Article criticising PC reflected party view

Congress General Secretary Digvijay Singh on Saturday said that his criticism of Home Minister P Chidambarams handling of Naxalism in a signed newspaper article last April reflected the partys views....

Congress General Secretary Digvijay Singh on Saturday said that his criticism of Home Minister P Chidambarams handling of Naxalism in a signed newspaper article last April reflected the partys views.

You have seen the article in Congress Sandesh (Congress President Sonia Gandhis Letter to the Congresspersons last May) and the statement by the Prime Minister in Parliament. That should make things clear, Singh told The Sunday Express maintaining that his article in The Economic Times reflected the partys views. He,however,clarified that he had not asked anyone in the party before writing the article. Asked whether Gandhi had discussed the issue with him later,he quipped,I dont discuss what the Congress President tells me.

Asked if his article had any bearing on the way the party and the government look at Naxalism today,the Congress General Secretary said,The socio-economic agenda has been brought out.

Singh also said that he did not regret making the comment about Chidambaram being intellectually arrogant in that article. Asked if he still stood by that comment about Chidambaram,Singh said,I do,but if he feels bad about it,I have already apologised. Singh said that he and Chidambaram remained close friends and it was a comment on a friend.

While Singh stood by his criticism of the Home Minister,he also put on record his support for Chidambarams initiative to put in place a unified command of four Naxal-affected states. There is need for a unified command because once people cross the borders,police have to take permission. The basic issue is you have to win peoples hearts, he said.