JD(S) supports bill for 10 per cent quota for poor in general category: H.D Devegouda
Bengaluru, Jan 8: JD(S) supremo and former prime minister H D Deve Gowda extended support Tuesday to the Centre's move towards providing a 10-per cent quota in government jobs and education for the "economically weaker" sections.
"Janata Dal (Secular) supports the 10 per cent reservation in jobs and educational institutions for economically weaker sections of the upper castes," he said in a tweet.
"We have always stood for, and will continue to stand for betterment of the underprivileged and weaker sections of the society," the veteran leader added.
The JD(S) has two Lok Sabha members from Karnataka, including Deve Gowda.
In a major move ahead of the Lok Sabha polls, the Union Cabinet on Monday cleared a 10 per cent quota in government jobs and education for "economically weaker" sections, meeting a key demand of the upper castes, a staunch support base of the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) which has shown signs of a drift from the saffron party.
The Congress has dubbed the move as an "election gimmick". The JD(S) is in power in Karnataka in an alliance with the Congress.
The proposed reservation will be over and above the existing 50 per cent reservation enjoyed by the Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes and Other Backward Classes, and will take the total reservation to 60 per cent.
The Narendra Modi government tabled a bill in this regard in Parliament on Tuesday, which for the first time aimed to provide for non-caste, non-religion-based reservation.
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Another North Goa nightclub sealed; Kejriwal says corruption led to fire tragedy
Panaji (PTI): As part of a crackdown against tourist establishments violating laws and safety norms in the aftermath of the Arpora fire tragedy, Goa authorities on Saturday sealed a renowned club at Vagator and revoked the fire department NOC of another club.
Cafe CO2 Goa, located on a cliff overlooking the Arabian Sea at Vagator beach in North Goa, was sealed. The move came two days after Goya Club, also in Vagator, was shut down for alleged violations of rules.
Elsewhere, campaigning for local body polls, AAP leader Arvind Kejriwal said the fire incident at Birch by Romeo Lane nightclub at Arpora, which claimed 25 lives on December 6, happened because the BJP government in the state was corrupt.
An inspection of Cafe CO2 Goa by a state government-appointed team revealed that the establishment, with a seating capacity of 250, did not possess a no-objection certificate (NOC) of the Fire and Emergency Services Department. The club, which sits atop Ozrant Cliff, also did not have structural stability, the team found.
The Fire and Emergency Services on Saturday also revoked the NOC issued to Diaz Pool Club and Bar at Anjuna as the fire extinguishers installed in the establishment were found to be inadequate, said divisional fire officer Shripad Gawas.
A notice was issued to Nitin Wadhwa, the partner of the club, he said in the order.
Campaigning at Chimbel village near Panaji in support of his party's Zilla Panchayat election candidate, Aam Aadmi Party leader Kejriwal said the nightclub fire at Arpora happened because of the "corruption of the Pramod Sawant-led state government."
"Why this fire incident happened? I read in the newspapers that the nightclub had no occupancy certificate, no building licence, no excise licence, no construction licence or trade licence. The entire club was illegal but still it was going on," he said.
"How could it go on? Couldn't Pramod Sawant or anyone else see it? I was told that hafta (bribe) was being paid," the former Delhi chief minister said.
A person can not work without bribing officials in the coastal state, Kejriwal said, alleging that officers, MLAs and even ministers are accepting bribes.
