Yediyurappa government's achievement in one year is zero: Congress
Bengaluru: The opposition Congress alleged the BJP government in Karnataka was directionless in its one year in office and had not fulfilled promises made to people.
State Congress president D K Shivakumar also repeated the charge of corruption and loot" in the purchase of equipment for managing COVID-19 pandemic by the government led by Chief Minister B S Yediyurappa, a charge rejected by the latter.
There was 'lack' of coordination among Ministers. "This is a directionless government, they lack direction in everything... The government has completely failed, the corruption has gone to the peak," he told reporters here.
He dubbed as "a chain of lies" the list of achievements released by the government and said it had not been able to fulfill the promises made to people.
The government's achievement so far was 'zero', he said adding the ruling party can say it has completed one year in office, won bye-elections and carried out well "operation Lotus", a reference to defections allegedly engineered by the BJP to topple the Congress-JDS government last year.
Yediyurappa was sworn in as the Chief Minister for the fourth time on July 26, 2019, three days after the collapse of the Congress-JD(S) government led by H D Kumaraswamy that lost the trust vote after a section of the ruling combine MLAs raised a banner of revolt.
The KPCC president said his party will go to the "people's court" on the government's "failures and corruption".
Reiterating the party's allegation of "loot" of about Rs 2,000 crore in the purchase of equipment and supplies related to COVID-19, Shivakumar also demanded that the government give the list of people who were given cash relief during lockdown totaling to about Rs 1,600 crore as stated by it.
"As an opposition party we have demanded a white paper, is that wrong? Is it wrong to question your corruption and seek answers? Your Ministers have indulged in corruption in various departments," he alleged.
Congress and its legislative party leader Siddaramaiah had recently 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, a charge rejected by the government.
Recalling that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had called the then Congress government as a 10 percent (commission) government during the 2018 assembly poll campaign, Shivakumar said, "....do you know what percentage it has gone to in corona purchase?"
"I want the honorable Prime Minister to intervene...look at what other states have purchased and at what price the Centre has purchased (COVID equipment)," he said.
He demanded an inquiry into the alleged misappropriation and corruption and said it can also look into graft charges leveled against the previous JDS-Congress rule by BJP ministers now.
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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.
