Father hits out at madrasa for rusticating his 10-yr-old daughter over ‘bindi’

Bengaluru, Jan 13: Right-wing organisations, along with BJP and RSS workers, will take out a massive padayatra in Kanakapura on Monday, protesting against the construction of a Jesus Christ statue.

The event organised by the Hindu Jagarana Vedike (HJV) will witness a rally from the Aiyappa temple in Kanakapura to the taluk panchayat office, where a memorandum will be submitted to the authorities following a public meeting.

Ahead of the event, Congress leader D K Shivakumar, in a video message released on Sunday, urged the people of Kanakapura to maintain calm. The former minister cast apprehensions over the event scheduled on Monday and said provocative statements may be made to disturb peace and harmony in Kanakapura.

Shivakumar, who represents the Kanakapura constituency, said the motive of the meeting by the leaders and workers of the BJP and the RSS, along with seers of mutts, was to defame his constituency.

“If any remarks are made against me, my brother (D K Suresh) or people of different faiths in Kanakapura constituency, do not be provoked,” he urged.

“Members of the (Christian) community have prayed at the site for 400 years and are trying to install a statue of Jesus Christ. I have helped the community like I aided hundreds of temples and educational institutions,” he said.

Appealing to maintain peace, Shivakumar said that BJP and RSS leaders were free to petition anybody.  

The BJP and right-wing organisations have objected to the construction of the statue at Kapala Betta, with the BJP government ordering a probe into how road, power supply and other facilities were provided to the hill. Recently, Christian leaders had petitioned Chief Minister B S Yediyurappa to remove any impediments to the construction of the statue.

Mangaluru, May 23: Criticising the Karnataka government's fresh protocol for management of Covid-19 as expensive, a prominent physician in the city has demanded its withdrawal.

According to Dr B Srinivas Kakkilaya, the protocol released by the Health and Family Welfare Department on May 15 enlists unnecessary and unconfirmed tests and treatments. 

The protocol has classified Covid-19 cases into three categories and has provided for hospitalisation of all three categories of patients, from asymptomatic to the most severely ill.

In a letter to the government, Dr Kakkilaya said: "The protocol suggests several investigations to be done right on the day of admission, including blood counts, liver and renal function tests, chest X Ray, ECG, CT scan of the chest, and other special investigations, all of which, if done, will cost Rs 25,000 per patient."

"In the coming days when lakhs of patients are likely to be infected with SARS CoV2, is it necessary and feasible to hospitalise and test all these patients at Rs 25,000 per person," he questioned.

The treatment options suggested in the protocol are also surprising, he pointed out. "The protocol recommends choloroquine, azithromycin, oseltamivir, zinc and vitamin C for all patients, from asymptomatic to the severely ill, and also anti coagulant injections for many patients. All these would cost at least Rs 5,000 per patient. For severe cases of Covid-19, many unproven and experimental treatments have been suggested, which are very expensive and highly questionable," Dr Kakkilaya notes.

Therefore, this protocol, he asserted was not evidence based and likely to do more harm than good. He said these unnecessarily expensive tests and allowing private companies to conduct trials on Covid-19 patients is likely to be misused by vested interests and must be immediately withdrawn, and instead, a protocol that is evidence-based, simple and avoiding unnecessary expenses, must be developed.

Bengaluru, Jun 22: The Central Crime Branch (CCB) of Bengaluru Police has obtained the custody of an associate of gangster Ravi Pujari and is questioning him about his role in several cases against the gangster, the police said on Monday.

According to the police, Khan is convicted in the case related to the murder of a builder named Subba Rao in the year 2017. The accused has been identified as Yousuf Bacha Khan.

"Continuing the investigation of Ravi Poojary, CCB had obtained custody of Yousuf Bacha Khan, who is associate of Pujari. Khan was convicted in the Subba Rao murder case. He is being questioned about his role in other cases," Joint Commissioner of Police (Crime) Sandeep Patil said.

The CCB had recently filed two charge sheets against gangster Ravi Pujari in Shabnam developers double murder case and an extortion case.

Pujari, who was wanted in several cases including ones related to heinous crimes like murder and extortion, was extradited to Bengaluru earlier this year from Senegal.

The gangster, who parted ways with underworld don Chhota Rajan, had jumped bail after he was arrested in Senegal in 2019 and had escaped to South Africa, where he was involved in drug trafficking and extortion.

According to sources in the Indian intelligence, Ravi Pujari was hiding under the false identity of Anthony Fernandes, a Burkina Faso passport holder, in a remote village in South Africa.