By Our Staff Reporter
Dehradun, 26 Feb: BJP State President Mahendra Bhatt today alleged that former Chief Minister Harish Rawat is indulging in a political drama by protesting against holding the budget session of the state assembly in Dehradun instead of Gairsain. In a statement issued here, today, Bhatt asked Harish Rawat why he was silent over the several Congress MLAs having written to Speaker of the State Assembly urging her to hold the session in Dehradun.
Bhatt claimed that the government did not take the decision to host the budget session in Dehradun, unilaterally, but in accordance with the feelings of the majority of the members. He reminded that 44 MLAs, including many Congress MLAs, had urged the government to hold the budget session in Dehradun in view of the prevailing severe cold in Gairsain.
Bhatt said that former CM Rawat has been raising questions on every single issue and holding a protest on each. This, Bhatt claimed, had become a favourite pastime of Harish Rawat. Bhatt claimed that the government decided to hold the assembly session in Dehradun by respecting the opinion expressed by a large number of MLAs cutting across political lines. He said that the Congress President has spoken about action against the Congress MLAs who had written the letter. On the one hand, the Congress itself is demanding to hold the session in Dehradun and, on the other hand, former Chief Minister Harish Rawat is fasting in protest. Harish Rawat ought to have asked his party MLAs why did they write the letter urging the government to hold session in Dehradun instead of blaming the government and choosing to remain silent over his own party MLAs who had a role to play in the decision to host the session in Doon. Bhatt said that Congress has been confused about Gairsain since the beginning. It was the BJP that had created the state and also declared Gairsain as the summer capital. At the same time, Harish Rawat is terming his efforts regarding Gairsain as atonement.
Congress needs to become the voice of issues of public interest and it is not going to gain anything by making headlines or pretending to behave in public interest. Today, the BJP government is living up to public expectations through historic actions and this is also proving to be a lesson for the Congress.
