K'taka govt cut short legislature session for Amit Shah's visit: Siddaramaiah

Accusing the BJP government in Karnataka of cutting short the legislature session by a day because of Union home minister Amit Shah’s visit, leader of Opposition Siddaramaiah on Thursday (December 29) said that Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai lacks the guts to ask him not to come during the session.

He said the move to curtail the session is “against the state”, and demanded that it be extended for another week to discuss public issues.

“The stance of the BJP government in Karnataka to cancel the proceedings of the House tomorrow in order to attend the Union home minister Amit Shah programme is against the state. I demand that the session be extended for one more week and to provide an opportunity to discuss public issues,” Siddaramaiah tweeted.

Stating that even 15 days will not be sufficient to discuss many issues, he said, “Keeping all that aside, curtailing the session for bending the knee before Amit Shah, shows the indifference of the Karnataka BJP government towards the people.”

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The 10-day long winter session of Karnataka legislature which began in Belagavi on December 19 was to end on 30 December. However, Assembly Speaker Vishveshwar Hegde Kageri on Wednesday said that Thursday will be the last day. Amit Shah will be arriving in Bengaluru tonight to attend various events and party meetings on December 30 and 31 in Mandya, Devanahalli and Bengaluru.

Earlier, speaking to reporters, the Congress leader said, the time was already not sufficient to raise several issues of public importance in the House, and the government is curtailing the session, instead of extending.

“Amit Shah will come and go, just because Amit Shah is coming can the session be adjourned? Let whoever wants to go (for Amit Shah event) go and let the Assembly continue its functioning on its part, the Speaker won’t go any way. He (Bommai) should have told Amit Shah that I’m Chief Minister, don’t come during the session, come later. He doesn’t have that guts,” he said.

When pointed out that Congress too is holding a convention “Krishna Yojana Samavesha” in Vijayapura on Friday, which he and other party leaders will be attending, Siddaramaiah said, “We have scheduled it at 4 PM, as the session will be half-a-day on Friday, we had planned to take a chopper to attend it after the Assembly proceedings.”