Mandi
Leader of Opposition and former Chief Minister Jairam Thakur on Friday launched a sharp attack on the Himachal Pradesh government, alleging that Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu is running a “decision reversal government” in the name of “system change.”
In a statement issued from Mandi, Thakur said the government frequently changes its decisions within hours—“morning decisions are reversed by evening”—without considering long-term consequences or logical reasoning. He questioned who is responsible for such unstable governance, adding that decisions that fail to last even a day reflect deep confusion within the administration.
He further alleged that the government repeatedly issues orders that face public backlash across the state and are later withdrawn. “This so-called system change has turned into a government that keeps flipping its own decisions,” Thakur said, accusing the Chief Minister of making misleading claims in public forums.
Thakur also claimed that the Chief Minister appears unable to act against those responsible for “illogical and anti-people decisions,” leading to growing disorder and alleged corruption in the state. He said several decisions taken in April alone had to be rolled back due to lack of public interest, foresight, or legal validity.
Referring to court interventions, Thakur stated that many government decisions have failed judicial scrutiny. He cited the example of panchayat election-related decisions, claiming that multiple rulings were overturned by courts for being unconstitutional.
He listed several instances of policy reversals, including:
Rollback of school merger decisions
Withdrawal of increased rent for Himachal Bhawans in Delhi and Chandigarh
Contradictory orders on employee extensions and reappointments
Changes in entry tax policies
Reversal of employee regularisation benefits after protests
Thakur also criticized actions such as issuing notices in the HRTC bus video incident and alleged inconsistencies in administrative decisions.
On the issue of dairy farmers, he strongly condemned the reported decision to stop procuring milk from a farmer who had dumped milk in protest at the Chakkar plant. Calling it “authoritarian,” he said the government was targeting those raising their voices instead of addressing their grievances.
“The government is trying to suppress dissent rather than solve people’s problems. This is not governance in a democracy,” he said, adding that such actions resemble “dictatorial tendencies.”
Thakur warned that suppressing public voices would not work in a democratic country like India and urged the government to focus on resolving issues rather than penalising protestors.
