Congress deceived people with 'misleading poll guarantees' now replete with conditions: BJP
Bengaluru(PTI): The BJP attacked the Congress government in the Assembly on Wednesday, alleging that it deceived the people with their "misleading poll guarantees", which are now replete with conditions.
The party claimed that the Siddaramaiah government is fast losing its popularity as people are no longer relying on its guarantees.
Former deputy Chief Minister R Ashoka sought to pick holes in the five 'guarantees' promised in the Congress party's election manifesto. He alleged that the government introduced numerous conditions in these guarantees and limited the number of beneficiaries.
Ashoka charged that these conditions in the guarantees are creating confusion among people. Referring to the 'Shakti' scheme offering free rides for women in government buses, Ashoka noted that the Congress manifesto did not mentions any conditions but after coming to power, the government said the scheme is available only in non-luxury buses.
Ashoka accused the government of plying only a limited number of buses, which has led to incidents of damage to bus doors and windows due to heavy rush.
"The crowded state-owned buses show that people do not have confidence in the government. Women believe that the scheme will be withdrawn very soon and hence they are rushing to travel free of cost," the BJP legislator claimed.
Regarding 'Gruha Jyoti' scheme offering 200 units free power for residential purposes, Ashoka said the party should have said in the manifesto itself that they would take average power consumption into consideration.
About 'Gruha Lakshmi' scheme offering Rs 2,000 to women heads of families, he said this guarantee has "pitched mothers-in-law against their daughters-in-law".
The 'Yuva Nidhi' scheme will be applicable only six months later and benefits only those who got a degree or diploma this year, he pointed out.
In response, Chief Minister Siddaramaiah retorted that the BJP, which "failed" to appoint a leader of the opposition, is "talking about the failure of the guarantees".
"Ashoka seems to be opposing free bus ride for women. Even if you stand up and create ruckus we will not be scared," the chief minister said.
He said the people of the state had given their verdict, which should be a lesson for the BJP.
In the May elections to the 224-member Assembly, the Congress came to power with 135 seats, while the BJP secured 66 and the JD (S) 19.
Siddaramaiah said that out of the five guarantees, three have come into effect, one will be implemented from July 16 while 'Yuva Nidhi' will come into force six months later. He said all five guarantees would come into effect in the current financial year.
Earlier in the day, the opposition BJP withdrew its protests inside the Assembly over the alleged non-implementation of the five 'guarantees' promised by the ruling Congress in its poll manifesto, after Speaker U T Khader gave them time to raise their issue post Zero Hour.
Disruptions marred the proceedings on Tuesday after the Speaker did not allow former chief minister Basavaraj Bommai to move an adjournment motion seeking a debate on the issue, leading to pandemonium. BJP members were firm on their demand for a discussion on the Congress government's "non-implementation" of 'guarantees'.
As soon as the session resumed on Wednesday morning, the BJP MLAs sought time for discussion on the issue.
The Speaker agreed to give them time post Zero hour, following which the BJP withdrew its protests.
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After fake ID crackdown, IRCTC daily new accounts down to 5000 from one lakh: Railways
New Delhi (PTI): With a new, stringent system to establish user identity, the number of new user IDs being added daily on the IRCTC website has declined to about 5,000 from nearly one lakh, officials said on Saturday.
Union Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw noted that the crackdown by Indian Railways on train ticket booking through fake identities is yielding positive results, according to a press note.
Before the latest reforms, this number had touched nearly one lakh new user IDs per day, it said.
"Following the introduction of a stringent system to establish user identity and detect fake IDs, about 5,000 new user IDs are now being added daily on the IRCTC website," the note said.
The officials stated that these steps have already helped Indian Railways deactivate 3.03 crore fake accounts.
"Another 2.7 crore user IDs have either been temporarily suspended or identified for suspension based on the suspicious activities they are indulging in," they said.
The Union minister directed officials to ensure that the ticketing system is reformed to a level where all travellers are able to book tickets easily through a real and genuine user ID, the press note added.
Additionally, Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw has directed officials to provide local cuisine of the region in Vande Bharat trains.
Introducing local cuisine that reflects the culture and tastes of the regions being traversed will significantly enhance the passenger experience, officials said.
This facility will be expanded to all the trains progressively in future, they added.
