A strike by Karnataka's state-owned transport corporation employees has severely disrupted bus services across the state, leaving passengers stranded and impacting school, college, and office attendance. The strike persists despite a court stay, as unions demand wage revision and payment of salary arrears.
Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah directed officials on Saturday to immediately retract all notices sent to farmers regarding Waqf land.
The initiative comes in the wake of the stampede near the Chinnaswamy Cricket Stadium in Bengaluru on Wednesday that claimed 11 lives.
The minister also said moving forward, tourists visiting Karnataka will be briefed on the dos and don'ts to ensure their safety.
The Bharatiya Janata Party on Wednesday slammed the Congress government in Karnataka over the deaths in a stampede during Royal Challengers Bengaluru celebrations in Bengaluru, demanding that Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and Home Minister G Parameshwara take responsibility for the incident.
Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah said that senior IPS officer Pronab Mohanty, who is heading the SIT probing the allegations of mass burials in Dharmasthala, will be replaced if he goes on central government duty.
The minister said he gives instructions to the Bengaluru Police Commissioner B Dayananda on a daily basis to strengthen patrolling and monitoring system.
Karnataka Congress MLA G Parameshwara, who was reportedly upset over the denial of the deputy chief ministerial post, on Friday said that 'sacrifice' has to be made at 'some point'.
The crew of an Iraqi cargo vessel were denied permission to disembark at Karwar port in Karnataka by the coastal security authorities as per special instructions given by the central government "after the Pakistan incident", Karnataka Home Minister G Parameshwara said on Friday.
The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Wednesday searched locations in Karnataka, including educational institutions linked to state Home Minister G Parameshwara, as part of a probe into alleged gold smuggling-linked money laundering case against Kannada actor Ranya Rao and others. The ED sources said an educational trust is suspected to have "diverted" funds and made a payment of Rs 40 lakh towards the credit card bill of Rao, allegedly on the instructions of an influential individual. The sources claimed the trust is linked to Parameshwara and the "influential" individual is a politically exposed person. The searches found there were no supporting vouchers or documentation to "substantiate" this payment (for credit card bill payment), they said.
The complainant-witness, a former sanitation worker, has claimed that he worked in Dharmasthala between 1995 and 2014, and that he was forced to bury a number of bodies, including those of women and minors, in Dharmasthala.
Congress's K R Ramesh Kumar will be the speaker of Karnataka's Vidhana Soudha (assembly), while the deputy speaker will be appointed from the JD-S.
'I have faith in the party high command. I have certain principles. I can also take about 50 legislators and do the shouting, but for me the discipline of the party is important. If people like us don't follow things, there won't be any discipline in the party. I have said that if the high command gives me the responsibility, I will take it up. I have not said I won't'
Additional Superintendent of Police Narayan Baramani, who faced Chief Minister Siddaramaiah's anger during a Congress rally in Belagavi, said he was 'attending to his duty'. This comes after reports that he sought voluntary retirement from service after the incident.
President Droupadi Murmu, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Congress top leaders Mallikarjun Kharge and Rahul Gandhi on Wednesday condoled the Bengaluru stampede deaths and the Bharatiya Janata Party asked the Congress government to own up responsibility for what it called the 'state-sponsored negligence'.
Karnataka minister Satish Jarkiholi on Wednesday said the guarantee schemes need to be reviewed so that only the economically weaker sections, and not the rich, benefit from them, sparking a debate on the ambitious programmes launched by the Congress government.
Suhas Shetty, a known rowdy sheeter and Hindu activist, was murdered by an unidentified group late on Thursday within the Bajpe police station limits in Mangaluru city.
A group of Congress leaders have written to Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi to warn party leaders and state ministers, who are weighing in for the chief minister's post, in the event of leadership change in Karnataka.
Following a complaint by a police inspector, the case was registered at Cubbon Park station, they said.
He also cautioned political leaders about making public statements or sharing information in connection with the case, which is sensitive.
A case was registered by the police against Congress MLA Channareddy Tannur and his son Pampanagouda Tannur on Saturday after a Dalit sub-inspector allegedly died by suicide, following his transfer within seven months of posting.
Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Thursday held discussions with his cabinet colleagues in the wake of the Governor Thaawarchand Gehlot reportedly issuing him a 'show-cause notice', seen as a precursor to sanctioning his prosecution in the alleged Mysuru Urban Development Authority (MUDA) site allotment 'scam'.
Speaking to reporters after a cabinet meeting, the chief minister also announced a one-man judicial probe, headed by Justice Michael D'Cunha, a retired high court judge of Karnataka, into the tragic incident.
Karnataka state Bharatiya Janata Party president B Y Vijayendra and Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar's brother D K Suresh called on state minister Satish Jarkiholi separately on Monday, triggering political speculation.
Belagavi superintendent of police Bheemashankar Guled had on Wednesday confirmed, "No such incident has taken place," clarifying that the post was false.
Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar's statement that even God can't fix Bengaluru traffic in the next two or three years, has come under severe criticism from the Bharatiya Janata Party, with leader of opposition R Ashoka on Friday demanding that the former step down and make way for someone more capable if he is unable to take responsibility and address the city's traffic issues.
Heavy overnight rains severely affected parts of the city on Monday, leading to water-logged roads, inundated residential areas and traffic pile-up, as the city braces for more spells in the coming days.
The third accused in the gang rape of two women, including an Israeli tourist, near Hampi in Koppal district has been arrested. Two other accused were arrested earlier. The incident occurred on March 6. The minister also instructed police to enhance security for tourists in the future to prevent such incidents.
The Central Administrative Tribunal (CAT) has overturned the Karnataka government's suspension of IPS officer Vikash Kumar Vikash, who was suspended following a fatal stampede at a stadium last month. The tribunal's decision could also lead to the reinstatement of other suspended officers.
The portfolios were cleared by Congress president Rahul Gandhi as the exercise had turned out to be tricky for the party state leaders.
Karnataka Home Minister G Parameshwara on Saturday said the police are conducting in-depth investigation into the bomb blast at the Rameshwaram Cafe and are looking into all angles.
The minister said the objective behind setting up the special squad was to create communal harmony.
The Belagavi administration has banned three Maharashtra ministers and an MP from entering this border district, as they are expected to participate in the "black day" event organised by Maharashtra Ekikaran Samiti (MES) on November 1, on the occasion of Karnataka formation day.
Karnataka Home Minister Dr G Parameshwara on Friday said the government has not taken the incident of filming in a washroom in an Udupi college lightly.
Speaking to reporters in Bengaluru, he said no one has suffered serious injuries and the injured -- both staff and customers -- are being treated in hospital.
Hours ahead of Janata Dal-Secular MP Prajwal Revanna's scheduled return from abroad to face the law over sexual abuse allegations, the Karnataka government on Thursday said the next course of action, such as cancellation of his passport, will follow if he fails to show up as promised.
Cooperation Minister K N Rajanna had on Saturday floated the idea of having three more DCMs in Karnataka and said he would discuss it with the Congress high command, keeping in mind the 2024 Lok Sabha polls.
Bus services between Karnataka and Maharashtra have been suspended following attacks on buses and their crew. The decision was taken given the tension prevailing in the border district of Belagavi over a sensitive issue. The language row began after a group of people allegedly intercepted a KSRTC bus and assaulted its conductor and driver for not speaking to a passenger in Marathi. The passenger, a minor girl, also filed a complaint stating that the conductor misbehaved with her. However, the family of the minor girl has decided to withdraw the case and urged people to stop escalating the matter into a language dispute between Karnataka and Maharashtra.
Earlier, deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar, who is also the state party chief, also had separate meetings with Parameshwara and Jarkiholi.
The longest-serving state party president since October 2010, Parameshwara has remained a hardcore loyalist of the party ever since his political debut through the Congress.
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