Haridwar BJP MLA booked for "repeatedly raping and threatening party worker"

News Network

July 3, 2021

Haridwar, July 3: A prominent BJP leader MLA from Haridwar has been booked for allegedly raping a party worker “several times” and then “threatening her”. The FIR was registered after a court order because, the woman said, police “didn’t file” the case.

The accused, Suresh Rathore, 59, represents the Jwalapur constituency in the assembly.

“I wanted help for public works in my area, for which I had gone to see the MLA. I was waiting inside. He cast indecent glances at me. He raped me 2-3 times. When I tried to stop him, he threatened me … I want justice,” the woman said in a video.

Over a month ago, Rathore had complained that the woman, her husband and three other men had been blackmailing him with an “obscene” video. “She was arrested on May 25,” Rathore told.

After getting bail a week later, the woman tried to file a complaint against Rathore. The police, she said, did not. She approached the local court, seeking an order to file a case. The order came through.

“An FIR has been registered against MLA Suresh Rathore after a court order under sections 376 (rape), 506 (criminal intimidation) and 509 (word, gesture or act intended to insult the modesty of a woman) of the IPC,” Haridwar SSP Senthil Avoodai Krishna Raj S said.

Rathore dismissed it all as political warfare. “It is a conspiracy hatched by an opposition leader with help from a woman,” he said. “I respected the court order and was ready to face inquiry in the case.”

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Mangaluru’s KPT becomes India’s first autonomous govt polytechnic

News Network

January 23,2026

Mangaluru: The Karnataka Government Polytechnic (KPT), Mangaluru, has achieved autonomous status from the All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE), becoming the first government polytechnic in the country to receive such recognition in its 78-year history. The status was granted by AICTE, New Delhi, and subsequently approved by the Karnataka Board of Technical Education in October last year.

Officials said the autonomy was conferred a few months ago. Until recently, AICTE extended autonomous status only to engineering colleges, excluding diploma institutions. However, with a renewed national focus on skill development, several government polytechnics across India have now been granted autonomy.

KPT, the second-largest polytechnic in Karnataka, was established in 1946 with four branches and has since expanded to offer eight diploma programmes, including computer science and polymer technology. The institution is spread across a 19-acre campus.

Ravindra M Keni, the first dean of the institution, told The Times of India that AICTE had proposed autonomous status for polytechnic institutions that are over 25 years old. “Many colleges applied. In the first round, 100 institutions were shortlisted, which was further narrowed down to 15 in the second round. We have already completed one semester after becoming an autonomous institution,” he said. He added that nearly 500 students are admitted annually across eight three-year diploma courses.

Explaining the factors that helped KPT secure autonomy, Keni said the institution has consistently recorded 100 per cent admissions and placements for its graduates. He also noted its strong performance in sports, with the college emerging champions for 12 consecutive years, along with active student participation in NCC and NSS activities.

Autonomous status allows KPT to design industry-oriented curricula, conduct examinations, prepare question papers, and manage academic documentation independently. The institution can also directly collaborate with industries and receive priority funding from AICTE or the Ministry of Education. While academic autonomy has been granted, financial control will continue to rest with the state government.

“There will be separate committees for examinations, question paper setting, boards of studies, and boards of examiners. The institution will now have the freedom to conduct admissions without government notifications and issue its own marks cards,” Keni said, adding that new academic initiatives would be planned after a year of functioning under the autonomous framework.

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