Congress firms up stand on Dharamsala as 2nd capital

Tribune News Service

Dharamsala, October 16

The Congress today made second capital status to Dharamsala as its main issue for the byelection.

Addressing a press conference here today, Congress leaders led by CLP leader Mukesh Agnihotri said the party’s official stand was that Dharamsala was the second capital of the state. The party stands by the notification the Congress government issued during its previous stint in power officially declaring Dharamsala as the second capital. He said if Congress was voted to power, it would give allowances to employees of Dharamsala Secretariat on a par with that of the Shimla Secretariat.

The Congress firmed up its stand over the issue after former CM Shanta Kumar in a press conference held at Dharamsala recently said that there was no need of second capital in a small state like Himachal.

Agnihotri said it was unfortunate that the present BJP government in the state was discriminating against the Kangra and other lower regions of the state. Government offices have been shifted from Kangra district to Mandi. Many development projects going on in the district have also been shifted.

He said the CM himself had admitted that nothing much had been done in Dharamsala region in the last two years. For that the BJP should issue a public apology to the people of Dharamsala.

He also criticised the government was spending crores on the Global Investors Meet being held next month in Dharamsala. Nothing much was likely to come out of it as there was no focus on the sectors in which the government wanted investment.

The government also does not have any stated policy for industry which can attract investment. Earlier it was being projected that private investors would be invited for investors meet but now ongoing investments by public sector units are being shown as investments, he said.

Congress MLA Rajinder Rana demanded that the government should put before people the outcome of police case in the letter bomb case wherein graft was alleged in the Health Department.