Shimla, October 5
Ruling that the BJP’s endless hunt for finding a turf for irrigation minister Ravinder Ravi has not only delayed a decision on the remaining 23 Assembly segments but has left senior BJP leader and Rajya Sabha, MP, Shanta Kumar hurt and betrayed.

Shanta Kumar, who has been under tremendous pressure to compel his loyalist and minister Ramesh Dhawala to shift from Jwalamukhi to Dehra to accommodate Ravi, finally broke his silence today over the ongoing bickering over the issue of ticket allotment. “The complete go-by being given to decency, honesty and norms in ticket allotment not just in the BJP but other political parties has led to devaluation of politics and people losing faith in politicians,” he remarked.

Without naming, he fired a salvo at Ravi. “A party leader even after remaining a minister and an MLA for 20 years is so desperate to get the ticket that he did not even spare me and got a case registered against me in the high court by one of his supporters,” remarked Shanta in an oblique reference to Ravi.

It is reliably learnt that a miffed Shanta also stayed away from the Election Management Committee meeting which was attended by all senior leaders like PK Dhumal, Kalraj Mishra, JP Nadda, Shyam Jaju and Satpal Satti. Even though party functionaries maintained that it was a routine meeting to discuss poll arrangements, sources said it was the core group meeting which Shanta refused to attend.

The former chief minister is upset over the pressure being exerted on Dhawala to shift from his constituency of Jwalamukhi to Dehra to accommodate Ravi. He is also opposed to the idea of accommodating Ravi from Palampur as Praveen Sharma, an MLA, is his loyalist.

“Attempts being made by the Dhumal faction to accommodate Ravi even if it is at the cost of losing a few seats in Kangra will prove to be counter productive for the party,” admitted a senior leader. Even Dhumal loyalists hailing from Kangra feel that accommodating Ravi is not only causing delay in ticket allotment but could also dislodge others like Kripal Parmar, who has been active in Dehra for the last three years.

National BJP general secretary JP Nadda said the issue of ticket allotment on the remaining seats too was discussed at the today’s meeting but a final decision will be taken by the Core Group which will meet in Delhi in two-three days time. “The names will be decided before the National Election Committee meeting before October 10,” he said.