The Hindu : Karnataka / Bangalore News : Congress stages walkout in Legislative Council

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Friday, Mar 16, 2007
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Karnataka

Karnataka - Bangalore

Congress stages walkout in Legislative Council

Staff Reporter

In thelegislature

BANGALORE: The Congress in the Legislative Council staged a walkout on Thursday protesting against the reported leak of some of the budget proposals of 2007-08 to be presented on Friday in a Kannada daily.

The "non-implementation" of the Bhagyalakshmi scheme announced in the budget proposals of 2006-07 also came under criticism.

`Leak'

Leader of the Opposition H. K. Patil displayed a copy of the daily, which carried a front-page story along with a picture of Deputy Chief Minister B.S. Yediyurappa perusing a copy of the 2007-08 budget. Mr. Patil, B.K. Chandrashekar and other members asked how the Government could allow such a "blunder."

The contents of the budget were being systematically leaked to a section of the media since the past fortnight, they charged.

Bhagyalakshmi scheme

Shobha Karandlaje (BJP) raised the issue of non-implementation of the Bhagyalakshmi scheme. Responding to her, Minister for Women and Child Welfare H.K. Kumaraswamy said the Government could not implement the scheme because of "technical problems".

However, in an effort to ensure that the allocated Rs. 234 crore did not lapse, the Government had constituted the Bhagyalakshmi Trust and Rs. 166 crore had already been transferred to the trust's account in the State Bank of Mysore.

Ms. Karandlaje said that bureaucrats were responsible for affecting the Minister's efforts.

Mr. Patil said that either Mr. Yediyurappa, who holds the Finance portfolio, or Mr. H.K. Kumaraswamy should resign.

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