Monsoon session of Himachal Assembly likely to be stormy

Tribune News Service

Pratibha Chauhan

Shimla, August 9

A brief monsoon session, the last of this term, is likely to be a stormy affair as the Opposition Congress will leave no stone unturned to hit out at the BJP government.

Congress to corner govt

• The Congress is all geared up to corner the BJP government on police constable paper leak case, Agnipath scheme, price rise and unemployment
• The four-day session commencing on Wednesday will have four sittings only

The four-day session commencing on August 10 will have four sittings only. Being the last session of the 13th Vidhan Sabha, the Congress is all geared up to corner the BJP government on the issues like police constable paper leak, Agnipath scheme, price rise and unemployment.

The Congress is also likely to create a ruckus, seeking the disqualification of two Independent MLAs Hoshiyar Singh from Dehra in Kangra and Prakash Rana from Jogindernagar in Mandi district, who had joined the BJP recently, from the House under the provisions of the anti-defection law.

Moreover, Speaker Vipin Parmar is yet to announce his decision on the Congress petition and complaints, seeking the disqualification of the two MLAs. It is expected that the Speaker will give his decision during the session only.

The ruling party, on the other hand, will target the Congress over corruption and the alleged irregularities by its leaders in the National Herald case being faced by AICC chief Sonia Gandhi and her son Rahul Gandhi. “The BJP has misused the investigating agencies like the ED, CBI and Income Tax to hit out at its political opponents,” said Mukesh Agnihotri, Congress Legislature Party (CLP) leader.

The Congress will not just restrict itself to the constable paper leak case but seek answers on other papers too which were leaked. Also, the fact that the government has failed to fix the responsibility of the police officials, who were in-charge of conducting the exam, could draw flak.

The issues of mining, forest, land and drug mafias allegedly getting patronage from BJP leaders are likely to echo in the Assembly. The issues of unemployment and failure of the Central Government to create jobs will also be used by the Congress to corner the BJP government.

The grim financial health of the state and the announcements being made by Chief Minister Jai Ram Thakur with an eye on the poll could also be an issue of discussion. Both BJP and Congress are likely to trade charges over the fiscal health of the state.

Speaker Vipin Parmar today convened an all-party meeting to ensure the smooth conduct of the four-day monsoon session, commencing tomorrow.

Parliamentary Affairs Minister Suresh Bhardwaj, Congress Legislature Party (CLP) leader Mukesh Agnihotri, CPM MLA Rakesh Singha and Chief Whip Vikram Jaryal attended the meeting. “I am confident that all MLAs will utilise the session for raising important public issues,” he said.

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