It's poll time in Himachal again and the Congress government is under attack for being ‘Mitron Ki Sarkar’ by the opposition BJP.
It started with Chief Minister, Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu appointing his friends to the cabinet rank immediately as he took over, which equates them with cabinet ministers in terms of facilities, though they are not elected representatives.
Sukhu appointed two of his friends, Sunil Kumar Bittu as his Political Advisor and Naresh Chauhan as his Principal Media Advisor in the cabinet rank in December, 2022. Along with this, he also appointed Gokul Butail as his IT Advisor and Kehar Singh Khachi as Vice Chairman of Forest Corporation in the cabinet rank reportedly at the instance of high command.
What made it a cause of heartburn in the party circles was that compared to this, the Chief Minister did not make appointments to boards and corporations, which are generally done to accommodate the party men in routine. Some appointments were however made after the revolt in ruling Congress in February-March this year, when a rival faction headed by Pradesh Congress Committee Chief, Pratibha Singh pointed it out.
Many elected representatives too have been left sulking in the Congress government, as Sukhu, who is the first Congress CM from lower areas of the state hailing from Hamirpur district, gave more precedence to upper areas of the state in cabinet and other appointments, for reasons unknown.
The slogan, which was reportedly coined by some Chief Minister’s adversaries has come handy for BJP, which is referring to it as ‘Mitron Ki Sarkar' on every platform.
CM’s Principal Media Advisor and Vice President of Himachal Pradesh Congress Committee, Naresh Chauhan, however, objected to the BJP’s accusation of it being ‘Mitron Ki Sarkar’.
"What is wrong with it if CM trusts his old friends, who stood by him through thick and thin, and is giving them responsibility in the government? Should enemies be given a place in government?," he questioned.
He said the Congress party has won four out of six by-elections and will again win the by-polls slated for July 10 also because people have faith in Congress government and the leadership of Chief Minister, Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu.
The opposition party has upped the ante against the Congress on the issue, alleging that the Chief Minister has been subtly distributing doles to his friends at the cost of the state exchequer in HP, which is already reeling under a huge debt burden.
"Himachal Pradesh is under the debt burden of around Rs 80,000 crore, but the Congress government is not bothered. The Chief Minister is increasing the debt burden by distributing cabinet ranks among his friends, who are not even elected," said former BJP Chief Minister and Leader of Opposition, Jai Ram Thakur.
He alleged that the state government had taken action against many stone crushers in the wake of natural calamity in 2023, but those owned by CM’s friends were spared.
Meanwhile, the government’s move to give cabinet rank to three MLAs as Chairman of HP Tourism Development Corporation, Vice Chairman of State Planning Commission, and Chairman of 7th State Finance Commission has also not given positive signals politically.
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