Condemning the reported comment of Chief Minister Raghubar Das after recent deaths taken place at various places allegedly due to starvation, the Congress has demanded clarification from the Government apart from seeking compensation to all such families not getting ration in the State.
Party in-charge of the State and AICC general secretary RPN Singh first took part in a dharna organised by the PCC members to highlight the deaths and later addressed the media hitting out the machinery in place.
“It is shameful that the Chief Minister in his reported media comment has denied that the deaths took place out of hunger. What else could have taken so many livesIJ On what basis he or the DCs concerned claimed that the persons were died due to some illness,” said the former Union Minister on Tuesday.
The State is in news for deaths happening one after another in Simdega, Jharia and Deoghar during last one week where depriving the persons of their monthly ration is said to be prime reasons behind the incidents.
“The Government is speaking in multiple voices. First the Food and Civil Supplies Minister (Saryu Roy) claimed that ration cards were delinked due to not furnishing Aadhaar on the Chief Secretary’s instruction while the CS denied having passed any such order. Now the CM is saying the deaths had not taken place due to hunger while facts suggest that the families were not getting ration for months. This is a bizarre situation when 11 lakh ration cards have been cancelled in the State,” said the leader who had flown down to Ranchi especially for this purpose.
The party at the same has decided to stage dharna and protests across all the districts on October 30 to highlight the plight of poor. “We will take the issue up to the booth level. Dharnas would continued until the Government pay compensation to all those who have been stripped off their ration card or denied ration. I would also like to warn Government officials to work in free and just manner hence the present dispensation is not for always and they will have to face ire of the law if they continue suppressing the facts with them,” said Singh.
Also present on the occasion was PCC president Sukhdeo Bhagat who said that the State has slipped on the Hunger Index further and reached to 31.4 this year. “The Government could not link ration cards with Aadhaar in this digital age but has surely linked poor to the yamraj. The UPA had brought legislation to provide food security to the masses but present dispensation is unable to even run it properly,” said Bhagat, flanked by former Union Minister Subodh Kant Sahay, Barhi MlA Manoj Yadav and AICC spokesperson Ajoy Kumar.