Jai Ram Thakur criticizes 'Toilet Tax' for tarnishing Himachal's image

Dharamshala (The Uttam Hindu) : Jai Ram Thakur, former Chief Minister and Leader of the Opposition, today alleged that the Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu-led government in the state had failed on all fronts. Thakur, while addressing mediapersons here, called the much publicised ‘Vyavstha Parivartan’ slogan as ‘Vyavstha Patan’ and blamed the Congress government for the state losing its identity and respect in the past two years of its rule. Development works had come to a standstill and the Chief Minister was taking decisions that had become a laughing stock, he added. Thakur said that the new taxes being levied on the people of the state were a fraud with the electorate, whom the Congress had lured with promises during the last Assembly elections. He added that the ‘toilet tax’ had earned a bad name to the state. He ridiculed the government for not fulfilling guarantees and its failure to give salary and pension in time.

He said that two years in office was sufficient time for the evaluation of any government. He added that the present government was taking loans recklessly. It had already taken more loan in two years than the BJP government took in its five-year term, he claimed. He felt that at the current rate the loan amount would touch the Rs 1 lakh crore mark in the beginning of 2025. Thakur thanked the Central government for “bailing out the state government from its current financial crisis”. He also mentioned funds the state government was yet to deposit for the construction of a campus of the Central University of Himachal Pradesh (CUHP) in Dharamsala.

He said that the BJP was doing well in India and ruling in 18 states with its coalition partners. Thakur was accompanied by all senior party leaders, including former Speaker Vipin Singh Parmar, Dharamsala MLA Sudhir Sharma, Kangra MLA Pawan Kajal, former minister Sarween Choudhary and former MLAs Vishal Nehria, Arun Kumar Kuka, Mulkh Raj Premi and Ravinder Dhiman.