Rizwan Arshad hits out at Vishwanath for remove Rahul, bring Priyanka ' demand

June 30, 2014

Bangalore, Jun 30: Hitting out at former MP from Mysore H Vishwanath who squarely blamed Rahul Gandhi for rout in Lok Sabha elections, the Karnataka Pradesh Youth Congress Committee (KPYCC) president Rizwan Arshad said that Mr Gandhi struggled hard to strengthen the party at grass root level.

“Do not forget Mr Gandhi did not aspire for power though congress was at the helm for 10 long years,” he said.

He raised the issue at the two-day introspection meeting of the Congress, which concluded on Sunday chaired by Congress leader Digvijaya Singh at Palace Grounds in Bangalore.

His reaction came in response to former Vishwanath who demanded Priyanka Gandhi to lead the party. He is said to have made a strong plea that the party reins be handed over to Priyanka Gandhi to revive its fortunes after the drubbing in the recent Lok Sabha election.

However, the senior leader had to face strong rebuke and protest from Youth Congress activists when he openly said that Rahul Gandhi cannot be expected to lead the party effectively.

According to a party leader, Vishwanath said, “Rahul may be a party leader, but Priyanka is a mass leader. People have not accepted his leadership in the Lok Sabha election. Priyanka should be brought in to lead from the front.”

Rahul 's supporters, led by Mr Arshad, raised slogans against Vishwanath. While Vishwanath 's views drew applause from a section of the gathering, many leaders had to intervene to prevent the situation from taking an ugly turn.

Addressing the meet, Chief Minister Siddaramaiah tried to play down the incident, saying, “Vishwanath has expressed his personal views on Priyanka. Sonia and Rahul are our leaders. Priyanka is a member of the Nehru family. We have great respect for her too.”

Senior Congress leader M V Rajasekharan 's efforts to raise the demand for making KPCC president G Parameshwara the deputy CM drew strong objection. Even as Rajasekharan tried to raise the issue, he was shouted down. The gathering protested against pushing a personal agenda as the meeting was convened to discuss ways to strengthen the party.

The KPCC president appealed to the gathering not to make it an issue and said the party high command will take a decision in this regard.

Protest

Congress workers from Gulbarga and Bidar caused further embarrassment for the leaders as they protested against pictures of Mallikarjun Kharge, Congress floor leader in the Lok Sabha, missing on the banners put up at Palace Grounds, the venue of the meeting. The protesters calmed down only after appeals from the leaders not to make it a big issue

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Air India Express brings back Mangaluru–Muscat direct flights from March 2026

News Network

December 15,2025

Mangaluru, Dec 15: Air India Express has announced that it will resume direct flight services between Mangaluru and Muscat from March 2026, restoring an important international air link for passengers from the coastal region.

Airport authorities said the service will operate twice a week—on Sundays and Tuesdays—from March 1. The initial flights are scheduled on March 3, 8 and 10, followed by March 15 and 17, with the same operating pattern to continue thereafter. The flight duration is approximately three hours and 25 minutes.

The Mangaluru–Muscat route was earlier operated under the 2025 summer schedule, with services beginning on July 14. At that time, Air India Express had operated four flights a week before suspending the service.

Officials said the summer schedule will come into effect from March 29, after which changes in flight timings and departure schedules from Mangaluru are expected. Passengers have been advised to check the latest schedules while planning their travel.

The resumption of direct flights to Muscat is expected to significantly benefit expatriates, business travellers and others, further strengthening Mangaluru’s air connectivity with the Gulf region.

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