Display of eatery owner’s ID: Congress asks Himachal minister to explain

Singh, along with his mother and Himachal Pradesh Congress president Pratibha Singh, met AICC general secretary (Organisation) K C Venugopal to explain his side of the story.

Sources said Venugopal told Singh, the state PWD and Urban Development Minister, that he has “no right or authority” to go against the party’s “policies, ideology and principles”. He was told that his remarks were “unwarranted and unacceptable”.

Sources said Venugopal had summoned Singh to convey the party’s strong displeasure over the controversy created by him but he came to meet the senior Congress leader along with his mother. “Anyway… A strong message has been conveyed to him. He has been asked to furnish a written reply,” sources said.

Singh told Venugopal that he was misquoted by the media. “He was told to adhere to the party’s ideology… The message was clear,” a leader said.

But speaking to the media later, Singh reiterated his position. “Whatever I said was within the ambit of law and in the interest of the people of Himachal Pradesh. Today, and in the future, I will continue to speak for the benefit of my state. We have been fighting for Himachal Pradesh and will continue to do so,” he said. He was responding to criticism that his remarks on identity cards were similar to the BJP’s stance in Uttar Pradesh.

Singh and his mother also met Rajeev Shukla, AICC in charge of Himachal Pradesh.

With his remarks creating a political furore and leaving the Congress red-faced, the party leadership stepped in Thursday, asking the state government to distance itself from Singh’s statement. After the AICC intervention, a spokesperson of the Himachal Pradesh government issued a statement Thursday evening saying “the state government has not made any decision regarding the mandatory display of nameplates or any other form of identification by vendors at their stalls.”

Singh and his mother played down their meetings with the senior Congress leadership. On her meeting with Shukla, Pratibha Singh said they met him to offer condolences following the death of his mother. Asked about the Congress high command’s reported displeasure with her son’s remarks, she said, “We shouldn’t exaggerate this. I don’t think there is much more to say. We have all cleared our stands.”

In Shimla, former Chief Minister and senior BJP leader Jairam Thakur criticised the state government’s response, calling it a “mockery of the system”.

Thakur said, “If the government is distancing itself from a cabinet minister’s statement, it indicates serious issues within the administration. There seems to be a lack of coordination.”

He also highlighted the actions of another cabinet minister, Anirudh Singh, who changed his stance on a sensitive issue during the recent monsoon session of the Vidhan Sabha, suggesting further discord within the Congress government.