BENGALURU: Leader of Opposition in the Assembly R Ashoka accused the Congress government of making announcements without taking adequate action as severe drought leaves farmers and rural people in distress. He demanded Rs 50,000 compensation per acre for crop loss and Rs 10 crore for each constituency facing drinking water shortage, including funds for emergency borewells.
Ashoka demanded a white paper on the state’s financial position and drought relief expenditure. He said that the State Government should disclose its treasury position, pending dues to departments and institutions, debt burden and the financial impact of the guarantee schemes. “The State Government should first release relief according to its own capacity and then seek additional assistance,” he said.
On the Kasturirangan report on Western Ghats, he said the BJP would oppose excessive restrictions on agriculture, infrastructure and livelihoods in the Malnad region while supporting conservation of the Western Ghats. He said environmental protection and the interests of local residents must be balanced.
Ashoka criticised the decision to restrict the special Legislature session to three days. He said drought and the Kasturirangan report were important issues that required detailed discussion and demanded that the session be extended to at least one week.
He also sought clarity from the Congress on its stand on ‘Vande Mataram’, saying national symbols and the legacy of the freedom struggle should not become subjects of political controversy.
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Ashoka accused the Congress government of neglecting farmers and failing to provide drought relief. Claiming that nearly 2,500 farmers had died by suicide since the Congress government came to power in 2023, Ashoka said, “This government is an utter failure regarding drought - anti-farmer and deceitful towards farmers.”
Targeting Shivakumar over the government’s land acquisition and development initiatives, he said, “On one side, they are grabbing farmers’ land and doing real estate. This ‘real estate Chief Minister’ knows nothing about drought. He only knows how to develop layouts.”
Taking a swipe at Shivakumar’s religious outreach and aerial survey of drought-hit areas, Ashoka said, “Simply applying Tilak/Vibhuti for votes and taking holy dips in water - instead of doing that, if they had released `10,000 crore to assist farmers, our farmers would at least be living in peace.” Ashoka also raised questions over the government’s cloud-seeding exercise, alleging that the contract had been awarded to a company linked to the family of a Congress MLA.
