Fourteen juvenile delinquents escape from custody

Fourteen juvenile delinquents ran away from the detention centre in Karnataka’s Dharwad district on Thursday after executing a meticulously scripted Great Escape.

The 50-year-old security guard posted on duty outside the detention centre had no idea what was in store for him when he rushed into the hall on hearing a loud noise accompanied by yelling of the children around 2.30 am in the night.

The moment he unlocked the gates and entered the hall, the lights were switched off. Even before he could realize what was happening, he was covered with a rug and beaten black and blue with clubs and other sharp weapons.

He was overpowered by the inmates of the detention centre and locked up in a room. Out of the twenty juvenile delinquents lodged in the detention centre, a total of fourteen children, aged between 10 and 15 years, made good their escape after immobilizing the security guard Krishna Ramachandra Balke, police said.

Though a police patrol team nabbed three of the juvenile delinquents within three hours of their escape, the remaining eleven are still at large. The patrol team had picked up Rasool, Basavaraj Lakshman and Fakirappa while they were waiting near the bus stand. They were produced before the court and handed over to the Juvenile Home authorities.

The escaped children include Veeresh, Shekar, Baba Hussain, Basavaraj, Mehboob, Moula, Kumaraswamy, Umesh, Chand Peer, Sharanabasappa and Rajashekar. Six of the inmates, who escaped from the detention centre, have a history of petty crimes while three face murder charges.

A special team of policemen has been constituted to hunt the escaped juvenile delinquents, police said.

Bangalore call center employee murdered by boyfriend

The Bangalore police have cracked the mystery behind the gruesome murder of 32-year-old call center employee Tanya Banerjee, whose dead body bearing multiple stab injuries was recovered from Bangalore-Mangalore highway, by arresting her boyfriend.

Additional Commissioner of Bangalore City Police Bipin Gopalakrishna told reporters on Thursday that Tanya’s boyfriend and colleague Gururaj Kishore had confessed to killing her in a fit of rage after she spurned his romantic overtures. Police had picked up Gururaj Kishore from his residence after Tanya’s colleagues saw both of them leave the office together on the fateful Tuesday night.

The recovery of Tanya’s dead body in Shiradi Ghats in Sakleshpur along the Bangalore-Mangalore highway, about 200 kms from Bangalore, on Wednesday had revived the ghastly memories of rape and murder of another 24-year-old call center employee Prathiba Srikantmurthy in December 2005.

Tanya, a native of Howrah in West Bengal, worked as a client analyst with BPO firm Aviva 24/7 in Whitefield in Bangalore. The 27-year-old Gururaj Kishore was her colleague in the same BPO and her boyfriend.

Investigations have revealed that Gururaj Kishore had been pestering Tanya to marry him and had even told other colleagues in the office that they were husband and wife, much to Tanya’s resentment.

On Tuesday night, Tanya left office after her shift ended at 9.30 pm along with Gururaj Kishore in his car. It is believed that Gururaj proposed marriage to her, but she refused. “After a serious misunderstanding, Gururaj whipped out a knife and stabbed Tanya. The post-mortem report shows that she had been stabbed 32 times in various parts of abdomen, neck and face”, Bipin Gopalakrishna said.

The murder is believed to have taken place in Bangalore and Gururaj had driven the car along the Bangalore-Mangalore highway and dumped the dead body in Shiradi Ghats, about 200 kms away from Bangalore.

A bus driver noticed Tanya’s body lying in the middle of the road near Maranahalli in the Shiradi ghats and alerted the local police. Her identity was established with the help of the office ID card, which was hanging from neck. “She was wearing a red T-shirt and black pants. Her ornaments, ear-rings and bangle are intact, revealing no visible signs of rape”, police said.

Meanwhile, police investigation has revealed that Tanya was staying as a paying guest in Bangalore’s Frazer Town. The management of the call center, where Tanya worked, said the employee did not opt for the company’s transport since the last two days.

Tanya’s grisly murder within seven months after Pratibha Srikantamurthy’s brutal rape and killing has raised serious concerns about the safety of women employees in the bustling BPO of Bangalore, which employs more than 100,000 workers.

IIM-B can’t implement OBC quota in a year’s time - Director

Indian Institute of Management, Bangalore (IIM-B) has joined the other IIMs in the country by expressing its inability to implement the 27 per cent quota for Other Backward Classes (OBC) in a year’s time as proposed by the Federal Minister for Human Resources Arjun Singh.

Briefing reporters after a meeting of Board of Governors chaired by Reliance Chairman and Managing Director Mukesh Ambani, Director of IIM-B Prakash G Apte said the student intake could be increased only in a phased manner over the next three to four years and “not in one go”.

The Board of Governors meeting, however, decided to go in for short and long-term expansion plans and gear up for accommodating additional faculty and students on its campus in Bangalore. The current intake of students at IIM-B stands at 240 every year.

“The increase in seats to accommodate the 27 per cent OBC seats cannot be done in one go as we are running short of not just faculty, but classrooms also. The increase in seats has to be a staggered process spanning a period of three to four years”, he said.

A Rs 500 million expansion plan had been drawn up to construct classrooms, hostels and even dormitories. Against the sanctioned faculty strength of 89, IIM-B currently has only 73. “If the seats are to be increased to accommodate the 27 per cent OBC quota, we need 110 of them”, Apte said.

Apte did not rule out the possibility of IIM-B going in for a split campus if the architects entrusted with the task of designing the new building decide against having high-rise buildings in the campus.

“It is unviable to identify the additional 10 acres to 15 acres required for expansion anywhere within a vicinity of 10 kms from the existing campus. It may have to be a split campus”, he said.

If the IIM-B has to acquire additional land, the cost of the expansion programme will increase by another Rs 200 million, taking the total of Rs 700. “The Government will have to give us the funds for expansion”, he said.

Bangalore call center employee found murdered on highway

Even before the brutal rape and murder of call center employee Pratibha Srikantamurthy in December last year could fade from public memory, the recovery of the dead body of another call center staff on the Bangalore-Mangalore highway with multiple stab injuries yesterday has sent shock waves across the Bangalore.

Police have identified the deceased as 24-year-old Tanya Banerjee, a native of Howrah in West Bengal. She is reported to have left her office Aviva Customer Operations Services Ltd., in Whitefield in Bangalore around 9.30 pm after work on Tuesday. Her dead body with several stab injuries on the face and torso was sighted by villagers near Sakleshpur, about 200 kms away from Bangalore on the national highway leading to Mangalore.

The body was identified from the office ID card, which was hanging from her neck, police said. “She was wearing a red T-shirt and black pants. Her ornaments, ear-rings and bangle are intact, revealing no visible signs of rape”, Hassan’s Superintendent of Police Pandurang Rane told reporters.

But, there were at least 20 stab wounds on the body, particularly in the abdomen area. Preliminary investigation indicates that the murder took place at some other place as there were no tell-tale signs of blood or any weapon near the dead body, police said.

A post-mortem on Tanya Banerjee was conducted at Sakleshpur hospital yesterday and the report has suggested that she had been killed around 5 am on Wednesday morning, police said.

Meanwhile, police investigation has revealed that Tanya was staying as a paying guest in Bangalore’s Frazer Town. The management of the call center, where Tanya worked, said the employee did not opt for the company’s transport since the last two days. Even on Tuesday night when she left the office around 9.30 pm, Tanya had used her own means of transport.

The Bangalore police was planning to question Tanya’s boy-friend, who had claimed that she had sent him a SMS at 7 am yesterday morning that she was leaving for Kolkata. “How could he receive a SMS at 7 am when the port mortem report suggests that she was killed at 5 pm”, a colleague of Tanya’s told reporters.

Meanwhile, Aviva Customer Operations Services Ltd., Bangalore, has expressed shock over the brutal killing of its employee.

It may be mentioned here that Pratibha Srikantamurthy had been raped and murdered by the driver her car in Bangalore during December last year.

Bribery issue: Gowda accuses BJP of conspiring with Congress

: JD (S) supremo and former Prime Minister H D Deve Gowda broke his silence on the Rs 1.5 billion bribery charge against his son and Chief Minister H D Kumaraswamy by accusing a section of the BJP and the Congress of hatching a deep-rooted conspiracy to destabilize the JD (S).

In a four-page letter faxed to newspaper offices in Bangalore from New Delhi, Gowda said a section of the BJP leaders were supporting the Congress party in its bid to weaken the JD (S) and harm his and his family members image.

Though Gowda stood by his beleaguered son Kumaraswamy, who is facing bribery allegations, the former Prime Minister indicated that he had no confidence in the present coalition Government and declared that he would take up a state-wide tour during the first week of August to shore up his party’s image.

“I am anxious to prove to the Congress and the BJP that our party is the only alternative in the State”, Mr Gowda said showing his eagerness for mid-term polls. “We had fought the elections on the principle of keeping equidistant from the BJP and the Congress. But, the people of the State had supported us rather ‘half-heartedly’ during the 2004 elections. This had forced us to align with the Congress first and then with the BJP to form different Governments”, Gowda said.

But, Gowda made it clear that he had to swallow both pain and humiliation for aligning with the Congress and later with the BJP. “I am continuing to do so even now”.

Reposing faith in the style of functioning of his son H D Kumaraswamy as the Chief Minister of the State, Gowda said a few disgruntled and power-hungry BJP leaders in the state had joined hands with Congress defame the Chief Minister following the tremendous response he received from the people in the first few months.

Meanwhile, Gowda’s open attack against the BJP has not gone down well with the saffron party leadership in the state. “It is hundred per cent lies”, said BJP leader and Minister for Water Resources K S Eshwarappa while speaking to reporters in Mysore on Wednesday.

“There are no sections in the BJP. The entire BJP is one. There is no truth in Gowda’s allegation that a section of the party had conspired against the Chief Minister with the support of the Congress”, he said.

BJP’s Karnataka unit President Sadananda Gowda did not see the need for attaching any importance to Gowda’s allegations as the coalition Government never had the blessing of the former Prime Minister.

“Hence, we have nothing to do with Gowda and his comments. He was always unhappy with his son forming a Government with the BJP”, Sadananda Gowda said.

Karnataka Governor to report to Federal Government on bribery scandal

In a new twist to the Rs 1.5 billion bribery charge against Karnataka Chief Minister H D Kumaraswamy in the mining scandal, Governor T N Chaturvedi has decided to submit a detailed report to the Federal Government on the mining scandal in Bellary, which has rocked the coalition Government.

Governor Chaturvedi, who had called for a factual report from the Karnataka Government on the charges of bribery levelled against the Chief Minister and two of his cabinet colleagues by BJP legislator Janardhan Reddy, has now decided to report the matter to the Federal Government.

After receiving a report from the State Government on the bribery charges, the Governor has now sought details from the Department of Mines, Forest, Environment and Revenue to prepare a detailed report on the mining scandal in Bellary. The detailed report will be submitted to the Federal Government shortly.

The Governor’s decision to report the matter to the Federal Government comes in the wake of pressure from the Opposition Congress, which is seeking the dismissal of the H D Kumaraswamy-led coalition Government in Karnataka on the bribery issue. The Congress has already submitted a memorandum to the Governor detailing the serious nature of allegations against the Chief Minister and called for a CBI probe into the matter.

The Congress party held a huge demonstration in Bangalore on Tuesday, where Congress leaders dubbed the judicial inquiry ordered by the State Government as “eyewash”. The Congress party demanded a CBI probe into the matter as the terms of reference for the judicial probe did not include the bribery charges against the Chief Minister.

But, Chief Minister H D Kumaraswamy, speaking to reporters in Mysore yesterday, claimed that the judicial probe would cover all the charges of “corruption and nepotism” in the mining scandal dating from January 2000. “Hence, the probe will also cover the bribery charge”, he said even as he clarified that there was no truth in the allegation levelled against him by the BJP legislator, who has now been suspended by the party.

Karnataka Chief Minister now faces defamation petition

Karnataka Chief Minister H D Kumaraswamy is now facing a criminal defamation petition for terming as “insane” the suspended BJP legislator, who had earlier accused him of collecting a bribe of Rs 1.5 billion from the mining lobby in the iron-ore rich Bellary district in the State.

Reddy’s counsel Venkateshwarulu told reporters that the Judicial Magistrate First Class (JMFC) court in Bellary had admitted a criminal defamation suit filed by client against Kumaraswamy and two of his cabinet colleagues. The court has been posted for hearing on July 28.

The defamation petition had been filed by Reddy after the Chief Minister and two of his cabinet colleagues described the suspended BJP legislator as “insane”. “The criminal defamation petition has been filed Kumaraswamy, Home Minister M P Prakash and Forest Minister C Chennigappa, all of whom had said that my client (Reddy) had lost his mental balance and hence was making such baseless allegations”, Venkateshwarulu said.

Meanwhile, Reddy told reporters that he had been accused of being “mad, insane and mentally ill” by no less than the State’s Chief Minister and two of his cabinet colleagues. “I challenge them or any doctor to prove that I am mentally ill or suffering from any of these ailments. I have filed the case to protect my self respect and the honour of my family”, Reddy said.

Reddy has chosen to stick to his stand that the Chief Minister and two of his cabinet colleagues were involved in the collection of bribe amounting to Rs 1.5 billion from the mining lobby in Bellary district. “I will produce the evidence when a CBI probe is ordered. I will not submit the evidence before others including the judicial commission instituted by the State Government”, the suspended BJP legislator clarified.

Meanwhile, the omission of the Rs 1.5 billion bribery charges against Chief Minister H D Kumaraswamy from the terms of reference laid down for judicial inquiry into the mining scandal in Karnataka has sparked off a fresh row in the State.

The Opposition Congress staged a demonstration in front of Mahatma Gandhi statue in Bangalore yesterday seeking a CBI probe into the mining scandal. Irked by the absence of any specific reference to the Rs 1.5 billion pay-off to the Chief Minister by the mining lobby in the terms of reference laid down for the judicial probe headed by former Chief Justice of Madhya Pradesh High Court U L Bhat, the Congress party accused the State Government to trying fool the public.

The brief of the U L Bhat Commission of Inquiry, appointed after much brouhaha over the bribery charges against the Chief Minister, is to merely inquire into illegal mining activities in three districts of Karnataka – Bellary, Tumkur and Chitradurga.

“The judicial inquiry is just an eye-wash. They want to fool the people of the State by ordering a judicial inquiry. We want a CBI probe into the scandal. A judicial inquiry does not necessarily lead to prosecution of the guilty whereas as CBI probe can”, Kharge said.

Health Ministers of South India to meet on July 30 to check Chikungunya epidemic

Alarming spread of Chikungunya epidemic in peninsular India will be bringing the Health Ministers of four South Indian states together in Bangalore on July 30 to exchange notes on effectively tackling the disease, which has already afflicted close to a million people.

Karnataka’s Minister for Health R Ashok told reporters that the meeting would work out a joint exercise to be carried out for large-scale fogging operations across Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra and Andhra Pradesh to drive out the aedes aegypti mosquitoes that carry the Chikungunya virus.

The joint meeting of Health Ministers of the four south Indian states will also be a collective effort to seek the Federal Government’s guidelines and financial assistance to contain the disease.

Since it was first detected in late 2005, Karnataka alone has reported about 500,000 cases of Chikungunya while neighbouring Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu had reported about 200,000 cases each. Maharashtra has also reported about 100,000 cases, officials said.

However, Ashok said the Karnataka Government had been making tireless efforts to contain the disease, which spreading fast in rural areas of the State. Apart from allopathic medicines, the Government was also providing ayurvedic, unani and homeopathy medicine to the affected areas on demand.

Though the Government had deployed more than 850 fogging machines in areas reporting a high incidence of Chikungunya, the epidemic proportions the disease was assuming had forced the authorities to draw up a plan to provide each of the 5,400 gram panchayats in the state with a fogging machine.

With each fogging machine costing anywhere between Rs 25,000 to Rs 30,000, the Government had released a sum of Rs 84 million for purchase of the machines. In a phased manner, all the 5,400 gram panchayats will be provided with the fogging machines, which also help prevent the spread of other communicable diseases like malaria.

Karnataka’s Additional Director for Health and Family Welfare Dr R Ramesh said disease is found to be rampant in areas suffering from a chronic shortage of water. “Due to lack of regular supply, water is stored in these areas for days on end, providing a fertile breeding ground for mosquitoes”, he said.

Though the disease is not considered to be fatal, the symptoms of Chikungunya include fever and pain in the bones and joints. The victims of the disease tend to develop a stooped posture as a result of the arthritic symptoms of Chikungunya, which affects limbs and bones.

RBI to have its own unit to manufacture paper for currency notes

The Reserve Bank of India’s Note Printing Press in Mysore near here will soon have its own unit to manufacture superior quality paper required for printing currency notes.

The RBI had so far been importing special quality paper for printing currency notes from England, Germany and Ukraine. With the Federal Government giving a technical and administrative clearance for setting up a unit to manufacture paper for currency notes at the RBI Note Printing Press in Mysore, the RBI will be saving about Rs 3 billion annually in foreign exchange.

Sharing this information with reporters, President of RBI Note Printing Press Employees Union A Ramdas said England, Germany and Ukraine were procuring cotton from Gadag and Davangere in Karnataka to produce superior quality paper required for printing currency notes by the RBI Note Printing Press.

Instead of incurring a huge import cost, it is feasible to set up a unit to manufacture currency notes at the RBI Note Printing Press in Mysore. “Superior quality paper can be produced in Mysore itself from the cotton grown in Gadag and Davangere in Karnataka”, Ramdas observed.

Apart from saving foreign exchange upto Rs 3 billion, the proposed paper manufacturing unit will employ new technology that will help improve the life expectancy of the new currency notes by three times. “The life of the new currency notes will be thrice superior compared to the notes presently in use”, he said.

He also revealed that the RBI Note Printing Press has chalked out plans to bring out newly designed currency notes with more security features with a view to preventing counterfeiting. The new currency notes are expected to hit the market by next year, Ramdas said.

The decision to set up a unit to manufacture paper for currency notes and incorporate new design with additional security features is aimed at pulling the RBI Note Printing Press in Mysore out of the shadow of the theft of Rs 5 million from the Press last year.

The security at the RBI Note Printing Press had been strengthened after theft of currency was reported. A decision had been taken to install CCTVs at every nook and corner of the Press after a study highlighted lapses in security, Ramdas said.

Omission of reference to bribery charges against CM irks Opposition

The omission of any reference to the Rs 1.5 billion bribery charges against Chief Minister H D Kumaraswamy in the terms of reference laid down for judicial inquiry into the mining scandal in Karnataka has irked the Opposition Congress.

The coalition Government in Karnataka appointed former Chief Justice of Madhya Pradesh High Court U L Bhat to head the Commission of Inquiry into the illegal mining in the State and laid down the terms of reference for a probe.

But, the absence of any specific reference to the Rs 1.5 billion pay-off to the Chief Minister and his two of cabinet colleagues in the mining scandal has incensed the Opposition Congress, which has renewed its demand for a CBI probe into the matter.

The brief of the U L Bhat Commission of Inquiry, appointed after much brouhaha over the bribery charges against the Chief Minister, is to merely inquire into illegal mining activities in three districts of Karnataka – Bellary, Tumkur and Chitradurga.

Congress party’s spokesperson in Karnataka and legislator V S Ugrappa said the glaring omission of any reference to the bribery charges against the Chief Minister is a blatant attempt by the coalition Government to pull wool over the faces of the people in the State. “They are cheating the people of the State”, he said.

Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee President M Mallikarjun Kharge was quick to renew the party’s demand for a CBI probe into the matter after the gazette notification on the terms of reference laid for the U L Bhat Commission of Inquiry was issued.

“The judicial inquiry is just an eye-wash. They want to fool the people of the State by ordering a judicial inquiry. We want a CBI probe into the scandal. A judicial inquiry does not necessarily lead to prosecution of the guilty whereas as CBI probe can”, Kharge said.

Meanwhile, legislator Janardhan Reddy, who was suspended from the BJP after he levelled bribery charges against the Chief Minister, has filed a criminal defamation suit against Kumaraswamy and two of his cabinet colleagues for describing him as “insane”.

Reddy’s lawyer Venkateshwarulu told reporters yesterday that the Judicial First Magistrate’s Court (JFMC) court in Bellary had admitted the criminal defamation petition against the Chief Minister, Home Minister M P Prakash and Forest Minister C Chennigappa.

Reddy has filed a defamation suit against the Chief Minister and two of his cabinet colleagues for calling him “insane” when he reiterated his bribery charges in the legislative council.

Chief Minister’s home office struck by golf ball nuisance

The sprawling Golf Course in Bangalore has become a source of nuisance to the people visiting the adjacent home office of Karnataka Chief Minister H D Kumaraswamy.

With the golf balls struck from the Golf Course situated across the road frequently landing into the premises of the Chief Minister’s home office, the officials had instructed the management of the Golf Course to take necessary steps including raising a barrier that prevents balls from flying out of the Course.

But, on Saturday when more than two thousand people had thronged the Chief Minister’s home office to participate in the Janata Darshan or Public Contact programme, two hard golf balls landed into the compound injuring not just a visitor, but also the Chief Minister’s Officer on Special Duty Narayanappa.

Narayanappa was busy collecting petitions from visitors to the Chief Minister’s office when a golf ball struck him like a missile. A couple of minutes later, it was the turn of a visitor to be injured by yet another golf ball.

Soon, police rushed to the Golf Course and arrested an accountant of the Golf Course. The Golf Course management was taken to task for its failure to comply with the officials instructions to take steps and prevent golf balls from landing into the Chief Minister’s home office. The accountant was, however, released later. But, the police has warned the Golf Course management of serious action if a barrier is not erected forthwith to stop the menace of golf balls.

Siddaramaiah joins Congress, blasts Gowda for joining hands with BJP

Former Deputy Chief Minister of Karnataka Siddaramaiah began a new political innings on Saturday by formally joining the Congress fold in the presence of Congress President Sonia Gandhi in New Delhi.

According to reports reaching here, Siddaramaiah called on Sonia Gandhi at her 10 Janpath residence in New Delhi and had a 25-minute-long meeting with the Congress President to finalize the formalities of his entry into the Congress fold.

All India Congress Committee (AICC) leader in charge of Karnataka A K Antony and senior Congress leaders from Karnataka including leader of the Opposition in the Assembly Dharam Singh were present on the occasion.

Siddaramaiah, who had resigned from the Karnataka Assembly as a JD (S) member earlier this week, has assured the Congress leadership that more JD (S) legislators will switch loyalties shortly casting a shadow over the political future of the JD (S) led by former Prime Minister H D Deve Gowda.

A large number of JD (S) rebels, including eight legislators, are expected to join the Congress party at an impressive rally in Karnataka next month to be attended Sonia Gandhi. “I am joining Congress alone now. There are more JD (S) members, who want to join along with me. They will join the party officially at a public rally to be held in the last week of August”, Siddaramaiah said.

On the occasion of his induction into the Congress party, Siddaramaiah launched a broadside against JD (S) supremo H D Deve Gowda for “burying” the ideology of JD (S) by joining hands with “communal” BJP. “The JD (S) has been reduced to a party of Deve Gowda and his son”, Siddaramaiah said.

He claimed that he had decided to join the Congress as it was the only national party, which was fighting communal and fundamentalist forces. “Deve Gowda has betrayed the people of Karnataka by joining hands with the BJP to make his son H D Kumaraswamy the Chief Minister of Karnataka”, said Siddaramaiah, who shared a two-and-a-half decade-long association with Deve Gowda.

SC raps Karnataka Government on BMIC project

The coalition Government in Karnataka, which is already besieged by bribery charges against the Chief Minister, suffered another setback with the Supreme Court lambasting the JD (S)-BJP regime of trying to scuttle the Rs 22.5 billion Bangalore Mysore Infrastructure Corridor (BMIC) project.

According to reports reaching here, the Supreme Court’s rap on Karnataka Government came during the hearing of a petition filed by the promoter of BMIC project Nandi Infrastructure Corridor Enterprise (NICE) challenging the judicial inquiry into the infrastructure project.

After an angry Supreme Court took the Karnataka Government to task for posing hurdles in the implementation of the BMIC project, which envisages the construction of a world class 111-km-long highway between Bangalore and Mysore, the senior counsel for Karnataka Government M L Verma gave an undertaking that the Government will not proceed with the judicial inquiry.

The Karnataka Government had ordered a judicial probe earlier this month to probe the allocation of excess land to NICE for implementation of the BMIC project.

But, the division bench of the Supreme Court comprising Chief Justice Y K Sabharwal and Justice C K Thakker observed that Karnataka Government was acting with a malafide intention. “It is trying to scuttle the project despite the judgements by High Court and Supreme Court. Please tell your Government to keep politics away from some projects keep politics away from courts”, the bench told senior counsel M L Verma.

The Supreme Court also took serious exception to the “reckless and irresponsible” statement made by JD (S) MLA Rajanna in the Karnataka Legislative Assembly. The Division bench wondered whether there were no saner elements in the Assembly, who could prevail on the ruling party legislator to exercise restraint.

Though the Karnataka Government tried to pacify the Bench by saying that the legislator’s controversial remarks had been expunged, the Bench observed that the legislator had cast wild aspersions on the judiciary. “The proceedings were telecast live. By the time, they were expunged, the damage had been done”, the Bench noted.

Earlier, counsel for NICE pleaded before the Supreme Court that it was a case of complete breakdown of constitutional machinery in Karnataka.

Meanwhile, Karnataka Chief Minister H D Kumaraswamy, putting up a brave front, told reporters that the Supreme Court’s observations did not amount to a “setback” to the State Government. “We are only deferring the judicial probe into the BMIC till the Supreme Court disposes off the case”, he said.

The judicial probe into BMIC was to be headed by former Delhi High Court Chief Justice B C Patel.

Karnataka Government orders judicial probe into bribery charges against CM

The coalition Government in Karnataka has decided to hold a judicial probe into the Rs 1.5 billion bribery charge levelled against Chief Minister H D Kumaraswamy and two of his Cabinet colleagues by BJP legislator Janardhan Reddy.

The decision to order a judicial probe was taken at an emergency meeting of coalition Cabinet in Bangalore late on Friday evening, two days after the BJP legislator repeated the bribery charge on the floor of the Legislative Council, sending the five-month-old JD (S)-BJP coalition Government into a tailspin.

Emerging from the Cabinet meeting, Karnataka’s Minister for Primary and Secondary Education Basavaraj Horatti said the judicial probe, apart from investigating the bribery charge, will also inquire into all mining activities, including illegal mines, in the state since January 2000. “The inquiry will also investigate the charges of corruption and favouritism in granting licenses to mine owners that have been raised”, he said.

The terms of reference of the judicial probe and whether a sitting or a retired judge of the High Court or Supreme Court would head it will be announced in a week’s time. The probe will cover all the irregularities and scandals in the mining sector since January 2000, Horatti said while briefing reporters.

Horatti said the cabinet decision to order a judicial probe into the bribery charges against the Chief Minister, Home Minister M P Prakash and Forest Minister C Chennigappa, all of whom belong to the JD (S), was in line with the resolution adopted at the co-ordination committee meeting of the coalition partners JD (S) and BJP.

BJP legislator Janardhan Reddy’s allegation that the Chief Minister and his two cabinet colleagues had collected a whopping Rs 1.5 billion from the mine operators in iron ore- rich belt of Bellary district in Central Karnataka has not only created a political sensation in the state, but threatens the camaraderie between the coalition partners BJP and JD (S).

Meanwhile, the pressure on Karnataka Governor T N Chaturvedi to sack the coalition Government on the issue has increased with former President of Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee Janardhan Poojary seeking the dismissal of the Government to pave the way for mid-term elections in the state.

Tipu Sultan pioneered rocket technology in India - DRDO

Eighteenth century warrior king Tipu Sultan will be officially recognized by India’s Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) as the pioneer of rocket technology.

Chief Controller of Research and Development at DRDO Sivathanu Pillai told reporters after inspecting the rocket court at Tipu Sultan’s fort in Srirangapatna near here that “the time had come to tell the world that India pioneered rocket technology and Srirangapatna was its birthplace”.

Pillai went around various sites associated with Tipu Sultan’s rocket and missile technology activities at Srirangapatna on Thursday evening at the instance of President Dr A P J Abdul Kalam, who is himself a rocket scientist.

“I am convinced that Srirangapatna is the birthplace of modern rocket science and technology”, he said. Pillai first visited the rocket and missile launching pad attached to ramparts of the fort and the ammunition depot and later went to the ammunition-manufacturing unit in the fort.

Pillai, who played a key role in the development of Brahmos missile, said there was a growing consensus among scientists world wide about India’s progress in rocket science during the period of Tipu Sultan. He said DRDO would submit the impressions of his visit at a meeting of rocket scientists to be convened in the next few months.

DRDO would produce documents as evidence to prove the scientific principles followed in producing rockets during the time of Tipu Sultan, more than two centuries ago. An analysis of a rocket used by Tipu Sultan’s army, which is now exhibited in the artillery museum in London, proved that it was advanced and had a range of nearly 2 kms, he said.

“It is an important milestone in the history of rocket and we are intrigued as to how the idea of a rocket crystallized in the late eighteenth century for which research must have been conducted much earlier”, Pillai said.

The veteran scientist from DRDO, who also saw the paintings of Mysore War as represented by the artists of the era, said Tipu Sultan was the first to have a full-fledged rocket force with 6,000 personnel and 27 brigades in his army in 1792.

Though Pillai did not appear satisfied with the conservation of Tipu Sultan’s fort, he refused to comment on the deplorable condition of the rocket court, which had become an eye-sore due to absence of maintenance. “I am here purely on an academic mission. It will not be fair on my part to comment on the maintenance of the structures”, he said.

Security stepped up in Bangalore after recovery of bomb from a bus

Security in Bangalore was put on a high alert after a crude bomb was recovered from an empty bus stationed at the City bus stand late on Thursday night.

Police said the conductor of a Bangalore Metropolitan Transport Corporation bus found a suspicious object under the last seat around midnight. Soon after he brought it to the notice of the police outpost nearby, a bomb disposal squad with sniffer dogs was rushed to the spot.

After recovering the bomb, the police confirmed that it was a crude bomb, containing gelatin. The bomb, however, had no timer attached to it. The bomb was taken to an isolated spot on the outskirts of Bangalore and defused.

Though the authorities said the bomb was very rudimentary and posed no serious threat, security has been stepped up in the City. A vigil has been mounted at all the bus stations, railway stations and other sensitive places in the City.

Though there have been a spate of bomb threats and hoaxes all over the country since the serial blasts in Mumbai on July 11, the incident in Bangalore is the first one in which an explosive device was found.

It may be mentioned here that terrorists had struck at the Indian Institute of Science (IISc) in Bangalore during December 2005, claiming the life of one scientist.

Karnataka Governor seeks report from Government on bribery charges against CM

Under pressure from the Opposition Congress, Karnataka Governor T N Chaturvedi has sought a report from the coalition Government on the charges of bribery levelled against Chief Minister H D Kumaraswamy and two of his cabinet colleagues by the suspended BJP legislator Janardhan Reddy.

According to a Raj Bhavan communiqué, the Governor has asked Kumaraswamy to send a “factual report and his comments” on the charges levelled against him.

The Governor’s action comes in the wake a memorandum submitted to him by the Congress party on Thursday seeking the dismissal of the JD (S)-BJP coalition Government in Karnataka and the institution of a CBI probe into the allegation that Chief Minister H D Kumaraswamy was involved in the collection of bribe amounting to Rs 1.5 billion from mine owners in Bellary district.

The Governor has also forwarded a copy of the memorandum submitted by the Congress party to the Chief Minister while seeking a factual report and his comments on the matter, the Raj Bhavan communiqué added. Karnataka’s Chief Secretary B K Das is expected to send a report to the Governor soon.

Meanwhile, the coalition Government has decided to slap a criminal defamation case against Janardhan Reddy for accusing the Chief Minister and his cabinet colleagues of collecting a bribe of Rs 1.5 billion from the mine owners in Bellary district.

Even as the coalition Government is expected to take a decision on the nature of probe into the bribery charges against the Chief Minister at a Cabinet meeting scheduled late on Friday, a section of BJP has opposed the “hasty” action taken against its legislator Janardhan Reddy.

Though the party is yet to serve a notice of suspension on Reddy, a section of the party leadership has complained against the action taken against its legislator for exposing corruption. BJP’s Central leaders Venkaiah Naidu and Taverchand Gehlot are expected to arrive in Bangalore to set in motion a damage control exercise.

In Bellary, Janardhan Reddy repeated his bribery charge and termed the Chief Minister and party’s Ministers as “criminals”. He has also threatened to file a defamation suit against the Chief Minister for calling him a person, who has lost “mental balance”.

Janardhan Reddy, who is yet to receive the suspension notice, received the full support of his partymen in his home-district. The party’s Bellary district office-bearers have decided to stand by him and oppose his suspension from the party.

BJP suspends its legislator for leveling bribery charges against Karnataka CM

With a view to averting a possible threat to the coalition Government in Karnataka, the BJP suspended its legislator Janardhan Reddy hours after he accused Chief Minister H D Kumaraswamy and two other JD (S) Ministers of collecting a bribe of Rs 1.5 billion from mine owners in Bellary district.

BJP’s Karnataka unit President D V Sadananda Gowda told reporters that Janardhan Reddy, who is also the President of BJP’s Bellary district has been suspended from the primary membership of the party for violating party discipline. The BJP state unit’s decision to keep Janardhan Reddy under suspension had been conveyed to the party’s central leadership in New Delhi.

Reddy, a BJP member of the Legislative Council, had retracted his bribery charge against the Chief Minister earlier this week, succumbing to pressure from the party leadership. But, on Wednesday, he dropped a bombshell by repeating his allegation in the Legislative Council, plunging the five-month-old JD (S)-BJP coalition Government into a crisis.

Even as the Opposition Congress leaders met Governor T N Chaturvedi on Thursday to press for a CBI probe into the bribery episode involving the Chief Minister and two of his cabinet colleagues. Leader of the Opposition in the Legislative Assembly Dharam Singh and Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee President M Mallikarjun Kharge led a large group of Congressmen to Raj Bhavan in Bangalore to press for action against the Chief Minister.

Speaking to reporters, Dharam Singh said H D Kumaraswamy had no right to continue as Chief Minister in the wake of bribery charges levelled against him. A CBI probe should be ordered into the episode and the Kumaraswamy should quit as Chief Minister pending a probe into bribery charges.

The Congress leaders have apprehended a threat to the life of Janardhan Reddy and urged the Government to extend police protection to the BJP legislator.

Meanwhile, Kumaraswamy convened a meeting of JD (S) Legislature Party in Bangalore yesterday and decided to file a defamation case against Janardhan Reddy for leveling bribery charges against him and two other ministerial colleagues – Forest Minister C Chennigappa and Home Minister M P Prakash.

The JD (S) also sought to bring pressure on its coalition partner BJP to drop its Minister B Sriramulu, also hailing from Bellary, for reportedly instigating Janardhan Reddy to level accusations against the Chief Minister and two JD (S) Ministers.

The BJP, which held meeting in Bangalore, however refused to accommodate the demand of the JD (S) to drop Sriramulu from the coalition Ministry. However, the party leaders assured to consider a proposal to expel Janardhan Reddy from the party and salvage the coalition Government.

Deputy Chief Minister B S Yediyurappa, however, sought to clarify that the bribery charges against the Chief Minister by its legislator will not rock the coalition Government. “The Government is stable. This episode will not affect the Government”, he told reporters.

BJP legisator repeats bribery charge against CM, ruling coalition caught unawares

The ruling JD (S)-BJP coalition in Karnataka suffered a major shock when BJP legislator Janardhan Reddy reiterated his charge that Chief Minister H D Kumaraswamy had collected a bribe of Rs 1.5 billion from the mine owners in the State’s Bellary district.

Reddy’s statement, which came about after much coaxing by the Opposition Congress members in the Legislative Council, caught the ruling coalition unawares. Noisy scenes were witnessed in the House soon after Reddy repeated his charge, forcing Chairman Sachchidanand Khot to adjourn the House.

When the House was discussing issues pertaining to privileges of members of the legislative council on Wednesday, the Opposition Congress members tried to lure Janardhan Reddy into participating in the debate when they found him trying to make a statement.

Though the ruling JD (S) and BJP members were trying to prevent Reddy from speaking, several Congress members urged the Chairman to allow the BJP legislator to speak. The Chairman permitted Reddy to speak after the Congress members brought much pressure on him. But, the Chairman asked Reddy to restrict his statement to the on-going debate on privileges of legislative council members.

But, Reddy referred to challenge posed to him by Congress members, during the proceedings a day earlier to come clean on the Bellary bribery episode, and stunned the House by repeating the allegation that the Chief Minister was involved in the matter.

Even as the Chairman was heard asking Reddy not to raise the bribery issue, the BJP member, who was apparently angry, over the attempts to gag him, said “Chief Minister H D Kumaraswamy and Forest Minister C Chennigappa are involved in the collection of bribe amounting to Rs 1.5 billion from the mine owners of Bellary. There is no doubt about it”, he said.

Reddy’s reiteration of the charge against the Chief Minister comes within days after he retracted his statement at a media conference to temporarily put the lid on a controversy that proved to be a major embarrassment to the ruling JD (S)-BJP coalition.

Soon after Reddy repeated the charge, there was chaos in the House. Even as the Congress members were trying poke fun at the JD (S) and BJP members in the House for trying to gag Reddy, the Chairman adjourned the House.

But, Reddy addressed a crowded press conference in the corridors of Vidhana Soudha – the State Secretariat – and said the Chief Minister and his aides were blackmailing the mine owners in Bellary.

Reddy said that the Chief Minister, his family members, Forest Minister C Chennigappa and Home Minister M P Prakash had collected bribe from mine owners in Bellary district. “Now, they are blackmailing the mine owners, threatening to ban mining only to collect more bribe”, he said.

He said Home Minister M P Prakash’s son M P Ravi too was collecting money from a mining company. Reddy described the Home Minister as a “Tiger in the garb of cow”. The JD (S) was converting Karnataka into a Bihar, he alleged.

Woman priest at Ayyappa Temple in Karnataka

Amidst the huge uproar over Kannada actress Jayamala’s claims to entered the sanctum sanctorum of Ayyappa Temple at Sabarimala in Kerala, the existence of an Ayyappa Temple in Karnataka’s Kolar district, where priest is a woman, has come to light.

Built on a four-acre plot, the Ayyappa Temple in Kolar does not impose any restrictions on entry of women into its premises. The chief priest of the Ayyappa Temple is not only a woman, but also a Dalit.

The priestess Shanta Kumari, who also happens to be an officer of Karnataka Administrative Service (KAS), claims to have constructed the Ayyappa Temple along with her husband after the deity came in her dreams six years ago. “After our return from Sabarimala, the deity came in my dream and asked me to construct the Temple”, Shanta Kumari said.

Shanta Kumari does not only manage the Temple’s affairs, but also worships the deity in the sanctum sanctorum of the Temple every day.

Hundreds of devotees have been thronging the Ayyappa Temple in Kolar, situated at a distance of about 100 kms from Bangalore. Though entry of women into the Temple is not prohibited, women aged between 10 and 50 years have to take permission of the authorities before entering the Temple premises.

“When God is with us, nobody will raise objections”, Shanta Kumari said when her attention was drawn to the furore over entry of women in the Sabarimala Temple in Kerala.

When she decided to construct an Ayyappa Temple, Shanta Kumari said she did not take the services of priests, craftsmen or engineers. “I constructed the Temple with the help of ordinary labourers with the instructions of Lord Ayyappa, my husband and myself. I have taken the role of a mother. I not only worship the deity, but also all other work of the Temple”, she said.

The Temple has been named Shanta Malai Ayyappa Temple. The Temple also proclaims that Ayyappa is the third son of Shanta Kumari and her husband.

Peeping Tom arrested for capturing bathing girl in cell phone

A senior manager of a private insurance company in Bangalore was arrested for taking photographs of a teenage girl while she was bathing.

Police said 40- year-old Sandeep Dingri, a native of Chennai, is employed with a private insurance company, drawing a monthly salary of Rs 150,000. He is staying in a rented accommodation at the up-market Residency Road.

Earlier, this week the landlord’s neice, studying in a degree college in Bangalore, was having a bath around 8 am. Dingri placed a few boxes on the floor to reach the ventilator of the bathroom and began clicking photographs of the bathing girl.

The girl, on hearing the sound of “clicks”, saw Dingri peering through the ventilator and began shouting. Soon, the family members caught hold of Dingri, beat him up and lodged a case with the Ashok Nagar police station in Bangalore.
The police confiscated Dingri’s handset and took him into custody. He was, however, released on bail after he was produced before a City court.

Siddaramaiah resigns from Karnataka Assembly

Rebel JD (S) leader and former Deputy Chief Minister Siddaramaiah resigned from the Karnataka Assembly on Tuesday evening and left for New Delhi to hold talks with Congress President Sonia Gandhi.

Siddaramaiah, who is tipped to join the Congress party, submitted his resignation letter to the Speaker of Karnataka’s Legislative Assembly Krishna after he was denied a chance to a statement in the House outlining the reasons for his decision to quit the Assembly.

When the Assembly met on Tuesday morning, Siddaramaiah renewed his plea with the Speaker to give him a chance to make his resignation statement on the floor of House. The Congress party too rallied behind Siddaramaiah and accused the Speaker, who belongs to the JD (S), of showing “partiality” while conducting the proceedings of the august House.

With the Speaker making it clear that he will not change his ruling in the matter, Siddaramaiah and the Congress walked out of the House. Later, on Tuesday afternoon Mr Siddaramaiah went to the Speaker’s chamber and submitted his resignation from the Assembly.

He left for New Delhi, where he is scheduled to meet senior Congress leaders and formalize his entry into the Congress fold.

Nun denounces holy mission, ties nuptial knot

A rare incident of a Christian nun denouncing her holy mission to tie the nuptial knot with her heart throb has been reported from Doranahalli village in Karnataka’s Mysore district.

Balakumari, a nun at the Joseph Maria Jesus Institute, was in love with Harish, an employee of the Institute. Balakumari was converted to Hinduism and was married to Harish at a ceremony held at Arya Samaj in Mysore.

Balakumari, daughter of Maria Dasa, a resident of Bangalore, had joined the Joseph Maria Jesus Institute three years ago. Love blossomed between her and Harish at the Institute.

The two took help of Hindu organizations, which held rituals to convert Balakumari into a Hindu and name her Shriratha. The wedding rituals were also held as per the Hindu customs.

Bangalore autodriver tries to rape Australian woman

An autorickshaw driver in Bangalore made a vain bid to rape a 21-year-old Australian lady after misleading her and taking her to an isolated farm on the outskirts of the City.

Though the Australian lady thwarted the unidentified autorickshaw driver’s attempts to outrage her modesty, she lost her handbag containing a camera and cash of Rs 3,000 in the process.

Police said the 21-year-old Australian lady, an evangelist, boarded an autorickshaw from a Church in Bangalore after participating in a preaching session. She asked the autorickshaw driver to take her to the main bus stand in Majestic area of the City as she planned to take a bus to Chennai.

But, the autorickshaw driver, instead, took her to a farm near Chikkajala on the outskirts of Bangalore and tried to rape her at knife-point. The lady, however, thwarted the drivers’ attempts and escaped from his clutches.

She reached the nearest police station and lodged a complaint. She was immediately subjected to a medical examination in a nearby hospital.

The police are hunting for the autorickshaw driver. The failure of the Australian woman to note down the registration number of the autorickshaw has made the task of Bangalore police all the more difficult.

Police scotches speculation over ultras taking refuge in Bangalore

Bangalore City Police Commissioner Neelam Achyuta Rao has scotched speculations over the ultras behind for the serial blasts in Mumbai taking refuge in Bangalore.

Participating in a function organised to felicitate traffic wardens in Bangalore on Sunday, Neelam Achyuta Rao denied that the security agencies had any clue about terrorists holed up in Bangalore.

He also sought to clarify that the no police team from outside the State visited Bangalore to question suspects. “No police team from either Delhi or Mumbai have visited Bangalore after the blasts”, he said.

The Bangalore City Police Commissioner’s clarification comes in the wake of rumours that militants were hiding in Bangalore after executing blasts in Mumbai and police teams from Delhi and Mumbai were scouring the City for them. Media reports had also cited how Sivarasan alias one-eyed Jack had found Bangalore to be a safe haven after the assassination of former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi in 1992.

However, he said the police in Bangalore has been put on an alert and the security personnel were keeping a vigil. “We have given instructions to land lords to verify the antecedents of the tenants and keep the police informed as a matter of security”, he said.

Meanwhile, the Government has directed the police to maintain special vigil at shopping malls, which are teeming with shoppers, besides public buildings like the Vidhana Soudha - the State Secretariat.

The Government of India has instructed authorities in Bangalore to spruce up security at the shopping malls, which had mushroomed in different parts of the City. “Intelligence reports had suggested that shopping malls could be a soft target for the terrorists”, a senior police official said.

The police officials had sounded out the shopping mall owners on the need to strengthen security. The shopping mall owners had been invited to a meeting with police officials in Bangalore on July 19.

Santosh Hegde is new Lokayukta in Karnataka

Retired Supreme Court Judge Justice N Santosh Hegde has been appointed as the new Lokayukta or provincial ombudsman of Karnataka to check the growing menace of corruption.

Santosh Hegde, who is currently serving as Chairperson of Telecom Disputes Settlement Appellate Tribunal in New Delhi, is expected to take charge as the Lokayukta by the end of this month.

Santosh Hegde, 66, will succeed Justice N Venkatachala, who carried out a series of raids against Government officials in different parts of Karnataka and unearthed billions of rupees of ill-gotten wealth amassed by them illegally.

Though there was immense pressure on Chief Minister H D Kumaraswamy to give Venkatachala a second term, the Government decided against extending his term citing the Lokayukta Act and decided to appoint Santosh Hegde as the new Lokayukta.

Santosh Hegde told reporters he would like to continue the good work of his predecessor. “But, I will do it in a different manner”, he said. Santosh Hegde too was in favour of the Government providing the institution of Lokayukta more powers to deal with corruption effectively. “For, instance, Lokayukta needs its own prosecutor like the CBI has”, he said.

Karnataka’s madrassas pitch in aid to children orphaned in Mumbai blasts

More than 300 madrassas in Karnataka under the Anjuman E Madaris, Karnataka, have come forward to offer financial aid to the children orphaned during the recent blasts in Mumbai, which claimed more than 200 lives.

The Anjuman E Madaris, Karnataka, has already identified six Hindu, four Christian and ten unidentified orphaned children for aid. A ten-member team from the association, which is already in Mumbai, is holding talks with the authorities to collect data on more such children, according to Founder of Anjuman E Madaris, Karnataka, Amjad Hussain Hafiz.

The association was identifying orphaned children with a view to provide them financial support that will focus on their education. The association’s team was meeting local Non Governmental Organizations (NGOs) to work out their rehabilitation at their respective community centers, the cost of which will be borne by Anjuman E Madaris, Karnataka.

Amjad Hussan Hafiz told reporters that the orphaned children will be rehabilitated at ashrams, missionaries and madrassas based on the religion to which they belonged. The team members are scheduled to return to Bangalore from Mumbai on Sunday. “After their return, we will scrutinize the reports about the orphans and work out a rehabilitation package for each orphan”, he said.

Though the team has already identified twenty children, who had been orphaned in the blasts that rocked Mumbai on July 11, the number of beneficiaries is expected to go up as the process of collecting data has not been completed.

Meanwhile, the volunteers of Anjuman E Madaris, Karnataka, have fanned out in different parts of Karnataka to collect donations from philanthropists and raise money for the cause.

Another Bangalore-based Muslim organization – Karnataka Muslim Muttahida Mahaz – is also contemplating offering help to the blast victims through its Millat Relief Trust. Many Muslim organizations in Bangalore and rest of Karnataka have severely condemned the bloody attack on train commuters of Mumbai and the urged the Government to trace the culprits and take exemplary action against them.

Karnataka’s luxury train to boast of health club and massage parlours

Karnataka’s much-awaited luxury train, modelled on the lines of the famed Palace on Wheels of Rajasthan, will boast of a health club and massage parlours when it rolls out of Bangalore next year.

Disclosing this to reporters, Karnataka Government’s Tourism Secretary I M Vittal Murthy said the eighteen-compartment train, which accommodates upto 120 passengers, will be Karnataka’s answer to the envied Palace on Wheels of Rajasthan and Deccan Odyssey of Maharashtra. “But, the health club and massage parlours are unique only to our train”, he said.

The Rs 360 million palatial train, which is expected to become operational by July 2007, will devote eleven compartments to passengers. The rest will feature a multi-cuisine restaurant that will also have local culinary specialities, an Internet centre, an audio-visual centre for recreation, besides a health club and massage parlours.

The interiors of the train, which will chug through the heart of Karnataka covering several places of tourist importance, will reflect the grandeur of the State. “Each room will have different flavours of tourist destinations like Hampi, Belur and Halebid. The lounge bar promises to be on a par with Mysore royalty. There will be both single as well as double beds in the cabins”, he said.

When the train halts at various stations on its six-night and seven-day journey, luxury buses will transport passengers to tourist destinations. The passengers on the luxury train can afford themselves the visual treats places of tourist interest like Mysore, Srirangapatna, Belur, Halebid, Hampi, Badami, Aihole and Dandeli offer.

Interestingly, the route also has Goa on its itinerary as the train journey culminates in Vasco. The passengers on the train can even visit Goa as part of their package.

However, the Tourism Department authorities in Karnataka are yet to find a dazzling name for the luxury train. “We are planning to throw open a contest to elicit fresh ideas. The prize could probably be a free trip on the train’s maiden voyage”, Vittal Murthy said.

BJP legislator retracts bribery charge against Chief Minister

Almost a week after levelling bribery charges against Karnataka Chief Minister H D Kumaraswamy, BJP legislator Janardhan Reddy retracted his statement that the Chief Minister had collected Rs 1.5 billion from mine owners in Bellary district of the State.

Addressing a press conference in Bangalore on Friday, Reddy, a member of the Legislative Council, said he had merely spoken about the misuse of Chief Minister’s name by the mining lobby. “I meant that day-light robbery was being committed in the name of the Chief Minister”, he said seeking to withdraw his allegation that Kumaraswamy had accepted a bribe of Rs 1.5 billion from mine owners in Bellary district.

Reddy’s allegation had sowed discord between the ruling coalition partners and threatened the JD (S)-BJP Government in Karnataka.

Reddy, who had gone hammer and tongs against Chief Minister H D Kumaraswamy and Forest Minister C Chennigappa for accepting a bribe from the mine owners, declined to field any questions from the reporters during the press conference.

BJP Ministers Jagadish Shettary, Katta Subramanya Naidu and Sriramulu hurriedly escorted Reddy out of the press conference venue. It was, however, apparent that Reddy withdrew his allegation in the face of pressure from the BJP leadership. For, he withdrew the allegation soon after his return from New Delhi, where he met senior party leaders.

Bangalore Muslims protest Mumbai blasts, decry terrorism

Hundreds of activists belonging to different Muslim organizations gathered in front of the Mahatma Gandhi statue in Bangalore yesterday to register their protest against the Tuesday’s serial blasts in Mumbai.

The activists participated in the silent demonstration and held up posters condemning the bomb blasts in the trains of Mumbai. The protestors described violence against civilians as anti-Islamic and against the dictates of the Holy Quran.

Describing the attack as a blot on India’s secular fabric, legislator Naseer Ahmed said Muslims gathered for the protest had taken an oath to fight terrorism. “We have also taken an oath to oppose oppression of innocent people”, he said.

Member of All India Muslim Personal Law Board (AIMPLB) Maulana Qadeer Ahmed Shah, who also participated in the protest, said the goal of the terrorists behind Tuesday’s massacre Mumbai is to disturb communal harmony and weaken the country. “They have no intention other than this”, he said.

Chief priest of a Mosque in Bangalore Maulana Mohammed Haneef Afzar said Muslims and Hindus in various parts of India want to live together. “But, there are certain forces, who do not want Muslims and Hindus to live with peace and harmony. They also can’t stand the progress India is making”, he said.

Representative of Karnataka’ Waqf Welfare Board Zameer Ahmed Khan said terrorists, who were behind Tuesday’s train blasts in Mumbai and grenade attacks in Srinagar, had no religion. “They are neither Hindus nor Muslims. They are enemies of India”, he said.

BJP legislator’s bribery charge against CM puts Karnataka coalition on back-foot

The recent transfer of Pankaj Thakur, a Superintendent of Police from the mining district of Bellary in Karnataka, has snowballed into a major crisis for the coalition Government.

A BJP legislator Janardhan Reddy, who praised the police official for cracking down on illegal mining in the district, triggered discord among the coalition partners when he publicly claimed that the mine-owners had paid off Chief Minister H D Kumaraswamy through Forest Minister C Chennigappa.

Reddy claimed that the mine-owners of Bellary had paid a whopping Rs 1.5 billion to the Chief Minister through Chennigappa to secure the transfer of Panjak Thakur, who had not only become a thorn in the flesh of illegal mining activity, but also the scourge of newly inducted Minister for Home M P Prakash.

The BJP legislator’s bribery charge has not only embarrassed the Chief Minister, but also provided cannon fodder for the Opposition Congress during the ensuing session of the State Legislature.

Even as the Opposition is holding up the proceedings of the Legislature by insisting on a CBI probe into the bribery charges, the BJP legislator Janardhan Reddy has become conspicuous by his absence, both at the state legislature as well as at party functions.

Amidst growing demands for the Chief Minister’s resignation on account of the bribery charges, the JD (S) and BJP convened a joint meeting of the two legislature parties at a star hotel in Bangalore on Wednesday night to hammer out the thorny issue and project a united face. But, Mr Janardhan Reddy remained elusive. So was the BJP’s state unit President Sadanand Gowda.

Senior BJP leaders in Karnataka are understood to have brought immense pressure on Janardhan Reddy to retract his allegation against the Chief Minister. But, Reddy, who had claimed to possess documentary proof on the bribery charges, remained firm. In view of the absence of support to his “cause” from the party leaders in Karnataka, Reddy is believed to have air-dashed to New Delhi to consult with party’s central leaders on the issue.

Meanwhile, the Opposition Congress has apprehended a threat to the life of the Janardhan Reddy and sought adequate police protection to him. Leader of the Opposition in the Legislative Council H K Patil raised the issue during the proceedings of the Legislative Council and urged the Chairman to provide police protection to Janardhan Reddy.

Bangalore on red alert after Mumbai blasts

A red alert has been sounded in Bangalore in the wake of the serial blasts rocking Mumbai on Tuesday evening.

Chief Minister H D Kumaraswamy convened a high level meeting of police officials in Bangalore on Wednesday to review the security arrangements in Karnataka, particularly at the vital defense installations, software companies and business and commercial hubs of Bangalore.

A decision was taken to hold a meeting with representatives from the industry and commerce on July 19 to chart out a plan of action for strengthening security in Bangalore.

Home Minister M P Prakash was also present during the meeting. Kumaraswamy said he held a telephonic talk with Federal Minister for Home Shivaraj Patil on the precautionary steps taken in Karnataka. “He has given some instructions to take precautionary steps at sensitive places”, Kumaraswamy told reporters later.

Bangalore City Police Commissioner Neelam Achuta Rao has said that additional personnel had been kept ready to meet any emergency.

Kumaraswamy directed the Director General of Karnataka Police B S Siyal to step up vigil and security across the state, particularly in areas bordering Maharashtra.

Even as the security forces kept a close watch on the Maharashtra border, the Railway Protection Force remained alert. All the railway police stations across the state have been put on alert. Dog squads had been pressed into service at railway stations and passengers were being frisked. A closed circuit television (CCTV) has been installed at Bangalore railway station.

It may be mentioned here that the authorities in Karnataka are not willing to take any chances particularly in the backdrop of a terrorist attack on scientists at Indian Institute of Science in Bangalore during December 2005.

However, Siyal said the state had been put on security alert only as a precautionary measure. “There is no reason to panic”, he said.

Thousands of fish released into lake to check epidemic

With close to 300,000 people in Karnataka laid down by viral fever Chikungunya, the civic authorities in Bangalore released six thousand fish into Madiwala Lake to eat the larva of mosquitoes causing the epidemic.

The Bangalore City Corporation officials said they had released Guppy and Gambusia fish into Madiwala lake to help prevent the spread of Chikungunya in Bangalore. More than 7,000 people in Bangalore alone are suffering from the disease, whose symptoms include fever, redness in the eyes and joint pain.

Bangalore City Corporation’s Deputy Commissioner of Health Manu Baligar told reporters that their experiment of releasing fish into a lake in Bangalore a couple of years ago had paid off when the incidence of vector-borne diseases showed a marked decline.

Release of fish into the Madiwala Lake was one of the steps the authorities had taken to contain the spread of Chikungunya in Bangalore. The authorities were also cleaning up tanks, wells and small ponds, besides carrying out fogging and spraying activities in areas affected by the epidemic.

Chikungunya is a viral fever caused by an alpha-virus that is spread by bites of aedes aegypti mosquito that breed in stagnant water-bodies. Till late last month, a total of 2,86,201 people in the state had been affected by Chikungunya.

Though the initially Chikungunya was reported from northern Karnataka districts of Gulbarga, Bidar, Gadag and Bellary, it has fast spread across the entire state with thousands of cases being reported from southern Karnataka. Kodagu in southern Karnataka is the only district in the State, which has not been affected by the epidemic.

Karnataka Government orders judicial probe into BMIC

The Karnataka Government has decided to order a judicial probe into the controversial Bangalore Mysore Infrastructure Corridor (BMIC) and prosecute the Government officials found guilty of colluding with the project promoter Nandi Infrastructure Corridor Enterprise (NICE).

During the course of his marathon reply to a week-long debate in the Legislative Assembly on BMIC, Chief Minister H D Kumaraswamy described the controversial project as “a land scam unheard of in the history of the State” and set a two-month deadline for the judicial probe to complete.

The Government will file criminal cases against the officials, who had colluded with NICE, he said. Apart from a judicial probe and registration of criminal case against officials colluding with NICE, Kumaraswamy said the Government would reclaim the excess land allotted to the project promoter and return the same to the farmers.

But, the Opposition Congress demanded a CBI probe into the BMIC. Leader of the Opposition in the Legislative Assembly Dharam Singh expressed skepticism over the outcome of the judicial probe and insisted on a CBI probe. “Nothing will come out of the judicial inquiry. We want the CBI to probe the matter”, Dharam Singh said.

When the Chief Minister turned down the Opposition demand for a CBI probe, the entire Opposition trooped out of the House, leading to an adjournment.

Managing Director of NICE Ashok K Kheny, who has already won several court battles against the Karnataka Government, has welcomed the Government decision to hold a judicial probe into the BMIC. “The judicial probe should bring into its ambit the role and conduct of present officials, who are blocking the project”, Kheny said.

Refuting allegations of excess land, Kheny, who is armed with a Supreme Court order for expeditious completion of the BMIC project, said the Government has not even allotted the land cleared in the framework agreement. “The question of allotting excess land does not arise”, he said.

Meanwhile, the progress of work on the BMIC hit a snag on Friday when the Mysore district administration refused permission for NICE to hold a ceremonial bhumi puja on 15 acres of land on the outskirts of the City to mark the start of Mysore leg of BMIC project.

Claiming ownership of the land identified by NICE to start work on the Mysore leg of BMIC project, Mysore Urban Development Authority (MUDA) refused to hand over possession of the land to the promoters till the acquisition dues amounting to Rs 8.5 million is cleared.

But, Kheny, who had himself arrived to launch works on the Mysore leg of BMIC project, claimed that NICE had already deposited the required money with Karnataka Industrial Area Development Board (KIADB). “It is their duty to make the payment and facilitate the start of work”, Kheny said.

In view of the demonstrations staged at the project site by pro-BMIC and anti-BMIC groups, the Mysore City police barricaded the area and imposed prohibitory orders on the 15 acres of land to prevent “trespassing” on MUDA land.

Telgi refuses to make confessional statement through videoconferencing

Though he was ready with a 400-page confessional statement, the alleged kingpin in the multi billion rupee fake stamp paper racket Abdul Karim Telgi has refused to divulge its contents through videoconferencing, apprehending a threat to his life.

“I am ready with the confessional statement, but will make it only in Bangalore”, Telgi told the Chief Metropolitan Magistrate in Bangalore through videoconferencing from a jail in Pune, where he is presently lodged.

Holding a bunch of paper sheets, which Telgi claimed contained his confessional statement, the alleged kingpin of the scam feared that the videoconferencing could be tapped, posing a danger to his life. For, his confessional statement would find mention of names of several influential politicians, policemen and others involved in the scam.

Telgi also claimed that the security personnel around him while making a confessional statement were also a threat.

In view of Telgi’s unwillingness to make a confessional statement through videoconferencing, the Chief Metropolitan magistrate hearing the case adjourned the hearing to July 12.

Meanwhile, Telgi’s advocate M T Nanaiah told reporters that an application had been filed in the Karnataka High Court seeking permission for Telgi to depose personally before the Chief Metropolitan magistrate for recording the confessional statement. The High Court will take up the case shortly.

But, the counsel for CBI, which is investigating the case, is of the opinion that Telgi’s refusal to make the confessional statement through videoconferencing is yet another bid by the accused to be taken to Bangalore.

The CBI had earlier argued against Telgi’s physical presence in Bangalore to make the confessional statement.

ISRO to set up navigational satellite system

Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) has begun work on establishing an Indian Regional Navigational Satellite System (IRNSS).

According to a press statement from ISRO, the Government of India has approved the implementation of IRNSS over India in the next five to six years at a cost of Rs 12 billion.

“It will consist of a constellation of seven satellites and a large ground segment. The entire IRNSS system will be under Indian control. The system will be developed indigenously and optimized for the specific needs of users in the country”, the statement said.

The IRNSS, which is a satellite-based Position, Navigation and Timing (PNT) service, is emerging as an important space application not only for civil aviation, but also in many other areas like mobile telephony, surface transport, intelligent highway system, maritime transport, rail, precision agriculture, fisheries, besides oil and gas.

Pointing out that PNT was an important service available through navigation satellites, the ISRO press release said small hand-held receivers are used to determine the user position anywhere in the world. “Location based service will become as ubiquitous as a mobile phone very soon”, the statement said.

An ISRO official said the Government and ISRO decided to set up the IRNSS as the Global Positioning System (GPS) is not in a position to provide accuracy, integrity, continuity and availability required for life-critical applications of civil aviation.

With the help of IRNSS, fleet operators will be able to improve their operating efficiency. “The system will help track a bus, rail cargo or a water vessel and identify its specific location at any given point of time. Mobile phones will no longer be a signal receiver. With IRNSS, the mobile phones of the future will turn into navigators”, the ISRO official said.

ISRO and Airports Authority of India (AAI) are also implementing a satellite based navigation system over Indian air space for civil aviation called the “Gagan”.

The preliminary acceptance test for the Gagan, which comprises of a space segment and a ground segment, has just been concluded. “The position accuracies available are good”, the press statement added.

===EoM===

Jaimala refuses to speak to inquiry panel from Kerala

Kannada actress Jaimala, who raised a storm with her confession on entering the Sabarimala Temple, refused to speak to a team of officials from Travancore Devaswom Board, which had arrived in Bangalore from Kerala on a “fact-finding” mission yesterday.

The team of officials led by the Board’s Vigilance Superintendent of Police Ashok Kumar had to return empty handed as the actress refused to meet them until she received written communication from the authorities in Kerala.

Jaimala’s claim on entering the Sabarimala Temple and touching the deity of Ayyappa when she was 27 years old has stirred up a hornets’ nest as the revered shrine is kept out of bounds for women aged between 10 and 50 years.

The team from the Board, which manages the affairs of the famous Sabarimala Temple, arrived in Bangalore yesterday in the wake of a notice issued by the Kerala High Court after a writ petition was filed on the controversial entry of a woman into the Sabarimala Temple.

Soon after their arrival in Bangalore, the team met Bangalore City Police Commissioner N Achyuta Rao in his office and sought his co-operation in the successful completion of their mission. Rao deputed Deputy Commissioner of Police (Law and Order) Bipin Gopalakrishna to assist the Board officials in their duty.

But, when Bipin Gopalakrishna contacted actress Jaimala, she refused to meet the Board officials. Jaimala and her cinematographer husband Ramachandra maintained that they would not speak to any official unless they received written communication from the authorities in Kerala, Bipin Gopalakrishna told reporters.

Meanwhile, Ashok Kumar said the team had arrived in Bangalore on a “fact-finding” mission and not to conduct an “investigation” into the matter. The team had to submit a report to the Travancore Devaswom Board, which in turn would forward the report to the Government authorities for necessary action.

“If the actress refuses to talk to us, what can we do ? We will submit a report to the Board on whatever happened during our visit to Bangalore”, Ashok Kumar told reporters. The Board is scheduled to meet on July 7 to discuss the report and decide on the type of investigation necessary in the matter, he said.

George Fernandes walks out of hospital in Bangalore before discharge

Former Defence Minister George Fernandes, who was admitted to a private hospital in Bangalore on Tuesday after he complained of breathlessness and chest pain, created a flutter in the political as well as medical circles by walking out of the hospital before his discharge.

George Fernandes, who is also the convener of National Democratic Alliance, was admitted to Wockhardt Hospital and Heart Institute following breathlessness after his morning exercise. Though the tests showed that the condition of Fernandes was stable, the doctors attending him preferred to keep him under observation in the hospital for 24 hours.

In keeping with the practice of issuing medical bulletin of VIPs patients, the hospital authorities released a statement saying that tests had been performed on Fernandes and his blood pressure and sugar level were normal. “Though his condition is stable, we have decided to keep him under observation for 24 hours”, Interventional Cardiologist Dr Ranganath Nayak said on Tuesday.

But, George Fernandes got up from his bed in the evening and walked out of the hospital, apparently against medical advice. He claimed that he had to keep his appointment with the Karnataka Governor T N Chaturvedi and call on JD (S) MLA Mahima Patel, the son of late Chief Minister J H Patel.

The Hospital authorities had to rush a battery of doctors and other paramedical staff to accompany Fernandes.

When he bumped into reporters on his way out of the hospital, Fernandes had a different story to tell. He claimed that he came to the hospital to call on former Chief Minister S R Bommai, who had incidentally been admitted for pulmonary oedema in the same hospital.

Outside the hospital, Fernandes told a different set of reporters that he had been to the hospital for a check-up. “But, I will go back to spend the night in the hospital”, he said. When his attention was drawn to the medical bulletin issued by the hospital, Fernandes wondered whether there was anything wrong in coming out of the hospital. “The Governor is a good friend of mine. Mahima Patel is the son of former Chief Minister J H Patel, who was like my twin brother”, Fernandes argued.

However, Mr Fernandes returned to the hospital on Tuesday night and was formally discharged on Wednesday.

Doctors at the hospital expressed surprise over the behaviour of Fernandes. “When he was told on Tuesday evening that his condition stable, he got up saying he had an appointment with the Governor. He just walked out of the hospital without giving us a chance to explain. However, we sent a resident doctor to accompany him as we did not know whether to say that he is being discharged against medical advice or if he would return”, a doctor said.

Landslide claims six lives in Karnataka

Six persons including a child were buried alive in their house in a landslide reported from Madikeri in Karnataka’s Kodagu district during overnight rains.

Though rescue teams reached the disaster site early yesterday, all the six persons in the debris-covered house were found dead. The large quantity of mud, gravel and boulders had rolled onto the ill-fated house located on Virajpet Road in Madikeri.

The authorities announced a compensation of Rs 50,000 each for next of kin of the deceased victims and instructed people residing in such “risky” areas to immediately shift to safer places.

Kodagu district has been witnessing a torrential downpour since the last three days, causing widespread havoc and throwing normal life out of gear. With heavy rains uprooting hundreds of trees and electricity poles, many parts of the district remained plunged in darkness.

The district administration has declared a holiday for educational institutions in Kodagu yesterday and today in view of the meteorological department’s warning that rains will intensify in the next 24 hours.

Meanwhile, the heavy rains in interior parts of Karnataka during the last two to three days is fast filling up the reservoirs built across river Cauvery.

With the catchment areas of Cauvery in Kodagu recording more than 211 mm rainfall during the last 24 hours, the water level at KRS and Harangi reservoirs is fast filling to the brim, forcing the authorities to sound an alert to people residing downstream to move to safer places.

The water level at Harangi reservoir had already reached its maximum level of 2,859 feet. The authorities were forced to throw open all the crest gates of the dam, leading to a huge discharge of water.

The downstream KRS reservoir was receiving an inflow of 17,000 cusecs of water and pushing up the water level. Though the water level at KRS stood at 108.18 feet against its maximum of 128.8 feet, authorities feel that the reservoir will be full to the brim sooner than later if the rains continue for a few more days.

The Kabini reservoir too had been witnessing an inflow of more than 25,000 cusecs of water with its catchment area in Wynad receiving heavy rainfall.

The water level in the reservoir had reached its maximum level of 2,284 feet and the authorities had been discharging more than 40,000 cusecs of water from the reservoir since Monday.

A bridge built across the river in H D Kote has been submerged due to discharge of water from the reservoir and movement of vehicles on the route has been banned. The Government authorities have also issued an alert to people residing downstream of the reservoirs to move to safer places with their livestock in view of the likelihood of floods.

Another Kannada actress says she visited Sabarimala

Close on the heels of the furore kicked up by actress Jaimala’s confession on touching the idol of Ayyappa, another veteran Kannada actress Girija Lokesh has revealed that she too visited the famed Sabarimala Temple.

Girija Lokesh told a television channel in Bangalore that she took an all-women team, including her daughter, to the Sabarimala Temple in Kerala during 1987 – the same year when Jaimala claimed to have visited the shrine.

“I was 30 to 35 years when I visited the Temple. My mother-in-law and a few women relatives, including my daughter, who was 12 years then, went to the Sabarimala Temple”, she said.

Unlike Jaimala, Girija Lokesh did not speak about entering the sanctum sanctorum of the Temple. “We went as far as everybody goes”, she said. But, Girija Lokesh expressed skepticism over Jaimala’s claim to have entered the sanctum sanctorum of the Temple and touching the feet of the deity.

Girija Lokesh wondered how Jaimala could have entered the sanctum sanctorum of the Temple, which is surrounded by several priests and other devotees.

The veteran actress was also critical about the discriminative practices at the revered shrine. “A state like Kerala, which has a high rate of literacy, should not be having such discriminatory practices against women”, she said.

It remains to be seen how Travancore Devaswom Board, which manages the Sabarimala Temple, reacts to Girija Lokesh’s latest revelations on visiting the abode of the celibate deity.

Kumaraswamy to prove Chamarajanagar jinx wrong

Karnataka Chief Minister H D Kumaraswamy has promised to visit Chamarajanagar town shortly to disprove the myth that Chief Ministers visiting the “jinxed” town would lose power.

Participating in a videoconference with journalists from across the State, Kumaraswamy said he does not subscribe to the superstitious belief that Chief Ministers visiting Chamarajanagar will lose power. “I will shortly visit the town and remove the superstition that has taken strong roots among politicians”, he told a scribe from Chamarajanagar.

Kumarawamy’s promise to visit Chamarajanagar came after a journalist claimed that developmental works in the district had suffered as successive Chief Ministers had maintained a safe distance from the town in view of the prevailing myth.

It may be mentioned here that successive Chief Ministers have steered clear of Chamarajanagar, located on Karnataka’s border with Tamil Nadu, in view of the widespread belief that any Chief Minister visiting the “jinxed” town would lose power soon thereafter.

It had all begun with late Chief Minister D Devaraj Urs losing his seat soon after visiting Chamarajanagar in the seventies. The superstition gained ground when his successors R Gundu Rao, Ramakrishna Hegde, S R Bommai and Veerendra Patil too met with the same fate after visiting the town.

Thereafter, no Chief Minister including socialites like S Bangarappa and J H Patel and progressives like S M Krishna had consciously shunned Chamarajanagar. Just like Kumaraswamy, his predecessor Dharam Singh too had promised to visit Chamarajanagar. But, Dharam Singh failed to keep the promise. It remains to be seen whether Kumaraswamy will keep his promise and shatters the myth surrounding Chamarajanagar.

Nadeem Kashmiri to undergo polygraph test

The Karnataka police has proposed to subject Nadeem Kashmiri, who is accused of stealing confidential data pertaining to HSBC’s customers to illegally transfer their monies, to a polygraph test to establish the veracity of the statements made by him during the course of his interrogation.

Though Nadeem had confessed to receiving Rs 80,000 from his co-fraudsters in the UK for passing on the confidential information, the Corps of Detective (CoD) of Karnataka police has found out that the accused received around Rs 150,000 from them. “We have to find out whether what he has told us is the truth”, according a CoD official.

The CoD is preparing to subject Nadeem Kashmiri to polygraph or lie-detector test at the Forensic Sciences Laboratory in Bangalore after seeking necessary permission from the court on Monday.

HSBC officials have accused Nadeem Kashmiri and his accomplices in the UK of defrauding its customers to the tune of 322,000 pounds by stealing confidential information form the bank’s off-shore data processing centre in Bangalore.

“We have found that that he had received upto Rs 150,000 though he claimed to have received only Rs 80,000 through Western Union Money Transfer. But, the amount of money he had received is much more than that. He could have received money through the hawala route also”, a CoD official told reporters

Karnataka Assembly backs actress Jaimala on Sabarimala controversy

The controversy over Kannada actress Jaimala’s entry into Sabarimala Temple echoed in the Karnataka Assembly with several members cutting across party lines questioning the restrictions imposed on womenfolk from entering the shrine.

Soon after Congress member S S Patil raised the issue during zero hour and urged the Karnataka Government to refer the “insult to womanhood” at the famed Temple shrine in neighbouring Kerala to the Federal Government, several members joined the chorus in support of actress Jaimala.

Patil came down heavily on the management of the famed Sabarimala Temple for barring women aged between 10 and 50 from entering the precincts of the shrine. The ban on entry of women into the Temple was tantamount to “untouchability”, he argued.

Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee President M Mallikarjun Kharge accused the Kerala Government of discriminating against women, particularly a Kannadiga. “I wonder why Kerala, which claims to be a progressive state, is allowing such retrograde traditions”, he said.

Though JD (U) member J C Madhuswamy pointed out that issue pertained to Kerala Government, Kharge insisted that the matter was sensitive in nature and the Karnataka assembly should take up a discussion on the subject.

CPM member G V Srirama Reddy sought to bring to the notice of the House that Dalits in Karnataka were also not allowed in certain Temples. The Government should take steps against this practice as well, he said.

Kannada Chaluvali Vatal Paksha member Vatal Nagaraj accused the Karnataka Government of treating the matter lightly and staged a walk-out from the House to protest the Government’s attitude in the matter. Claiming that the shrine authorities and the Kerala Government were planning to persecute the actress, Vatal Nagaraj urged the Karnataka Government to extend protection to Jaimala from any attempt to initiate action against her.

In view of the seriousness of the subject, Assembly Speaker Krishna announced that he would allow a discussion on the subject in the Karnataka Assembly when the House convenes on Monday.

Karnataka Government to set up Diaspora Cell

The Karnataka Government has drawn up a grandiose plan to set up a Diaspora Cell aimed at luring investments from Non Resident Indians (NRI), particularly People of Karnataka Origin (PKO).

Apart from setting up a Diaspora Cell, which seeks to take the “brand Bangalore” image to the global market, the State Government is planning to hold an annual Karnataka Pravasi Divas during January every year, according to officials in the Department of Industries and Commerce.

The Karnataka Diaspora Cell will showcase the strides Karnataka had made in various sectors and roll out a red carpet welcome to investors. “As more and more NRIs are keen to invest in various sectors like Information Technology, Tourism, Health and Education, the Diaspora Cell will work as a nodal agency to facilitate them to invest”, an official said.

To start with, the Cell will set up an interactive website for potential investors as well as NRIs, who seek information on investment opportunities in the State. The website will contain the achievements of the state and the potential sectors identified for investment.

The Cell will create and maintain a database of relevant information, besides organizing events and tours by delegations to foreign countries with a significant presence of Indian Diaspora to attract investment.

The Karnataka Pravasi Divas will be organised on the lines of Bharatiya Pravasi Divas every year. During the Karnataka Pravasi Divas, the Government will showcase the cultural glory of the State and give the NRIs attending the event a feeling of “homecoming”.

As Pravasi Bharatiya Divas is scheduled on January 3 and 4 next year, the Karnataka Pravasi Divas will be held from January 5 to 9 to enable the NRIs to attend both the events. During the first Karnataka Pravasi Divas, scheduled from January 5 to 9 next year, the Karnataka Government will honour prominent personalities of Karnataka origin, who have left their footprint in various fields by their achievements.