Siddaramaiah, ministers continue to spar over 'irregularities' in COVID-19 equipment procurement
Bengaluru: Leader of the Opposition Siddaramaiah and Ministers of the ruling BJP in Karnataka continued to spar on Friday over charges of corruption in the procurement of COVID-19 equipment and supplies, with the LoP demanding to know why the government was afraid of constituting a Judicial Commission to probe the matter.
Siddaramaiah had on Thursday released documents comprising statistics to support his claims of corruption.
Minister R Ashoka rejected his demand, saying the allegations were baseless and politically motivated, aimed at demoralizing officials working against COVID.
"Order and constitute a judicial commission...let a sitting High Court judge inquire and let the truth come out... whatever documents they (govt) have, let them place it before the judicial commission. We will place whatever we have," Siddaramaiah said.
Speaking to reporters here, he said, "if I'm lying and you (Ministers) are telling the truth, constitute a judicial commission.
Why are you afraid of a judicial commission? why are you saying that there will be no inquiry? I reiterate and demand strongly that the government order for a judicial commission."
Siddaramaiah on Thursday had alleged that the total expenditure of the government relating to COVID was Rs 4,167 crore, of which at least Rs 2,000 crore was "pocketed" by ministers and officials.
Refuting this, five Ministers, including Ashoka, had held a press conference on Thursday, in which they said the overall expenditure of the government is Rs 2,118 crore, with Rs 1,611 crore going for COVID relief measures and Rs 506 crore for purchase of medical equipment.
Hitting back at Siddaramaiah for his comments on Friday, Ashoka said the government on July 23 had given a 'sufficient reply' to the charges and made it clear that everything was transparent.
The opposition has no face after our clarification," he said.
"....we will decide if an inquiry is required or not. We need not learn from him (Siddaramaiah)...if we go on ordering an inquiry into things they demand, the whole police force will not be enough. Leveling such baseless charges is like an addiction for them," he said.
The Minister also reminded Siddaramaiah that he is the leader of the opposition, not the Chief Minister.
"He (Siddaramaiah) cannot order us. He can give suggestions to the government," he said.
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AIITA welcomes Karnataka’s ban on obscene songs in school events
Bhatkal: The Karnataka unit of the All India Ideal Teachers Association (AIITA) has welcomed the Karnataka government’s decision to strictly ban school children from dancing to obscene songs during educational and cultural programmes in government, aided, and private schools across the state.
AIITA Karnataka State President M. R. Manvi congratulated the government for taking what he termed an important step to preserve the sanctity of education.
“Such decisions to safeguard the dignity of school children and uphold the values of education are the need of the hour. This rule should not be limited to government schools alone but must be strictly implemented in all private educational institutions as well,” he said.
He further urged the government to address other concerns within school programmes.
“The government should not only prohibit obscene dances in the name of school anniversaries, but also ensure that plays and dialogues that incite religious hatred are avoided. Schools should be centres of harmony, not platforms for spreading hatred,” he added.
According to a recent circular issued by the Department of School Education and Literacy, obscene dances are adversely affecting the mental health and moral values of students.
In this regard, schools have been advised to use songs that promote nationalism, positive thinking, the greatness of Kannada culture, and value-based traditions instead of inappropriate content during programmes.
The circular also emphasises that students should be dressed in decent attire.
AIITA also backed the department’s warning that disciplinary action would be taken against head teachers if such guidelines are violated. The association has further demanded that district Deputy Directors of Public Instruction strictly monitor the implementation of these rules.
