The ruling Congress party in poll-bound Chhattisgarh said Sunday that it was calling for a bandh in Bastar on Tuesday – the day Prime Minister Narendra Modi is scheduled to visit Jagdalpur city in the district – as a mark of protest against the privatisation of the Nagarnar steel plant.
At a press conference in Raipur city on Sunday, Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel criticised Modi over the PM’s speech in Bilaspur, where he had attended a public meeting on Saturday as part of the BJP’s campaign in the state.
“Modi ji said he gave Rs 1 lakh crore for paddy procurement. I want to say to PM ji that in 2014, double engine sarkar was there and 10 quintals of paddy was bought. When their government was in power for three years, i.e., 2014-2016, the paddy procurement went down and you (Modi) also refused to give bonus as per a 2014 order. Now you say you will buy every single grain of rice at Minimum Support Price.” The issue of paddy procurement has always been a top election issue in Chhattisgarh.
“He (Modi) is coming again on October 3. I want to say to PM ji , please ask the central government to announce that every single grain of rice will be bought,” Baghel said.
State Congress chief Deepak Baij, an MP from the Bastar region, said during the press conference that there would be a bandh in Bastar district on Tuesday (October 3) to “show PM Modi that the people of Bastar are angry over the privatisation of Nagarnar steel plant”.
Baghel said the land of Nagarnar in Bastar belonged to the “tribals, farmers and the state government”.
“We also asked for the steel plant to be given to the state government and passed a resolution in Vidhan Sabha to that effect, but the central government did not agree and announced its auction. Further, they did not allow us to participate in it…,” the CM said.
Baij said: “They are playing with emotions and cheating the tribals by selling out Nagarnar. On October 3, Bastar will be bandh so Modi ji understands the emotions of the people of Bastar…” He said that the profits from Nagarnar would go to private players if the plant is privatised, and asked why the Chhattisgarh government was not allowed to participate in its auction.
During the press conference, Baghel also criticised the Centre regarding the cancellation of trains on the day Modi visited Bilaspur.
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“The day PM ji came, 34 passenger trains were cancelled,” he said, adding that Chhattisgarh has had the most number of train cancellations in all of India. “Why are you taking revenge?” he asked.
Replying to a journalist’s question, Baghel said Modi’s promises were fake. “Modi guaranteed 2 crore jobs, 15 lakhs to each family, bringing down the price of rice, [and] doubling income of farmers. But all this was jumle baazi (fake promises), and he continues to do it,” Baghel said.
On the Centre’s pending dues to the state, the CM said that “coal royalty worth over Rs 4,000 crore, rice dues worth Rs 6,000 crore, Awas Yojna (housing scheme for the poor) funds, (and) our GST compensation worth Rs 7,000 crore” were yet to be received, and that money taken by the central government for the National Pension Scheme (for the implementation of Old Pension Scheme announced by the state government) was yet to be returned.
