VK Sasikala released from Bengaluru jail after serving four-yr sentence in DA case

DA case

Sasikala will, however, remain in hospital as she is being treated for COVID-19.

TNM Staff

Four years after being convicted by the Supreme Court in the disproportionate assets case, VK Sasikala, the aide of former Tamil Nadu Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa, was formally released from the Parappana Agrahara Central Jail in Bengaluru on Wednesday. However, as the former AIADMK General Secretary is being treated for COVID-19 at the Victoria Hospital in Bengaluru, she is unlikely to return to Chennai soon. Her release also comes after the fine of over Rs 10 crore was remitted. Jail officials completed all formalities with regard to Sasikala’s release from the hospital, where she is being treated. Legal documents confirming her release were signed at the hospital. A large number of Sasikala supporters waited outside the hospital, waving AMMK flags. A bulletin released by the hospital at 9am on Wednesday states that she is asymptomatic for COVID-19, and is conscious, alert and well-oriented. Her condition is stable, she is taking oral food normally and is walking with support, states the bulletin. Sasikala’s nephew Jeyanandh Dhivakaran told TNM that her quarantine ends on January 31 and is likely to come to Chennai within a week’s time. An official from the hospital also confirmed that she will remain in hospital for four or five days as her health requires monitoring The 66-year-old was on January 20 shifted from Parappana Agrahara jail, where she has been lodged since February 2017, to the Bowring and Lady Curzon Hospital in Bengaluru after complaints of fever and breathing difficulties. She was later moved to the ICU of the Victoria Hospital after her test returned positive for the novel coronavirus.  Incidentally, Sasikala’s sister-in-law J Ilavarasi, who was also convicted in the DA case and shared a jail cell with her, also tested positive for the coronavirus and was shifted from prison to the Victoria Hospital. Sasikala’s nephew VN Sudhakaran was also convicted in the DA case.  Sasikala’s release has been widely speculated for months coming as it does with just months to for the Tamil Nadu Assembly Elections. Sasikala, however, is barred from contesting elections for another six years as per Section 8 of the Representation of the People’s Act, 1958 which disqualifies a person if convicted under the Prevention of Corruption Act. Despite this, her release from jail is likely to shake up the political campaign with backdoor maneuvering taking place courtesy her nephew, AMMK leader and RK Nagar MLA TTV Dhinakaran. The AIADMK, which had expelled her in 2017, and Chief Minister Edappadi Palaniswami, whom she had entrusted the government with following her conviction, had earlier maintained that there would be no change in the party’s position with regard to her release.  Nearly 21 years after an FIR was registered accusing Jayalalithaa of amassing wealth to the tune of Rs 66.65 crore during her tenure as Chief Minister, the Supreme Court had on February 14, 2017 restored the trial court’s conviction of Sasikala and her two relatives. While the case against Jayalalithaa was abated owing to her demise, the top court sentenced Sasikala, Ilavarasi and Sudhakaran to four years in jail and a fine of Rs 10 crore each.  Read: How the DA case verdict went against Sasikala: Read full judgment and operative parts here Sasikala surrendered before the trial court the next day - on February 15, 2017. However, not before taking a dramatic vow at Jayalalithaa’s memorial at Marina Beach in Chennai. Paying floral tribute to her late friend, Sasikala folded her hands together and muttered under her breath, she then bent over and slapped her palm on Jayalalithaa’s grave three times - signifying three vows - to defeat the conspiracy against her, avenge betrayal, and endure hardship.  Her jail term has not been without its share of controversy. Months into her incarceration, pictures surfaced suggesting special favours and treatment being granted to Sasikala. This included pictures of a well-stocked jail cell, which included stainless steel vessels, a mosquito net, clothes and cushioned mattresses among others. A video also surfaced showing Sasikala and Ilavarasi strolling into prison, as the guard opens what appears to be the main gate. Neither Sasikala nor Ilavarasi are wearing the prison uniform and are dressed in a brown salwar and red sari respectively. The pictures and video triggered outrage with allegations that Sasikala and Ilavarasi were granted VVIP treatment and had even left the Central Prison in connivance with jail officials. Police officer D Roopa had alleged that these perks were given to Sasikala after huge bribes were given to jail officers.  An inquiry by the Vinay Kumar Commission revealed that Sasikala enjoyed a number of privileges in prison that she was not entitled to. This included free movement inside the prison, extended visiting hours, a separate corridor with five cells allocated to Sasikala and Ilavarasi.       

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Karnataka Minister's portfolio changed 4 times, says he wanted to quit

Politics

JC Madhuswamy said that he felt humiliated when his portfolio was changed on January 22 without consulting him.

IANS

Karnataka Minor Irrigation Minister JC Madhuswamy on Tuesday said that he was “upset” over his responsibilities being changed so frequently. The Minister’s portfolios were rejigged as many as four times in the last five days. He further added that he was miffed that portfolios were changed without any evaluation.  After unfurling the national flag to celebrate Republic Day, Madhuswamy said to the reporters, “Who would be happy if his ministry is changed four times in five days. It hurt me when Chief Minister BS Yediyurappa called me prior to January 21 and asked me to choose any one of the portfolios. I accordingly chose to retain the Minor Irrigation Department instead of retaining the Law and Parliamentary Affairs. But what ensued is not unknown to people.” Madhuswamy further mentioned that his portfolios were being changed without an evaluation and that he was not provided valid reasons for the same. He expressed that he should have been allowed to complete his work after being allocated with a portfolio. When he was quizzed by reporters if he planned to resign — as speculation was rife over two ministers quitting, he said that he had actually thought of resigning. However, he never expressed it either in public or in private. He added that his close friends did not know about it either.   He also said that he was miffed when his portfolio was changed without consulting him on January 22 adding that he had decided to quit after January 26. However, he said that he had decided against quitting. Madhuswamy said that rather than demanding a portfolio, he wanted to have a charge that is directly linked with people, especially farmers, therefore he demanded to be given the Minor Irrigation Department. Dr K Sudhakar, the Health Minister, has been given back the Medical Education Department after it was allocated to JC Madhuswamy on January 23. In another change made on Monday, Madhuswamy, who was stripped off his prime portfolios of Law, Parliamentary Affairs and Minor Irrigation on January 13 has now been given the Tourism Department and Ecology and Environment Departments.  On Friday, Madhuswamy was allocated the Kannada and Culture department in lieu of Hajj and Waqf portfolio along with Medical Education on January 13.

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Biden administration to buy 200 million more doses of Covid vaccine

The administration will ship out at least 10 million doses a week under the new strategy.

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Thousands turn up in Bengaluru for tractor parade in solidarity with farmers in Delhi

Protest

This is the biggest protest over the farm laws held in Bengaluru and the city police reported that it was a peaceful event.

Prajwal Bhat

Thousands of farmers poured into Bengaluru, many riding tractors, in solidarity with the tractor parade in New Delhi by farmers protesting against the Centre's proposed farm laws. This is the biggest protest over the farm laws held in Bengaluru and the city police reported that it was a peaceful event. Protesting farmers and members of labour and Dalit groups gathered at the KSR Railway Station early on Tuesday anxiously waiting for news about their counterparts arriving from neighboring districts. Bengaluru police said that a fixed number of tractors would be allowed into the city. Farmers riding tractors were briefly halted by the police in places like Devanahalli, Nayandanahalli, KR Puram and Tumakuru Road but around 120 tractors were later allowed to pass through and enter the city's roads. According to farmer groups organising the protest, fifty tractors each arrived in the city from Mysuru Road and Tumakuru Road while few more vehicles entered from Hosakote and Devanahalli. They arrived at the KSR Railway Station at 2 pm to kickstart the march to Freedom Park through the Anand Rao Circle flyover. "We were halted by the police on the way in Hosakote but later we were allowed to pass through. We have come here from Kolar," said Suresh, the driver of one of the tractors. Another large group that came to the protest in Bengaluru was from Hassan district. "We are here to ask the Central government to roll back the farm laws. We have chosen today because today is the day our Constitution came into effect," said SV Yoganna, a 46 year-old farmer from Arkalgud in Hassan. He grows paddy and ragi in his farm and says that a fair MSP is crucial to his business. "We do not want to block traffic but we want to be here to voice our anger against the farm laws, especially our demand for a fair and guaranteed minimum support price," he added. The protest was organised by Karnataka Rajya Raitha Sangha, and Samyukta Horata, an umbrella organisation of farmers and trade unions in Bengaluru. The farmers named their rally 'Jana Ganarajyotsava Parade' (People's Republic Parade). It was supported by a number of organisations including the Karnataka Sex Workers Union, All India Trade Union Congress (AITUC), and the Sikh community in Bengaluru among others. A group of LGBTQ+ activists cooked meals for the farm groups protesting in Bengaluru. Read: ‘Honoured to cook for them’: LGBTQ activists prepare meals for B'luru farmer protest By the time the protesters began the march from KSR Railway Station to Freedom Park, news had filtered through about the violence reported during the tractor parade in New Delhi. However, Bengaluru police stated that the protest in the city was peaceful. The police estimated that there were 5,000 people at the protest even as farmer unions claimed this number was closer to 10,000. "There weren't any incidents reported during the protest. Our conservative estimate is that there were 5,000 people at the protest," said Anuchet MN, Deputy Commissioner of Police, Bengaluru (Central). Following the protest march, farmer leaders addressed the protesters at Freedom Park before dispersing in the evening.  

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‘Honoured to cook for them’: LGBTQ activists prepare meals for B'luru farmer protest

Farmers Protest

Karnataka Sexual Minorities Forum (KSMF), a state-level organisation for sexual minority activists in Karnataka, began cooking for the farmers on Monday night.

Sanjana Deshpande

While many were preparing to watch the Republic Day parade on television, Mallu Kumbar was busy cooking along with her colleagues and members of the Karnataka Sexual Minorities Forum. Since Monday night at Bhoopasandara in Bengaluru, the LGBTQ group has been making food for the farmers heading to Bengaluru to stage protests against the three contentious farm laws passed by the Union Government.  “We aimed to cook at least 300 kgs of rice and we have managed to cook pulao. We began our work on Monday night because we were all inexperienced in cooking for such a large crowd and had a great amount of work,” said Mallu Kumbar, the state coordinator of KSMF, a state-level democratic organisation for sexual minority activists.  Different organisations representing the Dalit community, women’s welfare groups and others undertook various responsibilities in assisting the farmers throughout the day. While one team has been busy cooking food, the other is proactively distributing it among farmers on-site. “A few members of the KSMF group decided to donate some funds and we bought the supplies to cook for the farmers within that amount. Al Kabab Centre provided us with the necessary utensils, water connection and a place to cook for the farmers. I feel honoured that I got a chance to cook for them. They grow the very grains we eat. This is the first time we have undertaken such an initiative,” said Mallu. Expressing solidarity with the farmers protesting against the central farm laws in New Delhi, farmers in Karnataka held a tractor rally in Bengaluru on Republic Day. Similar rallies were held in all the district headquarters across the state. The Karnataka farmers named their rally 'Jana Ganarajyotsava Parade' (People's Republic Parade). Hundreds of farmers from across the state took to the streets in various districts in their own private vehicles instead of driving into the city in their tractors as part of the 'Jana Ganarajyotsava Parade'. In Bengaluru, local farmers accompanied by those coming from other parts of the state took out a rally from NICE Road junction to Hosakote Toll Junction on Kolar road. A similar module was adopted in every district of Karnataka, where local farmers brought their tractors, while those coming from nearby villages came in private vehicles. “The injustice being meted out to people in this country and state is not unknown. The farmers' protest has begun a new revolution across the nation. We, the people of the sexual minority community, work as farmers or are farmers’ children. We will stand by the farmers who demand repealing of the farm laws by those who are willing to fight for the greater good and restore the faith in justice. We will carry the legacy forward,” Mallu said.  Elaborating on their stance, Kumbar explained that the farm laws have largely affected the farmers adversely and have pushed them further towards poverty. “We don’t just want the Union Government to repeal the three farm laws. We also want the Karnataka State Government to roll back the amendments they made to the land laws, which is a challenge for farmers in the state,” added Mallu. In Delhi, protesters clashed with police, who used lathicharge and tear gas against the protesting farmers. Some farmers deviated from the organised route and entered the historic Red Fort. Protesters broke past barricades with tractors at various border points ahead of the Republic Day parade. Delhi police had given permission for farmers to hold their protests on select routes, but chaos ultimately ensued when farmers began moving towards central Delhi.  Anti-cattle slaughter law and farmers’ woes Calling the farm laws and land law amendments as “anti-people,” Mallu then spoke on how the recently passed anti-cattle slaughter law had brought a host of issues for the farmers who would sell their cattle to slaughterhouses and earn some money out of it. “A lot of farmers who could have earned little money from selling their cattle to the butcher shops have now stopped receiving it since no one is buying cattle from them under the fear of being attacked by the mob of cow vigilantes. What will the farmers do of the cattle? The butchers ask them to give them away to state-run cow shelters for free. The government should review their laws and provide the farmers with some respite,” said Mallu, explaining that the laws also in-turn affect the members of different communities, such as sexual minorities. With PTI inputs

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Karnataka HC orders stay on construction in Bengaluru's Cubbon Park

Environment

The HC order came after the Cubbon Park Walkers' Association (CPWA) filed a PIL against the construction projects earlier in January.

TNM Staff

Representational image

Walking enthusiasts in Bengaluru are delighted with the Karnataka High Court’s decision to restrain construction projects in the city’s Cubbon Park. The Cubbon Park Walkers’ Association (CPWA) welcomed the court order and looks forward to more steps towards conserving the park in the future. The High Court on Monday issued an interim stay on the ongoing construction of a new building in Cubbon Park, which belongs to the Karnataka State Government Employees’ Association. Apart from that, the court has also directed not to occupy the building which belongs to the Horticultural Producers' Cooperative Marketing and Processing Society (HOPCOMS) without prior permission from the court. This order was issued in response to the Public Interest Litigation filed against the construction of buildings inside the parks by the CPWA on January 15, 2021. “We have already filed two petitions to the Karnataka Lokayukta-- one back in 2013 and another in 2019-- against these illegal constructions inside the park. All these are illegal constructions made in encroached areas. But there has been no proper action taken so far. It is only after a long wait that we had moved the High Court this year. It is very saddening that the 300-acre park has now shrunk to just 100 acres,” Dr Umesh, advocate and President of the CPWA alleged. He added that there are both public and private-owned buildings in Cubbon Park currently. According to him, there are 14 properties inside the park premises, out of which 11 belong to the government and three to private properties including the Young Men’s Christian Association (YMCA) and Century Club.  While talking about the High Court order, Dr Umesh said, “We on behalf of the Bengaluru citizens, walkers and environmentalists thank the Chief Justice of the HC for having great concern towards environmental conservation”. He also expressed his concern over the lack of maintenance of the park. “Both Lalbagh and Cubbon Park come under the same regulation of laws, but the government officials hardly give attention to the latter. I feel that there is partiality in that regard. Lalbagh has a proper compound wall and security system whereas Cubbon Park does not”. He also added that Cubbon Park is located in a central location in Bengaluru, which is very close to the High Court and Vidhan Soudha. Many VIPs use the park regularly, which imposes a threat to them because of the lack of a security system. 

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10-year-old wins Bal Puraskar for innovative game ‘Corona Yuga’

Award

Veer Kashyap, a student from Kochi, built the board game during the lockdown in Bengaluru.

TNM Staff

Twitter

A 10-year-old boy received the Pradhan Mantri Rashtriya Bal Puraskar 2021 for excellence in the field of innovation. Veer Kashyap, a student of Navy Children School, Kochi, built a board game during the lockdown induced by COVID-19 pandemic in Bengaluru. With the aim of educating and creating awareness about the coronavirus and the ensuing situation prevailing in the world, Veer created this board game. He named the board game ‘Corona Yuga’ by designing the infamous coronavirus shape on cardboard, using materials available at home. Veer’s game went viral after he posted a video of the same on YouTube. Corona Yuga, the game dedicated to COVID-19 warriors, is aimed at teaching safety guidelines to survive the pandemic by adopting behavioural changes. The game reflects the quarantine period, the importance of using hand sanitiser, social distancing, wearing masks etc. Prime Minister Narendra Modi, lauding Kashyap for his innovation, had tweeted, “An important message, said in a unique style. Veer Kashyap from Bengaluru created a game that seeks to keep people home and spread awareness about COVID-19. Happy that he has been conferred the Rashtriya Bal Puraskar 2021.”   An important message, said in a unique style. Veer Kashyap from Bengaluru created a game that seeks to keep people home and spread awareness about COVID-19. Happy that he has been conferred the Rashtriya Bal Puraskar 2021. pic.twitter.com/Kilbh1jAPS — Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) January 25, 2021   Veer is originally from Delhi, but developed the board game around COVID-19 — which is now available online, during his prolonged lockdown vacation at his paternal grandparents’ home in Bengaluru, reported TNIE. The Bal Puraskar recipient aspires to start his own board game company to design and publish his games and encourage children to share their ideas. Prime Minister Narendra Modi felicitated 32 young children, marking the occasion of India’s 72nd Republic Day, to show that age is no bar if one has the courage and intent to help others and make a difference in society. Seven awards have been given in the field of Art and Culture, nine awards for Innovation, five for Scholastic Achievements. Seven children won in the Sports category, while three have been felicitated for Bravery and one child has been honoured for her efforts in the field of Social Service.

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