BJP stages walkout in HP Assembly over anomalies in reserving

Opposition BJP today staged a walkout from the Himachal Pradesh Assembly, alleging that there were anomalies in reserving rural bodies for the upcoming Panchayat election to favour the ruling Congress.
Expressing dissatisfaction with the reply of the government on the issue, the BJP members staged a walkout at the fag end of the Question Hour.
After the walkout by BJP, the Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh blamed the opposition for misusing their democratic right and termed the walkout as unwarranted.
Chief Minister said that the opposition was trying to malign his image by linking the issue of panchayat reservation roaster with the CBI probe against him.

"I challenge the opposition members to instituteany probe against me by any agency...But the truth will prevail," Singh said.
Responding to allegations levelled by Suresh Bharadwaj (BJP), the chief minister claimed that the Congress would sweep the forthcoming panchayati raj elections in the state.

Panchayat Raj Minister Anil Sharma in reply to a question of Jai Ram Thakur (BJP) said the state received Rs 538.90 crore from the Centre under the 13thFinance Commission devolutions and the fund is being transferred to Panchayats, Zila Parishad and Block Samiti in the ratio of 50 per cent, 30 per cent and 20 per cent, respectively.

He said that the Union government had issued guidelines under 14th Finance Commission to allocate 100 per cent funds directly to Panchayat baring Zila Parishads and Block and Panchayat Samitis.
Sharma said that department was trying to ensure transparency in preparing the roaster for reservation and even the courts were upholding the decisions taken regarding reservation roaster on the basis of population at the block level.
Denying the charges of discrimination in reservation in PRI polls leveled by the opposition, Sharmamaintained that the outcomes of reservation made through software adopted by the department and the reservations done through the manual process are the same.

Leader of Opposition Prem Kumar Dhumal alleged that
incumbent government was discriminating against Zila Parishad and Block Panchayat Samiti by handing over funds directly to Panchayats.
However, the Minister said the Centre had altered the process of funding to Panchayati Raj bodies on its own and the stategovernment did not suggest any alteration.
He said that he was ready to lay the state proposal for 14th Finance Commission on the floor of House to prove that it had never suggested the Centre to hand over funds directly to the Panchayats.
BJP chief whip Suresh Bhardwaj accused the state machinery of being in a coma due to the CBI probe against the chief minister.

Now the High court was virtually governing the state as for all matters people had to seek relief from the court and the state government was evading normal process for the Panchayat poll by deliberately taking decisions to scuttle the process, Bharadwaj alleged.
Jai Ram Thakur said that two Zila Parishads wards have been clubbed into one after issuing notification in violation of Himachal Pradesh Panchayat Raj Act 2007.
The minister said the state government never said that new Panchayats are being createdand there are 3,245 Panchayats in the state and the number would remain the same.
Mahinder Singh Thakur and Sarveen Chaudhary (both BJP) alleged that state government was adopting double standards in duplicate standards implanting the reservation roaster.

Chaudhary said the government considered 1991 population data for reservations for OBC (other backward class) whereas for General category the population data collated was of 2011.
Vikram Jaryal (BJP) said that the state had developed software to declare reservation roster but after spending money on the soft ware the roaster was prepared manually.
BJP member Mahinder Singh Thakur also alleged that the state did not follow the population criteria while clubbing two urban local bodies.