Congress ministers condemn BJP for failing to secure financial aid for Himachal

In a statement, Chauhan and Vikramaditya questioned when the BJP will deliver the funds, which it owes to the state emphasising that the BJP’s actions reflect an “anti-state agenda” to hinder the State’s progress

Himachal industries minister Harshwardhan Chauhan and PWD minister Vikramaditya Singh on Saturday condemned the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leadership, specifically national BJP president JP Nadda and MP Anurag Thakur, for their failure to secure rightful financial support for Himachal Pradesh from the central government.

The ministers said since the present state government reinstated the Old Pension Scheme for its 1.36 lakh employees, the BJP leaders have been conspiring against the state government. (HT File)

In a statement, Chauhan and Vikramaditya questioned when the BJP will deliver the funds, which it owes to the state emphasising that the BJP’s actions reflect an “anti-state agenda” to hinder the State’s progress.

The ministers said since the present state government reinstated the Old Pension Scheme (OPS) for its 1.36 lakh employees, the BJP leaders have been conspiring against the state government. Their “Operation Lotus” to grab power has fallen flat, they asserted.

The duo suggested that Nadda speak on facts rather than creating sensations. They reiterated that the central government is withholding nearly ₹10,000 crore of the employees as contributions from them towards the National Pension Scheme (NPS). “When the State implemented the OPS, it was the responsibility of the Union Government to return the funds of the employees contributed towards NPS but it was quite disgusting that they had held the money deliberately.

The Ministers also pointed out various restrictions imposed by the central government on Himachal Pradesh, limiting the state’s ability to borrow funds. They condemned the lack of a grant of ₹1,780 crore for the implementation of OPS and questioned the BJP leaders on the measures taken to alleviate these constraints.

They said during the previous BJP government, freebies amounting to ₹5,000 crore were distributed within the last six months of their regime which overburdened the state treasury. They criticised the BJP for neglecting the disaster relief fund, stating that the central government has not released the relief amount as per the Post Disaster Need Assessment (PDNA) claims submitted by the state.