condemn, in the strongest terms, the violent massacre by Naxals in Chhattisgarh. In this time of extreme grief and tragedy, Congress workers of India stand firmly in solidarity with the families of our brave colleagues and security personnel who laid down their lives, as well as with all those who suffered injuries. We stand firmly by the resolute and courageous people of Chhattisgarh. This is not an attack on the Congress workers or on the Congress party. It is an attack on the democracy and the ideals of India, founded on the bedrock of non-violence. No force, howsoever brutal, can deter us through violent means. Our nation shall never be deterred from working for the welfare and well being of all our people through peaceful, democratic and constitutional means," said Rahul.
2:37 pm: President Pranab Mukherjee on Sunday condemned the attack on a Congress convoy in Chhattisgarh.
"I am deeply dismayed and shocked at the wanton violence unleashed by Maoists in Chhattisgarh on a convoy of vehicles carrying leaders of the Congress party. I condemn this incident in the strongest of terms and would like to reiterate that violence has no place whatsoever in our democratic polity. The nation will neither be overawed nor intimidated by such action. I call upon concerned authorities to do their utmost to bring the perpetrators of this crime to justice. The safety and security of our citizens should be ensured at all times. I express my deepest condolences to the families of those killed in the incident and offer my prayers for the speedy recovery of those injured in the incident," the President said in a statement.
2:31 pm: Union Rural Development Minister Jairam Ramesh says Naxals don't respect democracy. "I was present with all those who have been targeted and killed. This proves that Naxals have no respect for democracy. It is aam sabha that give oxygen to democracy. With political parties cannot hold aam sabhas, there can't be any democracy. This is an attack on democracy and an attack on the Congress party. The party had taken steps to encourage political processes on the ground. Naxals were scared of the impact of development on villagers. In October 2011 when I visited Bijapur first, out of 157, only 80 villages had MNREGS. Yesterday when I was in Bijapur, now MNREGS is present in 111," said Ramesh.
1:46 pm: LK Advani says the attack carried out by Naxals in Chhattisgarh on Saturday is one of the most "audacious" attacks. He says Congress leader VC Shukla's parameters indicate he is stable. Shukla, who was critically injured during the attack that killed over 20 people, mostly Congress leaders, is getting treatment at Medanta Hospital in Gurgaon.
1:08 pm: Manmohan Singh has announced an ex-gratia relief for the Naxal attack victims. Rs 5 lakh will be given from the PM's National Relief Fund to the families of those who have lost their lives, Rs 50,000 to those injured.
1:06 pm: BJP veteran leader LK Advani reaches Medanta Hospital in Gurgaon to meer injured Congress leader VC Shukla.
12:36 pm: At the condolence meeting in Raipur Congress President Sonia Gandhi says, "I appreciate the courage and bravery of Congress leaders in Chhattisgarh."
12:21 pm: Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Congress President Sonia Gandhi attend condolence meeting in Raipur. "We have to be more determined in fighting Naxal extremism. These lives should not go in vain. This incident should be treated as an inspiration in our fight against forces of extremism and violence," says Manmohan Singh at the meeting.
12:16 pm: Security forces sanitise site of Naxal attack in Jagdalpur.
11:38 am: Dr Avadesh Kumar Dubey, MS Medanta updates about the health of injured Congress leader VC Shukla: VC Shukla is being treated by a multi disciplinary team of doctors, he was shifted by an air ambulance. His condition is still critical.
11:13 am: Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Congress President Sonia Gandhi reach Raipur. They are on their way to Jagdalpur where the attack took place.
10:55 am: Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan tweeted: "We must not allow our democracy to be subverted by this bullying called left-wing extremism."
10:24 am: Chhattisgarh Congress chief spokesperson Shailesh Nitin Trivedi alleges conspiracy behind the Naxal attack on Saturday in which several party leaders were killed. "We are sad and I don't know how to express myself. I believe they have not provided him (Nand Kumar Patel) with proper security. I believe this is a conspiracy. When they had threats then they should have provided him with high security. They have given chance to Naxalites. This is negligence in his security," said Trivedi.
9:45 am: Congress leader Digvijaya Singh says, "Strongly condemn the Naxalite attack on Congress leaders. I have lost friends and colleagues with whom I have worked very closely."
9:30 am: BJP leader Sushma Swaraj tweets on Chhattisgarh Naxal attack: It is shocking and most unfortunate. We condemn this outright.
9:13 am: Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Raman Singh and four ministers reach Jagdalpur.
8:05 am: Eyewitnesses say a badly mutilated body found next to Nand Kumar Patel is that of his son, Dinesh, but there are no confirmed reports yet.
7:56 am: Chhattisgarh Congress chief Nand Kumar Patel's body found.
7:55 am: Police clarify there is no news of Nand Kumar Patel's abducted son, Dinesh.
Earlier there were reports that Dinesh was found hiding in a ditch in the dense forests of Jagdalpur district on Sunday morning. Nand Kumar Patel and his son Dinesh were believed to have been abducted by Naxals following an ambush on a convoy of Congress leaders in a dense forest in the district.
Sources said Nand Kumar was the main target of the ambush. On Saturday, the Naxals carried out one of the deadliest attacks in Chhattisgarh, killing at least 21 people including anti-Naxal movement Salwa Judum's founder Mahendra Karma and former Congress MLA Uday Mudliyar in Darba Ghati Valley.
"There was firing on moving vehicles. We could not even get out but since we were in the corner some of us got out. We hid there for about an hour and a half. We didn't know what to do because we were surrounded by so many Naxals," said an injured security personnel.
The attack targeting the Congress party convoy occurred during the Parivartan Yatra and most of those killed were party leaders and workers.
Dead body of Karma has been brought to Jagdalpur district hospital for postmortem. 16 other bodies of PSOs and Congress workers are also kept in Jagdalpur mortuary. Chief Minister Raman Singh may visit the hospital on Sunday where the injured are being treated. "This is not an attack on any political party but on our democracy. We will continue to serve the people of the state in the same way in which we have done for last 9 years," he said.
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh is expected to reach Chhattisgarh by Sunday 11 am. He is likely to meet the Chief Minister and review security situation with him.
CRPF forces have been rushed to sanitise the attack site in Bastar. A judicial inquiry has been ordered and Congress has called for a state bandh.
Meanwhile, Congress Vice-President Rahul Gandhi reached Raipur early Sunday morning and met the victims of the attack.
At least 30 others were injured including veteran Congress leader Vidya Charan Shukla, MLA Kwasi Lakhma and prominent party worker Gopi Vadhwani, who were rushed to a hospital in Jagdalapur. The seriously injured were later shifted to a Raipur Hospital and later on Sunday morning Shukla was airlifted to Medanta Hospital in Gurgaon near Delhi. Shukla suffered three bullet injuries.
The heavily-armed Naxals, numbering several hundred, reportedly opened fire on the Parivartan Yatra when it reached near forested Darba Ghati area on way to Jagdalpur, the police said.
"The Naxals attacked the convoy in a cowardly fashion in Darbha Ghati where there was no security arrangement. Our leader Mahendra Karma asked them to kill him and spare the rest of them. But they did not listen to him and fired hundreds of bullets. Following this, they beat him with a gun and broke his head," said an eyewitness.
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