Minister claims senior Congress Digvijaya trying to destabilise MP govt

Bhopal: A Madhya Pradesh minister has claimed that senior Congress leader Digvijaya Singh is trying to destabilise the Kamal Nath-led state government.

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State Forest Minister Umang Singhar wrote a letter to Congress president Sonia Gandhi on Sunday in this connection, a move laying bare the factional feuds in the MP party unit, especially against the backdrop of names being propped up for the post of the state unit president, currently held by Nath.

Singh recently wrote to state ministers, urging them to give him an appointment so he can know what action has been taken on his recommendations for transfers and other works.

Singhar, a tribal MLA from Gandhwani seat, without taking Singh's name, told reporters here, "When he is running the government from behind the curtain, which is known to everyone including the Congress workers, then what was the need to write a letter (to ministers)".

In his letter to Gandhi, Singhar said, "I am writing to you with lot of pain to inform you that senior party leader and MP (Singh) is trying to destabilise the Kamal Nath government and trying to establish himself as a power centre."

He is continuously writing letters to the chief minister and his cabinet colleagues and also (making it) viral on social media, the letter further stated.

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"He had also written letters to Nath regarding Vyapam, e-tendering and tree-plantation scams, but had not written about Simhast (Kumbh Mela) scam as his son Jaivardhan Singh is heading the urban administration and development ministry. The Congress had made it (Simhast scam) a big issue while it was in the opposition," the letter said.

"Such letters give credence to the opposition, including former chief minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan and Leader of the Opposition Gopal Bhargava, that Digvijaya is running the government from behind the curtain," it added.

When contacted by PTI, Singhar confirmed he wrote the letter to Gandhi, and asked "what is wrong with it".

Singh was unavailable for comments in the matter.

However, defending Singh, state public relations minister P C Sharma said there is nothing wrong in his writing letters to the chief minister and ministers as he is the former CM and currently a Rajya Sabha MP.

People come to him with their problems and he highlighted them by writing letters, he said.

"He did the 'Narmada Parikrama' (circumambulation), and a large number of people contact him with their problems.

There is nothing wrong in writing letters," said Sharma, who is considered a loyalist of Singh.

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Sharma also refuted reports that Singh was running the government from behind the curtain.

"It is Chief Minister Kamal Nath who is running the government and all senior leaders and ministers are supporting him," he asserted.