RAIPUR: The opposition BJP on Monday forcibly inaugurated the expressway in Raipur amid the presence of large strength of police personnel who struggled to restrict the party workers and the people.
Led by the BJP leader and former legislator Srichand Sundrani the inauguration was held close to the Devendra Nagar. The party threw the four-lane expressway road open to the public.
The BJP leader cut the ribbon, the coconuts were broken by the party cadres at the venue while the supporters flanked the BJP flags.
“The Bhupesh Baghel government is hesitant to inaugurate the expressway fearing the credit will go to the Raman Singh government for constructing the long stretch of roads connecting the railway station to the Mana. Rs 293 crore have been spent on the expressway to facilitate the capital with smooth connectivity in the interest of the residents of the capital. Our government was ready to inaugurate it on October 10, 2018, but couldn’t do so owing to the imposition of model code of conduct on October 6 ahead of the Assembly polls”, said Sundrani.
The BJP gave the state government a deadline of June 30 to forcibly inaugurate the expressway some two weeks ago, if the state government fails to do it.
However, the Congress claimed that the inquiry is going on to look into the quality of the expressway before it can be opened for the use by the people.
“We can’t risk the lives of the commuters and the people. The interest of the earlier corrupt BJP government was only for huge commission from contractors. We can’t compromise on quality and the welfare of the people”, said the Congress spokesperson Dhananjay Singh Thakur.
A 13 km long expressway constructed so far has four flyovers, one elevated corridor and over a half a dozen bridges. It has been named after the former PM Atal Bihari Vajpayee by the BJP government previous year.