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Union Ministers Harsimrat Kaur Badal and Hardeep Puri on Wednesday crossed over to Pakistan through the Attari-Wagah joint check post between India and her neighbour for the Kartarpur Corridor ceremony, and termed it a “historic step”.

Both Ministers will represent India when Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan will later perform the ground breaking ceremony for the Kartarpur Corridor project near the Kartarpur Sahib gurdwara, where Sikhism’s founder, Guru Nanak Dev, spent the last 18 years of his life.

“I am going there to offer prayers to the first Guru at a place where he spent the last days of his life.

“I have not been invited by anyone but I am going there as a Sikh,” a visibly emotional Union Food Processing Minister Harsimrat Badal told the media here some 30 km from Amritsar as she crossed over to Pakistan.

“This is a historic occasion. The Kartarpur Corridor has been a long-pending demand of the Sikh community. I am privileged to be going there to offer prayers.

“This is a significant measure among the several measures announced by the Government of India last week in connection with the 550th birth anniversary of Guru Nanak Dev.

“I am a proud Sikh to be going there,” Union Minister of State Puri said, adding that the corridor should have been opened much earlier.

Though Puri said that the Corridor was an important step in the relations between both countries, he added that he would not “jump the gun” in the “euphoria” over the development.

The corridor will give access to pilgrims from India, especially from the Sikh community, to visit the gurdwara which has a significant place in Sikh religious history.

Vice President M. Venkaiah Naidu and Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh had on Monday laid the foundation stone of a road, from Dera Baba Nanak town in Punjab’s Gurdaspur district, which will connect the Kartarpur Corridor.

Amritsar Member of Parliament (MP) Gurjeet Singh Aujla crossed over to Pakistan from Attari on Tuesday for the ceremony. He carried holy water from the ‘sarovar’ (pond) at the Golden Temple complex.

Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC) President Gobind Singh Langowal is also in Pakistan for the event.

Punjab Cabinet Minister Navjot Singh Sidhu on Tuesday said the Kartarpur Corridor had the potential to erase enmity between the two nations and bring peace in the subcontinent.

Sidhu heaped praises on his “friend”, the Pakistan Prime Minister, for ensuring that the corridor became a reality.

“The Kartarpur Corridor will prove to be a path of peace. It will erase enmity between both countries,” Sidhu told media in Wagah in Pakistan.

Sidhu strongly batted for people-to-people and cricketing ties between India and Pakistan despite both the nuclear-armed neighbours who have gone to war earlier having increased tensions in recent years over Pakistan’s support to terrorism in Jammu and Kashmir and other parts of India.

The cricketer-turned-politician tried to steer clear of controversy over his visiting Pakistan despite strained relations between both countries and Indian soldiers being killed in firing from Pakistan side.

Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh turned down an invite from the Pakistan government to be part of the ceremony.

He said that the Pakistan Army was killing Indian soldiers and supporting terrorist elements fomenting trouble in Jammu and Kashmir and Punjab.

Amarinder said he had asked Sidhu to “reconsider” his decision.

“I had asked Sidhu to reconsider his decision to go to Pakistan for the ground-breaking ceremony of the Kartarpur Corridor, but had acceded to his (Sidhu’s) request for permission to go since I did not believe in stopping anyone from undertaking a personal visit,” Amarinder told media on Tuesday.

“Sidhu told me he had already committed himself. When I informed him of the stand I had taken, he said it was his personal visit but he would get back to me. But I did not hear from him,” said the Chief Minister.

Amarinder Singh said the minister sent him a request for going and he cleared it.

“I do not stop anyone from going anywhere on a private visit. It (Sidhu’s trip) is not an official visit,” the Chief Minister said.

Sidhu, who arrived in Pakistan on Wednesday, had on Monday defended his decision to go to Pakistan saying he had the “Chief Minister’s permission.

“Standing by his own decision to decline Pakistan’s invitation for the ceremony, Amarinder Singh said he believed in saying what he felt.

“I have strong feelings on the issue. I have a strong bond with the Indian Army and cannot stand seeing my people getting killed,” he said.

It was at the Kartarpur gurdwara, which is located around two-to-three kilometre from the India-Pakistan international border and is situated right opposite the border belt in Dera Baba Nanak in Indian’s Gurdaspur district in Punjab, that Guru Nanak Dev spent 18 years of his life till he died in 1539.

The gurdwara, which fell in Pakistan territory following the Partition of India in August 1947, has big significance in Sikhism and history.

For the past over 71 years, ever since Partition, Sikhs have been offering prayers near the international border while seeing the gurdwara from a distance.

IANS

A top Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) commander, Naveed Jatt, who was wanted for the murder of senior journalist Shujaat Bukhari, was killed on Wednesday in a gunfight in Jammu and Kashmir’s Badgam district, police sources said.

Although an official confirmation was still awaited, the sources said that Jatt, alias Abu Hanzullah, was among the two militants killed in the gunfight that broke out earlier in the day during a cordon and search operation in Kuthpora village.

A Pakistani national belonging to Multan, Jatt, had escaped from police custody on February 6, when he was being taken for a medical check-up to a hospital from the Srinagar Central Jail.

Two policeman were also killed during Jatt’s escape from the S.M.H.S. hospital here.

Jatt was among the top LeT militants wanted by the security forces.

He is believed to be involved in the murder of Bukhari, the then Editor-in-chief of Rising Kashmir, an English daily.

Bukhari was gunned down along with two of his guards in the Press Enclave area in the city on June 14.

The killing of Jatt is seen as a big success for the security forces in their anti-militancy operations.

IANS

By : Pramesh S Jain

Good job by Bengaluru city police and Traffic Police and all senior cops were on their toes from 3 days and done a tremendous job for the bid adieu Actor turned neta Rebel Star Amaranth Ambareesh people from all walks of life appreciated Bengaluru city police.

End of an Era.

“Son Abhishek performs Ambareesh’s last rites ”

‘Ajatha Shatru’ Ambareesh’s demise leaves Kannada film industry ‘orphaned.

Lakhs of fans bid farewell to rebel Kannada cinema star Ambareesh on Monday, November 26, as he was accorded a state funeral.Ambareesh, who was also a senior Congress leader, died on Saturday due to cardiac arrest.

Former Union Minister and Kannada actor, Ambareesh was laid to rest on Monday at Kanteerava Studio in Bengaluru.As a mark of respect,the Kannada star was given state honour with 21-gun salute.Earlier, in the day,former Prime Minister HD Deve Gowda,Karnataka CM HD Kumaraswamy, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) state chief BS Yeddyurappa and Former Karnataka CM Siddaramaiah paid last respects.The journey of the vehicle carrying Ambareesh’s remains started from Kanteerava Stadium and reached Kanteerava studio.

Rebel Star Ambareesh Mandyadha Gandu son of Mandya’s Son Abhishek performed the last rites and lit the funeral pyre, amidst chanting of Vedic hymns by priests.

In his lifetime,Ambareesh came to be known as Kaliyuga Karna after the famous Mahabharata character for his tendency to be generous to anyone who came to him seeking help.So,it came as no surprise that thousands of fans of the actor-politician stepped out on to the streets of Bengaluru to catch one last glimpse of their favourite hero.

“Actress Divya Spandana Ramya absence during ambareesh’s funeral”.

Thereafter, the body was taken Mandya and fans were allowed to pay their last respects to the ‘Rebel Star’. Now, the latest update is that some people from Mandya are unhappy with the actress-turned-politician Ramya for not coming to Mandya to honour Ambi.

Interestingly, Ramya had tweeted her condolences to Ambi’s family after his death. However, most people in Mandya feel that merely sending out a tweet is not enough.

In case you did not know, Ramya is a former MP from Mandya. She had entered the Parliament in 2013 by winning a bypoll. In the 2014 General Elections, she had contested from the same constituency again but lost.

After a flurry of discussions on Sunday, a compromise was reached.The body was airlifted to Mandya’s Vishweshwaraiah Stadium and was kept for public viewing from 5 pm in the evening on Sunday to 6 am on Monday.

The body was draped in the tri-colour and the famous Mysuru ‘peta’ (headgear) crowning his head,was then brought back to Bengaluru for the funeral procession.

The procession in Bengaluru began at 12 pm amid a catalogue of prominent personalities who paid a floral tribute to the star.Kannada actors Darshan,who rushed back from a film shoot in Sweden, and Yash were huddled in a discussion alongside Chief Minister HD Kumaraswamy,Deputy Chief Minister G Parameshwara,Senior Congress leader Ghulam Nabi Azad.Shivarajkumar,film fraternity as,Puneet Rajkumar, Arjun Sarja,Jaggesh, were among the other prominent names at the procession.

His body was placed in a glass casket inside a van decorated with orange, white and green flowers.Inside,his wife Sumalatha and son Abhishek were seated next to the glass casket along with few other relatives.Heavy security personnel including police and members of the Rapid Action Force (RAF) led the way as the van made its way out of the Kanteerava Stadium towards Hudson Circle.In all, around 2,000 police personnel were deployed in and around the stadium, and along the route of the procession.

Fans of the actor, who had lined up in numbers on either side of the road leading out of the stadium broke into cries of “Ambarishavarige Jai” as the convoy began its 12 km journey to Kanteerava Studios. The van crossed Halasuru Gate Police Station and made its way towards Mysore Bank Circle and eventually towards CID Junction.

All along the way, fans and well-wishers looked on as the colourful convoy passed by. They took their phones out and clicked pictures and began walking with the convoy. There was no untoward incident or anger at the loss of the beloved actor.

Traffic came to a standstill in parts of the city’s centre even as the group of people following the convoy continued to grow in number by the time the procession reached Kanteerava Studios four hours later.

Kanteerva Studio was packed up with rebel star Ambareesh fans ”

Law and order and traffic security arrangements was well deployed across city under the leadership of Bengaluru city police commissioner,T.Suneel Kumar with Addl CPs as,B.K.Singh,Seemanth Kumar Singh,P.Harishekaran,Alok Kumar,Nanjundswamy,Joint CP,Satheesh,DCPs,as,Annamalai, Devaraj,Chetan Singh Rathore,Dr.M.B.Boralingaiah,Ravi.D. Channanavar,M.N.Anucheth,Rahul kumar Sharpode,Girish.S,Abdul Aahad,Jagadeesh,Saraha Fathima,

with all ACPs,150 inspectors of law and order,Traffic and CCB with 30 KSRP and 34 CAR platoons with 3 RAF companies with SWAT force with Riot control rapid action force and all staffs of Bengaluru city law and order and traffic and CCB cops were deployed from Kanteerva stadium to Kanteerva Studio and they have maintained law and order all the senior officials as Alok Kumar,Chethan Singh Rathore,Annamalai,Girish S,with RAF companies and other officers as special force as Kabadi team of Bengaluru city police appointed by Alok Kumar,were controlling the crowd at the entrance of the Kanteerva where many fans were gathered and for their safety and gave a message to miscreants that do not indulge in any ruckus we are ready and they were seen wearing safety Protector guard with this the funeral rituals as last rites was concluded in the evening at 5.55pm Abhishek lit the pyre and consigned with flames and as soon as Ambareesh was laid to rest Sumalatha Ambareesh break down with tears and his son too breakdown as he lost his mentor,friend and father the whole crowd was disbursed by 7pm and for this chief minister HD Kumaraswamy and deputy chief minister and Home Minister of karnataka state Dr.G.Parameshwara and DG&IGP of karnataka state Neelamani N Raju too appreciated all the cops for their exemplary and commendable efforts in maintaining law and order .

An entire stretch of Outer Ring Road was packed with his fans, seen standing on the flyover, buildings and even on branches of trees to watch the funeral being beamed onto several LED screens.

The area around the studio was so crowded that the funeral procession that started from Kanteerava Stadium, in a vehicle decked with flowers, took over an hour-and-a-half to traverse the last stretch of 200 metres from Goraguntepalya. The procession traversed a route of 13 km through Central and North Bengaluru, in over five hours, to reach the studio and people thronged the streets through the route to pay their respects.

Senior Congress leader Ghulam Nabi Azad and General Secretary, AICC, K.C. Venugopal met Mr.Kumaraswamy as emissaries of AICC president Sonia Gandhi and handed over personal condolence message to him. The Chief Minister later handed over the message to Abhishek

Kanteerava Studios, an iconic studio mostly used to make Kannada films was also the place chosen to cremate Rajkumar. Members of the Rajkumar family who attended the funeral procession confirmed that they had raised no objections to the state government’s decision. “He was like a father to us. He helped anyone who came to him seeking help which is a rare thing in the industry. We will agree with what the government decides is best,”Raghavendra Rajkumar had said when questioned by reporters at Kanteerava Stadium.

It was not just the film industry that was united in his death.Political leaders cutting across political lines waited for the convoy to arrive at the Studios. From Siddaramaiah to Yeddyurappa to Deve Gowda, everyone considered Ambareesh to be one of their own and just like in his lifetime, Ambareesh was the centre of attraction for one last journey.

Amid chanting of Vedic hymns, a teary-eyed Abhishek, Ambareesh’s son,performed the last rites and lit the pyre in the presence of thousands of mourners, including people from the film industry and politics.

As the pyre went up in flames, Abhishek and Ambareesh’s actress-wife Sumalatha broke down and were inconsolable.

Ambareesh’s close friend and Telugu film actor Mohan Babu could not control his grief and burst into tears many times.Chief minister H D Kumaraswamy, deputy chief minister G Parameshwara and former Prime Minister H D Deve Gowda placed wreaths on the body of Ambareesh and paid their last respects.BJP state president B S Yeddyurappa,former deputy chief minister R.Ashoka,former Maharashtra chief minister Sushil Kumar Shinde,former Karnataka chief Minister Siddaramaiah,Congress leader, Ghulam Nabi Azad, actress-politician Jayaprada and a host of film actors and actresses from South India and politicians were among those who paid their last respects to the departed soul.Wrapped in the tri-colour, Ambareesh’s body was Sunday evening taken to Mandya, his home district, where tens of thousands stood in long queues to have a final glimpse of the actor.
The body was brought back to Bengaluru on Monday noon for the last rites to be performed.A large funeral procession followed as the hearse, bedecked with 1,800 kg of flowers, wound its way from the Kanteerava Stadium to the Kanteerava Studio covering 12 km, amid tight security.Elaborate security arrangements were made with the deployment of 11,000 men in uniform, comprising the city police, three battalions of Rapid Action Force (RAF), 30 battalions of Karnataka State Reserved Police (KSRP) and 34 battalions of City Armed Reserve battalions.Four Additional Commissioners of Police and 15 Deputy Commissioners of Police oversaw the security arrangements all along the procession route, police said.Traffic came to a grinding halt in the city on several major roads as the funeral procession passed through with thousands of people gathered on both sides.Ambareesh, a three-time Lok Sabha member and also a former minister at the state and central levels passed way on Saturday after a prolonged illness.

Bengaluru,DC,Vijay Shankar, presided the full funeral and final rites of Ambareesh with very peacefully and all the leaders and family members and film fraternity paid their last respect to Ambareesh.

He is survived by his wife and a son.Known as a “rebel star”, Ambareesh had acted in over 200 films.

Entering the tinsel world through the movie ‘Nagarahavu’ (king cobra), directed by veteran late PuttannaKannagal in 1972, Ambareesh had carved a niche for himself inthe Kannada film industry, particularly as an “angry man”,earning the title “rebel star”.Ambareesh also had a successful career in politics, having been an MLA, a Lok Sabha member and a former minister.He had been in the erstwhile Janata Dal, JDS and the Congress in his political career that suffered a setback when he was asked to resign as a minister during the previousSiddaramaiah government.Since then, Ambareesh had faded into political obvilion.Ambareesh had won the several state government film awards and was bestowed with an honorary doctorate by the Dharwad university.

Karnataka chief minister HD Kumaraswamy thanked all the police personnel,Media and film fraternity and public for their cooperation in paying homage to Ajathashatru Rebel Star Ambareesh.The state is in deep grief over the demise of two former Union Ministers, CK Jaffer Sharief and Ambareesh.The restraint shown by their fans and followers at this moment of sorrow is commendable.I express my wholehearted gratitude to them for cooperating with the administration to bid adieu to these popular leaders with respect and dignity.I am also grateful to Deputy CM Dr Parameshwara my cabinet colleagues, legislators and leaders from the film fraternity.I appreciate the wonderful job done by officers, police personnel and media who worked around the clock to perform the last rites of these leaders peacefully and also the Mandya district administration for making arrangements for the public topay their last respects to #Ambareesh.And my special thanks to Union Defence Minister @nsitharaman and the Air Force for their timely help in providing a defense helicopter to carry the mortal remains of Ex-minister #Ambarish from Bengaluru to Mandya for public homage he tweeted.