Shimla (Himachal Pradesh) [India], May 28 : Naresh Chauhan, the Principal Media Advisor to Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu, has strongly criticised the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) for allegedly politicising the tragic death of engineer Vimal Negi, an employee of the Himachal Pradesh Power Corporation Limited (HPPCL).
Chauhan accused the BJP of exploiting the incident for political mileage, despite the state government taking unprecedented disciplinary action against senior officials.
Speaking to reporters in Shimla, Chauhan said that the BJP is trying to get political benefits from the death of the HPPCL Engineer, Vimal Negi.
"The BJP has been politicising the unfortunate death of Vimal Negi from day one. We do not believe the BJP has even an ounce of genuine sympathy for his family. They are simply trying to cook political rotis over a human tragedy," he said.
He emphasised that the state government acted promptly and transparently in response to the demands of Negi's grieving family.
"Whatever the family demanded at the time, be it the removal or suspension of certain officers or the formation of a Special Investigation Team (SIT), the Chief Minister accepted it all. He made it clear that the government is open and fully supportive of a CBI investigation. We too want the people of the state and the family to know the real cause behind Vimal Negi's death," Chauhan said.
Chauhan also described the gravity of the disciplinary action taken by Chief Minister Sukhu against top-ranking officials, which he states as "historic" and "unprecedented" in the administrative history of the state.
"For the first time ever in the state's history, stern action has been taken against senior officers whether it's someone at the Director General of Police level, the rank of Additional Chief Secretary, or the Superintendent of Police in Shimla. Wherever it was found that officials had deviated from the system and contributed to the circumstances leading to Negi's death, action was taken. This was recognised as a case of indiscipline, and the Chief Minister took a bold decision to act against them," he asserted.
Chauhan made it clear that, with such actions already taken, there is no justification for the BJP to approach the Governor or make further demands.
"The BJP is pretending to be shocked that such tough decisions were taken. They never expected it. Now that the matter is with the CBI, everyone should wait for the outcome. But instead, BJP leaders continue with their negative politics." he said.
On the matter of suicide speculation, Chauhan acknowledged the complexity.
"Unfortunately, Vimal Negi did not leave behind any suicide note, which could have clarified the reasons for his actions. All possibilities are being looked into to determine what led to his suicide," he said.
Chauhan also accused the BJP of lacking real issues to raise in the state and instead trying to attack the government using baseless allegations.
"The BJP today is divided into factions. Some groups are led by leaders who have left the Congress, others by Jai Ram Thakur and Rajeev Bindal. They don't have a single leader accepted by all. They have no issues to raise, so they are conspiring against the Chief Minister and the state government," Chauhan alleged.
He concluded by defending the CM's firm approach to governance.
"The action taken against the officers involved was based purely on their indiscipline. This government will not tolerate a breach of discipline at any level. In my entire life, I have not seen such high-level accountability enforced by any Chief Minister in any state. This is a clear message that indiscipline will not be tolerated, no matter how senior the officer." He said
Chauhan's has given the statement as rebuttal to BJP's demand from the governor amid heightened political tensions in Himachal Pradesh following the mysterious death of engineer Vimal Negi, with the case now transferred to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) for further probe.