Himachal BJP 'Gherao' Of Assembly To Protest Against Congress 'Corruption' Turns Unruly

The furious workers, both men and women, rushed against the barricades, attempting to pull them down and march to the Vidhan Sabha.

Himachal BJP protest against incumbent Congress Government's closure of institutions, law-and-order situation, and failure to implement poll guarantees. ( Image Source :X/@BJP4Himachal )

The BJP's gherao of the Vidhan Sabha became chaotic when a significant number of its activists and leaders attempted to break police barriers at Chaura Maidan, which is less than a km away from the Vidhan Sabha, news agency PTI reported. The furious workers, both men and women, rushed against the barricades, attempting to pull them down and march to the Vidhan Sabha. Speaking at the 'Janata mange hisaab, kyun kiya vishwasghat' (people want answers, why were they betrayed) rally at Ambedkar Chowk, BJP leaders claimed the Sukhu government's performance during its first nine months in office was grim, and all of its policies and decisions had a negative impact on the common man.

The protest was planned before the assembly met for the day at 2 p.m. Following the gathering, BJP officials and workers marched towards Vidhan Sabha, about one km away, but were blocked with police barriers.

जनविरोधी कांग्रेस सरकार के खिलाफ भाजपा का जोरदार हल्ला बोल।#जनविरोधी_कांग्रेस_सरकार pic.twitter.com/FoCd6YCB5u

— BJP Himachal Pradesh (@BJP4Himachal) September 25, 2023

Protest leaders and party workers chanted slogans against the government and attempted to breach the barricade, resulting in a small altercation with police. Former Chief Minister and Opposition Leader Jai Ram Thakur said BJP MLA Janak Raj (Dharmaur) was wounded after being struck with a cane by police.

Later, the BJP MLAs demanded that they be permitted to enter the Vidhan Sabha to attend the House. As the party employees dispersed, they were permitted in separately.

Speaking during the protest, Jai Ram attacked the administration, accusing it of failing to make a single pro-people move. Its sole accomplishment, he claims, was the closure of over 1,000 legitimate health, revenue, education, and other organisations.

The BJP has called for a protest and Vidhan Sabha gherao on the last day of the Monsoon Session to protest the incumbent Congress Government's closure of institutions, law-and-order situation, fuel inflation, alleged nepotism in relief distribution, and failure to implement poll guarantees.

Earlier on Sunday, former Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Jai Ram Thakur had termed the government's white paper on the state's financial situation a "bundle of lies." The white paper, according to Thakur, is "wrong and fabricated," and the state's financial mismanagement stretches back to 1993-1998, when the Congress administration raised a loan of Rs 1,000 crore from the market at a higher rate of interest on behalf of the State Electricity Board, PTI reported.

During the period 2012-2017, the Congress administration raised Rs 20,000 crore in loans, and this white paper needs to be discarded, he informed reporters.

According to the state assembly's Leader of the Opposition, three payments of dearness allowance were due when the BJP administration took over in 2017, and in addition to paying 18% DA, the government also granted an additional 3% temporary relief to employees and pensioners.

Thakur said that the Goods and Services Tax compensation was only applicable for five years and that the state government was misleading people with its white paper on the subject.

The Sukhu-led administration had previously alleged that the national government had ceased sending it GST compensation, causing the state to lose Rs 2,642 crore in income per year.

Thakur said that during the UPA I and UPA II administrations, Himachal received just Rs 108 crore for railways, which was increased to Rs 1,838 crore during the NDA administration.