Court asks BJP to explain expenses of Raje’s Gaurav Yatra
ROW ERUPTS Plea in HC alleged that the yatra is illegal and misuse of office as it was done at state expense. BJP told to reply by Aug 16
The Rajasthan high court on Friday issued notice to state BJP president Madanlal Saini asking him to explain the expenditure incurred for chief minister Vasundhara Raje’s Gaurav Yatra. A division bench of chief justice Pradeep Nandrajog and justice G R Moolchandani issued the notice to Saini asking him to reply by August 16, the next date of hearing.
The notice was issued on a public interest litigation (PIL) filed by advocate Vibhuti Bhushan Sharma on Monday. The PIL stated that the 40-day yatra was illegal and misuse of office by the ruling party as it was done at state expense. It made Saini, state chief secretary, principal secretary (PWD), and chief engineer and additional secretary, PWD, as respondents.
The petition stated that despite the programme being a political function, detailed instructions were issued by the PWD chief engineer to additional chief engineer of the concerned zone as nodal officers for all the arrangements including tent, light and sound, and stage. A standing committee was formed for the tendering process and approvals, it said.
The additional chief secretary (DIPR) had also issued directives to the public relations officers (PROs) to coordinate with the media and to ensure that the yatra gets extensive coverage.
State additional advocate general Rajendra Prasad, who represented the government officials, submitted before the court that the official order on expenditure has already been withdrawn.
“It was pointed out that why was the order issued and how would the money be recovered. Also, why the department of information and public relations (DIPR) was being used for giving extensive coverage to a party event. The court has issued a notice to Madanlal Saini asking
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him to respond by August 16,” advocate Sharma said.
The petitioner said that the action of the ruling party was blatantly illegal and it cannot be allowed to organise such a yatra for campaigning at the cost of public money. Welcoming the development, state Congress spokesperson Archana Sharma said, “We have been raising the issue of misuse of public funds for the yatra, and now that the court has taken cognisance, the BJP will have to give the account.”
Rajasthan BJP president Madanlal Saini refused to comment. Home minister Gulabchand Kataria, who is also the convener of the yatra, told reporters during a press conference to announce the launch of the yatra that it was a BJP event and all the expenses would be borne by the party. On August 3, a day before Raje embarked on her 40-daylong poll yatra from Rajsamand district, state Congress president Sachin Pilot had raised questions about the expenditure on yatra, saying the ruling BJP was misusing public money for recovering lost ground in the election year.
“The BJP is launching its election campaign by spending the hard-earned money of the public. What they are doing is immoral,” Pilot had said.
Raje is travelling across the state on a modified mini-bus, decorated as a ‘chariot.’ The yatra will cover 165 of the state’s 200 assembly constituencies, covering a distance of more than 6,000 km.