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Bengaluru, May 24: A couple got married in Bengaluru today, even as Karnataka government has announced a complete lockdown on Sundays, as part of the fourth phase of COVID-19 shutdown till the end of this month.

The marriage ceremony on this Sunday was possible thanks to a clarification given by the state government for marriages, which has been already scheduled for May 24 and May 31 to be exempted from the Sunday complete lockdown.

At today's wedding, the rituals were performed with compliance of all guidelines including ensuring social distancing and capping the number of guests at 50.

Satish, the groom said, "Government has allowed weddings with up to 50 people in attendance but we decided to invite only 25 people to the ceremony".

Meanwhile, in the Honnali Honnali area of Davanagere, BJP MLA MP Renukacharya distributed masks to three newly-wed couples.

As per an earlier advisory issued by the State government more than 50 guests, no air conditioning, and the consumption of liquor and paan are among the guidelines to be followed for holding weddings in the state. Also, people aged above 65 and below 10 as well as pregnant women have been barred from participating in the event.

According to the advisory, sanitisers should be provided at the entry and other appropriate places at the venue. Also, thermal screening of all persons shall be conducted at the entry of the venue. The scanner should be held 3-15 cms away from a person's forehead.

Apart from this, the venue shall be "clean and hygienic," and a "nodal person shall be identified for overseeing the arrangements and coordination at the venue." Also, a list of attendees with contact details has to be maintained and all guests should have downloaded Aarogya Setu app.

Kollam, Mar 27: A young IAS officer in Kerala has been booked by police after he left the state violating instructions to remain under home quarantine following his recent return from honeymoon abroad, officials said on Friday.

A First Information Report has been registered against Kollam sub-collector Anupam Mishra, who hails from Uttar Pradesh, based on a report from the Health department about the violation, Kollam Superintendent of Police T Narayanan said.

Describing the action of the officer as a “serious matter”, District Collector B. Abdul Nasser said Mishra had returned to Kerala on March 19 from his Malaysia-Singapore trip and was advised to remain under quarantine, as per the protocol for overseas returnees in the backdrop of coronavirus outbreak.

On his return to Kerala from the foreign trip, Mishra had undergone medical examination and did not show symptoms. His personal staff, including gunman, have also been kept under observation.

However, the officer had left for his brother’s place in Bengaluru without informing anyone, Nasser said.

When the Collector got in touch with him, Mishra informed him that he was in Bengaluru.

“He was on leave after his marriage and took permission to travel to Malaysia and Singapore. On his return I advised him to remain under home quarantine. Seems like he left to be with his family at Bengaluru,” Nasser told PTI.

However, police said Mishra’s mobile tower location shows Kanpur in Uttar Pradesh.

Authorities came to know on Thursday that Mishra, who had been staying alone in his quarters at Kollam, was not there after health department staff, who regularly visit people in quarantine, found the lights in his house switched off, police sources said.

“The officer has gone without prior permission or leave. He did not have any symptoms of the virus. Without informing us, he left. It is a serious matter, the collector said adding Mishra has been asked to provide his current address and travel details to Bengaluru.”

When an officer leaves his jurisdiction, he is supposed to inform the government, which Mishra did not do. He has also not taken prior permission for leaving the state, the later told reporters.

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The state government has sought an explanation from the officer in this regard.

A case has been registered against him under various sections of the Indian Penal Code including 188 (disobedience to order duly promulgated by public servant), 269 (Negligent Act likely to spread infection of disease dangerous to life) and 271 (disobedience to quarantine rule), police said.

Kollam, is the only district in the state, which has not reported any positive case of COVID-19 so far. A total of 176 positive cases have been reported in the state so far.

Indore, Jan 24: Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Kailash Vijayvargiya on Thursday said that he suspected that there were some Bangladeshis among construction labourers who worked at his house recently.

Their “strange” eating habits aroused suspicion about their nationality, the BJP general secretary said at a seminar in support of the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) here.

When a new room was being added at his house recently, he found “eating habits” of some of the workers “strange” as “they were eating only `poha’ (flattened rice)”, he said.

After talking to their supervisor and the building contractor, he suspected that these workers were from Bangladesh, the BJP leader said.

When reporters questioned him later, Vijayvargiya said, “I suspected these workers were residents of Bangladesh. Two days after I became suspicious, they stopped working at my house. I have not filed any police complaint yet. I only mentioned this incident to warn people,” he said.

Speaking at the seminar, Vijayvargiya also claimed that a Bangladeshi terrorist was keeping a watch on him for the last one and a half years.

“Whenever I go out, six armed security personnel follow me. What is happening in this country? Will outside people enter and spread so much terror?” he asked.

“Don’t get confused by rumours. The CAA is in the interest of the country. This law will provide asylum to genuine refugees and identify intruders who are a threat to the country’s internal security,” he added.