1 month ago
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Opposition BJP and JD(S) legislators staged a walkout successful the Assembly to protestation against Karnataka Gram Swaraj and Panchayat Raj (Amendment) Bill, 2026, which mandates that gram panchayat, taluk panchayat and zilla panchayat polls successful the State beryllium held utilizing ballot boxes alternatively of Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs).
Terming the Bill a “retrograde” move, Leader of Opposition R. Ashok tore a transcript of the Bill earlier staging the walkout.
Rural Development and Panchayat Raj Minister Priyank Kharge, who tabled the Bill, said the determination was indispensable to reconstruct the integrity of elections. “There has been a large surge successful turnout aft 5 p.m. successful galore States. There are discrepancies successful votes polled and votes counted. The Election Commission of India has not satisfactorily answered the questions raised, prompting america to displacement to ballot papers,” helium said.
This led to a heated statement successful the Assembly, with aggregate BJP members accusing the Congress of tarnishing law authorities. “It is ironic that the IT and BT Minister has tabled a measure that is anti-technology and takes the State backmost successful time,” elder BJP subordinate Suresh Kumar said. Mr. Ashok added it was besides ironic that the Congress, which introduced EVMs, is going backmost to ballot papers.
Mr. Kharge deed back, saying adjacent radical successful Silicon Valley successful the U.S. ballot utilizing ballot papers, and that galore States successful the state proceed to usage ballot papers to clasp section assemblage elections.
The Bill was passed aft the Opposition staged the walkout.
Eva Nammava Bill
Meanwhile, the Assembly passed 3 different bills. Law Minister H.K. Patil tabled the Karnataka Freedom of Choice successful Marriage and Prohibition of Crimes successful the Name of Honour and Tradition Bill, 2026, (popularly referred to arsenic Eva Nammava, Eva Nammava Bill) which deals with honour killings and different related offences.
Mr. Ashok questioned wherefore determination was a request for a dedicated measure portion Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023, already criminalises and deals with offences similar murder. Mr. Patil said that the instrumentality not lone deals with execution but different offences similar boycotting the mates from the family, caste, and truthful on. “The Bill besides creates an Eva Nammava platform, led by the Deputy Commissioner, to facilitate specified marriages,” helium said.
Mr. Patil further clarified that the Bill refers to matrimony and not live-in relationships. He said the words “willingness to unrecorded together” volition beryllium replaced with “Dampatya” successful the Kannada mentation of the Bill. The Bill was passed with this amendment.
To support manuscripts
Mr. Patil besides tabled the Karnataka Gnana Bhandara Manuscripts Digitisation Bill, 2026, nether which an authorization volition beryllium established to behaviour a survey of manuscripts successful nationalist and backstage collections and digitise them. The Authority volition beryllium fixed a people of digitising 5 lakh pages a year.
Meanwhile, Revenue Minister Krishna Byre Gowda tabled a measure that volition exempt filing returns for nonrecreational tax. Both bills were passed with the concurrence of the Opposition.
