We are not against doctor; KPME Bill is in the interest of poor: Health Minister

Bengaluru, Jun 22: Senior Congress leader BK Hariprasad and BJP’s MTB Nagaraj, one of the defectors who helped the saffron party come to power in Karnataka, were unanimously elected to the Legislative Council along with five others on Monday. 

All seven were declared as “duly elected” by Legislative Assembly Secretary MK Vishalakshi, the returning officer for the biennial election to the Legislative Council. 

Hariprasad and Naseer Ahmed of the Congress, Nagaraj, R Shankar, Prathap Simha Nayak and Sunil Vallyapur of the BJP and Govinda Raju of the JD(S) are now MLCs. 

While Ahmed was an incumbent who will get another term, the six others will replace Jayamma, MC Venugopal, NS Bore Raju, HM Revanna and TA Sharavana and DU Mallikarjuna whose term ends June 30. 

While an election was scheduled June 29, it was not necessary as only seven candidates were in the fray for the seven seats on Monday, which was the last date for withdrawal of nominations. The nominations of A Yadavanahalli PC Krishnegowda and Mandikkal Nagaraja were rejected. 

With their rejection as MLCs, Nagaraj and Shankar - who jumped ship to the BJP last year - will now look to become ministers in Chief Minister BS Yediyurappa’s Cabinet. Both Nagaraj and Shankar were ministers when they resigned and defected from the Congress-JD(S) coalition. While Nagaraj lost the December 2019 bypolls, Shankar did not contest. 

Nagaraj, Shankar and Vallyapure were Yediyurappa’s picks for the Council, whereas Nayak is said to have been backed by BJP state president Nalin Kumar Kateel. 

There were many aspirants in the Congress for the Council berths, but Hariprasad and Ahmed were picked, given their experience. Hariprasad is widely believed to counter Siddaramaiah, who leads the party in the Assembly. 

Raju of the JD(S) runs a poultry business in Kolar and the choice of a fresh face is seen as the party leadership steering clear of any trouble as there were many asking for the ticket. 

Bengaluru, Mar 27: In a preparatory measure to tackle any exigency in the backdrop of spread of coronavirus, the Karnataka government has asked district administrations to use as quarantine centres the residential schools and hostels that come the under Social Welfare department.

"Wherever necessary, these residential schools and hostels can be converted as quarantine facility without any extra cost by the district administrations," Deputy Chief Minister Govind Karjol said in a statement.

The total number of COVID-19 cases in Karnataka stood at 55, including two deaths and three discharged persons, as on Thursday.

Karjol, who is also the Minister in-charge of Social Welfare department said, in view of holidays for educational institutions, there were no students staying in the residential schools and hostels and hence they can be used for quarantine purpose.

All the residential schools at hostels in districts and taluks are spacious and have all required facilities like rooms, kitchen, toilets, bathrooms, libraries among others, the Minister said adding most of them were located away from densely populated areas.

Feb 3: Shine Shetty, who was last seen essaying the character of 'Chandu' in the popular daily soap 'Lakshmi Baramma', made a grand comeback to the small screen with Bigg Boss Kannada season 7 as one of the contestants. The actor went emotional after his name was announced by Sudeep as the winner. He thanked the host, his family and friends and the viewers as well for continuous support.

During his stay in the house, the actor had the privilege to become the captain of the house twice. He is also the only candidate who has earned 'Kicchana Chappale' (applaud of appraisal) the maximum number of times.

Shine has been in the headlines for his equation with other housemates. His growing friendship with Deepika Das has been creating a lot of buzz ever since the launch of the show. Shine has always shown interest in Deepika. He has always admired Deepika and was seen complimenting her style statements.

Shine Shetty's journey inside the Bigg Boss house is worth a mention. From showcasing his talents to giving his best shot in the tasks and activities, the actor was always on the forefront.

His friendly nature and care of his inmates can also never be missed.

Bigg Boss Kannada 7 kick-started on October 13th 2019 with Kiccha Sudeepa continued to host the show. The show, which returned to the small screen with 'only-celeb' format consisted of 18 primary contestants, who entered the house during the grand premiere of the season.

Within a short span, two wild card entrants made a surprise entry into the house. The show was surely a roller coaster ride with unexpected twists and entertained the viewers to the fullest.