Himachal BJP accuses state govt of delaying panchayat polls

Himachal Pradesh BJP General Secretary Randhir Sharma accused the state government of "deliberately delaying" the panchayat and urban local body elections in the state dueto "fear of defeat".
"The fear of defeat is haunting the Congress party as registration of Disproportionate Assets case against Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh by CBI has tarnished the government's image," he said in a statement issued here today.
The Congress party is aware that corruption would be a major issue in the polls, he said.
The government did not complete the delimitation and reorganisation of wards of panchayats and urban local bodies within stipulated time which led the High Court to stay the reorganisation process, he said.

Former Himachal Rural development and Panchayati Raj Minister Jai Ram Thakur also accused the government oftrying to delay the elections.
There was no coordination between the panchayati raj and urban local bodies departments and even the credibility of State Election Commission has suffered, Thakur said.