leaders on the hunger strike spree in Haridwar on Thursday, while veteran Congress leader and former Chief Minister Harish Rawat sat on a day- long fasting at Jiapota village senior BJP leader, MP from Haridwar and former Chief Minister Ramesh Pokhariyal ‘Nishank’ along with Cabinet Minister Madan Kaushik and other BJP MlAs did the same at the district collectorate in the city. However, the two leaders of the rival parties latched to two different issues to embark on the fasting. While Harish Rawat made social justice the propelling issue, ‘Nishank’ said that the disruptive mindset of the Opposition Congress shown during the recently held Assembly session at Gairsain had forced him to go without food for a day.
Harish Rawat said that the weaker section of the society is at the receiving end of the Government machinery out to suppress them. “They are being looked down upon as no welfare scheme is being taken up by the new Government. They are being suppressed and subjected to atrocities in the BJP –ruled States, including Uttarakhand. I have taken up the day-long fast to articulate the anger of the weaker section against the Government which is indifferent to their interests,” he said.
Ramesh Pokhariyal ‘Nishank’ said that the Congress lawmakers had stopped the Assembly during the budget session from transacting important business bearing on development of the state. “This is an unhealthy trend for the participatory democracy. This is destructive too as it resulted in wastage of a huge sum spent for conducting the session. This must stop and the people’s interests and development must be allowed to gain precedence over the sectarian politics,” the former Chief Minister said.