Kejriwal's protest continues for fourth day
New Delhi, June 14 : A sit-in protest at the Lt. Governor's office by Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal and his cabinet colleagues entered its fourth day on Thursday.
The hunger strike by Health Minister Satyendra Jain entered day two, while that by Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia completed a day.
During a health check up on Thursday morning, all the parameters were nearly normal for both the ministers.
Kejriwal, Sisodia, Jain and Gopal Rai has been camping in the Raj Niwas, the official accommodation-cum-office of Lt. Governor Anil Baijal, since Monday evening.
The Delhi Chief Minister said he and his colleagues would not leave Baijal's office until their demands were met.
The demands include a direction to IAS officers working in the Delhi administration to end their "strike", action against officers who have struck work for "four months" and approval to his government's proposal for doorstep delivery of ration to the poor.
The four ministers continued attacking the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), LG and the Central government through tweets.
Kejriwal accused the LG's security personnel for not allowing his brother, who came from Pune, to see him.
"Every right thinking person asking same question - why is Centre instigating strike by IAS? How can Centre not allow doorstep delivery of rations? These are simple and non-controversial demands of Delhiites," Kejriwal tweeted.
The Chief Minister said he feels the intention, behind the non acceptance of their demand, is "not right".
"Good morning. After all what Delhi people are demanding, for the doorstep delivery of rations and IAS officers to end their strike. Who in the world will say this is wrong? Why nothing is being done. Today is the fourth day, I don't feel their intention is right," he added.
The ministers have been clearing all the government files from the LG office. They are being supplied with food from Kejriwal's residence.
On Wednesday, hundreds of Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) supporters along with leaders came on roads to show their support to the Ministers' protest.
They marched from the Chief Minister's residence to the LG house.
Heavy police and CRPF were deployed in the area since Monday, and more were deployed on Wednesday to avoid any crisis due to the protest march.
The AAP has planned a candle march in Rajpath on Thursday and warned of a protest at the Prime Minister's residence on Sunday if their demands were not met.
In a move to counter the sit-in protest by the Chief Minister, the BJP on Wednesday also launched a protest highlighting the issues of water and electricity shortage in the national capital.
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Criticism of PM Modi, repeated mentions of guarantees to be highlights of K’taka Budget: LoP Ashoka
Bengaluru (PTI): Leader of Opposition in the Karnataka Assembly R Ashoka on Thursday took a dig at CM Siddaramaiah ahead of the state Budget presentation, claiming that the government is expected to borrow Rs 1.15 lakh crore and is likely to impose fresh taxes on the people.
He said the Budget would have nothing new, adding that its highlights would be criticism of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and repeated mentions of the five guarantee schemes ('Shakti', 'Gruha Lakshmi', 'Gruha Jyoti, 'Yuva Nidhi' and 'Anna Bhagya').
Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, who also holds the Finance portfolio, is scheduled to present the 2026–27 Budget on March 6. This will be his record 17th budget.
“Siddaramaiah-led Congress government’s budget will be presented tomorrow. While Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman reduced the tax burden in the Union Budget, Siddaramaiah is known for imposing taxes on people. He imposes about four taxes a month and has already introduced 36 taxes, and is now looking for ways to impose more,” Ashoka said.
Speaking to reporters, he said the Congress had promised people before coming to power that the guarantee schemes would be implemented without imposing any burden on them.
“By the end of the chief minister’s term, the state’s total debt will probably exceed Rs 6 lakh crore. The government has already breached financial discipline. Siddaramaiah and his government are somehow managing the situation,” Ashoka claimed, adding that his borrowings as CM equal those of 12 or 13 former chief ministers combined.
Stating that the Budget should create higher revenue sources, ensure that no burden is placed on people, and take the state away from debt, the opposition leader said this could be ensured only by a “clever and intelligent finance minister.”
“Anyone can run a government by pushing the state into debt,” he said, accusing Siddaramaiah of “increasing the state’s debt and failing to meet the expectations of the people.”
Highlighting that Siddaramaiah blames the previous BJP government for everything, Ashoka said Basavaraj Bommai, the chief minister during the previous BJP government, had presented a “surplus budget,” without excessive borrowings.
“Despite having the opportunity to borrow more while staying within the parameters of financial discipline, he (Bommai) did not do so, as it would burden the people,” he said, accusing Siddaramaiah of borrowing crores of rupees every year.
“I feel that this time too, he will take a loan of Rs 1.15 lakh crore,” he claimed.
The BJP leader said he had written to the CM requesting an allocation of Rs 15,000 crore annually for the development of backward taluks, as recommended by the High Power Committee on Redressal of Regional Imbalance (HPCRRI), chaired by economist Prof M Govinda Rao.
Claiming that the government appears “inactive” due to internal rifts, Ashoka pointed to an ongoing power struggle between factions led by Siddaramaiah and Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar over the CM’s post.
“Amid all this, we cannot expect anything new from this Budget. The CM will repeatedly speak about the guarantee schemes and target the central government and PM Modi. Criticising Modi and repeated mentions of the five guarantee schemes will be the highlight of this Budget. Other than that, there will be nothing new,” he added.
He also dismissed the CM's claim that the government had achieved 90 per cent of the promises made in the previous Budget. “The fact is that not even 9 per cent has been achieved. I have evidence for it,” he said.
Ashoka further alleged that the government had also failed in tax collection, achieving only 48 per cent of the target, and had released less than 40 per cent of the allocated funds to some departments.
