DEHRADUN: Congress today accused BJP of toppling a democratically elected government in Uttarakhand and demanded an apology from BJP President Amit Shah ahead of his visit to Haridwar tomorrow.
"By making a visit to Haridwar and Piran Kaliyar tomorrow Amit Shah will further vitiate the atmosphere of Devbhoomi (Uttarakhand) already polluted by his party," state Congress chief Kishor Upadhyay told reporters here.
"He should first offer an abject apology to the people of the state for dislodging a democratically elected government in the state," Upadhyay said.
He alleged that the BJP national president is visiting the state to vitiate the atmosphere ahead of assembly elections here just as he did before the Lok Sabha polls in 2014 by "stoking communal fires across the country especially in Uttar Pradesh."
Amit Shah will visit Haridwar tomorrow to take part in several programmes on the occasion of 125th birth anniversary of B R Ambedkar.
Upadhyay said Shah should explain to the people of Uttarakhand why the Centre is "discriminating" against the state and causing a loss of Rs 1,500 crore by changing the funding pattern for Uttarakhand after the recommendation of 14th Finance Commission.
"People of Uttarakhand are asking Amit Shah why the state has been slapped with a financial shortfall of Rs 1500 crore, why it has not been granted a green bonus," he said.
"Why Uttarakhand is being overlooked in Narendra Modi's flagship schemes like Namami Gange despite the fact that the mighty river originates from here, and why the special category status granted to the state earlier has been withdrawn," the Congress leader asked.