By Shishir Prashant 
PrashantNews
The Pithoragarh police on Saturday said they would take action against Congress MLA from Dharchula Harish Dhami for vandalising the stage of the Jauljibi Mela in the area.
“We will take action,” said Pithoragarh Superintedent of Police (SP) Akshay Pralhad Konde when asked to comment on the incident.
After being denied permission to speak in the Jauljebi festival in the presence of Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami, an angry MLA Dhami began throwing furnitures and microphone at the stage. The incident took place after the Chief Minister had inaugurated the fair and left the venue.
Harish Dhami, who is also the president of the festival committee, wanted to address the gathering before the Chief Minister but was reportedly not allowed to do so.
Accusing the state government of corruption and intolerance towards the opposition, the Congress MLA said, “the government is corrupt and afraid of the opposition. The Chief Minister does not have the courage to listen to the truth about the corruption prevailing in the state.”
Expressing his anger over being denied an opportunity to speak, Dhami said that despite being the president of the fair, he was not allowed to raise the demands of local people before the Chief Minister.
In a subsequent social media post, the MLA said he wanted to raise two important issues before the government — the death of an eight-year-old girl in the area two days ago and the road connectivity problem in Kanar village.
Following the incident, Congress workers also reached the stage and protested against the alleged exclusion of another Congress MLA from the district, Mayukh Singh Mahar, from the inauguration ceremony.
Meanwhile, local BJP leaders have demanded that an FIR be registered against the Congress MLA. He warned that if the police did not register a case against Dhami by Sunday afternoon, the BJP’s district unit would not allow cultural programmes to be held at the Jauljibi fair.
Earlier, Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami inaugurated the 10-day Jauljibi fair, a historic border trade and cultural event where goods from Tibet, India and Nepal are traditionally displayed and sold.
Meanwhile, veteran Congress leader Harish Rawat has expressed concern over the incident and said Dhami should have been allowed to speak at the festival, “I hope the Jauljibi incident will have a dignified resolution. Harish Dhami and the administration should be respectfully invited to the stage on another day and given an opportunity to present their views. Their submissions should also be placed on record and sent to the Hon’ble Chief Minister.
“I would also appeal to Congress workers to respect not just individuals but also the offices they hold. Someone occupies a position today, while someone else may hold it tomorrow. We must all make collective efforts to uphold the dignity of the office,” Rawat said.