Alarm of political and administrative crisis for the Cong govt

More than an opposition: Congress faces revolt from within

- BY DR RACHNA GUPTA

The death of engineer Vimal Negi has brought intense focus on this small hill state of Himachal Pradesh not merely because the system may have taken his life, but because the incident has laid bare the layers of its administrative machinery.

This is both a political and bureaucratic red flag for the state.

Himachal, once known for its political ethics and administrative integrity, now faces a severely tarnished image and the government has lost its moral footing not to external forces but through its own officers. A similar case had once shaken the state during the erstwhile Congress-led Virbhadra Singh government the infamous 'Guddiya case', which continues to echo in the national memory even today.

Much like that case, Vimal Negi’s death has become a noose tightening around the neck of the present Sukhu-led Congress government - especially after the CBI entered the scene.

What's ironic is that those responsible for this embarrassment for the ruling Congress are none other than the senior bureaucrats it appointed. Their conduct has turned this entire matter from an SIT investigation to one that's now under the CBI's jurisdiction. Meanwhile, the BJP has conveniently gained a massive and emotionally charged issue to corner the state government.