Shivakumar Defends Special Session, BJP Seeks Seven Days

Chief Minister D K Shivakumar on Monday defended Karnataka’s decision to convene a three day special legislature session to discuss the Kasturirangan report and drought, while BJP state president B Y Vijayendra demanded that the sitting be extended to at least a week to allow a fuller debate on the issues.

The exchange set the terms for the special session, with the government saying it wanted farmers, legislators and other stakeholders to shape Karnataka’s response to the Kasturirangan report, and the BJP arguing that three days would not be enough to address the concerns before the state.

Shivakumar said the government could have simply sent its earlier decision on the Kasturirangan report to the Centre, but chose to seek wider views before taking a final position. Karnataka has to communicate its decision to the Centre by September 27, he said.

“This should not be my personal decision. This special session has been called to collect the views of farmers, ordinary people and representatives from those areas and discuss the drought, farmers’ problems and the Kasturirangan report,” he said.

Shivakumar said he had met farmers, MPs, MLAs and representatives of affected areas and had received thousands of petitions. Meetings had also been held with legislators in Kalaburagi, Belagavi and Chitradurga, he said.

“The Kasturirangan report itself has become the problem, and many suggestions have come on how to resolve it. We have come together in this session with the good intention of considering all these views and finding a solution for the poor, farmers and people of the Western Ghats and Karnataka as a whole,” he said.

The chief minister said the report covered 19,252 sq km of Karnataka’s Western Ghats as an ecologically sensitive area, with another 961 sq km proposed for inclusion, including 3,138 acres of private farmers’ land.

He said farmers had suggested rejecting the report, appointing a committee for a fresh study, adopting the Kerala model and removing the concept of ecologically sensitive zones. Others had sought to restrict buffer zones to forests rather than private agricultural land.

“They have said, ‘Keep the buffer zone limited to the forest. Why are you fixing boundaries around our land? We are not against the environment. Do not interfere with our property and our livelihood,’” Shivakumar said.

The chief minister said other suggestions included forming a technical committee, taking an all party delegation to the Centre and passing resolutions in both Houses. Some had also suggested seeking special status under Article 371, he said.

Vijayendra, however, said the three day session would be inadequate. Speaking alongside Leader of Opposition R Ashoka, he demanded that it be extended to a week so the Assembly could discuss the Kasturirangan report, drought, protection of the Western Ghats and farmers’ concerns in detail.

He said the BJP and JD(S) would jointly raise farmers’ issues and other matters concerning the state.

Vijayendra also said the special session had been convened only after sustained BJP protests and referred to the party’s Ballari Chalo padayatra. He accused the government of responding to pressure from the Opposition.

Ashoka questioned the decision to classify the sitting as a special session and alleged that limiting the agenda to drought and the Kasturirangan report would keep other issues, including the NICE and Bidadi Township Project row and the KPSC scam, out of the discussion.

The Opposition leader said the BJP had already submitted a notice on the Kasturirangan report and would raise the matter in the Assembly.

Shivakumar, meanwhile, rejected the suggestion that the government had called the session merely to manage a political demand. “I did not simply come and sit here. I have gone to the four divisions of the state, held meetings there and personally assessed the situation. Many decisions have already been taken on how our government should help the people,” he said.

He said 102 taluks had already been declared drought affected and that the process of declaring another 100 was under way.