Congress ask its Karnataka leaders to keep flock together

DHNS
February 4, 2019

Bengaluru, Feb 4: Ahead of the Budget Session in Karnataka, the Congress high command has asked the state leadership to keep its MLAs together so that the government can pass the Finance Bill smoothly.

The instructions from the party top brass came following an attempt by the BJP to topple the state government during the Budget Session that begins this week.

Congress president Rahul Gandhi, who was briefed by former chief minister Siddaramaiah, KPCC chief Dinesh Gundu Rao and AICC in-charge of Karnataka K C Venugopal last week about the political developments in the state, told them that the party should not be blamed in case the BJP tries to topple the government.

The legislature session begins on February 6 and Chief Minister H D Kumaraswamy, who also holds the finance portfolio, is slated to present the 2019-20 Budget on February 8. The state government is expected to pass the Finance Bill by February 14 or 15.

The Congress is apprehensive that the BJP may try to lure some MLAs and ensure that they miss the session.

“If the BJP succeeds in its plan and the government fails to pass the Finance Bill, then the government will collapse,” said a Congress leader.

Rahul also asked the state leaders to talk to all rebel MLAs and try to fulfil their demands.

“The Congress top brass clearly directed the state leadership to ensure that no MLA skips the session. The party also asked both Siddaramaiah and Gundu Rao to take all steps to keep the MLAs together,” said the Congress leader.

With JD(S) supremo H D Deve Gowda threatening to take the extreme step unless the Congress keeps its motormouth MLAs under control, Rahul is also learnt to have instructed the state leadership to not create any trouble in the coalition government.

Rahul’s instructions came after some Congress leaders openly claimed that for them, Siddaramaiah is the chief minister. Indicating that the party may be forced to indulge in one or more rounds of resort politics, the Congress leader said: “Till the passage of the Finance Bill, the party may keep its MLAs in one place.”

The BJP, which failed in its earlier attempt to lure Congress MLAs, may make another attempt during the Budget Session. “The Congress will not allow the BJP to topple the government at any cost,” the leader added.

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News Network
July 28,2020

Bengaluru, Jul 28: Several state Congress leaders, including its President D K Shivakumar, among others, were detained by police as they tried to march towards Raj Bhavan here against the alleged attempts by BJP to topple the party's government in Rajasthan.

Shivakumar, along with Leader of the Opposition Siddaramaiah, state Congress Working President Eshwar Khandre, Salim Ahmed among others were stopped by the police midway as they marched from KPCC office towards Raj Bhavan.

Congress leaders then staged a dharna at the place where they were stopped. Addressing the gathering, Shivakumar accused the BJP of trying to "murder" democracy by destabilizing and removing elected governments.

"We wanted to protest against it and submit a memorandum to the President through the Governor," but the Karnataka government by using police was not letting them proceed towards Raj Bhavan, he said. "Despite our being a peaceful protest, the police stopped us," he said.

Siddaramaiah, echoing similar views, said peaceful protests against injustice was the right of every citizen. Alleging that the BJP was attempting to destabilise and remove the elected government in Rajasthan as it did in Karnataka and Madhya Pradesh, he said the Governor's office there (Rajasthan) was being 'misused'.

The Governor was working like an agent of the central government, he charged. He said, despite repeated appeals by the Rajasthan cabinet, the Governor there had not convened the assembly session, for the floor test to take place and for Congress to prove its majority. Police subsequently detained Shivakumar and some other Congress leaders and took them to a nearby police station.

They were later released. Meanwhile, as the Congress' protest amid Covid19 pandemic did not follow social distancing norms, Medical Education Minister K Sudhakar hit out at that party's leaders. In a tweet Sudhakar said, for Congress leaders getting publicity was more important than social concerns.

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News Network
August 4,2020

Bengaluru, Aug 4: The Central Crime Branch-Bengaluru conducted raids at 35 locations in Hennur and Banaswadi areas on Tuesday morning and arrested seven foreign nationals without valid passports and visas.

The Crime Branch also recovered fake currency during the raid, which is currently underway, informed the police.

"Central Crime Branch-Bengaluru conducted raids at 35 locations in Hennur and Banaswadi area today morning and arrested seven foreign nationals without valid passports and visa, fake currency also recovered," Sandeep Patil, Joint Commissioner of Police, Crime, Bengaluru said.

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News Network
January 20,2020

Bengaluru, Jan 20: The suspense over chief minister BS Yediyurappa expanding his council of ministers is set to continue until after he returns from his trip to attend the World Economic Forum (WEF) in Davos, Switzerland.

Yediyurappa, who heads a 10-member delegation to the Swiss ski resort, left on Sunday. Prior to his departure, he told reporters cabinet expansion will happen only after his return on January 24. “I discussed the issue with [BJP] national president Amit Shah for 30 minutes or so. He has given a positive response and I will expand the cabinet within two days after my return,” Yediyurappa said.

But sources said Shah, during his visit to Hubballi on Saturday, had indicated the exercise is likely to be delayed further as the central leadership will be busy with the assembly elections in Delhi. “Indications are there is no possibility of expanding the cabinet until February 11 when the electoral process for the Delhi elections ends,” said a source.

The development has obviously left ministerial aspirants, especially defectors from Congress and JD(S) who were re-elected on BJP tickets last month, restive. Moreover, while Yediyurappa has promised ministerial berths to all MLAs who switched to the BJP from Congress and JD(S), sources say Shah is only in favour of inducting six defectors (11 of whom won MLA seats on saffron party tickets in the byelections) into the cabinet.

“Shah’s advice to Yediyurappa is to strike a balance between defectors and loyalists. His concern is loyalists should not be left disappointed, while justice should be served to the defectors as well,” said a BJP functionary.

Meanwhile, KS Eshwarappa, senior party functionary and minister for rural development, said the BJP would never let down the defectors. “The party is indebted to them and I am sure they will all be rewarded,” he said.

BC Patil, one of the defectors, said some of them had met Shah in one-on-one meetings in Hubballi. “It was more a courtesy call and the issue of cabinet expansion didn’t come up during the meeting,” he said.

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