Bengaluru
The all-party meeting called by Karnataka governor Vajubhai Vala on the Covid-19 situation began on a contentious note on Tuesday, with Congress leader Siddaramaiah saying the head of the state, not of the government, calling the meet goes against the Constitution.
“The first thing I want to say about this meeting is that the governor calling it is against the Constitution,” Siddaramaiah said at the beginning of the all-party meeting.
He said the governor has no right or role in administration. “The governor cannot take decisions based on this meeting. It is for the council of ministers to take decisions regarding Covid-19,” Siddaramaiah said.
The Congress has maintained that the governor calling a meeting indicated that the elected state government had failed.
“What does it mean when the governor calls an all-party meeting? Is there no elected government in the state? Is this the government’s inability or part of the agenda for #BSYmuktaBJP campaign? Does the government have no face to face the opposition? Or no ability to face the situation? Such a masked government cannot save people’s lives,” the state unit of the Congress said in a Twitter post on Tuesday.
Chief minister BS Yediyurappa, who is undergoing treatment for Covid-19 at a private hospital in Bengaluru, is also accused of not heeding to the advice of experts, who had indicated that the second wave is likely to be worse than the first one last year.
{{/usCountry}}Chief minister BS Yediyurappa, who is undergoing treatment for Covid-19 at a private hospital in Bengaluru, is also accused of not heeding to the advice of experts, who had indicated that the second wave is likely to be worse than the first one last year.
{{/usCountry}}The Technical Advisory Committee (TAC), which comprises noted medical practitioners, has said their advice for imposing strict restrictions and other proposals were not considered by the government.
Basavaraj Bommai, Karnataka’s home, law and parliamentary affairs minister, dismissed the criticism by the Congress.
“The Prime Minister has spoken to all governors and asked them to hold talks with the state governments and opposition parties to ensure coordination to put up a united fight against Covid-19 in such extraordinary circumstances. Governors of all other states are also holding meetings,” Bommai said.
He said that the governor of Rajasthan had also held a meeting with the chief minister of that state.
“There is a Congress government in Rajasthan. If the governor holds a meeting there, does it mean that there is governor’s rule in Rajasthan,” Bommai said. He said governors have also held meetings in other states like Maharashtra, where the Congress is in power through an alliance.