Karnataka bye-polls: DK Shivakumar curbed by Congress from campaigning in Belagavi?

Gokak’s significance is huge for Shivakumar, as this is from where his nemesis and BJP candidate Ramesh Jarkiholi is contesting from.

Theja Ram

Congress strongman DK Shivakumar has kept a relatively low profile ever since his return from Tihar Jail earlier in October. Shivakumar has for long been described as the party's troubleshooter, and yet, the party seems to have curbed his involvement in the election campaign for the upcoming bye-polls to only Vokkaliga strongholds. On November 18, DK Shivakumar told the media that he would not play an active role in campaigning for the bye-elections. Although Shivakumar said that it was his choice to stay away from campaigning, he did start campaigning and visited Hosakate, KR Pura,  Hunsur and a few other places. He is expected to campaign in a few constituencies in Bengaluru in the coming days. However, Shivakumar’s absence from Belagavi’s Gokak — the segment where the most contentious fight is underway — is curious. Gokak’s significance to Shivakumar is huge, especially since BJP candidate Ramesh Jarkiholi, formerly with the Congress, was the one who quarrelled with Shivakumar and roused a rebellion that destroyed the Congress-JD(S) coalition.  A sugar baron from the region, Ramesh Jarkiholi’s former mentee-turned-foe, Lakshmi Hebbalkar, had orchestrated a power struggle in October 2018 where she bested him and became the President of the PLD Bank with the help of her new mentor – DK Shivakumar. Ramesh Jarkiholi had turned sour after the defeat and took it upon himself to challenge DK Shivakumar in every possible way.  Ramesh Jarkiholi openly rebelled against the party after his defeat in the PLD Bank elections and after trying to topple the government eight times, he was finally successful in July this year, when 17  MLAs resigned en masse and brought down the coalition. Shivakumar’s return from prison had set off massive speculation that he would campaign for the Congress candidate Lakhan Jarkiholi in the region to ensure Ramesh Jarkiholi’s defeat. The fight between Jarkiholi and Shivakumar is obviously personal. However, Congress insiders say that Shivakumar has been restricted to campaigning in the Vokkaliga-dominated areas and will refrain from interfering in Belagavi’s politics. Shivakumar has so far campaigned in Hunsur and KR Puram in Bengaluru and has maintained a low profile as Satish and Lakhan Jarkiholi – the brothers of Ramesh — have put their foot down and demanded that Shivakumar not interfere in their turf. Shivakumar had wanted to bring in former BJP leader Ashok Poojary, the current JD(S) candidate fighting for the Gokak seat, into the Congress and offer him a ticket. However, former Chief Minister Siddaramaiah did not want Shivakumar to prevail and ensured that Lakhan bagged the ticket. Lakhan and his older brother – MLA from Yemkanmardi, Satish Jarkiholi had threatened to support Ramesh in the bye-election if their demands were not met. Congress sources say that it was on Siddaramaiah’s insistence that Shivakumar is not campaigning in Gokak. The relationship between the duo has been tenuous since Siddaramaiah joined the Congress in 2006. Siddaramaiah had also stopped Shivakumar from becoming the Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee President in 2017. The post went to the incumbent Dinesh Gundu Rao.  “During the coalition’s rule in 2018 too, the tussle was between supporters of Siddaramaiah and DK Shivakumar. Shivakumar tried to sideline those who were close to Siddaramaiah. Ultimately, Siddaramaiah’s followers were the ones who rebelled because of the power struggle between the two leaders,” the Congress source said.     

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EC files case against K'taka CM BS Yediyurappa over 'casteist' speeches

Karnataka Bye-Polls

Chief Minister BS Yediyurappa has been accused of appealing to the Veerashaiva-Lingayat community to vote for the BJP.

IANS

The Election Commission of India (ECI) on Thursday said two first information reports (FIRs) have been registered against Karnataka Chief Minister BS Yediyurappa over his speeches that allegedly solicited votes in the name of caste. "Alleged speech made by BS Yediyurappa, Chief Minister of Karnataka on caste lines in Gokak and Shiruppi village in Kagwad Assembly constituencies on November 23 have been inquired into," said Additional Chief Electoral Officer (expenditure monitoring) Priyanka Mary Francis in a statement. She said that two FIRs have been registered in relation to the speeches in Gokak and Kagwad. The EC’s statements says that Yediyurappa had appealed to the Veerashaiva-Lingayat community in these two regions to vote for the BJP and not for any other party. The FIRs have been registered against him at Gokak and Kagwad Town Police Stations after the JD(S) had filed a complaint against him regarding the speeches. The ECI charged six check post officials and suspended two of them for not checking the vehicle of Home Minister Basavaraj Bommai at Hanakere check post on November 20. "An FIR has been registered in Maddur police station against the driver of vehicle trailing the Home Minister's vehicle for not cooperating with the check post officials," said Francis. The entire team at the check post has been replaced. The ECI also suspended four officials of its static surveillance team for not properly checking the vehicle of Yediyurappa's son and Shivamogga MP BY Raghavendra on November 25 at Varaha check post. By-elections for 15 Karnataka Assembly seats are scheduled on December 5.  

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Bengaluru civic body slaps Rs 1 lakh fine on Flipkart subsidiary for burning garbage

Civic Issues

Earlier this month, the BBMP fined a chicken meat shop for dumping feathers near Varthur.

Alithea Stephanie Mounika

Picture for representation

The Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) Commissioner, Anil Kumar, put out a tweet on Thursday, showing that the civic body fined Instakart, a subsidiary of Flipkart, headquartered in Bellandur, Bengaluru. According to the Commissioner, the company was burning garbage on their property and were caught on camera. The company issued a cheque of Rs 1 lakh to the BBMP. “The fine is high, but we believe that it should serve as a deterrent,” Anil Kumar said.   BBMP has fined #Instakart, a subsidiary of @Flipkart, for burning garbage in an open land near their office in #Bellandur Ward 150. The company had been warned earlier too. #BBMP #Bengaluru #BBMPCOMM pic.twitter.com/4wahmqmq9h — B.H.Anil Kumar,IAS (@BBMPCOMM) November 28, 2019   This is not the first time that the BBMP has cracked down on commercial establishments polluting the city. In an instance earlier this month, the BBMP fined a chicken meat shop for dumping feathers near Varthur, a suburban area in the city. According to the challan issued by the BBMP, the shop was fined for ‘dumping chicken waste’ in the Varthur lake buffer zone area. The BBMP also imposes hefty fines for other environment-related offences under the Solid Waste Management Rules, 2016. The fines range from Rs 200 up to a maximum of Rs 1 lakh. Violators can be fined for offences such as littering, burning garbage and not segregating garbage, among others. Illegal dumping of construction waste attracts the highest fine, although the penalty is not fixed. The Bangalore Mirror reported on Tuesday that Lido Mall on MG Road was fined an enormous sum of Rs 3 lakh for disposing of their waste using a vehicle whose license had expired eight months ago. The vehicle driver was also fined an amount of Rs 25,000. In August, TNM had reported that BBMP would begin levying higher fines for burning garbage and littering the city. This is in a new desperate bid by Bengaluru city’s civic corporation body to tackle the large amounts of waste generated by an ever-burgeoning city. Read: Steeper fines for littering to burning garbage: BBMP’s draft proposal for Bengaluru

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‘Both a mass-entertainer and experimental film’: Rakshit Shetty on 'Avane Srimannaraya'

Sandalwood

The film will be released in five languages – Kannada, Telugu, Malayalam, Tamil and Hindi.

Prajwal Bhat

Three years after the release of the commercial hit Kirik Party, Kannada actor and filmmaker Rakshit Shetty returned to the limelight with the launch of the trailer of his next film - Avane Srimannarayana.  The launch of the trailer was held at the Shankar Nag Chitramandira in Bengaluru on Thursday. Speaking at the launch, Rakshit, who is the lead actor in the film, revealed that he had a single scene in mind before writing the film — his grand entry. “We began writing Avane Srimannarayana even before Kirik Party and today, I am happy that we are releasing the film just like how I wanted to make it,” Rakshit says. The idea of a grand entry is in stark contrast to Rakshit’s filmography so far. He has typically portrayed roles almost contrary to mass-appeal constructs. “We have tried to balance both ideas - making a mass-appeal film and an experimental film. I have watched it over 200 times and it is a different kind of film in the way we have shot it and the way we have told the story,” he says.  Avane Srimannarayana is set in the 1980s in a fictional town ‘Amaravathi’ somewhere in south India. The trailer opens with Rakshit’s character Narayana entering a tavern in the town and introducing himself as a police officer to what appears to be a room full of gangsters. The four-minute-trailer shows glimpses of a hunt for a lost treasure complete with thrilling action sequences.  The film will be released in five languages – Kannada, Telugu, Malayalam, Tamil and Hindi - on 27 December. “I knew this was a pan-India subject and we have set the film in a fictional location in South India. It is, in a way, an ode to Malgudi Days, which is set in Malgudi, also a fictional town which anyone in South India will relate to. If you recall, Malgudi Days directed by Shankar Nag, was a huge hit in Hindi,” adds Rakshit.  He further said that the 2018 release of Yash-starrer KGF gave his team the confidence that a pan-Indian Kannada film is possible.  The film stars Rakshit Shetty alongside Shanvi Srivastava and Achyuth Kumar, while Pramod Shetty and Balaji Manohar are the antagonists. “I was actually searching for gigantic men to cast in the film. I was sending selfies with tall men from various gyms to Rakshit. But one day, Rakshit said that I should be one of the two main villains,” said Pramod Shetty.  Rishab Shetty, who directed Kirik Party, makes a guest appearance in the film. The film is directed by debutante director Sachin Ravi and is produced by Pushkar Mallikarjunaiah and Prakash HK under the banner of Pushkar Films. 

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Govt ad declares accident victims of Bengaluru's bad roads will get compensation

BBMP

The Karnataka High Court was not pleased that the BBMP has not issued a circular about this yet.

Alithea Stephanie Mounika

The BBMP put out an advertisement on Wednesday that announced compensation for victims of accidents caused due to poor condition of roads and pavements, but the civic body has yet to issue a circular on the matter.  This comes after the Karnataka High Court directed the BBMP to award damages to victims of road accidents back in July. This was in response to PIL filed by Citizens Action Forum that sought to move the court to give compensation to those who were adversely affected by the condition of bad roads. A division bench headed by Chief Justice Abhay Shreeniwas Oka and comprising of Justice PM Nawaz observed that tax-paying citizens are at a high risk of getting injured due to the bad condition of roads. Prior to the judgement, victims had to move the court to seek compensation. In order to avoid going to court over the issue, the judges held that any aggrieved party can directly approach the civic body for compensation. Read: BBMP should pay compensation to victims of pothole-related accidents: K’taka HC However, most people were not aware of this provision due to the lack of advertising this provision by the BBMP. They were directed to put up signboards all over the city to advertise this, but the High Court has rapped the BBMP multiple times for failing to advertise the compensation provision. It is to be noted that even though the advertisement is out, the BBMP has still not issued any circular or amendment to this effect, with no information of what the compensation amount shall be or the procedure to avail the compensation. This means that there is no legal basis for getting any compensation, without an order from the Urban Development Department, or a change in their act. The process will take a minimum of one month, BBMP Commissioner Anil Kumar has stated. When asked why the advertisement was put out without any explanation about the process behind it, he says, “The High Court has ordered us to do it, failing which, it would initiate contempt of court proceedings. We are yet to meet with the Council to determine the details,” he says. Read: Inform Bengalureans on how to seek relief for accidents due to potholes: HC to BBMP

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‘Improve women’s safety before introducing night shift’: B’luru garment workers demand

Labour

The Karnataka government amended the labour laws this month, to allow for women to start working night shifts in the garment industry.

Alithea Stephanie Mounika

Courtesy: Garment Labour Union. The poster says 'Down with the government, they don't care about garment workers'

The Garment Labour Union organised a protest on Wednesday evening at the Town Hall, to ask for better work conditions and pay, before the government makes a move towards ‘gender equality’ by introducing night shifts for female workers. The Karnataka government amended the labour laws this month, to allow for women to start working night shifts in the garment industry. The workers demand however, that the government consult with the stakeholders before they make changes that will affect lakhs of women workers in the city. They demand better safety measures, pay, and work conditions. Women wake up at 6 am, feed and dress their children as they go to school, and do all the housework. After all that, they barely have time for breakfast before they rush off to work. Rukmini, the President of the Garment Labour Union, says, “In a batch of up to 70 women, everyday, at least two women get dizzy and faint before they finish their shift. Women are so frightened to drink the water at work because it makes them sick, and also because if they get up and go to the toilet, they will not hit their targets, for which they get verbally abused and shamed.” The targets are unnaturally high. They have to work on 120-150 pieces every hour, working on only one bit: the lower seam, or only the sleeve. The factory works out some calculation of the highest productivity, and then based on this, put this number as the minimum target that the women have to meet. This is without any consideration for fatigue or including any restroom breaks. It’s almost as if the factories treat their workers as part of the machinery. If they don’t meet their targets, they are tortured, they say. Sexual and verbal harassment is rampant; but the women are afraid to speak out. They are afraid their family would force them to leave their jobs if they spoke out, which would leave them in a penniless state. Rukmini, from the union says, “The government should fix these issues first! There is no facility for creches for young mothers, and the working hours are so long, that it’s scary for them to go back home late at night. Even if they have a driver facility, the drivers are often drunk and leave them far from their homes. They have to walk a long way on poorly lit roads and there’s no sense of security. If they come home late, their family starts asking them questions.” Some workers, however, are dead against the night shift. Rajamma, one of the women attending the protest, said, “We don’t want to work at night because not everyone's husband is the same. My husband might ask me, are you going to work or are you going to someone else's house? What can we say to that? We’re afraid our husbands might get violent if they get suspicious (of infidelity).” The women are also extremely unhappy with their pay, and demand at least a doubling of their wages. The average payment a garment worker makes every month is Rs 9,000. Rajamma added, “These people are so rich, they keep making money and buying land for new industries. On the other hand, we make nice clothes for the rest of the world, but It's been so long since we bought ourselves new clothes. My pay is too less, and I can barely afford the bare necessities. Will my husband buy me new clothes? He's poor too!” Her assertion was met with shouts of approval.

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National anthem row: B’luru woman bullied by actor Arun Gowda files police complaint

Crime

Sumitra and her friends had gone for a movie on Oct 23 at Bengaluru’s Orion Mall when they were bullied by actor Arun Gowda and others for not standing up for the national anthem.

TNM Staff

Over a month ago, a video of Kannada actor Arun Gowda bullying a group of people at a movie theatre in Bengaluru for not standing up for the national anthem had gone viral. Now, one of the victims – Sumitra S has approached the Subramanyanagar Police alleging that she was bullied and criminally intimidated despite stating that she was unable to stand up due to severe cramps in her leg. The woman, a resident of Chennai, says in her complaint that she decided to come to Bengaluru and file a complaint after she read reports of the police registering a suo motu case against her. Sumitra and her friends had gone to PVR Cinemas in Bengaluru’s Orion Mall on October 23 to watch a Tamil film Asuran. The woman and her friends were verbally abused and this incident was caught on camera. In the video, the woman and her friends are labelled terrorists and Pakistanis by members of the audience, who took it upon themselves to bully the victim and her friends for not standing up for the national anthem. “When the national anthem was played, I was about to stand up but I had a bad cramp in my leg, which had been hurting for a while. My friend, who was sitting next to me, turned to ask me what happened. She was consoling me and so we did not stand up for the national anthem,” Sumitra says. During the interval, Arun Gowda and fellow moviegoers began hounding Sumitra and her friends for not standing up for the national anthem. “Not able to spare 52 seconds for the country, but you have the audacity to sit here and watch a three-hour movie? Are you Pakistani terrorists?” a man can be heard saying in the video, as he and a group of others berated Sumitra. Sumitra states in her complaint that she informed the people she had cramps in her leg and was unable to stand up. “Despite that, they used bad language and hurled abuses at me. When I called the security guard for help, they began saying, ‘See what I’ll do to you’. The security guard did not help us at all,” Sumitra’s complaint states. When Sumitra threatened to inform the police, the mob allegedly threatened to physically harm her. “I was really scared and went away from the theatre with my friends,” the complaint adds. After the video of Arun Gowda bullying the woman went viral, the police took suo motu cognisance of the case and registered an FIR against the woman and her friends under Section 3 of the Prevention of Insults to National Honour Act, 1971.  Now, after Sumitra filed the complaint, the police have registered a case against two unidentified persons under sections 341 (wrongful restraint), 506 (criminal intimidation), 504 (intentional insult with intent to provoke breach of peace) and 34 (common intention) of the IPC. In November 2016, the apex court had made it mandatory for all cinema halls to play the national anthem before the screening. The November 2016 order mandated that people would have to stand up in respect for the national anthem when it was played in cinema halls. The order said that this practice would "instil within one a sense of committed patriotism and nationalism." However, this order was overturned by a two-judge bench headed by former Chief Justice Deepak Misra on January 5, 2018. Chief Justice Dipak Misra had said that it was up to the cinema hall to decide whether or not to play the national anthem. However, if a cinema hall does choose to play the national anthem, people could stand up to show respect.  “Why should you presume that not singing the national anthem in a theatre makes a person anti-national?” Justice Chandrachud, who was a part of the two-judge bench, had asked.     

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