Mandi: Leader of Opposition and former Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Jai Ram Thakur on Thursday welcomed the Himachal Pradesh High Court’s interim stay on key decisions of the state government, alleging that the Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu-led administration was attempting to conceal corruption and impose “dictatorial” policies.
Launching a sharp attack on the government, Jai Ram Thakur claimed the state administration was “anti-people” and accused it of burdening poor patients visiting government hospitals. Referring to media reports, he alleged that food charges for patients at Indira Gandhi Medical College and Hospital had been increased from Rs 14 to Rs 50, while the quantity of milk served to patients had also been reduced.
He said the decision to outsource the hospital mess system would place an additional financial burden on poor and middle-class families coming from remote districts such as Kinnaur, Chamba, Sirmaur, Kullu and Mandi for treatment.
The BJP leader further said the Himachal Pradesh High Court had stayed the March 12 notification through which the state government excluded the State Vigilance and Anti-Corruption Bureau from the purview of the RTI Act, 2005. He alleged that the government was repeatedly taking arbitrary decisions without constitutional or legal basis, forcing judicial intervention.
Jai Ram Thakur also questioned the appointment of an officer facing corruption allegations to hold additional charge of the Chief Secretary’s post, alleging that such decisions raised concerns over administrative transparency and institutional integrity.
He claimed the Congress government in Himachal Pradesh was misusing power and said the High Court’s intervention was a “major victory for rule of law and justice” in the state.
