TMC MPs in RS walk out over pending dues for West Bengal, claim state ignored in Budget
New Delhi (PTI): The Trinamool Congress on Monday once again raised the issue of pending central dues payable to West Bengal and staged a walkout from the Rajya Sabha shortly after the House met.
Speaking to the media after the walkout, party's deputy leader in Rajya Sabha Sagarika Ghose alleged that the Centre owed West Bengal Rs 2 lakh crore.
"Today, in the Rajya Sabha, the All India Trinamool Congress (TMC) has walked out because of the manner in which Bengal has not been mentioned even once in the Budget and Bengal's dues are still being held up. Rs 2 lakh crore is due to Bengal under various heads, MGNREGA, Awas Yojana, PMAY…," Ghose told PTI Videos.
"This is a violation of the federal structure. This is a violation of Centre-state relations. It's a violation of the Constitution," she said.
Ghose further claimed that West Bengal was ignored in the Union Budget presented on Sunday.
"The manner in which the Budget chose to ignore Bengal is the reason today we have raised this issue on the floor of Parliament and walked out," she said.
Rajya Sabha MP Mamata Thakur accused the Centre of discriminating against West Bengal after the BJP faced a defeat in the state in the last assembly polls.
"Since the people of Bengal decisively rejected the BJP in 2021, the Centre has responded with vindictiveness instead of federal responsibility by blocking MGNREGA wages, withholding funds for roads and rural infrastructure, and stalling welfare-linked allocations meant for the poor and marginalised," the TMC leader said.
Asserting that this "systematic discrimination" against the state is unacceptable, Thakur said, "To protest against this grave injustice, TMC Rajya Sabha MPs staged a walkout from Parliament today. We will continue to raise our voice, inside and outside Parliament, until Bengal receives its rightful dues," she added.
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Ashoka slams Siddaramaiah govt as ‘corrupt’, claims Karnataka administration in ‘coma stage’
Bengaluru (PTI): Leader of the Opposition in the Karnataka Assembly, R Ashoka, on Monday alleged that the Siddaramaiah-led Congress government is "immersed in corruption", adding that the administration in the state has reached a "coma stage".
He also accused the dispensation of "spreading lies" through the governor’s address.
He further alleged that the "power tussle" between Siddaramaiah and D K Shivakumar over the chief minister’s post has "gravely impacted" the administration in the state.
The BJP leader made these remarks while participating in the motion of thanks to the governor’s address in the Assembly.
"The Congress government led by Siddaramaiah has sacrificed the interests and prestige of the state in many matters for the sake of political prestige, the quarrel between the CM and the deputy CM, and the appeasement of the high command," Ashoka said.
He claimed that one scandal after another has come to light, development has come to a standstill, and therefore, to "divert public attention, the government is indulging in petty politics" by confronting the governor and the Centre.
"The government has tried to make the governor speak lies in his address by hiding the facts. I thank the governor for the address, but I oppose the address prepared by the government. This government is immersed in corruption. It lacks respect, and if it had any respect left, it would have taken action," Ashoka claimed.
"There is bribery everywhere. The governor’s address is full of lies. This government has no morality," he alleged.
Claiming that Siddaramaiah has lost the assertiveness and grip over the administration that he once had, the opposition leader said, "From a tiger-like attitude in the past, it has now become rat-like."
Ashoka further alleged that officials have stopped working properly amid confusion over the leadership issue. "As a result, the administration has been in a coma for the past year. It is not right to toy with leadership in this manner. It is advisable to conclude; otherwise, the deteriorating administration will not get back on track," he claimed.
He said the relationship between Siddaramaiah and Shivakumar has "soured". He also took a dig at Shivakumar’s temple visits, suggesting they were aimed at securing the CM’s post at the earliest.
"This is an internal matter of your party. But since it is adversely affecting the administration, please clarify who will be the CM in the interest of the people," he added.
"Jointly announce that there will be no more such disputes and make the administration more efficient. You have made the governor deliver a false speech about this dysfunctional administration," he alleged.
In a high drama in the Karnataka Assembly, Governor Thaawarchand Gehlot on January 22 refused to read the state-prepared address to a joint session of the state legislature and concluded his customary speech in just three lines, evoking a sharp reaction from the Congress government. However, the speech was deemed to have been read and was placed before the House.
The governor had refused to deliver the customary address to the Karnataka legislature, objecting to certain critical references to the Centre and its decision to "repeal" the UPA-era Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA).
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