Kharge urges Siddaramaiah, DK Shivakumar to unite for Karnataka's development amid power struggle
Kalaburagi (Karnataka), Mar 8 (PTI): Amid the ongoing power tussle within the ruling Congress in Karnataka, party president Mallikarjun Kharge on Saturday urged Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and Deputy CM D K Shivakumar to work together and prioritise the state's development.
He also said if they remain apart and move in different directions it will be "difficult."
The leader of opposition in Rajya Sabha was speaking at an event to flag off Kalyana Patha project at Jewargi here. The project will be undertaken at a cost of Rs 1,000 crore.
Lauding Siddaramaiah for presenting a record 16th budget on Friday, Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge described it as a "good budget" and emphasised that the party consistently supports and encourages individuals doing good work.
He highlighted that the people of the state are now benefiting from it.
Kharge also praised Shivakumar for his past work as Minister for Energy, Irrigation Minister, and as the state Congress president. He acknowledged Shivakumar’s dedication to serving the party, government, and the people.
"I complement Siddaramaiah and Shivakumar. Together you (both) should go ahead and focus more on the development of the state. If we overlook development, definitely people won't like us."
Observing that the work will be successful if both Shivakumar and Siddaramaiah work together, AICC chief Mallikarjun Kharge making hand gestures, said, "If they are apart, it will be difficult. We want them to move forward in the same direction together."
"... if they go together in the same direction, it will be correct. If they go in different directions, it will be difficult," he reiterated, looking at Shivakumar, who was seated on the dias.
Speculation has been rife in the state's political circles, particularly within the ruling Congress, about a potential change in Chief Minister later this year under a "rotational chief minister" or "power-sharing" arrangement.
Shivakumar, who is also the state Congress chief, is a strong Chief Ministerial aspirant and has made no secret of his ambition to become the CM.
While some Congress leaders have voiced support for Shivakumar to become CM soon, several Ministers and leaders considered close to Siddaramaiah have consistently dismissed any leadership change, asserting that the current CM will continue and complete his full five-year term.
Noting that he is currently the AICC president due to the support of the people of Kalaburagi, Kharge mentioned that sometimes they may have lost their way, hinting at his loss in the 2019 Lok Sabha elections.
The veteran leader suggested that some individuals like Shivakumar and former PM Deve Gowda, try to get things done "through god," while he, on the other hand, strives to achieve progress through the people and for the people. "Whatever it is, good should happen and good should be done," he added.
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Rishabh Pant's troubles continue as Punjab Kings push LSG towards exit door
Dharamsala, May 4 (PTI): Rishabh Pant lost the grip on his bat and the match simultaneously as Punjab Kings rode on heroics from the two 'Singhs' -- Prabhsimran and Arshdeep -- to literally push Lucknow Super Giants to the brink of elimination with a 37-run win in an IPL match here on Sunday.
It was Prabhsimran's 48-ball 91 that formed the cornerstone of Punjab Kings' unassailable 236 for 5 and any hopes of a remarkable chase was nipped in the bud by Arshdeep's (3/16 in 4 overs) now familiar Powerplay spell which summarily destroyed the opposition top-order.
This time, he got the three top run getters -- Mitchell Marsh (0), Aiden Markram (13) and the ever-dangerous Nicholas Pooran (6) -- to swing the match decisively in Punjab's favour. Ayush Badoni's (74 off 40 balls) effort was a good one albeit it came for a losing cause.
LSG were finally restricted to 199 for 7 in 20 overs and even if they win their last three games and get to 16 points from 14 games, their net run-rate can make things difficult for them.
Punjab Kings are now placed second with 15 points from 11 games and one more win could possibly clinch a place in top four for them.
But what is becoming an eyesore is LSG's Rs 27 crore worth skipper Pant's inexplicable approach which has fetched him a dismal 128 runs in 11 innings at a sub-100 strike-rate (99.22).
On the day, he scored 18 off 17 balls and that he is completely out of sync was evident in the manner he tried to throw the proverbial kitchen sink at an Azmatullah Omarzai delivery. There was no control in his shot as the bat took off on parabolic curve towards square leg and the ball went towards deep point.
Pant's misery was a testimony of LSG's wretched campaign that was lost at the auction table when the owner decided to go with a sub-standard bowling attack based on a half-fit talented pacer Mayank Yadav.
Mayank has already lost at least 10-15 yards of pace post rehabilitation under the watch of Nitin Patel at the National Cricket Academy.
On Sunday, he went for 60 runs off four overs with half a dozen of sixes struck off his bowling.
The pint-sized Prabhsimran packed a mean punch in his strokes as he blasted his way to a 48-ball 91 with the help of six fours and seven sixes.
The Punjab keeper-batter should have got his second IPL hundred but an ambitious switch hit off Digvesh Rathi saw him head back to the pavilion, nine runs short of what would have been a deserving milestone.
Towards the end, Shashank Singh scored 33 off 15 balls to take PBKS to what looked like an unassailable total. There were 16 sixes hit by Pujab Kings with 13 coming off pacers.
Prabhsimran was initially a passive partner as it was Australian Jos Inglis who launched the first attack with a hat-trick of sixes off Mayank Yadav, whose speed has decreased by at least 15 kmph post his intense rehab under Nitin Patel at the BCCI's erstwhile National Cricket Academy to recover from back injury.
However, once Inglis was dismissed, Prabhsimran, along with skipper Shreyas Iyer (45 off 25 balls), took control of the game. They were only helped by some atrocious fielding from Avesh Khan, who would probably go down as the worst fielder in the 18-year history of IPL.
Adding insult to injury, Prabhsimran took the tall MP fast bowler to the cleaners as he was pulled over mid-wicket for back-to-back maximums. Khan went for 57 in four overs and if around 15 runs due to his misfielding is added, he caused the maximum damage for his team.
The duo of Prabhsimran and Iyer added 78 runs in 7.5 overs before Rathi, LSG's best bowler on view, became the first spinner in the current season to account for Punjab Kings skipper's wicket.
But Prabhsimran continued like a man possessed and LSG bowlers were guilty of feeding to his strengths throughout the innings.
