IMA probe: Karnataka govt seizes 23 properties of Mansoor Khan worth Rs 300 crore

Crime

The Ponzi scam came to light on June 10 when the IMA showroom in the city centre did not open for business after a week-long closure for Eid at the end of Ramzan amid reports that Khan had fled to Dubai.

IANS

The Karnataka government has seized 23 properties of IMA Jewellers scam prime accused Mansoor Khan valued at Rs 300 crore in five districts across the southern state, an official said on Wednesday. "We have seized 23 properties valued at Rs 300 crore of Khan in Bengaluru, Chikkamagaluru, Davangere, Hassan and Kolar in the state as part of the investigation in the multi-crore Ponzi scheme scam," Bengaluru Urban District Deputy Commissioner K. Srinivas said here in a statement in Kannada. The previous Congress-JD(S) coalition government had set up a Special Investigation Team (SIT) on June 11 to probe the scam in which about 40,000 people from across the state and outside were allegedly duped of their hard-earned money they invested in Khan's Ponzi scheme in the form of deposits, gold and jewellery since a decade. "We are seeking the special court's permission to interrogate Khan on the scam as he is lodged in city central jail under 14-day judicial custody since August 1," an SIT official told IANS. Though Khan returned to India on July 19 and to Bengaluru on July 20 from New Delhi, he has been in the custody of the Enforcement Directorate (ED) who are quizzing him on the alleged transfer of funds through 'hawala' route by his IMA Jewellers firm in violation of the Prevention of Money Laundering (PMLA) Act. The Ponzi scam came to light on June 10 when the IMA showroom in the city centre did not open for business after a week-long closure for Eid at the end of Ramzan amid reports that Khan had fled to Dubai to escape the wrath of investors for causing huge losses to them. In video recordings Khan released to local news channels and posted on social media such as his Facebook and Whatsapp accounts from Dubai where he was hiding since he fled from the country on June 8-9, he accused some politicians, police officials, businessmen, realtors, advocates and leaders of his religious community of having received "bribes" in crores of rupees from him over the years for building his empire. "Of the 20 arrests made so far on charges of abetting the multi-crore fraud, former Bengaluru Urban Deputy Commissioner BM Vijayashankar was taken into custody on July 8 for allegedly taking Rs 1.5 crore as bribe from Khan to bail him out of the scam," the SIT official said. The SIT also arrested Bengaluru North Assistant Commissioner Nagaraj on July 5 for allegedly taking Rs 4.5 crore from Khan to submit a favourable report on his company to the state government and the Reserve Bank of India in a bid to legitimise it for raising funds from banks.  

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Karnataka CM extends date to pay CET counselling fees in wake of floods

Administration

According to the Karnataka Examination Authority, the final date for submitting the fee is now August 13.

TNM Staff

Karnataka Chief Minister BS Yediyurappa on Wednesday directed to extend the last date of paying fees for candidates in the third round of counselling for Common Entrance Test (CET), by one week. CET is the entrance exam which Class 12 and PUC II students write to qualify for engineering, pharmacology and technical education courses for colleges in Karnataka. Also read: No cabinet or district ministers in flood-hit Karnataka: Bureaucrats hold the fort “Chief Minister BS Yediyurappa has directed officials to extend the last date to pay fee for candidates selected in third round counselling of CET by one week. Today was the last day to pay fees. This step is taken in the wake of the flood situation in various parts of Karnataka,” the CM’s office tweeted. According to the Karnataka Examination Authority, the final date for submitting the fee is now August 13.  The order by the CM is set to give relief to many students in the wake of heavy rainfall and flooding which have affected central, coastal and northern districts of the state in the past week. Around two lakh candidates appear for the exam held in various centres in Karnataka every year. Out of those applicants, 67,000 students have been allotted seats. At present, many parts of coastal, Malnad and northern Karnataka are flooded affecting normal life. Heavy rainfall in neighbouring Maharashtra, Telangana has worsened the situation for north Karnataka districts, as water is being released from reservoirs in upper riparian areas.   On Wednesday, the Indian Meteorological Department had predicted more heavy rainfall in Dakshina Kannada, Uttara Kannada, Udupi, Belagavi, Raichur, Dharwad, Shivamogga, Chikkamagaluru, Kodagu and Chamarajanagar. Apart from teams of the National Disaster Response Force, State Disaster Response Force, State Fire and Emergency Department officials, the Indian Army is on the ground to conduct rescue and relief operations. Even bus and train routes have been affected as landslides and road cave-ins are being reported due to the persistent rainfall.

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We sat on our rooftop for two days in the rain: Belagavi flood victims recount ordeal

Floods

The landslides and flooding in the city have been attributed primarily to the illegal construction of buildings that has occurred over the last decade.

Theja Ram

Waterlogged roads, flooded homes, residents huddled in relief camps – incessant rain has marooned Karnataka’s Belagavi. For the last 10 days, the rampant rains have crippled the daily life of residents in the city. Shanthavva Uppari, a 65-year-old weaver and resident of Belagavi’s Sai Nagar, was asleep on Saturday night when the rains began lashing with force. Shanthavva shut all the doors and windows in her home and hoped that the rain would stop soon. Within an hour, rain water began seeping into her living room and in a few hours, the entire ground floor was flooded. “My son Anand, daughter Renuka and daughter-in-law Roopa went up to the first floor and waited there but the water level kept rising. From our window on the first floor bedroom, we could see the neighbouring houses getting completely submerged. We were just praying that someone would come and help us,” Shanthavva tells TNM. By Sunday morning, Shanthavva and her family members were waiting on their rooftop for rescue. She says that the heavy rains began 10 days ago and several of her neighbours had left their homes to go stay with their relatives in other places. By Saturday, only 100 members of Sai Nagar remained. “Our neighbours asked us to pack up and leave but we did not have anywhere to go. When our house was flooded, our weaving machine was destroyed. It was our only source of livelihood,” Shanthavva recounts. By Sunday afternoon, Shanthavva’s neighbours waded through the water with the help of a few journalists and made it up to her roof. Around 50 residents were stranded on the rooftop. When news of their condition reached the Deputy Commissioner, rescue personnel rushed to the spot and shifted them to a relief camp. Similarly, in Chikodi’s Kallol, Bheemappa Sontakki, a 40-year-old autorickshaw driver, was stranded at his home along with his wife Gayatri for two days before rescue personnel arrived. Bheemappa and Gayatri sat on their terracotta rooftop for a night and two days in the pouring rain before the Fire and Emergency Service personnel arrived to rescue them. “Our farm is located near the Krishna river. We were not really worried that the rain would flood the entire village when it started pouring heavily 10 days ago. The nalas (storm water drains) were washing away the rain water. But on Sunday morning, the whole village flooded. We were not able to move away as quickly as our neighbours and other people in the village because we decided to pack a few belongings. But soon, the water gushed into our house. We waited on the roof for two days until help came. We were moved to a relief camp in Ankali,” Bheemappa says. On Wednesday, 2,95,890 cusecs of water was released from the Rajapur barrage, 50,677 cusecs from the Dudhganga and the Vedhganga barrages, 3,46,567 cusecs from the Kallol barrage, 27,000 cusecs from the Markandeya barrage, 21,000 cusecs from Ballari Nala, 38000 cusecs from Hiranyakeshi and 86,000 cusecs from the Hidkal Dam. “Totally, 5,18,567 cusecs of water was released on Wednesday alone. Almost all of Belagavi district is flooded. The last time we witnessed such floods was in 2005. But that time the city areas were not affected as much as the villages closer to the Krishna river and its tributaries,” an official with the Flood Forecast Monitoring Centre said. According to the Central Water Commission, 25,151 residents were evacuated to 53 relief camps set up in north Karnataka’s Belagavi, Uttara Kannada, Bagalakote and Raichur. Officials say that Uttara Kannada and Belagavi are the worst hit, while rainfall in the remaining districts in the northern part of the state had mellowed down by Wednesday morning. What led to waterlogging in Belagavi According to Deepak Goni, Disaster Management Case Worker, landslides and flooding in the city were primarily due to the illegal construction of buildings that has occurred over the last decade. “If you see the areas that were flooded in Belagavi City, it was the illegally constructed layouts that caused so much troubles for the rest of the city. The city corporation (Belagavi City Corporation) has not taken any measures to rectify the mistakes,” he said. According to data obtained by the Belagavi City Corporation, Old and New Gandhi Nagar located near the Belagavi Airport, the layout near Suvarna Soudha, Ujwal Nagar, Samarth Nagar, Sai Nagar, Nekaar Nagar, Kunti Nagar, Gayatri Nagar, Kanakadas Nagar, Bangarappa Colony, Shambaji Nagar, Anand Nagar and Mangayi Nagar are all illegally constructed. “The land in these areas is listed as agricultural land in the corporation’s land records. Farmers sold their lands to relators who illegally constructed affordable homes. These areas have no nalas and no sewage connection. The sewage flows into the Ballari Nala directly. Earlier, this nala was an irrigation canal. Now it has become a sewage dump. With no place for rain water to run, the city flooded,” a senior official with the Belagavi City Corporation told TNM.

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No cabinet or district ministers in flood-hit Karnataka: Bureaucrats hold the fort

Flood

In fact, six constituencies which are hit by heavy rains, do not have MLAs in place after the elected representatives resigned last month.

Prajwal Bhat

  Incessant rains in the past week has caused floods and prompted rescue operations in parts of coastal, Malnad and northern Karnataka.  At least 10 districts - Dakshina Kannada, Uttara Kannada, Udupi, Belagavi, Raichur, Dharwad, Shivamogga, Chikkamagaluru, Kodagu and Chamarajanagar - are facing a spell of moderate to heavy rainfall with high speed winds. Thousands have been moved to relief camps in many of these districts.   Rescue and relief efforts are currently underway without a cabinet or district-in-charge ministers in place and are being coordinated solely by bureaucrats. In fact, six constituencies which are hit by heavy rains - Kagwad, Athani, Gokak, Yellapur, Hirekerur and Ranebennur - do not have MLAs in place after the elected representatives resigned last month.Three of the constituencies are in Belagavi, where more than 8,000 have been evacuated from their homes following rains. Shrimant Patil, Mahesh Kumathalli and Ramesh Jarkiholi who represented Kagwad, Athani and Gokak respectively are no longer MLAs.    In Yellapur, where incessant rains have left roads and paddy fields waterlogged, Shivaram Hebbar resigned as MLA last month. There is a similar situation in Haveri's Hirekerur and Ranebennur, where BC Patil and independent MLA R Shankar too resigned.    Chief Minister BS Yediyurappa held a video conference with Deputy Commissioners (DC) and conducted an aerial survey of the rain-hit areas before flying to New Delhi to discuss the expansion of the Karnataka cabinet. Since then, the disaster relief operations in the state have been managed by Gangaram Baderiya, Principal Secretary, Disaster Management who is receiving daily updates from the DC's of affected districts.   The DC's chair the District Disaster Management Authority (DDMA) and are the nominal heads of the rescue and relief efforts. The DC's report to the Chief Secretary and Principal Secretary, Disaster Management everyday with updates.     However, the absence of a cabinet and district ministers has affected the flood relief efforts, according to some observers.    In Udupi, electricity poles and trees were uprooted after heavy rainfall on Tuesday and former minister and Congress leader Pramod Madhwaraj believes that the absence of a District Minister-In-Charge is being felt in the district.    "An absence of a district minister is felt during calamities like this. If District Minister in charge was in place, they could have done much better. Officials in charge will have to go by the rules and there is a delay in giving immediate relief to the people. In such a situation, lot of places electricity has been cut off and re-installation is taking place at a slow pace," he argues.    The Chief Minister's decision to camp in New Delhi has also come under criticism with former minister for Rural Development & Panchayat Raj Krishna Byre Gowda questioning the lack of a cabinet 12 days after the government was formed.   Terrible floods in many parts of Karnataka. And CM is away politicking in Delhi. No minister even to attend to flood problems. 12 days since new Govt, BJP still hasn’t given Karnataka a Cabinet. #KarnatakaFloods — Krishna Byre Gowda (@krishnabgowda) August 7, 2019 Another Congress leader HK Patil wrote to Yediyurappa asking him to turn his attention to the flood situation in the state.   

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Heavy rains lash north, central and coastal Karnataka: Full list of trains affected

Natural Disaster

On Tuesday, the Indian Meteorological Department had issued a 48-hour red warning in six districts of the state.

TNM Staff

Amidst severe rain and flooding in parts of north, central and coastal Karnataka, train services have been badly affected with tracks getting submerged under water.  The South Western Railway issued a bulletin stating, ”Torrential rainfall over the last two days caused substantial water to inundate track between Londa and Tinaighat at 1 am on 6th Aug morning. Water was  flowing below the track and same was restored at 15:10 hrs. on  06.08.2019. Railway staff undertook massive restoration work in hostile weather conditions under the guidance of Shri A.K. Singh, GM/SWR and Shri Rajesh Mohan Divisional Railway Manager. Up line was made fit for train operations by 15:10 hrs, in record time of 14 hrs given the gravity of situation. The same was possible due to the untiring efforts of railway staff battling odds of weather conditions. The first passenger train to pass on this line will be Train No. 06948 Super Express that leaves Hubballi tonight.” The statement, issued by the Divisional Railway Manager’s office in Hubballi, also goes on to list the affected routes: Train No. 12742 Patna-Vasco da gama diverted via Miraj was short terminated at Belagavi on 06.08.2019.  Train No. 06948 Hubli-Vasco da gama slip coaches short terminated at Londa on 06.08.2019. Train No. 12780 Hazrat Nizamuddin-Vasco da gama arriving on 06.08.2019 was short terminated at Belagavi. Slip coaches moved separately to Hubballi. Train No.02779 Vasco da gama-KSR Bengaluru Express commencing journey on 06.08.2019 will originate from Londa instead of Vasco da gama partially cancelling the service between Vasco da gama and Londa.    Train No. 18048 Vasco - Da - Gama – Howrah Express commencing journey on 06.08.2019 was cancelled. Train No. 17305 Hubli - Hazrat Nizamuddin Link Express scheduled to depart Hubballi at 16:15 hrs on 06.08.2019 will be rescheduled to depart at 00:30 hrs on 07.08.2019. Train No. 12779 Vasco - Da – Gama – Hazrat Nizamuddin Express scheduled to depart Londa at 19:00 hrs on 06.08.2019 will be rescheduled to depart at 02:30 hrs on 07.08.2019. Accordingly, this train will remain partially cancelled between Vasco - Da – Gama – Londa. As Train No. 18048 Vasco - Da - Gama – Howrah Express is cancelled on Tuesday, Train No. 08048 Vasco da gama-Howrah One Way Tatkal Express Special will be run on 07.08.2019 from Vasco da gama with same timings for the convenience of passengers. On Tuesday, the Indian Meteorological Department (IMD) had issued a 48-hour red warning in six districts of the state viz. Dakshina Kannada, Uttara Kannada, Chikkamagaluru, Shivamogga, Kodagu and Udupi; orange warning in Belagavi, Hassan and Haveri; and yellow alert in Dharwad and Kalaburgi. 

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B’luru IISc professor asked to retire over sexual harassment charges reinstated by HC

Controversy

Giridhar Madras, a senior faculty of the Chemical Engineering Department, was found guilty of sexual harassment in October 2018 by an internal probe conducted by IISc.

TNM Staff

Around ten months after he was asked to go on compulsory retirement over sexual harassment charges, a senior faculty member of the IISc has been reinstated by the Karnataka High Court. In its order, the court found faults with the Internal Committee (IC) and the Disciplinary Authority formed to probe Giridhar Madras.  Giridhar Madras, a senior faculty of the Chemical Engineering Department, was found guilty of sexual harassment by an internal council in October 2018. The probe had started in November 2016 after a PhD student had lodged a complaint that he had made sexually coloured remarks against her and called her repeatedly at night.  The order by Justice BP Bajanthri held that the IISc authorities have not followed statutory provisions, like providing a copy of the complaint to the accused. They also reportedly did not stick to the rules mandated for forming an inquiry committee and submission of the report, the court said. The order also found that Central Civil Services Rules were also ignored. The Hindu reported that the HC also asked action to be taken against IISc director and members of the probe committee.  According to The New Indian Express, the HC has also directed the Centre to hold a refresher training programme for the ICC and DIsciplinary Authority. “The Government of India/Disciplinary Authority/experts should conduct a programme to apprise how to conduct an inquiry in a sexual harassment case. The Department of Personnel and Training (DoPT) is requested to make necessary arrangements for a refresher training programme for the members of the committee and disciplinary authorities so as to avoid any procedural/violation of statutory rules in conducting inquiry and punishing the perpetrators. A copy of this order should be communicated to the DoPT Secretary, and Law Department of Government of India,” the court said.

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Namma Metro smart card glitch: BMRCL asks users not to recharge online

Transport

It was earlier reported that that money was not being credited when users recharged their smartcard using the Bangalore Metro Rail Corporation Limited website.

TNM Staff

Close to a week after it was reported that that money was not being credited when they recharged their smartcard using the Bangalore Metro Rail Corporation Limited website, the BMRCL has asked users not to use any online method for topping up their smartcards. There is no clarity when the glitch will be fixed. Initially, BMRCL officials had said the issue would be resolved soon as it was a “minor issue”. Other than the BMRCL website, commuters had the option of recharging their smart cards from their respective bank website or apps or the government-run Mobile-One app. With the online recharge option, commuters did not have to worry about long queues or worry about having the exact change for recharging their smartcards. However, now, the only way to recharge smart cards would be from the kiosks at the metro stations which might inconvenience users at odd hours and add to the queues at the stations.  According to The Times of India, BMRCL has identified 3,092 incidents of failed attempts to recharge via online means until August 3. This glitch comes even as the BMRCL and Bangalore Metropolitan Transport Corporation are expected to introduce an interoperable smart card that would work for both modes of public transport. The new cards will work both at the metro automatic fare collection gates and also the handheld ticketing machines used by BMTC conductors. In an unpopular move in March, metro officials said commuters now need to have a minimum balance of Rs 50 on their cards from a minimum balance that was earlier at Rs 8.50. Currently, Bengaluru has two Metro lines intersecting at Majestic. While the Green Line between Nagasandra-Yelachenahalli spans 24.22 km, the Purple Line between Byappanahalli-Mysuru Road runs for 18.08 km. Over the years, the metro has seen a growth in ridership with an average of 4 lakh-plus people using it daily.

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