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.

West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee denied claims accusing her of threatening doctors, and alleged that a malicious disinformation campaign was unleashed against her speech yesterday. 

The Chief Minister asserted that she did not utter a single word against medical students or their movement against the rape and murder of a doctor in Kolkata’s RG Kar Medical College and Hospital.

Taking to social media platform X, Mamata Banerjee said that she detects a malicious disinformation campaign in some print, electronic and digital media which has been unleashed with reference to a speech that she made in the party’s students’ programme yesterday.

She clarified that she did not utter a single word against the medical students or their movements. Terming the doctors movement genuine, she expressed her support to them. She also maintained that she never threatened the doctors, as some people are accusing, adding that the allegation is completely false.

However, she mentioned that she spoke against the BJP in her speech because they had been threatening democracy in West Bengal with the support of the Centre, and is trying to create anarchy. Mamata Banerjee in her speech on Wednesday said that she had been very patient during the entire episode, and urged the protesting doctors to return to work. Notably, the BJP claimed that she had threatened the doctors.

In the social media post, CM Banerjee also clarified that the phrase “phonsh kara” is a quote from Sri Ramakrishna Paramahansa Deva. She explained that the legendary saint had said that occasionally there is a need to raise one’s voice. She continued that when there are crimes and criminal offences, voices of protest have to be raised, and her speech on that point was a direct allusion to the great Ramakrishna’s saying.

Responding to BJP’s 12-hour long ‘Bengal Bandh’ call, Mamata Banerjee claimed that Prime Minister Narendra Modi was using his party to cause a fire in Bengal over the Kolkata doctor rape and murder.

She asserted that some people think this is Bangladesh, but they should remember Bangladesh is a separate country, and India is a separate country. Mentioning that PM Modi is using his party to cause fire in Kolkata, the Chief Minister said that if they burn Bengal, Assam, North-East, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Jharkhand, Odisha, then Delhi too shall burn, and they will topple his chair.