In a tumultuous session on Tuesday, ten opposition Congress legislators were handed a one-day suspension from the Gujarat Assembly, marked by chaos and uproar surrounding a “fake” government office discovered in Chhota Udepur district last year, allegedly involved in misappropriating funds designated for irrigation projects.
The suspension was enforced after a heated exchange during the ongoing budget session, where Congress MLA Tushar Chaudhary raised questions about the government’s actions against those responsible for operating the purportedly fraudulent government office in Chhota Udepur. The Tribal Development Minister, Kuber Dindor, responded with a written statement asserting that no such office had been identified in the past year, dismissing the need for any corrective measures.
In a twist of events, Chaudhary contested this response, stating that five fraudulent offices had indeed been exposed in Chhota Udepur last year, leading to the arrest of two individuals for securing ₹4.16 crore in government grants through a fabricated executive engineer’s office. The situation escalated when former IAS officer BD Ninama was later arrested for his alleged involvement in aiding the scam, securing government grants worth ₹18.59 crore.
As Congress MLAs expressed dissatisfaction with the minister’s inconsistent responses, chaos ensued, prompting the ruling BJP to move a motion for the suspension of all disruptive Congress legislators for the remainder of the day, including the second sitting. Despite pleas for order, the opposition, led by Congress Legislature Party Leader Amit Chavda, continued to protest, resulting in their suspension.
The suspension highlights the escalating tensions between the ruling BJP and the opposition Congress in Gujarat, with the “fake” government office controversy intensifying the political landscape during the ongoing assembly session.
