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‘Sabarimala row a ‘golden opportunity’ for us': Kerala BJP chief’s clip leaked

News Network
November 5, 2018

Kasaragod, Nov 5: P S Sreedharan Pillai, the Kerala state unit president of the Bharatiya Janata Party, has landed in a row after he said the Sabarimala issue was a “golden opportunity” for his party.

In a purported audio clip, Pillai can be heard claiming that the chief priest of the Sabarimala Temple consulted him over closing the doors of the sanctum sanctorum if women tried to enter the shrine.

The clip, which has since gone viral, is from Pillai’s alleged address to the Yuva Morcha state committee in Kozhikode. The BJP leader purportedly said chief priest Kandararu Rajeevaru was apprehensive about shutting the doors of the temple as he feared contempt of court but he decided to go ahead with the decision after consulting him.

“The tantric community has more faith in BJP and its state chief. When women were about to enter Sabarimala, he called me up. I had given him a word and it coincidentally came true. He was a bit upset over shutting the doors of sanctum sanctorum fearing it would invite contempt of court. I was among the few he had contacted that time.

“I said he is not alone. We’d be the first to be slapped with the charges of contempt of court if it comes. There would be tens of thousands of people to be with him. Upon our word, he took a firm stand. That decision had actually left the police and the administration baffled. We hope he’d repeat it again. Later, I became the first accused and he the second accused on charges of contempt of court… As we both figured in, his confidence increased,” he allegedly told the gathering.

Once the clip went viral, Pillai said he was only providing legal opinion as a political leader and legal adviser but refused to comment on the use of the phrase “golden opportunity”.

Weeks after violent protests against the entry of women of all ages into the Sabarimala Temple rocked Kerala, the shrine is set to open for a special puja on Monday evening. Police said 2,300 personnel, including a 20-member commando team and 100 women, have been deployed to ensure smooth 'darshan' and security of devotees, a move that came in for criticism from the erstwhile royal family of Pandalam, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the Congress for such fortification.

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Wellwisher
 - 
Monday, 5 Nov 2018

Very good for vote bank these chaddiis are playing with worship place they even not spate the God.

 

 

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News Network
July 17,2020

Mangaluru, Jul 17: An expert team from Bengaluru has arrived here on Friday to study the factors that have led to the sudden spurt in death due to Covid-19 in Dakshina Kannada district of Karnataka in the recent past.

The team has arrived following a request made by the district administration. The team comprising three experts has already held talks with specialist Doctors, according to official sources.

It will examine the reports on the treatment provided to the patients who have succumbed to the infection and will submit a report citing reasons for the increase in deaths, the sources added.

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coastaldigest.com news network
July 28,2020

Bengaluru, July 28: Former prime minister and JD(S) chief H D Deve Gowda today threatened to launch a state-wide agitation in against the amendments made to the Karnataka Land Reforms Act.

Gowda’s opposition to the new law comes even as Congress leader Siddaramaiah is also doggedly pursuing it.

Demanding that the state government immediately rollback the ordinance empowering these amendments, the octogenarian leader said he personally would take to streets if the government failed to budge.

The B S Yediyurappa government has liberalised the land reforms law by removing restrictions on non-agriculturists from purchasing and owning farm lands.

The government has also amended the APMC Act and has tweaked labour laws, which are all “against the interest of the state and must be rolled back,” Gowda said.

Speaking to reporters here, Gowda stated that he had already written thrice to Chief Minister B S Yediyurappa in this regard. "The ordinances have to be taken back. The amendments to Karnataka Land Reforms Act, by repealing sections 79-A, B and C, is an anti-farmer move. The APMC Act amendment, too, is against the interest of the state. The government has failed to speak about the impact of these amendments," said Gowda, who is now a Rajya Sabha member.

Elaborating on the amendment to the Land Reform Act, the JD(S) patriarch opined that by throwing open agricultural land ownership to anybody at all, the government was only helping real estate developers while pushing farmers into a “vulnerable” situation.

Amidst all this, there are now reports of funds misappropriation in Covid-19 relief measures and in procurement of medical equipment, he said, adding that it seemed like only the corrupt became stronger over time.

Further, Gowda lambasted both national parties for creating political unrest, referring to the ongoing political crisis in Rajasthan and the recent developments in Madhya Pradesh. However, he added that he would not wish to dwell on it much, while emphasising that his focus was primarily on strengthening his own party at this point in time.

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News Network
May 17,2020

Bengaluru, May 17: Left to itself, Karnataka will look to spring back towards normalcy under Lockdown 4.0 as the state government is on standby to resume public transport services from May 18, if the Centre allows it. 

Though KSRTC and BMTC have been preparing for resumption of services, officials in the two corporations told DH that they cannot make a move till the government makes a decision.

Transport Commissioner N Shivakumar said the department will take a decision based on the state government's orders. "The government will take a call on buses as well as taxi and other transport services," he said.

Senior officials in the state government said Deputy Chief Minister and Transport Minister Laxman Savadi has written to Union Minister for Road Transport and Highways Nitin Gadkari seeking a nod for resumption of the services. 

Transport Secretary Gaurav Gupta has written a separate letter to his counterpart in the Union government requesting permission to operate public transport. "The state government wants the services to open. The official has listed out the steps the corporations will take to ensure social distancing other steps that will be taken to check spread of Coronavirus," a source said.

The B S Yediyurappa administration has been bullish on easing lockdown restrictions. 

If the Centre empowers the states to define Lockdown 4.0, Karnataka is likely to do away with the red-orange-green zoning of districts and allow public services to resume, except in COVID-19 containment zones. The government is also likely to redefine its containment strategy by micromanaging localities where COVID-19 cases are reported, without letting life in an entire district get affected. 

The government has already shown willingness to allow hotels and gyms to open after May 17 subject to social distancing norms and restrictions. In fact, the government has proposed to allow the resumption of all economic activities in standalone establishments. The government, however, is not keen on opening malls, theatres, diners and establishments that have centralized air conditioning. 

“Everything depends on the Centre,” Deputy Chief Minister CN Ashwath Narayan said. “Our only stand is that the red zone should be treated at par with the other zone when it comes to relaxation.” 

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