As the political climate intensifies ahead of the upcoming Assembly elections, Union Home Minister Amit Shah’s comments reflect the high stakes and intense competition between political parties. The accusations of corruption against the Chief Minister add a contentious layer to the political discourse in Chhattisgarh, setting the stage for a heated electoral battle in the second phase of the elections.
During his address, Shah alleged that Baghel is a ‘prepaid CM’ who operates solely based on the bribes he receives. “The Congress has a prepaid CM in Chhattisgarh. He works only in accordance with the amount paid in bribes to him. He doesn’t work unless bribed to do so,” remarked the Union Home Minister.
Shah further accused CM Baghel of turning the entire state into a collection centre and an ATM for Congress, insinuating widespread corruption under the leadership of Baghel. The remarks were part of Shah’s critique of the Congress government’s alleged mismanagement and corruption in Chhattisgarh.
Accusing the CM of indulging in a number of scams in Chhattisgarh, he said the legacies that he will leave behind for the people are the Rs 6,600 crore PDS scam, the Rs 5000 crore Mahadev betting app scam, the public service commission scam, and the district mineral fund scam of Rs 700 crore, among others.
“I have heard of a lot of scams in my life but I never heard about one involving cow dung. But Bhupesh Baghel indulged in a cow dung scam as well,” Shah added.
The Union Home Minister warned that all those, who are involved in scams and are corrupt, will be “hung upside-down” if the BJP is elected.Further, lashing out at the CM, the Union Home Minister said, “Bhupesh Kaka had promised to impose a ban on the consumption of liquor in the state but did he deliver on the promise? Instead, his government indulged in the Rs 5,000-crore excise scam,” Shah added.
The Home Minister announced that the BJP, if voted, would provide all women with cooking gas at Rs 500 per cylinder for 5 years.”We have also decided that all married women will be provided with cheques of Rs 12,000 each every year by the BJP,” Shah added.
“Bhupesh Kakka has also promised similar schemes, but can a leader who can’t guarantee his own future as CM, deliver on such promises?” the BJP heavyweight added. He also hit out at the CM over his alleged involvement in the Mahadev betting app scam.
The Union Home Minister also lauded Prime Minister Narendra Modi for naming the landing point of the ISRO spacecraft on the moon’s south face as the ‘Shiv-Shakti’ point, adding that it demonstrated his ‘respect’ for Mahadev, another name for Bhagwan Shiva.
The first phase of assembly elections for the 20 legislative assembly seats in Chhattisgarh was conducted on November 7. The remaining 70 seats in the state will go to polls in the second phase on November 17.
The counting of votes for Chhattisgarh, along with four other poll-bound states, is scheduled for December 3.
