RAIPUR: Almost five years after the front-line Congress leaders in Chhattisgarh were massacred in a Maoist attack in Bastar, the opposition Congress on Friday moved an application before the one-man judicial commission seeking to summon as witness the then Union home minister Sushil Kumar Shinde , chief minister Raman Singh and others arguing that they were privy to crucial information.The Chhattisgarh Pradesh Congress Committee, through its secretary Vivek Bajpai, has filed an application before the Judicial Commission of Inquiry (Jheeram Gathi) seeking to call Shinde, Singh, the then Union minister of state for home RPN Singh and then state home minister Nankiram Kanwar as witness along with their affidavit to depose as a witness.The one-man judicial commission, headed by justice Prashant Mishra, is probing into the 2013 deadly Maoist attack at Jheeram Valley in Bastar district where frontline state Congress leaders were killed.Former state Congress president Nandkumar Patel, his son Dinesh, former leader of the opposition Mahendra Karma, former union minister VC Shukla, former legislator Udaya Mudaliyar were among the 27 people killed in the ambush on a Congress convoy when their 'Parivartan Yatra' was returning from Sukma.Congress media cell chairman Shailesh Nitin Trivedi said the application maintained that till date those who have been examined by the judicial commission are either private persons or the state police or CRPF functionaries whereas the persons who were executive heads and were accountable in the democratic set up set up under the Constitution— the then union home minister and state chief minister and state home minister have not been examined.The application said Nankiram Kanwar had stated in the assembly on behalf of the government that since the inquiry is going on and the same will bring out the factual position of the security measures.Besides, a similar answer was also given by the centre in Parliament on August seven 2013 that a judicial commission of inquiry is going on into the security lapses that led to the attack. “Thus, the truth of the incident is entirely dependent on the instant inquiry as far as the terms of reference of the inquiry is concerned," the application said.Moving its application for summoning them as witness, the Congress pointed out that the security arrangement in the Jheeram Gathi area and for the Parivartan yatra was the primary responsibility of the state government whereas the centre through ministry of home was also responsible for providing all sorts of support as and when desired. In view of this since there was no occasion to get relevant information with regard to the terms of reference, testimony of then home minister, minister of state for home, state chief minister and home minister before the commission is essential in the interest of justice.State Congress submitted that Shinde was the Union home minister at the relevant time which controls not only the CRPF and other para-military forces but also had a special LWE wing beside also controlling the intelligence bureau. He had also visited Jheeram Valley on May 31, 2013 and reviewed the situation. The then minister of state for home RPN Singh had reached Raipur along with the then prime minister and was part of the review meeting held in Raj Bhawan.Pointing out that chief minister Raman Singh was a member of the inter-state council which was instrumental in formulating strategies to combat Naxalism. He was also the head of the unified command of all the state and central forces operating during the relevant time and being head of the state government directly and constitutionally responsible for the security of the Parivartan Yatra and also leaders like Mahendra Karma, Nand Kumar Patel and VC Shukla as they being the most prominent leaders of the main opposition party.Thus he is privy of many crucial information. It is needless to say that, the war between state with Maoists is to safeguard the democratic setup for which opposition political parties too are important and stands on a similar footing like the political party in power, the application said. As state Home minister Nankiram Kanwar too is privy to many crucial information.

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