KOCHI: Congress and its INDIA bloc allies have shown where they stand on Left wing-extremism by backing retired Justice B Sudershan Reddy as vice-presidential candidate despite knowing his “ideological support” for Naxalism, home minister Amit Shah said Friday at an event in Kochi.”Had Justice Reddy not delivered the judgment asking for Salwa Judum to be disbanded, Left-wing extremism would have been eradicated by 2020. This is the same person who, driven by ideology, used a sacred platform like the Supreme Court to pronounce such a verdict,” Shah said at the Manorama News Conclave.He was referring to the then SC judge’s 2011 ruling declaring Salwa Judum, an armed tribal group formed to counter Maoists in Chhattisgarh, unconstitutional.Shah also addressed the controversy surrounding the Constitution (130th) Amendment Bill, saying it was imperative to ensure by law that the country’s PM or the CM of any state doesn’t get to run a govt from jail. Later at Tirunelveli, Shah described Tamil Nadu’s DMK govt as the “most corrupt in the country” and said CM MK Stalin, who was “striking shady deals and indulging in dark deeds” had no right to criticise the bill as a “black bill”. Speaking at BJP’s first regional booth committee meeting in Tirunelveli, Shah said the loud objection to the bill from opposition parties was not based on logic. “Opposition parties question the need for the bill. Then DMK ministers K Ponmudi and V Senthil Balaji remained in jail for eight months each but did not resign. Tell me, can a govt be run from jail?” Shah asked.He also reiterated there would be a coalition govt in the state after the 2026 elections, a position stridently opposed by key ally AIADMK.He, however, did not mention AIADMK general secretary Edappadi K Palaniswami in his speech.
