Work as people's servants, not as their bosses: A T Ramaswamy to JD(S)-Congress

Bengaluru: The coalition partners JD(S) and Congress received a piece of advice from JD(S) member A.T. Ramaswamy, who warned them against shooting themselves in the foot. He was participating in a discussion on the motion of thanks to the governor in the Legislative Assembly and told the coalition members to work as ‘servants of the people and not as bosses.’

“Don't presume that those sitting in the first two benches are most eligible to rule and those who sit in the back are ineligible. The power has been conferred on various considerations. Fighting for a particular portfolio or particular officer do not take you anywhere. Instead of concentrating on administration, if you indulge in pulling each others' leg, you will be shooting yourselves in the foot,” Mr Ramaswamy warned.

Taking a dig at the opposition BJP, which had dubbed the coalition an ‘unholy alliance,’ Mr Ramaswamy wanted to know if the JD(S)-BJP alliance in 2006 was a holy one? “In Jharkand, an independent legislator called Mr Madhu Koda could become chief minister, so what is wrong in Mr Kumaraswamy becoming CM by winning 37 seats? The provision is there in the Constitution,” he said. Stating that loan waiver was not a permanent solution for farmers' problems, Mr Ramaswamy said that at the most, it might prevent them from hanging themselves.

However, there were other ways and means to help farmers. In the first place, the government should ensure that credit is increased for farmers. This would help them avail loans even in times of distress. Secondly, the system of announcing minimum support price(MSP) for crops is flawed, as no farmer is involved in fixing the MSP. The MSP is decided by IAS officers, who have no knowledge of the market. Like industries decide the prices of their products, based on expenditure they incur, even crop prices should be decided by farmers. Even the MSP announced by the government does not reach farmers, as middlemen make profits, he added.