TMC MPs give notices in LS, RS to discuss 'voter disenfranchisement'
New Delhi (PTI): Trinamool Congress MPs have given notices in both Houses of Parliament to discuss "voter disenfranchisement", sources said on Monday.
In the Lok Sabha, senior party leader Saugata Roy has submitted an adjournment motion notice demanding a debate on the issue. In the Rajya Sabha, MPs Nadimul Haque and Saket Gokhale have given notices under Rule 267, sources said.
The move comes as the opposition cries foul over the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in five states -- including West Bengal -- that are heading to Assembly elections.
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The Trinamool Congress (TMC) has been vocal in its opposition to the manner in which the SIR exercise is being carried out.
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has been sitting on a dharna in Kolkata since Friday to protest against the SIR campaign.
According to official data released on February 28, as many as 63.66 lakh names, or around 8.3 per cent of the electorate, have been deleted since the SIR process began in West Bengal in November last year, reducing the voter base from about 7.66 crore to just over 7.04 crore.
In addition, over 60.06 lakh electors have been placed under the "under adjudication" category, which means their eligibility will be determined through legal scrutiny in the coming weeks, a process that could further reshape constituency-level electoral equations.
The second half of the Budget session of Parliament is set for a stormy start on Monday, with the Lok Sabha scheduled to take up an opposition-sponsored resolution seeking the removal of Speaker Om Birla.
The ongoing conflict in West Asia is also likely to figure prominently as the opposition is already attacking the government over its stance towards Iran, and the US "waiver" on India's Russian oil purchase, among other issues.
External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar will make a statement in the Lok Sabha regarding the "Situation in West Asia", according to a revised list of business of the Lower House for March 9 circulated on Sunday evening.
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Bypoll results will decide the future of Congress in Karnataka: BJP leader Ashoka
Bengaluru (PTI): Leader of Opposition BJP in the Karnataka Assembly R Ashoka said the results of the bypolls in Davanagere South and Bagalkote assembly constituencies will decide the future of the ruling Congress in the state.
The bypolls were necessitated following the demise of sitting Congress MLAs Shamanur Shivashankarappa and H Y Meti, who represented Davanagere South and Bagalkote constituencies respectively.
The ruling Congress has fielded Shamanur Shivashankarappa’s grandson and Karnataka Minister S S Mallikarjun’s son Samarth Shamanur in Davanagere South and Umesh Meti in Bagalkote, who are locked in a direct contest with BJP candidates T Dasakariyappa and Veerabhadrayya Charantimath.
According to Ashoka, there is a contest between the poor and the rich in the upcoming bypolls, scheduled on April 9.
"The Congress will lose this election, and the future of the state will be decided. Since Chief Minister Siddaramaiah has said ‘Make the poor win’, the BJP has fielded poor candidates,” the BJP leader said in a press conference.
In Davanagere, the BJP has given a ticket to an ordinary person, whereas Congress has given tickets to powerful and influential people. In Bagalkote, there is a very good opinion about the BJP candidate, he claimed.
According to him, the Congress has given space to dynastic politics in both places. Therefore, the BJP has a strong chance of winning in both constituencies.
The LoP said if the Congress candidate wins in Davanagere, it is understood that Muslims will not get opportunities in the future, and therefore, Muslims are opposing the Congress party.
He also charged that Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, who talks about uniting backward classes, has not given a ticket to backward class candidates.
