Mangaluru: Cops arrest 4 saffron activists; murder and dacoity averted

Mangaluru, Nov 17: The Air India Express (AIE) has launched two more flights between Mangaluru and Bengaluru, expanding connections between the two cities.

With this, Mangaluru will now have a total of seven flights to the state capital, airport sources said.

The inaugural flight IX 782 began operating from Tuesday. The second flight IX1795 operates on the Kannur-Bengaluru-Mangaluru route.

As the new flight touched down on the apron, the airport offered the customary water cannon salute. The first batch of passengers on the flight were given a warm welcome.

Bengaluru, Nov 24: Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar refrained from making a direct comment on Friday about the state cabinet's decision regarding the disproportionate assets case against him.

The State Cabinet on Thursday had held that the sanction given by the previous BJP government to hand over the case against the Deputy Chief Minister to the CBI was "not in accordance with law."

Shivakumar, also the Karnataka Congress chief, stayed away from Thursday's Cabinet meeting, chaired by Chief Minister Siddaramaiah.

The Congress government is now expected to issue an order withdrawing the consent given to the CBI in the case.

"I saw in the paper (newspaper), I could not attend (the cabinet meeting) yesterday. Whoever has to speak on it will speak," Shivakumar told reporters here.

Noting that he was going to Telangana for two days for the election campaign there, he said, "if the party asks me to extend (campaigning), I will have to."

The High Court of Karnataka on Wednesday adjourned to November 29 the hearing of the appeal filed by Shivakumar against the sanction accorded by the previous government to the CBI to prosecute him in a disproportionate assets case.

The CBI informed the High Court on November 15 that the Supreme Court has directed the HC to hear the application filed by the investigating agency seeking vacation of stay granted on the appeal, preferably within two weeks.

A single judge bench had earlier dismissed Shivakumar's petition challenging the sanction of September 25, 2019 granted by the government to prosecute him.

Shivakumar then challenged it before the division bench which had stayed the single judge order. The CBI had filed an application for vacation of this stay.

Based on the Income Tax Department's search operations at Shivakumar's home and offices in 2017, the Enforcement Directorate started its own probe against him. Based on the ED investigation, the CBI sought sanction from the state government to register a case against him.

The state government had given the sanction on September 25, 2019. The CBI had registered an FIR against him on October 3, 2020.

The CBI has claimed that Shivakumar amassed wealth to the tune of Rs 74.93 crore, disproportionate to known sources of his income from April 1, 2013 to April 30, 2018, when he was the Energy Minister in the then Siddaramaiah-led Congress government (2013-2018).

Bengaluru, Nov 17: After more than six months since the assembly elections in Karnataka, the opposition BJP has elected the Leader of the Opposition. R Ashoka, leader of Vokkaliga community, former Deputy Chief Minister, MLA from Padmanabhanagar constituency in Bengaluru, has been given the responsibility of the Leader of Opposition. 

This decision was taken at the BJP Legislature Party Meeting (BJP Meeting) held at the ITC Hotel in Bangalore on Friday evening. Just last week, BY Vijayendra was appointed as the president of the BJP state unit.

High command observers Nirmala Sitharaman and Dushyant Kumar were present in the BLP meeting held at ITC Hotel in Bangalore under the leadership of state BJP unit president Vijayendra. Former CMs BS Yeddyurappa, Basavaraja Bommai, former minister Kota Srinivasa Pujari and state BJP unit organizing secretary Rajesh and others participated.

Dushyant Kumar Gautam and BS Yeddyurappa implicitly mentioned the High Command's instruction regarding the opposition leaders during their speech to the MLAs. Former CM Basavaraja Bommai suggested the announcement of Ashok's name, while former minister Sunil Kumar approved it.

No one is disappointed, Bellad said that the meeting was not boycotted

Responding to the outburst of discontent before the BJP legislative party meeting, Aravind Bellad said that no one was upset, the BLP meeting was not boycotted, observers got a one to one opinion. He said that there are more MLAs from North Karnataka.

Other than them, Bengaluru's Yeshwantpur constituency MLA ST Somasekhar was absent from the legislative party meeting.