Welcoming several former Congress leaders into the party fold on Thursday, BJP State Chief Vishnudutt Sharma attributed the exodus in favour of his party to the policies and welfare initiatives of the state and central governments.

Among those joining the party at the BJP state headquarters in Bhopal were Congress councillors in the Satna Municipal Corporation, Maya Kaul and Archana Anil Gupta, former councillor Engineer KL Yadav, and Anil Gupta.Welcoming the leaders by draping a ceremonial shawl, Sharma remarked that the arrival of the two councillors into the party has provided a response to those bent on disrupting the political situation in Satna.

Slamming the recent pronouncements of senior Congress leader and Rajya Sabha MP Vivek Tankha, Sharma accused the opposition party of spreading falsehoods.Tankha had recently criticised the state government's decision to allow the takeover of the state-owned milk brand 'Sanchi' by the National Dairy Development Board (NDDB).

National Dairy Development Board is a Central Institution: VD SharmaIn a media communiqué issued later in the day, the Khajuraho MP accused Congress leader Vivek Tankha and the Congress party of spreading falsehoods and working to defame the state government over the Dairy Federation."Rahul Gandhi is tarnishing India's image abroad, and Congress leaders are doing the same within the state by spreading falsehoods," said an agitated Sharma.

Reminding the Congress of the background of the National Dairy Development Board, Sharma stressed that the NDDB is not a state institution.

Clarifying the government move, he said that control of the Dairy Federation was not being ceded to just any party.Highlighting the benefits of the move, he said that dairy farmers in the state will gain from the vast experience and recognition the NDDB enjoys in the sector.Sharma cautioned the people of the state against Congress attempts to mislead and obstruct welfare initiatives of the state government.

He said that the upgradation of the Dairy Federation will directly benefit 11,000 villages in the state.Providing statistics, the BJP state unit chief said that the production of 550 lakh litres of milk places the state as the third-largest milk producer in the country.Sanchi collects only 2.5% (10 lakh litres) of this milk, with no increase over the past 15 years. Seventy percent of our milk is sold in the open market, which leads to issues of adulteration, he added.