As the security establishment remains clueless and grapples with the fallout of the Maoist attack on Congress leadership in Chhattisgarh, Union Home Minister Sushilkumar Shinde is away in the United States and will return only on Wednesday.
Shinde, who left New Delhi on May 19 to attend the Indo-US Homeland Security dialogue, is not cutting short his visit and will return home as scheduled on May 29, sources said.
Except Shinde, all other members of the Indian delegation who went to the US to take part in the May 20-22 bilateral meetings, have returned home.
The sources said Shinde stayed back in the US after May 22 for private purposes and there were no official engagements to attend.
CRPF DG Pranay Sahay is also reportedly on leave and is learnt to have left for Badrinath. Sahay will also be returning by Wednesday, CRPF sources said.
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, Congress president Sonia Gandhi, party vice-president Rahul Gandhi, Minister of State for Home RPN Singh, Home Secretary Designate Anil Goswami had visited Chhattisgarh on Sunday while Union Home Secretary RK Singh and other senior Central officials will visit the State on Tuesday.
Shinde said on Saturday that he had spoken to Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Raman Singh and announced the handing over the probe into Saturday’s incident to NIA.
Interestingly, in Shinde’s absence, Finance Minister P Chidambaram is understood to be in regular touch with Home Ministry officials.