Opposition voice being suppressed: CM

Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel on Sunday accused the Central government of trying to suppress the voice of the opposition by using central agencies.

“Our ancestors fought against the Britishers but now it is against those who follow their policy. The Central government is trying to suppress the opposition,” he told the media before leaving for Delhi.

Baghel said the Modi government had unleashed the Enforcement Directorate (ED), Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), Income Tax and other agencies in a bid to harass and crush the opposition.

He said the ED notice to Congress leaders Rahul Gandhi and Sonia Gandhi was a part of the government’s vendetta. He added that all AICC members will accompany Rahul Gandhi to the ED office.

He said the Congress had given funds to the National Herald, a newspaper which was established by Jawaharlal Nehru, before independence. Sardar Vallabh Bhai Patel, Govind Vallabh Pant and others were part of it.

The newspaper had been part of the national freedom movement. Its financial conditions were not good, so funds were given to it. Then how come the issue of money laundering cropped up, he asked.

It is a tactic to bother both the leaders which the Congress strongly opposes, said Baghel.

On the FIR against O.P. Choudhary, a former IAS officer and BJP leader, he said he should not have created such an atmosphere in the state by putting a two-year-old video calling it a latest one.

Stern action should be taken against him, he said, adding that it was unfortunate that former Chief Minister Dr Raman Singh was trying to protect him.

Regarding his state-wide ‘Bhent-Mulaqat Abhiyan’, he said around 20 assembly constituencies had been covered and the public feedback on government schemes was good.

If local officials show laxity, then stern action has to be initiated, he said.