Three suspected Nipah cases surface in Shivamogga dist

Bengaluru, Aug 8: Anticipating a huge number of pilgrims from Karnataka to start visiting Ayodhya following the foundation stone laying ceremony of the Ram temple, Chief Minister B.S. Yediyurappa on Friday requested his Uttar Pradesh counterpart Yogi Adityanath for two acres of land to build a 'yatri nivas' (guest house).

"A large number of pilgrims from Karnataka would be visiting Ayodhya. The government of Karnataka wishes to construct a yatri nivas for the pilgrims visiting Ayodhya," Yediyurappa wrote to Yogi.

"I request you to grant two acres of land in Ayodhya for this purpose," he said.

The Chief Minister said the yatri nivas will be constructed for the benefit of pilgrims from the southern state.

He also congratulated the Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister for successfully laying the foundation stone for the Ram temple on Wednesday.

Bengaluru, July 31: Denying irregularities in covid-19 equipment purchase by the Karnataka government, the state unit of the BJP has issued legal notices to Congress leaders Siddaramaiah and D K Shivakumar demanding that they apologize or face a defamation suit. 

The notices seek a public apology for the allegations levelled against the government on irregularities in the procurement of Covid-19 equipment and supplies. 

Both Siddaramaiah and Shivakumar, the Karnataka Congress president, have been doggedly pursuing allegations of corruption against the BJP government and have demanded a judicial inquiry. 

BJP general secretary N Ravi Kumar said that while the Congress leaders claimed that Rs 4,157 crore was spent during Covid-19, they also allege that the government has not responded to any of the 20 letters written by them. "If the government has not provided any answer to the Opposition, where did they get the figures from," he said.

None of the allegations of corruption is specific and the statements made are factually incorrect. "These statements, without any basis, have been issued calculatedly to lower the image and damage the reputation of the government, the Bharatiya Janata Party, representatives of the party and the ministers in the government," the notice issued on behalf of Ravi Kumar read.