Congress Counters BJP’s Charge Sheet with Strong Defense as Amit Shah Accuses Chhattisgarh Government of Corruption

In Raipur, Union Home Minister Amit Shah has presented a comprehensive indictment of the Chhattisgarh government led by Bhupesh Baghel. Shah has labelled the Rs 2100 crore liquor scandal as the tip of the iceberg, suggesting that corruption runs much more profound. Several prominent BJP leaders joined Shah at the event held at the Deendayal Auditorium.

The BJP had formed a charge sheet committee on July 9, led by convener Ajay Chandrakar, along with co-conveners OP Choudhary and Prem Prakash Pandey. The charge sheet primarily focuses on corruption, unfulfilled promises, and government failures.

Key highlights from the charge sheet include:

1. Criticism of Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel.
2. Highlighting unfulfilled promises, such as Mandi Tax, Contractual Appointments, Aerocity, Light Metro, World-Level Schools, Chhattisgarh Seva Gramme, Gems and Jewellery Park, and more
3. A cartoon depicting insincerity towards prohibition.
4. Accusations of breaking public manifesto promises.
5. Allegations of exploiting farmers, including credit-taking for the central government’s support price to farmers.
6. Corruption allegations, including urea, rice, liquor, PSC, and DMF scams.
7. Tendupatta scam, worth Rs 1000 crore.
8. Failure to provide housing to 16 lakh impoverished individuals.
9. Accusations of conversion and appeasement, mainly targeting tribal communities.
10. Accusations of promoting alcohol consumption.
11. PDS scam amounting to Rs 600 crore
12. Nepotism in PSC recruitment
13. Patronage of online betting by politicians and officials
14. Scams in coal transportation, the forest department, Gauthans, DMF, teacher recruitment, Kilol monthly magazine, and more
15. Rise in criminal incidents, including rape and murder.
16. Mention of the obscenity CD scandal and allegations of usurping EWS houses
17. Exposing scams involving MLA Shailesh Pandey, Minister Jaisingh Agrawal, and MLA Brihaspati Singh.
18. Accusations of Congress members facilitating illicit financial activities
19. Failed promises of employment and embezzlement of Rs 15,000 crore meant for youth
20. Concerns over drug-related issues were likened to ‘Udta Chhattisgarh.’
21. Land allotment to chit-fund companies
22. Allegations of ‘Land Jihad,’ involving the allocation of land to Pakistan-based terrorist organisations

This comprehensive charge sheet presents a critical assessment of the Chhattisgarh government’s performance under Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel’s leadership.

BJP leaders expressed:

“Today, a unanimous demand is echoing from the streets: replace this corrupt government. All the assurances in the public manifesto have proven to be nothing but empty promises. In addition to rampant corruption, lawlessness now prevails in the state. Scams worth 600 crores in rice, 500 crores in coal, and a staggering 2000 crores in liquor have come to light. We pledge to bring down a government that tolerates and shelters illegal gambling and betting activities.” – Raman Singh.

“A charge sheet can only encapsulate so much. The Congress government is characterised by fiscal mismanagement, self-impoverishment, and utter apathy. It didn’t allocate even a single rupee for pandemic relief. This administration has the dubious distinction of shielding criminal syndicates, even going so far as to orchestrate targeted killings.” – Ajay Chandrakar.

Congress Hits Back Against the BJP’s Allegations:

In response to the BJP’s charge sheet, Congress Communication Department Chairman Sushil Anand Shukla stated that the BJP itself is implicated in embezzling 1 lakh crore rupees, making their allegations baseless. He argued that the BJP’s charge sheet is a deliberate attempt to tarnish Chhattisgarh’s reputation.

He further emphasised that the BJP lacks a leader comparable to Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel. He claimed that the government’s public welfare schemes have left every section of the state content.

During the press conference, State Congress senior spokespersons R.P. Singh, Dhananjay Singh Thakur, Ghanshyam Raju Tiwari, Surendra Verma, and spokespersons Vandana Rajput, Ajay Gangwani, Ayush Pandey, Salam Rizvi, Mohan Lal Nishad, Satyaprakash Singh, and Rishabh Chandrakar were all present.

Highlights from Amit Shah’s Speech:

• The upcoming election will shape the destiny of Chhattisgarh, transcending individual leaders and parties.
• Voters must decide between a government that promotes religious conversions and one that preserves tribal culture.
• The choice is between providing a solid foundation for disadvantaged communities or being embroiled in massive scams.
• Chhattisgarh’s unemployed youth want real jobs, not promises of overseas opportunities.
• Only the BJP can rescue Chhattisgarh from corruption and scandals.
• Incidents of violence against women are rampant throughout the state.
• The BJP successfully delivered rations to the doorsteps of the poor.
• Additional rice was provided during the pandemic, but this government managed to corrupt even that.
• Those who haven’t done anything wrong need not be afraid of agencies.
• Schemes like laptop and mobile distribution were also marred by corruption.
• MLAs have been given free rein to engage in corruption.
• Some collectors in Chhattisgarh are notorious for corrupt practices.
• The Chief Minister seems more focused on sycophancy than fulfilling promises to the public.
• Initiatives like the Charan Paduka and saree distribution for tendu leaf collectors were inexplicably discontinued.
• The Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana, aimed at providing housing for 16 lakh poor people, was halted.
• The 2100 crore rupee scam involving promises of complete prohibition is just the tip of the iceberg; the actual figure is much higher.
• The government’s auctioning of government jobs has cheated unemployed citizens.
• Those in jail are concealing their identities to evade responsibility.