Jai Ram condemns CM’s statement on govt spending

Mandi, August 23

Former Chief Minister and Leader of Opposition Jai Ram Thakur today criticised Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu’s recent statement about “preventing the loot of the government treasury” for political purposes. Thakur called Sukhu’s remarks “very unfortunate” and described these as “ridiculous.”

Jai Ram Thakur was speaking at Thunag in Mandi to meet public.

In a scathing response, Thakur questioned whether the Chief Minister viewed beneficial schemes like Himcare, Sahara, free water for rural poor families and subsidized electricity as forms of looting. He also asked if providing discounts on fares for women, creating job opportunities for youth and offering subsidies to farmers were considered misappropriation of funds.

Thakur argued that Chief Minister Sukhvinder Sukhu’s comments suggest a lack of understanding of the principles of a welfare state. He further questioned whether the role of the government was merely to impose taxes without investing in public welfare.

Thakur also criticised the current state government for “unnecessary expenditure and misuse of resources”. He pointed to the appointment of a large number of advisors, “unconstitutional appointments” of Chief Parliamentary Secretaries (CPS) with ministerial benefits and excessive spending on ministerial offices in the new secretariat.

Thakur called for answers on these issues. He condemned what he described as attempts to intimidate and pressure employees by some ministers.