Source The Hindu
Two MPs putting pressure on Government’
‘Change amounts to showing disrespect to the committee’
Belgaum: The Belgaum District Kannada Organisations Action Committee has threatened to launch an agitation if the Government yields to the demand to change the site of Suvarna Vidhana Soudha.
Addressing a press conference here on Thursday, action committee leaders Umadevi Topannavar, Raghavendhra Joshi, Kalyanrao Muchalambi and its President Ashok Chandargi said that the Janata Dal (Secular)-Bharatiya Janata Party Government had finalised the Vaccine Institute premises at Tilakwadi for setting up the Suvarna Vidhana Soudha.
Committee
This site was chosen by a committee that comprised Speaker of the Legislative Assembly and chairperson of the Legislative Council, among others. In August last, technical approval was granted and tenders invited for award of contract for civil works, they said.
On August 26 last, the former Chief Minister H.D. Kumaraswamy and Deputy Chief Minister B.S. Yeddyurappa had performed “bhoomi pooja,” and promised to start construction work at the earliest. But work had been delayed despite the Government earmarking Rs. 250 crore for the purpose, they said.
After the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) Government came to power, there was fresh hope that the Government would start construction work soon.
The committee members alleged that two MPs were putting pressure on the Government to shift the site of the Suvarna Vidhana Soudha from the Vaccine Institute, to suit their interests that include protection of the interests of the Marathi vote bank. This was despite the fact that both of them had participated in the “bhoomi pooja,” the members said.
The anti-Karnataka Maharashtra Ekikaran Samithi had also been opposing establishment of the Suvarna Vidhana Soudha, they said.
The Government should start work on the Suvarna Vidhana Soudha by ignoring the pressure being put by BJP leaders Prabhakar Kore and Suresh C. Angadi. Any change in the site would amount to showing disrespect to the committee that had finalised it, the committee members said. Mr. Joshi said that although the Krishna Government had appointed a committee to study the feasibility of holding a legislative session in Belgaum, the idea was dropped following the committee submitting an adverse report.