Jairam describes Bastar Maoist attack as 'holocaust'

Describing the Maoist attack on a Congress convoy which claimed close to 30 lives as a "holocaust", Rural Development Minister Jairam Ramesh Sunday said the incident shows that left-wing extremists have no faith in democracy.

"This is an attack on our democracy and the Congress party," Ramesh said at a press conference here, asserting that the attack proved that Maoists have no faith in the democratic system.

Claiming that the development being brought about in the Naxal-affected areas had scared the Maoists, Ramesh said: "Congress had promoted political activism in the area."

The minister, however, said that the government would continue with its developmental activities in the region. "I believe that out of the 82 identified Naxal-affected districts, development work needs to be focussed on 20 to 22 severely affected ones."

"The situation in these districts, where the Maoists have a strong presence, is very serious," he said.

The toll in the Saturday evening ambush attack by Maoist insurgents on the Congress convoy at Dharbha Ghati Valley in southern Chhattisgarh's Sukma district in the restive Bastar is placed at close to 30 -- paramilitary forces are searching the adjacent forests for more bodies.