TNR Interview: Himachal CM’s close aide Awasthy claims Sudhir staring at defeat, levelling corruption allegations out of frustration
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The Newz Radar
Chief Parliamentary Secretary and Himachal Pradesh Congress Committee working president Sanjay Awasthy has called Congress turncoat Sudhir Sharma “opportunistic”. The Arki MLA, who was in Dharamshala, alleges that Sudhir was staring at defeat and levelling false allegations out of frustration against Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu.
In an interview with The Newz Radar correspondent Shivanshu Shukla, Awasthy gives a sneak peek into the Congress’ strategy for the June 1 Assembly byelections and the Lok Sabha polls.
Q: Former minister Sudhir was your MLA and now he is accusing the CM of corruption. Does he have any secrets and what about the charges of shady deals in Baddi and Nalagarh?
A: His (Sudhir’s) own intentions seem such. A person whose mindset is corrupt uses the same prism to view others. All his allegations are baseless. We are ready to answer his questions if he shows any credible evidence, any papers signed by CM Sukhu.
Q: There are also allegations that instead of “Sukh ki sarkaar”, this government has become “Doston ki sarkaar”. Is it true that the Chief Minister has become arrogant?
A: It’s a matter of great fortune and pride for the people of Himachal to have such a clear-hearted and down-to-earth CM. He inherited a debt of Rs 90,000 crore from the previous BJP regime. On top of it, a loss of Rs 12,000 crore was incurred in last year’s rain disaster and hardly any help came from the Centre. Despite this, the CM, due to his efficient management, disbursed Rs 4,000 crore disaster relief.
Q: If the Chief Minister has done such good work, why is he facing constant dissent?
A: CM Sukhu exemplified altruism by donating his entire life’s savings of Rs 51 lakh towards relief efforts after the 2023 rain disaster. Only those leaders who couldn’t fulfil their greed over the past 15 months of the Congress rule are frustrated. Moreover, they can’t see a man from an ordinary family rising to the top post. This government is corruption-free.
Q: What discussions were held during your block-level meeting in Dharamshala and how confident is the Congress to take on BJP candidate Sudhir?
A: The people of Himachal voted for the ‘Hand’ (Congress symbol) in the 2022 Assembly elections, but some people betrayed the trust of the party as well as the voters. The people will teach a befitting lesson to the traitors in the byelections.
Q: Why the inordinate delay in the announcement of candidates by the Congress when the BJP nominees are almost half-done with their campaigning?
A: The elections in Himachal Pradesh are to be conducted in the last phase on June 1. We have sufficient time to challenge the BJP. The candidates are expected to be announced this week.
Q: Who will be your party’s candidate for the Dharamshala byelections?
A: The Congress trusts its workers and the workers will choose their leader. This is our priority and whoever gets the ticket, all the workers will work together to ensure the Congress victory.
Q: Sudhir has filed a private criminal complaint over defamation against the CM. Your take?
A: This is a provision in law. Anyone can complain against anyone, but the complaint gets converted into FIR only when it is certified after investigation. The complaint is bound to fail during investigation.
Q: The Central University campus is a major issue in Kangra politics. Why is your government not depositing the remaining amount and isn’t this a discrimination against Dharamshala?
A: The BJP government too was in power for five years. Why did it leave these issues unresolved? Our CM has committed that the state government will fix this by reassessing the matter.
