BJP MLA Basanagouda Patil questions need for deputy CMs in Karnataka
Bengaluru, Dec 12: BJP MLA Basanagouda Patil on Thursday questioned the need to have deputy chief ministers in the state when Chief Minister B S Yediyurappa is capable enough to take up the responsibility.
The state has three deputy chief ministers C N Ashwath Narayan, Govind Karjol and Laxman Savadi.
The MLA has been sulking after Savadi was given the post despite losing the 2018 assembly election from Athani.
"Just one chief minister is enough. Others can be ministers. Why do we need deputy chief ministers when there is no recognition to that post in the Indian constitution?" the Bijapur City MLA told reporters at Vijayapura.
He said there was no need for deputy chief ministers.
"Our Chief Minister is quite capable. Other ministers can work under him," Yatnal added.
Asserting that he was not in the race for a ministerial post, Yatnal said development of the district itself is sufficient for him.
He, however, asserted that he was ready to take up ministerial responsibility if Yediyurappa assigns him.
"If Yediyurappa gives me the responsibility, I will take it up," he said.
The MLA recently flayed the party leadership saying they ignored Yediyurappa when he tried to meet them in Delhi demanding grants for relief works in north Karnataka which was ravaged by floods twice this year.
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MP cruise boat tragedy: Death toll rises to nine; search ops continue at Bargi Dam
Jabalpur (PTI): The death toll in the Bargi Dam tragedy rose to nine on Friday, as rescuers recovered the bodies of five more persons who were on the cruise boat that overturned in the reservoir in Madhya Pradesh's Jabalpur.
Talking to PTI Videos, Madhya Pradesh Tourism Minister Dharmendra Bhav Singh Lodhi said, "Four bodies were recovered on Thursday, while five were found in the early hours during the rescue operation, taking the toll to nine."
As many as 22 people have been rescued so far, he said.
The minister said that a thorough probe will be conducted, and the issue of life jackets, raised by one of the survivors, will also be investigated.
The rescue operation is underway in full swing to trace the missing persons, Lodhi said.
A cruise boat with 29 passengers and two crew members onboard overturned in the Bargi Dam after encountering a sudden storm on Thursday evening, officials said.
The Bargi Dam is constructed on the Narmada River in Jabalpur district.
A search and rescue operation for the missing passengers continued overnight with teams from the Army, NDRF and SDRF joining in, State PWD Minister Rakesh Singh said.
Hydraulic cranes are being used to pull out the cruise boat from the water body, he said.
According to eyewitnesses, strong winds made the water choppy, prompting many on board to raise an alarm and ask the crew to steer the boat back to the banks.
However, the crew was unable to hear these shouts, and the boat drifted and then overturned, they said, adding that some locals rescued a few passengers wearing life jackets with the help of a rope.
