Archive · 5 Sep 2026
Kangana Ranaut Challenges Mandi Officials Over Delayed MPLADS Projects
Kangana Ranaut is a Member of Parliament from Mandi in Himachal Pradesh.
She attended a meeting about government development projects.
She became angry because some projects were moving slowly and money had not been fully used.
She said about ₹11 crore was connected to the projects and that around half was still unused.
She asked officials to recover money if people received it but did not do the work.
Officials said some delays may have been caused by disasters and election rules.
They also gave different figures, saying ₹3.22 crore of ₹5.12 crore sanctioned for Mandi district had been spent.
Ranaut ordered officials to list the delayed projects and set deadlines for completing them.
BJP MP Kangana Ranaut criticized Mandi officials during a DISHA meeting over delays in development projects funded through MPLADS.
Ranaut said about ₹11 crore had been allocated, with roughly half still unused, and demanded recovery of money from agencies that had not completed work.
She accused officials of inefficiency, treating meetings as formalities and failing to act despite repeated reviews and correspondence.
Officials were directed to prepare project-status lists, identify responsibility for delays and create time-bound action plans.
A senior officer acknowledged possible laxity but cited disasters and election-related restrictions, saying ₹3.22 crore of ₹5.12 crore sanctioned for Mandi district had been spent.
- Who
- Kangana Ranaut, the BJP MP for Mandi, and district officials, including the Deputy Commissioner and departmental officers.
- What
- Ranaut confronted officials over delayed development works and the reported underuse of MPLADS funds.
- When
- Saturday, September 5; the articles do not specify the year for the meeting.
- Where
- A District Development Coordination and Monitoring Committee (DISHA) meeting in Mandi, Himachal Pradesh.
- Why
- Ranaut said projects were delayed, funds remained unused and repeated meetings had not produced enough progress.
Ranaut’s criticism
Officials’ explanation
Responsibility for delays
Ranaut’s criticism
Ranaut said officials were incompetent, inefficient and failing to complete projects despite repeated meetings and available funds.
Officials’ explanation
A senior officer acknowledged possible laxity but said disasters through the previous October and the election Code of Conduct had affected development work.
Use of public money
Ranaut’s criticism
Ranaut said roughly half of the ₹11 crore remained unused and alleged that some recipients or implementing agencies had taken money without completing work; she called for recovery where necessary.
Officials’ explanation
The officer presented a different accounting of the funds, saying ₹3.22 crore of ₹5.12 crore sanctioned for Mandi district had been spent and that other works were progressing.
Effectiveness of DISHA reviews
Ranaut’s criticism
Ranaut argued that officials treated meetings as formalities and demanded project lists, responsibility tracking and deadlines to move schemes from files to the ground.
Officials’ explanation
Officials said delays involved administrative circumstances and status reports, while the officer indicated that projects were at different stages rather than uniformly stalled.
- Meeting
- District Development Coordination and Monitoring Committee (DISHA) meeting
- Constituency
- Mandi parliamentary constituency, Himachal Pradesh
- Scheme
- Member of Parliament Local Area Development Scheme (MPLADS)
- Funds cited by Ranaut
- She referred to approximately ₹11 crore and said around ₹5.5 crore remained unused.
- Official figures
- A senior officer said ₹5.12 crore was sanctioned for 237 works in Mandi district and ₹3.22 crore had been spent.
- Project progress
- The officer said 68 of 74 completed constituency works were in Mandi district and that remaining works were at various stages.
- Orders issued
- Officials were asked to categorize projects by progress, identify bottlenecks and prepare time-bound action plans.
Sources
‘You are all incompetent and frauds’: Kangana goes ballistic at Mandi officials
‘Should I give the money like an idiot?’: Kangana Ranaut tears into Mandi officials over ₹11 cr in unused funds
