Harish Dhami challenge to Uttarakhand CM: Congress MLA alleges corruption, seeks by-election after fair row
The Dharchula MLA said he is ready for any legal case, while the BJP had set a Sunday afternoon deadline for an FIR over the stage ruckus.
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The Harish Dhami challenge to Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami came a day after an uproar at the Jauljibi Fair in Pithoragarh district, ANI reported on Sunday. The Congress MLA from Dharchula accused the chief minister of corruption and dared him to face a by-election. He said he had committed no wrongdoing himself.
Harish Dhami challenge: what he told ANI
Speaking to ANI, Dhami said: “As for me, I have never been involved in corruption or committed any wrongdoing; that is why I have nothing to fear.” He then turned to the chief minister. “If you have the courage, face me in a by-election today,” he said.
He also told the chief minister to “Take whatever action you wish to take.” Dhami said he had been kept “entangled in legal cases for years on end” and could handle another one.
The row began on Saturday. After the ruckus at the fair, Dhami told PTI that he is the chairperson of the fair and was not given the chance to speak or present local demands to the chief minister. “The chief minister lacks the courage to hear the truth about the rampant corruption in the state,” he said.
Lipulekh road remark and the child’s death
Dhami also criticised the chief minister over his remarks about the Lipulekh road, linking them to the death of an eight-year-old child, ANI reported. “An 8-year-old child has lost his life, yet he feels no shame,” Dhami said. He added that the chief minister had visited the child’s home the day before to offer condolences. The reports reviewed do not say how the child died.
Key numbers
- 10 days: how long the Jauljibi Fair runs, per PTI via ThePrint.
- 3 regions: Tibet, India and Nepal supply the goods sold at the fair, per the same report.
- 8 years: the age of the child Dhami referred to, per ANI.
- Sunday afternoon: the BJP district unit’s deadline for an FIR, per PTI.
What the BJP says about the Dharchula MLA
The BJP condemned the “abusive language” used from the stage and called for an FIR, PTI reported. Senior BJP leader Mahendra Singh Budiyal said the event had already been shortened because of the chief minister’s time constraints. “The BJP views this as a sign of the MLA’s frustration, as the Congress party’s support base in the Dharchula assembly constituency is weakening,” Budiyal said.
District Congress president Mukesh Pant said: “By failing to invite an elected representative from the district, the government has completely disregarded all values.” Congress workers had also asked why Mayukh Singh Mahar, another Congress MLA from the district, was not invited.
Background: a widening Congress and BJP fight
NIS reported the first clash in its story on the Harish Dhami mic row. The two parties have also traded charges over the chief minister’s Gau Seva remark and the deletion of over 8 lakh names from the voter list.
What happens next
The BJP had said cultural programmes at the fair would not be allowed if no FIR was filed against the MLA by Sunday afternoon. The reports reviewed do not say whether police registered a case. They also carry no reply from the chief minister to the Harish Dhami challenge or the corruption charge.
The row turns a border-district trade fair into a Congress and BJP clash less than a year before Uttarakhand's 2027 Assembly election. The immediate test is whether police register a case against the MLA after the BJP's deadline, and whether the chief minister answers the corruption charge. The Lipulekh road complaint adds a local safety question to a dispute that began over a speaking slot.