Shimla, Sep 27 (PTI) Alleging a U-turn by the Congress government in Himachal Pradesh on the issue of mandatory display of names of vendors and owners, Leader of Opposition Jai Ram Thakur on Friday claimed it opposed the move because it was Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath’s “model”.
Public Works and Urban Development Minister Vikramaditya Singh had on Wednesday announced that it would be mandatory for street vendors, especially those selling food items, to display their identity cards at their shops.
But facing flak, the state government on Thursday distanced itself from Singh’s statement and said no such decision has been taken.
In a statement here, Thakur said the state government has bowed down to the pressure of the Congress high command as this rule being opposed is the Yogi model.
“It is condemnable that the (Sukhvinder Singh) Sukhu government is withdrawing the action being taken in a legal manner. This rule was in place since the time of the previous government,” he said.
“Under the Street Vendor Policy, provisions were made for verification of all street vendors, various types of regulations for registration, which were stopped by the Sukhu government as soon as it came to power. The government should also answer why this ban was imposed. It is the government’s job to protect the interests of the state and its people, but the Sukhu government is working to protect the interests of the Congress,” he alleged.
Thakur said the government is working against the public sentiment and the law, keeping in mind the political intentions of its high command.
“This is not in the interest of the state in any way. Do the regulatory bodies and the people of the state not have the right to know about the people who set up shops and sell various kinds of products in the state? Will the state be run according to the political intentions of the high command in Delhi instead of being run according to the rules,” he asked.
“If a good policy is implemented in a state, then what is the harm in implementing it elsewhere? Any rule and policy should not be opposed on the basis that it has already been implemented somewhere by the leaders of the opposition party,” said Thakur.
The Leader of Opposition said some Congress leaders put forward their views after understanding the public sentiments but as soon as the high command expressed its anger, they retracted their statements.
“A minister of the Congress government backtracks from his statement in the House fearing loss of his position, while another minister posts on social media informing about the implementation of the Yogi model, after which he calls the media and says that the UP model has been implemented keeping in mind the interests of Himachal and retracts as soon as he receives a call from Delhi,” he claimed.
Thakur further claimed he had already said Singh will not be able to stick to his statement because the Congress leaders start trembling under pressure from Delhi.
“It is sad that the leaders of Himachal Pradesh are compromising with the interests of the state under pressure from Delhi. The Sukhu government should keep the interests of Himachal in its list of top priorities and should take strict action against those who spoil the atmosphere of the state” he said. PTI COR ZMN
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