Disgruntled Dr Umesh Jadhav to resign Congress and join BJP

Haveri, Jan 16: Karnataka Chief Minister B S Yediyurappa on Wednesday hinted at inducting 16 MLAs into the Cabinet which was due for expansion despite the fact that it was a difficult task.

Participating in a function of Choudayya Community here, he further said one should understand the difficulty faced to undertake cabinet expansion in the prevailing situation and whoever gives suggestion should understand the circumstances otherwise the statements would lead to confusion among the community and people of the state.

He stated that 'as many as 17 MLAs resigned to make me Chief Minister and now their community people want their leader to become Minister, it is very difficult to satisfy all of them'.

Belagavi, Jan 17: Maharashtra Minister of State for Public Health, Medical Education, FDA and Textiles Rajendra Patil-Yadravkar who had come here to participate in the martyrs day programme of Maharashtra Ekikaran Samiti (MES) was detained by the police and escorted back till the state borders on Friday.

MES had organised its annual martyrs day programme at Hutatma Circle here. Its leaders had earlier been asked by the District Administration and City Police to ensure that none of the political leaders from Maharashtra participate and create law and order problems by their anti-state statements.

Patil had managed to sneak into the city through a route which was not manned by the police. He came in an auto-rickshaw to the programme venue.

Police personnel present for security took him into their custody and later escorted him till the state’s borders with Maharashtra at Kognoli on the Pune-Bengaluru national highway.

MES leaders alleged that the police personnel violated protocol while taking the incumbent minister into their custody and they also roughed him up.

All vehicles entering the city from different routes and particularly from Maharashtra were screened to confirm that political leaders from the neighbouring state do not participate in the martyrs day programme and create problems by their statements that also affect law and order along with linguistic harmony.

It was not known if Patil had landed in the city on Thursday and managed to reach the programme venue without getting noticed by using an auto-rickshaw.