Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday remembered former Prime Minister P.V. Narasimha Rao on his 97th birth anniversary though Congress President Rahul Gandhi gave the occasion a miss.

However, the Congress paid its respects to its leader. “We remember P.V. Narasimha Rao, India’s 9th Prime Minister, on his birth anniversary today. He was referred to as Chanakya for his ability to steer tough economic and political legislation through the parliament at a time when he headed a minority government,” the party said in a tweet.

In his tweet, Modi said: “Remembering our former PM Shri PV Narasimha Rao on his birth anniversary. Shri Rao is widely respected as a statesman who provided valuable leadership during a critical period of India’s history.”

“Blessed with immense wisdom, he made a mark as a distinguished scholar as well,” he added.

The ninth Prime Minister (1991-1996) Narasimha Rao was born on June 28, 1921.

The coordination committee of the Karnataka coalition partners will deliberate on the new state budget proposals on Sunday, said Deputy Chief Minister G. Parameshwara on Thursday.

“The coordination committee of the JD-S and Congress will discuss on the weekend the proposals for inclusion in the state budget for 2018-19 Chief Minister H.D. Kumaraswamy will present in the assembly on July 5,” Parameshwara told reporters.

The five-member committee, headed by Congress Legislature Party leader and former Chief Minister Siddaramaiah as chairman, has Parameshwara and Congress state unit in-charge K.C. Venugopal, Kumaraswamy and Danish Ali of the Janata Dal-Secular (JD-S) as convener.

“As Ali is the convenor, he will decide on the time and venue of the meeting in consultation with the committee’s members,” said Parameshwara.

The committee will go through the report of the sub-committee set up by the coalition government on June 14 to draft a common minimum programme (CMP) from the poll manifestoes of both the coalition parties.

The five-member sub-committee has former Union Minister M. Veerappa Moily, state Revenue Minister R.V. Deshpande and Water Resources Minister D.K. Shivakumar of the Congress and Public Works Department Minister H.D. Revanna of the JD-S and Chief Minister’s Economic Adviser S. Subramanya.

“The sub-committee has recommended some of the promises made in both the manifestos, including socio-economic and welfare schemes and farm loan waiver as part of the CMP,” said Parameshwara.

Kumaraswamy, who holds the Finance portfolio, will present the state budget for this fiscal (FY 2019) on July 5 in the 10-day monsoon session of the new Legislative Assembly, convened from July 2.

“The CMP will be implemented through budgetary allocations and its details will be spelt out in the state budget by Kumaraswamy,” said Parameshwara.

The coordination committee will also sort out differences cropping up between post-poll alliance partners on the budget and power sharing.

Amid speculations that a number of Congress lawmakers were inclined to join West Bengal’s ruling Trinamool Congress soon, sitting MP and former Union Minister Abu Hasem Khan Choudhury and a party MLA on Thursday met Trinamool Secretary General Partha Chatterjee.

Choudhury later said he had gone to discuss a grand alliance involving both the parties against the BJP in the state.

“We are considering forming a ‘mahajot’ (grand alliance). Congress and all others need to come together in Bengal to defeat the BJP,” said Choudhury, a sitting Lok Sabha member from Malda Dakkhin.

Asked whether he would be part of it, he said: “Yes, if Congress is there, I have to be there”.

But he ruled out participating in the July 21 annual martyr’s rally organized by the Trinamool.

Speaking on the same line, Congress legislator from Murshidabad’s Farakka Moinul Haq said: “The issue now is to defeat the BJP. We need to work towards that. We Went to Chatterjee to discuss that. We also talked about setting up a college in the name of late Congress leader Abu Barkat Ghani Khan Choudhury in Malda.”

Hasem is the late Congress leader’s brother.

However, state Congress chief Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury categorically said nobody has been authorized to hold any talks on any alliance.

“From our party, we have not authorised anybody to talk to other parties about any alliance. In our party, the issue of the alliance is decided by the high command. If any leader is doing that, he is doing it in his individual capacity. The party is not involved in this,” he said.

But Chatterjee kept the mystery.

“Lot of people meet me daily. Why talks about them (Abu Hasem and Haq) only? Others have also met me. Whatever we discussed, there should not be any speculation on that.”

Asked whether he would welcome Abu Hasem Choudhury, Chatterjee said: “If he wants to join us to be a party of the development initiatives taken by Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, he is welcome.”

He also gave a cryptic answer to a poser on whether Choudhury would be invited to the July 21 Trinamool meeting. “Lot of Khan Choudhurys would get invited in the July 21 rally.”

Political circles have been agog with rumours about five Congress MLAs – three from Murshidabad district, and two from Malda – toying with the idea of crossing over to the Trinamool soon. There is speculation they might attend the July 21 rally, or join Trianmool early next month.

Chief Minister H D Kumaraswamy will present the budget on July 5th and there would be no danger to his government, said former Prime Minister and JD(S) supremo H D Deve Gowda amid strains in the ruling Congress-JD(S) coalition government in Karnataka.

Speaking to reporters in New Delhi Mr. Gowda said, “Kumaraswamy will present the budget on July 5th. There is no anxiety, he will do it. The budget will get passed by July 12th; there will be no danger to the government. There is anxiety among you (the media)…now go back with satisfaction.”

Speaking on former chief minister Siddaramaiah’s opposition to budget presentation, Gowda said, “Let there be no discussion on this (topic), the budget will be presented, the matter ends.”

Gowda is in Delhi to attend the meeting of the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Defence, of which he is a member. He spoke on the speculations that he may be meeting senior Congress leaders and clarified that no such meeting with any Congress leader has been scheduled.

The President Ram Nath Kovind will visit Uttar Pradesh on June 28 and 29.

On June 28, the President will grace the 51st annual convocation of IIT Kanpur. On the same day, he will also meet the students of ‘CSRL Super 30 (GAIL Utkarsh)’ who have qualified IIT, NIT etc. at IIT Kanpur.

On June 29, the President will lay the foundation stone of an auditorium of the Kanpur Bar Association in Kanpur.

On the same day, he will also grace the centenary celebrations of the Allahabad Medical Association in Allahabad, before returning to Delhi.

Hindusthan Samachar/Shri Ram Shaw

Prime Minister Narendra Modi arrived here in the Uttar Pradesh capital in a special Indian Air Force (IAF) plane on Thursday to pay his respects to 15th-century Indian mystic poet and saint Kabir Das.

Modi was received by Governor Ram Naik, Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, city mayor Sanyukta Bhatia and other state cabinet ministers and bureaucrats, an official said.

After a brief stop-over the Prime Minister, along with Adityanath and state Tourism Minister Rita Bahuguna Joshi left for Maghar in Sant Kabir Nagar, the birthplace of the saint.

Modi is scheduled to lay the foundation stone of the Rs 25 crore proposed Sant Kabir Research Academy. He will also offer a ‘chadar’ at his tomb and later address a public rally.

This is the 500th year of the saint’s passing away.

Three senior ruling BJP legislators from Vadodara district came out in the open late on Wednesday evening expressing their resentment against the State government and claimed more than a dozen others were with them, hours after Chief Minister Vijay Rupani flew out the country on a six-day tour.

Three legislators, Madhu Srivastava from Waghodia constituency, Yogesh Patel from Manjalpur and Ketan Inamdar from Savli, asserted that several state ministers and the bureaucracy were not listening to them and showing a callous attitude to public representatives.

Incidentally, national BJP President Amit Shah was in his home state on Wednesday but the MLAs chose to vent their grievances before the media, also claiming that many more legislators were angry with the working of the government.

Madhu Srivastava, who is a legislator for six terms, asserted that several other frustrated MLAs were with them and they would also come out in future. “Today we are three but tomorrow there may be 13 or 23. Today we three, Brahma, Vishnu and Mahesh, have got together. Now let anything happen,” Srivastava said.

“Ever since the present government took charge six months ago, the bureaucrats in the state are working at their whims and fancies. And when we go to meet the ministers on the designated Tuesdays for us, we are unable to see them,” Srivastava told reporters, as Patel and Inamdar nodded in agreement.

Concurring with Srivastava, Yogesh Patel said that their only demand was that when they seek resolution to the issues of their electorate, it must be sorted out but this was not happening.

Asked if they had made a representation to the Chief Minister about this, Srivastava said, “We are not going to stand in queue (to meet him) if the officials did not allow them.”

Ketan Inamdar said their anger was not against the party or the government but with the attitude of officials. “The government which is trying to do best for the people, should sure have control over the bureaucracy but it appears the officials have got thick-skinned,” he said.

The BJP swiftly swung in to action, asking senior Cabinet minister Bhupendrasinh Chudasama to intervene. “Whatever be the issue, I, Nitin bhai (Deputy Chief Minister) and Jitubhai Vaghani (state BJP President) will speak to them in person and sort out their issues,” Chudasama said.

BJP spokesperson Bharat Pandya said, “The three have been summoned by state party chief for a meeting in person. We have touched base with them and asked them to put forth their grievances on the right forum.”