Won’t allow House to function if suspension of 18 MLAs not revoked: Karnataka BJP
Bengaluru, Mar 24 (PTI): The BJP in Karnataka on Monday warned the ruling Congress that it would not allow the legislative session to proceed if the suspension of its 18 MLAs was not revoked.
The party alleged Congress intends to run the House without BJP legislators.
On the last day of the Karnataka Assembly session on March 21, 18 BJP MLAs were suspended for their unruly behaviour while protesting against the four per cent reservation granted to Muslims in government contracts under the 2B category of the Other Backward Castes (OBC).
The ruling Congress passed a bill on the quota.
During the protest, BJP MLAs climbed onto the podium where Speaker U T Khader was seated, tore copies of the bill, and threw the pieces at him.
Taking serious note of their actions, the Assembly passed a resolution moved by State Law and Parliamentary Affairs Minister H K Patil, suspending the 18 BJP MLAs for six months.
Speaking to reporters on Monday, Leader of Opposition R Ashoka said that his party's MLAs were fighting to uphold the Constitution.
"I warn the Congress that our struggle will only intensify if the suspension is not revoked. Let’s see how you (Congress) run the legislative session in the future," the BJP leader said.
He accused the Congress, which frequently invokes the name of B R Ambedkar, the architect of the Indian Constitution, of "disregarding" his views that religion-based reservations should not be granted.
"We fought in the Assembly to protect constitutional values. Did we fight for the BJP or individual MLAs? No. Our struggle was to uphold the Constitution," Ashoka stated.
He further alleged that Congress suspended the 18 MLAs simply because they "fought to protect constitutional values."
"I am proud of our 18 suspended MLAs. Their suspension is unlawful. Do you want to run the Assembly by keeping our MLAs out? I have spoken to the Speaker on this issue, and he has assured me that he will discuss it with me," Ashoka added.
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KKR land Green for record-breaking Rs 25.20 crore; Shaw, Sarfaraz go unsold
Abu Dhabi (PTI): Kolkata Knight Riders splurged a record-breaking Rs 25.20 to land top Australian all-rounder Cameron Green even as Indian stars Prithvi Shaw and Sarfaraz Khan went unsold in the Indian Premier League players' auction here on Tuesday.
Green surpassed compatriot Mitchell Starc (Rs 24.75 crore) to become the most expensive overseas player at an IPL auction. This was after Kolkata Knight Riders and Chennai Super Kings were involved in an intense bidding war for him before the latter emerged winner.
KKR also went after Venkatesh Iyer before pulling out of the race against Royal Challengers Bengaluru, who fetched the services of the India all-rounder for Rs 7 crore.
As far as Green is concerned, his salary for the season would still be Rs 18 crore (USD 1.9 million) as the rest of the amount will go towards the BCCI's player development programme as per the rules of the auction for foreign players.
Green, who previously turned up for Mumbai Indians and Royal Challengers Bengaluru, has so far played 29 matches in the IPL to aggregate 707 runs and take 16 wickets.
Shaw, however, went unsold despite his fine run of form in the domestic circuit lately, and so was the case with Sarfaraz, who smashed a 22-ball 73 in a Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy match for Mumbai on Tuesday.
Big-hitting South African batter David Miller was bought by Delhi Capitals for his base price of Rs 2 crore, but New Zealand swashbuckler Devon Conway, whose base price was also Rs 2 crore, went unsold in the auction.
Seasoned South African opener Quinton de Kock returned to his old base Mumbai Indians for a base price of Rs 1 crore.
A total of 359 players -- 246 Indians and 113 overseas players -- are part of the mini auction pool with the 10 franchises bidding to fill up a maximum of 77 slots, including 31 reserved for foreign players.
