Those opposing CAA are anti-Dalits: Home MIn Amit Shah in Hubballi

Politics

Castigating Congress Parliamentarian Rahul Gandhi, Shah said both Gandhi and Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan said that Article 370 should not be abrogated.

IANS

Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Saturday at a meeting in Hubballi said that anti-Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) voices are anti-Dalit. "Seventy % of these refugees are Dalits. I want to ask the protesters that are against CAA, what will you benefit from protesting against these Dalits? Anti-CAA is anti-Dalit as well," said Shah at a Jan Jagran Abhiyan meeting at Nehru Stadium in Hubballi, a town 415 km northwest of Bengaluru. Shah claimed 60-70 % of the religiously persecuted minorities in the Pakistan, Afghanistan and Bangladesh belonged to Dalits, including Matuas, Rajvanshis, Meghwals and others. CAA offers citizenship to persecuted Hindus, Sikhs, Christians, Buddhists, Parsis and Jains from Pakistan, Afghanistan and Bangladesh, excluding all kinds of persecuted Muslims such as Shias, Ahmediays and others. Castigating Congress Parliamentarian Rahul Gandhi, Shah said both Gandhi and Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan said that Article 370 should not be abrogated. "Both say that CAA should not be implemented. I can't understand the relationship between Imran Khan and Congress leaders," he said at the pro-CAA meeting. Shah said Congress not only protested the CAA but every nationalistic move by Prime Minister Narendra Modi who corrected a mistake committed by Gandhi's forefather Jawaharlal Nehru. Referring to Mahatma Gandhi, Shah said that the Mahatma told in 1947 that Hindus and Sikhs living in Pakistan have all the rights to return to India if they were not being treated equally It is government of India's responsibility to help them, he said. Giving a picture of the ill-treatment minorities suffered in the neighbouring countries, the Home Minister said, "Numerous rapes were committed. Religious shrines were broken down. The minorities weren't given jobs, electoral rights and thus had to come to India as refugees." He also referred to the destruction of giant Buddha statues in Bamian in Afghanistan, way back in 2001 under the Taliban. Aiming to better sell CAA to the masses, Shah said there is no clause in the CAA which deprives Indian Muslims of citizenship. He blamed Rahul Gandhi, Arvind Kejriwal, Mamata Banerjee, Communist Parties, Samajwadi Party and Bahujan Samaj Party for the CAA protests and agitations. "The Congress party practices bigotry. In Congress' manifesto before the Rajasthan elections last year, it said Hindu and Sikh refugees in Rajasthan will be provided citizenship. That same Ashok Gehlot and Rahul Gandhi are protesting against this Act (CAA)," said Shah. He also called upon human rights activists to visit the refugee camps to see how they are suffering without water, drainage or basic amenities for the last 70 years, bereft of a right to vote yet. Shah said all the promises of citizenship given by yesteryear Congress leaders were now being fulfilled by Modi, invoking the names of India's first Prime Minister Nehru, first Home Minister Sardar Patel, and first President Rajendra Prasad. "After Modi became the Prime Minister for the second time, he solved problems that had stood for 70 years in India," claimed the senior BJP leader. According to Shah, Pakistan and Bangladesh had 30 % Hindus who now were reduced down to 3 % and 7 % respectively. "I want to ask the protesters where did these minorities go? Can any of them answer," posed Shah. The BJP aims to touch three crore people through its outreach programme Jan Jagran Abhiyan, with over 250 rallies across the country, including press conferences and others.

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Jayadeva flyover demolition: Bengaluru Metro officials say 90 days to raze structure

Civic issues

BMRCL officials said that no explosives would be used to raze the flyover.

Alithea Stephanie Mounika

The Jayadeva flyover in Bengaluru, which connects the south of Bengaluru to Central Silk Board and the IT corridor, is to be demolished on Monday. This is to make way for an elevated corridor-cum-metro line, which will be constructed. The metro line will have a connecting station at Jayadeva Junction between Reach 5 and 6 of Namma Metro, as well as a multi-level road connecting Bannerghatta to Hosur Road. Speaking to TNM, Yeshwanth Chawan, PRO for BMRCL (Bengaluru Metro Rail Corporation Limited) said that there wouldn’t be any explosives involved in demolishing the flyover. He, however said, “The flyover will be demolished just like the Bannerghatta loop flyover. We will use a jaw crusher machine to crush the flyover.” The BMRCL has estimated that the demolition of the entire flyover would take 90 days to be completed. “Demolition work will be carried out only at night,” he said while adding that it is the reason why the demolition would take longer than usual. BMRCL officials say that the decision was taken in order to stop. The Jayadeva flyover is a four-lane one that was inaugurated in 2006, at a cost of Rs 21 crore. It will now be crushed with a jaw crusher machine. The debris from the demolition will be taken 20 km away to a quarry in Begur, where BBMP has allocated space, Yeshwanth said. A jaw crusher is a specialised form of machinery that is designed to bring down concrete structures. It uses sheer cutters to cut steel and other structural supports. Meanwhile, the demolition machine is made of hydraulic jaws. These jaws crush the structure and pulverizes it. This machinery has been used more and more frequently in recent times as it uses less space to manoeuvre, has lesser vibrations that implosion devices, or explosives. The jaw crusher also has lesser flying debris, BMRCL officials said. The flyover is named after the Jayadeva Institute of Cardiovascular Sciences, which is just next to the flyover. Being a busy stretch, the Jayadeva junction required a flyover, which took a total of four years to construct and was opened in 2006. It was built by the Bangalore Development Authority (BDA), at a cost of Rs 21 crores. With the demolition of the flyover, south Bengaluru traffic will be affected, primarily due to the traffic between Bannerghatta Road and Silk Board junction. Traffic restrictions will come into place once the demolition begins. The BMRCL had issued a full list of traffic diversions on Saturday while for the period of the demolition. Read: Jayadeva Flyover to be demolished on January 20: Full list of traffic restrictions

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Karnataka govt has given nod to teach Shankaracharya's shlokas in all schools: CM BSY

The Chief Minster, however, did not specify whether singing the shlokas would be made mandatory.

TNM Staff

The Karnataka government has given its nod to teach 'Vivekadeepini' slokhas, authored by Adi Shankaracharya, in schools across the state, Chief Minister B S Yediyurappa said on Saturday. At an event called 'Vivekadeepini Mahasamarpane,' organised by Vedanta Bharati, Yediyurappa said, "It has been noticed that Vivekadeepini, which evolves the mind and illumines a person, has a great effect on students. “Parents and teachers have found a positive change among children who were inspired by Vivekadeepini. Hence, the government has given its nod to allow teaching Vivekadeepini in the schools in Karnataka," he added. The Chief Minister, however, has not issued a clarification on whether the singing the shlokas would be made mandatory for those practicing other faiths as well and whether it will apply to both government and private schools. Vedanta Bharati is an organisation that promotes teachings of Adi Shankaracharya besides vedas and upanishads. According to the organisers of the event, around two lakh children from 50 schools participated in the event where they were taught to chant Vivekadeepini, comprising verses for the seekers in the spiritual journey. Yediyurappa said that the Indian culture and civilisation is the oldest and the best, which they should feel proud of. Yediyurappa’s statement comes just  two days after former Chief Minister Siddaramaiah accused the BJP and RSS of trying to establish a Hindu Rashtra. Home Minister Amit Shah is visited Karnataka for a massive pro-CAA event held at Hubballi on Saturday evening. The event was held at the Nehru Maidan. As many as 5,000 police personnel have been deployed to ensure security for the rally. The police have barred protests in the run-up to the rally and warned violators would be detained. Home Minister Amit Shah on Saturday also inaugurated Bengaluru South MP Tejasvi Surya's office in Jayanagar. Karnataka Chief Minister BS Yediyurappa was also present at the inauguration event. Earlier, Amit Shah also visited Brindavana of Sri Vishwesha Tirtharu Swami of Pejawara Mutt at Vidyapeetha in Bengaluru.

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On Rohith Vemula's death anniversary, Bengaluru students protest against CAA-NRC

CAA

Students from various colleges attempted to stage a 48-hour protest, but were forced to disperse by cops within hours.

Alithea Stephanie Mounika

Students from various colleges in Bengaluru attempted to launch a 48-hour satyagraha in the city on Friday to commemorate the death anniversary of Rohith Vemula, a PhD scholar who killed himself in 2016 following institutional discrimination in the University of Hyderabad. The protest was also against the Citizenship (Amendment) Act and National Register of Citizens (NRC). The protest began at 6 pm on Friday, but police made them wrap up the protest at around 9.30 pm, taking pictures of them and sending it to college principals in an attempt to identify them. This protest was held to coincide with Home Minister Amit Shah’s rally in Hubballi on Saturday. Around 20 protesters arrived at the Freedom park at 6pm on Friday and sat on the grounds, waiting for more people to show up, but the police barricaded the entrance and didn’t allow any more protesters to enter the ground. The police claimed that the protest did not have the permission to hold an overnight protest. Meanwhile, protesters who arrived and couldn’t enter the Freedom Park grounds, sat on the footpath with candles awaiting permission to enter. The streetlights around the Freedom Park were turned off while all other streetlights were on.  Two buses were parked in the grounds to detain the students. “We had given an intimation letter, and got it sealed by the police, but they are saying that there was no permission given,” said one of the students, who wished not to be named. The Upparpete police inspector, speaking to the students, said that they have no problem with daytime protests, but overnight protests need more police presence than they were able to provide. “We have allowed protests from all kinds of people, from workers, women’s groups, and disabled people. We want to cooperate with all protests. But we have been at Freedom Park all day (for the protest organised at Freedom Park in the evening), and the police need to go home. Please leave, don’t make us into bad people,” he urged the students, many of whom were women. The police then began taking pictures of the students and asking the college principals to identify the students. The DCP West told those seeking permission from him about the exercise towards identifying protesters. Rohan, an activist present at the protest, advised students to cover their faces. The students, however, wanted to continue to protest overnight, citing the Shaheen Bagh protests, and the Tis Hazari court judgement in the Chandrashekar Azad case in Delhi that said that there needs to be no police permission for protests. They shouted slogans against Amit Shah, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Karnataka Chief Minister Yediyurappa. They read out the letter written by Rohith Vemula before his death, and also sang songs such as ‘We shall overcome’, ‘Hum dekhenge’, and ‘Imagine’. Protesters also rapped against the CAA and NRC. The police warned protesters that there is an arrest warrant issued for those who stay on the grounds after 10 pm. Protesters then sang the national anthem and left the grounds.

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DK Shivakumar v/s MB Patil: How the row over Lingayat religion shaped this rivalry

Politics

The battle for the post of the Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee President has brought to fore a rivalry that began brewing in 2018.

Theja Ram

In the last two years, Congress leader DK Shivakumar has often been described as the strongman of the Congress party. However, up against him, within his own party, is a formidable opponent, former Home Minister MB Patil. Both Patil and Shivakumar are vying for the post of the KPCC President. And it's no secret that MB Patil, one of the few Lingayat leaders in the Congress has the full support of another important leader countering DK Shivakumar: former CM Siddaramaiah. The battle for the post of the Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee President has brought to fore a rivalry that began brewing in 2018, when the issue of a separate Lingayat religion was at its peak. A brainchild of Siddaramaiah, the movement for a separate Lingayat religion was supported by his loyalist MB Patil ahead of the 2018 Assembly polls. Siddaramaiah’s move failed. The Congress lost a sizable number of seats during the Assembly elections and the Lingayat community blamed Siddaramaiah for trying divide the community. In October of 2018, a controversy erupted when DK Shivakumar apologized to the Lingayat community for his party’s move to demand a separate religion status. A row erupted in the Congress with Shivakumar on one side and Siddaramaiah and Patil on the other. Shivakumar considered Patil his political rival as he had Siddaramaiah’s support and was viewed as the man being groomed to take up the post of the KPCC President.   “Shivakumar’s apology put a permanent black mark on MB Patil’s reputation. It was as if the Congress had openly accused Siddaramaiah and MB Patil of ruining any chance the party had of luring the Lingayat community into its fold,” the source said. This, party sources say, was an open rebellion by DK Shivakumar. From becoming the strongman who stopped MLAs from party hopping, to making emotionally charged speeches in the Assembly, DK Shivakumar was also positioning himself as the man who could save a failing party. Shivakumar positioning himself as the one to unite Vokkaligas DK Shivakumar is consolidating support within the party by floating the idea that he is the Vokkaliga face, who can bring all sects of the community together. "Just like how SM Krishna had consolidated power, DKS has proposed to bring all sects of this community together. He has also come up with strategies to unite various disgruntled communities that Siddaramaiah had neglected. Since Patil is a Lingayat and the two communities have been at loggerheads for decades, the wedge between Shivakumar and Patil has grown deeper,” the source added.   Vokkaligas are traditionally a land-owning class in southern Karnataka and is a dominant community in the state. The Vokkaliga community has a huge presence in Mandya, Hassan, Mysuru, Bengaluru Rural, Tumakuru, Kolar, Chikkaballapura and Chikkamagaluru districts. There is also sizable population of the community in Chitradurga, Shivamogga, Dakshina Kannada and Udupi districts. While the Lingayat community has traditionally aligned itself with the BJP, it was the pro-poor policies of Devaraj Urs and subsequent Congress chiefs in Karnataka that drove Vokkaligas to back the Janata Party in the late 1980s and 1990s. During this time, all the sub groups had backed the Janata Party and subsequently the JD(S). However, with the JD(S) losing its power gradually in the state, various sects of the community began backing Congress and BJP too. The Gangadikar, Dasa, Marsu, Kunchitgas and Arebasi Vokkaligas, and the Bunt community were once a consolidated group. With the BJP emerging powerful in Mysuru and other parts of Southern Karnataka, several sects gradually began shifting allegiances. While Arebasi Vokkaligas and Bunts supported the BJP in coastal Karnataka and Kodagu, the Kunchitigas, Das and Marsu Vokkaligas, who had supported the Congress shifted allegiance to BJP and this was evident in the 2018 elections results, Congress sources say.    

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Release relief funds before 'brainwashing' people on CAA-NRC: Siddaramaiah to Amit Shah

Politics

In a series of tweets, Siddaramaiah 'demanded answers' from Amit Shah on a series of issues affecting Karnataka

PTI

As Union Home Minister Amit Shah arrived in Karnataka, Congress leader Siddaramaiah on Saturday sought to know why he doesn't visit the flood-hit areas and assess if funds provided by the Centre were enough, before "brainwashing" people to accept his "divisive policies". In a series of tweets the Leader of Opposition also sought an "adequate" probe into violent anti-CAA protests in Mangaluru last month during which two people were killed, and pointed out that people have cried foul about the incident. "Mr Amit Shah, before investing time to brainwash people to accept your divisive policies, why don't you visit flood affected areas again and assess if the Central government funds are sufficient or not? #AnswerMadiShah," Siddaramaiah tweeted. Siddaramaiah said that Amit Shah had assessed the loss of over Rs 35,000 crore due to floods but had allocated just Rs 1,870 crore for flood relief. “When are you planning to give the remaining? Will there be any funds left after the implementation of CAA, NPR and NRC? #AnswerMadiShah" he said in another tweet. Shah, who arrived in the city will be addressing a public meeting on Citizenship Amendment Act, under BJP's nationwide Jan Jargaran Abhiyan, at Hubballi on Saturday evening. "Mr. Amit Shah, two innocent victims were killed in Mangaluru in what public opinion says that it is a fake encounter. You are the Home minister of the country. Don't you think adequate investigation has to take place when people cry foul about the incident? #AnswerMadiShah," Siddaramaiah added. The former Chief Minister has been demanding a judicial probe by a sitting judge into the violence during anti CAA protest in Mangaluru, while Yediyurappa government has ordered CID and magisterial probe into the incident. Also raising the inter-state Mahadayi river dispute in which Karnataka has locked horns with neighboring Goa, Siddaramaiah demanded that the BJP Chief make his stand clear. "Mr Amit Shah, your colleagues give contradictory statements on the initiation of Mahadayi project. Why is there a change in stance after elections? What is your stand on the issue? #AnswerMadiShah,” he said in another tweet. The Congress in Karnataka, in a series of tweets attacking Shah, asked why the central government was behaving in a "dictatorial way," despite country wide public opinion against CAA, NRC. "Why don't BJP respect democracy and constitution?" it asked. Alleging that BJP government in the state was only indulging in the "business of transfers", the party said the administration has not yet taken off.  

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Six years later, case of Mangaluru students coerced to have sex on cam is on trial

Crime

Thanks to the Criminal Amendment Act, section 376 (rape) and 376(d) (gangrape) of the IPC were also added to the charges.

Geetika Mantri

Image for representation

In December 2013, a ghastly case of kidnapping and sexual assault shook Mangaluru in Karnataka. Two medical students – a 22-year-old woman and her male friend – were abducted by a gang of eight men, taken to an isolated location, and forced to have sex which the accused recorded on their mobile phones. They also demanded a ransom of Rs 25 lakh if they didn’t want the video uploaded online. Six years after the crime, the case has finally gone to trial. The first hearing was held in December 2019, and second one took place on Friday, where the second witness was examined. This is also apparently the first case filed in Mangaluru after laws dealing with rape became more stringent following the Criminal Amendment Act which happened after the Delhi gang-rape of December 2012. But what caused such an extensive delay in such a crucial case? TNM spoke to lawyer Asha Nayak, who, along with her husband, rationalist Narendra Nayak, were proactive in helping the victims and pushing for the case; as well as a source close to the case. And the main reason appears to be that four of the accused, including the main accused, are absconding. What went right in the case Asha Nayak tells TNM that in a departure from many cases, the police was actually very proactive in this case. “The eight accused were nabbed within two days of the crime, and investigations were also done well. In fact, the police delved deep into the forensic evidence also where they matched voices on the video [of the victims] with the accused as well.” The accused were identified as Imran Altaf alias Shamsuddin, Iqbal, Arafat, Nawaz, Nisar Ahmed, Adbul Ravoof, Sameer and Safwan Hussain. Most of them were in their 20s. The chargesheet of over 500 pages was also filed by March 2014, and as many as 68 witnesses identified. Further, thanks to the Criminal Amendment Act, section 376 (rape) and 376(d) (gangrape) of the IPC were also added to the charges, after a non-governmental women’s organisation, Jagrathi Mahila Vedike appealed to the Judicial Magistrate First Class (JMFC) III court. “It was a lot of effort to get those sections included – while the men did not rape the victim themselves, they directed her friend to do it. Without the Criminal Amendment act, it would just have been dacoity, section 307 (abduction), kidnapping… but with the amendment, we were able to say that this was in fact gangrape, which made the case stronger,” Asha says. Absconding accused However, in May 2015, 17 months after the crime took place, two main accused in the cases – Safwan and Sameer – were granted bail by the Karnataka High Court because the prosecution had not been able to establish what they did during the incident. Later, two of the other accused also – whose names TNM has not been able to confirm – were also granted bail, and subsequently absconded. And since then, they have not been tracked down. This posed a problem because without the presence of all the accused in court, the court could not frame the charges against them, and the trial could not begin. Background of the case The horrendous crime took place December 18, 2013. The woman, who was an intern at a medical college in Deralakatte in Mangaluru, had gone out for dinner with a PG student. While returning, the duo had stopped outside her PG accommodation, and was talking when they were allegedly accosted by the eight-member gang. The culprits abducted the duo, reportedly drove them for around 40 minutes to a secluded place which had an old, abandoned house. There, they forced them to have sex with each other. When it came to demanding the ransom, the woman reportedly gave the few hundred rupees she had with her and offered her gold ring as well. However, the abductors did not budge. Ultimately, the terrified victims agreed to arrange Rs 3 lakh. The accused let the woman go, saying they would kill her male friend if she did not deliver. The woman however, informed the police, who made a plan to have the woman offer money to the accused under their surveillance. However, the accused got a whiff that police were involved and escaped. They pushed the man out of the moving car, and he sustained several injuries. Narendra Nayak and his wife got involved with helping the victims soon, after the former received a call with details about the case on December 19, 2013. The couple played an important role in helping the victims, and providing counseling. They also rubbished reports that the male victim had joined hands with the kidnappers and planned this whole incident, and said that in fact, he had suffered more mental and physical trauma.  Trial begins After spending 2-3 years in trying to secure the absconding accused, the JMFC court finally decided to split the case suo motu. This essentially meant that the case was split into parts so that the trial of the four accused who were in custody could proceed. However, the delay that had already happened affected the case. “The witnesses could have moved, been displaced, or may be more reluctant to cooperate. Further, even the investigating police officials would have been transferred or moved around. They can still come for the trial, but then you have to see their availability also,” Asha says.    And this seems to have happened too. A source told TNM that the first hearing was actually scheduled in November 2019. However, none of the witnesses – including the male victim in the case – made it to the sixth additional sessions court, where the trial is taking place.   The court then gave another date - December 12, 2019 – when the trial finally began and the second witness in the case was examined. Asha also points out that the delay poses a disadvantage to the case in terms of the victims and witnesses forgetting or becoming vague about some details. “As time passes by, there are likely to be some lapses in memory; especially when trauma is involved. The victims in the case went through a very traumatic experience, which put a lot of psychological burden on them. They will have help from the prosecution team of course, but it would have been better if the trial had started in a timely manner,” she says. She adds that another factor that could have contributed to the delay is the judiciary being overburdened with cases. The next hearing in the case is scheduled for January 30, 2020.

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