Govt dealing firmly with communal violence, says Vajubhai Vala

Governor Vajubhai Vala on Monday said that his government had taken effective steps to maintain law and order and dealt firmly with sporadic incidents of communal violence in the state.

"My government has taken effective steps to maintain law and order and has ensured communal harmony and public order. Sporadic incidents of communal violence have been firmly dealt with," Vala said during his hour-long address to the joint session. The Governor delivered his address in Hindi.

The statement by the Governor in his address has come in the wake of the BJP targeting the government over the deteriorating law and order situation and accusing the ruling dispensation of protecting those killing its workers.

With Assembly polls round the corner, the government also utilised the Governor's address to the joint session as a platform to place its report card listing out achievements during the last four-and-a-half years.

The government also used the address to counter corruption charges made by the opposition. "My government continues to fight corruption in public service. A series of e-governance initiatives has increased the transparency and efficiency of public service," Vala said.

The governor defended the setting up of the Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB), stating that the investigating agency was initiating action without delay on the receipt of complaints.

On the financial front, Vala said frequent changes in the Goods and Service Tax (GST) regime was affecting collections. He said the state was making efforts to increase non-tax collections, with departments revising rates to boost revenue. Non-tax collections include earnings through royalty, service charge, user fee among others.

 

JD(S) MLCs took exception to the Governor delivering his speech in Hindi.

Reactions to the Governor's address

 

 

The government has made the governor read out a bundle of lies. False information has been furnished pertaining to Arogya Bhagya, Rural Development and Panchayat Raj department, infrastructure department among others. As many as 3,500 farmers have committed suicide during the last four years, but the government is yet to wake up from its slumber.

- Leader of the Opposition in the Assembly Jagadish Shettar

 

 

The government is misleading the public. While grants have been released for the Hyderabad-Karnataka region, it has not been utilised. Of the 50,000 vacancies in the region, only 18,000 have been filled. The social welfare department was given a budgetary allocation of Rs 22,703 crore for 2017-18, but only 30% of it has been spent.

- Leader of the Opposition in the Council K S Eshwarappa

 

 

It is just a rehash of the speech made last year. The government should have made an announcement on resolving the Mahadayi River water dispute. The government has made tall claims in various sectors, but nothing has happened on the ground."

- JD(S) floor leader in the Council Basavaraj Horatti