BJP united behind Dhumal, says Shanta Kumar

Dharamshala, May 10 (UNI) Former union minister Shanta Kumar today asserted that the BJP is united behind former chief minister P K Dhumal, party's candidate for the June two Hamirpur Lok Sabha by-polls.

Talking to UNI here, he said the BJP has fielded the strongest candidate for the by-polls and would win the elections with a record number of votes.

Mr Kumar said the announcement of the BJP's candidate had rattled the Congress, which had failed miserably in fulfilling its promises made to the electorate during the last assembly elections.

Referring to the clash between the BJP and the Congress activists here recently, he demanded strict administrative action against the concerned district official who failed to maintain peace in the town.

''It was an administrative mismanagement, which resulted in the trouble. Strict action should be taken against the concerned official,'' he said.

Expressing concern over the district administration acting at the behest of a particular minister, he said the officials should be loyal to the Constitution and not to a particular person.

Replying to a question, he said the party's main plank during the Lok Sabha by-polls would be corruption and described Congress one of the was the most corrupt political parties of the country.

The party that was devoted for winning independence till 1947 was now devoted all its energy for spreading corruption and making false promises to the people of the country, he said.

Terming the Congress as the ''mother of corruption'', he said rising prices of essential commodities was hurting the common man the most.

Defending suspended MP Suresh Chandel, whose expulsion from the Lok Sabha forced by-polls from Hamirpur constituency, he said while no one saw him (Mr Chandel) accepting bribe of Rs 10,000, a sum of Rs three crore were recovered former union communication minister Sukh Ram's house a few years ago.

The money thus collected from his house in a police raid were counted and deposited in the government treasury, he said.

Mr Kumar said the party that was neck deep in corruption had no moral right to give lectures on corruption.

Mr Dhumal would file his nomination papers at Hamirpur on May 14 in presence of party incharge Sahib Singh Verma and other senior party leaders, who would later address a rally there that day, he said.

UNI