Don't return awards, fight communalism together: Gowda, CM tell writers

Bengaluru, Oct 13: JD(S) MP and former prime minister H D Deve Gowda on Monday urged writers, leftist thinkers and social activists not to return any awards conferred on them in protest against the killing of a person at Dadri in Uttar Pradesh for eating beef and the murder of Kannada scholar M M Kalburgi recently.

Instead, they should fight together to uphold the secular principles and dignity of democracy, he said.

“Such social conscientiousness is condemnable on the part of the Indian literati. Writers and thinkers should continue protesting against the growing intolerance through other modes instead of returning the awards conferred by the Sahitya Akademi,” he has said in a press statement.

He also urged the State and the Central governments to act immediately and safeguard secularism.

So far, writers Uday Prakash, Nayantara Sehgal, Shashi Deshpande, Ganesh Devy have returned their Sahitya Akademi awards/ resigned from the Akademi to mark their protest.

Gowda also condemned the act of Shiv Sena workers for smearing the face of columnist Sudheendra Kulkarni on Monday morning. He said the act was against the freedom of speech and essence of democracy.

CM’s appeal

Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Monday appealed to writers and intellectuals not to return the awards conferred on them in protest against raising intolerance in the country.

Speaking to reporters, he said the State government has taken the incident of the killing of Prof M M Kalburgi seriously. The police are probing the case and those responsible for the incident will be arrested soon, he said.

Comments

Add new comment

Coastaldigest.com reserves the right to delete or block any comments.
Coastaldigset.com is not responsible for its readers’ comments.
Comments that are abusive, incendiary or irrelevant are strictly prohibited.
Please use a genuine email ID and provide your name to avoid reject.

QR-code tips power Mangaluru's major drug bust: 25 arrested in 2 weeks

News Network

December 16,2025

Mangaluru, Dec 16: The Mangaluru City police have significantly escalated their campaign against drug trafficking, arresting 25 individuals and booking 12 cases under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act between November 30 and December 13. The crackdown resulted in the seizure of a substantial quantity of illicit substances, including 685.6 grams of MDMA and 1.5 kg of ganja.

The success of this recent drive has been significantly boosted by the city’s innovative, QR code-based anonymous reporting system.

"The anonymous reporting system has received an encouraging response. Several recent arrests were made based on inputs received through this system, helping police tighten the noose around drug peddlers," said the City Police Commissioner.

The latest arrests contribute to a robust year-to-date record, underscoring the police's relentless commitment to combating the drug menace.

Up to December 14 this year, the police have registered a total of 107 cases of drug peddling, leading to the arrest of 219 peddlers. Furthermore, they have booked 562 cases of drug consumption, resulting in the arrest of 671 individuals.

The scale of the seizure for the year reflects the magnitude of the problem being tackled: police have seized 320.6 kg of ganja worth ₹88.7 lakh and 1.4 kg of MDMA valued at ₹1.2 crore. Other significant seizures include hydro-weed ganja worth ₹94.7 lakh and cocaine worth ₹1.9 lakh, among others.

The Commissioner emphasized a policy of rigorous enforcement: "We ensure that peddlers are caught red-handed so that they cannot later dispute the case or claim innocence."

To counter the rising trend of substance abuse among youth, the Mangaluru City police have rolled out uniform guidelines for random drug testing across educational institutions.

As part of the drive, tests were conducted in approximately 100 institutions, screening an estimated 5,500 to 6,000 students in the first phase. 20 students tested positive for drug consumption during the initial screening.

Students who tested positive have been provided counselling and are scheduled for re-testing in the second quarter. The testing will also be expanded to students not covered in the first phase. In a move to ensure strict implementation, police personnel were deployed in mufti in some institutions. Reiterating a zero-tolerance stance, the Commissioner confirmed that random testing will continue, and colleges have also been instructed to conduct drug tests at the time of admission to deter substance abuse from an early stage.

Comments