Karnataka HC asks state govt to spell out plan for detaining illegal immigrants

Law and order

The High Court has directed the state government to file an affidavit by November 26 with details of detention centres in the state.

Prajwal Bhat

Detention centre for illegal immigrants on outskirts of Bengaluru

The High Court has directed the state government to file an affidavit by November 26 with details of detention centres in the state. The Karnataka High Court on Thursday directed the state government to reveal details of the number of detention centres for detaining illegal immigrants. It also directed the state government to spell out the plan to detain immigrants without documents currently in the state. Justice KN Phaneendra directed the state government to file an affidavit by November 26 with details of detention centres in the state while hearing a bail plea filed by Babul Khan in September 2019 for 14 Bangladeshi immigrants and one Burmese immigrant arrested in August 2018 in the Sarjapur police station limits in Bengaluru.  "The court has asked for a permanent solution to the detention of foreigners without documents. It is not just about these 15 petitioners but about all foreigners without documents in the state", explains Sirajuddin Ahmed, a lawyer representing one of the petitioners.  In the absence of a state-run detention centre, the Karnataka government has detained Bangladeshi nationals arrested in 2018 in Parappana Agrahara prison in the city. The counsel representing the state government informed the High Court on Thursday that a temporary detention centre will be arranged in Sarjapur in the city to detain the 15 immigrants. The state government also informed the High Court that it had identified 35 spaces to temporarily detain foreigners without documents in the state. These spaces will be used to detain illegal immigrants including immigrants after they are either released on bail or after they have completed their prison term in criminal cases. In addition, the state government has repurposed a hostel built for SC/ST students in Nelamangala, around 40 km outside Bengaluru, into a detention centre for illegal immigrants. While the construction of the building is completed, it is only expected to be opened for use in January 2020.  The Foreigner Regional Registration Offices (FRRO) under the Bureau of Immigration in Bengaluru has compiled a list of 866 foreigners without documents in the state.  Read: NRC in Karnataka? Inside the detention centre for illegal immigrants 40 km from Bengaluru The affidavit to be submitted in the High Court next week will be prepared by the Principal Secretary of the Home Department and will include details of the plans laid out by the state government to detain illegal immigrants. This also includes foreigners convicted in criminal cases and have either been released on bail or have completed their punishment term. Those illegal immigrants convicted in criminal cases will not be held in detention centres but instead will be held in prisons.  The counsel representing the Ministry of Home Affairs told the High Court that if the detained foreign nationals are not accepted by the home country, the state will have to take care of them at the expense of tax payers' money.  Read: After flak, K'taka govt says detention centre for illegal immigrants different from NRC The developments in the case also come at a time Union Home Minister Amit Shah declared that the National Register of Citizens (NRC), first implemented in Assam, will be carried out across the country. The NRC asks residents to prove their citizenship, the citizenship of their ancestors and their relationship to their ancestors. In Assam, residents were asked to produce documents proving that they or their families lived in India before March 24, 1971, and in the final list published, more than 19 lakh residents were excluded. Last month, Bengaluru police detained 60 suspected illegal immigrants from Bangladesh residing in Ramamurthynagar, Bellandur and Marathahalli police station limits in the city. They were housed in government homes for men, women and children and will be deported to their home country on Friday. The respondents in the case are the Ministry of Home Affairs, Bengaluru Police Commissioner, Director General and Inspector General of Police (DG/IGP), and the Karnataka Chief Secretary. Read: The harassment of Bengaluru's Bengali-speaking workers in the name of 'security'

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K'taka govt bans flash strikes by Bengaluru Metro workers, declares it a public utility

Civic

Namma Metro employees cannot go on strike without giving prior notice of at least six weeks.

Prajwal Bhat

PTI Photograph

The Karnataka government has declared the Namma Metro in Bengaluru as a public utility service under the Industrial Disputes Act.  A notification was issued by the Labour Department stating that the Namma Metro operated in the city will be a public utility service under the Act for six months with immediate effect.  This means that metro employees cannot go on strike without giving prior notice of at least six weeks and a further two weeks after giving notice. Previously, metro employees could go on a flash strike even though the usual practice was to give notice of two weeks before the strike to Bangalore Metro Rail Corporation Limited (BMRCL), which maintains the Namma Metro in Bengaluru.  The new notification comes after the Madras High Court clarified last month that the Tamil Nadu government's Labour Department is the authority to handle industrial disputes between the Chennai Metro Rail Limited and its employees. According to an official in the Labour Department of the Karnataka government, the Madras High Court order is the basis for the newly issued notification. According to the official, it resolved a long-standing dispute over the "appropriate authority" to resolve disputes between employees and management when the metro comes under the Industrial Disputes Act. "Both the central government and the state government have a 50% stake in the metro. Earlier, the metro was considered under 'Railways' but BMRCL requested a change because the metro is not a railway company under The Metro Railway (Operations and Maintenance) Act," explained an official in the Labour Department. In 2018, faced with strikes and conciliatory meetings with its employees‘ union, BMRCL pushed for metro services to be brought under the Essential Services Maintenance Act (ESMA). ESMA mandates that certain essential services cannot be disrupted and legally prohibits employees from going on flash strikes. But in spite of reports of the Centre’s willingness to bring all metro rail services under ESMA, it is yet to be officially notified.  Responding to the new notification, the Bengaluru Metro Rail Employees Union (BMREU) is set to approach the Karnataka High Court disputing the notification on the grounds that the state government does not have the power to issue such an order.  "We will challenge the new order in the Karnataka High Court. The High Court has already issued a stay on a notification bringing the metro under ESMA. The case is still pending," Suryanarayana Murthy of the BMREU told TNM. He added that the BMREU had given notice before conducting strikes in the past but with the new notification in effect, BMREU will have to give notice at least six weeks prior to a strike.  In the last two years, BMREU and BMRCL have clashed on multiple occassions over non-payment of wages. In July 2017, commuters of the Namma Metro were inconvenienced when employees of the metro staged a strike on the Baiyappanahalli-Nayandahalli line. In June 2018, a section of Namma Metro employees threatened to go on strike but after several concillary meetings, the strike was eventually deferred following the intervention of the Karnataka High Court.   

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CBSE seeks probe into DPS school premises leased out to Nithyananda ashram

Crime

Meanwhile, the MEA stated that it has not received any formal request for the extradition of Nithyananda and is currently unaware of his whereabouts.

Prajwal Bhat

The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) on Thursday stated that it is not aware of the current location of self-styled godman and rape-accused Nithyananda. The Ministry added that it had not received any information from the Gujarat police or from the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) regarding him. Nithyananda has been booked by the Gujarat police after three minor children (a boy and two girls) were rescued from Nithyananda's Hirapur Ashram in the outskirts of Ahmedabad and united them with their parents.  “We do not received any formal information, neither from the Gujarat police nor from the MHA. Also, for extradition request, we need to know the location and the nationality details of the person. We do not have such information about him yet,” the MEA has said.  It is not clear where Nithyananda currently is. Sources say that he could either be in Ecuador or the West Indies. He has also been evading appearance in a rape case filed against him in Karnataka. He has not appeared in court for almost a year.  On Wednesday, two women managers, Pranapriya and Priyatattva, were arrested by the Gujarat police based on the statement by the minors rescued from the Nithyananda ashram in Gujarat. On Thursday, police reportedly searched the premises for  Read: Nithyananda ashram raided, managers arrested on allegations of child abuse, kidnap The ashram in Ahmedabad is situated inside the premises of the Delhi Public School. On Thursday, after the case details were revealed, the Secretary of the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) wrote to the Directorate of Schools, State Education Department, to conduct an inquiry into the leasing of the land to the ashram without due permission. The State Education Department has been asked to conduct the inquiry expeditiously and convey the outcome of the report and status of the No Objection Certificate (NOC) issued by the state department to the school for seeking CBSE affiliation. Read: Sexual crimes committed in the name of God: A look back at 'Swami' Nithyananda's 'sex contract'

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Karnataka govt looks towards Japanese businesses to boost economic activity in state

Business

The Japanese Industrial Township (JIT), announced in 2016 as an exclusive facility to host Japanese businesses in the southern state, is now ready for occupation.

Naheed Ataulla

Amidst the gloomy scenario of an economic slowdown across the country and pink slips being handed out by some of the IT majors in Bengaluru, the Karnataka industries and commerce department has not taken a pessimistic view of the situation and is looking at some sunrise projects As the department prepares for its ` Invest Karnataka--Hubballi' event to be held in Hubballi in early January 2020, the Japanese Industrial Township (JIT) announced in 2016 as an exclusive facility to host Japanese businesses in the southern state is ready for occupation. The 519.5-acre area in the Vasanthanarasapura village in Tumakuru district, 60 km from Bengaluru is anticipated to boost Japanese investments in Karnataka. It already boasts of 539 units in the hospitality, automobile, consumer engineering, seeds and agriculture sectors with Honda Motorcycle & Scooter India setting up its plant in Narsapur near Kolar, about 60 km from Bengaluru. “There is zero slowdown in aerospace or the global linkages sectors like the JIT. The slowdown is in the automobile and real estate sectors as they have endemic issues such as the transition from BS4 to BS6 (Bharat Stage norms where manufacturers have to configure their engines to meet emission control parameters) in the automobile industry. In the real estate sector where there was an oversupply with people not using it as an investment vehicle anymore,'' Karnataka industries and commerce department principal secretary Gaurav Gupta said. Under the industrial policy of Karnataka, the Karnataka Industrial Area Development Board (KIADB) gave land to JIT with infrastructure such as power and other civil works. About 100 companies are expected come up in the area for which expression of interest by companies has to commence, Gupta said. JIT in Karnataka will be an integral part of the Chennai-Bengaluru Industrial Corridor, which is among the five industrial corridors being developed by the Union Ministry of Commerce and Industry to boost economic activity and create jobs, Gupta said. Heavy engineering, machine tools, automotive and aerospace components will be among the key sectors of the industrial township. This is also expected to boost tourism between Karnataka and Japan. The proposed direct flight from Bengaluru to Tokyo is expected to cut down the travel time from 14 hours to nine, which is also being seen as another added advantage. JITs in India were agreed to be developed as one of the initiatives in the Japan-India Investment Promotion Partnership announced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in 2014. JITS were designed to offer business environments in which Japanese companies can smoothly establish production sites and operate businesses, according to information on the website of ministry of economy, trade and industry, Japan.   With infrastructure ready at the project site, promotional activities to get Japanese companies to set up business have started. In June, the Karnataka government made a presentation to 100 CEOs from Japan in New Delhi in association with Japan External Trade Organisation (Jetro). “Once the threshold of 50% to 60% occupancy is crossed, the next concern will be setting up social infrastructure there,” Gupta said. After JIT, the department is now also fine tuning the proposal for a Pharma Park, which was conceived in 2017. Land for this has been identified in Nagamangala in Mandya district and the key objective of the government is to make Karnataka as the preferred destination for pharmaceuticals going by the presence of large number of pharmacy and engineering colleges.  However, according to industry and trade sources, the political stability of the government in the last 18 months does crop up during discussions with foreign investors but has not been a serious consideration for them. The only shortcoming is Karnataka's political presence at international business events, which is next to nil. “Presence of just officials at such events will not boost confidence of prospective investors as it should be backed by a political leadership, which former industries R V Deshpande did to some extent. The chief minister should include business travel in his itinerary as openness to trade with Karnataka is higher than other states in the country,” sources maintained.

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DySP Ganapathy suicide: CBI gives clean chit to former Minister KJ George

The CBI, in its closure report, concluded that Deputy Superintendent of Police MK Ganapathy took his own life death due to problems in his personal life.

Theja Ram

The Central Bureau of Investigation, which has been probing the death of Deputy Superintendent of Police MK Ganapathy, has given former Congress minister KJ Geroge and two senior IPS officers a clean chit in the case. The CBI submitted a closure report to a court in Karnataka’s Madikeri on October 30 this year. However, the report 260-page report has now surfaced in the media. The CBI concluded that Ganapathy’s death was a case of suicide and that former Karnataka Home Minister KJ George and IPS officer Pranab Mohanty and AM Prakash had nothing to do with Ganapathy’s death. DySp Ganapathy was found dead at a lodge in Karnataka’s Madikeri on July 7, 2016. Ganapathy had given an interview to a local television channel on the afternoon of July 7, where he had alleged that the then Home Minister KJ Geroge and his superiors, the former Additional Director General of Police (intelligence) AM Prasad and former Lokayukta Inspector General of Police Pranab Mohanty, were harassing him constantly. Ganapathy had left behind two suicide notes, in which he had accused the trio of harassment. Investigating officials with the CBI, however, concluded that Ganapathy was under immense stress due to problems in his personal life. “He had a troubled personal life and was under severe stress and mental agony. In this process, he became very upset. A combination of these factors resulted in the suicide of MK Ganapathy,” the CBI report states. The church attack and KJ George’s alleged grudge Soon after DySp Ganapathy’s death, his family members including his wife Pavana, father Kushalappa and brother Machaiah had accused former Minister KJ Geroge of holding a grudge against Ganapathy for the arrests he had made during the 2008 Mangaluru Church attack. In September 2008, several members belonging to Bajrang Dal and Shri Rama Sene had attacked Kulshekara Church in Mangaluru. At the time, Ganapathy was the Inspector-in-charge of the investigation. The DySP had booked several members of the Christian community for rioting and violence and Ganapathy’s family had alleged that the same year, the community members had allegedly complained to KJ George and had accused Ganapathy of filing false cases against them. “These cases were withdrawn by the state government in 2011 and the entire matter was settled. The allegations that KJ Geroge held a grudge against the deceased is a far-fetched theory,” the CBI report states. The CBI also said in its report that KJ George had denied the CBI’s request to prosecute MK Ganapathy in the 2015 case, where lawyers and police officials had clashed at the City Civil Court Complex in Bengaluru. The investigators also stated that MK Ganapathy was found to have deliberately falsified evidence while he was serving as an inspector in the Rajagopalnagar police station. At the time, an internal probe had found that Ganapathy had allegedly written a report in a theft case stating that only Rs 24,000 was recovered when the actual amount was Rs 1.5 crore. “He was suspended for 30 days and a lenient view was taken where he was reinstated and his suspension was revoked. This clearly showed that KJ George did not carry a grudge against Ganapathy and rather helped him,” the CBI report adds. Earlier in 2017, the Criminal Investigation Department had probed Ganapathy’s death and had given a clean chit to all three accused. Subsequently, Ganapathy’s son Nehal had approached the Madikeri court and after multiple appeals to the High Court, finally, in September 2017 the Supreme Court had ordered a CBI probe and had ordered the agency to submit the investigation report to the Madikeri JMFC court. On October 30, the closure report was filed. On Wednesday, the court accepted the CBI’s report and closed the case.

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South Western Railway gets ordinary citizens to inaugurate 2 facilities in Bengaluru

Railways

Usually, high-profile leaders are invited for opening such infrastructure projects, which often get delayed due to their unavailability.

Soumya Chatterjee

Usually in India, for every big or small introduction of new government facilities, there is an elaborate inauguration ceremony before they are thrown open to the public. And there have been incidents of delays in opening such infrastructure projects due to unavailability of high-profile leaders, in the past. The Railways, being one such government department, usually sees MPs and ministers being invited for unveiling of such projects. But partly due to circumstances, two such inaugurations in Bengaluru recently were done by the common man.  First, on November 9, a 10-year-old child Kumri Begumma, who is the daughter of a labourer, Chandbi (32), inaugurated an escalator on platform no 4 of the KSR-Majestic Railway Station.  Then on Monday, November 18, Monabi, a 23-year-old labourer and her two-year-old son Amir, cut the ribbon for platform numbers two and three. On both the occasions, senior railway staff were present to witness the event. Bengaluru Central MP, PC Mohan, was invited by the divisional officials to do the honours, but he could not, due to Section 144 imposed by the state government in light of the Supreme Court’s Ayodhya verdict.  While the Railways wanted to postpone the event, PC Mohan himself suggested that the officials go ahead with the inauguration.  Along with the escalator, PC Mohan was also set to inaugurate an AC waiting hall on platform no 1. That facility was eventually inaugurated by two senior citizens present at the station. Deputy General Manager South Western Railways, E Vijaya, said a spontaneous decision was taken by General Manager AK Singh who was presiding over the event, to have it inaugurated by citizens. So the inauguration on November 9 was not planned to be like that.  She explained that as per protocol, elected representatives—  both MPs and MLAs— are usually called to inaugurate important works which are often proposed by the elected representatives themselves. “However, the event on November 18 was planned as we could not call any elected representatives due to Model Code of Conduct for the bye-polls. So senior officials decided to do it this way,” Vijaya said. Read: Rs 118 cr worth assets of man who conned Mysuru Maharaja’s employee attached

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ED attaches Rs 118-crore worth properties of K’taka man in money laundering case

Money Laundering

Eshwer, a horse trainer, is alleged to have cheated late Edwin Joubert Veningen, a British citizen, who was a taxidermist for the erstwhile Mysuru Maharaja.

IANS

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) attached properties valued at Rs 118-crore of Michael Floyd Eshwer in Karnataka's Mysuru in an alleged money laundering case, an official said on Wednesday. "The properties measuring 220 acres of land, a palatial house in Mysuru and a coffee estate in Kerala's Waynad district of Eshwer were attached under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) 2002 in a cheating case," ED official Navdeep Singh told IANS in an e-mail statement. About 70 animal trophies and rosewood furniture of Eshwer were also attached by the law enforcing agency. Mysuru is about 150km southwest of Bengaluru in the southern state. Eshwer, a horse trainer, is alleged to have cheated late Edwin Joubert Veningen, a British citizen, who was a taxidermist for the erstwhile Mysuru Maharaja Jayachamarajendra Wodiyar (1919-1974). A taxidermist prepares and preserves skins of animals and birds by stuffing and mounting them in a lifelike form. "Investigation by the Criminal Investigation Department (CID), Bengaluru, under a Supreme Court order revealed that Eshwer created a false adoption deed in his favour and got a false death certificate of Veningen and fraudulently got the properties transferred in his name," Singh said. The ED investigation was based on the charge-sheet the CID filed before the third City Judicial Magistrate in Mysuru under various sections of the IPC (Indian Penal Code) and Sections 51 and 39 of the Wildlife Protection Act, 172. Prior to his death, Veningen filed a complaint with a local police station in Mysuru while he was residing in India. The ED, however, did not specify the relevant dates, months and years of the legal action initiated against Eshwer. Eshwer came to know about Veningen and his properties, which were gifted by Jayachamarajendra for his services when the latter was the Maharaja from 1940-74. Taking advantage of an unmarried, single and an old aged Veningen, Eshwer fraudulently took possession of his properties," recalled Singh. Subsequent investigations found that in connivance with other unnamed persons, Eshwer cheated and betrayed Veningan to usurp his properties. "Eshwer projected Veningen's immovable properties as untainted and committed offence of money laundering. Further investigation in this case is under progress," added Singh.

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