JOIN USCong plans panel for coordination between party, government
Taking note of the disquiet among a section of party leaders over the style of functioning of the new government, the Congress on Tuesday announced the setting up a coordination committee both at the State and district levels to ensure that leaders in the party and government work in tandem and iron out differences, if any.
Disclosing this at the KPCC general body meeting here on Tuesday, AICC general secretary in-charge of Karnataka affairs Digvijay Singh said all contentious issues related to the government and the party organisation will be discussed and differences ironed out in the committee which will comprise leaders from government and the party.
Besides, an election manifesto implementation committee will be formed to ensure that promises made in the party manifesto for the Assembly elections 2013 are implemented. The committees will be formed after holding consultations with KPCC president G Parameshwara and Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, he added.
Many senior Congress leaders in the State were upset with the chief minister, mainly due to unilateral decisions taken by him in announcing popular schemes, including the Re 1 per kg rice scheme. Leaders were also unhappy with Siddaramaiah for giving importance to his close followers in allocating ministerial portfolios.
Key decisions
Senior leader and permanent invitee to the AICC M V Rajasekharan was the first to break silence in this regard. He had recently written to the party high command urging it to form a coordination committee in the interest of the party. The decision by the high command to form these committees is seen as a victory to the Siddaramaiah-baiters in the party. For, all key decisions of the government will now have to be discussed in the coordination committee before announcing them.
The State-level committee is likely to be headed by the AICC in-charge of Karnataka.
Besides, Singh asked the chief minister to set up a separate cell in the government to monitor whether promises made in the party election manifesto are fulfilled. “We have to deliver what we had promised. A clear roadmap should be prepared on implementing programmes announced in the manifesto,” he stated.
Singh, who visited Bangalore for the first time after his appointment as party in-charge of Karnataka, also did some tough talking aimed at disciplining and organising the party ahead of the Lok Sabha polls.
“The biggest challenge is the Lok Sabha polls. Though we have won the Assembly elections, the vote share rose by only about half a per cent. Our target for the parliamentary polls should be 40 per cent,” he stated.
CM falls in line
Siddaramaiah, who subsequently spoke at the meeting, said he will take everybody into confidence in running the government. He said he will dedicate more time for party work and tour the State after presenting the budget.
“I could not visit KPCC office after becoming the chief minister. I will make it a point to visit the office once every month after July,” he added.