Only filling up of three vacant posts: Siddaramaiah on cabinet reshuffle
Bengaluru: Amid reports that Karnataka Chief Minister H D Kumaraswamy will reshuffle his cabinet to save the coalition government, the JD(S)-Congress Coordination Committee chief Siddaramaiah Tuesday said it would only be an expansion to fill three vacant posts.
"No reshuffle, it is a kind of expansion. Three (posts) are vacant. There is plan to fill them," Siddaramaiah told reporters in Mysuru.
On reports of some ministers being asked to resign to make way for the disgruntled, he said, "I'm not aware of it."
According to reports, some Ministers may be asked to step down to make way for disgruntled legislators, with an aim to keep the government safe.
The Karnataka cabinet which met on Friday after the coalition's rout in the Lok Sabha polls, had discussed the issue, which may also come up at the Congress Legislature Party meeting on Wednesday and AICC General Secretary K C Venugopal's meeting with Congress ministers this evening.
Out of 34 ministers, Congress and JD(S) have 22 and 12 respectively according to the coalition understanding. Currently, three posts are vacant, two from JD(S) and one from Congress.
Amid simmering discontent within the Congress, coalition leaders fear the BJP, spurred by the Lok Sabha poll outcome in which it bagged 25 of the 28 seats in the state, may poach some MLAs.
Rebel Congress MLA Ramesh Jarkiholi's visit to senior BJP leader S M Krishna's residence here in the presence of party state chief B S Yeddyurappa on Sunday had fuelled the speculation.
Jarkiholi, who has been hobnobbing with the BJP for some time, had threatened to resign from the party along with some MLAs after the Lok Sabha polls.
The BJP had predicted the collapse of the coalition and increase in its tally in the assembly after the LS poll results, claiming that 20-odd Congress MLAs were unhappy and may take any decision anytime.
Coalition partners Congress and JD(S) managed to win one seat each in the Lok Sabha polls.
In an attempt to save his government, Kumaraswamy has swung into action and is trying to pacify some disgruntled Congress legislators personally.
The Chief Minister on Monday had met Jarkiholi's confidant and Athani MLA Mahesh Kumathalli, and is said to have promised to look into their issues, including Jarkiholi's induction into the cabinet.
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No more street vending on B’luru’s main roads, as govt plans to bring new policy for street hawkers
Bengaluru: Deputy Chief Minister D.K. Shivakumar on Friday said that the state government has decided to formulate a new policy for footpaths in Bengaluru, under which street vending will not be allowed on main roads and sub-main roads.
Addressing the media after a budget preparation meeting and executive meeting of GBA corporations at Vidhana Soudha, Shivakumar said discussions were held with MLAs from the GBA region regarding the corporations’ budgets and key civic issues.
Leader of Opposition R. Ashok also participated in the meeting and shared his views. Officials from multiple departments, including police, BESCOM, BMRCL, BWSSB and BDA, along with ministers and legislators, were present.
He stated that all five municipalities have prepared their individual budgets, while MLAs have submitted their demands, including calls for ward-wise grants.
“We have decided to bring a new policy for footpaths. Citizens are struggling to walk as footpaths are encroached upon by street vendors,” Shivakumar said.
Highlighting the need to balance livelihoods and public convenience, he added that “a separate space will be provided for street vendors, and specific roads will be designated for their business,” ensuring that pedestrians can use footpaths without obstruction. He noted that there was unanimous agreement among MLAs on this approach.
Issuing a warning to vendors, Shivakumar said that authorities will act against those violating the rules. “If vendors operate during the day and leave their carts on the roadside at night, authorities will clear them. People should be aware of this,” he said.
Providing data on street vendors, he said that around 60,000 vendors have registered so far, of which 30,000 have applied for vehicles, and a tender has already been floated.
“Only those with street vendor identity cards will be allowed to do business. Those without ID cards will not be permitted to operate on the streets,” he added.
