New Delhi: Rajasthan Chief Minister Bhajan Lal Sharma appears to be at the receiving end of mounting criticism from both ministers within his government and other senior Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leaders, with them publicly airing their issues with his governance.
The BJP high command sprung a surprise last December appointing first-term MLA Sharma as the chief minister, much to the chagrin of many senior leaders eyeing the coveted post.
Now, criticisms of his government over an ongoing power and water crisis in the state are spilling out in the open.
On Friday, Rajasthan Minister of State K.K. Bishnoi wrote a letter to the CM, highlighting the very sorry state of affairs.
Stressing that the scorching heat is creating new records every day and that the temperature had touched almost 50 degrees Celsius in Barmer, he wrote, “The irregular power cuts in Barmer district have worsened the situation. The people of the district are suffering from the heat. More than 625 complaints are being received every day regarding irregular power cuts.”
Bishnoi said that the lack of a regular water supply amid the scorching heat has also created a crisis, with people struggling with the financial burden of paying out of pocket for private water tankers.
“More than 450 complaints are being received every day regarding water problems in the area,” said the minister, pointing out that there is still some time to go before monsoon, making it necessary to have alternative arrangements for water to deal with the situation.
Before this, BJP leader Rajendra Singh Rathore, former leader of the Opposition, had also written to the CM about water scarcity in Churu, which he has represented, as well as adjoining districts, and posted his letter on X.
“Wrote a letter to the honourable Chief Minister Bhajan Lal Sharma, given the scorching heat and the drinking water problem of the common people, to ensure uninterrupted supply of drinking water from Rawatsar distributary of Indira Gandhi Canal,” wrote Rajendra Rathore in his post.
Another former BJP MLA and spokesperson, Ramlal Sharma, has written a letter to the chief minister over “undeclared power cuts” and water scarcity in the Chomu assembly constituency, which he has represented.
“A proper solution was demanded to the problem of drinking water and unannounced power cuts faced by the common people in this scorching heat,” Sharma said.
On the other hand, Rajasthan Agriculture Minister Kirodi Lal Meena, in a letter to Sharma around 10 days ago, demanded the recall of a housing project in Jaipur. The general administration department, which comes under the CM, was going ahead with the project without a cabinet clearance, and it would lead to the loss of over Rs 1,140 crore to the state exchequer, Meena said in the letter.
According to BJP leaders, the bureaucrats have taken over all decision-making, and the kind of planning, which should have happened before the summer, is not visible on the ground.
“The chief minister is trying, but everything is new for him. It will take some time for him to get used to it,” said a senior BJP leader to ThePrint on condition of anonymity, adding that the CM is not allowed to hold a cabinet meeting while the model conduct of conduct (MCC) is in place, and has directed the chief secretary to put things in order.
Sources in the Rajasthan information and public relations department also said that with the MCC in place, the chief minister can not take certain decisions but has directed the chief secretary to resolve the water and power crisis.
“The peak (summers) they were expecting in June has come in May, affecting the planning done way back. Still, aiming to keep things in order, the government has established district-level control rooms to ensure people can call for a tanker,” said the source.
“At the same time, secretaries in charge of districts (district-level officers) are under directions to submit a report about the water and power situation and health emergencies after spending a few days in the area,” added the source.
According to the source, the chief minister held a video conference of all BJP district presidents under the ‘Sewa Hi Sangathan’ programme three days ago and asked party functionaries to do their bit for the state in dealing with the current crisis.
Another party leader said that leaders making public posts are doing that to ensure they do not face flak from the public.
“Water is a major issue in several districts, and the heatwave has only made it more acute. These posts are a way to bring down the anger of the public and show that these leaders are doing their bit, but they, at the same time, also end up revealing the cracks in the government and the party — that both are not on the same page,” said a party functionary.
“Many are also trying to use this opportunity to showcase the inexperience of the chief minister in handling such situations,” he added.
The Opposition has also directed the spotlight on these issues, with Rajasthan Pradesh Congress Committee President Govind Singh Dotasra targeting CM Sharma. “The chief minister is busy campaigning for the Lok Sabha elections in various states rather than finding a solution to the water scarcity and power crisis,” said Dotasra.