CM Siddaramaiah's position has become weak, Cong govt''s lifespan coming to end: LoP Ashoka
Chitradurga (Karnataka) (PTI): Leader of Opposition in Karnataka Assembly R Ashoka on Tuesday said the position of the Chief Minister Siddaramaiah has become weak and the lifespan of the Congress government led by him is coming to an end.
The BJP leader said repeated assertions of Siddaramaiah that he would continue as CM suggest that his position is no longer strong, raising questions about the stability of the Government, which assumed power in May last year.
"....D K Shivakumar (Deputy CM) is claiming during the Channapatna by-poll campaigning that he will become the Chief Minister. What is the guarantee that the Congress party will be there (in power). Last time also during the JD(S)-Congress coalition government they (Congress) had claimed no one can shake them for five years, but 14 MLAs quit Congress (resulting in the govt collapse)," Ashoka said.
Speaking to reporters here, he claimed that Congress MLAs themselves have not got a single paisa for development in the last 17 months. "They have started thinking that if they are with Siddaramaiah, they will not even get peanuts."
Recently, state BJP President B Y Vijayendra too had claimed that the Chief Minister, facing probe in the MUDA site allotment case, will resign soon.
Both Shivakumar and Congress national President M Mallikarjun Kharge are also aware as to when Siddaramaiah will quit, he had said.
Ashoka said speculations regarding the stability of any government should have arisen in normal course during the fag end of its tenure.
"But, this government has just come, and already every day there are claimants for the Chief Minister seat, there are allegations of corruption, there are prophecies that the government will collapse. Despite all this, Siddaramaiah is saying that he will remain the CM,'" he said.
Citing that Siddaramaiah has on numerous occasions asserted that he will remain the CM, Ashoka, a former Deputy Chief Minister, said: "What is the need for it? If strong, no one will keep on saying it (I will remain CM), only when weak, one has to keep on asserting his position."
"If strong, no one will question (the stability of the government), neither the media, nor opposition. As his (Siddaramaiah) position is weak, everyone keeps asking about stability. The life span of Siddaramaiah's government is coming to an end," he added.
The opposition has been demanding Siddaramaiah's resignation, following charges against him in the MUDA site allotment case.
There were also behind-the-scenes political activities within the ruling Congress earlier this year, with a few Ministers in the Siddaramaiah Cabinet holding closed door meetings, fueling speculation about leadership change. But such interactions came to a halt following instructions from the party high command, which sought to crack the whip.
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Modi feels copy of Constitution I carry is blank as he has never read it: Rahul Gandhi
Nandurbar (Maharashtra) (PTI): Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Thursday claimed that Prime Minister Narendra Modi feels the "red book" of the Constitution which Gandhi carries is blank as he has never read it.
Addressing a rally in Maharashtra's Nandurbar, Gandhi said the Constitution contains the soul of India and the principles envisaged by national icons like Birsa Munda, Dr B R Ambedkar and Mahatma Gandhi.
"The BJP has objections to the red colour of the book (which Gandhi has been displaying in rallies). But for us, irrespective of the colour, we are committed to preserve it (Constitution) and ready to give up our lives too. Modi ji feels the Constitution (book) is blank because he has never read it," he said.
Congress wants adivasis, Dalits and backward classes to get representation in decision-making, the leader of opposition in the Lok Sabha said.
Notably, BJP leaders in their campaign for the November 20 Maharashtra assembly polls, have sought to link the "red book" displayed by Gandhi to "urban Naxalism".
Gandhi alleged that PM Modi and the BJP were insulting the national icons by making such comments.
The BJP and RSS insult tribals by referring them as "vanvasi" instead of adivasi, he charged.
"Adivasis are the first owners of the country and have the first right on jal (water), jungle (forest) and zameen (land). But the BJP wants adivasis to remain in the jungle without any rights. Birsa Munda fought for this and laid down his life,'' Gandhi said.
Highlighting the opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi's (MVA) manifesto, Gandhi said women, farmers and youth will be protected with provisions like Rs 3,000 monthly assistance and free bus travel, farm loan waiver up to Rs 3 lakh and Rs 4,000 per month assistance for unemployed youth.
He reiterated the demand for a caste census, saying it will help to ascertain the number of adivasis, Dalits and backward classes in Maharashtra and how much is their share in resources.
At present, out of the eight per cent tribal population, their share in decision-making is only one per cent, Gandhi claimed.
He also alleged that five lakh jobs from Maharashtra have been snatched as various big ticket projects have been shifted to other states.
"Our government will not allow this. Projects meant for Maharashtra will remain here while those meant for Gujarat will stay there,'' he said.
