New Karnataka bypoll schedule: KC Venugopal says EC acting like 'yet another govt dept'
New Delhi, Sep 27: Congress General Secretary K C Venugopal on Friday alleged that the Election Commission was acting like "yet another government department" and said the new schedule for the Karnataka bypolls have been made to "facilitate the purification" of disqualified legislators.
According to a notification issued by the Election Commission on Friday, bypolls to 15 Karnataka Assembly seats, which the poll panel had decided to defer, will be held on December 5.
Citing proceedings in the Supreme Court on Thursday regarding the pleas filed by 17 disqualified MLAs of the state challenging their disqualification, the EC said that after deliberations, it has decided that the nomination process will restart on November 11 as per the new schedule.
Following the EC decision, Venugopal tweeted, "The Election Commission now acts like yet another government department. Postponing elections after starting the proceedings is quite unusual. The new schedule also seems to have been made to facilitate the purification of the disqualified MLAs."
The Election Commission now acts like yet another govt department. Postponing elections after starting the proceedings is quite unusual. The new schedule also seems to have been made to facilitate the purification of the disqualified MLAs.
— K C Venugopal (@kcvenugopalmp) September 27, 2019
The apex court will hear the matter next on October 22 and has expressed its inclination to decide the issue.
In July, then Karnataka Speaker K R Ramesh Kumar had disqualified 17 MLAs 13 belonging to the Congress, three JD(S) and one Independent which eventually led to the fall of the Congress-JD(S) coalition government.
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25 lakh properties in Bengaluru brought under e-Khata system: Shivakumar
Bengaluru (PTI): Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar on Friday said that the state government has brought over 25 lakh properties under the e-Khata system in Bengaluru.
e-Khata is an electronic property certificate that maintains ownership information in an online database.
The e-Khata initiative aimed to ensure accuracy, transparency and universal coverage for property owners, he said.
Addressing a press conference here, Shivakumar, who is also the Bengaluru in-charge Minister, said over 25 lakh properties are being brought under the e-Khata system. Of them more than 7,000 applications have been processed, and additional outreach measures being planned for those yet to obtain their e-Khata.
"Twenty five lakh e-Khatas is a great number which has created history," he said.
The Deputy CM said the government is ensuring that every e-Khata will have its GPS, the shape of the property, and the measurement with every photo and document.
He explained that the government is integrating Aadhaar details, digital documentation, GPS mapping and property sketches to create a robust database.
"We want to see that every record is filled right. They (officials) are asking for documentation, stamp, digital documents. We wanted to connect every Aadhaar card and have it online," Shivakumar said.
To facilitate access, the Deputy CM announced the opening of more than 50 centres across Bengaluru, many of them in government schools, where citizens can apply for or rectify their e-Khata records.
"All of them will be working this Saturday. This 'Khata Mela' will be done. It is 'Nanna Khata, Nanna Swathu'," he said.
Applicants whose documents require verification will be given an acknowledgement and asked to return after 15 days, during which officials will conduct site inspections, he said.
Shivakumar said the government has also taken steps to identify and reclaim properties recorded as roads in revenue documents, asserting that such lands belong to the government.
"We have decided through the law that all the roads in the revenue records have been taken out. Those properties belong to the government itself," he said.
He noted that the initiative has received recognition from the Union government. "The Government of India has awarded us. It said that it is the model for the entire country," he said, while thanking officials involved in the project.
The Deputy CM said the government expects around 10 lakh additional households to benefit from the drive and assured that even those who have not downloaded their documents will receive printed copies free of cost at their residences.
"We will see that all the 25 lakh people will get their e-Khata to their home free of cost," Shivakumar said.
On apartment properties, he said all flats that have obtained occupancy certificates have been cleared.
"All the 37,460 flats (who have applied for e-Khata) have been issued an occupancy certificate. We have cleared all of them," the Deputy CM said.
