Opposition leader becomes new Spanish PM after Rajoy forced out
Madrid, June 1: Pedro Sanchez, the leader of Spain's opposition Socialist Party, took over as the country's new Prime Minister on Friday after Mariano Rajoy was forced out of office by a no confidence vote in Parliament.
Rajoy was toppled by a corruption scandal involving members of his Popular Party (PP) and became the first leader in Spain's modern democracy to lose a vote of no trust in Parliament, the BBC reported.
Sánchez, 46, secured the needed majority of 176 votes out of 350 seats in Spain's lower chamber. "We're going to sign a new page in the history of democracy in our country," Sánchez said.
A loose multi-party coalition decided to oust Rajoy and his right-wing party following a national court verdict in which several of its former top officials were found guilty of setting up a vast network of corruption in fraudulent financial dealings including bribery, embezzlement, forgery, misuse of public funds, money laundering, tax crimes and influence peddling, among others.
Rajoy's party had also been found guilty of profiting from fraudulent financial practices perpetrated by some of its senior officials. He had been Prime Minister since 2011.
The deciding votes in Rajoy's ouster were cast by the small Basque Nationalist Party (PNV), which only has five lawmakers in Parliament but was crucial to bringing the motion over the 176-vote hurdle for the absolute majority required for Rajoy's eviction and Sánchez's elevation to the country's highest political office.
Sánchez also had the backing of the chamber's third-largest party, the progressive-populist alliance Unidos Podemos ("We Can," UP), whose 71 MPs all voted for a change in government.
During the second day of debate on Friday, Rajoy admitted facing defeat and told MPs that it has been "an honour to leave a better Spain than I found".
Sánchez said Rajoy had failed to take responsibility for his party's involvement in the scandal, which hit the headlines again last week after one of its former treasurers was given a 33-year jail sentence.
The High Court in Madrid convicted Luis Barcenas of receiving bribes, money laundering and tax crimes. The case centred on a secret campaign fund which the PP ran from 1999 until 2005.
Sánchez was yet to disclose the members of his future cabinet, which could either be a minority government made up of only Socialist ministers or a mixed one with members from other parties such as UP, its largest partner in this unprecedented vote.
Let the Truth be known. If you read VB and like VB, please be a VB Supporter and Help us deliver the Truth to one and all.
Is it caste census or census of hatred, asks Union Minister H D Kumaraswamy
Bengaluru (PTI): Criticising the caste census report tabled before the Karnataka Cabinet, Union Minister H D Kumaraswamy on Tuesday questioned whether it was a caste census or a census of hatred.
In a statement, Kumaraswamy, who holds steel and heavy industries portfolio, sought to know the population of Vokkaliga, the dominant agrarian community, which he belongs to.
“What is it really — a caste census or a census of hate? Is this so-called census a conspiracy designed to deliberately provoke unrest in the state? Or is it merely a diversionary tactic to deflect attention from the embarrassment caused by relentless price hikes and a series of corruption scandals?” the Minister questioned.
He further said, “If the entire state ends up engulfed in the flames of caste divisions, is this move by the Congress government in Karnataka a premeditated attempt to politically and socially marginalize certain communities?”
Expressing concerns over the leaked caste census report, Kumaraswamy said the ‘so-called statistics’ from this report are now floating everywhere. Some unknown hand has systematically leaked them into the public domain, he alleged.
The Minister sought to the know the actual population of the Vokkaliga community residing across the Old Mysuru region such as Mandya, Kolar, Chikkaballapur, Ramanagara, Bengaluru Rural, Tumakuru, and Chitradurga.
He also took a jibe at Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar for taking a U-turn on the caste census, despite having previously opposed it.
“Sleepless in his pursuit of the Chief Minister’s chair, he (Shivakumar) once begged the community saying, ‘Just give me a pen and paper once!’ And now, is that same man bowing his head and endorsing the Siddha Conspiracy Report?" Kumaraswamy said.
Siddha is apparently referred to Chief Minister Siddaramaiah.
“I do not support this report. I am fully prepared to fight against this injustice,” the Minister added.
The Socio-Economic and Educational Survey, caste census in short, was presented before the Karnataka cabinet on April 11.
The report was commissioned by Siddaramaiah during his first term as Chief Minister in 2015. H Kantharaj had initially started the work which was carried forward by former Minister K Jayaprakash. The report was submitted to the Chief Minister in February 2024.
The Chief Minister said there would be a detailed discussion on the report in a special cabinet meeting on April 17.
