Kumaraswamy congratulates Kejriwal, AAP
Bengaluru: Congratulating Aam Aadmi Party and its Chief Arvind Kejriwal for its performance in the Delhi assembly polls, JD(S) leader H D Kumaraswamy on Tuesday said that people of the national capital have shown that "fascist ideology" will never win their hearts.
Calling Kejriwal as a leader who heralded development, the former Karnataka Chief Minister said people have taught a lesson for labelling him a "terrorist" and also upheld the necessity of a regional party.
"Heartfelt congratulations to @ArvindKejriwal @AamAadmiParty. People of Delhi have showed that "fascist ideology" will never win their hearts.
Congratulations to AAP and voters of Delhi for testifying that successful politics with development as criteria (to win polls), amidst money and muscle power," Kumaraswamy tweeted.
Welcoming the mandate of the people, he said in a series of tweets that the mature voter of Delhi did not change his stand, despite BJP's might, with Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Home Minister Amit Shah and the entire central government on its side.
"People have taught lesson for calling someone who heralded development (Kejriwal), a terrorist.
By upholding the necessity of a regional party, people of Delhi have also set a model by clearly stating that development is their only priority," he said in another tweet.
Kumaraswamy was referring to remarks by BJP MP Parvesh Verma at a poll rally, calling Kejriwal a "terrorist" over his alleged support to an anti-Citizenship (Amendment) Act protest in south Delhi's Shaheen Bagh.
Both Kumaraswamy and Kejriwal have bonded at several occasions in the past. The Delhi Chief Minister had attended Kumaraswamy's swearing in as Chief Minister of the coalition government in May last year.
Kumaraswamy, along with West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, then Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu, Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan had rallied behind Kejriwal when the latter was staging a dharna at the Lieutenant Governor office, which was seen as his power struggle with the L-G.
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Karnataka government employees demand return of Old Pension Scheme
Bengaluru: Government employees in Karnataka have urged the state government to scrap the New Pension Scheme (NPS) and bring back the Old Pension Scheme (OPS), The New Indian Express reported.
The demand was made by the Karnataka State Government Employees’ Association, whose leaders met senior IAS officer Uma Mahadevan on Monday and submitted a memorandum. The association asked the NPS Review Committee, headed by senior IAS officer Anjum Parvez, to recommend the reintroduction of OPS in the state.
Association president C.S. Shadakshari reportedly said the review committee has already visited Rajasthan, Himachal Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh and Telangana where NPS was revoked and OPS re-implemented. The committee is yet to submit its report, but has told the government it will do so soon.
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Shadakshari allegedly said NPS has been in force in Karnataka since 2006. He pointed out that West Bengal never adopted the scheme, while Andhra Pradesh and Telangana replaced NPS with a contributory pension model.
States including Rajasthan, Chhattisgarh, Himachal Pradesh, Punjab and Jharkhand have already scrapped NPS through cabinet decisions or budget announcements.
“Under NPS, 10% of the employees’ basic salary and DA, and 14% contribution from the state is credited to the employees’ fund. It constitutes 24% of the total which is non-withdrawable. This is invested in the share market and the final amount depends on the ups and downs of the market,” TNIE quoted Shadakshar as saying.
As per the report, he said that by limiting its contribution to 14%, the government could save up to ₹1.87 lakh crore annually if all vacancies are filled, strengthening the case for bringing back the old pension system.
