Bali stays away from winter sojourn, denies rift with CM

Lalit Mohan

Tribune News Service

Dharamsala, January 15

Minister for Transport, Food and Civil Supplies and Technical Education had been staying away from the winter sojourn of Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh.

The week-long sojourn started from January 11 and will now continue till January 18. Bali is reportedly sore after he was denied entry on the stage during the rally of Rahul Gandhi at Dharamsala on December 24.

After the rally episode Bali has openly expressed his displeasure and demanded that the Chief Minister should inquire the incident.

The Chief Minister had been maintaining such incident had not happened and Bali was unnecessarily making an issue.

The incident also had its political repercussions for the party as Bali raised the issue of giving unemployment allowance to youth as was promised by Congress in its manifesto in the state. With Bali raising the issue, it gave ammunition to the opposition to target the Congress government. It also split the leaders in the party.

While the HPCC president Sukhwinder Sukhu said that the party would fulfil the promise made in its manifesto, the Chief Minister ruled out unemployment allowance.

The sources here said that many Congress leaders had been trying to broker peace among the Chief Minister and Bali. It was also being speculated that Bali was demanding transfer of some officers who were allegedly responsible for denying him entry on stage during Rahul Gandhi’s rally.

Bali, when contacted, said that he had not demanded transfer of any officer and had never discussed the issue with the Chief Minister.

About his absence from winter sojourn, Bali said that he was busy with his own engagements.

He denied any differences with the Chief Minister and said that whenever there would be any program related to his departments or the Chief Minister would demand his presence he would definitely attend.