Karnataka legislature session from February 29

Karnataka Governor Vajubhai Vala will address members of both houses of the state legislature on February 29.

The legislature session will last till March 5, Assembly Speaker Kagodu Thimappa told reporters here.

Expressing pain over missing out on an opportunity to hold the session for a total of 60 days for the last three years, he expressed the hope that the target would be met this year.

“We had conducted 35, 55 and 58 days of sessions in 2013, 2014 and 2015, respectively.I am pained that we could not meet our expectations. However, I am hopeful this year we will meet the target,” he said.

Though the government has brought in a legislation in 2005 of holding legislature session for a minimum of 60 days a year, it has not been possible for it to achieve the target for a long time.

The last time that the state witnessed a 60-day session was in 1982.

Thimappa also flayed members for abstaining from attending the session and urged them to utilise the opportunity to good use.

“When I was the MLA I utilised the opportunity to attend the session to raise people’s problems on the floor of the house. If the elected members are not attending, then it amounts to betraying the people,” he said.

Asked whether he would allow a motion over diamond studded Hublot watch controversy involving Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, Thimappa said, “I have to wait and see how things pan out.”

Siddaramaiah faced opposition attack over his luxury watch but as a controversy erupted, he declared that the diamond studded watch, claimed to be worth Rs 70 lakh, would be declared as state asset and handed over to the government.

The controversy was stoked by JDS leader H D Kumaraswamy after which the Chief Minister revealed that the expensive watch was gifted to him by his close friend (NRI) Gopal Pillai Girish Chandra Verma who visited India last July.

Attacking the Siddaramaiah government, Thimappa alleged there was no transparency in the administration and the files were moving at a snail’s pace.

“It really pains me that the files regarding a water project in my constituency has been moving at a snail’s pace.  I hope the government expedites the process,” he added.