JOIN USCongress is corrupt, Kejriwal is fake, Modiji is popular: Anurag Thakur
As the race for the Himachal Pradesh elections heats up, the Bharatiya Janata Party is banking on the popularity of Union Minister of Information and Broadcasting Anurag Thakur, a four-time member of parliament from the state and the son of two-time chief minister P K Dhumal. Anurag Thakur speaks to DH’s Amrita Madhukalya about the party’s prospects in the state. Edited excerpts.
BJP says it will script history in the state but there has been no repeat government since 1985. What makes you sure of your comeback?
There are two key reasons. First, we have provided good governance to the people; second, we have our development model, which has been appreciated during the pandemic as well. The Central government has also sanctioned a lot of projects: the AIIMS in Bilaspur, the PGI Satellite Hospital in Una, six medical colleges, the Bhanupali-Bilaspur and the Una-Talwara railway lines, the Vande Bharat Express, the Central University, the IIIT, the IIT, and the IIM.
We have delivered, and successfully so. There’s a clear divide: Congress was there to stop the projects; we’re here to deliver them. They did not provide land for some of these projects in four years, and we completed them in as much time. They were here for discrimination, and we’re here for development.
The Congress has released a charge-sheet accusing the BJP of several scams, most notably in sanitiser and PPE procurement, and another in outsourcing contractual hires...
The Congress never raised this in the Vidhan Sabha or in front of the public for five years. They are raising them on the eve of elections. It is a political gimmick. The truth is that the Congress leadership is out on bail. They are deep in corruption in the state as well as in the centre. Whereas, we have run a clean government in the state and at the centre.
The grievances of retired government officials over the New Pension Scheme has been a politically charged issue. The Congress says it will revert to the old scheme within 10 days if they come to power. What is your take on it?
We have seen their false promises in other states. They did not waive the farmers’ loans that they promised four years ago. In Himachal, they said that they would give jobs to at least one person in each family. that did not happen in their five years of governance. The Old Pension Scheme in their states was not implemented as promised. I would like to ask the Chhattisgarh CM, who is here: Why could you not deliver in your state? They did not write off the loans, could not generate employment, and were to make 14 lakh homes with the Centre in Chhattisgarh. Instead, they resigned. This shows they are against the poor.
The PM is conducting several rallies across the state. He has also travelled a dozen times in five years. Does the central leadership have to step in because the party could not deliver in the state?
Modiji is a popular leader, and he believes Himachal is his second home. He has been kind in giving the special status back, which was taken away by Congress. He has given the state several special projects, be it completing the Atal Tunnel project or the railway projects. This shows his commitment to the state. He is the most popular leader on the globe, and we are delighted to have him here. This is an advantage to the BJP, and why should we not utilise it?
Will we see you in state politics again?
I’m always part of the Himachal politics as an MP representing the state in the Lok Sabha. I’m honoured that, at the young age of 46, Modiji gave me an opportunity to be a cabinet minister, and the people of Himachal voted for me four times. A post is not an issue; only one can become the chief minister, and one can become an MP or MLA. But what matters is if you’ve given 100% to your responsibility, and I’ve tried to do that.
There’s no CM face in the Congress. And in the BJP, though the party president J P Nadda recently said Jairam Thakur will continue, it has come at the last moment. Do you think that after mass leaders like Virbhadra Singh and PK Dhumal have left, the state has space for a mass leader to emerge?
This is beyond my pay grade. I’m a party worker and whatever the party high command decides, we follow that.
Your father has been one of the tallest leaders in the state. This year he’s not contesting. Has he retired from politics?
In keeping with the norms of the party, he wrote to the PM sometime back that he would not be contesting; as a soldier of the party, he has delivered in the last 40 years and built the organisation.
Rahul Gandhi’s Bharat Jodo Yatra seems to be gathering public interest. The BJP is working hard to woo voters in the 144 seats it lost in 2019. Do you think 2024 won’t be a cakewalk for the BJP?
The “C” in Congress stands for “corruption” and “confusion.” The Bharat Jodo Yatra has elements from the tukde-tukde gang. Rahul has not been able to jodo his own sister, Priyanka Gandhi Vadra; how can he bring everyone else on board? This is Congress Choro Yatra; of their four working presidents, two joined the BJP. Four of their sitting legislators and three former ministers joined us. Congress’s graph is on the wane.
Arvind Kejriwal has recently asked that currency notes have the images of Hindu deities. Do you think they are trying to take on the Hindutva agenda of the BJP?
Arvind Kejriwal ji grants a honorarium to maulvis in madrassas. But he does not extend the same benefits to the padris in girija-ghars, or pujaris in mandirs, or to granthis in gurudwaras. Why is there a bias? Kejriwal ji’s devotion is fake, he lies just for electoral politics.
There’s no CM face in the Congress. And in the BJP, though the party president J P Nadda recently said Jairam Thakur will continue, it has come at the last moment. Do you think that after mass leaders like Virbhadra Singh and PK Dhumal have left, the state has space for a mass leader to emerge?
This is beyond my pay grade. I’m a party worker and whatever the party high command decides, we follow that.