Congress stand on street vendors unclear: Thakur

Leader of Opposition (LoP) Jai Ram Thakur today accused the state government of dilly-dallying and failing to effectively tackle the situation arising out of the unrest among the local population against vendors from outside Himachal.

In a statement issued here today, he said the unrest among the locals is a reflection of the public sentiments but the Congress government is dilly-dallying and not coming out clearly with its stand. “The BJP regime had initiated the process for formulating a policy on street vendors even though many people had raised questions. When we made these norms, we realised many people from outside HP have entered Himachal but were trying to conceal their real identity,” he said.

Thakur said it is the previous BJP regime which had set the ball rolling for the formulation of a street vending policy. “We had started the process for verification and identification of street vendors. What Vikramaditya Singh has said is correct but I do not know how long he will stick to its stand,” he remarked.

He said similar sentiments had been echoed by Rural Development Minister Anirudh Singh but when there was pressure on him from the high command, he too developed cold feet and starting talking of enforcing law.

“How could AIMIM leader enter a sealed building and take videography of an adjoining building in Sanjauli. They are trying to hurt the sentiments of the Hindu community and vitiate the atmosphere, for which action must be taken against them,” he said.