RANCHI: With political hobnobbing increasing in Jharkhand ahead of next year's Parliamentary elections, chief minister Raghubar Das chose the 19th Statehood Day event to set the tone for BJP's campaign on the development agenda and corruption-free governance.With opposition parties recently labelling corruption charges on his government on cost escalation for the new high court building and granting of an iron ore mining lease, Das asserted that he is ' Bedaag (spotless)' and will remain so."I want to tell you all that your mukhya sevak (chief servant) was bedaag, is bedaag and will remain bedaag. Imandari (honesty) runs in my blood," Das said in his Statehood Day address at the event held at Morhabadi Ground here. "Come what may, I will not let your heads hang in shame," he added.Unlike previous years, no new welfare schemes were announced this year as Das focused on listing out his government's achievements and stressed on how he fulfilled the promises he had made to the people."Jharkhand became free of open defecation a year before the deadline set by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. As many as 32 lakh jobs have been created. Your state ranked first in the country when it came to health reforms and fourth in the ease of doing business index," the CM told the few thousand in attendance.

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