Madhya Pradesh Law Minister PC Sharma has been reportedly issued a notice by District Collector Sudam Khade for violating the Model Code of Conduct by allegedly promising jobs to Congress booth workers. While speaking at a Party Convention at Narmada Bhavan in the presence of senior Congress leader Digvijay Singh and former Union Minister Suresh Pachouri, Sharma had said that all those Congress workers who work at the polling booths would be provided jobs in the coming four and a half years.
Defending his statement, Sharma said that unemployment is a big problem today and that is why he urged the Congress government to provide jobs to the booth-level workers of the party. “Government, private or anything, it would be responsible to provide jobs to all those who work at booths for the party. Unemployment is the biggest problem we are facing. If I meet 10 people in a day, six of them ask for jobs. I would urge the Congress government in the state to provide jobs to all those who work at the booth-level for the Congress”, the Law Minister said.
District Collector Khade said that he had received a complaint in this regard. “We had received a complaint in this regard, on the basis of which notice has been served on the minister. He reportedly offered jobs to party workers who ensure a great number of votes to Congress at their booths”, said DC Khade.
Calling Sharma’s statement a violation of Model Code of Conduct, the State BJP has said that they would file a complaint with the Election Commission. “If the minister is openly saying that each booth worker will be offered a job, it is definitely a violation of model code. We will lodge a complaint with the Election Commission. They are just trying to gain brownie points in front of Digvijaya Singh but while doing that they are making a mockery of the Constitution,” told BJP leader Rameshwar Sharma.
Last year, soon after the Congress government was formed in Madhya Pradesh, Sharma had said that all the cases that were filed against Congress workers during the BJP government’s tenure would be withdrawn.