Shimla/Dharamshala:
In a rare political theatrical show, Himachal Pradesh witnessed an unusual spectacle — the ruling Congress protesting against the Modi-led Central government, while the BJP staged loud walkouts and dharnas against the Sukhu government inside and outside the Dharamshala Assembly.
Both sides raised accusing fingers, each blaming the other for financial chaos, administrative paralysis and political doublespeak.
For the first time, the ruling party itself hit the streets accusing the Centre of withholding funds due to Himachal, including those announced by the Prime Minister.
Congress leaders warned that disaster-hit regions were being forced into financial distress even as the state struggled to recover from last year’s calamities.
But as Congress shouted slogans against Delhi, the BJP MLAs launched an aggressive counter-offensive in Dharamshala.
They staged protests, created uproar in the House and eventually walked out, accusing the Sukhu government of failing to conduct panchayat polls, planning a lavish three-year celebration in Mandi using state money, and yet “constantly crying shortage of funds.”
The Negi vs Jairam slugfest has added fresh fuel to Himachal’s already heated political cauldron. While Congress minister Jagat Singh Negi has been firing sharp jabs at the BJP, accusing former chief minister Jairam Thakur of running a “remote-control opposition” and obstructing governance, the BJP has hit back just as fiercely.
Jairam’s camp says Negi is “obsessed” with both the RSS and the former CM, and is deliberately making provocative statements to divert attention from the Sukhu government’s failures — from delayed panchayat polls to the worsening financial crisis.
What began as routine political criticism has now escalated into a full-blown personal battle, with both leaders trading punches almost daily, turning the Assembly and media space into a battlefield of barbs, accusations and political one-upmanship.
BJP MP and former union minister Anurag Singh Thakur said Himachal Congress government is attacking the RSS only to hide its own failures. Having failed on development, law and order, and even its own guarantees, the government is trying to divert public attention by spreading falsehoods against the world’s largest nation-building and service-oriented organization. The RSS has always worked selflessly—from disaster relief to social and cultural service. The Congress must abandon its distorted mindset and apologise unconditionally for this baseless propaganda.”
The BJP demanded that Congress publicly apologise for its remarks on the RSS and stop “politics of division.”
As the state reels under a financial crunch and delayed administrative decisions, the twin protests have only deepened the political divide — one side blaming Delhi, the other blaming Shimla.
The public, meanwhile, continues to watch the political theatre unfold as governance takes a back seat and creates issues are buried under the carpet.
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