Somasekhara Commission report has buried the truth: Justice Saldanha

[email protected] (CD Network)
February 13, 2011

saldanha

Udupi, February 13: Former judge of Karnataka High Court M.F. Saldanha said on Saturday that the final report of the Justice B.K. Somasekhara Commission, which went into the church attacks in the State in September 2008, “has buried the truth and is a bundle of falsehoods”.

He was speaking at a public meeting against the Somasekhara Panel's Report organised by the Udupi branch of International Federation of Karnataka Christian Associations and Bharatiya Christa Okkoota, near the Deputy Commissioner Office here.



Mr. Saldanha said the police had colluded with the elements of Bajrang Dal in the church attacks. The then Home Minister V.S. Acharya could not escape the responsibility for these attacks. A nun had lost her eye in the attack.

He had conducted a People's Tribunal Enquiry and had gone into all the facts about the church attacks. He would submit his report to the President of India Pratibha Patil in New Delhi on February 14.

Though the Somasekhara panel blamed the saffron groups in its interim report, the findings of the final report contradicted those of the former. “Unless the guilty are punished, they will feel encouraged,” Mr. Saldanha said.

The former Chairman of Legislative Council David Simeon said the attacks on religious minorities in the State began within six months of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) coming to power in the State. The BJP was raising the bogey of conversion for its own selfish ends.

Recently a large number of Dalits had been converted to Buddhism in Gulbarga. Did the Government arrest them? It was incumbent upon leaders of all political parties to condemn such attacks, Mr. Simeon said.

General secretary of State unit of Karnataka Komu Sauharda Vedike (KKSV) K.L. Ashok said the Somasekhara Panel's report was fit to be consigned to the dust bin. The Report was tailor-made to save the BJP Government from any embarrassment. “If conversions had to be stopped, why was the Pejawar seer visiting Dalit colonies? Any attack on Muslims or Christians is an attack on democracy and secular fabric of the nation,” he said.

The meeting passed six resolutions. The CBI should be asked to probe the church attacks. Continuous protection should be given to places of worship belonging to minority communities. Proper compensation should be given to the places of worship and individuals during the attacks. Organisations and individuals responsible for the attacks should be punished. Cases slapped against innocent youth should be withdrawn.

Episcopal Vicar of Udupi district Baptist Menezes, Area Chairman of Karnataka Southern Diocese Edward Karkada, president of Udupi district unit of KKSV G. Rajashekhar, president of Catholic Sabha, Mangalore, Walter Pinto, president of District Minorities Forum Khatib Rashid, president of Udupi Muslim Okkoota M.P. Moideenabba, Secretary of Popular Front of India Rafiq Majur, president of DSS Udupi unit Shekhar Hejmady were present.

Comments

Add new comment

  • Coastaldigest.com reserves the right to delete or block any comments.
  • Coastaldigset.com is not responsible for its readers’ comments.
  • Comments that are abusive, incendiary or irrelevant are strictly prohibited.
  • Please use a genuine email ID and provide your name to avoid reject.
News Network
March 22,2024

Tejaswi.jpg

Bengaluru, Mar 22: An FIR has been registered against BJP MP Tejasvi Surya over a provocative hate post on social media, Election Commission officials said on Friday.

The move comes after a complaint filed by officials of the poll body and Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) that the Bengaluru South MP, who is also the President of Bharatiya Janata Yuva Morcha, had in a post apparently targeted a minority and spread enmity between two communities.

He also made a similar post on March 19 on X and YouTube which went viral. He has 1.3 million followers on X, thereby influencing the voters and disturbing the communal harmony between the communities, it further alleged.

Based on the complaint, an FIR was registered at Halasuru Gate police station on March 20 under sections 153 A (promoting enmity between different groups on grounds of religion, race, place of birth, residence, language, etc., and doing acts prejudicial to maintenance of harmony), 295 A (Deliberate and malicious acts intended to outrage religious feelings of any class by insulting its religion or religious beliefs) of the Indian Penal Code and the Representation of the People Act, the officials said.

Comments

Add new comment

  • Coastaldigest.com reserves the right to delete or block any comments.
  • Coastaldigset.com is not responsible for its readers’ comments.
  • Comments that are abusive, incendiary or irrelevant are strictly prohibited.
  • Please use a genuine email ID and provide your name to avoid reject.
News Network
March 28,2024

An Indian expatriate, hailing from Dakshina Kannada district in Karnataka, who was detained in Jeddah jail in an alleged cyber case, was set free recently. He is allowed to continue his work in the same company. 

The 49-year-old Mangalurean, has been working for a Maintenance company in Jeddah for more than 13 years. He is known for his efficiency and sincerity in the company with good experience in his field of work. 

His company usually assigned him on duty in Jeddah sea port to take the delivery of the goods consigned to his company. As a part of his duty, he normally takes pictures of the goods before the transportation. He did the same in February 2023 too. 

The security personnel informed the police about his act that amounts to be a violation of the port security rule. He was unaware of the rule as he was doing it normally in the port during the release of the goods. Since then, he was detained by the police on the charge of photographing inside the port premises. After more than 6 months detention, he was released and allowed to work in the same company. 

The detainee’s brother based in Jeddah was constantly pursuing the case.

P A Hameed Padubidri, a pro-bono NRI lawyer and social worker based in Riyadh, extended his socio-humanitarian help in this case upon the request of his family and relatives. 

He actively involved trying to set him free from the jail on humanitarian grounds with the coordination and help of the Consulate General of India (CGI) Jeddah. The CGI keenly followed up the case with the concerned Saudi authorities. He was released from the jail recently and shared his happiness with his family and thanked good samaritans. 

Comments

Add new comment

  • Coastaldigest.com reserves the right to delete or block any comments.
  • Coastaldigset.com is not responsible for its readers’ comments.
  • Comments that are abusive, incendiary or irrelevant are strictly prohibited.
  • Please use a genuine email ID and provide your name to avoid reject.
News Network
March 15,2024

water.jpg

Bengaluru, Mar 15: Work from home to using toilets in malls, residents of India's 'Silicon Valley' Bengaluru are exploring all options to combat the unprecedented water crisis. People across various neighbourhoods have been forced to order food from restaurants and take bath on alternate days due to the water scarcity.

Even those in high-rise apartments equipped with water harvesting systems now find themselves reliant on water tankers for basic needs, leading to stringent usage restrictions.

Eateries are mulling over use of disposable cups, glasses and plates to avoid excess use of water.

Educational institutions are also feeling the pinch. Recently, a coaching centre in the city asked its students to attend classes online due to an 'emergency' for a week. Similarly, a school on Bannerghatta Road was also closed, asking students to attend classes online just like they did during the Covid pandemic.

Residents have come with up new methods to try and conserve water. With temperature rising, it is difficult to avoid a daily shower but they are left with no option but to take bath on alternative days, said Sujatha, a resident of KR Puram.

"What to do? Clean vessels, cook food, wash clothes....so, we have started using paper plates, that way we have cut down on our water usage. And we order food twice a week. We are using the washing machine only once in a week now," she said.

Some others have resorted to visiting a mall to take a shower or use the toilet facilities.

Lakshmi V, an IT professional living in Singasandra, has been requesting her firm to allow WFH option so that she and her family can temporarily shift to her native place in Tiruchirapalli in Tamil Nadu until the situation becomes better.

"If the situation persists, we are thinking of seeking a work from home option. We are planning to move to our native place in Tamil Nadu temporarily till rain arrives here," she said.

Bengaluru primarily gets its water supply from two sources - Cauvery river and groundwater. For most non-drinking uses, recycled water processed by sewage treatment plants is used. With no rain for a while now, the primary sources have been stretched to their limits. Bengaluru needs 2,600-2,800 million litres of water daily, and the current supply is half of what's required. The result is a daily struggle for the city's residents.

The brunt is also being borne by people living in the outskirts of Bengaluru, especially in 110 villages that were merged with the city in 2007.

The crisis has also turned into a political battle between the state's ruling Congress government and the opposition BJP with Lok Sabha just weeks away. While the BJP has held several protests blaming the government, the Congress has accused the BJP-ruled federal government of not providing financial assistance to drought-hit Karnataka.

Comments

Add new comment

  • Coastaldigest.com reserves the right to delete or block any comments.
  • Coastaldigset.com is not responsible for its readers’ comments.
  • Comments that are abusive, incendiary or irrelevant are strictly prohibited.
  • Please use a genuine email ID and provide your name to avoid reject.