Minister’s wife hogs limelight

Rajni Thakur, wife of Forest and Transport Minister Govind Singh Thakur, shot into limelight last week. She has become famous overnight in the state. She has also given enough political arsenal to the Congress which made it a poll issue in Dharamsala. She is facing ire on the social media for carrying Rs 2.5 lakh in a government vehicle while visiting a saloon in Chandigarh. She lodged a complaint with the UT police claiming that the cash was stolen from her purse. Even back in her home town, BJP opponents slammed the minister for carrying hefty cash by his wife especially when the government was promoting cashless transaction and banks are not allowing withdrawal exceeding Rs 20,000. Second, it was strange that she chose to visit Chandigarh when the week-long Kullu Dasehra was on.  She has brought embarrassment for the Jai Ram government as the Congress accused her of violating the poll code by using the government vehicle that belongs to the MD of the HRTC.

Road to inconvenience 

Promoting tourism may be the government’s pursuit, at least on the paper, but looking at the narrow roads in Kasauli, the claims seem far-fetched. Traffic jams extending for kilometres on the roads during weekends are a recurrent problem and the situation is so perilous that some people have stopped coming to the hill station. The three-day literary festival has again exposed the visitors to this hassle with many avowing never to visit the town. Will the government wake up?

Campaigning or picnic!

Congress leaders are descending on Dharamsala for the bypoll to help the party candidate. However, for most, it is picnic. They go to a hotel, owned by the family of the candidate, address a press conference, get photos clicked, roam about in Dharamsala and go back. With just 20 per cent votes of the constituency are in the city, it is a mystery how the leaders will help the candidate win the election. 

Nadda then and now

BJP working president JP Nadda’s first visit to his home state after assuming the office was noteworthy in the sense that former Chief Minister PK Dhumal joined the grand reception accorded to Nadda at Bilaspur. Nadda was a Cabinet minister in the Dhumal government in 2010 but preferred the post of the BJP national general secretary and quit the Cabinet as he was reportedly feeling uncomfortable. No such reception was accorded to him when he visited the state for the first time after his induction in the team. Post held by a person is more important than the person himself, commented a senior party leader.