Congress top leadership today paid homage to the Maoist attack victims including party leaders, who were killed in Chhattisgarh on Saturday.
Party President Sonia Gandhi and Vice President Rahul Gandhi offered their obeisance to those killed in the violence after prayers at the party headquarters 24 Akbar Road here.
This was the first such condolence gathering at the AICC after 2001, when a similar programme was organised in the party headquarters to pay homage to the victims of the unfortunate plane crash on October 1 that year. Senior party leader Madhavrao Scindia and some journalists were killed.
Party General Secretary Janardhan Dwivedi said that the prayer gathering today was not only for Congress leaders but all those including the policemen who were killed in the Naxal violence.
While Prime Minister Manmohan Singh was not be able to attend the meeting as he has left for Japan, senior ministers including A K Antony, Salman Khurshid, Jairam Ramesh, M Veerappa Moily, senior leader Ambika Soni and party general secretaries Janardan Dwivedi and Motilal Vora were present.
In his remarks, Dwivedi said that there is "sorrow as well as anger" in the hearts of Congressmen over the incident as some more of its leaders have got martyrdom. He also said that one should never have fear while working for the welfare of the society.
Rahul Gandhi, who had visited Chhattisgarh in the wee hours yesterday had termed the incident an attack on democracy.
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Congress President Sonia Gandhi had also visited the state and met the victims there.
Heavily-armed Maoists ambushed a convoy of Congress leaders in Chhattisgarh's Bastar district on Saturday, killing 27 people including Congress leader Mahendra Karma, ex-MLA Uday Mudliyar, state unit chief Nand Kumar Patel and his son. 32 others, including party veteran V C Shukla, were injured in the attack.
