JD(S), BJP slam Ramya for questioning Sangh Parivar's role in freedom struggle

Bengaluru, Jul 1: Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) chief DK Shivakumar on Wednesday said that the state Chief Minister BS Yediyurappa should apologise to the nation for the Ballari incident.

"It is shocking to see the Ballari incident. The way the dead bodies of the corona victims have been treated is very unfortunate. The entire country witnessed it. I request the Chief Minister BS Yediyurappa to apologise to the nation. India is known for its values and traditions," Shivakumar told reporters here.

Earlier, Shivakumar had posted a video which allegedly showed officials 'inhumanly' dumping bodies of those patients who die of COVID into a pit in Ballari, the district administration confirmed it and said that the entire field team involved in the incident has been disbanded.

"It's disturbing to see bodies of COVID patients who have died being dumped inhumanly into a pit in Ballari. Is this civility? This is a reflection of how the government has handled this Corona crisis. I urge the govt to take immediate action and ensure that this doesn't happen again," Shivakumar's tweet, which also had a video of the incident embedded, read.

The Deputy Commissioner, Ballari issued a press note which stated that it had conducted an enquiry after the video surfaced and it was found that the video belonged to the district and "comprises of burial of eight people who passed away after succumbing to COVID-19."

Although, according to the DC, all protocols and SOPs were followed by the team during the burial process, however, the "disrespectful handling of the bodies while being lowered on to the ground by the field staff" led to the entire field team involved being disbanded and will be replaced by a new team trained by the HOD, Forensic, VIMS.

The district administration also issued an unconditional apology to the families of the deceased and to others who were hurt by the incident.

Meanwhile, Chief Minister BS Yediyurappa also termed the behaviour of the staff "very inhuman and very painful" and urged the staff to tread cautiously with humanity in handling the funeral of those affected by the disease, and added, "Let's walk with humanity, and realize that there is no greater religion than humanity." 

Mangaluru, Jul 4: The General Secretary of the Dakshina Kannada district unit of Bharatiya Janata Party’s youth wing (Yuva Morcha) has been tested positive for COVID-19 on Saturday.

In a tweet, Sooraj Jain Marnad, has confirmed that he was tested positive for COVID-19.

"I have been tested COVID19 positive. With all your blessings, I’m recovering & will be under treatment for a few days," the tweet said.

The district has witnessed a huge spike in COVID-19 cases in the past few days. The total tally of the district has already crossed 1000 mark. 22 COVID-19 positive patients in the district have died so far.

I have been tested COVID19 positive.
With all your blessings, I'm recovering & will be under treatment for few days.

Requesting everyone to please maintain social distancing, wear mask while going out and wash hands frequently.
Please take care of yourselves & your near one's.

— Sooraj Jain Marnad (@JainMarnad) July 4, 2020

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.