Sisodia writes to LG, reiterates demands
New Delhi, June 13: Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia on Wednesday wrote to Lt. Governor Anil Baijal reiterating the demands for which he, along with Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal and Cabinet Ministers Satyendar Jain and Gopal Rai, started their sit-in protest at the LG office on Monday.
"It is in the first time in the history that the IAS officers are on strike. It has been more than three months. The work is being affected. Only you or Prime Minister can end this strike.
"You requested us to give you 2-3 days to act on our demands on Monday. We have been waiting for past 3 days in your office. I am expecting that you must have taken some concrete steps during this time. The people of Delhi are waiting for your answer," Sisodia wrote in the letter.
He also informed the LG about the hunger strike he and Jain have launched.
For the last 72 hours, they are on a sit-in protest in the Raj Niwas, the official accommodation-cum-office of Lt. Governor Baijal, over the face-off between IAS officials and the AAP government since the alleged assault on the Chief Secretary.
On February 20, the Chief Secretary had alleged that he was assaulted by two Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) MLAs Amanatullah Khan and Prakash Jarwal in the presence of Kejriwal at the Chief Minister's residence.
Following this, IAS officers in Delhi were not attending routine meetings called by the Ministers and the Chief Minister as "they (the Ministers) have failed to give any assurance till date regarding safety, security, dignity and respect to the officers including women officers," IAS Association secretary Manisha Saxena had said.
Delhi Assembly Speaker Ram Niwas Goel also wrote to Baijal over the IAS officers' "strike". He extended his support to the demands of the Chief Minister and his Cabinet colleagues.
Calling the strike a "well-planned conspiracy", Goel, in the letter written on Tuesday, urged the LG to save Delhi from "destruction".
While the Delhi government is accusing the IAS officers of being on strike, the IAS association has maintained that the officers are doing their work and "no officer is on strike".
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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.
