BJP accords five religious leaders as MoS in MP; Petition filed in High Court to challenge status

Two religious leaders on Wednesday have cancelled their proposed campaign against the alleged scam in the Madhya Pradesh government’s Narmada conservation programme after being accorded the Minister of State (MoS) status.  

The development comes ahead of state Assembly Elections due later this year. The BJP government in Madhya Pradesh accorded the MoS status to five Hindu religious leaders on Monday morning.

The religious leaders who have been accorded as MoS are Narmadanand Maharaj, Hariharanand Maharaj, Computer Baba, Bhayyu Maharaj and Pandit Yogendra Mahant.

The five religious leaders who were accorded as MoS, were appointed to a committee set up for the Narmada river conservation on March 31.

According to officials of General Administration Department, the five religious leaders were given the MoS status as they are members of the committee.

Computer Baba earlier had announced to take out 'Narmada Ghotala Rath Yatra', in every district of MP from April 1 to May 15, to expose an alleged scam in planting of saplings on the banks of the Narmada river.

The Congress dubbed the decision to appoint the religious leaders as MoS as the BJP's attempt to exploit the respect these religious leaders enjoy in the society.

One Ram Bahadur Sharma, filed a petition in Indore bench of Madhya Pradesh High Court against the MoS status being granted to five Hindu religious leaders.