Stones hurled at Kanhaiya Kumar's convoy second time less than 24-hour, none hurt
Patna, Feb 6: Stones were hurled at the convoy of Kanhaiya Kumar when the Left leader was on his way to address a rally against the CAA in Bihar's Madhepura district on Thursday, which was the second such incident in less than 24 hours.
The Communist Party of India, which had fielded the former JNU student leader against BJP firebrand Giriraj Singh in Lok Sabha polls last year, issued a statement here condemning the incident and warned of an agitation if preventive steps were not taken.
"We strongly condemn the attack on Kanhaiya Kumar's convoy in Madhepura. Yesterday, a similar attack took place in Supaul which left vehicles damaged and a number of people injured. These attacks are being engineered by supporters of the Sangh Parivar and the BJP," CPI state secretary Satya Narayan Singh said in the statement.
"If the government does not ask its police to be diligent and provide adequate security, we will be compelled to launch an agitation," he added.
Kumar is on a state-wide 'Jan Gan Man Yatra' which was launched on January 30, coinciding with the death anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi, under the banner of 'Joint Forum Against NPR/NRC/CAA'. The campaign is scheduled to conclude with a rally in Patna on February 29.
Police officials were not available for comments, though Congress MLA Shakil Ahmed Khan, who has been accompanying Kumar since the beginning of the tour, confirmed the incident.
"A couple of stones hit vehicles in our convoy while we were approaching the venue in Madhepura after a successful rally at Saharsa earlier in the day. We chose not to stop, even as a couple of window panes were shattered but there was no injury to anybody," Khan said.
"Moreover, it appeared that the attackers had used slingshots and fled after hitting their intended target. We are saddened by the incident, which is indicative of the vitriol that has pervaded the atmosphere. After reaching the Madhepura venue, we informed the police. We must take it all on the chin and brace ourselves for tomorrow's programs," he added.
The former JNU students' union president, who was slapped with a sedition case in the national capital four years ago, sought to strike a chord with the crowd at Madhepura by beginning his speech with tributes to Ramesh Ranjan, a CRPF personnel hailing from Bhojpur district in Bihar, who died fighting militants near Srinagar.
At Saharsa, the Left leader took potshots at Union Home Minister Amit Shah and urged supporters of the BJP to understand that CAA-NPR-NRC was "part of a game plan which is all about engaging you in sectarian squabbles while the son of 'mota bhai' enjoys a stint as the BCCI secretary".
Stones hurled at Left leader Kanhaiya Kumar's convoy in Bihar's Madhepura district: CPI state secretary Satya Narayan Singh
— Press Trust of India (@PTI_News) February 6, 2020
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BJP stages walkout in Karnataka assembly over 'non-disbursal' of Gruha Lakshmi payout
Belagavi (Karnataka) (PTI): The opposition BJP on Wednesday staged a walkout from the Karnataka assembly protesting the alleged "non-disbursal" of two months' installments to 1.26 crore beneficiaries under a woman's assistance scheme of the state government.
The protest followed a heated debate in which the opposition accused the state government of providing "misleading" information regarding the payment status of the flagship Gruha Lakshmi scheme.
The saffron party members trooped into the well of the House and raised slogans, leading to the adjournment of the proceedings of the House for over an hour.
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The Gruha Lakshmi guarantee scheme is one of the five pre-poll promises of the ruling Congress. It provides Rs 2,000 monthly to women heads of the Below Poverty Line (BPL) families.
The BJP legislators accused Woman and Child Welfare Minister Laxmi Hebbalkar of having "misled" the House by giving false information to BJP MLA Mahesh Tenginkai that all the instalments till August have been paid under the scheme.
The opposition charged that the installments for the months of February and March this year were not paid.
The BJP MLAs' grouse was that they had been demanding an explanation from the Minister for the past three days, but she never turned up to provide information.
As soon as the session started, the opposition members trooped into the well of the House demanding the Minister's presence, which led to the adjournment.
When the members assembled again, the Minister replied that this is a unique flagship programme of the Congress government, which is a model for all the states.
Hebbalkar said she always strived to ensure that this scheme is implemented religiously.
"However, when I checked, I noticed that two months' installments were not paid to the beneficiaries through Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT). If my reply has hurt anyone, then I express my regret," she said.
Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar, who came to the defence of Hebbalkar, said the BJP should apologise for the lie in the Union Budget.
"Despite the Union Minister Nirmala Sitharaman announcing Rs 5,300 crore for the Upper Bhadra Irrigation Project in the budget, the money was not given to Karnataka. You should question that as well," Shivakumar underlined.
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To this, Leader of Opposition in the assembly R Ashoka said the matter was raised because not only were the BJP members hurt but also the 1.26 crore beneficiaries who were eagerly waiting for the money.
Demanding that the lie be expunged from the House records, he insisted on a date for when the backlog will be paid to the beneficiaries.
The Minister said she was apologising for giving a wrong reply, but she was peeved at the way a woman was targeted in the House.
Objecting to this statement, BJP MLA S Suresh Kumar asked her to refrain from playing victim card and bring up the issue of gender, caste and religious discrimination as it was a matter related to 1.26 crore people.
Ashoka and the BJP MLAs then staged a walkout, saying the Minister's reply was not satisfactory.
