Election inching closer, a section of the Bharatiya Janata Party leaders in Uttarakhand is unhappy over the Chief Minister Harish Rawat’s Delhi sit-in being unduly hyped by some party leaders. “It is suicidal for us as the CM would derive the mileage out of the issue with some BJP leaders harping on it day in and day out. The upshot is that we are at the receiving end with Congress using it with a gusto to strike a favourable chord with the electorate ,” said a senior State BJP leader who insisted on anonymity.
BJP state spokesman Vinay Goel launched another attack on the CM on the issue on Wednesday, repeating the allegation that he had chosen to keep silent despite being a Union cabinet minister at the time when then UPA government issued the notification regarding Bhagirathi Eco Sensitive Zone (ESZ) involving Uttarkashi district. “He staged the Jantar Mantar show to hoodwink the people,” Goel said while addressing a press conference .
BJP also paraded advocate lokendra Singh Bisht before the media. Bisht alleged that when ESZ had been imposed on an area spread over 4500 square kilometer in Uttarkashi district he being a social activist had staged a stir against it and even challenged the order in the High Court in 2011. “Contrast this with the role of Harish Rawat and things are clear how he is trying to take the people for a ride,” he said.
“later, when he was the CM I met him and he assured that he would challenge the NGT order in Supreme Court. The state government spent Rs 55,000 to engage an Apex Court lawyer to fight the case. However, no case was filed with the money lying in the lawyer’s account unused,” Bisht said.
However, things are not going down well on a section of the state BJP leaders. “The chapter should not be dragged on indefinitely. It amounts to blowing things out of proportions. We had better take up developmental issues and the hollow development promises the CM rolled out without arranging budgetary provisions to back them up. Besides, there are myriad graft issues which we should relentlessly raise to tear into the ruling party,” said the leader.