BENGALURU: With the legislature session 12 days away, opposition parties -- Congress and JDS -- are busy gathering information through RTI queries and contacting their sources in the government to get details of three big challenges before the government -- Bitcoin scam, 40 percent bribe allegation and rain damage.
In the Bitcoin scam, where the names of several BJP leaders have allegedly surfaced, the two opposition parties are seeking clarity as it has multiple dimensions of hacking and other details. Former minister Priyank Kharge and other Congress leaders had indicated that they would corner the government on these issues in the Assembly and Council.
Charges of corruption in the Bengaluru Development Authority will be the other issue that opposition parties are planning to trouble the government with. As civil contractors alleged that they had to pay 40 per cent bribes to get the projects sanctioned, a delegation of Congress leaders had met Governor Thaawarchand Gehlot and alleged constitutional failure.
The responsibility is now with the two opposition parties to prove that the bribe-for-project scam exists in the government and the contractors have to pay 5-7 per cent speed money to process the bills in PWD, RDPR, Bengaluru Development, health and other departments. The two parties are expected to hold respective legislative party meetings a day or two ahead of the session, sources from both parties said.
Sources said that JDS senior leader HD Kumaraswamy, who had raised several issues backed by solid proof in the last session, has been rather quiet, but would still chip in during the discussion in the upcoming session.
On the rain damage, the government has admitted that several thousands of hectares of land have been submerged and lives of several people lost in the recent incessant rain. The opposition wants to prove that the government came up short in delivering succour to the affected people. With the Assembly elections 17 months away, both the opposition parties are expected to work hard to put the government on the mat during the session.