BENGALURU: The Karnataka government will repeal the amendments made to the Anti-Conversion law enacted by the previous BJP government during the upcoming winter session of the legislature, said Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) president BK Hariprsad in Bengaluru on Thursday.
On demands from minority and Dalit organisations for fulfillment of the Congress’s promises, Hariprasad said the government would restore the Anti-Conversion law to its pre-2022 position. He reiterated that the State Government was committed to honouring the assurances made to the people.
Meanwhile, Hariprasad asserted that only Chief Minister DK Shivakumar and he, as the party’s state president, are authorised to speak on internal matters of the party, cautioning ministers and other senior leaders against publicly commenting on organisational issues and differences, if any, within the party.
Hariprasad said that the CM and he would handle matters concerning former minister KN Rajanna and make efforts to retain him in the Congress. “Rajanna speaks openly, sometimes more than necessary, but he is not going anywhere. We will make efforts to retain him. On this issue, the CM and I will speak to him. Nobody else should speak about the party’s internal matters. Other ministers should confine themselves to speaking against the BJP. Internal party issues must be discussed only between the CM and me,” he said.
Explaining the KPCC’s organisational restructuring, Hariprasad said the party had received 920 applications for the appointment of secretaries, including 308 from Bengaluru.
A committee comprising Deputy CM Dr G Parameshwara, Dinesh Gundu Rao, BL Shankar, HK Patil, Naseer Ahmed and Rani Satish had been entrusted with interviewing applicants and finalising the selections.
The party had shortlisted 112 secretaries, each of whom would be assigned two Assembly constituencies and required to work full-time for the organisation for 18 months. An equal number of coordinators would also be appointed.
The process of appointing block Congress presidents was underway, he said. He said the party was committed to ensuring 33% representation for women and adequate representation for OBCs, SCs and STs in its organisational structure.