Karnataka budget session begins; BJP gears up for battle, Cong has task cut out

The budget session of the Karnataka Legislature began on Monday with Governor Thaawarchand Gehlot emphasising on the need to eradicate corruption in the state, and the ruling Congress and opposition BJP gearing up for a battle both inside and outside the Assembly. Expressing serious concern over corruption, Gehlot in his address to the joint session of both Houses of the State Legislature said corruption has become almost institutionalised and the state government would take administrative and legislative measures to meet the challenge and eradicate it.

Gehlot said, “Eradicating it is a major challenge. I seek your cooperation to meet this challenge and root out corruption. The government will take all necessary administrative and legislative measures in this regard.” He also said in the next five years, the state government would place emphasis on a people-centric economy. Speaking about the pre-poll ‘guarantees’ announced by the Congress, Gehlot said that under the ‘Yuva Nidhi’ scheme ₹3,000 per month will be given to graduates and post-graduates and ₹1,500 per month to diploma holders, who completed their courses in the year 2022-23 but are unemployed even after six months.

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The dole will be given for a period of 24 months or until they get employment or become self-employed productively, whichever is earlier. Up to 200 units of free electricity under ‘Gruha Jyoti Yojana’ will benefit about 2.14 crore household consumers, the Governor said. He said the ‘Gruha Lakshmi’ scheme has been drawn up by the government for empowerment of women. Under the scheme, ₹2,000 per month will be provided to the women “in the women-headed households”. Gehlot also referred to the ‘Shakti’ scheme saying that more than 50 lakh women from Karnataka have benefited from the free bus travel in government buses.

Meanwhile, as the budget session gets going from Tuesday following the Governor’s address, the BJP is yet to pick its leader in the Assembly, with its central leaders weighing their options. BJP president J P Nadda has appointed Union minister Mansukh Mandaviya and party general secretary Vinod Tawde as central observers for the election of the leader of opposition in the Karnataka Assembly. The central observers are expected to come to Bengaluru tomorrow, BJP sources said.

Taking a swipe at the BJP, Congress General Secretary Jairam Ramesh said in a Tweet, “The Budget session of the Karnataka Assembly starts today. For the first time since 1952 both in the state and in the country too, the session begins without the main opposition — in this case the BJP — announcing its legislature leader. This BJP is loud when it wins but crumbles and croaks when it loses” Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah commented that the BJP not having elected the leader of opposition in the Assembly shows there is groupism in the outfit, and dubbed it the “most undisciplined” political party.

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The BJP has made clear its intentions to attack the ruling party over implementation of its poll guarantees one-and-a-half months after it came to power with a thumping majority. The party has decided to hold demonstrations inside and outside the Karnataka Assembly against the “failure” of the state government to implement its guarantees, with former chief minister and BJP stalwart B S Yediyurappa giving the call for the protests and saying thousands of party workers will join him.

As Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, who holds the finance portfolio, gets ready to present his budget on July 7, the BJP is prepared to attack the Congress for its “failure” to implement the five guarantees that were supposed to come into effect from the day the government came to power. The Karnataka government is likely to table a bill scrapping the anti-conversion law called Karnataka Protection of Right to Freedom of Religion Act, 2022, which was promulgated by the previous BJP government.

According to some Congress insiders, the government will also introduce a bill scrapping the anti-cow slaughter law called Karnataka Prevention of Slaughter and Preservation of Cattle Act, 2020. The government may also introduce a bill repealing the Karnataka Land Reforms (Amendment) Act, besides another amendment pertaining to the Agricultural Produce Marketing (Regulation and Development) (Amendment) Act, 2020. The Siddaramaiah government will also make budgetary provisions for its five pre-poll guarantee schemes.