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Bengaluru, May 9: The bar owners in Karnataka, while welcoming the state government's decision to allow takeaway sales of liquor, said that the move is not going to benefit them much.

Venkatesh Babu, a Bengaluru-based bar owner said, "We welcome this move, our bar was closed for two months due to coronavirus crisis. We have been facing losses since then."

"The state government has told us to sell our stocks at maximum retail price (MRP). It is difficult for us to manage as the rent is high and we also have to pay salaries," he added.

The owner of Pingara Bar and Restaurant, Shivamogga said, "The government has said that is for parcel only and that too at MRP. There is no benefit to our business. We are only clearing the existing stock. They have given us time till May 17 and are not even giving us fresh stock. We are only allowed to sell what we have already."

Karnataka government in its Friday order allowed restaurants, pubs and bars to sell liquor at retail prices from May 9 till May 17, the day the third phase of lockdown is slated to end.

Earlier, the government had allowed the opening of liquor shops in order to mobilise revenue.

However, bars, pubs, restaurants were ordered to remain closed amid the COVID-19 lockdown.

Mangaluru, May 26: In the wake of mounting case of covid-19 in the coastal Karnataka, the police department has decided to sanitise the police stations in Dakshina Kannada and Udupi districts.

The superintendents of police in both the districts have been instructed to take necessary steps for sanitisation of stations in a phased manner, according to Devajyoti Ray, inspector-general of police (Western Range).

Meanwhile, the top cops of Uttara Kannada and Chikkamagaluru that forms part of the Western Range have been asked to take a call on doing so. “Hebri police station in Udupi was sanitised as part of this process and not because of any positive case emerging from staff there,” he said.

Allaying fears over stations being sealed down over positive case among station staff, Karnataka police chief Praveen Sood said this is a temporary measure and stations do not become non-functional.

“It is just that, for a mandated period police station will function from different premise when the station is being sanitised,” he said.

Noting that policemen are quarantined as precautionary measure, he said additional staff can be drafted from other stations or districts if need for it arises.

A 32-year-old Dalit man was allegedly stripped and assaulted by a group of 13 youth in Karnataka's Vijayapura for reportedly touching a motorbike of an upper caste owner, police said on Monday.

"On a complaint by the Dalit victim (Kashinath Talwar), we have booked the 13 accused and investigating the incident, which occurred at Minajgi village near Talikoti on July 18," Vijayapura district Superintendent of Police Anupam Agarwal told reporters here.

"Though Talwar claimed that he touched the bike by mistake and pleaded for mercy, he said the accused severely thrashed him with sticks and footwear and took off his pants while he lay on the road haplessly," Agarwal said, citing from the victim's 2-page complaint in Kannada.

A video clip of the assault went viral on the social media and triggered outrage in the district against the upper caste accused, as the intervention by the victim's parents did not stop them from carrying the assault. Vijayapura is 524km northwest of Bengaluru.

Dalit man stripped, thrashed in Karnataka village just for ‘touching’ bike pic.twitter.com/pMLSnaVcTp

— coastaldigest.com (@coastaldigest) July 20, 2020

Talwar's father Yankappa also alleged that he, his wife and their daughter were also attacked by the accused when they tried to rescue him from being brutally assaulted.

In a related development, two-three women in the village also filed a complaint with the police against Talwar for allegedly eve-teasing and 'flashing' before them.

"We have summoned Talwar to inquire about his conduct as the women alleged that he teased them, touched them inappropriately and exposed his private parts while they were washing clothes outside their houses," Agarwal said.

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Here is the FIR and complaint copy pic.twitter.com/mKmJ2NC5bR

— Kiran Parashar (@KiranParashar21) July 19, 2020