Udupi’s Sambratha Shetty among 5 Indians to attend US govt’s 'Leaders Lead on-Demand' program

Belagavi, Mar 20: KPCC president DK Shivakumar said he appealed to Nirmalananda Swamiji of Adichunchanagiri Mahasamsthana Mutt to take lead against BJP’s communal agenda of creating disturbance in the society, through imaginary characters Uri Gowda and Nanje Gowda, claiming that both have killed Tipu Sultan.

He said Nirmalanandanatha Swamiji along with seers from other communities and Kannada organisations in Karnataka should undertake a movement against "acts of tampering" with history and giving a wrong message to the society. 

Shivakumar alleged BJP leaders are trying to hurt sentiments of the people by tampering with the history in a false way and said it is condemnable.

"There was a history and gazetteer about the life and death of Tipu Sultan while BJP National General Secretary C T Ravi, Higher Education Minister Dr C N Ashwath Narayan and Union Minister of State for Agriculture Shobha Karandlaje were attempting to present wrong imaginative history," he said.

Shivakumar said that Tipu Sultan was killed 200 years ago, but now BJP wants to give a new twist to the history by stating that Urigowda and Nanjegowda killed him. "We too have read the history of Tipu Sultan and no such persons existed. It's the imagination of BJP leaders and now they want to make a film on their story."

Nirmalanandanatha Swamiji should oppose such acts and stage a movement against them by taking seers of different communities and Kannada organisations with him.

"The acts of BJP leaders were to tamper with history and anti-Hindu. Wrong history was propagated by BJP's 'WhatsApp university'. The seer should not talk with the producer or director of the film or enter into any compromise. I have held talks with the seer over the phone and have been making an appeal through media,'' he stated.

Shivakumar said Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai panicked after Congress commenced the announcement of its guarantees to the people if voted to power. 

"Bommai has been announcing schemes now which should have been implemented earlier. Now, elections could be announced anytime and he has been announcing programmes for women and youth after Congress announced them. Instead, they should have been made part of the BJPs election manifesto. BJP has been following the line of thinking of Congress," he said.

"Congress has been fixing the narrative for the Assembly election while the BJP's narrative was corruption. BJP has given the most corrupt government in the country and does not have any concern for youth and women," he added.

"Corruption in employment has led to youth being deprived of opportunities. There was the involvement of a minister and officials in corruption and MLAs acted as a conduit. BJP had been demanding evidence of corruption and Lokyukta has given it," he further said.

Chennai, Mar 9: Defections from the Tamil Nadu unit of the BJP continued on Wednesday as 13 party functionaries, including an IT wing office bearer quit the saffron organisation.

Orathi Anbarasu, IT wing chief of the party's Chennai west unit and 12 others quit the party but made it clear they would not join the ruling DMK. They would follow the political path of their "leader" and former State IT wing chief CTR Nirmal Kumar, who had also quit the BJP and joined the AIADMK.

A couple of other party functionaries had also left the BJP and joined the K Palaniswami-led AIADMK which has led to a war of words between the two allies. In a statement, Anbarasu said he had been in the BJP for long and said he did not want to fall prey to "conspiracies " in the party and was therefore quitting it.

Meanwhile, responding to a query raised by mediapersons in Coimbatore, BJP State president K Annamalai said that the issue of some second or third rung leaders leaving the party has taken a bigger dimension, as other parties were keenly watching the developments in BJP.

"There are possibilities of some big leaders leaving BJP and big leaders coming to the party after three months," he said. Annamalai said that he had not joined BJP to have a MP or MLA tag behind his name but for the growth of the party.

Hubballi, Mar 12: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday dedicated to the nation the "longest railway platform in the world" at Shree Siddharoodha Swamiji Hubballi Station near here.

The record has been recognised by the Guinness Book of World Records recently, officials said, adding that the 1,507 m long platform has been built at a cost of about Rs 20 crore.

Modi at an event here, also dedicated the electrification of Hosapete – Hubballi – Tinaighat section and the upgradation of Hosapete station, for boosting connectivity in the region.

Developed at a cost of over Rs 530 crore, the electrification project establishes seamless train operation on electric traction. The redeveloped Hosapete station will provide convenient and modern facilities to travellers. It has been designed to resemble the Hampi monuments, officials said.

The PM also inaugurated and laid the foundation stone for various projects of Hubballi-Dharwad smart city. The total estimated cost of these projects is about Rs 520 crores.

He also laid the foundation stone of the Jayadeva Hospital and Research Centre, which will be developed at a cost of about Rs. 250 crores and will provide tertiary cardiac care to the people of the region, and for the Dharwad Multi Village Water Supply Scheme, which will be developed at a cost of over Rs. 1,040 crores.

He also laid the foundation stone for Tupparihalla Flood Damage Control Project, which will be developed at a cost of about Rs 150 crores,officials said.

The project aims to mitigate damage caused by floods and involves construction of retaining walls and embankments.