Crop loan waiver: Congress, JD(S) not on same page

Difference between the JD(S) and the Congress over the crop loan waiver scheme came to the fore at the first meeting of a panel constituted to draft the Common Minimum Programme of the coalition government.

The five-member panel headed by former chief minister M Veerappa Moily has two other members from the Congress - Revenue Minister R V Deshpande and Water Rescources Minister D K Shivakumar - and two from the JD(S) – Public Works Minister H D Revanna and Cooperation Minister Bandeppa Kashampur. Briefing the media, Moily said the panel will come out with recommendations on what the priorities of the government should be and how the popular programmes should reach people. Revanna suddenly intervened and started to speak about the crop loan waiver scheme. At this point, Shivakumar said, “Let the chief minister make a statement on the issue,” and started to leave in a huff.

He came back on the request of Moily. “The Congress programmes will continue and at the same time the JD(S) plans for the people will also be incorporated,” he added. The panel is expected to submit its draft report in five days and will serve as inputs for the first budget of the coalition government.