Page 15 - Siddaramaiah

BJP-JD(S) continues protest march against MUDA scam, demands CM resignation

The opposition, BJP and JD(S), on Monday continued their week-long protest march from Bengaluru to Mysuru for the third day, against an alleged Mysuru Urban Development Authority (MUDA) site allotment scam seeking to corner the Congress government and Chief Minister Siddaramaiah. The 'Mysuru Chalo' padayatre (foot march) -- against the alleged fraudulent allotment of sites to land losers by MUDA, including to Siddaramaiah's wife Parvathi, and demanding his resignation -- on its third day, began at Kengal here, and is scheduled to cover a distance of 20 km to reach Nidaghatta in Mandya district. BJP state president and MLA B Y Vijayendra, Opposition Leader in Legislative Assembly R Ashoka, several JD(S) leaders, also legislators, leaders and workers from both parties took part, as the march began at Kengal. Vijayendra and other BJP leaders paid floral tributes to the memorial of former Chief Minister Kengal Hanumanthaiah, ahead of the march today. Large number of workers and leader

Compassion, solidarity are strengths that Wayanad needs righ now: Rahul

Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi on Saturday thanked the people and government of Karnataka for their support during difficult times in Wayanad and said their commitment to building 100 houses for the victims of landslides is a significant step towards rehabilitation efforts. Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah announced on Saturday that his government will build 100 houses for victims of the landslide-hit district in Kerala. Taking to X, Siddaramaiah said in light of the tragic landslides in Wayanad, Karnataka stands in solidarity with Kerala. "I have assured CM Shri @pinarayivijayan of our support and announced that Karnataka will construct 100 houses for the victims. Together, we will rebuild and restore hope," he said. Sharing Siddaramaiah's post on X, Gandhi said, "I am deeply grateful to the people and the government of Karnataka for their generous support during these difficult times in Wayanad." "Your commitment to building 100 houses for the victims of

Karnataka will construct 100 houses for victims in Wayanad: CM Siddaramaiah

Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Saturday announced that Karnataka will construct 100 houses for victims in landslide-hit Wayanad. Taking to the social media post 'X', Siddaramaiah said in light of the tragic landslide in Wayanad, Karnataka stands in solidarity with Kerala. "I have assured CM Shri @pinarayivijayan of our support and announced that Karnataka will construct 100 houses for the victims. Together, we will rebuild and restore hope," he said. As many as 215 people have died and over 500 were injured in the massive landslides that hit Wayanad district in the wee hours of July 30. Around 300 people are suspected to be missing, and rescue operators are battling adverse conditions, including waterlogged soil, as they search through destroyed homes and buildings.

CM Siddaramaiah urges corporates to donate for Kerala landslide victims

Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Wednesday appealed to the corporate world to contribute generously for the relief and rehabilitation of people hit by massive landslides in Wayanad district in neighbouring Kerala. In a message to the corporates, Siddaramaiah exhorted them to help rebuild the affected areas through the Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) initiative. "The scale of the disaster necessitates a coordinated and generous response from all sectors of society, particularly from corporate entities that have always been pillars of support in times of need," the CM said in his letter. He further said Karnataka is specifically looking for financial support to facilitate the logistics of relief operations and rebuilding efforts and food supplies, especially non-perishable food items and clothing. Underlining that this was an opportunity to stand together and make a significant impact, Siddaramaiah said the involvement and contributions of the corporates will not only .

Explained: What is the Karnataka MUDA scam? | CM Siddaramaiah | Karnataka govt

Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah has been facing criticism lately with opposition parties calling for his immediate resignation. The allegations pertain to a land fraud case.

K'taka CM accuses Sitharaman of lying, says BJP tainting state as corrupt

Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Monday accused Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman of "lying" as he targeted her and the BJP-led NDA government at the Centre for meting out 'injustice" to the State in the recent Union Budget. He alleged that the BJP was trying to taint the Congress-ruled Karnataka as a "corrupt state." The Chief Minister also said that he and Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar will be travelling to New Delhi as they have been called by the Congress high command to "discuss the party and the government" but did not elaborate. "Pre-budget meeting was called, we had said there that you (Centre) have said that you will give Rs 5,300 crore for the Upper Bhadra project. Is it there in the Budget? It is not given. The fifteenth finance commission in its report has recommended Rs 5,495 crore as special grants, is it there? It was said that Rs 3,000 crore will be given for the peripheral ring road (in Bengaluru). It was promised to give Rs 3,000 crore for ..

Valmiki scam: Is it 'Nyay' to siphon of SC/ST money, asks FM Sitharaman

Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman lashed out at Chief Minister Siddaramaiah asking him whether it was Nyay' (justice) to siphon off money belonging to the tribal Valmiki community. Referring to the Rs 187 crore scam in the Karnataka Maharshi Valmiki Scheduled Tribe Corporation including the illegal transfer of Rs 88 crore, Sitharaman accused Siddaramaiah of concealing facts and trying to pass the blame on to the central government because bank officials of a nationalised bank were involved. On Siddaramaiah's charge that the union finance minister should be held accountable because banks were involved, Sitharaman said, He can say that because he is used to talking like this That's so irresponsive. You have your minister resigned. You have your people saying that the money has been siphoned into private accounts. The minister said that action has already been taken as a first step against the conniving bank officials and further action will be taken against them. "No protectio

BJP's charges against CM are part of conspiracy, says Dy CM Shivakumar

Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar on Friday charged the BJP with levelling allegations against the Chief Minister Siddaramaiah in connection with the Mysuru Urban Development Authority (MUDA) site allotment "scam" as part of its "conspiracy" against the Congress government. Karnataka is the biggest state for the Congress party. The BJP had never thought that the Congress would win here. So they are hatching a conspiracy against the government," Shivakumar, also the State Congress chief, told reporters here. The BJP, along with its NDA ally the JD(S), has proposed to take out next week a "Padayatra" (foot march) from here to Mysuru, to press for the resignation of the Chief Minister over the alleged scam. "Let them do whatever they want, let them take out as many marches as possible. We will also plan how to counter their campaign, Shivakumar said. The opposition BJP and JD(S) have alleged that the MUDA allotted to Chief Minister's wife Parvathi 14 sites whose value was

K'taka BJP president demands CM Siddaramaiah's resignation over MUDA scam

The BJP MLAs had entered the well of the House, insisting on a thorough investigation into the scam

Congress CMs to boycott NITI Aayog meet over 'discriminatory' 2024 Budget

Union Budget 2024: Siddaramaiah (Karnataka), Revanth Reddy (Telangana), Sukhvinder Sukhu (Himachal Pradesh) will boycott the NITI Aayog meeting on July 27

Budget 2024: Karnataka CM says FM has done injustice to people of state

Terming the Union Budget 2024-25 presented by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman as "disappointing", Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Tuesday said the State has been totally neglected. "As Nirmala Sitharaman is the Rajya Sabha member from Karnataka, we had expected her to do justice for the state and hoped that she would protect the interest of the state, but she has disappointed and done injustice to the people of Karnataka," he said. "In this budget Nirmala Sitharaman has given Karnataka 'Chombu' (a small, round water container). Karnataka has got nothing. Andhra Pradesh and Bihar got special grants, no other states have got grants. Because for Nandra Modi Modi to continue as Prime Minister Andhra Pradesh and Bihar's support is required," Siddaramaiah said. Speaking to reporters here, he said no impetus has been given to Karnataka in this budget including in sectors like industries and railways, despite five central ministers being from the state. "The budget is totall

BJP unit in Karnataka dares Congress govt to probe scams during its rule

The BJP in Karnataka on Saturday challenged the Congress government to order a probe into the '21 scams' that allegedly took place during the last five years, when the saffron party was in power. The party accused Chief Minister Siddaramaiah headed government of 'shielding' those involved in the Rs 187 crore scam in the Karnataka Maharshi Valmiki Scheduled Tribes Development Corporation. "The Chief Minister has said 21 scams have taken place during the BJP rule. You have been in power for the past 15 months. Why did you take so much time to investigate these scams? We are ready for a probe," Leader of the Opposition Party (LOP) R Ashoka said in a press conference. He said, "The way Rs 88 crore of Valmiki Corporation was 'Khata-Khat' transferred to different bank accounts in Telangana, you should have 'Khata-Khat' investigated the allegations of irregularities against us." Ashoka, a former Deputy Chief Minister, accused Siddaramaiah of trying to put the blame on Valmiki Corporation

Decoded: Why did Karnataka introduce 70% quota for locals in private jobs

The now paused bill mandated a 50 per cent quota for administrative roles and a 75 per cent quota for non-administrative roles in the private sector for the locals, triggering a massive row

Karnataka govt halts Bill mandating private firm quotas for Kannadigas: CMO

The Bill mandates firms in the state to prioritise local hires for 70% of non-management roles and 50% of management-level jobs

Karnataka CM Siddaramaiah deletes 100% job quota post, shares clarification

A controversy erupted after Siddaramaiah, in a now-deleted post on 'X', had said that Karnataka had approved a Bill mandating the private industries to give reservation to local Kannadigas in jobs

Decoded: What is Karnataka Employment Bill that seeks quota for locals

The proposed bill mandates companies to reserve 50 per cent of management jobs and 70 per cent of non-management jobs for local residents

Karnataka govt employees to get 58.5% salary, pension hike: Siddaramaiah

Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Tuesday said the salary and pension of the state government employees will increase by 58.5 per cent to the basic pay as of July 1, 2022 as recommended by the Seventh Pay Commission. The revision of salary and pension will come into effect from August 1 this year and will see a 32 per cent increase in the house rent allowance. As per the recommendations of the Commission, the salary, salary-related allowances, and pensions of government employees will be revised with effect from August 1, 2024, as decided in the Cabinet meeting held on July 15, Siddaramaiah said in a statement. Accordingly, the salary and pensions will be revised by adding 31 per cent Dearness Allowance and fitment of 27.50 per cent to the basic pay of the employee as of July 1, 2022, he added. "This will increase the basic salary and pension of the employees by 58.50 per cent. There will be an increase of 32 per cent in house rent allowance," the statement read. "The minim

Karnataka govt to implement recommendations of 7th Pay Commission

The Karnataka cabinet on Monday decided to implement the recommendations of the seventh Pay Commission effective from August one, official sources said. The Chief Minister is expected to make an announcement regarding the pay hike to more than seven lakh state government employees in the Legislative Assembly on Tuesday, the sources said. The 7th Pay Commission, headed by former chief secretary K Sudhakar Rao, has recommended a 27.5 percent hike on basic salary of government employees. This is expected to cost the government exchequer an additional Rs 17,440.15 crore annually. Siddaramaiah government was under pressure to decide on a pay hike, after the Karnataka State Government Employees Association announced its plans to go on an indefinite strike from August. In March 2023, the then Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai gave employees an interim 17 per cent salary hike, to which the Siddaramaiah administration is likely to add a 10.5 percentage points hike, which will total to 27.5 p

BJP protests against Congress govt in K'taka, alleges rampant corruption

The opposition BJP legislators in Karnataka on Monday staged a demonstration against Chief Minister Siddaramaiah-led Congress government alleging rampant corruption in the state. The legislators led by BJP state president B Y Vijayendra and the Leader of Opposition in the Karnataka Assembly R Ashoka staged a sit-in demonstration near the Maharshi Valmiki statue near the Legislative House amid drizzles. Holding placards, they raised slogans condemning the Congress government. They also took out a march with banners denouncing the government. Later speaking to reporters, Vijayendra accused the government of being against Dalits and Scheduled Tribes and said the BJP will continue its fight against it inside and outside the Karnataka Assembly. "The investigation into the Rs 187 crore Maharshi Valmiki Scheduled Tribes Development Corporation scam has revealed that the money was utilised in the Lok Sabha election," he alleged. He claimed that the family of Chief Minister Siddaramaiah wa

MUDA scam, Cauvery water issue may rock K'taka legislature session

Alleged financial irregularities in ST Corporation and the Cauvery river water sharing issue are likely to rock the monsoon session of the Karnataka assembly, which starts from July 15. The assembly is expected to witness some noisy scenes as the opposition BJP is planning to raise the Karnataka Maharshi Valmiki Scheduled Tribe Development Corporation scam worth Rs 187 crore and the Mysuru Urban Development Authority (MUDA) scam. Congress MLA B Nagendra, who resigned his position as the Tribal Welfare Minister, has been arrested by the Enforcement Directorate while search is on for the Valmiki Corporation chairman and MLA Basavaraj Daddal. The scam came to light after the Accounts Superintendent of the Corporation Chandrasekharan P died by suicide on May 26. The Congress government thereafter constituted a Special Investigation Team (SIT), which has so far arrested 11 people in connection with the case. The opposition BJP and the JD(S) have demanded the resignation of Chief Minist