Bengaluru, Jun 15: Causing much embarrassment to the Congress-JD(S) ruling coalition, senior JD(S) legislator A T Ramaswamy has resigned as chairperson of the Karnataka legislature committee on government assurances, upset over the 'inaction' in a land grabbing case.

Stating that his 'conscience' was not allowing him to continue, the Arkalgud MLA, in his resignation letter to the legislative assembly Speaker, said that not taking action on a serious issue, despite being assured of it when he raised the matter in the assembly, was regrettable.

"It has caused me much pain that no action was taken by the government on an illegality raised by me as the chairperson of the government assurances committee," he said in the June 14 dated letter.

Ramaswamy was referring to an issue he raised during the Belgavai assembly session about a case where about 310 acres of government land at BM Kaval in Bengaluru South taluk was transferred to private parties.

The Revenue Minister had conceded that the case was true and the Special Deputy Commissioners decision was not correct, he said.

The JD(S) leader pointed out that Speaker Ramesh Kumar had requested the government to place the officer under suspension, to which the revenue minister had responded positively.

He said when he raised the matter at the June 14 Assurances Committee meeting, he had mentioned that the government had not taken any action, as assured.

The committee also found that the land had been fenced, stating it was owned by the private parties, Ramaswamy said, as he demanded criminal prosecution against those involved.

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Beijing (PTI): China, for the first time, has confirmed that it provided on-site technical support to Pakistan during the four-day conflict with India last year, official media reports here said.

China's state broadcaster CCTV on Thursday aired an interview with Zhang Heng, an engineer from the Aviation Industry Corporation of China's (AVIC) Chengdu Aircraft Design and Research Institute, a key developer of China’s advanced fighter aircraft and unmanned aerial vehicle design.

Zhang had provided technical support to Pakistan during the four-day war last May, Hong Kong-based South China Morning Post reported, quoting CCTV.

Pakistan's air force operates a fleet of Chinese-made J-10CE jets, produced by an AVIC subsidiary.

"At the support base, we frequently heard the roar of fighter jets taking off and the constant wail of air-raid sirens. By late morning, in May, the temperature was already approaching 50 degrees Celsius (122 degrees Fahrenheit). It was a real ordeal for us, both mentally and physically,” Zhang said.

What drove his team was the "desire to do an even better job with on site support” and to ensure their equipment could “truly perform at its full combat potential”, Zhang told CCTV.

“That wasn’t just a recognition of the J10CE; it was also a testament to the deep bond we formed through working side by side, day in and day out,” he said.