Chandigarh, Jan 31 (IANS) Himachal Pradesh Congress president Kaul Singh Thakur Monday accused the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government of shielding tainted government officials and allowing corruption in the state.
‘The BJP government has ruined Himachal Pradesh. Corruption is rampant and the state government has no control over the bureaucracy. Many important and sensitive positions have been given to corrupt officials who are named in various cases,’ Thakur told reporters here.
He added: ‘A list of 62 such tainted officials, who are currently occupying important positions in the state, has been submitted in the high court. But no action has been taken against them as they are enjoying full patronage of the state government.’
Over the issue of nearly Rs.7 crore in unaccounted foreign and Indian currency seized from Tibetan leader Karmapa Lama’s monastery in Dharamsala, Thakur said: ‘This is a very serious issue of international relevance. The government of India is probing all aspects, especially the flow of Chinese currency in India. I cannot speak more on this issue.’
Thakur also accused the BJP government of commercialising education.
‘The Himachal Pradesh Education Board (HPEB) has seen a major scandal of about 900 students, who had never been to schools and not given any examination, getting merit certificates. No case was registered against the HPEB officials. The police only book clerks, drivers and postmen,’ Thakur accused.
‘The government of India has allocated several crores of rupees to Himachal Pradesh under the National Rural Health Mission, but the BJP has been misusing these funds. There are no doctors in hospitals and the state’s health sector has been completely paralysed,’ he claimed.
Thakur said that the Congress is to constitute a five-member committee to reveal various scams and publicly announce the deeds of tainted officials.
He also said that a land mafia is working in collusion with the state government.
‘Recently fruits, including apples, worth Rs.250-300 crore, were wasted as no transport was available to carry them to the markets,’ Thakur said.
