Jaipur, Dec 23 (IANS) Rajasthan Congress president Govind Singh Dotasra on Tuesday launched a sharp attack on the BJP-led governments at the Centre and in the state over the Aravalli issue, alleging a well-planned conspiracy to plunder the Aravalli mountain range.
He claimed that the country’s natural resources are being “systematically looted” and that the BJP has now completed its plan to open the Aravallis to the mining mafia.
Dotasra claimed that the report submitted by the Central government to the Supreme Court was prepared under pressure, and clearly reflects the BJP’s intent to destroy the Aravalli range, which he described as the lifeline of Rajasthan.
He warned that following recent developments, nearly 90 per cent of the Aravalli range could be destroyed, with vast stretches being handed over to mining interests.
Addressing the media at the state Congress headquarters in Jaipur, Dotasra alleged that the BJP deliberately appointed leaders from Alwar to key positions to facilitate this agenda.
He said Bhupender Yadav, MP from Alwar, was made Union Minister for Environment, Forest and Climate Change, while Sanjay Sharma was appointed Rajasthan’s Forest Minister, as part of a calculated move.
“An inexperienced person has been given power in the state so that he cannot exercise independent judgment and instead complies with arbitrary decisions taken by the Centre,” Dotasra alleged.
“Illegal Mining Corridor”, referring to the BJP’s election manifesto, Dotasra said the party had promised to create a green corridor in coordination with the Centre to protect the Aravallis.
“Instead, the Central and state governments together have turned the Aravalli range into an illegal mining corridor,” he alleged.
Drawing a parallel with the electoral bonds controversy, he claimed that just as central agencies were allegedly misused earlier, mining leases would now be used to extract donations from mafias and favoured industrialists. He pointed out that Rajasthan already has the highest number of mining leases in the country, and questioned why, despite this, there was an attempt to alter the Critical Tiger Habitat (CTH) area of Sariska.
“The Supreme Court did not allow that attempt to succeed. That conspiracy received a strong slap, and now a new conspiracy is underway,” he said.
Dotasra expressed concern that in Rajasthan, the Chief Minister also holds the Mining and Home portfolios, while the Union Environment Minister is also from Rajasthan.
“All of them have conspired together. BJP leaders are moving towards destroying the Aravalli range, which is not just a symbol of faith but also the ecological lifeline of the state,” he said.
He also criticised BJP leaders Arun Chaturvedi and Rajendra Rathore for issuing statements on the issue instead of the Mining Minister.
Dotasra alleged that Arun Chaturvedi, despite being the chairman of the Rajasthan Finance Commission, an autonomous constitutional body, was speaking like a BJP spokesperson.
“There should never be political interference in such institutions,” he said.
Dotasra accused the BJP of hypocrisy, claiming that while the party seeks votes in the name of Sanatan Dharma, it is simultaneously allowing mining in areas that house historic religious and cultural sites.
He listed several shrines located in the Aravalli range, including Parshuram Mahadev (Pali), Harshnath (Sikar), Pandupole Hanuman Temple and Neelkanth Mahadev (Alwar), Galta and Khole Ke Hanumanji (Jaipur), Eklingji and Rishabhdev (Udaipur), Lohargal (Jhunjhunu), Delwara, Achalgarh, and Kumbhalgarh.
“These temples are our centres of faith and worship. Destroying their geographical and ecological surroundings is being done purely for money,” Dotasra alleged, adding that the BJP “uses money to topple governments and seize power.”
He reiterated that Congress would continue to oppose any move that threatens the Aravalli range and demanded full transparency and accountability from both the Central and state governments.
–IANS
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