In an attempt to silence his own party leaders responsible for escalating hill-plain controversy, Uttarakhand chief minister Pushkar Singh Dhami, on Thursday, threatened to take action against those trying to vitiate social harmony in the state.

In a statement issued by him from Dehradun, Dhami warned the political leaders against fuelling the hill-plain divide triggered by Cabinet Minister Premcand Agarwal through a statement he made during the recently-concluded state assembly’s budget session.

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Taking tough stand against the political class for the controversy, the chief minister warned, “No matter who they are – ministers, MLAs, MPs or any common Uttarakhand citizen – the government won’t forgive those who play with the unity and integrity of Uttarakhand with an intention to divide the social fabric of the state. Hence, all the inflammatory statements will be taken seriously and dealt with heavy hands as per the law. Strict action will be taken against those who play with the identity of Uttarakhand.”

It’s worth noting that Aggarwal’s statement against the people living in hills during the budget session created a furore in the assembly. While the Opposition demanded action against the minister, people outside the House protested against him and the ruling BJP.

As Agarwal’s statement went viral on social media the Opposition and general public started protesting on the roads. They demanded the expulsion of the minister’s from the Dhami cabinet.

“Statehood agitators thought of creating Uttarakhand to take the fruits of development to every poor and needy person standing at the end. We all must work together to take forward a united Uttarakhand and not be misled by those having ulterior means,” said Dhami.

With hill-plain schism yet to calm down, BJP’s state leadership is likely to gag its leaders from speaking on controversial and sensitive issues.

The controversy came in handy to the Opposition Congress to gain political mileage from it. State Congress President Karan Singh and leader of the Opposition in the state assembly Yashpal led an anti-government protest in the state with a demand for the expulsion of Agarwal.

State BJP President Mahendra Bhatt said, “Cabinet Minister Premchand Agarwal was duly reprimanded for his ill-gotten statement in the assembly. The environment being created in the state by some people cannot be justified. We have also requested Congress leaders not to flare up sensitive matters. BJP will issue guidelines in this regard.”