Shimla: In an embarrassment to the state government, the verbal spat in public over the construction of Central University of Himachal Pradesh between MP Anurag Thakur and Chief Minister Jai Ram Thakur, has once again exposed divide within the BJP.
Union Minister of State for Finance Anurag Thakur on Tuesday, minced no words in expressing his displeasure while taking to task the state government during a public rally at Jaswan-Pragpur in Kangra district, where the stage was also shared by Chief Minister Jai Ram Thakur.
Much to the anguish of Jai Ram Thakur, Anurag Thakur raised question on the functioning of his government.
Anurag Thakur stated that ever since BJP came to power in 2017, nothing much has been done to ensure the much needed progress for the project to materialize.
Blaming the Chief Minister for having no hold on the administrative machinery, he claimed that decks had been cleared by the Union Government due to his concerted efforts and also Rs 500 crore had been allotted for his dream project.
The onus now lay with the state government to get things cleared at it’s own level, however the land has still not been transferred, despite lapse of three years, he added.
Not loosing an opportunity to retort, Jai Ram Thakur stated that the public stage was not the right place to have raked up the issue in such a manner in the presence of the public and media, as it sends across wrong signals.
He said that he had already taken up the matter with the officials to expedite all the formalities at the earliest so as to give shape to the project.
BJP a divided house: Rathore
Taking a dig on the verbal battle between CM and Union Minister, State Congress president Kuldeep Singh Rathore stated that the BJP is a divided house. “Verbal spat between Jai Ram and Anurag on an open public Dias clearly shows the growing dissent between the BJP party leadership in state” Rathore said.
Congress president claimed that the BJP is unnecessarily taking the credit of Central university Kangra whereas, contrary to it the Central University was announced by P. Chidambaram at a Rally in Ridge Shimla on 2, October 2007.
Release Rs. 150 Crore, Local MLA asks Anurag Thakur
Meanwhile, local Independent MLA Hoshiyar Singh has blamed the Union Government for delay in the work. Hoshiyar stated that even after decision of having two campuses of the Central University at Dehra and Dharamsala, classes only started at Dehra in 2018 only after the pressure of the Sangharsh Committee of common people.
Raising doubts over the claim of sanctioning of Rs. 500 crore for the project, Hoshiyar Singh asked MP to release Rs 150 crore so that the work could be started at Dehra. He also questioned the Union Government for laying the foundation stone of the University before the parliamentary elections though the detailed project report of buildings had not been prepared and funds were not released.
