Modi reaches out to Indian workers who build glitzy skyscrapers in UAE

Mangaluru, July 8: Dakshina Kannada on Wednesday recorded its highest single-day spike in Covid-19 cases with 183 cases reported in the district, while Udupi reported 31 new cases.

DK also recorded two more fatalities – both patients with co-morbid conditions — taking the total death toll in the district to 28. Udupi has recorded three Covid-19 deaths.

The fresh spike saw total positive cases in DK shoot up to 1,542 and active cases to 819. As many as 12 patients were discharged from hospital on Wednesday. The positivity rate in the district now stands at 0.07 %. Health authorities as on date have received 22,181 samples and 20,153 out of 21,695 samples tested have turned out negative.

MLA’s gunman tests positive

The gunman assigned to former minister U T Khader tested positive on Wednesday and three others who were with him in the escort vehicle have been quarantined, said city police commissioner Vikash Kumar Vikash. A section of police commissioner’s office was shut for sanitisation as per protocol after staff working there were treated as primary contacts. The office per se has not been sealed contrary to ‘reports’ doing rounds in social media, he said.

Deputy commissioner Sindhu B Rupesh said the district reported two deaths — one late on Tuesday and the other during the day. The victims are a 57-year-old man and 32-year-old youth. Two of the 183 cases were secondary contacts, 25 were cases of influenza like illness, four cases of SARI, one a case of inter district travel, two with interstate travel, five with international travel history, 22 random samples and five pre-surgery samples.

Udupi district recorded 31 new cases taking the total positive cases recorded as on date to 1,421. Discharge of 1,189 patients meant that Udupi has 229 active cases.

Meanwhile, Kota Shrinivas Poojari, minister for fisheries on Wednesday inaugurated the Covid-19 lab at district hospital in Udupi. Karkala MLA Sunil Kumar inaugurated ambulance monitoring system to ensure expeditious transfer of infected patients to designated treatment centres.

New Delhi, Mar 6: The Supreme Court on Friday refused to entertain a plea seeking framing of a proper mechanism to deal with alleged misuse of the sedition law by the government machinery. A bench headed by Justice A M Khanwilkar dismissed the plea filed by a social activist and said it was open for the petitioner to approach the appropriate authority.

At the outset, the apex court told advocate Utsav Singh Bains, appearing for the petitioner, that he could not seek quashing of an FIR in a sedition case filed against the management of a Karnataka school for allegedly allowing students to stage an anti-CAA and anti-NRC drama.

Bains told the bench that he was not just pressing for a prayer to quash the FIR but the petitioner has also sought a direction for framing of a proper mechanism to deal with the alleged misuse of the sedition law.

"Let the affected party come and we will hear them. Why it should be done at your instance," the bench said, refusing to entertain the petition.

The petition had sought quashing of the FIR against the principal and other staff of the Shaheen School at Bidar who have been booked under sections 124A (sedition) and 153A (promoting enmity between different groups) of the Indian Penal Code.

The plea had also sought an apex court direction for a proper mechanism to deal with alleged government misuse of the sedition law.

Section 124A of the IPC says that "whoever brings or attempts to bring into hatred or contempt, or excites or attempts to excite disaffection towards... the Government shall be punished with imprisonment for life...".

The plea had sought a direction to the Centre and the Karnataka government "to quash the FIR registered in connection of seditious charges against the school management, teacher and a widowed parent of a student for staging a play criticising CAA, NRC and NPR."

The petition had claimed that the police "also questioned students, and videos and screenshots of CCTV footage showing them speaking to the students were shared widely on social media, prompting criticism."

The drama was staged on January 21 by students of the fourth, the fifth and the sixth standard.

The sedition case was filed based on a complaint by social worker Neelesh Rakshyal on 26 January.

The complainant alleged that the school authorities "used" the students to perform a drama where they "abused" Modi in the context of the Citizenship (Amendment) Act and the National Register of Citizens.

Bengaluru, Feb 27: Karnataka Chief Minister and veteran BJP leader B S Yediyurappa turned 78 on Thursday with Prime Minister Narendra Modi and a host of leaders greeting him.

Modi hailed Yediyurappa as a "hardworking" chief minister and wished him long life and good health, while several state leaders flocked to his residence and greeted the Lingayat strongman.

"Birthday greetings to Karnataka's hardworking CM @BSYBJP Ji. He is passionately working for the state's progress, especially on farmer welfare and rural development. I pray for his long life and good health," the Prime Minister tweeted.

A large-scale "non-partisan" birthday bash will be held here later in the evening.

The felicitation function will see Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and former chief minister S M Krishna besides Siddaramaiah of Congress and H D Kumaraswamy of JD(S) sharing the stage.

Union Ministers D V Sadananda Gowda, also a former chief minister, Pralhad Joshi and Suresh Angadi will be in attendance.

BJP National General Secretary (Organisation) B L Santosh and state party chief Nalin Kumar Kateel are among those who will be gracing the event.

While Santosh will release a felicitation volume in Kannada with 78 articles from a cross-section of people, including politicians, writers, bureaucrats, and spiritual leaders; Siddaramaiah and Kumaraswamy will unveil a coffee table book and documentary respectively.

Yediyurappa, on the eve of his birthday on Wednesday, had said whatever he has achieved is a result of the people's "blessings and faith" and requested well-wishers not to bring bouquets, flowers, shawls, sweets, turbans or any souvenirs to greet him.

The birthday function organised by "Yediyurappa Abhinandana Samiti" (Yediyurappa Felicitation Committee) is being seen in some quarters as an attempt by Yediyurappa and his loyalists to send a message to the party leadership that he was still "strong".

The BJP's current dispensation under Narendra Modi and Amit Shah has retired several senior party leaders who crossed the age of 75.

However, an exception was said to have been made in Yediyurappa's case after the BJP won 25 of 28 seats in the Lok Sabha election under his leadership.

In the 2018 elections, he spearheaded the campaign of the BJP which emerged as the single largest party but fell short of the majority mark following which Congress and JD(S) came to power stitching a post-poll pact.

However, the coalition collapsed in July last year, paving the way for return of Yediyurappa as Chief Minister for the fourth time.