Islam teaches its followers to respect other religions too: Mohiuddin Bava

Thiruvananthapuram, Apr 10: Eight foreign nationals from Italy and United Kingdom, who were undergoing treatment in Kerala, have recovered fully from COVID-19, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan said on Thursday.

The state reported 12 more positive cases of coronavirus on Thursday taking the total number of confirmed cases to 357, Vijayan said as he cautioned that the strict vigil against the pandemic will continue.

While the northern districts of Kannur and Kasaragod reported four cases each, two cases were reported from Malappuram district and one each from Kollam and Thiruvananthapuram districts, Vijayan told reporters after a COVID-19 review meeting here.

Of the eight foreign nationals, seven were undergoing treatment at the Ernakulam Medical College Hospital and one in Thiruvananthapuram Medical College Hospital, Vijayan said, adding that some of the patients were in a serious condition.

The seven foreigners from UK, admitted in Ernakulam medical college, were part of the group which had on March 15 tried to leave the country without permission while being under observation at Munnar, a hill station in the state.

The Italian tourist in Thiruvananthapuram was staying at a resort at Varkala near here and was admitted to hospital on March 13, Vijayan said.

"The recovery of this UK tourist group, which comprised of 83 and 76-year-olds is a testimony to our robust healthcare system and good treatment extended to these patients," the chief minister said.

It has been 100 days since the first COVID-19 case was reported in the state and since then, a total of 357 cases have been confirmed and currently, 258 patients are under treatment in different hospitals.

New Delhi: BJP leader Yogish Gowda, who was a member of the Dharwad Zilla Panchayath in Karnataka, was killed because of "political reasons", the CBI has alleged in its charge sheet filed against eight accused before a Dharwad court, officials said on Thursday.

Mr Gowda was killed on June 15, 2016 in front of a gym in Dharwad.

The charge sheet was filed before the Judicial Magistrate First Class Court in Dharwad against Santosh Savadatti, Dinesh M, Sunil KS, Harshith, Aswath S, Nazeer Ahamad, Shanawaz and Nutan K. All but one are in judicial custody.

"The accused allegedly came to Dharwad on two occasions in June 2016 and with the support of the other accused, allegedly planned the murder of Yogish Gowda. These accused fled after the crime," CBI spokesperson RK Gaur said.

The agency has alleged that the killing had "political reasons" behind it and was a result of political rivalry, the officials said.

The agency had taken over the case on September 24, 2019, nearly three years after the murder, on the request of the BJP government in Karnataka and a referral from the centre.

The case was earlier probed by the Karnataka Police which had charged six people for allegedly planning and executing the killing.

The CBI has arrested eight accused in the case of which seven are in judicial custody, they said.

"Further investigation into the role of the other accused and larger conspiracy in this case is continuing on a day-to-day basis," Mr Gaur said.

BJP leader murder caseYogish GowdaCentral Bureau of Investigation (CBI)

Udupi, Apr 29: Personal Protection Equipment (PPE) kit used by the doctors to treat COVID-19 patients was found in the river at Kodangala, Alevoor Gram Panchayat limits, sources said on Wednesday.

According to them, a Panchayat office staff who noticed the PPE thrown in the river informed the Health Department about it on Tuesday and following which a police complaint was filed.

As the PPE is used only for medical treatment, police officials need to investigate who used the kit and in which hospital, who threw it in the river and the purpose of throwing it.