BJP calls Kumaraswamy 'accidental chief minister'
Bengaluru, Dec 29: Calling Karnataka Chief Minister H D Kumaraswamy an "Accidental CM", the opposition BJP has taken a jibe at him over his Singapore visit to celebrate the new year, at a time when most parts of the state are reeling under drought.
"After new govt was formed 377 farmers have ended their lives 156 talukas declared drought-hit, loan waiver has still not been done, Karnataka has slipped to a debt ridden state & here we have the so called son of soil CM @hd_kumaraswamy celebrating new year in Singapore (sic)," the Karnataka unit of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) said in a tweet.
"If there was a movie titled #AccidentalCM who will play the role of @hd_kumaraswamy?," it said in another tweet.
Kumaraswamy would go abroad with family Saturday night on a personal visit and return on the night of January 1, 2019, the Chief Minister's Office (CMO) said in a statement on Friday.
According to CMO officials, it has been a practice for the Janata Dal (Secular) leader to celebrate the new year with family for the last few years.
The chief minister's foreign visit comes at a time when voices of displeasure have emerged from his own party, the JD(S), against the ruling alliance partner, the Congress.
JD(S) workers and leaders have openly expressed their unhappiness against the Congress on a host of issues, including appointment of heads to boards and corporations that are yet to be finalised.
According to sources, the Congress is said to have forwarded its list of 19 legislators to head boards and corporations to the chief minister.
The move has irked the JD(S) leadership as they were not consulted.
Also, the Congress recommending the names of some of its legislators as heads of boards and corporations under departments controlled by JD(S) ministers has angered the regional party.
If there was a movie titled #AccidentalCM who will play the role of @hd_kumaraswamy ?
— BJP Karnataka (@BJP4Karnataka) December 29, 2018
After new govt was formed
— BJP Karnataka (@BJP4Karnataka) December 29, 2018
377 farmers have ended their lives
156 talukas declared drought-hit
Loan waiver has still not been done
Karnataka has slipped to a debt ridden state
& here we have the so called son of soil CM @hd_kumaraswamy celebrating new year in Singapore.
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Ban on outsiders' entry extended in Sambhal, SP MPs barred from entering
Lucknow/Sambhal (UP) (PTI): Three Samajwadi Party parliamentarians, including its Sambhal MP, were stopped from entering the violence-hit district, as the administration on Saturday extended the ban on the entry of outsiders into Sambhal to December 10 to maintain "peace and order".
The administration's earlier ban on the entry of outsiders was to expire on Saturday.
The Samajwadi Party's Muzaffarnagar MP Harendra Malik, accompanied by its Kairana and Sambhal MPs, was stopped from entering Sambhal from Ghaziabad.
"I don't understand why we are being stopped. Are the opposition leader and the MPs so irresponsible that they can't be allowed to move within the state?" Malik said.
The party had earlier announced a 15-member delegation would visit the district to gather information about the violence that broke out over a court-ordered survey of the Shahi Jama Masjid.
Curbs under Section 163 (power to issue order in urgent cases of nuisance or apprehended danger) of the Bharatiya Nagrik Suraksha Sanhita, set to expire on Sunday, were extended to December 31.
In a statement issued in Sambhal, District Magistrate Rajendra Pensiya said, "To maintain peace and order, the imposition of Section 163 of the Bharatiya Nagrik Suraksha Sanhita in the district has been extended to December 31."
"No outsider, any social organisation or public representative can enter into the borders of the district without seeking the permission of the competent authority till December 10," he added.
Tension had been brewing in Sambhal since November 19 when the court-ordered survey of the Mughal-era mosque was carried out following claims that a Harihar temple previously stood at the site.
Violence erupted during a second survey on November 24 as protesters gathered near the mosque and clashed with security personnel, leading to stone pelting and arson. Four people died and several others were injured in the clashes. The police have denied allegations that it fired at the protesters.
The Supreme Court has since ordered the Sambhal trial court to halt proceedings in the case and its survey.
Pensiya further said, "If anyone tries to spread rumours on any group on social media, the group admin will delete the post and immediately inform the police. Cyber cafes will keep a register to enter the names of visitors. No person in Sambhal will burn effigies at public places."
Malik, who was stopped from entering Sambhal, further said, "Our delegation also included MPs Zia-ur-Rehman Barq (Sambhal) and Iqra Hasan (Kairana). What can we do? The government is acting in an autocratic manner."
Sambhal MP Barq has been booked in connection with the November 24 violence for "provocative acts".
In Moradabad, Samajwadi Party MP Ruchi Veera's residence was surrounded by cops to prevent her from travelling to Sambhal.
Leader of Opposition in the Uttar Pradesh Assembly Mata Prasad Pandey, who was to lead the delegation, told reporters outside his Lucknow residence that Home Secretary Sanjay Prasad called him and requested him to not visit Sambhal.
Pandey is sitting on a dharna in Lucknow.
"The Sambhal district magistrate also called and told me that the ban on the entry of outsiders had been extended. I will now visit the party office and discuss the issue before deciding on our next action," he said.
"The government perhaps wanted to prevent me in order to hide its wrongdoings in Sambhal as our visit would have exposed its mistakes," he added.
Heavy security has been deployed outside Pandey's residence since Friday.
The Samajwadi Party had postponed an earlier visit after assurances from the director general of police about a fair investigation into the violence.
Congress state chief Ajay Rai earlier told PTI that a party delegation would visit Sambhal on December 2.
