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Bengaluru, Sept 15: The Karnataka High Court has directed the police not to take precipitative action against Aaj Tak news channel's Consulting Editor Sudhir Chaudhary in an FIR filed against him, but said that there was a prima facie case against him, and it should be investigated. The court also said that it would dispose of the petition filed by Chaudhary challenging the FIR and that there was no need for custodial interrogation till then.

The interim order sought by Chaudhary for stay was not granted as the HC ordered the petition to be posted for hearing on September 20. Chaudhary had challenged the FIR lodged at the Seshadripuram police station in Bengaluru after a complaint by Shivakumar S, the Assistant Administrative Officer of the Karnataka Minorities Development Corporation Limited. The single judge bench of Justice Hemant Chandangoudar who heard the petition observed during the hearing that there was a prima facie case for investigation.

“The specific allegation was that the government is providing a scheme only to minorities and depriving Hindus. There is a prima facie case for investigation,” the HC said. Senior counsel Uday Holla argued the case for Chaudhary. The HC said that the scheme established for minorities by the Minority Development Corporation can be criticised by any person including the media but the case against Chaudhary -- “whether the allegations that news item telecasted by petitioner satisfies essentials of Section 153A IPC (promoting enmity between different groups on grounds of religion, race, place of birth, residence, language, etc., and doing acts prejudicial to maintenance of harmony) -- needs to be examined.” However, in relief for Chaudhary, the HC has said there won't be any custodial interrogation or arrests. “Till Tuesday (Sep 19) don't take any precipitative action. I am going to hear the matter. This matter is to be disposed of. I cannot keep it pending. I need time to hear the matter till Tuesday,” the court said, adjourning the hearing.

Holla argued that the scheme was only for minorities. The HC however pointed out that it was not what was telecast on the news channel. “The average man may develop hatred towards minorities saying they have been given and not me,” observed the HC, which also pointed out the claim in the news report that said “84 per cent (of beneficiaries) come from a specific minority community.” Chaudhary has been booked under Section 153A (promoting enmity on grounds of religion) and other sections of the Indian Penal Code (IPC). The complaint had alleged that Chaudhary had conspired to disrupt communal harmony by spreading misinformation on his channel about the Karnataka government’s 'Swavalambi Sarathi Scheme'.

The scheme provides 50 per cent subsidy on bank loans obtained by religious minorities for purchase of commercial transport vehicles up to ₹three lakh. It was alleged that Chaudhary in a news programme on Aaj Tak channel spread misinformation about the government practicing minority appeasement. 

Bengaluru, Sept 21: JD(S) leader H D Kumaraswamy on Thursday left for New Delhi to meet Union Home Minister Amit Shah and BJP national President J P Nadda to discuss the alliance between the two parties in Karnataka for the 2024 Lok Sabha elections.

The former Chief Minister said his father and JD(S) patriarch H D Deve Gowda also may hold talks on this with Prime Minister Narendra Modi, if required.

Gowda, who is a Rajya Sabha member from Karnataka, is in Delhi.

"This evening there is a meeting, once we have the outcome of the meeting, tomorrow I will share everything openly with your Delhi correspondents", Kumarswamy said before leaving for the national capital.

Speaking to reporters here, he said, there has been no discussion on seat sharing between both parties till now.

"Neither have we thought about it (seats) so far, nor have they (BJP) proposed anything in this regard. When we discuss in the evening, we will discuss in detail about the current situation in all 28 (Lok Sabha) seats, what was the situation in the earlier election and what is the situation after the 2023 Assembly polls", added.

Asked whether the alliance will be finalised today, Kumaraswamy said, "Let's see". To a question as to whom he will be meeting in Delhi, he said, "Discussion is with their (BJP) decision makers like Amit Shah (Home Minister) and their President J P Nadda. If required Narendra Modi and Deve Gowda will talk".

Talks on alliance between the two parties have been in the limelight ever since veteran BJP leader B S Yediyurappa, who is also a parliamentary board member of the party, had earlier this month said his party will have an understanding with JD(S) for the Lok Sabha elections, and the regional outfit will contest in four LS seats in Karnataka, which has a total of 28 constituencies.

However, Yediyurappa subsequently said discussions in this regard have not reached finality yet, and Modi and Shah, who are busy with other responsibilities, may discuss and decide on the issue in a few days.

The BJP had swept the 2019 Lok Sabha polls in Karnataka, winning 25 seats, while an independent (Sumalatha Ambareesh from Mandya) backed by it won one seat. The Congress and JD(S) won one seat each.

In the elections to the 224-member Assembly held in May this year, the Congress bagged 135 seats, while the BJP secured 66 and the JD(S) 19.

Following the Assembly poll results, there were reports that JD(S) would enter into an alliance with the BJP to fight the Lok Sabha polls. It was also said that the JD(S) leaders had met BJP central leadership in Delhi in this regard.

However, Deve Gowda had subsequently indicated the party will contest the Lok Sabha polls alone.
JD(S) had contested the 2019 Lok Sabha polls in alliance with the Congress, as both parties were then running an coalition government under the Chief Ministership of Kumaraswamy.

Following the Assembly poll debacle, BJP, wary of its performance in the Lok Sabha elections, seems to be open for an alliance with JD(S), aimed at regaining maximum number of seats, sources from both parties said, adding, it hopes JD(S) votes may get transferred to it, especially in the old Mysuru region where the regional party has significant presence.

For JD(S), it is a matter of survival, and the party hopes to better its prospects by forging an alliance with BJP in the backdrop of the Congress reported attempts to weaken it by wooing its leaders, they said.

JD(S) had earlier formed governments in coalition with both BJP and Congress respectively for 20 months from January 2006, and for 14 months from May 2018, with Kumaraswamy as the chief minister.

Canadian tourists, business travelers and even some former Indian citizens are rushing to change flights and inquire about their trip deposits after India abruptly suspended visa applications in the country amid an escalating diplomatic row.

A day after the Indian government warned its citizens in Canada to “exercise utmost caution” and hinted that their safety is threatened, BLS International — an agency that processes visa requests in Canada — posted an online notice saying services have been “suspended until further notice.”

“This shouldn’t happen for the innocent people,” said Jothy Ilangovan, standing in line outside the BLS office in Toronto. She was there to help her brother, a Canadian citizen who has lived in the country for 33 years, obtain a visa for a Hindu pilgrimage back to India. He had already booked his vacation time from work and feared the trip would be canceled. “We want to go to the temple and pray, that’s it.”

Ties between Canada and India are at their lowest point in decades after Prime Minister Justin Trudeau accused the Indian government of orchestrating the assassination of Hardeep Singh Nijjar, a Canadian activist who was pushing for an independent Sikh homeland in the Punjab region. 

India has denied the allegation, calling it “absurd” and hitting back with measures aimed at curbing travel between two nations.

Montreal-based engineering firm SNC-Lavalin Group Inc., which now operates under the brand name of AtkinsRéalis, has limited travel to India for Canadian employees to “essential reasons only” until further notice, the firm’s spokesperson, Laurence Myre Leroux, said in an email. There hasn’t been any impact on operations so far, she added, but the situation is being monitored “closely.”

India’s move means most Canadians won’t be able to travel there if they don’t already have a visa. Travel agents said e-visa applications online were also not being processed for Canadians. And while Canadians who previously held Indian passports are eligible for Overseas Citizen of India cards — which allow visa-free entry — many do not hold them.

“This is going to impact Canada, and its trade and economy, where India has played a big role,” said Unnati Oza, a Toronto-based travel agent. “I used to work with a client who used to go there twice a year for business — to Delhi, Bangalore and Chennai. Where are Canadians going to go after this?”

It’s not just business travel. The visa suspension is also hitting leisure travelers: Canadians made 280,000 tourist arrivals in India last year, according to Indian government data, making it the No. 5 source of such visitors.

“I already have four or five people calling me this morning. They’re due to go in October and November for eight to 10 days of sightseeing. Now, they’re worried because the tours are non-refundable,” said Ottawa-based travel agent Lalit Sharma, who specializes in India. “If they don’t have the visas, they can’t go.”

At the BLS office in Toronto, a sign told visitors that visa services were suspended for “operational reasons.” Most of the people in line on Thursday morning were there to renew their Indian passports, but others were trying to get advice on the visa suspension.

Mithun Ganguly’s prospects were better, having come to the BLS office to renew his passport. A recent arrival to Canada, he said he doesn’t feel unsafe in the country, regardless of the current Indian advisory. 

“Canada is a nice country to stay in, as well as India, so I think we should talk,” he said. “The tensions are not good for either of the countries.”