Several BJP workers injured in stone pelting by alleged JD(S) workers

Mangaluru, Apr 6: Taking note of the communally hateful messages, news and pictures in the wake of coronavirus, Dakshina Kannada Superintendent of Police (SP) Laxmi Prasad on Monday issued strict warning to people spreading such messages and news on local social media platforms.

The SP also confirmed that four cases under his jurisdiction have been registered for sending, forwarding messages with communal hate in the wake of coronavirus on Facebook, WhatsApp and other social media platforms.

He added the police department will not take any such messages, news, and images lightly which can potentially hurt the sentiments of the people of any community. He also added that those found guilty will be prosecuted under strict law and their gadgets, mobiles will be seized by the department.

Mar 11: Two activists of Sangh Parivar have been arrested by the police in Tamil Nadu’s Coimbatore for hurling a petrol bomb at a mosque in Ganapathy on March 5.

The miscreants had hurled petrol bombs at the front gate of Hidayathul Sunnath Jamath Mosque at Vedhambal Nagar near Ganapathy in Coimbatore around 1 am on March 5. Since the bomb did not explode, nobody was injured in the incident.

Following a complaint from the Secretary of the Jama’ath, the police had formed three separate teams to nab the miscreants.

Based on tip-offs, the police detained BJP member Pandi (41) and VHP member Akhil (23), both from Rathnapuri in Coimbatore for inquiry.  The duo has also been remanded to judicial custody.

According to a statement by the Coimbatore police, the accused told the police that they hurled petrol bomb at the mosque to protest against the attack against Anand, a Hindu Munnani functionary a few days ago. The accused also reportedly told the police that they were planning to create more chaos.

Madukkarai Anand, the District Secretary of Hindu Munnani was attacked on March 4, while he was returning home after participating in a pro-CAA dharna organised by the BJP and allied parties in Gandhipuram.

He was allegedly followed by men on two motorbikes, who attacked him with rods. Anand suffered head injuries in the attack and was admitted to a hospital. The Podanur police registered a case for attempt to murder based on a complaint and had also formed special teams to nab the accused. However, no one has been apprehended in that case till now.

Based on the statements given by the accused, the police arrested the two men, seized the two-wheeler they used, two cell phones and the things they used to manufacture the petrol bomb.

Udupi, Jun 2: As many as 150 persons tested positive for COVID-19 in Udupi district on Tuesday. This is the highest spike in COVID-19 cases in a single day in the district.

According to the district administration, all the 150 persons have travel history from Maharashtra. The number of COVID-19 cases has more than doubled when compared to June 1, when the district recorded 73 cases.

Deputy Commissioner G. Jagadeesha said here that of the 150 persons who tested positive, 120 were male and 30 female. This also included nine children aged less than 10. All these persons had been shifted to the designated hospitals for treatment.

He said that since 2,000 persons were tested in the last two days, 150 persons were found positive. Earlier, about 200 to 300 persons were being tested daily and about 10 to 15 used to be found positive. Nearly 10 % of persons coming from Mumbai/Maharashtra tested positive for COVID-19.

“We have 1,120 beds to treat COVID-19 positive cases in the district. Even after including these 150 persons, we still have 800 beds left. Hence, people need not panic. We will provide treatment for all affected persons,” Mr. Jagadeesha said.

With 150 cases on Tuesday, the total number of persons who have tested positive in the district since March has touched 410. There are 345 active cases.

As many as 63 persons who had recovered had been discharged from hospitals. There was one death due to the disease on May 14. The test reports of nearly 5,400 persons are still awaited.

The district had recorded only three COVID-19 cases from March 29 to May 14. But the number of COVID-19 cases started increasing from May 15.