Karnataka budget day fixed, BJP waits for Yeddyurappa to strike

January 23, 2013
Bangalore, Jan 23: Karnataka Chief Minister Jagadish Shettar is readying to present his maiden budget Feb 8 amid claims from former BJP leader B.S. Yeddyurappa's supporters that four ministers and 15 legislators will quit Jan 23 to pull down the government.

shettar
Shettar became chief minister last July and is heading the BJP's third government since it came to power in the state for the first time in May 2008. He also holds finance portfolio.

While Yeddyurappa has turned coy over his next moves, after repeatedly threatening to bring down the Shettar government to prevent the budget presentation, his supporters are flaunting the names of the ministers who will quit Jan 23.

The ministers, C.M. Udasi (public works), Shobha Karandlaje (energy), M.P. Renukacharya (excise) and Murugesh Nirani (industries), are also keeping the Bharatiya Janata Party on tenterhooks by maintaining silence on their plans.

Staunch Yeddyurappa loyalist and BJP legislator Nehru Olekar has been repeating since early this month that over 20 legislators, including four ministers, will quit the assembly Jan 23.

If the resignations come through, the Shettar government will be reduced to a minority as the BJP's numbers will come down from 117 in the 225-member assembly to less than 100.

Of the 225 members, 224 are elected and one is nominated.

The Congress has 71 members and the Janata Dal-Secular (JD-S) 26. There are seven Independents while three seats are vacant.

Yeddyurappa, who quit BJP and the assembly Nov 30 and became president of the Karnataka Janata Party (KJP) Dec 9, is against allowing Shettar to present the budget as that could give advantage to the ruling party in the assembly elections due in May.

The Congress and the JD-S are also opposing Shettar's plan to present a full budget instead of going in for a vote on account - legislative sanction to spend money till elections are held and a new government takes over.

There is no legal bar on governments presenting a full budget even though elections are just months away.

However as a matter of propriety, governments refrain from presenting a full budget and go for a vote on account.

The Congress, the JD-S and Yeddyurappa have all been contending that the Shettar government has in effect lost majority in the assembly and hence has no moral right to present the budget.

Their contention is based on the fact that 15 BJP assembly members have been openly backing Yeddyurappa and his new party since Dec 9.

At least four more assembly members have also been openly associating with the another party founded by B. Sriramulu, a former BJP minister and follower of former BJP minister and jailed mining baron G. Janardhana Reddy.

Shettar and the BJP have taken the stand that since none of these 20-odd party legislators has quit the assembly so far, they are still members of the ruling party.

The BJP has also not taken any action against the rebel legislators in order to ensure survival of the Shettar government till elections.

Shettar is confident that not many party legislators will quit and he will present the budget.

To show it is business as usual for his government, he held talks Monday with state industrialists on their wish list from the budget.

Comments

Add new comment

  • Coastaldigest.com reserves the right to delete or block any comments.
  • Coastaldigset.com is not responsible for its readers’ comments.
  • Comments that are abusive, incendiary or irrelevant are strictly prohibited.
  • Please use a genuine email ID and provide your name to avoid reject.
News Network
March 15,2024

BSY.jpg

Bengaluru, Mar 15: Former Karnataka chief minister and senior BJP leader B S Yediyurappa was booked under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (Pocso) Act on Thursday for allegedly sexually assaulting a minor at his residence in Bengaluru last month.

Yediyurappa, 81, was booked after a woman lodged a complaint saying that she visited his residence on February 2 seeking justice in a rape case against her daughter and sought that a special investigation team (SIT) be formed to look into the case.

According to the first information report (FIR), Yediyurappa allegedly took the minor to a room, closed the door and sexually assaulted her. The woman further alleged in the FIR that when she confronted Yediyurappa, he said that he was checking if the girl was raped or not. Yediyurappa later allegedly apologised and asked the woman not to reveal the matter to anyone.

The Sadashivanagar police in Bengaluru have registered a case under Section 8 (commit sexual assault) of the Pocso Act and Section 354 (a) (sexual harassment) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC).

Reacting to the allegations, the former CM said that around one-and-a-half months ago, they (the victim and her mother) had come to his house seeking help and he had taken them inside. 

“After listening to her, I called the city police commissioner B Dayananda over phone seeking to address her problem. Later, they spoke against me and I then suspected that there is some health problem with her. I sent them to city police commissioner’s office. I even gave her some money as they were in distress. I came to know that an FIR has been registered and will look into it. But this is what I get for helping someone,” he added.

Comments

Add new comment

  • Coastaldigest.com reserves the right to delete or block any comments.
  • Coastaldigset.com is not responsible for its readers’ comments.
  • Comments that are abusive, incendiary or irrelevant are strictly prohibited.
  • Please use a genuine email ID and provide your name to avoid reject.
News Network
March 15,2024

water.jpg

Bengaluru, Mar 15: Work from home to using toilets in malls, residents of India's 'Silicon Valley' Bengaluru are exploring all options to combat the unprecedented water crisis. People across various neighbourhoods have been forced to order food from restaurants and take bath on alternate days due to the water scarcity.

Even those in high-rise apartments equipped with water harvesting systems now find themselves reliant on water tankers for basic needs, leading to stringent usage restrictions.

Eateries are mulling over use of disposable cups, glasses and plates to avoid excess use of water.

Educational institutions are also feeling the pinch. Recently, a coaching centre in the city asked its students to attend classes online due to an 'emergency' for a week. Similarly, a school on Bannerghatta Road was also closed, asking students to attend classes online just like they did during the Covid pandemic.

Residents have come with up new methods to try and conserve water. With temperature rising, it is difficult to avoid a daily shower but they are left with no option but to take bath on alternative days, said Sujatha, a resident of KR Puram.

"What to do? Clean vessels, cook food, wash clothes....so, we have started using paper plates, that way we have cut down on our water usage. And we order food twice a week. We are using the washing machine only once in a week now," she said.

Some others have resorted to visiting a mall to take a shower or use the toilet facilities.

Lakshmi V, an IT professional living in Singasandra, has been requesting her firm to allow WFH option so that she and her family can temporarily shift to her native place in Tiruchirapalli in Tamil Nadu until the situation becomes better.

"If the situation persists, we are thinking of seeking a work from home option. We are planning to move to our native place in Tamil Nadu temporarily till rain arrives here," she said.

Bengaluru primarily gets its water supply from two sources - Cauvery river and groundwater. For most non-drinking uses, recycled water processed by sewage treatment plants is used. With no rain for a while now, the primary sources have been stretched to their limits. Bengaluru needs 2,600-2,800 million litres of water daily, and the current supply is half of what's required. The result is a daily struggle for the city's residents.

The brunt is also being borne by people living in the outskirts of Bengaluru, especially in 110 villages that were merged with the city in 2007.

The crisis has also turned into a political battle between the state's ruling Congress government and the opposition BJP with Lok Sabha just weeks away. While the BJP has held several protests blaming the government, the Congress has accused the BJP-ruled federal government of not providing financial assistance to drought-hit Karnataka.

Comments

Add new comment

  • Coastaldigest.com reserves the right to delete or block any comments.
  • Coastaldigset.com is not responsible for its readers’ comments.
  • Comments that are abusive, incendiary or irrelevant are strictly prohibited.
  • Please use a genuine email ID and provide your name to avoid reject.
News Network
March 27,2024

lebenon.jpg

At least seven people have been killed when Israeli warplanes bombed an emergency center in southern Lebanon near the border with the 1948 Israeli-occupied territories with air-to-surface missiles, according to Lebanese security sources.

Two sources, speaking on condition of anonymity said early on Wednesday that the strike targeted the Islamic Group’s emergency and relief center in Lebanon’s southern village of Habbariyeh.

Jamaa Islamiya, a Lebanese group closely linked to the Gaza-based Palestinian resistance movement Hamas, said in a statement that “a number” of people had been killed, and called the strike a “heinous crime.”

An official from the group said “seven rescuers” were killed in the aerial assault.

Another Jamaa Islamiya official, also requesting anonymity, said a dozen medical staff were in the emergency center at the time of the strike, adding that bodies were being pulled from the rubble.

Lebanese lawmaker Hassan Mrad said “the Israeli aggression on Habbariyeh adds to the long list of Israeli crimes.”

Israel has been launching air strikes against Lebanon since the beginning of its onslaught against the Gaza Strip in early October.

An Israeli strike knocked down part of a building in the southern Lebanese city of Nabatiyeh on February 14, killing seven members of the same family, including a child, Lebanon’s official National News Agency said. A boy initially reported missing was found alive under the rubble.

In a separate Israeli attack, a woman and her two children were killed in the village of as-Sawana in southern Lebanon.

The Israeli regime launched its devastating hostilities in the Gaza Strip on October 7 after the territory’s Hamas-led Palestinian resistance groups carried out a surprise retaliatory attack, dubbed Operation Al-Aqsa Storm, against the occupying entity.

Israel's raids have resulted in retaliatory strikes from Hezbollah in support of the Palestinian people in the Gaza Strip.

The movement has vowed to keep up its retaliatory operations as long as the Tel Aviv regime continues its onslaught on Gaza.

The Israeli campaign in Gaza has killed at least 32,414 people, most of them women and children. Another 74,787 individuals have also been wounded.

Comments

Add new comment

  • Coastaldigest.com reserves the right to delete or block any comments.
  • Coastaldigset.com is not responsible for its readers’ comments.
  • Comments that are abusive, incendiary or irrelevant are strictly prohibited.
  • Please use a genuine email ID and provide your name to avoid reject.