Depressed school teacher hangs herself in classroom

Bengaluru, Mar 9: The political crisis faced by Kamal Nath government in Madhya Pradesh appears to have accentuated with 13 party MLAs and six ministers reported to be in Bengaluru.

The developments have come amid factional differences in the party unit and at a time the party has to finalise its Rajya Sabha candidates from the state.

Sources said the number of Congress MLAs who were in Bengaluru had gone up to 19 and one more MLA expected to reach Bengaluru by Monday night. They said the MLAs have come in batches and include six ministers from Madhya Pradesh.

The developments came on a day state chief Chief Minister Kamal Nath met party chief Sonia Gandhi and discussed the political situation in the state.

The sources said that MLAs are likely to be shifted to a resort on the outskirts of Bengaluru.

According to the sources, BJP Mahadevpura MLA Arvind Limbavali has been in touch with the Congress MLAs. They said 16 MLAs were brought at HAL airport Bengaluru by a special flight and were staying in a hotel at present.

The session of Madhya Pradesh assembly will begin on March 16 and the BJP may bring no-confidence motion against the Kamal Nath government.

Kamal Nath had said after his meeting with Gandhi that Congress MLAs who were reportedly missing have returned and had informed him that they were on 'tirth yatra'.

"Congress MLAs came back and said to me that they went on' tirth yatra (pilgrimage)".

The Congress has accused the BJP of trying to topple the party government. Party leader Digvijaya Singh had earlier alleged that BJP leaders Shivraj Singh Chouhan and Narottam Mishra were offering bribes of Rs 25-35 crore to Congress MLAs in order to bring down the Congress government in the state. The BJP had refuted the allegations.

In 2018 assembly elections, Congress won 114 seats in the 230-member Assembly and formed the government with the support of four Independent MLAs and two BSP MLAs and a legislator from the Samajwadi Party (SP). The BJP had secured 109 seats in the state assembly.

Last week,Madhya Pradesh Labour Minister Mahendra Singh Sisodia had warned that the state government will face a crisis if it "ignores or disrespects" party leader Jyotiraditya Scindia.

Scindia had said last month that he will not hesitate to hit the roads if promises made in a manifesto by Kamal Nath-led government in Madhya Pradesh were not fulfilled.

Kamal Nath had responded to the remarks saying, "To utar jayein" (Let him hit the streets if he wants to).

Congress MLA Bisahulal Singh, who was "missing" for the past few days, returned to Bhopal on Sunday and said he had gone on a pilgrimage.

Independent MLA Surendra Singh said on Monday that he was hoping to become a minister in Madhya Pradesh government soon.

Mangaluru, Jan 9: A forest guard was arrested caught red-hand by Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) officials while accepting Rs 3,000 bribe from a person for granting permission to cut Mahogany trees for his personal use, a statement said on Thursday.

According to the statement, the arrested identified as N Sudheer sought bribe of Rs 15,000 from Gopalakrishna Herale, a resident of Beltangady.

Mr Herale, in a complaint, lodged on January 7 said that he had sought a permit from the forest department for cutting of Mahogany trees purchased by him.

Jan 14: A police complaint was lodged on Tuesday against BJP West Bengal unit president Dilip Ghosh for his threat to "beat up" and "shoot' " anti-CAA protesters, whom he called "infiltrators".

The complaint was registered in Ranaghat police station of Nadia district by a Trinamool Congress worker Krishnendu Banerjee, who alleged that Ghosh was inciting communal passion.

Addressing a party rally on Sunday in Ranathat, about 80 km from Kolkata, Ghosh went ballistic, saying the governments in BJP-ruled Assam, Karnataka and Uttar Pradesh have shot dead "like dogs" those protesting against the new Citizenship (Amendment) Act.

Alleging there were one crore infiltrators in the state, Ghosh had accused them of destroying public property worth Rs 500-600 crore during the violent protests against the CAA last month

"Friends, please know these people who are opposing Hindus and Bengalis. In whose interest are they doing this? There are one crore infiltrators. They are having their meals and staying here on our money".

He accused the state's Mamata Banerjee government of remaining silent a spectator to the violence.

"This (violence) happened because there was neither any baton charge, nor firing, nor was any FIR filed. Why? Didi's police did not arrest anybody... because they vote for her".

He then referred to the three states ruled by the BJP.

"In Assam, Karnataka and Uttar Pradesh, our governments have shot dead these devils like dogs. They were taken elsewhere and then again cases were filed against them. They will come here, eat, stay, and then destroy property. Do they think this is their zamindari?"

He had said once a BJP government was installed in Bengal, "We will hit them with sticks, shoot them and also send them to jail. Our governments have done exactly that. Mamata Banerjee doesn't have the guts to do anything".

However, his incendiary comments did not meet the approval of sections in the party.

Union Minister Babul Supriyo came out with a tweet slamming Ghosh and distancing the BJP from the comments.

"Very irresponsible of Dilip Da to have said what he said. It is a figment of his imagination... BJP governments in UP and Assam have never resorted to shooting people for whatever reason," he tweeted.

Supriyo's tweet was retweeted by nominated Rajya Sabha member Swapan Dasgupta, considered close to both Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah.

But Ghosh did not budge and aggressively asked whether the party was being run by Shah or Supriyo.

"People comment according to their understanding. What I feel is that our governments have done it, and so I said all that. If we get a chance we will also do such things," he said, sticking to his earlier comments.

Supriyo also hit back. "Just as he has remarked 'whatever Babul Supriyo has understood he has said', similarly I am saying this is Dilip da's personal opinion, and it has no connection with the party".