Will set up spl court to try graft cases in Karna: Cong

BANGALORE: The Congress today said it would establish a special court in Karnataka to try cases relating to illegal mining and corruption if it comes to power in the state.

Leader of the Opposition in the House, Siddaramaiah said: "We will set up a special court to try illegal mining cases, denotification of land and land grabbing cases and get punishment for those involved".

He targeted the BJP government while speaking on the motion of thanks to the Governor's address and accused it of lowering the image of the state, with corruption cases during its tenure.

Assembly elections are due in Karnataka in May, and Siddaramaiah claimed that his party would come to power.

Chief Minister Jagadish Shettar sought to take a dig at Congress, saying the main opposition party is "day-dreaming" of coming to power.

Shettar denied Siddaramaiah's contention that the state's financial position is not good and that it's borrowing more than required.

"When the size of the budget goes up,the public debt also goes up. There is no meaning in the criticism", he said.

Fiscal deficit has come down compared to 2007-08 and is within the Karnataka Fiscal Responsibility Act and the targets prescribed by the 13th Finance Commission, he said.

But Siddaramaiah pointed out that while GSDP growth was more than 10 per cent in 2004-05, it came down to 5.5 per cent in 2011-12 and it's projected to be 5.9 per cent this fiscal. "In such a scenario, how can one say that the financial status is good?", he asked.

On the demand from JDS and Congress which pushed the Government to give compensation to farmers of sugarcane and other perennial crops, affected due to drought, Shettar said the government would conduct a survey to ascertain the extent of damage, adding, it would give them relief.

Meanwhile, Shettar tabled in the Assembly the supplementary estimates 2012-13.