Saharanpur: Shabbirpur village, adopted by Saharanpur MP Raghav Lakhanpal Sharma for Prime Minister's Model Village Scheme, came into light after a communal clash broke out here in 2017.
The village was later adopted by the MP to pacify the villagers who were agonized after the incident. After the adoption, people were hopeful that things will change and the village will move on a progressive trajectory.
However, things turned out to be different. The village still lacks basic amenities and no developmental project has started. Villagers are angry with the MP saying the adoption of the village to make it a model village was just a gimmick.
According to a villager, "There was no work, worth ₹3.5 crore, done here. Only a few handpumps and around thirty solar lights were installed. The MP visited before 2014 Lok Sabha polls once and never visited our village thereafter. I will vote for BJP, but not for the MP. Whoever contest on BJP ticket, I will support him."
Another local person said, "The vote will not be in favour of Raghav Lakhanpal but in favour of PM Modi. The work was done on paper but in reality, nothing was done to make it a model village."
On the other hand, MP Raghav Lakhanpal Sharma said that the developmental projects worth ₹3.5 crore were already dedicated to villagers and other projects worth ₹5 crore were in the pipeline.
