B S Yediyurappa orders setting up of Karnataka Veerashaiva- Lingayat Development Corporation

News Network
November 17, 2020

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Bengaluru, Nov 17: Karnataka Chief Minister B S Yediyurappa on Tuesday ordered the formation of a corporation for all-round development of the politically-influential Veerashaiva Lingayat community in the state.

Yediyurappa, who himself belongs to the community, issued an order for constituting the Karnataka Veerashaiva-Lingayat Development Corporation (KVLDC) with immediate effect. It came a day after a group of ministers and BJP MLAs led by Deputy Chief Minister Laxman Savadi from the community called on Yediyurappa demanding setting up of the corporation.

"The state has a huge population of Veerashaiva-Lingayats, of which there are people who are economically, socially and educationally backward.

"Since there is a need to set Karnataka Veerashaiva- Lingayat Development Corporation for the all-round development of this community, it is ordered to immediately set up this corporation," the Chief Minister said in his order.

The demand by the ministers for a corporation for the Lingayat community came against the backdrop of Yediyurappa's recent announcement establishing the Karnataka Maratha Development Authority earmarking Rs 50 crore.

The decisions to set up the KVLDC and Maratha Development Authority are seen by sections in political circles as an attempt to woo the Marathas and the Veerashaiva-Lingayats, who are in sizeable numbers in Basava Kalyan assembly segment in Bidar district and Belagavi Lok Sabha constituency, bordering Maharashtra, where byelections are due.

Bsava Kalyan and Belagavi seats have fallen vacant following the demise of sitting Congress MLA B Narayan Rao and BJP MP Suresh Angadi due to Covid-19 recently.

The Congress, however, has earlier dismissed the demand for KVLDC, saying it will not serve any purpose. Instead, there should be reservation for the Veerashaiva Lingayats in education and government jobs, it said.

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News Network
March 27,2024

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New Delhi, Mar 27: The government has objected strongly to remarks by a US State Department spokesperson on Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal's arrest last week in connection with the alleged liquor policy scam.

The External Affairs Ministry summoned Gloria Berbena, the US' Acting Deputy Chief of Mission, to a 40-minute meet at its office in Delhi on Wednesday afternoon. In a brief statement released shortly afterwards, the MEA warned of "unhealthy precedents and against "unwarranted aspersions".

"States are expected to be respectful of the sovereignty and internal affairs of others, and this responsibility is even more so in case of fellow democracies. It could otherwise end up setting unhealthy precedents," the External Affairs Ministry said.

"India's legal processes are based on an independent judiciary which is committed to objective and timely outcomes. Casting aspersions on that is unwarranted," the statement stressed.

On Tuesday the US State Department said it is monitoring reports of Mr Kejriwal's arrest, and called on New Delhi to ensure "a fair and timely legal process" for the jailed Aam Aadmi Party leader.

The US State Department's comments came, in turn, days after Germany's Foreign Office stressed that Mr Kejriwal, like any other Indian citizen facing charges, is entitled to a fair and impartial trial.

The Indian government reacted strongly to the comment, summoning the German envoy and labelling the Foreign Office spokesperson's remark "blatant interference in internal matters".

"We see such remarks as interfering in our judicial process and undermining the independence of our judiciary," the External Affairs Ministry said, "Biased assumptions are most unwarranted."

Asked about India's protest to Germany, the State Department spokesperson told Reuters, "We refer you to the German Foreign Ministry for comment on their discussions with the Indian government."

Earlier this month the Modi government also took exception to comments by its counterpart on the changes to the citizenship law, calling them out as "misplaced, misinformed, and unwarranted".

Arvind Kejriwal was arrested by the Enforcement Directorate last week in connection with the alleged liquor policy scam that has roiled his AAP and provoked furious protests from the opposition ahead of the 2024 Lok Sabha election. Mr Kejriwal was this week sent to jail till March 28.

The Enforcement Directorate believes the now-scrapped liquor policy provided an impossibly high profit margin of 185 per cent for retailers and 12 per cent for wholesalers. Of the latter, six per cent - over ₹ 600 crore - were bribes and the money was allegedly used to fund the AAP's poll campaigns.

The ED has labelled the Chief Minister as a key conspirator in this case, but Mr Kejriwal and party colleagues arrested in this matter - ex-Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia, Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Singh, and former Health Minister Satyendar Jain - have all denied the charges.

The AAP and the opposition have hit out at the BJP-led central government for using central agencies, like the ED, to target rivals and critics before the general election. The AAP has criticised Mr Kejriwal's arrest on grounds it was timed to interfere with his plans to campaign for the party.

The BJP has dismissed claims it uses central agencies as described by the opposition.

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News Network
March 15,2024

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The leader of Yemen’s Houthis has said that the Yemeni armed forces will continue their retaliatory operations against Israeli-affiliated commercial vessels, preventing the passage of the ships even through the Indian Ocean and through the Cape of Good Hope.  

About 34 Houthi fighters have been killed since the Yemeni armed forces began to attack shipping lanes in solidarity with the people of Palestine under attack in Gaza by Israel, Ansarullah leader Abdul Malik al-Houthi said in a televised speech on Thursday.

Yemeni forces have repeatedly launched drones and missiles against Israeli and Israel-bound ships since mid-November, saying they are acting in solidarity with Palestinians against Israel's war on Gaza.

Al-Houthi said 73 ships have been targeted in Yemeni operations in support of Gaza so far, adding rarely does any ship associated with the Israeli enemy pass through Bab al-Mandab.

“This week, support operations included 12 operations targeting ships and barges, executed with a total of 58 ballistic and cruise missiles and drones in the Red Sea, the Arabian Sea, and the Gulf of Aden,” he said.

“Our operations this time reached unprecedented ranges, with 3 operations reaching the Indian Ocean, by the grace of Allah,” he added. “The total number of targeted ships and barges reached 73.”

Al-Houthi said that the operations will continue as long as the aggression and siege on Gaza persist.

The United States and Britain began striking Yemen in January in order to dissuade the country from targeting Israeli ships which carry arms and logistics for the onslaught on the besieged Gaza Strip.

Al-Houthi said the Americans and the British have received “painful blows” from the Yemeni armed forces in retaliation.

The American-British “aggression will not affect the escalating course of our operations in terms of range, momentum, precision, and strength,” said Al-Houthi.  

“What can stop the Yemeni military’s maritime operations is only the cessation of aggression and siege on Gaza,” he noted.

The American stubbornness and escalation of aggression result in only one outcome: the expansion of the conflict, the widening of the circle of war and events, and the tension of the situation at the regional level in general, he stated.

He went on to say that the Yemeni armed forces will continue and effectively expand the range of the operations to reach areas and locations that the enemy never expected.

Al-Houthi said what insures the navigation security in the Red Sea is for any country not to participate in the Israeli aggression against Gaza.

He said the Americans and those who drag the United States towards the militarization of the Red Sea are the ones who undermine international navigation.

“By the grace of Allah and His assistance, we aim to prevent the passage of ships associated with the Israeli enemy even through the Indian Ocean and from South Africa towards the Cape of Good Hope,” he stated.

“For this important, advanced, and significant step, we have begun to implement our operations related to it through the Indian Ocean and from South Africa towards the Cape of Good Hope,” he said.

There is absolutely no choice for the American and the British but to stop the aggression on Gaza and stop starving the people in Gaza, he declared.

“Our human conscience, our religion, our morals, our dignity, our pride, our belonging to Islam, prohibit us from watching the oppression of Palestine or remaining silent about it,” said Houthi.

He added that the Yemeni military is in continuous development of capabilities and in constant expansion of the stance in its range, effectiveness, and impact.

“The American's actions this week, involving aerial bombings and naval shelling, amounted to 32 bombing raids and strikes, which, as usual, were unsuccessful,” he revealed.

“The impact of the American raids and bombings is negligible regarding our missile and drone capabilities and in terms of continuing operations effectively to counter it, and in preventing ships associated with the Israeli enemy,” he stated.

He concluded by saying that the Yemeni armed forces are continuously escalating, and increasing capabilities to attack enemy ships. “No matter what the Americans do, they will not be able to stop us from supporting the Palestinian people in Gaza.”

Yemenis have declared their open support for Palestine’s struggle against the Israeli occupation since the regime launched a devastating war on Gaza on October 7 after the territory’s Palestinian resistance movements carried out the surprise Operation Al-Aqsa Storm.

The Yemeni Armed Forces have said they won’t stop retaliatory strikes.

The maritime attacks have forced some of the world’s biggest shipping and oil companies to suspend transit through one of the world’s most important maritime trade routes.

Tankers are instead adding thousands of miles to international shipping routes by sailing around the continent of Africa rather than going through the Suez Canal.

Since the start of Israel's genocidal war following Operation al-Aqsa Storm by Gaza-based resistance movements on October 7, 2023, more than 31,000 Palestinians, including many women and children, have lost their lives.

The Israeli military offensive has left a trail of destruction in Gaza, leaving hospitals in ruins and displacing around half of its 2.4 million residents.

Israel has additionally enforced a comprehensive blockade on the coastal sliver, severing the supply of fuel, electricity, sustenance and water to the population residing there.

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News Network
March 17,2024

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Beltangady, Mar 17: A three-year-old boy was crushed to death under the wheels of an auto-rickshaw in front of his house at Panakaje Mundadi in Belthangady taluk of Dakshina Kannada. 

The gut-wrenching tragedy took place on Saturday, March 16 morning when the boy ran out of home to the road. 

The victim has been identified as Kaushik, the son of Chandrashekhar and Usha couple. Their home is situated adjacent to the main road at Panakaje.

It is learnt that the auto-rickshaw failed to notice the boy who suddenly darted towards the road and hit him. 

Even though the injured boy was rushed to a private hospital in Ujire and later to Mangaluru, he breathed his last. 

The Beltangady traffic police have registered a case in connection with the incident.

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