Godse who killed Mahatma Gandhi was a deshbhakt, says terror accused Sadhvi

Bengaluru, May 29: Chief Minister B S Yediyurappa and BJP State President Nalin Kumar Kateel will resolve any differences of opinion among party leaders in Karnataka, according to Minister of State for Railways Suresh Angadi

If anybody has any issues, they should get them resolved by talking with Yediyurappa and Kateel. Internal matters, if any, should not be discussed in public, he said.

Angadi told reporters here on Friday that differences of opinion among party leaders have not come to his notice. A section of party leaders assembling for dinner should not be constituted as a meeting of dissidents. BJP has internal democracy and any differences of opinion if exist will be resolved at the party forum.

He added that if MLA Umesh Katti has any issues regarding cabinet berth or regarding assurances given to him by Yediyurappa during the Lok Sabha elections, he should talk with the chief minister.

Everyone in politics has aspirations and it's natural. Those aspiring for the upcoming Rajya Sabha elections should talk with the chief minister or the state president, he said.

Ramesh Katti was former MP and there was nothing wrong in him being aspirant for Rajya Sabha elections, he said.

Angadi said, "Party is supreme. We shall work for the victory of party candidates irrespective of who they were".

A state cabinet meeting was held on Thursday. Many of the MLAs too had been to Bengaluru for constituency-related works. As they had been meeting after a long time, all gathered for dinner, he expressed.

Bengaluru, Feb 16: Deputy chief minister Laxman Savadi’s election to the lone vacant council seat, for which a bypoll has been called, is only a formality as the only other candidate in the contest, independent BR Anil Kumar, dropped out on Saturday.

Kumar conveyed his decision to council secretary and returning officer Vishalakshmi. He decided to withdraw from the February 17 bypoll after failing to get support from Congress and JD(S) legislators.

The bypoll was necessitated after sitting member Rizwan Arshad of Congress resigned as he moved to the legislative assembly as an MLA. Rizwan won the Shivajinagar bypoll in December last year.

“Since the notification on candidates in the fray, after the last date of withdrawal, has already been published, irrespective of any candidate’s retirement, the election has to be conducted,” an official said.

Savadi’s victory was always assured as BJP has 119 members in the House.

Still, Ramanagara BJP district president Rudresh and MP BY Raghavendra reportedly approached Kumar, urging him to withdraw. Kumar, however, denied that he was persuaded by BJP.

“I entered the fray thinking secular parties and likeminded MLAs will support me, but that didn’t happen, so I decided to retire,”he said.

A section of Congress and JD(S) politicians, led by former minister HD Revanna, had persuaded Kumar to enter the contest with the hope that disgruntlement among some BJP legislators over Savadi’s promotion as the deputy CM would result in an upset.

Former chief minister HD Kumaraswamy also offered to support Kumar. Siddaramaiah of Congress refused to do the same. Congress and JD(S) did not field any candidates of their own as they don’t have the requisite numbers in the House.

Savadi must get elected to the council before February 20, otherwise he will lose his cabinet role. According to rules, a person who is not a member of either House should get elected within six months after becoming a minister. Savadi took oath on August 20 last year.

Mumbai, Jan 30: The Shiv Sena on Thursday endorsed Union home minister Amit Shah's view that alleged inflammatory statements made by Sharjeel Imam, an anti- Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA) activist, were dangerous.

No politics should be done on the issue, and such "pest" afflicting the country should be finished off, it said.

Imam was arrested on Tuesday in connection with his speeches at Jamia Millia Islamia University in Delhi and in Aligarh during anti-CAA protests.

He has been booked for sedition, among other offences.

In an editorial published in its mouthpiece `Saamana', the Sena, a former ally of the BJP, said, "We agree with union home minister's comments that Sharjeel Imam's alleged words of separation are more dangerous than that of Kanhaiya Kumar."

Kumar, former student leader from Jawaharlal Nehru University, had been arrested over alleged separatist slogans shouted during a protest on varsity campus.

The Sena, which has formed alliance with the Congress and NCP to come to power in Maharashtra, is often seen walking a tightrope to preserve its credentials as a pro-Hindutva party.

"The union home ministry, while initiating action against Imam, should not indulge in politics and try to finish off this pest that is afflicting our country," the editorial said.

"One must find out why such language of breaking up this country into pieces is being used by the educated youth of this country more and more frequently. Who is spewing such venom into the mind of Sharjeel who did his graduation from IIT-B and now pursuing PhD from JNU?" the Sena asked.

"Even people involved in Elgar Parishad at Pune are facing sedition charges and these people have been known as intellectuals and are well-known personalities," said the party.

"A conspiracy to bring about a conflict between Hindus and Muslims and ensure continuance of anarchy and civil war as in Iraq and Afghanistan exists. The boost for such activities is coming from a 'political laboratory'," the editorial said.