THE TIMES OF INDIA, BENGALURU MONDAY, FEBRUARY 27, 2017 TIMES CITY / STATE 5

BALLOT CALL Coordination Meeting A Prelude To Poll 2018 Planning CM, Digvijaya end reshuffle speculation in election year Pics: TOI TIMES NEWS NETWORK ‘STILL AN Bengaluru: In a relief to sen- OUTSIDER’ iors in the cabinet, the attempt hief minister of some Congress leaders to CSiddaramaiah effect a ministry reshuffle in an reportedly struck election year was nipped in the an emotional chord bud, reportedly at the instance at the coordination of chief minister Siddaramai- meeting involving ah. They wanted those who had senior party completed four years in office leaders in to be dropped. Bengaluru on A source said party lead- Sunday. “I am ers had shared an agenda working hard to copy issued by their chief G strengthen the Parameshwara in a What- party in Karnataka sApp group, to seek a cabinet and have done everything I could reshuffle at the Congress co- CHARTING A PATH: AICC general secretary Digvijaya Singh with home minister G ordination committee meet- to fulfil the Parameshwara, CM Siddaramaiah and Mallikarjuna Kharge, party leader in the promises made by ing in Bengaluru on Sunday, Lok Sabha, at the coordination committee meeting in Bengaluru on Sunday but AICC general secretary the Congress in its Digvijaya Singh intervened election manifesto and vetoed any discussion on NATIONAL BJP LOKAYUKTA PROBE ON: SHOBHA in 2013. But the the topic. INVOLVED he Govindraj diary controversy saw a spin on Sunday old-timers still see me as an outsider It is learnt that a leader It is a clear with BJP MP Shobha Karandlaje stating on Sunday that T and criticize me in from North Karnataka started political the Karnataka Lokayukta had sought details from the public. What they speaking with reference to income tax authorities on the issue two months ago. At a conspiracy by not only want me to do, I Congress MLC K Govindraj's party function here, Karandlaje said a private complaint in the state BJP but also really don’t dairy, and the need to revive the this regard had been lodged with the Lokayukta on by the national BJP. understand,” the Congress party at the grass- December 20. Subsequently, the Lokayukta registrar had They wanted to malign CM said, obviously written to the IT department on December 26 seeking the Congress party and referring to the details of the diary. Karandlaje said: “The IT authorities had BRIBE DIARY tarnish the image of jibes by party the government, but written to the Lokayukta to file a request in the proper veterans B roots level. He spoke about the they cannot succeed. format under relevant sections and the latter complied. I Janardhan Poojary importance of drafting senior Siddaramaiah | have information that the Lokayukta, after receiving the and C K Jaffer ministers for party work, with CHIEF MINISTER contents of the diary, is probing the case.” Sharief. assembly elections due in 2018. However, as soon as the re- source said. “Perhaps the issue shuffle issue was raised, Singh will be taken up with AICC intervened and put an end to it. vice-president Rahul Gandhi Police under pressure A source claimed that Singh after the UP poll,” they added. was under pressure from Sid- The leaders reportedly dis- daramaiah and some senior cussed the diary and observed to go slow, says BJP ministers, who conveyed their that there were lapses on the anger against the move at a part of the government to nail TIMES NEWS NETWORK mainstream media after KPCC separate meeting on Saturday. state BJP president B S Yed- working president Dinesh CM Siddaramaiah, howev- dyurappa in the corruption Bengaluru: BJP MLC and Gundu Rao made it public on er, claimed the topic was not case. They were of the opin- party’s state joint treasurer Saturday. part of the meeting’s agenda ion that the Congress should Lahar Singh Siroya, who re- Following this, Siroya and dubbed it a “media crea- come out with a booklet on jected the Congress party’s al- rushed to police commissioner tion”. Energy minister D K scams and corruption charges legations with regard to a diary Praveen Sood’s office on Sun- Shiva Kumar said: “No party during the BJP reign and belonging to him containing day and lodged a complaint will risk undertaking a cabinet campaigns to highlight them. details of Rs 390 crore paid to against mischief-mongers. reshuffle in an election year. AICC leader B K Haripras- the BJP central leadership, al- Siroya later told reporters: It’s all mere speculation.” ad and senior ministers R V leged that the government was “It appears the government is There were reports that the Deshpande and M B Patil did mounting pressure on the Ben- putting pressure on the police leadership was planning to pull not attend the meeting. galuru City Police to delay not to act against the com- out senior ministers who had probing a complaint lodged by plaint. The commissioner ini- completed four years in the PLENARY IN N KARNATAKA the BJP’s social media cell. tially refused to take the com- cabinet, and deploy them for The KPCC will hold a plenary The cell lodged a complaint plaint, stating that it was a party work ahead of the 2018 session in North Karnataka on Friday with the Malleswar- Sunday and he was in office to poll. There are about 13 minis- after the budget session, as a am police stating that some complete some personal work. ters in Siddaramaiah’s cabinet prelude to the 2018 poll. “We are mischievous elements had cre- He later took the complaint but who were inducted in 2013. planning to hold the session ated a fake diary in Siroya’s said the acknowledgement can- When one member wanted either in Hubballi-Dharwad or name and were circulating cop- not be issued immediately.” to know the party's stand on a Belagavi. The venue and date ies in social media, to tarnish Demanding a probe by the change of guard in the state will be decided shortly,’’ Digvi- the BJP’s image. CBI, Siroya reiterated that the unit, Singh did not respond, a jaya Singh told reporters. The issue was picked up by signature in the diary was fake. ‘BJP took 11 months to leak diary’ Continued from page 1 and it’s a theory cooked up in the context of elections that will ICC general secretary come up in Karnataka in 2018,’’ Digvijaya Singh dubbed he added. Athe diary “fake’’ and Taking a jibe at Union textiles used for disseminating minister Smriti Irani, who has false information to the media. demanded a probe into the matter He said there is no point in at an election rally in UP, Singh anyone resigning since Congress said she must first come clean MLC K Govindraj, who is also par- in the fake degree case filed liamentary secretary to chief against her before making such minister Siddaramaiah, has al- comments. ready denied having any knowl- Siddaramaiah said Diarygate edge of the diary and said it was was a conspiracy by BJP national not his handwriting. leaders to target the Congress gov- “In March 2016, Govindraj was ernment in Karnataka. “The BJP raided by the income-tax depart- is totally frustrated, they are los- ment and some documents and ing in Uttar Pradesh so they are diary entries were seized. Why using all weapons to win the Kar- did they take 11 months to leak nataka elections. We will not take the diary? It clearly suggests that NO CHANGE: CM Siddaramaiah it lying down and give a fitting they were under some pressure arrives at the meeting on Sunday reply,’’ he added. ‘Situation could lead to mass deaths of elephants, tigers’ Continued from page 1 LET’S NOT PLAY GOD DRONES TO TRACK DISASTER he situation is going from bad National parks he forest department has introduced to worse. There are reports of T constitute a mere 1% of Tmini-drones designed to small animals dying but if the India’s landscape, keep track of potential situation continues, there could be where the goal is to allow natural forest fires. These drones mass deaths, especially of elephants ecological processes to continue will help record and tigers, which require a large with the least amount of human atmospheric conditions quantity of water,” said Joseph interference. Wild animals have in the event of a forest Hoover, member of the Karnataka evolved over thousands of years fire too, said a forest State Wildlife Board. and survived severe droughts. If official in Bandipur Tiger Hoover, who has been visiting the there are mortalities of some reserve. These self-steering drones are forests ever since the fire broke out, weaker animals, including sensor modules that can be dropped over a said he found at least 15 langurs and charismatic species like forested area to relay environmental data some five lion-tailed macaques char- elephants due to a lack of water, that could show through camera or red to death in Bandipur. The toll it is part of the natural process indicate potential for fire, they added. may go up as a fire was again report- and there is no cause for alarm. ed on the southwest slopes of BRT Ti- Since culling is not a culturally TIMES VIEW ger Reserve in Punajur wildlife acceptable option, adverse range on Sunday. “The deaths may climatic conditions like this he death of wildlife assets in Karnataka — rise in the coming days. It’s a scary drought may also help in natural Tsmall in number, but could increase situation in the forest, especially if it regulation of the population. dramatically if correctives aren’t taken in the doesn’t rain in the next two weeks,” Therefore, this does not call for coming harsher months of summer — was a Hoover said. any action to fill up waterholes, tragedy waiting to unfold. Though experts Animal rights activists are not much less the drilling of 100 argue it’s ‘the natural regulation of population’ fully convinced with the forest de- borewells announced by the and one needn’t be alarmed, the ground partment’s plan to supply water government. We must curb the situation in these reserve forests is far from through tankers and solar bore- urge to ‘play god’ and reduce satisfactory. Forest fires and water crisis are a wells. They said measures adopted such unscientific interventions. lethal combination. The state government by the state government were few. Are we setting out to convert can’t credit itself with glory on its failure to “Due to the heat wave, several small Bandipur and other national address these issues without losing time. Staff water reservoirs have become parks into safari parks or zoos shortage in the forest department is equally parched while others are on the with a maze of pipes, borewells debilitating. Besides praying for rain, brink of drying up. Animals need and solar panel arrays? Karnataka must do something substantive — water not only for drinking but also Praveen Bhargav | FORMER MEMBER, filling waterbodies, checking forest poachers for playing and bathing in dry NATIONAL BOARD FOR WILDLIFE — to see results on the ground. weather. The state government should have tried to make arrange- forests (wildlife) B J Hosmath cluding Bandipur, are facing acute ments earlier so that these wild ani- claimed that not many wildlife casu- water shortage this summer. But mals do not suffer,” saidS N Girish, alties were reported due to water, but what else can we do other than make a wildlife activist. certainly due to forest fires. “Some of temporary arrangements like dig- Principal chief conservator of the wildlife reserves and parks, in- ging borewells?” he said.