Karnataka: Yediyurappa govt warned against ordinance to amend labour laws
Speaking at two separate press conferences, the Congress and the JDS leaders said they would protest any move to dilute or amend the existing laws without a discussion.
Congress and Janata Dal(S) have warned the Karnataka government against bringing an ordinance to amend the existing labour laws or the APMC (Agriculture Produce Market Committee) act. The warning by the opposition parties comes a day after the government constituted a 15 member special investment task force aimed at attracting companies looking to relocate from China following the pandemic. One of its tasks was to examine existing labour laws with a view to amend and modify it to make Karnataka an attractive destination for investors.
Speaking at two separate press conferences, the Congress and the JDS leaders said they would protest any move to dilute or amend the existing laws without a discussion. Former CM and JDS leader H D Kumaraswamy said that CM B S Yediyurappa should act in the interest of the people of the state instead of trying to please the Central government or BJP party bosses.
He also accused the state government of succumbing to the pressure from big industries and the capitalists.
“Our silence should not be construed as weakness. Any amendment to the APMC act will be detrimental to farmers and help only big business. Amendment to APMC act alone will cause a loss of ₹600 crore to the exchequer,” Kumaraswamy alleged.
Similarly, Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee President D K Shivakumar and the Leader of Opposition in the assembly, Siddaramiah, also demanded that a special session of assembly be called to discuss all measures including any proposed amendments to the labour laws and said they would take to streets even amidst a lockdown in case an ordinance was promulgated.
Since the term of gram panchayats is expiring on May 24, Congress has demanded a six-month extension for existing panchayats as holding elections in the prevailing circumstances is not possible. Pointing out that several elections, including those of assembly and even Rajya Sabha, have been postponed due to current circumstances, it warned the government against dissolving the existing gram panchayats and nominating its party members in their place till elections are held.
“There is a provision to extend the term of such bodies in special circumstances like the current one,” Shivakumar added.
Siddaramiah said the Central government had failed in containing the spread of Covid-19 and the economic challenges it poses.
“Who gave the permission to hold the Tablighi convention? ₹35,000 crore has been collected into the PM CARES fund including ₹3000 crore from Karnataka. But why is the government not able to offer free trains to poor migrants who want to go back to their states?” he questioned.