Himachal Pradesh CM Sukhu and ministers defer salaries for 2 months over financial crisis

BJP MLAs led by Jairam Thakur stage a walkout in the Assembly alleging a scam in the excise department, which is under CM Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu.

The standard cow cess of 10 paise per unit will be imposed on every power consumer. (Express File)

Considering the Himachal Pradesh Government’s financial crisis, Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu announced on Thursday that he and his cabinet ministers, chief parliamentary secretaries and board chairmen would defer their salaries, allowances and other benefits for the next two months.

While making the announcement in the Assembly, Sukhu urged all MLAs including from the Opposition BJP to voluntarily defer their salaries and allowances for the time being. The Congress has 40 and the BJP 28 MLAs in the 68-member House.

However, BJP MLAs led by Leader of the Opposition Jairam Thakur staged a walkout after alleging a scam in the excise department, which is also under the chief minister. The walkout followed Sukhu’s reply that revenue generated through the 2024-25 excise policy was much higher than the total excise revenue generated under the BJP’s five-year tenure.

Thakur, a former chief minister, hit back at Sukhu, “Liquor vends were auctioned below the reserved prices. The number of liquor vends, especially of county-made liquor, was reduced. Contractors are selling liquor bottles at prices higher than the MRP printed on them. The entire excise policy was formulated only for the benefit of big players in the industry.”

“Bidding for a number of liquor vends was cancelled with excuse that there were no bidders. In fact, the same vends were later allotted by the state government to its favourite liquor contractors,” Thakur alleged.

In his reply in the House, Sukhu urged BJP leaders including Thakur and Randhir Sharma to submit a complaint and said their allegations would be investigated.

Talking to reporters outside the Assembly, Thakur urged the authorities to check the backgrounds of liquor contractors in Una and Kangra districts as well as in Nurpur town.

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Thursday was the third day of the Vidhan Sabha’s monsoon session.

Saurabh Parashar

Saurabh Parashar is a journalist with The Indian Express, where he primarily covers developments in Himachal Pradesh. He has been associated with The Indian Express since 2017 and has earlier worked with The Times of India. He has 17 year + experience in the field of print journalism. An alumnus of Government College for Men, Sector 11, (Panjab University), Chandigarh, Saurabh holds a Diploma in Journalism from Bhartiya Vidya Bhawan, Chandigarh. He pursued his Master’s in Mass Communication from Guru Jambheshwar University of Science & Technology, Hisar. In addition, he completed his law degree from Himachal Pradesh University (HPU), Shimla. ... Read More

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