60-year-old man accused of raping, impregnating minor girl in Karnataka

Crime

Over a period of four months, the man, a former BJP gram panchayat member, allegedly raped the girl multiple times.

TNM Staff

A man has been accused of raping a 14-year-old girl over a period of four months and impregnating her in Karnataka’s Ballari district.  According to the complaint filed by the girl’s mother on Tuesday at the Hospet Rural Police Station, 60-year-old Chandrashekar had allegedly told the girl he would pay her to do household chores. The teen girl worked at a tea stall, and every day after school she would go there to work, according to the complaint. Chandrashekar allegedly began frequenting the tea stall a year ago. He allegedly paid the teen amounts varying from Rs 25 to Rs 50 and asked her to run errands for him. Chandrashekar is a former BJP gram panchayat member. “He would allegedly tell her that she could go to him and ask him for help if she ever needed and gained her trust. After a few months, he would give her small amounts of money and ask her to buy sweets or whatever she wanted to. We are very poor and so my daughter took the money from him,” the complaint notes. About four months ago, Chandrashekar allegedly asked the girl to help him out with some chores at his residence. When the minor girl arrived, Chandrashekar allegedly pulled her into his house and locked the door. “He told her that no one was at home. He forced himself on her and raped her. He then gave her Rs 50 and told her that if she spoke about the incident, he would kill her and all her family members,” the complaint reads. Chandrashekar allegedly raped the girl multiple times over a period of four months and each time, he would allegedly offer her Rs 50 and ask her not to speak to anyone about the incident. The mother grew concerned after the girl’s menstrual cycle stopped, according to the complaint. On April 8, the teen was taken to a gynecologist and it was found that she was pregnant. “My daughter was scared to tell us and finally she told us what Chandrashekar had done,” the complaint adds. An FIR was registered against Chandrashekar under sections 376 (rape) and 506 (criminal intimidation) of the IPC and under sections 4 (punishment for penetrative sexual assault) and 6 (punishment for aggravated penetrative sexual assault) of the POCSO Act. Chandrashekar is currently at large and the Hospet Rural Police are looking out for him.  

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After K’taka CM protests over raids, I-T Dept seeks legal action from EC

Lok Sabha 2019

The Income Tax Department accused CM Kumaraswamy and other ministers of making “false statements” and preventing government officials from discharging their duties.

TNM Staff

Nearly two weeks after Chief Minister HD Kumaraswamy and other Karnataka ministers went on protest over Income Tax raids, it has come to light that the I-T Department has requested the Election Commission to pursue criminal proceedings against the CM and others. A letter dated April 5 written by Principal Chief Commissioner of Income Tax, Karnataka and Goa Region BR Balakrishna to the Chief Electoral Officer Sanjeev Kumar to this effect has come to light.  The I-T Department has asked EC to approach Karnataka Police Chief, the Director General and Inspector General of Police Neelamani Raju over the matter. The letter stated, “When persons occupying high public offices, including constitutional posts, make false statements and voluntary instigate, and involve themselves in, such criminal activities with the sole purpose of adversely affecting the processes of the law and preventing government officials from discharging their duties, such activities and statements criminally intimidate and harm the personnel of the Department with greater intensity .” It added, “It is in this background that the present complaint is being filed, with a request to take appropriate against the persons named hereinabove for the commission of various cognizable and other criminal offences.” Chief Minister HD Kumaraswamy, Deputy CM G Parameshwara, former CM Siddarmaiah and Water Resources Minister DK Shivakumar along others had held a protest outside the I-T Department’s office on Queen’s Road office in Bengaluru on March 28. The protests were against the alleged selective probe by the I-T officials against leaders of the Congress-JD(S) alliance at the behest of the BJP at Centre. A day before the raids were carried out, the CM had alleged that he was expecting I-T searches to be carried out with the intention of helping the BJP. Besides the protest, the I-T Department has also objected to the statements given by the leaders of the coalition against the raids. The letter stated that the I-T Department had conducted a search on contractors and engineers involved in government contracts, and in the districts of Hassan, Mandya and Mysuru officials had unearthed unaccounted cash of Rs 8.14 crores and unaccounted jewellery worth Rs.1.69 crores based on credible information.   The Department also seized documents which prima facie depict withdrawals of large amounts of cash from the state treasury by such contractors and engineers. No person holding any political office such as that of MLA, MLC or Minister, was searched in the aforesaid proceedings, the letter states. “On 27.03.2019, as is forthcoming from electronic media, Shri. H.D. Kumaraswamy, the incumbent Chief Minister, stated that the Department was intending to conduct search proceedings on politicians belonging to the ruling coalition,” the letter stated. “That such statements were made by a person who was unconnected with the search proceedings itself demonstrates the malafide intent that is, to scuttle the Department's processes,” it further stated. The various sections of the Indian Penal Code under which I-T Department has sought actions are. 143 - Punishment for being a member of an unlawful assembly section 149 -Every member of unlawful assembly guilty of offence committed in prosecution of common object   504- Intentional insult with intent to provoke breach of the peace 505-  Statements conducing to public mischief 506-Punishment for criminal ti intimidation 186- Obstructing public servant in discharge of public functions; 187- Omission to assist it public servant when bound by law to give assistance 189- Threat of injury to a public servant Karnataka goes to polls in two phases – on April 18 and April 23.

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EC directs transfer of Mandya DC over allegations of favouring Nikhil K

Lok Sabha 2019

The decision was made after Chief Electoral Officer Sanjeev Kumar went to Mandya to probe on allegations against Manjushree.

IANS

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The Karnataka government on Tuesday transferred the Mandya Deputy Commissioner N Manjushree, who was also the District Election Officer, on the Election Commission's direction. "On the EC directive, Commissioner of Public Instruction PC Jaffer has been posted as Deputy Commissioner and returning officer of Mandya with immediate effect," said an official statement issued by the State Election . The poll panel's direction came after the Bharatiya Janata Party filed a complaint against Manjushree for allegedly favouring JD(S) candidate Nikhil K, son of Chief Minister HD Kumaraswamy, and being biased against his Independent rival, multilingual actress Sumalatha Ambareesh, whom the BJP is supporting. The decision was made after Chief Electoral Officer Sanjeev Kumar went to Mandya to probe on the allegations. Sumalatha and her aides had alleged that the DC did not act on their complaint over alleged errors in nomination papers submitted by Nkhil Kumaraswamy.  Polling in Mandya and 13 other seats will be held on April 18 in the first phase of the Lok Sabha election in Karnataka. Earlier in a similar move, the  Election Commission had shunted out Hassan Deputy Commissioner Akram Pasha following a complaint from Hassan legislator Preetham Gowda (BJP) who accused him of working in a partisan manner. Akram was accused of favouring Prajwal Revanna. Instead IAS officer Priyanka Mary Francis was posted as Hassan's new Deputy Commissioner.

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Bengaluru techie allegedly abducted for the fourth time by disgruntled employees

Crime

Sujay, a techie who hailed from Chennai, had opened a company in Bengaluru but has not been able to pay his employees.

TNM Staff

A techie from Chennai who had opened a company in Bengaluru was allegedly abducted by his former employees four times in the past one month for failing to pay them their salaries. A resident of Cambridge Layout, 23-year-old Sujay SK and had recently opened a new business in the city. The company shut down after a month of its opening and Sujay has allegedly not paid salaries to their employees. According to the Halasur Police, the techie’s father has filed a complaint with the police alleging that eight of Sujay’s former employees abducted him thrice between March 21 and 26 after Sujay was not able to disburse their salaries since January 2019. Sujay, along with a few friends, had started the private company, FGL Infotech near Electronics City in January 2019. Sujay had completed his diploma in engineering and had come to Bengaluru from Chennai with hopes of setting up a business. Sanjay, Niranjan, Rakesh, Tanzeem, Darshan, Rashmi, Likith and Vishwa joined FLG Infotech as employees in January this year. However, the firm shut down within a month due to management issues. Police told TNM that the eight employees began asking for their salaries but Sujay had remained elusive and had not returned their calls. Hence, the employees allegedly planned to abduct him. According to the police, on March 21, Sujay was allegedly contacted by Likith and Vishwa. The duo allegedly asked him to meet them at a bank near Halasur. When Sujay arrived, they allegedly forced him into Darshan’s car and took him to a secluded area and assaulted him with an iron rod. Sujay was dropped back home on March 23. Police said that Tanzeem and Sanjay allegedly abducted him once again on March 25 while Sujay was on his way to Tamil Nadu. Once again, he was allegedly beaten up with an iron rod. When Sujay told the duo that he was going to Tamil Nadu to bring back money, his abductors allegedly let him go. However, when the former employees realised that Sujay had not left for Tamil Nadu, they allegedly abducted him once again and took him to a farmhouse near Maddur in Mandya. “They tied his hands and legs and beat him up. He was later let go the same day near Mysuru Road,” the police added. Unable to bear the trauma of being abducted and assaulted, Sujay allegedly consumed a lot of sleeping pills on the night of March 26, police said. He was taken to the hospital by his father. However, once Sujay was discharged on Monday, he was abducted again and has been missing since. The police are trying to track him and the other employees down. Sujay’s father Shivam C, a former member of the armed forces, filed a complaint with the Halasur police after he could not contact Sujay. “We took his (father’s) statement and arrested Sanjay, Niranjan and Rakesh. We are tracking down the five others. We believe the same people abducted him,” the police added. The three have allegedly confessed to the abductions. The Halasur Police have registered an FIR under sections 363 (abduction), 324 (voluntarily causing hurt by dangerous weapon), 323 (voluntarily causing hurt), 339 (wrongful restraint) and 34 (common intention) of the IPC.  

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No sale of liquor in Bengaluru from April 16 to 18 during polls

The sale of liquor has also been suspended for the full day on May 23 due to counting of votes.

TNM Staff

It is time to plan election weekend in the pub capital of Bengaluru after it was confirmed that the city will go dry for two days starting from 6pm on April 16 to 6pm on April 18 on account of the Lok Sabha elections.  Bengaluru is set to vote in three constituencies - Bengaluru (Central), Bengaluru (South), Bengaluru (North) on April 18. The sale of liquor has also been suspended for two days starting from April 16 to April 18 and for the full day on May 23, due to counting of votes. "A 5-km radius of no-sale-of-liquor zone will be enforced if the adjoining areas do not go for voting and this will also extend to the other state if the borders come within a 5-km radius,” said Sanjeev Kumar, Chief Election Commissioner speaking to Deccan Herald.  Bars in the city are gearing up for high sales of alcohol in the coming week and are wary of alcohol being used to lure voters.  Establishments selling liquor have already come under the scrutiny of police and excise department ahead of the elections.  As per a report by The New Indian Express, the Excise Department has raided more than 4,000 establishments in Bengaluru since March 10 and has registered 18 cases, which is higher than the number of cases registered in January and February combined. 

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Lok Sabha 2019: Modi backs Sumalatha for Karnataka's Mandya seat

Lok Sabha 2019

Sumalatha Ambareesh is contesting as an independent candidate while the BJP has decided to not name a candidate and back her in Mandya.

IANS

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday backed multi-lingual south Indian actress Sumalatha Ambareesh, an Independent in the high-profile Mandya Lok Sabha constituency whom the BJP is supporting to wrest the seat from the JD-S. "Sumalatha supported her husband and Kannada film star Ambareesh in promoting the native language and its culture for years. I express gratitude to Ambareesh and Sumalatha for their contribution to Kannada," said Modi in his 35-minute speech in Hindi at a Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) public rally in Maharaja College grounds in Mysuru. Campaigning for the party's candidates in the old Mysore region, which goes to polls in the second phase on April 18, Modi fondly recalled the rebel star (Ambareesh), who died in Bengaluru on November 24, 2018 at the age of 66. Though Ambareesh won from the Mandya three times, twice as Congress member and once as Janata Dal-Secular (JD-S) member, and was a Cabinet Minister in the Siddaramaiah-led Congress government (2013-16), the ruling ally could not give Sumalatha its ticket to contest, as it has been a JD-S bastion since 2009 general elections. The JD-S has fielded Nikhil K. -- son of state Chief Minister H.D. Kumaraswamy and grandson of party supremo H.D. Deve Gowda -- this time. To support 55-year-old Sumalatha, the BJP has not fielded its candidate against her and decided to campaign for her in the high-voltage battle against 29-year-old Nikhil, an upcoming Kannada film star from Bengaluru. A section of the Kannada film industry, known as sandalwood world, is also supporting Sumalatha, and its superstars Darshan and Yash are actively campaigning for her as a gratitude to their hero and guru Ambareesh. Though the ruling Congress-JD-S alliance partners entered into a pre-poll seat-sharing tie-up to contest in all the 28 Lok Sabha seats across the southern state in the ratio of 21-7, its district leaders and cadres have refused to campaign for JD-S candidates in Mandya, as most of them are also ardent fans of Ambareesh, a native of Mandya and their demigod.

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Bye-polls to Karnataka’s Kundgol Assembly seat to be held on May 19

Politics

Bye-polls in Kundgol was necessitated following the demise of Minister for Municipal Administration CS Shivalli last month.

TNM Staff

Representational Image

The Election Commission of India on Tuesday announced that bye-elections will be held to Kundgol Assembly constituency in Dharward district of north Karnataka on May 19.  Results for the same will be declared on May 23, along with the Lok Sabha Elections. Bye-polls will also be held in four seats in Tamil Nadu and one seat in Goa, announced the EC. May 19 is also the date of polling for the last and seventh phase of Lok Saba 2019 polls across the country. According to the Election Commission, the date of notification for the seats going to bye-polls on May 19 will be April 22. The last date of nominations will be April 29, while the scrutiny of nominations will be carried out on April 30. Candidates can withdraw from participation latest on May 2. Bye-polls in Kundgol was necessitated due to the demise of Minister for Municipal Administration CS Shivalli last month. On March 22, the minister passed away in a private hospital in Hubbali after he had suffered a cardiac attack earlier in the day. Shivalli, a veteran Congressman was a three-time MLA from Kundgol Assembly constituency and was a key aide to former Chief Minister Siddaramaiah. In the 2018 Assembly Elections, Shivalli had won from the seat with a razor-thin margin against BJP’s Chikkanagoudra Siddanagoud Ishwaragoud. He had in 2013 won comfortably against the same opponent. Shivalli was inducted into the cabinet in the second round of appointment of ministers after a mini-rebellion in the Congress in December 2018. Legislators from North Karnataka had alleged that they were not being represented enough. He was also reportedly approached by the BJP to jump ship. Lok Sabha Elections in Karnataka will be held in two phases. Polling will be held on April 18 in Udupi-Chikkamagaluru, Hassan, Dakshina Kannada, Chitradurga, Tumakuru, Mandya, Mysuru-Kodagu, Chamarajanagara, Bengaluru Central, Bengaluru North, Bengaluru Rural, Bengaluru South, Chikkaballapura and Kolar The remaining constituencies of Chikkodi, Belagavi, Bagalkote, Bijapur, Gulbarga, Raichur, Bidar, Koppal, Ballari, Haveri, Dharwad, Uttara Kannada, Davangere and Shivamogga will vote on April 23.

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