To provoke Hindus during LS polls, Karnataka BJP’s Twitter handle posts fake letter attributed to Cong leader

News Network
April 17, 2019

Bengaluru, Apr 17: In an apparent attempt to mislead and polarize Hindu community on the eve of Apr 18 Lok Sabha polls, Karnataka BJP’s official Twitter handle posted fake letter accusing State Home Minister M B Patil and former Congress supremo Sonia Gandhi of trying to “divide Hindu religion for political gain”.

Shocked over the fake later dating back to 2017, which was in his name, Mr Patil filed a police complaint against the miscreants. "This letter is FAKE. I will be initiating legal action for forgery against those who produced and published it. BJP's desperation is evident. They are wholly relying on fake letters because they have lost the support of people," he tweeted.

A picture of the letter was posted on the BJP’s Twitter page after a Kannada daily, run by a BJP leader, carried a full-page feature based on the letter, which is attributed to the BLDE Association (of which Mr. Patil is chairman) to mislead people. The letter had gone viral when Mr. Patil, who was then the Water Resources Minister, was leading the Lingayat religion movement.

After it surfaced again on Tuesday, Mr. Patil held a press conference in Vijayapura and said it was completely fabricated. He told presspersons that the same letter had been circulated on social media in 2017 in an attempt to defame him. “At the time, I did not take the letter seriously because I thought some mischievous elements might have done it. But now, I will not keep quiet as it has become a major source of spreading canards against me. I will file a complaint and get the cybercrime police investigate the matter and find the truth,” he said. “I am not a person who needs religion for my politics. I believe in Lingayatism and those beliefs made me fight for the separate religion [status]. I don’t need to stoop to this cheap level for political gains.”

The Home Minister also said he would not rest until the case had met its logical end. He then visited the Adarsha Nagar police station in Vijayapura and filed a complaint.

The alleged fake letter seeks the permission and blessings of Ms. Gandhi for “dividing Hindus” as Lingayats and Veerashaivas. The letter also states that Mr. Patil had held a meeting with his Cabinet colleagues and contacted Muslims and Christian organisations, seeking their support to win the general elections in 2019.

A copy of this letter was posted first by the web portal Post Card in the run-up to the 2018 Assembly elections. It was subsequently removed, with the portal saying its authenticity could not be verified.

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News Network
December 15,2025

Udupi, Dec 15: What was meant to be a post-pilgrimage gathering turned tragic in Padukere village of Brahmavar taluk, Udupi district, late Sunday night, when a clash among youths escalated into a fatal assault, leaving one man dead.

The victim has been identified as 30-year-old Santosh Mogaveera, a resident of Padukere.

According to preliminary information, the incident took place during a late-night drinking party involving a group of local youths who had recently returned after completing their pilgrimage to the Sabarimala shrine. An argument reportedly broke out among the group and soon escalated into a violent confrontation.

During the ensuing brawl, Santosh Mogaveera was allegedly assaulted and collapsed at the spot after sustaining serious injuries. He was rushed by local residents to a private hospital in Brahmavar, where doctors declared him dead.

On receiving information, senior police officials, including Brahmavar Circle Inspector Gopikrishna, Kota Police Sub-Inspector Praveen Kumar T, Station ASI Manthesh Jabagoudar, and head constables Pradeep and Ashok, visited the spot and conducted an inspection.

Police have taken four youths into custody in connection with the incident. A case has been registered at the Kota police station, and further investigation is underway to ascertain the exact sequence of events leading to the death.

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coastaldigest.com news network
December 2,2025

karkala.jpg

Udupi, Dec 2: A wave of regional pride is sweeping through Udupi district as Shagun S Verma Hegde, a talented Class 9 student from Christ King English Medium High School, Karkala, has been named the captain of the Indian National Team for the Under-15 Girls’ Volleyball Championship.

Shagun holds the unique distinction of being the sole player from Karnataka selected to represent the country in the prestigious international tournament. The championship, organized by the School Games Federation, is scheduled to take place in Shangluo, China, from December 3 to 13, where Shagun will lead the national squad.

A Remarkable Journey to the Top

Shagun’s selection is a testament to her dedication and exceptional skill on the court. Her journey included several rigorous rounds of selection:

•    She was the only player from Udupi district to qualify for the state-level selection camp.

•    Out of eight players from Karnataka who advanced to the national selection camp in Pune, Maharashtra, Shagun was the only one to secure a place in the final national squad.

•    The national camp saw participation from approximately 200 players, which was shortlisted to 23. Shagun not only made the final cut but was also ranked as the second-best player overall, solidifying her leadership role.

Shagun, who is the daughter of Sandesh Verma and Shruthiraj of Kallotte, Karkala, has trained under experienced coaches Santosh D’Souza, Jeevan D’Silva, Jairaj Poojary, and Ramesh. Her selection as the team captain has brought profound honour to her family, school, the Udupi district, and the entire state of Karnataka.

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News Network
December 5,2025

Mangaluru: In a significant step to curb online hate and intimidation, Mangaluru City Police have registered a suo motu case against multiple Instagram accounts accused of circulating alleged provocative and threatening content.

While monitoring social media activity on Tuesday, Kankanady Town PSI Anitha Nikkam identified the Instagram handle ‘team_targetttt_900’ for posting a hate message alongside images of lethal weapons. Another account, ‘team_nagara_900’, allegedly shared a threatening post targeting activist Bharath Kumdelu, tagging additional pages such as KARAVALI-OFFICIAL.

Several other accounts — including ‘immu_bhai.fan’, ‘target_boy_900’, ‘kings_of_manglore’, ‘team_target_boys.900’, ‘arshad_mangalore’, ‘target_ka19_ullal’, ‘team_target__’, ‘troll_tigersz_900’, ‘tr_group_900’, and ‘team_target_900’ — are also under scrutiny for spreading similar inflammatory material, police said.

Authorities have urged citizens, especially young social media users, to report suspicious pages and avoid engaging with groups that glorify violence or threaten individuals. Online hate can quickly escalate into real-world harm, and police stress that sharing or promoting such content can attract legal consequences.

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