MLA fund allocation: Congress following BJP-era precedent, says Minister Parameshwara
Bengaluru (PTI): With the opposition parties alleging discrimination in the allocation of development funds to constituencies represented by their MLAs, Karnataka Home Minister G Parameshwara on Saturday said the Congress government is following the precedent set by the previous BJP regime.
Ruling out any "revenge politics," he said, funds will be allocated based on the developmental needs of constituencies.
BJP leader and Leader of the Opposition in the Legislative Assembly, R Ashoka, had on Friday alleged discrimination, stating that while Rs 50 crore is being allocated to constituencies represented by Congress MLAs for developmental works, BJP and JD(S) constituencies will receive only Rs 25 crore each, according to available information.
The JD(S) too questioned whether it was right to discriminate by not giving equal grants to constituencies represented by BJP and JD(S) MLAs, while allocating Rs 50 crore each to Congress MLAs.
"Has the Chief Minister (Siddaramaiah) said that funds won’t be given to BJP or JD(S) MLAs? They are the ones who started this practice during the previous government. Then, the ruling party MLAs were given one amount, and the opposition MLAs were given a different amount," Parameshwara said in response to a question.
"They (BJP) had given Rs 50 crore to their MLAs, while we (Congress MLAs) were given Rs 25 crore, Rs 20 crore, or even Rs 10 crore. We are following the same system," he added.
Speaking to reporters here, Parameshwara reiterated that no one has said funds will be denied to opposition MLAs—allocations will be based on the developmental needs of each constituency.
"Wherever more development work is needed, more funds will be allocated. In relatively developed constituencies, a smaller amount will be provided. This is the yardstick we will follow," he said, again dismissing claims of "revenge politics" by the Congress government.
Asked about BJP MLA Byrathi A Basavaraj being served a notice to appear before the police as part of the investigation into an FIR related to the murder of Shivakumar alias Biklu Shiva, Parameshwara said the MLA’s statement would be recorded.
"The investigation will proceed. His (Basavaraj’s) involvement or any connection to the case will be probed, and further action will be taken based on the findings," he added.
Responding to the BJP's claim that the case against Basavaraj is "politically motivated", Parameshwara said, "It has been about two and a half years since the Congress government came to power. How many politically motivated cases have been booked so far? If the complainant had not mentioned the MLA's name, it wouldn’t have come up at all. What political motive would the complainant have?"
Regarding the demand for the constitution of a Special Investigation Team (SIT) to probe the alleged "mass murders, rapes, and burials" in Dharmasthala over the past two decades, the home minister said a preliminary investigation has begun.
"If a more detailed probe is deemed necessary, the government will take a call," he added.
"The jurisdictional police are conducting a preliminary inquiry based on a statement made by a former sanitation worker, who claimed that hundreds of bodies were buried in the area. If further investigation is warranted, the government will decide. When a preliminary inquiry is ongoing, why is there a demand for an SIT? What is the police department for, then?" Parameshwara asked.
Noting that he is aware a group of lawyers had met the chief minister demanding an SIT probe, he said the CM has assured that a decision will be made based on necessity.
"The police department doesn’t function based on demands made by various groups. There is a system in place, and if required, an SIT will be formed," he added.
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Iran reimposes restrictions on Strait of Hormuz, accusing US of violating deal to reopen it
Cairo (AP): Iran swiftly reversed course on reopening the Strait of Hormuz, reimposing restrictions on the critical waterway on Saturday after the US said it would not end its blockade of Iran-linked shipping.
Iran's joint military command said on Saturday that “control of the Strait of Hormuz has returned to its previous state ... under strict management and control of the armed forces.” It warned that it would continue to block transit through the strait as long as the US blockade of Iranian ports remained in effect.
The announcement came the morning after US President Donald Trump said that even after Iran announced the strait's reopening on Friday, the American blockade “will remain in full force” until Tehran reaches a deal with the US, including on its nuclear programme.
The conflict over the chokepoint threatened to deepen the energy crisis roiling the global economy after oil prices began to fall again on Friday on hopes the US and Iran were drawing closer to an agreement. Roughly one-fifth of the world's oil passes through the strait, and further limits would squeeze already constrained supply, driving prices higher once again.
Control over the strait has proven to be one of Iran's main points of leverage and prompted the United States to deploy forces and initiate a blockade on Iranian ports as part of an effort to force Iran to accept a Pakistan-brokered ceasefire to end almost seven weeks of war that has raged between Israel, the US and Iran.
Iran said it fully reopened the Strait of Hormuz to commercial vessels after a 10-day truce was announced between Israel and the Iranian-backed Hezbollah militant group in Lebanon. But after Trump said the blockade would continue, top Iranian officials said his announcement violated last week's ceasefire agreement between Iran and the US and warned the strait would not stay open if the US blockade remained in effect.
A data firm, Kpler, said movement through the strait remained confined to corridors requiring Iran's approval.
US forces have sent 21 ships back to Iran since the blockade began on Monday, US Central Command said on X.
Truce in Lebanon could help US-Iran peace efforts
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The ceasefire in Lebanon could clear one major obstacle to an agreement. But it was unclear to what extent Hezbollah would abide by a deal it did not play a role in negotiating, and which will leave Israeli troops occupying a stretch of southern Lebanon.
Trump said in another post that Israel is “prohibited” by the US from further strikes on Lebanon and that “enough is enough” in the Israel-Hezbollah war.
The State Department said the prohibition applies only to offensive attacks and not to actions taken in self-defence.
Shortly before Trump's post, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Israel agreed to the ceasefire in Lebanon “at the request of my friend President Trump,” but that the campaign against Hezbollah is not complete.
He claimed Israel had destroyed about 90 per cent of Hezbollah's missile and rocket stockpiles and added that Israeli forces “have not finished yet” with the dismantling of the group.
In Beirut, displaced families began moving toward southern Lebanon and Beirut's southern suburbs despite warnings by officials not to return to their homes until it became clear whether the ceasefire would hold.
The Lebanese army and UN peacekeepers in southern Lebanon reported sporadic artillery shelling in some parts of southern Lebanon in the hours after the ceasefire took effect.
An end to Israel's war with Hezbollah was a key demand of Iranian negotiators, who previously accused Israel of breaking last week's ceasefire with strikes on Lebanon. Israel had said that the deal did not cover Lebanon.
The fighting has killed at least 3,000 people in Iran, more than 2,290 in Lebanon, 23 in Israel and more than a dozen in Gulf Arab states. Thirteen US service members have also been killed.
