Mrituanjay Kumar
Ranchi
Jharkhand State Congress Committee (JPCC) also came into fray to oppose Mines and Minerals Development and Regulation Amendment (MMDRA) Bill with its alliance partner Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM) in the State Government led by Chief Minister (CM), Hemant Soren and said that the party will protest at all district headquarters of the State on August 27 against the bill.
Addressing a press meet at the party headquarter JPCC Chief Keshav Mahto Kamlesh has strongly opposed the MMDRA Bill. He announced that the Congress party would stage protests at all district headquarters on August 27 regarding the Bill and the issue of the Ram Mandir donation theft.
Mahto further said that a ‘gherao’ of the Lok Sabha is planned for September 7, and protests will be held in all administrative blocks from September 9 to September 16. He said that Jharkhand is a mineral-rich State that relies on these resources and revenue from the ‘cess’ funds the State’s public welfare schemes. The State faces a potential loss of up to Rs 15,000 crore and the Central Government is treating Jharkhand unfairly, he added.
Just a day earlier JMM also held an executive committee meeting on Thursday led by the CM, Hemant Soren to chalk out a strategy to vehemently oppose the bill at grass root level.
Speaking on the occasion, Lohardaga MP Sukhdev Bhagat said that the minerals and land belong to Jharkhand and the local people bear the brunt of the pollution, yet the Centre makes the decisions in a situation that is entirely wrong. He noted that Jharkhand had imposed the cess following a Supreme Court order but the Modi Government disregarded the Court’s ruling. He said that BJP leaders must realize that a scenario where votes come from Jharkhand while the praise goes to Delhi will not be tolerated. Although the Central Government speaks of taking the private and public sectors along, it is actively promoting only the private sector here, he added.
Bhagat further said that the Central Government is attempting to halt these initiatives—whether it is the ‘Maiya Samman Yojana’ or the ‘Abua Awas Yojana’ but the Congress will not remain silent. The party has geared up to ensure that welfare schemes in Jharkhand are not stopped, and the protest will be conducted in a constitutional manner, he added.
Regarding the Ram Mandir donation theft, the party MP said that the BJP is evading responsibility and the theft occurred under the party’s patronage. Champat Rai was given a clean chit simply because of his close ties to the Government, he added.
