13 portfolios for Delhi CM Atishi, Bharadwaj in charge of 8 departments
New Delhi, Sep 21: Delhi Chief Minister Atishi will retain all the 13 portfolios, including education, revenue, finance, power and PWD, that she held in the previous government headed by Arvind Kejriwal.
A proposal from the chief minister for allocation of work among the ministers of her cabinet has been approved by Lieutenant Governor V K Saxena, officials said on Saturday. Atishi's predecessor Kejriwal did not hold any portfolio.
Atishi, the eighth chief minister of Delhi, has retained four ministers from the previous government -- Saurabh Bharadwaj, Gopal Rai, Kailash Gahlot and Imran Hussain. First-time MLA from Sultanpur Majra Mukesh Ahlawat is a new member in her cabinet.
Bharadwaj will retain his previous portfolios and also have the charge of the social welfare and cooperative departments that were earlier held by Raaj Kumar Anand, who resigned in April.
His other portfolios include health, urban development, irrigation and tourism. Bharadwaj will have eight portfolios, the highest after the chief minister.
Ahlawat has been given the charge of the labour, gurdwara elections, welfare of SCs and STs and land and building departments.
Rai has retained the development, general administration department, environment and forest portfolios that he also held in the Kejriwal government.
Gahlot has also been given his previous portfolios -- transport, home, administrative reforms, women and child development.
Hussain will continue to hold the food and supply and election portfolios.
The allocation of work by the chief minister, approved by the LG, was gazette notified by the General Administration Department.
"In exercise of powers conferred under Rule 3 of the GNCTD (Allocation of Business) Rules 1993, the Lieutenant Governor of Delhi, in consultation with the chief minister, is pleased to allocate the portfolios to the ministers," read the notification.
"The allocation of business to the ministers is approved, in so far as, such business relates to matters with respect to which the Council of Ministers is required under Article 239AA of the Constitution to aid and advise the Lieutenant Governor in the exercise of his functions, in accordance with Rule 3 of the GNCTD (Allocation of Business) Rules, 1993 and subject to The GNCTD Act, 1991," it added.
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CM Siddaramaiah alleges ‘criminal conspiracy’ in Sringeri recount, vows legal action
Bengaluru (PTI): Alleging a “criminal conspiracy” by BJP candidate D N Jeevaraj in the Sringeri Assembly poll recounting, Karnataka CM Siddaramaiah on Tuesday said the outcome was manipulated after valid postal ballot votes in favour of Congress leader T D Raje Gowda were tampered with during the recounting process.
Following a Karnataka High Court order on an election petition filed by Jeevaraj, challenging Raje Gowda’s election, the reverification and recounting were conducted on Saturday.
After the reverification and recount of postal ballots for the Sringeri Assembly constituency, votes polled in favour of Raje Gowda were reduced by 255, the returning officer said.
A report on the matter has been submitted to the Election Commission of India for further action, the officer added.
Congress leader Raje Gowda had won the 2023 Assembly polls from Sringeri by 201 votes, defeating his nearest rival Jeevaraj.
Addressing a press conference in Bengaluru, Siddaramaiah said the High Court had directed the recounting of postal ballots and that irregularities were noticed during the exercise conducted on May 2.
“This is a clear case of criminal conspiracy,” Siddaramaiah said, alleging that valid votes cast in favour of Raje Gowda were altered after being accepted by counting agents of all parties, including Congress, BJP, and JD(S).
He claimed that during the recounting of postal ballots, 255 votes were initially accepted as valid by all agents but were later tampered with by subordinate officials.
“There is a second mark on the votes polled in favour of Raje Gowda. They had accepted these as valid votes. Subsequently, another mark was made by officials. This is a clear case of criminal conspiracy,” he said.
When asked who was behind the alleged conspiracy, the CM replied, “It was hatched by Jeevaraj and others. It is planned.”
Siddaramaiah further alleged that the returning officer acted improperly by declaring the result despite the presence of an Election Commission observer during the recounting.
“Immediately after the counting, the returning officer announced the result. He should not have done so; this is against the law,” he said.
He pointed out that Raje Gowda had originally won by 201 votes, but after the recounting, the BJP candidate was declared the winner by 52 votes.
“The BJP has committed a criminal act of conspiracy. This is not vote chori but vote dacoity,” he alleged.
The CM said a police complaint had already been filed by Raje Gowda’s election agent, Sudhir Kumar, and emphasised the need for electoral integrity.
“We want transparency and free and fair elections. That is what our Constitution mandates,” he added.
Stating that the government would pursue legal remedies, Siddaramaiah said, “We are preparing an appeal challenging the returning officer’s announcement in a court of law.”
Responding to a separate query on elections in other states, the CM said there appeared to be an anti-incumbency factor in West Bengal, while results in Tamil Nadu were “surprising,” adding that Vijay’s party was emerging as the largest there.
Following the victory of party candidates in Bagalkote and Davanagere South, Siddaramaiah expressed confidence about future electoral prospects in Karnataka.
“Even in 2028, we will win the Assembly elections. We will come back,” the CM said.
Siddaramaiah added that he would order a forensic examination into the alleged tampering of postal ballots.
