‘30% commission’: Congress alleges ‘widespread corruption’ in Puducherry, questions statehood delay | India News
NEW DELHI: Congress leader Dolly Sharma on Thursday alleged “widespread corruption” in Puducherry, claiming that people are being forced to pay “30% commission” for doing work. Sharma also questioned the delay in granting statehood to Puducherry, even though the BJP is both in power at the Center and part of the AINRC-led coalition government in the vote-bound Union Territory. “The way a persistently corrupt government is working in Puducherry is really alarming. If you want to do any work, you have to pay 30% commission. Five years have passed; BJP is in power at the center and in the state, yet why Puducherry has not got statehood?” Dr. Sharma. Raising concerns over unemployment, he claimed that youth in Puducherry are struggling to find jobs, while liquor is easily accessible. He also accused the ruling coalition of failing to fulfill its election promises.“The youth here cannot find jobs, yet liquor is available continuously. People fully understand the difference between what was promised and what is actually being delivered. They have failed to fulfill 90 out of a hundred promises made in their manifesto,” he added. The Congress is contesting the April 9 Puducherry Assembly elections in alliance with its existing ally DMK. Under the arrangement, the Congress will contest 16 seats, while the DM has been allotted the remaining 14 seats. Puducherry, a former French colony, has a 33-member legislature, of which 30 are directly elected; The remaining three MLAs are Central nominees. The Congress-DMK alliance also exists in neighboring Tamil Nadu, where DMK supremo and Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin allotted 28 out of 234 seats to the grand old party, including a Rajya Sabha berth. Tamil Nadu will go to polls in a single phase on April 23 Counting of votes in both Puducherry and Tamil Nadu, along with three poll-bound states – Assam, Kerala and West Bengal – will take place on May 4.
