Shimla, March 12 BJP leader Surat Negi on Thursday criticised Himachal Pradesh Minister Jagat Singh Negi for criticising the governor over land-related cases when he was the minister of tribal affairs in the state.
Jagat Singh Negi accused the former governor, Shiv Pratap Shukla, of treating the tribal community living in the state's border areas "unfairly" by denying them approval in cases related to Nautor land. He also said that the tribal community had suffered due to the BJP's "narrow-mindedness".
Addressing the media here, Surat Negi, a BJP spokesperson, said that the minister's statement against the ex-governor was "unfortunate and an insult to the constitutional institution".
He said that such attitude not only hurts the dignity of a constitutional position but also exposes political arrogance and administrative failure.
Nautor cases refer to legal disputes concerning the allocation and ownership of Nautor land – barren government land given to landless individuals for cultivation under specific rules.
The BJP leader said that the Nautor cases are not new and have been around for 20-25 years. He said that it was a Congress government in 2006, when Jagat Negi was an MLA, that passed a resolution in a meeting of the Tribal Advisory Committee that Nautor land would only be given to "landless" people.
The 1975 law on Nautor land clearly defines "landlessness" and this landlessness condition determines approvals in Nautor land cases, he said.
Surat Negi said that the Congress government in 2014 "misled" the public but "partially suspending" the Forest Conservation Act, 1980, but never removed the "landless" condition imposed in 2006. Thus, no one could actually benefit from Nautor, he added.
When the BJP came to power in 2017, the government found a way to remove the 2006 condition but an immediate decision was not possible as the Forest Conservation Act case was pending before the Supreme Court, Surat Negi said.
The BJP leader said that while the governor has been granted certain special powers under the Fifth Schedule of the Constitution, suspending a central law is not as simple as Jagat Negi is trying to portray. Land cannot be given to anyone without following legal procedures and rules, he added.
Targeting the Congress leaders, Surat Negi said that despite being the tribal affairs minister, Jagat Singh Negi has completely failed to protect the interests of his region and the entire tribal community.
He even claimed that the tribal sub-plan budget has been reduced from Rs 400 crore during the BJP tenure to Rs 150 crore now under Congress rule.
"The minister should exercise restraint in his behaviour and language. Making such statements against any constitutional office, especially the governor, is not only against democratic traditions but also overshadows the real issues of tribal areas," he added.
Shukla is now the governor of Telangana following a major reshuffle of gubernatorial posts earlier this week. Kavinder Gupta has replaced Shukla as the governor of Himachal Pradesh.
