Sukhu misused public funds to give advertisement in National Herald, says Jai Ram

Leader of the Opposition Jai Ram Thakur today criticised Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu over the alleged blatant misuse of public funds to promote the Congress-affiliated newspaper, National Herald.

Thakur, while addressing mediapersons here, claimed that advertisements costing over Rs 2 crore given to National Herald and its sister publications by the state government were in violation of the established norms.

Thakur alleged that the Chief Minister had approved advertisements to National Herald despite the financial distress in the state, where citizens were reportedly selling their belongings to afford medical treatment due to the ineffective implementation of schemes like Himcare. “While the people of Himachal struggle for basic healthcare, the state government is gifting crores of rupees to a Congress mouthpiece,” he added.

He said that the advertisements were not only excessive but also irregular. “In some cases, payments were made twice in one day. This was done in violation of the DAVP (Directorate of Advertising and Visual Publicity) norms through the Information and Public Relations Department,” he alleged.

Thakur called National Herald the “torchbearer of the Congress’ corruption” and detailed the publication’s historical association with the Nehru-Gandhi family. He traced the paper’s roots to 1938 when Jawaharlal Nehru had founded it and later the generations of the Nehru-Gandhi family, including Indira Gandhi, Rajiv Gandhi, Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi, managed it.

He alleged that the Gandhi family had acquired assets worth around Rs 2,000 crore under questionable circumstances and the Enforcement Directorate (ED) was investigating the matter.

On the ongoing protests by the Congress across the country against the ED’s action, Thakur said that constitutional office holders such as ministers and a Chief Minister should not participate in demonstrations.

Himachal Tribune