Dharamsala, October 29
Taking on the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) over the issue of corruption, Union Minister for Industry, Commerce and Textiles Anand Sharma today termed BJP national president Nitin Gadkari as a corrupt businessman.

Replying to mediapersons’ queries during a press conference here, Sharma said the BJP should seek Gadkari’s resignation before the elections if it wanted probity in public life. “Gadkari is not a political leader, but a corrupt businessman,” Sharma said.

He also challenged Chief Minister PK Dhumal to an open debate on television over the alleged discrimination by the Centre against Himachal Pradesh. He claimed that the Chief Minister was misleading the people of the state by alleging discrimination against Himachal Pradesh.

He said popular schemes of the state government, including the 108 ambulance scheme and the free school uniform scheme, have been financed by the Centre. He added that the state government had just changed the names of the schemes and claimed those to be its own.

Sharma also alleged that senior BJP leader LK Advani issued a misleading statement yesterday that the industrial package given to Himachal Pradesh had been withdrawn by the Centre. He clarified that the Centre had withdrawn only one component of the scheme, which was central sales tax.

The rest of the privileges given to the state under the industrial package, including rebate on income tax and capital subsidy in projects coming here, was being continued, he added. These packages would come up for review before the Centre in October 2013, he pointed out.

He also alleged that the BJP had hit the interests of horticulturists in the state by not allowing foreign direct investment (FDI) in multi-brand retail in Himachal Pradesh. Investment in FDI could have increased the income of farmers and created new job avenues for the unemployed youth, he asserted.

Sharma targeted the Himachal Pradesh Cricket Association (HPCA), headed by Anurag Thakur, Hamirpur MP and the Chief Minister’s son.

He alleged that land had been given free of cost in another state for the construction of a hotel of the HPCA. If voted to power, the Congress would set up a judicial commission to probe acts of omission and commission of th present state government, he added.

Asked if the charges of corruption levelled against Virbhadra Singh in the ISPAT and I-T return issues were affecting the campaign of the Congress, Sharma said he did not know much about the allegations.

He said there were independent agencies in the country that could carry out a probe into the allegations against Virbhadra Singh, but the BJP had nothing to do with it. Virbhadra Singh had already clarified his stand on the allegations, Sharma pointed out.

On his chances of becoming Chief Minister if the Congress was voted to power, Sharma said he was happy with his current assignment. “I am thankful to the high command for entrusting me with such an important portfolio,” he said.

About Virbhadra Singh being made the Chief Minister, Sharma said the decision would be taken by the party high command at the appropriate time.

Nurpur, October 29
Chief Minister Prem Kumar Dhumal while addressing election meetings at Rehan and Jawali in support of BJP candidates from Fatehpur and Jawali Assembly segments has alleged that the UPA government had always neglected the hill state since it came to power.

“Notwithstanding the step-motherly treatment meted out by the UPA government, the state government had achieved landmark development in the state and attained numerous awards for its performance over the past five years,” he said.

Dhumal said the UPA government was bent upon to enforce FDI in the retail sector under the pressure of vested interests despite adverse recommendations by a standing committee on commerce. He said five crore small traders would be hit by the FDI in retail sector.

Shimla, October 29
To capitalise on the cap on LPG cylinders imposed by the UPA regime, actor-turned-politician Smriti Irani today used all her histrionics to woo the voters, especially women on the issue.

Holding an induction heater, the All-India Mahila BJP chief who was here today to campaign in favour of the BJP, tried to make price rise and limiting subsidy on LPG as the main poll issues. She said if voters of the hill state wanted some relief from the anti-people decisions of the UPA regime, they must vote BJP back to power.

“Limiting the subsidised LPG to six cylinders only goes against the very ethos of our Indian culture of a joint family, so people of the hill state must vote against the Congress,” she said. She said to provide some relief to the people, the Dhumal regime had promised in its election manifesto to give one induction heater to every household so that they could withstand the price hike and limited supply of LPG cylinders.

“If you compare governance of the BJP and the Congress-ruled states, you will realise the relief given to every section of the society,” she said. Citing the example of female foeticide that was being done with the protection of Congress leadership in Mumbai, she said in sharp contrast to that the Dhumal regime had started the ‘Beti Anmol Hai’ campaign.

Smriti said the BJP regime had started a number of schemes for girls who could live without fear. “You must consider yourself lucky for living in a state which is so safe for women. In Delhi women are not safe even in broad daylight with incidents of rape on the rise,” she pointed out.

Bilaspur, October 29
District election observer of the Congress Kamal Kant Sharma, also a former Delhi Congress president, has challenged Chief Minister PK Dhumal to show if his government has solved any problem of lakhs of Bhakra Dam oustees in the district during his five-year term.

Talking to mediapersons here, Sharma said the solution to problems of oustees took place only during the Congress regime while the BJP exploited the oustee vote bank to come to power and never kept its promises.

He brought on one platform all ticket seekers who resented the ticket allotment to Bambar Thakur.

They included Bilaspur Sadar block president Col AP Gautam (retd), former MLAs Tilak Raj Sharma and Babu Ram Gautam, district vice-president Kamlender Kashyap, veteran leader Pratap Kaundal, district spokesman Pravin Sharma and former NSUI state president Vivek Kumar.

Sharma said a few rebels, including Jitender Chandel and KD Lakhanpal, had been expelled from the party for six years. He claimed that the Congress would win between 40 and 45 seats and form the government.

Bambar Thakur had recently said he would not allow BJP leaders of the state and the district to deprive more than a hundred families of Bhakra Dam oustees from Bilaspur from their economic amelioration.

He said he would ensure that the “highly objectionable and suspicious deal” struck between a big contractor and the BJP government regarding the allotment of 4,000 sq m of commercial land in the main market here at throwaway prices was struck down.

Bambar said the oustees and their wards were being forced to earn their livelihood from roadside stalls etc.

Dharamsala, October 29
HPCC chief Virbhadra Singh is out to reconcile with his former rivals. He has decided to play down the statement issued against him by AICC secretary and Congress candidate from Dalhousie Asha Kumari.

Virbhadra Singh, known for hitting back at his detractors, said Asha Kumari was like a daughter to him. He said this when asked about the statement issued by her that the HPCC chief could never become the Chief Minister of the state. He said Asha Kumari was a good woman, but in bad company.

“I was made the Chief Minister of the state five times by people of Himachal. If I become the Chief Minister again, the credit shall go to the people of the state rather than any other political leader,” he said.

Virbhadra campaigned for Congress candidate from Dharamsala and his protégé Sudhir Sharma yesterday. He hit out at the BJP for offering induction heaters to voters in its poll manifesto. He also alleged that the BJP leaders were acting as agents of induction heater companies.

He also alleged that the BJP was targeting him during the election campaigning as they felt that only Virbhadra Singh could assure the Congress win in the forthcoming Assembly elections.

On a trip to Indora and Dharamsala Assembly constituencies yesterday, Virbhadra Singh said certain senior Congress leaders were working against the prospects of official candidates of the party in Kangra district. The party was aware of the activities of such leaders and keeping a close watch on them, he said.

Sudhir Sharma said the sitting Congress MLA from Baijnath had been given the party ticket from Dharamsala by Virbhadra Singh despite strong opposition from former MLA from Dharamsala and now the union minister for culture Chandresh Kumari.

Chandresh Kumari has not visited Dharamsala so far to campaign for Sudhir Sharma. Sudhir is now relying heavily on the charisma of Virbhadra Singh to ensure his victory in Dharamsala.

Shimla, October 29
Continuing its assault on HPCC chief Virbhadra Singh, the BJP raked up the former CM’s old issue related to land and accused him of violating the law and indulging in manipulations to thwart the transfer of land in excess of the limit prescribed under the Land Ceiling Act.

BJP national general secretary and spokesperson Jagat Prakash Nadda in a statement here said his family entered into a back-dated agreement with Ajay Singh in whose name the land was transferred and the revenue record said his father’s name was not known and he was a resident of Shimla.

He challenged Virbhadra to disclose the real identity of Ajay Singh and asserted that such a dubious land transaction could not have been executed without his connivance.

He asked him to explain why a unit of land was kept in the name of his bed-ridden daughter and the same was transferred in the name of his son on the pretext that he was looking after her. This piece of land was later transferred in the name of Virbhadra’s son after her death.

He further alleged that after his mother’s death, Virbhadra illegally got a share of her land transferred in his name in contravention of the land ceiling laws.

When the violation came out in the open, he meekly approached the revenue authorities to surrender the excess land.

The BJP general secretary further alleged that in 1984-85, the Himachal Pradesh Government acquired Virbhadra’s land for the construction of a bus stand at Rampur, paying compensation at the rates then prevailing, but Virbhadra, who was the then Chief Minister, got the amount of compensation enhanced and derived an undue financial benefit exploiting his official position.

Shimla, October 29
As many as 163 (37%) of the 445 candidates in the fray, including many ‘crorepatis’, have declared that they have never filed income tax (I-T) returns. Among the 282 candidates who have been filing income tax returns, only two have income in excess of Rs 1 crore.

While Balbir Singh Verma, an Independent from Chopal constituency, has declared the highest income of Rs 1.41 crore in his last income tax return (2011-12), GS Bali (Congress) from Nagrota constituency has an income of Rs 1.12 crore. Balbir Singh has total assets of Rs 41.20 crore and Bali Rs 24.85 crore.

Other candidates with high annual income are Sanjay Kumar Guleria, an Independent from Jawali constituency (Rs 62.99 lakh), Virbhadra Singh (Congress) from Shimla Rural constituency (Rs 60.75 lakh, revised return pending), Rakesh Verma (BJP) from Theog constituency (Rs 50 lakh), Rajesh Sharma (Independent) from Kangra constituency (Rs 47.99 lakh), Pawan Kajal (Independent) from Kangra (Rs 45.93 lakh), Ravi Thakur (Congress) from Lahaul-Spiti (Rs 40.76 lakh) and Amar Singh Thakur (Independent) from Doon (Rs 40.46 lakh).

The data of candidates analysed by the Himachal Pradesh Election Watch has revealed that 40 (65%) of the 62 BSP candidates, 11 (16%) of the 68 BJP candidates, 2 (3%) of the 68 Congress candidates and 3 (41%) of the 32 HLP candidates have not filed returns. These include nine ‘crorepatis’.

The list of candidates with high assets but no income tax returns is topped by Rakesh Singh of the CPM from Theog, who has assets worth Rs 17.28 crore. He is followed by Vijay Jayoti, an Independent from Kasumpti, with assets of Rs 7.23 crore, Tikender Panwar of the CPM from Shimla (Rs 3.05 crore), Urmil Thakur (BJP) from Sujanpur (Rs 2.29 crore), Jawahar Lal (BJP) from Darang (Rs 2.13 crore), Dineshwar Dutt (Independent) from Kasumpti (Rs 1.35 crore), Madhu Gupta (AITC) from Jwalamukhi (Rs 1.19 crore), Hari Das (BSP) from Dharampur (Rs 1.17 crore) and Budh Ram (BSP) from Paonta (Rs 1.03 crore).

Shimla, October 29
All-India Congress Committee (AICC) general secretary Birender Singh today alleged that the Atal Bijli Bachat Scheme, under which compact fluorescent lamps (CFL) were given free of cost to the consumers to save energy, was a huge scam in which the state had incurred a loss of Rs 80 crore.

In a statement here today, he said the government had purchased CFLs in bulk to avail the benefit of carbon credit but it had failed to secure it and when the matter was highlighted the head of the electricity board was changed in a hurry.

He also questioned the purchase of CFLs at higher rates and said people had bought incandescent bulbs from the market to exchange four bulbs in exchange for one CFL, he said. There is no trace of the ordinary bulbs thus collected and CFLs worth Rs 5 lakh had fused in the absence of proper arrangements to distribute them.

The CAG had made it clear that norms were not followed while purchasing the CFL bulbs under the Atal Bihari Saving Scheme. Two companies were given the benefit of Rs 1.5 crore each from the deal, he alleged. Seven companies had bid for this auction - M/s Sokomak Pvt Ltd, New Delhi and M/s Phoenix lamp Pvt Ltd, Noida, offered a pack of 4 bulbs at Rs 387. The total purchase order on this deal added to Rs 63.80 crore. On this amount 8% excise duty and 3 per cent cess was to be levied, but only 4 per cent excise duty was levied. It resulted in great loss to the state exchequer while the companies bagged a profit of Rs 1.5 crore each.

Nahan: Dislodged from his traditional constituency Solan in delimitation, Rajeev Bindal, former Health Minister and Chief Minister PK Dhumal’s right-hand man, is making an all-out bid to find a foothold in Nahan, a seat the BJP has never won. He won from Solan thrice in a row, but the seat has been reserved for Scheduled Caste in delimitation.

He had made up his mind to shift to Nahan quite early and started nursing the constituency. It is not surprising that his campaign is not only well-funded, but also well-planned compared to his rivals. The major obstacle in his way is the tag of an outsider, which is being exploited to the hilt by his opponents.

Besides sitting Congress MLA Kush Parmar, he is also facing Sadanand Chauhan (Lok Jan Shakti Party) and Shyama Sharma (Himachal Lokhit Party) in a multi-cornered contest. Two other candidates, Qutubuddin (BSP) and Vijay Kumar (SP) are also in the fray, but they are not likely to cut much ice with the electorate.

Parmar won the seat in 1993 and 1998. He lost to Sadanand in 2003 by a narrow margin in a triangular contest in which Shyama Sharma ended up at the third place. In the last poll, Parmar defeated Shyama Sharma (BJP) by a narrow margin while Sadanand, who was not far behind, had to contend with third place.

Interestingly, Shyama Sharma has contested every election since she made her electoral debut in 1977. Contesting on the BJP ticket, she lost the last three elections in a row. She quit the BJP last year and was among the founder members of the HLP.

The BJP votes will be divided between Bindal and Shyama Sharma. The delimitation exercise has changed the complexion of the constituency significantly as a large area from Paonta constituency, having 22,000 votes, has been shifted to it and about 18,000 votes have been transferred to Renuka.

Consequently, the number of Muslim and Bahti voters has gone up. Parmar is quite familiar with the new voters that have been included. He made his electoral debut from Paonta and contested from the constituency thrice, winning in 1982 and 1985.

The perennial shortage of water has been the major problem in the entire constituency. To exploit it for electoral gains, Bindal has come out with a blueprint for the implementation of 25 schemes, involving an expenditure of Rs 85 crore, for the purpose.

He has made development his main plank whereas rival parties are linking him with land deals in Solan and warning the electorate that Sirmaur district will meet the same fate. They maintain that the campaign of Bindal is being managed by supporters which will not help him.

All issues have been relegated to the background and the Congress, the HLP and LJSP are only focusing on the outsider issue in unison. Parmar and Shyama Sharma, who have been engaged in close contests in the last two elections, are now busy fighting Bindal. The dimension added with the entry of Bindal and delimitation has made the battle all the more curious.

Banjar: For a JBT teacher-turned-politician, BJP MLA from Banjar, Khimi Ram, scoring a hat-trick in the hills of Banjar has become very difficult in these elections. He is facing the toughest battle of his life from his “old royal foe”, Karan Singh, the present scion of erstwhile Kullu state and a Congress candidate.

Congress also claims Khimi Ram also doubles as an herb trader. The party took advantage of his direct ties with senior national leader LK Advani and the then party in-charge for Himachal, Gujarat Chief Minister Narender Modi which won him a ticket in 2003, sidelining Karan Singh, who was in the BJP then. This Kullu royal has now joined the Congress and is taking on his old rival in what appears to be a straight contest.

Khimi Ram’s worries have multiplied after Congress stalwart Virbhadra Singh held a massive rally held in support of Karan on last Saturday. Banjar unit of the Congress has united against Khimi as there is no Congress rebel this time. He also faces “Dalit backlash” from none other than the district BJP president, Ram Singh, who had lodged an FIR against him and Dharamvir Dhami, who is contesting as an Independent from Manali, for making “caste-related remarks against him at a meeting held in Kullu in 2010. The matter was later resolved, but its impact cannot be ruled out in the elections.

Karan Singh won twice in 1990 and 1998 from the BJP and went on to become the primary education minister. He has shifted from the BSP to the BJP and now the Congress and also shuttled between Banjar and Kullu constituencies in the 22 years of his political life.

The delimitation exercise has also upset the calculations of major parties in Banjar. BJP and the Congress are trying to woo voters belonging to the 11 panchayats merged with Banjar from Anni. At the same time, Manikaran and Bhuntar areas, which were under Banjar, have been merged with Kullu Sadar, while Bajaura has been merged with Banjar from Kullu.

Banjar has been dominated by Bhuntar and Kullu politicians. They have been silenced as their head priest, MLA-turned-writer, Dilaram Shabab, has put his might behind Karan.

Shabab enjoys a good rapport in the Tirthan belt as he has been fighting to protect Tirthan as an exclusive trout habitat and giving rights to local stakeholders in Great Himalayan National Park.

Khimi Ram, who had defeated Congress Satya Parkash by a narrow margin in 2007, is trying to retain the seat for the third time in a row. He is banking upon the strength of the BJP cadre and his individual ties”, “thekedars” and the works he has done in Banjar. Several villagers in remote pockets in Sainj, Tirthan and Jhibhi areas still cry for basic amenities like roads and bus service. They also continue to be exploited by politicians, who encourage them to cultivate contraband cannabis by promising them to legalise it to get their votes, the villagers rue.