Rise of communalism biggest challenge in the path of India’s development: Karnataka CM in R-Day message

News Network
January 26, 2024

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Bengaluru, Jan 26: Communalism has emerged as an obstacle to the development of India, Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah said in a recorded Republic Day message on Friday.

“We have to regretfully accept that we have not been able to make progress to achieve the development of an India that we dreamed about. There are new challenges in the path of development and the chief among them is the recent rise of communalism which poses a threat to our secular society, and this is a concern,” Siddaramaiah said in his message.

“The results of the Karnataka elections last year are a sign of hope for protection of the secular traditions of the country. Our government is ready to combat communalism. People should not fall prey to the politics of division of people on the basis of religion.

“The failures of elected governments and representatives are being hidden by creating caste and religion-based divisions in society. This is undemocratic and goes against the values of the Constitution,” he added.

Congress Chief Mallikarjun Kharge who was in Bengaluru on the occasion of Republic Day and participated in a flag-raising event at the Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) office said 2024 would be a crucial year for saving the values enshrined in the Constitution.

“The year 2024 is a very important year for India. This year will decide whether we will be able to save the values of the Constitution and democracy or go back to the age where not all people are equal,” Kharge said in his message to party workers.

The Congress president said the Union government was using emotional issues to divert attention and hide the truth from citizens.

“The Constitution ensured fundamental rights, social justice, and political rights to every citizen. Today, these pillars are under attack from the government itself.

“The founding fathers of the Constitution – Pandit Nehru, Babasaheb Ambedkar, Sardar Patel, Babu Rajendra Prasad, Maulana Azad, and others – in the Constituent Assembly would have never imagined that the Constitution would face such challenges, Kharge said.

“Today, the fundamental and basic rights guaranteed by the Constitution to every Indian, are slowly being encroached upon and being eroded. The Constitution ensured fundamental rights, social justice, and political rights to every citizen. Today, these pillars are under attack from the government itself,” he added.

Karnataka Governor Thaawar Chand Gehlot who spoke on behalf of the Congress government in the state – after the Republic Day parade at the Manekshaw Parade ground – said the value of “unity in diversity” must be protected in India.

“India is a nation where humanity has lived since ages. It is a country which is blessed with different religions, societies, cultures, and languages, all interplaying with each other in harmony. We have to establish peace and harmony amongst all by giving the message of ‘unity in diversity’ to the whole world and we should strive for consolidation and solidarity of our national unity,” the Karnataka Governor said.

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News Network
November 22,2025

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The Israeli regime’s forces have killed two Palestinian children in the Gaza Strip every day since the ceasefire began in early October, UNICEF has warned.

The UN children’s agency said on Friday that Israeli forces continue to attack Palestinians in Gaza even though the agreement was meant to stop the killing.

“Since 11 October, while the ceasefire has been in effect, at least 67 children have been killed in conflict-related incidents in the Gaza Strip. Dozens more have been injured. That is an average of almost two children killed every day since the ceasefire took effect,” UNICEF spokesperson Ricardo Pires said in Geneva, reminding that each number in the statistics represents a child whose life had ended violently.

“These are not statistics,” he said. “Each child had a story, a family, and a future that was stolen from them.”

Data from Palestinian factions, human rights groups, and government bodies recorded since the US-brokered ceasefire deal went into effect on October 10 show that Israeli forces have carried out numerous attacks, each constituting a separate ceasefire violation.

UNICEF teams say they repeatedly continue to witness heart-wrenching scenes of fearful Palestinian children sleeping outdoors with amputated limbs, while others live as orphans in flooded, makeshift shelters.

“I saw this myself in August. There is no safe place for them. The world cannot normalize their suffering,” Pires said, lamenting that the UN could “do a lot more if the aid that is really needed was entering faster.”

The UNICEF spokesperson warned that with the advent of winter, the risks for hundreds of thousands of displaced children will increase.

He warned, “The stakes are incredibly high” for children as winter acts as a threat multiplier, where children have no heating, no insulation, and few blankets. He said respiratory infections rise.

“Too many children have already paid the highest price,” Pires said. “Too many are still paying it, even under a ceasefire. The world promised them it would stop and that we would protect them.”

“Now we must act like it,” the UNICEF spokesperson added.

Since the Israeli regime launched its genocidal war against Palestinians in Gaza in October 2023, it has killed nearly 70,000 people in the territory, most of them women and children, and injured over 170,000 more, while reducing most of the structures in the enclave to rubble.

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News Network
December 4,2025

Udupi: A 40-year-old NRI from Udupi has reportedly lost more than Rs 12.25 lakh in an online investment scam operated through Telegram.

According to a complaint filed at the CEN police station, Leo Jerome Mendonsa, who has been working in Dubai for the past 15 years in computer accessories sales, maintains NRI accounts in Karkala and Nitte.

On November 12, 2025, Mendonsa was added to a Telegram group called Instaflow Earnings by unknown individuals. Users identified as Priya and Dipannita persuaded him to invest in “Revenue Tasks.” Initially, Mendonsa transferred Rs 1,100 multiple times and received the promised returns, encouraging him to continue.

On November 14, another user, Nishmitha Shetty, directed him to register on a website, digitvisionuoce.cc, and invest Rs 4 lakh in various shares. Over the next few days, he made multiple transfers totaling Rs 12,25,000, including Rs 50,000 via Google Pay, believing the scheme was legitimate.

After receiving the money, the alleged handlers stopped responding, and neither the invested amount nor the promised profits were returned.

The CEN police have registered a case under Sections 66(C) and 66(D) of the IT Act and Section 318(4) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), and investigations are ongoing.

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News Network
December 1,2025

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Udupi, Dec 1: A horrific case of alleged rape has unfolded in Udupi, where a worker from a Hindutva organisation, previously arrested and released on bail for harassing a young woman, is now accused of waylaying and sexually assaulting her.

The arrested individual has been identified as Pradeep Poojary (26), a member of the Hindu Jagarana Vedike's Nairkode unit in Perdur.

Poojary had allegedly been relentlessly harassing the young woman, pressuring her to marry him. When she bravely stood up to him and refused his demands, she filed a formal complaint at the Hiriyadka police station. He was subsequently arrested in that initial harassment case but was later granted bail.

According to police reports, driven by the same malicious grudge, Poojary allegedly intercepted the woman again on November 29. While she was walking through a deserted area, the accused is claimed to have threatened her by grabbing her neck. When she again refused to marry him, he allegedly proceeded to rape her.

The survivor immediately informed her family about the traumatic assault. Following this, her parents lodged a complaint at the Udupi women’s police station.

Police arrested Poojary again and produced him before the court. He has since been remanded to judicial custody.

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