Lunch diplomacy by CM to placate miffed Kangra MLAs

Pratibha Chauhan
Tribune News Service
Shimla, June 11

Chief Minister Jai Ram Thakur today resorted to lunch diplomacy to placate miffed Kangra legislators who have opened a front against state organizational secretary Pawan Rana accusing him of trying to build his own stature by raising a parallel organization.

“I have made it clear that MLAs must be taken into confidence and there should be no interference in their constituency,” he said pointing finger at Rana. “He is interfering both in government and in organizational matters which is not acceptable to any one of us”, he said.

Party sources said it was not just Dhwala but even other ministers and MLAs also expressed displeasure over Rana’s dictatorial style of functioning. They have pointed out that Rana is trying to build a parallel organization and is making appointments without consulting MLAs and is getting works done in their assembly segments, against their wishes.

The lunch meeting with 10 party legislators from Kangra at Oak Over, the official residence of the Chief Minister, is being considered significant, especially in the backdrop of the meeting of some BJP leaders in the presence of Kangra MP Kishan Kapoor at a rest house in Kangra some time back.

The presence of former MLA and Ravinder Singh Ravi, a staunch Dhumal loyalist, had created a flutter in Kangra politics.

Last night too, some MLAs are learnt to have expressed their displeasure over certain irritants at the BJP Legislature Party meeting, which lasted for almost six hours and got over almost around midnight. The MLAs in one voice demanded restoration of the Rs 1.75-crore annual MLA Area Development Fund, which they said was a big help in getting small development works in their area. Following outbreak of corona pandemic, government had taken decision to not give this fund amount to MLA’s for one year.

The Chief Minister also expressed his annoyance over 10 BJP legislators meeting Vidhan Sabha Speaker under the leadership of Leader of Opposition Mukesh Agnihotri, seeking convening of special session to discuss the situation arising out of outbreak of corona pandemic last month. He is learnt to have said that his own party MLA’s meeting the Speaker under leadership of CLP leader was extremely strange.

The issue of Rajeev Bindal’s resignation also came up for discussion at last night’s meeting. While Bindal clarified that he had stepped down on moral grounds and he was in no way linked to the audio clip that has gone viral regarding the alleged health scam.

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