Dakshina Kannada number one district in India for hate crimes: Harsh Mander

coastaldigest.com web desk
July 17, 2019

Bengaluru, Jul 17: Coastal Karnataka’s Dakshina Kannada has quietly emerged as the number one district in entire India for hate crimes, according to Harsh Mander, noted activist and director of the Centre for Equity Studies, New Delhi.

During a panel discussion in Bengaluru on Tuesday examining the growing intolerance in India, Mandar revealed that Karnataka is the second-biggest state for hate crimes.

“The situation in Karnataka is much worse. Figures show Dakshina Kannada as the number one district in the country for hate crimes,” he said.

Sharib Ali of the Quill Foundation, which documented hate crimes in the country over a five-year period, said that 948 incidents of hate crimes have been reported since 2014, including 117 lynchings, 258 physical assaults, other cases of mosque and church attacks, communal tension and harassment. The nationwide number of victims stands at 11,722, with 108 people killed. Karnataka saw 111 incidents and 553 victims.

This trend is dangerous, said Mander unequivocally linking the spike in violence to the far-right rhetoric of the Modi regime. “They are legitimising hatred for minorities that we did not know existed,” he said and categorised the choice of voters in 2019 elections as one which will have grave implications on the country’s social fabric.

“India could have voted for progress, salvaging an economy in shambles and confronting the rising farm distress. Instead, it chose to vote in favour of masculine Hindutva,” he added.

In this new India, Ali cautioned that the Modi regime was creating a climate whereby violence was being glamorised and those committing it were elevated to “heroic” status. “But at the core, lynchings are an act of reconstructing social order to show minorities their place,” he added.

Mander compared the current situation in the country to Germany of the 1930s.

“After the war ended, young Germans asked their parents why they did not stop the Nazis from persecuting the Jews and trying to conquer Europe. Their answer then was ‘we didn’t know.’ “We in India do not have the luxury of such ignorance,” he said.

Evoking what he described as Mahatma Gandhi’s dedication to humanity, Harsh Mander recounted an incident from 1947, when Gandhi who was invited to visit Pakistan, turned down the offer claiming he could not leave Delhi until a Muslim boy in India could walk the streets without fear.

When Mander segued into last year’s lynching of the 16-year-old son of an Imam at Asansol, which reportedly prompted the local Muslim community to protect Hindu homes and shops in an effort to defuse an inflammatory situation, there was not a dry eye in the house.

The violence of the lynch mob is reflective of the fact that Mahatma Gandhi’s work is still not done, Mander lamented.

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News Network
June 2,2020

Bengaluru, Jun 2:  With easing of COVID-19 lockdown curbs, the Karnataka excise department has accorded permission for fresh brewing or production of beer and to sell it in microbreweries as takeaways.

"Permission is hereby accorded to microbreweries for fresh brewing/production and sale of beer as takeaway in glass, ceramic or stainless steel container (up to 2 litre) till 30-06-2020, or until further orders, whichever is earlier," the Excise Commissioner in a letter dated June 1 to Deputy Excise Commissioners of all districts said.

The opening and closing hours of the microbreweries shall be from 9 am to 9 pm, it said, adding that all other conditions as laid down will remain unaltered.

Earlier, in a letter dated May 12, the Excise Commissioner had "conditionally" granted permission for microbreweries to sell their beer stock as takeaway on experimental basis for the period from May 14 to June 30 or until exhaustion of existing beer stock, whichever is earlier.

It had called for measures like social distancing, cleanliness, usage of masks and sanitizers, among others, and had said, microbreweries situated in containment zones are not allowed to function.

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News Network
January 30,2020

Bengaluru, Jan 30: There are around 3 lakh Bangladeshis across Karnataka and around 3,000 of them left Bengaluru following the recent crackdown, according to Bhaskar Rao, Bengaluru city police commissioner.

It's the first time a high-ranking official has put a number to Bangladeshis in Karnataka following the debate over the new citizenship law.

At a conclave on 'Construction Workers Safety, Health and Welfare' organised by the labour department and IIMB here, he said the estimate was arrived at based on information sourced from Bangladeshis deported recently.

There's been no study to ascertain the Bangladeshi population in the state, Rao said, adding that most illegal Bangladeshis in Bengaluru are victims of human trafficking.

"They come to Bengaluru for employment. Unlike other cities, Bengaluru has a lot of job potential and pays good salaries too. There are a lot of Bangladeshis working in the construction industry," Rao said.

Workers from Bangladesh demand lower wages. While other labourers demand around Rs 500 to Rs 600 per day, Bangladeshi workers don’t complain about being paid around Rs 100-150,” Rao said, adding that this has encouraged human traffickers to increasingly bring in Bangladeshis.

Suresh Hari, chairman, Confederation of Real Estate Developers Association of India, however, said they’re not aware of the nationality of their workers as contractors bring workers registered for tasks. “It’s difficult to say where they are from as there’s also construction work outside Credai’s purview,” Hari said.

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News Network
April 25,2020

Mangaluru, Apr 25: The Kasturba medical college hospital at Manipal in Udupi district has decided to resume normal outpatient department services for all specialities from Monday.

In a release, hospital medical superintendent Avinash Shetty said the services will be made available from 8.30 am to 1 pm.

The services had been suspended in view of the nationwide lockdown.

Those visiting the hospital should visit the temporary screening kiosk set up outside the hospital, from where they will be shifted to the respective departments.

Mask is essential for all patients and their attenders.

Only one attender is allowed along with a patient.

Doctor's consultation through telemedicine service is also available from 9 am to 4 pm.

Trauma and emergency services will function as usual, the release said.

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