Chouhan negates office-of-profit charges

Gwalior, Mar 24 (UNI) Negating the office-of-profit related allegations levelled by Madhya Pradesh's main opposition Congress, Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan today pointed out that the Constitution permitted an eligible person to occupy the chief minister's office for six months irrespective of whether the incumbent was an MP.

''In Madhya Pradesh, this dispute was raised on neither constitutional nor moral footing but on political basis by the opposition party,'' he told journalists at the local airport.

Making an oblique reference to Congress President Sonia Gandhi, Mr Chouhan quipped, ''After Madam's resignation, the Congress raised the issue in the assembly with the objective of gratifying her.'' The Chief Minister said a vidhan sabha ordinance promulgated in 1967 ruled that the posts of chairpersons of corporations and boards were not offices of profit in this state.

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