CM Siddaramaiah blames Centre for price rise
Belagavi (Karnataka), Apr 12 (PTI): Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Saturday lashed out at the BJP-led government in the Centre for the price rise in the country.
Siddaramaiah ridiculed the Karnataka BJP unit's ongoing 'Janaakrosha Yatre', the public anger march.
The 16-day agitation where the BJP will take out march in all the districts against the anti-people and the alleged minority appeasement politics of the Congress government is aimed at awakening people.
Speaking to reporters at Sambra Airport in Belagavi, Siddaramaiah charged that the BJP leaders have no sense of dignity or decorum.
"Who is responsible for the hike in petrol, diesel, and LPG cylinder prices? What answers do BJP leaders have for this price hike? The Narendra Modi government is directly responsible for the price hike," the chief minister said.
He said the decision taken by his government had increased the state revenue by around Rs 7,000 crore to Rs 8,000 crore in the form of additional tax.
Siddaramaiah also said that the hike in milk prices did not bring money to the government treasury as it goes directly to the farmers. "If BJP protests on giving money to farmers, then they are anti-farmers," he said.
The CM said the Centre increased the LPG cylinder price by Rs 50, which was a burden on the common citizens.
He challenged the BJP leaders to speak up against the central government's price hike.
"BJP has no moral right to protest. All these price hikes happened due to the BJP. Check the price of an LPG cylinder now and what it was during Manmohan Singh's time. It has doubled," Siddaramaiah alleged.
On BJP's allegation that the Karnataka government is financially bankrupt, he sought to know whether salaries, pensions and retirement benefits have been stopped.
"During BJP's time, even after claiming there was no money, they issued tenders and misused funds. Now they are trying to lecture us," the chief minister said.
According to him, if Karnataka is financially bankrupt today, the previous BJP government is directly responsible for it.
He blamed the BJP governments led by former Chief Ministers Yediyurappa, Jagadish Shettar and Basavaraj Bommai for the financial woes.
Siddaramaiah said, "We have presented a budget of Rs 4,09,500 crore this year. Last year, we presented a budget of Rs 3.71 lakh crore. This is an increase of Rs 38,000 crore. If the state is bankrupt, could we have increased the budget like this."
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China asks Iran to ensure freedom of navigation through Strait of Hormuz
Beijing (PTI): Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi has asked Iran to ensure freedom and safe passage through the Strait of Hormuz, a first such call issued by Beijing ever since Tehran started to put a squeeze on the critical waterway in the midst of its war with the US.
Wang has sought guarantees of freedom and safety of international navigation through the Strait of Hormuz in a phone call with Iranian counterpart Abbas Araghchi on Wednesday.
Wang’s call coincided with a Pakistan mediation delegation headed by Field Marshal Asim Munir reaching Tehran on Wednesday to discuss new peace proposals for a second round of talks between the US and Iran in Islamabad.
China, a close ally of Iran and the largest importer of Iranian oil, was also concerned over the energy crisis accentuated by the US blockade of the Strait, preventing ships from carrying oil and gas from Iran's ports.
The Strait of Hormuz is a vital 55-km-wide maritime choke point between Iran and Oman, managing roughly 20 per cent of global oil trade.
Opening of the Strait was the second most important demand by US President Donald Trump, besides halting Iran's nuclear energy.
"The current situation has reached a critical stage of transition between conflict and peace, and a window for peace is opening,” Wang told Araghchi, according to a statement by the Chinese foreign ministry.
Wang said Iran, as a coastal state of the Strait of Hormuz, should have its sovereignty, security and legitimate rights and interests respected and safeguarded.
"At the same time, the freedom and safety of international navigation through the strait should also be ensured, and efforts to restore normal transit through the strait are a shared call of the international community,” he said.
Araghchi said Tehran expected China to play an active role in promoting peace and ending the conflict, and that Iran was willing to continue seeking a rational and realistic solution through peaceful negotiations, Hong Kong based South China Morning Post reported.
The US blockade followed an initial round of talks in Islamabad over the weekend that had aimed at permanently ending the conflict but failed to produce an agreement, with divisions remaining over thorny issues, particularly Iran’s nuclear programme and the Strait of Hormuz.
The Chinese foreign ministry on Tuesday sharply criticised the US blockade as “dangerous and irresponsible”, saying it risked escalating tensions and undermining the shaky ceasefire.
