Chandigarh; Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar has been facing public wrath in his much hyped ongoing on-the-spot grievance redressal programme named Jan Samvad (public connect).
The latest reason for the anger among villagers of Mahendragarh district was the announcement of sub-tehsil by the Chief Minister a day earlier.
As villagers of Dogda Ahir came to know about the announcement of a new sub-tehsil, which they claimed is announced in a smaller village, they got angered. They said their village was bigger than Sihama village and ideally a sub-tehsil should also be set up in their village.
The protesters staged a sit-in protest outside the official accommodation where the Chief Minister stayed for a night.
In the morning, the Chief Minister called the protesters for talks and convinced them to withdraw the protest with a promise to conduct a feasibility report for setting up the sub-tehsil in their area too.
The Chief Minister, a strong advocate for simultaneous parliamentary and assembly elections to cut costs as they are due within five months in 2024, believes the Jan Samvad is a platform where the people are talking about the difference of the Congress regime and the present rule.
Ahead of the parliamentary and Assembly elections, the BJP has stepped up its poll preparations in a bid to repeat its government in the state for the third time and win the maximum seats for the Lok Sabha.
Now this is another phase of the Jan Samvad programme.
Earlier, in Sirsa district it was disrupted on May 15 when a woman sarpanch confronted the Chief Minister, took off her dupatta (stole) and threw it on his feet.
Within a week, three such incidents involving the Chief Minister were reported in Sirsa when he concluded his Jan Samvad programme on May 16.
Political observers believe like the Congress that faced twin anti-incumbency in 2014 state polls it is the BJP that is facing similar dissatisfaction among the people over corruption, law and order and unemployment.
“The unprecedented success of the BJP in 2014 parliamentary elections marked a significant shift in the state’s electoral politics,” an observer told IANS, adding “now state’s anti-incumbency is banking heavily on the BJP and its impact will be seen clearly in the next elections — both the Lok Sabha and later the Assembly”.
After thwarting foes within, seasoned Congress politician Bhupinder Hooda is donning battle gear once again to lead the party to victory.
Eyeing to woo 65 per cent of the population that lives in rural areas, on an average everyday Hooda is aggressively trying to reach out to the masses up to panchayat through the ‘Hath Se Hath Jodo’ campaign, which has been extended till July-end.
Not missing an opportunity, Hooda is building up a campaign by launching scathing attacks by saying more and more youth are falling in the trap of drugs and crime due to faulty policy of the BJP-JJP government.
Expressing concern over unemployment spreading far wide, he is also questioning the government over the use of force against protesting people over the ongoing Chief Minister’s Jan Samvad programmes.
Contrary to him, Chief Minister Khattar, who seems to be banking largely on Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s charisma, is saying the state is adapting several schemes emulated by the Centre for every section of society.
He is saying the people are availing benefits of state schemes like Parivar Pehchan Patra, CHIRAYU Haryana, Ayushman Bharat Yojana, Old-Age Pension, Mera Pani Meri Virasat and Meri Fasal Mera Byora.
He believes in the last eight-and-a-half-years the government has brought many radical changes in the system along with all-round development of the state.
While addressing the Jan Samvad in Nangal Sirohi village in Mahendragarh district on Friday, the Chief Minister announced that in the next four months the government is planning to fill 65,000 vacancies in Group C and D.
(IANS)
