BJP-JD(S) protest march is for 'redemption from their sins': Deputy CM DK Shivakumar
Channapatna (Karnataka), Aug 4: Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar on Sunday termed the opposition BJP and JD(S)' ongoing 'padayatra' against alleged Mysuru Urban Development Authority site allotment scam, seeking to corner the Congress government and Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, as a march for "redemption from their sins".
He also questioned JD(S) leader and Union Minister H D Kumaraswamy about the source of his family’s wealth and said he could not have made thousands of crores through farming.
"BJP-JD(S) padayatre is a "Paapa Vimochana Padayatre" (a foot march for redemption from their sins)... it is the march of the corrupt, by the corrupt and for the corrupt," Shivakumar said.
Speaking at the 'Janandolana' event, a public meeting by the Congress to counter BJP-JD(S)' padayatra, he accused BJP leaders and their family, Kumaraswamy and his JDS leaders and their families of indulging in corruption.
ALSO READ; Will work towards bringing back BJP-JD(S) coalition govt in Karnataka: H D Kumaraswamy
The week long 'Mysuru Chalo padayatre' by BJP and JD(S) from Bengaluru that began on Saturday is against the alleged fraudulent allotment of sites to land losers by MUDA, including Siddaramaiah's wife Parvathi.
Noting that he runs a business along with farming, Shivakumar said while Kumaraswamy has clearly said he is the son of the soil and does only farming. "Did he make thousands of crores of wealth just by growing potatoes and onions?"
He also sought to know about Kumaraswamy's elder brother H D Balakrishna Gowda, a retired KAS officer, and his family's assets.
"Kumaranna (Kumaraswamy), you can discuss my assets. Start from the first, your brother -- Balakrishna Gowda, his wife, her father and family -- in Mysuru, Srirangapatna and Bengaluru. Also their benamis. How much land is in their name, you have to answer it. A government employee, how many thousand crores is he worth?" he asked.
Averring that he hasn't yet spoken about the alleged denotification and mining scams involving Kumaraswamy, the Deputy CM said, "I am yet to release your family’s assets, but I will soon...."
JD(S) won 136 seats under his presidency, but JD(S) secured only 19 seats inder Kumaraswamy, Shivakumar said.
"Now, you (Kumaraswamy) have joined your hands with the BJP to save your party. You are an expert in hit and run and you are a blackmailer... You said you will not attend the padayatra but why are you attending now. You are trying to ruin JD(S) for the sake of power."
Channapatna Assembly segment will be facing the by-polls soon. The date is yet to be announced.
The bypoll in Channapatna is necessitated, following Kumaraswamy's election to the Lok Sabha from Mandya.
Speculations are rife within the Congress circles that either Shivakumar or his brother D K Suresh, a former MP, who unsuccessfully contested from Bangalore Rural Lok Sabha segment, are likely to be Congress candidate from Channapatna.
"Whoever may be the candidate in Channapatna, but your vote goes to Siddaramaiah and Shivakumar. The Congress party symbol is the real candidate. I will work for this constituency like a legislator, give me an opportunity by supporting Congress," he appealed.
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Single higher education regulator bill tabled in LS; Oppn flags ‘centralisation,' JPC likely
New Delhi: A bill to set up a 13-member body to regulate institutions of higher education was introduced in the Lok Sabha on Monday.
Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan introduced the Viksit Bharat Shiksha Adhishthan Bill, which seeks to establish an overarching higher education commission along with three councils for regulation, accreditation, and ensuring academic standards for universities and higher education institutions in India.
Meanwhile, the move drew strong opposition, with members warning that it could weaken institutional autonomy and result in excessive centralisation of higher education in India.
The Viksit Bharat Shiksha Adhishthan Bill, 2025, earlier known as the Higher Education Council of India (HECI) Bill, has been introduced in line with the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020.
The proposed legislation seeks to merge three existing regulatory bodies, the University Grants Commission (UGC), the All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE), and the National Council for Teacher Education (NCTE), into a single unified body called the Viksit Bharat Shiksha Adhishthan.
At present, the UGC regulates non-technical higher education institutions, the AICTE oversees technical education, and the NCTE governs teacher education in India.
Under the proposed framework, the new commission will function through three separate councils responsible for regulation, accreditation, and the maintenance of academic standards across universities and higher education institutions in the country.
According to the Bill, the present challenges faced by higher educational institutions due to the multiplicity of regulators having non-harmonised regulatory approval protocols will be done away with.
The higher education commission, which will be headed by a chairperson appointed by the President of India, will cover all central universities and colleges under it, institutes of national importance functioning under the administrative purview of the Ministry of Education, including IITs, NITs, IISc, IISERs, IIMs, and IIITs.
At present, IITs and IIMs are not regulated by the University Grants Commission (UGC).
Government to refer bill to JPC; Oppn slams it
The government has expressed its willingness to refer it to a joint committee after several members of the Lok Sabha expressed strong opposition to the Bill, stating that they were not given time to study its provisions.
Responding to the opposition, Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju said the government intends to refer the Bill to a Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) for detailed examination.
Congress Lok Sabha MP Manish Tewari warned that the Bill could result in “excessive centralisation” of higher education. He argued that the proposed law violates the constitutional division of legislative powers between the Union and the states.
According to him, the Bill goes beyond setting academic standards and intrudes into areas such as administration, affiliation, and the establishment and closure of university campuses. These matters, he said, fall under Entry 25 of the Concurrent List and Entry 32 of the State List, which cover the incorporation and regulation of state universities.
Tewari further stated that the Bill suffers from “excessive delegation of legislative power” to the proposed commission. He pointed out that crucial aspects such as accreditation frameworks, degree-granting powers, penalties, institutional autonomy, and even the supersession of institutions are left to be decided through rules, regulations, and executive directions. He argued that this amounts to a violation of established constitutional principles governing delegated legislation.
Under the Bill, the regulatory council will have the power to impose heavy penalties on higher education institutions for violating provisions of the Act or related rules. Penalties range from ₹10 lakh to ₹75 lakh for repeated violations, while establishing an institution without approval from the commission or the state government could attract a fine of up to ₹2 crore.
Concerns were also raised by members from southern states over the Hindi nomenclature of the Bill. N.K. Premachandran, an MP from the Revolutionary Socialist Party representing Kollam in Kerala, said even the name of the Bill was difficult to pronounce.
He pointed out that under Article 348 of the Constitution, the text of any Bill introduced in Parliament must be in English unless Parliament decides otherwise.
DMK MP T.M. Selvaganapathy also criticised the government for naming laws and schemes only in Hindi. He said the Constitution clearly mandates that the nomenclature of a Bill should be in English so that citizens across the country can understand its intent.
Congress MP S. Jothimani from Tamil Nadu’s Karur constituency described the Bill as another attempt to impose Hindi and termed it “an attack on federalism.”
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