Himachal Pradesh: Many Cong MLAs are in touch with us, claims BJP leader

Shimla, Oct 3: BJP today claimed that many Congress MLAs, who are "not happy" with functioning of the Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister, are in touch with the party, a day after the entire Congress Legislature Party and state leaders met Sonia Gandhi over the "political vendetta being unleashed by the Modi regime" on Virbhadra Singh.

"After registration of FIR and CBI raids at residences of the chief minister in connection with disproportionate assets case, the Congress government is on a sticky wicket and trying to put up a united face but many part MLAs are in touch with the BJP," party's state general secretary Randhir Sharma told reporters here.

Seeking resignation of the chief minister on moral grounds, Sharma alleged that Singh was sticking to his chair to influence the CBI probe.

"I can't tell you the names as it would be politically unethical and the BJP Legislature Party is meeting here on October 5 to take stock of political situation and chalk out its strategy to take the battle against corruption to its logical end," he said.

"If the chief minister was clean, he should have resigned immediately to facilitate free and fair probe but he was leaving no stone unturned to stick to his chair to influence the CBI investigation," Sharma alleged.

He said while the entire government is busy in political maneuvering, developmental works have come to a standstill in the state.

"It was insulting and matter of shame for the state that the entire CLP, HPCC and even some officers, were blatantly defending the chief minister after the CBI raids," he said.

Refuting the charge that the NDA government was wreaking political vendetta against Congress leaders, Sharma said, "Had it been political vendetta the raids would have been conducted in 16 days and would not have taken 16 months."

Asked whether former chief minister Prem Kumar Dhumal, who is facing charges in HPCA cases, would also resign as the Leader of Opposition, the BJP leader said, "Dhumal is not facing charges of personal nature and these are related to land leased out to the Himachal Pradesh Cricket Association.

In an unprecedented action on a serving Chief Minister, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on September 26 raided the official residence of Virbhadra Singh and 10 other places in connection with an alleged disproportionate assets case on a day his daughter was getting married.

PTI