Will you take action against Anantkumar Hegde to demonstrate commitment to Constitution?: Congress to PM Modi

News Network
March 12, 2024

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The Congress on Tuesday attacked Prime Minister Narendra Modi over Anantkumar Hegde's remark about amending the Constitution, asking whether he would take action against the BJP MP to demonstrate his commitment to the Constitution.

Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh hit out at the prime minister who is on a visit to Gujarat and Rajasthan and posed five questions to Modi.

"The prime minister is in Ahmedabad for the Sabarmati Ashram Memorial Project. While the prime minister is embracing the Mahatma for his political gains, will he commit to Mahatma Gandhi's ideals of non-violence, inclusivity, and equality?" he said in a post on X.

The Congress leader also asked whether PM Modi would take action against Anantkumar Hegde, the BJP MP from Karnataka, to demonstrate his personal commitment to the Constitution that he swore an oath to bear true faith and allegiance to.

Hegde, at a gathering at Karwar in Karnataka on Saturday, had said the BJP needed a two-third majority in both Houses of Parliament to amend the Constitution and 'set right the distortions and unnecessary additions made to it by the Congress'.

In his posers to the prime minister, Ramesh also asked whether PM Modi would explain the 14 paper leaks that have occurred in Gujarat over the last seven years.

'The Congress has announced a comprehensive plan, 'Paper Leak se Mukti' under its Yuva Nyay guarantees to tackle the issue. How does the Prime Minister plan to address it?' he said.

Ramesh said on crucial indicators of development, Gujarat fares poorly compared to other states.

'Gujarat does worse on retention of students in higher secondary education and spends less on public education than poorer states like Rajasthan and Chhattisgarh. Gujarat currently ranks 10th among 20 major states in terms of its population living Below Poverty Line,' he said.

'Despite the prime minister's public posturing on 'Beti Bachao, Beti Padhao', Gujarat ranks 15th out of 20 states in sex ratio. How does PM Modi reconcile the reality of Gujarat's socio-economic backwardness with the 'Gujarat Model' that he publicised in 2014 or the 'Double Engine' Sarkar model that he espouses today? the Congress leader said.

Ramesh said Prime Minister Modi will also visit Pokhran in Rajasthan, made famous exactly 50 years ago by Indira Gandhi as the site of India's first 'peaceful nuclear explosion', to celebrate India's indigenous defence capabilities which have incidentally been developed despite his best efforts.

'The share of expenditure on defence has fallen from 17.43 per cent of the Union Budget in FY19 to 13 per cent for FY25. As percentage of GDP, it has fallen from 2.13 per cent to 1.9 per cent between 2014 and 2024 - below the global standard of at least 2 per cent,' he said.

How does the prime minister intend to safeguard India's border or show China his 'Lal aankh' (red eye) without adequate expenditure on the armed forces, Ramesh asked.

'In the same vein, the prime minister has set up two committees in the last three years to investigate ways in which he can privatise or shut down the DRDO. The K VijayRaghavan committee has reportedly suggested that the DRDO's role be limited to research and development without being involved in developing prototypes or technology demonstrations,' he said.

'Instead, any production and further development would be done by selected private players. What is the prime minister's motivation in privatising defence research and development? Is it an attempt to bring his favoured industrialist friends into the industry through the backdoor?' Ramesh asked.

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News Network
November 22,2025

The Karnataka government has announced a 50% rebate on pending traffic and transport fines. The discount is available from November 21 to December 12.

The rebate applies to all traffic e-challans and violation cases booked by the RTO between 1991–92 and 2019–20. Officials clarified that the offer is not applicable to pending tax dues and is restricted only to traffic-violation fines.

Across Karnataka, more than 4 lakh RTO cases remain pending, including those involving transport vehicles. While thousands of vehicle owners have already cleared their dues, the department expects to generate substantial revenue through this limited-period rebate.

How to Pay and Avail the Discount

There are three ways to check and pay your pending fines:

1. Through Mobile Apps
Available on both Play Store and App Store:
•    Karnataka State Police (KSP) app
•    KarnatakaOne app
•    ASTraM app

Steps:
•    Enter your vehicle number in any of the above apps
•    Verify the photo/details of your vehicle
•    Pay the fine with the 50% discount applied

2. Visit a Traffic Police Station

You can pay your pending fine at any nearby traffic police station.

3. Visit the Traffic Management Centre (TMC)

•    Location: First Floor, Infantry Road, near Indian Express, Bengaluru

Transport Commissioner Yogeesh A M said, “We don't issue e-challans, so there's no online payment system.”

The department estimates ₹52 crore in pending RTO fines up to March 2020. “With the 50% rebate, we expect to collect around ₹25 crore if all dues are cleared,” he added.

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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
November 21,2025

Bantwal: A domestic dispute appears to have led to a violent confrontation in BC Road area, where the owner of a textile shop was allegedly attacked with a knife by his wife on Wednesday evening.

Krishna Kumar Somayaji, the owner of Somayaji Textiles, sustained serious injuries in the incident and was immediately taken to a hospital for treatment. He is currently receiving care in the intensive care unit and is reported to have survived the assault, according to police.

The Bantwal Town police have registered a case against Somayaji's wife, Jyothi KT, who has since been taken into custody.

Police stated that the complainant, Namita, an employee at the shop, reported the sequence of events. She stated that around 7 p.m. on Wednesday, the suspect entered the shop, wearing a burqa and disguised as a customer, before attacking Somayaji with a knife. The employee then transported the injured owner to a local hospital via an autorickshaw.

Superintendent of Police Arun K confirmed that an ongoing domestic dispute between Somayaji and his wife reportedly preceded the attack. Police noted that Jyothi KT had previously visited the shop and issued threats.

Based on the complaint, Bantwal Town police have registered a case under relevant sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) and the Indian Arms Act-1959. An investigation into the incident is currently underway.

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