Congress walks out of Assembly over hostel land allotment delay
Jaipur, Feb. 26 -- The Congress staged a walkout from the Rajasthan assembly during Zero Hour on Wednesday, protesting alleged delays in land allotment to social organisations for hostels and community purposes.
The protest was triggered after Congress MLA Motiram raised the issue of delay in allotting land to three communities in Revdar for construction of student hostels.
Responding to the issue, revenue minister Hemant Meena said the three allotment cases in Revdar were approved during the last six months of the previous Congress government. He alleged that the decisions were taken in haste for "political gain" and contained deficiencies that were never rectified.
"If the intention was genuine, the allotments would not have been pushed through in the final six months. It was an attempt to reap political mileage," Meena said, adding that the present government is committed to allotting land to every community after due process.
Dissatisfied with the reply, Congress members walked out of the House in protest. Reacting to the boycott, parliamentary affairs minister Jogaram Patel accused the Congress of indulging in "drama" instead of constructive debate.
During Zero Hour, BJP MLA Ladulal Pitalia raised the issue of the spread of vilayati babool, saying the invasive species was degrading agricultural and grazing land and seeking government intervention.
Panchayati raj minister Madan Dilawar said the plant was proving harmful, claiming it consumes nearly 30 litres of water daily and contributes to falling groundwater levels. He also alleged that the species was introduced during the Congress regime in the 1960s, when its seeds were allegedly scattered through aerial means. "People even call it 'Congress babool'," he remarked, adding that the state government is preparing a plan to eradicate it from Rajasthan.
In another exchange, Congress MLA Geeta Barwad sought upgradation of Asop sub-tehsil to a full tehsil. Revenue minister Meena said the Lalit K Pawar Committee has been constituted to examine the formation and reorganisation of administrative units, and a decision would be taken after its report.
Leader of Opposition Tika Ram Jully objected, accusing the government of targeting districts created by the previous regime. Meena countered that new districts were formed earlier for political reasons without following proper procedure.
Jully hit back, saying, "You cannot create, you can only dismantle," leading to noisy scenes in the House....
To read the full article or to get the complete feed from this publication, please
Contact Us.