BJP spends RS 44.42 cr in four months on advertisements ahead of Karnataka polls; reveals RTI
Bengaluru: Ahead of the Karnataka Assembly polls, the previous BJP government spent Rs.44.42 crore in four months between December 1, 2022 and March 29, 2023 on advertisements in the print and the electronic media, The Hindu reported.
The Department of Information and Public Relations revealed the information in response to a Right to Information Act (RTI) query filed by activist Rajesh Krishnaprasad from Puttur.
However, specific details on the names of media houses in which the government spent to place the advertisements were not provided by the department, reports Indian Express.
According to the information received, on print media, the government spent Rs.27.46 crore and on the electronic media, Rs.16.96 crore to promote their initiatives and counter campaigns by opposition parties such as the Bharat Jodo Yatra and Mekedatu March and others.
The BJP lost the elections securing 66 seats, while the Congress won 135.
Krishnaprasad told The Hindu that even though it is typical for any government to spend on such advertisements to raise awareness about its schemes, spending excessive money of taxpayers during elections just to woo voters is wrong.
The activist questioned the expenditure that went nearly Rs.50 crore by the previous government on specifically targeting the opposition party.
“The BJP has spent nearly Rs 50 crore and some of the ads were placed only to criticise the Opposition. How can the government exchequer spend money on this?,” he asked.
“I asked the breakdown of the expenses incurred on various media houses from the information officer, but it was not provided,” he said.
Speaking to The Indian Express, BS Shivanna, Karnataka Congress general secretary described it as a crime and alleged that public money was looted by the Bommai government.
“Generally, the government issues advertisements to publicise its schemes. But BJP used it as a tool politically to counter opposition campaigns. If you see, they gave negative advertisements to shield themselves. The public money has been looted by the previous BJP government,” he said.
On the other hand, Ganesh Karnik of the BJP defended saying the amount spent is not huge compared to Delhi government, who had spent more on government ads and with competitive ad pricing, such costs are common.
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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.
