Shimla, July 3,
Adding more spice to the ongoing rift between Himachal Pradesh’s Panchayati Raj Minister Anirudh Singh and the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI), BJP leader and former MP Avinash Rai Khanna has approached the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC), seeking urgent intervention into what he has described as a “clear-cut human rights violation.”
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Khanna’s complaint comes in the wake of an FIR filed against Minister Anirudh Singh and his alleged supporters for brutally assaulting NHAI Project Manager Achal Jindal in Shimla. The incident, which has already caused considerable stir in the administrative and political circles, is now taking a sharper political turn.
In his letter dated July 3 to the NHRC Chairman, Khanna enclosed a detailed representation from Narendra Singh, President of the NHAI Engineers Association, which narrates the alleged assault and expresses deep concern over the state’s apparent inaction. The letter, while highlighting lapses by the state machinery, also makes a case for safeguarding the dignity and safety of public servants working on critical infrastructure projects.
“The above said facts are a clear-cut human rights violation due to non-action on the part of the public servant,” Khanna noted, calling upon the Commission to take cognizance and fix accountability.
The BJP leader, who is also a former Rajya Sabha Chief Whip and BJP National Vice President, accused the state administration of gross negligence. He underlined that such incidents not only endanger the morale and security of government officers but also set a dangerous precedent of political interference in the functioning of national institutions.
While the complaint is framed in the language of institutional justice and human rights, its timing and framing evidently indicate a deeper political strategy. The involvement of a senior BJP leader in the matter—especially at a time when the state government is battling criticism over its infrastructure and law-and-order performance—adds a layer of political pressure on the ruling dispensation in Himachal Pradesh. Khanna’s move appears to be part of a larger political effort by the opposition to spotlight the perceived administrative failings of the state government.
The letter also urges the NHRC to direct the state government to uphold the rule of law and protect professionals like NHAI engineers from violence and political intimidation, underscoring the need for an impartial investigation and immediate redressal.
Whether the NHRC takes up the matter remains to be seen, but this episode has undoubtedly intensified the political heat in Himachal Pradesh, especially as questions mount about how the FIR against a sitting minister will proceed in a highly charged environment.
