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Sukh Ram quits, at last

Himachal Pradesh Public Works and Power Minister Sukh Ram today resigned from the state cabinet.

Sukh Ram announced his resignation at a meet-the press programme organised by the Press Club in Shimla.

He said he had already submitted his resignation to Chief Minister Prem Kumar Dhumal.

He, however, clarified that his Himachal Vikas Party will continue to support the Bharatiya Janata Party-led government in the state.

President K R Narayanan had, on April 28, granted permission for the prosecution of Sukh Ram in the telecom scam case.

Sukh Ram said he tendered his resignation on the advice of Prime Minister A B Vajpayee for whom he had immense regard. Vajpayee had been given the people's mandate to rule, and any party or person which tried to destabilise his government would invite the ire of the people, he said.

Sukh Ram said he would now impress upon Dhumal the need to ask the Central Bureau of Investigation to probe the various frauds and cases of land-grab and misappropriation, allegedly indulged in by Virbhadra Singh.

During Singh's tenure as Himachal Pradesh chief minister, which the former Union communication minister termed as ''despotic,'' he had reportedly acquired pecuniary benefits for himself and his close relatives, Sukh Ram alleged.

His party executive would meet at Palanpur on May 10 and prepare a ''chargesheet'' against Singh listing his various omissions and commisions. Sukh Ram alleged that Singh had violated the Land Ceiling Act, Big Estate Establishment Act, 1964, and the Model Code of Conduct which made it imperative that if any chief minister's own interests were involved, he should inform the Centre before presiding over a cabinet meeting. The MCC also held that in case any minister's interests were involved he should inform the chief minister prior to attending the cabinet meeting.

Levelling further more allegations against his bete noire, Sukh Ram said revenue records were tampered with to take possession of lands through ''pliable officers'' and flouting the provisions of the land ceiling act. Later, plum postings and extensions were given to these officers.

Similarly, the land records of the Nathpa-Jakhri hydel project site was ''manipulated'' as showing that it belonged to Singh's family, which got a compensation of Rs 60 million for it. But due to the timely intervention by the then BJP government in the state, Rs 50 million was saved, he said.

Sukh Ram also levelled charges of several deals, including a sum of Rs 310 million granted as relief to Ambuja cement factory in lieu of Singh's close relative being appointed a forwarding agent. This relative was making millions of rupees by charging commission on each bag of cement, he alleged.

In case Dhumal failed to recommend a CBI inquiry against Singh, the HVP would be forced to review its support to the BJP-led government in the state. ''There cannot be any compromise on this issue,'' he said.

UNI

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