CM Raman Singh
Days after the Indian Express reported allegations against a Chhattisgarh minister’s family of acquiring forest land and encroachment, among other irregularities to build a resort, both Agriculture Minister Brijmohan Agrawal and CM Raman Singh met BJP president Amit Shah in New Delhi late last week and presented their views on the charges.
Before his return to the state capital on Sunday night, Agrawal told the media that Shah heard him out for nearly an hour and that he “thought” the party president was “satisfied” with the case he presented. On his arrival in Raipur on Sunday night, Agrawal told the media, “I am happy and content that the (party) national president heard me out for over an hour. After that, I thought that he was satisfied with what I was saying.”
Sources said senior BJP leader Saudan Singh, the party’s Chhattisgarh in-charge, was also involved in the talks. A senior BJP leader said, “Agrawal is a very senior leader and has been a representative (MLA) for over two decades. But these are very serious charges, and (coming) at a time the party has taken an anti-corruption stance in Bihar, they are damaging.” T S Singhdeo, senior Congress leader and Leader of Opposition in the Assembly, questioned why a law and order issue required consultation with the BJP top brass.
Raman Singh celebrates 5,000 days in power
The Raman Singh government in Chhattisgarh on Monday observed 5,000 days in office. Singh is the first BJP CM to have stayed 5,000 days in power. While the CM and the state BJP unit participated in several programmes to mark the occasion, the Opposition took the opportunity to say that under Singh’s regime, Chhattisgarh has seen little or no improvement in key areas.
