Congress government in Karnataka stands robust and stable: CM Siddaramaiah
Bengaluru, Apr 8: Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Monday asserted that the Congress government headed by him in the state stands "robust" and "stable".
Hitting out at the opposition BJP leaders, he said it appears that it is their "intellect" that is facing "bankruptcy", not the state.
"Do not embarrass yourselves by lying every day and then manufacturing more falsehoods to defend them when they are exposed," Siddaramaiah said in a statement aimed at the BJP.
Accusing the saffron party of "blabbering" about the state going bankrupt because of a loan of Rs 10,000 crore in the April-June quarter last year, he suggested that they examine the debt records of the previous BJP government's tenure.
Elaborating further, Siddaramaiah alleged that during the financial year 2020-21, BJP’s Basavaraj Bommai as chief minister had taken a loan of Rs 84,528 crore.
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The following year, 2021-22 saw an additional borrowing of Rs 67,332 crore, and in 2022-23, the loan amount reached Rs 72,000 crore, Siddaramaiah said.
"To repay this debt, Rs 43,580 crore was spent in 2022-23. Consequently, the responsibility to settle these debts now falls on us," he said.
"Shouldn't you at least ask your own Bommai before making allegations against our government?," Siddaramaiah asked.
The chief minister said that from the time of independence until 2018, the total debt of the state government was Rs 2.42 lakh crore, but in the five years from 2018 to 2023, this debt increased to Rs 5.40 lakh crore.
"Within a span of five years, the state's debt surged by Rs three lakh crore. BJP Karnataka should introspect about this and kindly inform the public about the party responsible for the debt increase," he said.
Slamming the BJP leaders, he said it seems that governance, economy, and development are not their cup of tea and alleged that they excel only in filling people's minds with "Hindu-Muslim, communalism, Pakistan, and Muslim League issues, causing strife among peacefully coexisting communities for political gain".
"The people of the state know who is ‘Sullu (lie) Ramaiah’ and who is ‘Satya (true) Ramaiah’. They will accordingly answer you in this election," he added.
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Another North Goa nightclub sealed; Kejriwal says corruption led to fire tragedy
Panaji (PTI): As part of a crackdown against tourist establishments violating laws and safety norms in the aftermath of the Arpora fire tragedy, Goa authorities on Saturday sealed a renowned club at Vagator and revoked the fire department NOC of another club.
Cafe CO2 Goa, located on a cliff overlooking the Arabian Sea at Vagator beach in North Goa, was sealed. The move came two days after Goya Club, also in Vagator, was shut down for alleged violations of rules.
Elsewhere, campaigning for local body polls, AAP leader Arvind Kejriwal said the fire incident at Birch by Romeo Lane nightclub at Arpora, which claimed 25 lives on December 6, happened because the BJP government in the state was corrupt.
An inspection of Cafe CO2 Goa by a state government-appointed team revealed that the establishment, with a seating capacity of 250, did not possess a no-objection certificate (NOC) of the Fire and Emergency Services Department. The club, which sits atop Ozrant Cliff, also did not have structural stability, the team found.
The Fire and Emergency Services on Saturday also revoked the NOC issued to Diaz Pool Club and Bar at Anjuna as the fire extinguishers installed in the establishment were found to be inadequate, said divisional fire officer Shripad Gawas.
A notice was issued to Nitin Wadhwa, the partner of the club, he said in the order.
Campaigning at Chimbel village near Panaji in support of his party's Zilla Panchayat election candidate, Aam Aadmi Party leader Kejriwal said the nightclub fire at Arpora happened because of the "corruption of the Pramod Sawant-led state government."
"Why this fire incident happened? I read in the newspapers that the nightclub had no occupancy certificate, no building licence, no excise licence, no construction licence or trade licence. The entire club was illegal but still it was going on," he said.
"How could it go on? Couldn't Pramod Sawant or anyone else see it? I was told that hafta (bribe) was being paid," the former Delhi chief minister said.
A person can not work without bribing officials in the coastal state, Kejriwal said, alleging that officers, MLAs and even ministers are accepting bribes.
