Don't allow curtailment of budget session: K'taka LoP urges Speaker
Bengaluru (PTI): Leader of the Opposition in the Karnataka Assembly R Ashoka on Monday urged the Speaker not to allow the ongoing Budget session of the legislature to be curtailed, amid indications of such a move, in the wake of bypolls to two assembly segments in the state.
Ashoka, a senior BJP leader, said that there are indications the session may be curtailed and urged Speaker U T Khader not to allow it.
As the House met for the day, Ashoka said, "we wanted to discuss Bengaluru's issues, but no one is here. Neither the Chief Minister nor the Deputy Chief Minister are present. What should we do."
Speaker Khader replied, "Let them come, the matter can be taken up after that."
To this Ashoka asked whether they would come and that he has "doubts," about that. "There are indications the government may curtail the session. Please don't allow it to happen."
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The Speaker then said that any such decision would be taken after discussing with the opposition leader.
To this, Ashoka said there was no need for any discussion and that "let the session be held as per schedule."
Meanwhile, speaking to reporters outside the Assembly, Labour Minister Santosh Lad admitted there were indications the session might be curtailed.
"The legislature session has been on for three weeks. Despite holidays in between, the session has been held for the minimum number of days. I don't have complete information about what the opposition, the Chief Minister and the Speaker will decide. But such indications are there," he said in response to a question.
The state legislature's Budget session, which began on March 6 with Chief Minister Siddaramaiah presenting the Budget for 2026-27, is scheduled to conclude on March 27.
Two assembly segments in the state --Bagalkot and Davangere South-- will go to bypolls on April 9.
Since Monday is the last date for filing nominations for the bypolls, both chief minister Siddaramaiah and his deputy D K Shivakumar are visiting those segments to accompany Congress candidates while filing their papers.
Bypolls for the Bagalkot and Davanagere South Assembly constituencies were necessitated following the death of senior Congress MLAs H Y Meti and Shamanur Shivashankarappa, respectively.
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2 people killed in collision between jet and vehicle at New York's LaGuardia Airport, source says
New York (AP): An Air Canada regional jet struck a firetruck on the runway after landing at New York's LaGuardia Airport late Sunday, crushing the nose of the plane, according to authorities and photos of the wreckage.
Two people were killed, according to a person familiar with the investigation into the crash. The person spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss an active investigation.
There were 72 passengers and four crew members aboard the aircraft, a Jazz Aviation flight operating on behalf of Air Canada, according to a statement from the airline. The flight originated at Montréal-Pierre Elliott Trudeau International Airport, the major airport serving Montreal.
The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey said in a statement that the jet had struck a rescue and firefighting vehicle that was responding to a separate incident at about 11:45 p.m. The airport was closed as of 3 am to facilitate the investigation, officials said.
Photos and videos from the scene showed severe damage to the front of the aircraft, with cables and debris hanging from a mangled cockpit. Nearby, a damaged emergency vehicle lay on its side.
Stairways used to evacuate passengers from aircraft were pushed up to the emergency exits on the jet, a Bombardier CRJ. The impact left the jet with its crumpled nose tilted upward.
Jazz Aviation issued a statement confirming the accident and noting the passenger and crew list was preliminary and subject to confirmation.
The National Transportation Safety Board said it was investigating the incident.
