Retorting sharply to Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav’s warning that he will after 2027 order all bulldozers to Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister’s hometown Gorakhpur, Yogi Adityanath on Wednesday said that not everyone has the heart and character to handle a bulldozer.

The remarks from the Chief Minister came in response to the Samajwadi Party chief’s Tuesday comment on bulldozer, the machine which has become emblematic of his style of governance.

“As soon as the Samajwadi government is formed in 2027, the bulldozers of the entire state will head towards Gorakhpur,” Yadav had said.

Adityanath said only those with a bulldozer-like capability can operate it.

Addressing an event during appointment letter distribution in Prayagraj, Adityanath said, “Today these people have come back in a new form to mislead the public. Not everyone’s hands can fit on a bulldozer.”

“It requires both heart and mind. Only someone who has a bulldozer-like capability and determination can operate it. Those who grovel before the rioters will not be able to stand in front of a bulldozer”, he added.

The CM also made a pun on Yadav’s nickname saying, “Now ‘Tipu’ is also trying to become a ‘Sultan’.” He said Yadav’s ambition of returning to power in Uttar Pradesh is nothing more than a daydream, and accused the former Chief Minister and his uncle Shivpal Yadav of indulging in extortion during his rule.

“There used to be a competition between ‘chacha-bhatija’ in extorting money. Areas between them were divided. I can see that at this time some man-eating wolves are creating havoc in different districts.

“More or less the same situation was in the state before the year 2017,” Adityanath said.

Hours after the Chief Minister’s attack, the Samajwadi Party chief in no time on his X handle slammed back in Hindi and said: “If you and your bulldozer are so successful, then form a separate party and contest elections with the bulldozer election symbol.”

“Your illusions and pride will be shattered. Anyway, in your current situation, even if you are in BJP, you are as good as no, you will have to form a separate party, if not today then tomorrow”, the Samajwadi Party chief added.

In the wake of the Himachal Pradesh government’s financial crisis, Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sikhu announced on Thursday that he and his cabinet ministers, chief parliamentary secretaries and board chairmen would defer their salaries, allowances and other benefits for the next two months.

CM Sukhvinder Singh Sikhu, while making the announcement in the Himachal Pradesh Assembly, urged all MLAs including those from the Opposition BJP to voluntarily defer their salaries and allowances for the time being. Notably, the Congress has 40 MLAs and the BJP 28 MLAs in the 68-member House.

Nonetheless, BJP MLAs led by Leader of the Opposition Jairam Thakur staged a walkout after alleging a scam in the excise department, which is also under the Chief Minister. The walkout followed CM Sukhvinder Singh Sikhu’s reply that revenue generated through the 2024-25 excise policy was much higher than the total excise revenue generated under the BJP’s five-year tenure.

Jairam Thakur, a former chief minister, slammed Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu, asserting that liquor vends were auctioned below the reserved prices. The former CM alleged that the number of liquor vends, especially of county-made liquor, was reduced. He claimed that contractors are selling liquor bottles at prices higher than the MRP printed on them, and that the entire excise policy was formulated only for the benefit of big players in the industry.

The Leader of Opposition further stated that bidding for a number of liquor vends was cancelled with the excuse that there were no bidders. However, the same vends were later allotted by the state government to its favourite liquor contractors, he continued.

Responding in the House, CM Sukhu urged BJP leaders including Thakur and Randhir Sharma to submit a complaint and said their allegations would be investigated. Speaking to the reporters outside the Assembly, Jairam Thakur urged the authorities to check the backgrounds of liquor contractors in Una and Kangra districts as well as in Nurpur town.

The Karnataka High Court today dismissed a batch of pleas against the state government’s decision to withdraw consent for an investigation by the CBI (Central Bureau of Investigation) against Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar in a disproportionate assets case.  

The High Court dismissed petitions lodged by the central investigation agency and the Opposition BJP MLA Basangouda Patil Yatnal, who had challenged the state government’s decision to withdraw consent for a CBI probe into corruption allegations against Shivakumar.

A division bench of Justice K Somashekhar and Justice Umesh M Adiga reserved its order on the petition. It said that the dispute essentially involves a conflict between the state government and CBI which operates under the supreintence of the Central Government. It further underlined that the issue raised concerned the statutory provisions like the Delhi Special Police Establishment Act, and Prevention of Money Laundering Act and the relationship within Constitutional provisions in regards to division of powers between state and central government.

The bench held that the present writ petitions are not maintainable, adding that the dispute is between the CBI representing the Union Government and the State government. It noted that such disputes which involve Central Government authority and State government autonomy are more appropriately addressed within the original jurisdiction of the Supreme Court. Subsequently, the court dismissed the writ petitions as not maintainable, granting liberty to the petitioner to pursue appropriate remedies before the Supreme Court.

Past week, the Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister appeared before the Lokayukta Police for a probe in connection with a disproportionate assets (DA) case against him.

Earlier in February, the Lokayukta Police filed a case against DK Shivakumar after the ruling Congress government in the state withdrew consent to the CBI to investigate the DA case against him in November 2023, and referred the case to it.

Later on July 15, the Supreme Court rejected a petition by DK Shivakumar challenging the FIR lodged by the CBI against him, stating that it cannot interfere with the High Court order. The Karnataka High Court in October 2023, dismissed his plea and also directed the federal agency to complete the probe into the case and file the report within three months.

The investigation agency filed the FIR against Shivakumar in September 2020, in which it alleged that he amassed assets disproportionate to his known sources of income between 2013 and 2018. Notably, he was a minister in the then-Congress government during that period.