Kandahar hijack: Congress targets NDA, says government compromised with terrorists

New Delhi: The Congress on Friday wanted to know whether the NDA government under former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee had paid a ransom to the Taliban for the release of passengers on Indian Airlines Flight 814, which had been hijacked and flown to Kandahar, Afghanistan.

"There is no doubt that IC-814 episode was badly handled by the Vajpayee government, but the moot question which has still not been confirmed is did the then government pay a ransom to the Taliban to get the passengers released?There have been lots of stories about alleged suitcases being carried but what was the truth, the nation should know," Congress leader Manish Tewari said.

The former chief of the Research and Analysis Wing (RAW) AS Dulat opened a whole new can of worms in his book Kashmir: The Vajpayee Years. Congress spokesperson Ajoy Kumar said that Dulat had revealed some "disturbing facts."

"They have compromised the interests of the country whenever they have been in power. Who was behind these decisions? The prime minister should break his silence and apologise to the country," Kumar said.

Read: Handling of Kandahar hijack was 'goofed up', says former RAW chief AS Dulat

The Congress party also accused the NDA government of soliciting a deal with Hizbul Mujahideen chief Sayeed Salahudeen in order to grant the terrorist's son admission into an MBBS programme.

"The son of terrorist and Hizbul Mujahideen chief Sayeed Salahudeen was granted admission in MBBS under the aegis of the Vajpayee government. On one hand, our brave security forces were being martyred by a dangerous terrorist like Salahudeen, and on the other hand, the NDA government admitted his son in an MBBS programme. We ask the BJP to reveal all relevant information as to why Salahudeen's son was given admission and why such a compromise was made with such a noted terrorist," Congress leader Ajoy Kumar said at a press briefing.