Karnataka Guv arrives at Vidhana Soudha for joint legislature session
Bengaluru (PTI): Ending hours of political suspense, Karnataka Governor Thaawarchand Gehlot on Thursday arrived at Vidhana Soudha, the seat of state legislature and secretariat here, for the joint session of the state legislature.
Gehlot was received at Vidhana Soudha by Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, Legislative Assembly Speaker U T Khader, Legislative Council Chairman Basavaraj Horatti and Law and Parliamentary Affairs Minister H K Patil.
In yet another Governor vs government face-off in a non-BJP ruled state, Gehlot had on Wednesday refused to deliver the Governor's address to the Karnataka legislature, leading to a stalemate over the fate of the customary speech that outlines the government's policies.
A total of 11 paragraphs in the government prepared speech, which allegedly makes critical reference to the central government and its policies, touching upon the "repeal" of MGNREGA and issues including devolution of funds seem to have irked the Governor, who wanted them to be deleted.
A delegation led by Law and Parliamentary Affairs Minister H K Patil had met Gehlot on Wednesday evening amid the impasse. The delegation comrpised Advocate General K Shashi Kiran Shetty and Legal Advisor to the CM A S Ponna.
Speaking to reporters on Thursday, Patil reiterated that the Constitution of India under Article 176(1) very specifically mandates that the speech prepared by the government is to be addressed by the Governor.
The governor's address is nothing but the declaration of the government's policies, programmes and views, he said. "Article 176(1) says that the Governor shall address the joint session and he should address the session in full. The full text of the speech prepared by the cabinet is to be red by the Governor. It is his first responsibility and he is duty bound by the Constitution of India."
"In case the Governor cuts short his speech or doesn't address, it will be a betrayal to the constitution on his part....the government will see what needs to be done if it happens," he added.
According to sources, late on Wednesday night, the state government agreed to remove a couple of sentences critical of the VB-G RAM (G) Act.
AG Shetty is reportedly in New Delhi, fueling speculations about a potential legal battle if the Governor does not turn up to address the joint session.
This is the third face-off between a governor and a state government in the past two days.
On Tuesday, Tamil Nadu Governor R N Ravi walked out of the state Assembly without delivering his customary address to the House on the opening day of its inaugural session of the year, claiming "inaccuracies" in the text. Similarly, his Kerala counterpart Rajendra Viswanath Arlekar had allegedly "omitted" portions of his speech, with the Lok Bhavan claiming his suggestions had been excluded from the original draft.
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No confusion in BJP-JD(S) alliance: Kumaraswamy
Bengaluru (PTI): Union Minister H D Kumaraswamy on Saturday dismissed speculation over confusion in the BJP-JD(S) alliance, asserting that there was clarity within them and that discussions on the chief minister post were premature.
Addressing reporters at the party's state office, JP Bhavan, after chairing a preparatory meeting for the Greater Bengaluru Authority (GBA) elections, he said the immediate priority was to remove what he termed an "anti-people government" in the state and to strengthen the alliance to face upcoming polls.
"This is not the time to discuss who should become the chief minister. There is still time for that. If we speak about it now, it would be like stitching the cradle even before the baby is born," Kumaraswamy said, underlining that leadership questions would be taken up at an appropriate time.
The JD(S) second-in-command said there is still a lot of work to be done and it was not appropriate to speak about such matters now.
"On the issue of alliance, both I and our party are open-minded. When the time comes, we will discuss it on the party platform and take a decision. There is no confusion regarding the alliance, and there will be no confusion in the future. This is my stand," Kumaraswamy said.
"There is a bad government in the state. My objective is to remove it and bring in a pro-people government. Removing this corrupt and bad government is my agenda. The JD(S) and BJP parties will work together to accomplish this task," he added.
Reiterating his stand, Kumaraswamy said, "My objective is to remove the anti-people government in the state. I have been saying this from the beginning."
On reports of internal differences over the alliance and the CM's position, the union minister said he would not respond to every statement made by individuals.
"Some people are speaking about the alliance and the chief minister's position. I do not feel the need to respond to them. If I start answering each of them, people may think I lack maturity. Therefore, I will not speak about it. We will strengthen the alliance together, face the elections together, and bring a pro-people government," he said.
Kumaraswamy added that discussions within parties were natural and not final.
He said there were still two years left for the Assembly elections while there were four to five months left for the local body elections.
The union minister said the JD(S) is also preparing for the municipal elections in Bengaluru city just as other parties.
He clarified that there had been no discussions so far between the two parties specifically on local body or GBA elections.
Earlier, the JD(S) leader chaired a meeting with Members of the Legislative Council, former MLAs and other leaders of his party to review preparations for the GBA elections.
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