Vajpayee’s kin resigns from Madhya Pradesh cabinet
By IANSFriday, July 2, 2010
BHOPAL - Madhya Pradesh Health Minister Anoop Mishra, who is a nephew of former prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee, resigned Friday amid accusations that his family members were involved in a murder case.
Mishra submitted his resignation to Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan at his official residence. Chouhan forwarded the resignation to Governor Rameshwar Thakur who accepted it.
According to party sources, Mishra, who was considered as a heavyweight in the Chouhan cabinet, was forced to put in his papers amid rising pressure from the state party unit since last week when his son and relatives allegedly shot and killed a 17-year-old youth in a land dispute in Bela village in Gwalior.
In a statement after resigning, Mishra said: “I quit the post to fight for justice for my relatives because my family had nothing to do with the murder incident.”
He said that he has been grieved at the incident in Bela village and has total sympathy for the affected family.
Parliamentary Affairs Minister Narottam Mishra, who is the official spokesman of the Madhya Pradesh government, told reporters that Chouhan would himself hold Mishra’s portfolio.
