Dhumal terms BJP's Hamirpur rally successful

Shimla, Apr 7 (UNI) Former Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Prem Kumar Dhumal today described the party's rally at Hamirpur as a ''great success with over 70,000 people participating despite the state government's attempts to keep people away from it''.

Addressing a press conference here, he said the rally was ''historic'' with an overwhelming number of people from all parts of the state participating in it.

Mr Dhumal said he had also raised the issue of private bus operators being asked by the respective regional transport officers not to divert their buses for the Hamirpur rally in the Budget session of the Assembly, which concluded on Thursday.

The RTOs had even threatened to revoke the licences of private bus operators who give their buses to the BJP for ferrying people too and fro from Hamirpur yesterday, he said.

Reading out extracts from a recent order of the government, he said several buses passing through Una town were terminated at Una where the Congress Party's Jan Chetna rally was taking place yesterday.

Referring to a report in a section of the press about the killing of 50 buffaloes at Poanta Sahib in Sirmuar district of the state, he said effective steps should be taken to prevent the re-occurrence of such incidents in the future.

The former chief minister said while the peoples' participation in the BJP's rally yesterday was spontaneous, the Congress' rally was held after gearing up the state machinery to make it a success.

The state Congress Government would be swept away in the BJP wave, which had helped it in winning the Delhi Municipal Corporation elections after its recent victory in Punjab and Uttaranchal Assembly elections, he added.

UNI