Cong-JDS coordination committee to meet tomorrow to discuss turmoil, seat sharing for LS polls
Bengaluru, Jan 23: Karnataka's ruling Congress-JD(S) coalition coordination committee is scheduled to meet on Thursday, amid chinks in the alliance and an alleged bid by the BJP to dislodge the H D Kumaraswamy government.
The meeting gains significance as it comes days after political turmoil that also saw Congress, the senior partner, herd its MLAs to a resort to shield them from BJP's alleged poaching bid, where two lawmakers entered into a brawl, causing embarrassment to the government.
The coalition government's coordination committee meeting,chaired by Siddaramaiah (committee Chairman), is scheduled to take place tomorrow (Thursday) at 5 PM, Siddaramaiah's office said in a statement.
Sources said that the meeting is expected to discuss the upcoming state budget, preparations for the Lok Sabha polls and recent political developments that include the alleged bid by the BJP to topple the government and disgruntlement within the Congress.
Chief Minister H D Kumaraswamy,who also holds the Finance portfolio, is scheduled to present the coalition government's second budget on February 8 and the coordination committee is expected to primarily discuss it.
Recently in an interview to PTI, Kumaraswamy had said that he would fulfil his Rs 46,000-crore loan waiver commitment made to farmers "completely" in the budget.
The coordination committee is likely to start preliminary discussions on seat sharing for the Lok Sabha polls and preparations, the sources said.
As the negotiations on seat sharing have already been delayed, the two parties are likely to discuss the procedures to be adapted and fix the timeline to arrive at a decision.
Four dissidents Friday skipped the Congress Legislature Party meeting that was meant to be a show of strength against BJP's alleged toppling bid.
The absentee MLAs have been served show cause notices, asking why action should not be taken against them under the Anti-Defection Law.
Congress in Karnataka Monday suspended its MLA J N Ganesh, who was also slapped with a case of attempt to murder by police based on the complaint by Anand Singh.
Meanwhile, there is also growing demand to expand the coordination committee by inducting state presidents on both Congress and JD(S) into it.
JD(S) state president Vishwanath Wednesday said the coordination committee was incomplete without state presidents of alliance partners in it.
However, Pradesh Congress President Dinesh Gundu Rao has said that the party has to decide on his inclusion into the committee.
According to reports, Siddaramaiah is not in favour of Vishwanath coming on board as both don't enjoy a cordial relationship anymore,as the former Chief Minister suspects the JD(S) chief of having worked for his defeat in Chamundeshwari in Mysuru during the assembly polls.
The coordination committee comprises Kumaraswamy, Deputy Chief Minister and KPCC chief G Parameshwara, Siddaramaiah, Congress General Secretary Venugopal and JD(S) Secretary General Danish Ali.
While Siddaramaiah is the chairman,Ali is the convener of the coalition coordination and monitoring committee.
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73 Rajya Sabha MPs declare criminal cases; 31 billionaires: ADR Report
New Delhi (PTI): Around 32 per cent of sitting Rajya Sabha MPs have declared criminal cases against themselves, while 14 per cent are billionaires, according to a report by the Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR).
The report is based on an analysis of affidavits of 229 out of 233 Rajya Sabha MPs. One seat from Jharkhand is currently vacant, while affidavits of three MPs were unavailable. The analysis includes 37 recently elected members.
Of the 229 MPs analysed, 73 (32 per cent) have declared criminal cases, with 36 (16 per cent) of them facing serious charges. One MP has declared a case of murder, four have cases of attempt to murder, and three have cases related to crimes against women.
Party-wise, 27 of 99 BJP MPs, 12 of 28 Congress MPs, four of 13 TMC MPs, and four of 10 AAP MPs have declared criminal cases. Three MPs from CPI(M) and BRS each have disclosed criminal cases.
The report also found 31 MPs (14 per cent) having a net worth of billions of rupees.
Among major parties, six BJP MPs, five Congress MPs, four YSRCP MPs, two AAP MPs, two BRS MPs, and three NCP MPs have declared assets exceeding Rs 100 crore.
The average assets of a Rajya Sabha MP stand at Rs 120.69 crore.
Among major parties, the average assets per MP are Rs 28.29 crore for BJP, Rs 128.61 crore for Congress, Rs 17.70 crore for TMC, and Rs 574.09 crore for AAP. Other parties include YSRCP (Rs 522.63 crore), SP (Rs 399.71 crore), BJD (Rs 105.63 crore), and DMK (Rs 11.90 crore).
BRS MP Bandi Partha Saradhi has declared the highest assets at over Rs 5,300 crore, followed by AAP's Rajinder Gupta with over Rs 5,053 crore, and YSRCP's Alla Ayodhya Rami Reddy with over Rs 2,577 crore.
On the other end, AAP MP Sant Balbir Singh is the poorest, with assets worth about Rs 3 lakh. He is followed by Maharaja Sanajaoba Leishemba of Manipur with around Rs 5 lakh, and TMC's Prakash Chik Baraik with approximately Rs 9 lakh.
