2 years after expelled from BSP, MLA Mahesh to join BJP on Aug 5 in presence of Nalin Kateel

News Network
August 2, 2021

Bengaluru, Aug 2: Kollegal MLA N Mahesh, expelled from the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP), is all sent to join the BJP on August 5 in the presence of party’s state president Nalin Kumar Kateel in Bengaluru.

"For the sake of my future in politics, I've decided to join the BJP" Mahesh, who was ousted from the BSP in 2019, confirmed.

Asked whether he had discussed about his joining the BJP with party veteran and former Karnataka Chief Minister B S Yediyurappa, Mahesh said, "Yes, he asked me to join." 

Mahesh was seen along with Yediyurappa during his visit to Chamarajanagar district last week to console the family of his supporter, who allegedly died by suicide, as he was upset over the resignation (of Yediyurappa) from the post of the Chief Minister. 

The Kollegal MLA said he decided to join the BJP keeping in mind his political future and the future of his constituency. 

"All my well wishers and karyakartas suggested that it was safe for us to go to BJP, as Congress will be difficult for us. There is no place in Congress too as it never invited me to the party, while BJP has been asking me to join it for two years now," he said. 

Stating that he has not put any condition for joining the party like becoming a Minister in the new Cabinet led by Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai, Mahesh said neither the party has assured anything nor has he put any such condition. 

"They (BJP) have told me, come let’s work together. I have had association with them for the last two years, it has convinced me (to join the party)," he said. 

To a question on him accepting a divergent ideology by joining the BJP, Mahesh said, "Ultimately what is the net result of the ideology? It is working for the people. We will have to work for the people. I think I will have the opportunity to work for the people and continue with it." 

National president of BSP Mayawati had, in July 2019, expelled the lone party MLA in Karnataka Mahesh for allegedly violating the party decision to vote in favour of the H D Kumaraswamy government that lost the trust-vote in the Assembly. 

The BSP had contested the May 2018 Assembly polls by tying up with the JD(S) which, in a post-election understanding, joined hands with Congress to form the government following a fractured verdict. Mahesh, who was part of the Kumaraswamy Cabinet as the Primary and Secondary Education Minister had in October 2018 quit his post citing personal reasons. 

But, he had said he would continue to support the ruling coalition. After the BJP came to power following the collapse of Congress-JD(S) government led by Kumaraswamy, he has been taking a stand in favour of the saffron party in the Assembly. Out of four Assembly segments in Chamarajanagar district, the ruling BJP has only one MLA, and the induction of Mahesh is likely to help the party in the region in the days to come.

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News Network
March 28,2024

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Russia says it is "extremely hard to believe" that Daesh could have staged the recent hugely deadly attack on a Moscow concert hall that the country's intelligence and security officials have blamed on Ukraine and its Western backers.

Four gunmen burst into the Russian capital's Crocus City Hall on Friday and began shooting at the people, who were attending an event. The Takfiri terrorist group has allegedly claimed responsibility for the massacre that killed at least 143.

Speaking on Wednesday, however, Russian foreign ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova cast that claim into serious doubt.

"In order to ward off suspicions from the collective West, they urgently needed to come up with something, so they resorted to ISIS (Daesh), pulled an ace out of their sleeve, and literally a few hours after the terrorist attack, the Anglo-Saxon media began disseminating precisely these versions," she said.

The chief of the Russian internal intelligence (FSB), Alexander Bortnikov has suggested that not only Ukraine, but also the United States and Britain might have been behind the shooting.

The Russian Federal Security Service has also said the gunmen planned to travel to Ukraine, where they were to be welcomed as "heroes." The FSB said Western intelligence services aided the attackers.

Russian President Vladimir Putin has also suggested that Ukraine stood to derive benefit from the attack and that Kiev might have played a role.

He has said that someone on the Ukrainian side had prepared a "window" for the gunmen to escape across the border before they were captured in western Russia on Friday night.

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News Network
March 28,2024

Mangaluru, Mar 28: Dakshina Kannada deputy commissioner Mullai Muhilan MP has warned the individuals and political parties against the poll code violations during private events. 
 
“Private events such as marriages, birthdays, housewarming ceremonies, and other non-political programmes do not require any permission. However, one should ensure that there is no violation of the model code of conduct (MCC) at these functions. Permission is needed if the events are attended by politicians or candidates,” the DC said. 

He said that these gatherings will be under the surveillance of MCC teams, as there are chances of luring voters by campaigning and supplying food, said the DC. The district has 38,386 new voters, of which, 19,619 are men.

He said that the notification of election in Dakshina Kannada Lok Sabha constituency will be issued soon, and the filing of nominations will be held between 11 am and 3 pm till April 4. 

Only five persons, including the candidate, will be allowed to enter the returning officer’s chamber to submit the nominations. A facilitation centre will be opened at the DC’s office. 

The expenditure of the candidate will be counted from the day the candidate files the nomination.

The DC said that the district is not an expenditure-sensitive constituency. Assistant expenditure observers and expenditure observers will monitor the expenditure of the candidates. An expenditure book will be provided to the candidate to record expenditure incurred, he explained.

Further, he said that no election materials can be printed without the name and address of the publishers, and the number of copies printed. Separate permission should be availed for procession prior to the submission of nomination papers from the ARO office, through the single-window system.

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News Network
March 27,2024

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New Delhi, Mar 27: The government has objected strongly to remarks by a US State Department spokesperson on Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal's arrest last week in connection with the alleged liquor policy scam.

The External Affairs Ministry summoned Gloria Berbena, the US' Acting Deputy Chief of Mission, to a 40-minute meet at its office in Delhi on Wednesday afternoon. In a brief statement released shortly afterwards, the MEA warned of "unhealthy precedents and against "unwarranted aspersions".

"States are expected to be respectful of the sovereignty and internal affairs of others, and this responsibility is even more so in case of fellow democracies. It could otherwise end up setting unhealthy precedents," the External Affairs Ministry said.

"India's legal processes are based on an independent judiciary which is committed to objective and timely outcomes. Casting aspersions on that is unwarranted," the statement stressed.

On Tuesday the US State Department said it is monitoring reports of Mr Kejriwal's arrest, and called on New Delhi to ensure "a fair and timely legal process" for the jailed Aam Aadmi Party leader.

The US State Department's comments came, in turn, days after Germany's Foreign Office stressed that Mr Kejriwal, like any other Indian citizen facing charges, is entitled to a fair and impartial trial.

The Indian government reacted strongly to the comment, summoning the German envoy and labelling the Foreign Office spokesperson's remark "blatant interference in internal matters".

"We see such remarks as interfering in our judicial process and undermining the independence of our judiciary," the External Affairs Ministry said, "Biased assumptions are most unwarranted."

Asked about India's protest to Germany, the State Department spokesperson told Reuters, "We refer you to the German Foreign Ministry for comment on their discussions with the Indian government."

Earlier this month the Modi government also took exception to comments by its counterpart on the changes to the citizenship law, calling them out as "misplaced, misinformed, and unwarranted".

Arvind Kejriwal was arrested by the Enforcement Directorate last week in connection with the alleged liquor policy scam that has roiled his AAP and provoked furious protests from the opposition ahead of the 2024 Lok Sabha election. Mr Kejriwal was this week sent to jail till March 28.

The Enforcement Directorate believes the now-scrapped liquor policy provided an impossibly high profit margin of 185 per cent for retailers and 12 per cent for wholesalers. Of the latter, six per cent - over ₹ 600 crore - were bribes and the money was allegedly used to fund the AAP's poll campaigns.

The ED has labelled the Chief Minister as a key conspirator in this case, but Mr Kejriwal and party colleagues arrested in this matter - ex-Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia, Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Singh, and former Health Minister Satyendar Jain - have all denied the charges.

The AAP and the opposition have hit out at the BJP-led central government for using central agencies, like the ED, to target rivals and critics before the general election. The AAP has criticised Mr Kejriwal's arrest on grounds it was timed to interfere with his plans to campaign for the party.

The BJP has dismissed claims it uses central agencies as described by the opposition.

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