Chouhan admits Yadav more energetic, slams Didi for pre-poll temple projects

Bhopal: Former MP chief minister and Union minister for agriculture Shivraj Singh Chouhan on Tuesday admitted that the incumbent chief minister, Mohan Yadav, was much more energetic than him and wished him the best. Chouhan, who was in Bhopal was reacting to his cabinet colleague, Union home minister Amit Shah's praise for Yadav at a function in Gwalior last week.Last Thursday, while inaugurating the Abhyudaya Madhya Pradesh Growth Summit in Gwalior, Amit Shah said that Mohan Yadav, who recently completed 2 years in office, "works with more energy" than former chief minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan.
Praising chief minister Mohan Yadav's flagship regional industrial conclaves, Amit Shah said, "At one time, it was the Digvijaya Singh regime, and the state was considered BIMARU and remained that. It was (former chief minister) Shivraj Singh Chouhan who removed the BIMARU tag from MP. He was the BJP's chief minister for a long time here. Now, Mohan Yadav is working with more energy than Shivraj Singh Chouhan. This definitely means that MP will become a developed state."Asked by reporters here on Tuesday about Amit Shah's comment, Union minister for agriculture and the state's former chief minister of 17 years, Shivraj Singh Chouhan said, "He (Mohan Yadav) is working speedily. He has more energy than I do. His energy should increase so that he continues to work well. My best wishes for him." P 4Chouhan also came down heavily on West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee for her recent temple projects, from the Jagannath temple in Digha to the construction of Durga Angan in New Town, Kolkata, and a proposed Mahakal temple in Siliguri. "Jab chunao yaad aata hai, tab mandir yaad aate hain (when the elections approach, then temples are remembered)," Chouhan took a dig."I believe whether the construction of temples or any other religious activities is a matter of faith. When religious structures and places of worship are attacked, then they (opposition parties) remain silent. And when elections approach, they smear their heads with vermilion, recite the Hanuman Chalisa and the Durga Saptashati," Chouhan said.Talking about the new Vikasit Bharat G RAM G Act, Chouhan said that the previous MNREGA had several loopholes, for which the scheme was altered. "This is not the first time that a scheme has been reworked. The erstwhile Kaam Ke Badle Anaj scheme and the Jawahar Rojgar Yojana were also changed by the Congress govt," he argued.He claimed that the number of days of work given increased from 100 days to 125 days. "From next fiscal year, the budgetary provision has been proposed to be increased to Rs 151,282 crore from this year's Rs 88,000 crore. In 2026-27, the Centre's contribution will be Rs 95,000 crore," he said.Launching a scathing attack on the Punjab state govt, which called a 1-day special session and passed a resolution against the Centre's Vikasit Bharat G RAM G Act, Chouhan said, "The Act was passed in Parliament, and passing a resolution against it by a state is undemocratic, unconstitutional and a violation of the spirit of our federal structure."