BJP workers protest outside Rahul Gandhi's residence

Arun Jaitley had accused Singh for extending favours to a power company in exchange for monetary compensation

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Tuesday, upped the ante in its attack on Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh and staged a protest outside Congress Vice President Rahul Gandhi’s residence, demanding Singh’s removal.

The protests were carried out by BJP youth wing workers and were led by its leader Anurag Thakur, who is the son of Prem Kumar Dhumal, a former chief minister of Himachal Pradesh.

Mild force and water cannons were used by the police to disperse the crowd, which tried to jump over the barricades.

On Monday, senior BJP leader Arun Jaitley had accused Singh of corruption. Jaitley suggested that Singh extended favours to a power company in exchange for monetary compensation to him and his family.

Jaitley, who is the leader of the Opposition in the Rajya Sabha, said a hydel power company, Venture Energy and Technology Private Limited or VETPL, was given an extension of 10 months by Singh’s cabinet to complete a hydel power project in Sai Kothi, even though the company had defaulted in the past.

The BJP leader said this favour was extended as part of a deal between the power company and the Himachal chief minister.