BHOPAL: A political controversy has erupted in Congress-ruled Madhya Pradesh over the installation of former chief minister and union minister Arjun Singh’s statue at a prominent road crossing in Bhopal, which earlier housed the statue of country’s freedom movement revolutionary Chandra Shekhar Azad.
“We oppose installing statue of Late Arjun Singh in place of the statue of Late Chandra Shekhar Azad at the TT Nagar crossing in Bhopal. We don’t have any objection to installation of Late Arjun Singh’s statue, but protest the installation of the statue at a place where the statue of Late Chandra Shekhar Azad stood in the past,” Vishwas Sarang, the former minister and present BJP MLA from Narela assembly seat of Bhopal mentioned in the letter written to Chief Minister Kamal Nath on Sunday.
The BJP MLA further demanded that the CM issue necessary directions for installing Chandra Shekhar Azad’s statue at the concerned spot again.
Responding to BJP’s opposition to installing the ex-MP CM’s statue at the place, which earlier housed the revolutionary’s statue, senior Congress leader Narendra Saluja, who is also the media coordinator to CM Kamal Nath, said, “BJP leaders tweet and write letters without cross checking facts. Three years ago, it was during the Shivraj Singh Chouhan led government only that the statue of Chandra Shekhar Azad was removed from the busy crossing on the Link Road No. 1. Since last three years the concerned road crossing was empty. Just a year back, the Bhopal Nagar Nigam Parishad had passed a resolution for installing Late Arjun Singh’s statue there. The same resolution is now being implemented.”
Heat on CM
BJP MLA Vishwas Sarang demanded that the CM issue direction for installing a bust of freedom fighter Chandra Sekhar Azad and not that of late Congress leader Arjun Singh