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Top brass tells Karnataka CM to hold all-party meet on quota

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BS Bommai, Basavaraj Bommai

BENGALURU: Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai, who held a marathon meeting with BJP national president JP Nadda and Union Home Minister Amit Shah at New Delhi late on Monday evening, said he will decide on the demand of Panchamasalis for 2A reservation category and opposition for it from the backward classes, after holding an all-party meeting.

With this, Congress and JDS will have to have a say on the contentious issue.

“The discussion was around the tour programme in January of national leaders, including Nadda, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Shah and Rajnath Singh. Also, the reservation issue that was raked up in the ensuing winter session was discussed. Nadda asked me to give social justice to the concerned, but keeping in view the party’s policy. I gave all the details and Nadda said he will speak directly with those demanding the quota,” Bommai said.

Following Nadda’s advice, Bommai said he will hold a meeting with BJP senior leaders and cabinet ministers in a couple of days and later an all-party meeting to take the final decision.

On Panchamasalis setting a deadline, he said there is no question of it, as the interim report of the state backward classes commission has reached the government and the announcement will be made after holding the all-party meeting as its many dimensions have to be discussed. “We should keep in mind the sensitivity of the issue as there might be aspirations from a community, but injustice should not be meted out to backward classes,” he said.

“Backward classes have over hundred castes and 200 sub-castes and it’s a complex issue that should be solved with a scientific approach and with experts’ reports,” he  said. On expanding his cabinet, Bommai said a detailed discussion was held and he gave information about the representation of different communities and regions in the cabinet. The decision will be taken soon, he added.

“They will let me know soon. We have moved two steps ahead as compared to my last visit,” he said.

Bommai said Shah will take part in a public rally in Mandya on December 30 and will meet party functionaries in Bengaluru on December 31. The repercussions of former minister Gali Janardhana Reddy launching his new political party was also discussed. Shah advised Bommai to maintain restraint on the Karnataka-Maharashtra border row, as the case is before the Supreme Court.

Mixer explodes after courier office owner tests it in Karnataka

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HASSAN: The owner of a courier office was seriously injured after a mixer-grinder exploded at Kuvempunagar Extension in Hassan on Monday evening.

The incident occurred at the DTDC branch office when Shashi, who owns the unit, opened the parcel and tried to test the mixer. The blast ripped his right hand, and shattered the windowpanes of the office. He also sustained injuries on his stomach and face.

SP Hariram Shankar, who visited the spot, said the incident occurred when the parcel, returned by one of the customers two days ago, was opened. The customer reportedly returned the parcel saying it was delivered to the wrong address.

The preliminary investigation did not raise any undue suspicion, but still the case has been referred to the Forensic Science Lab team, which will arrive from Mysuru on Tuesday. The courier boy has all the information about the company, the agency that dispatched the mixer and the address of the customer. The exact reason for the blast will be known after a thorough investigation, he said. Some suspect a short circuit.

Ukraine war redefined geopolitics in ’22, new year to see India at G20 helm

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Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy (L) and Russia President Vladimir Putin

NEW DELHI:  The Year 2022 will be remembered most for the outbreak of conflict between Russia 
and Ukraine, that started on February 24 and continues unabated. The conflict changed the entire narrative of geo-politics in the world, where the America and Europe were on the side of Ukraine and countries like India not have only chosen to abstain speaking against Russia, but also have benefitted by increasing its import of oil from Russia

Prime Minister Narendra Modi has been reiterating that this is “no era for war’ and has supported measures to end the conflict through dialogue and discussion. He has urged both Russian President Vladimir Putin, and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to resolve the conflict at repeated intervals, which includes making directr phone calls to them.

The war had led to sanctions being imposed on Russia, however, India continued its bilateral trade with them and infact increased their oil imports from the earlier 2 per cent to nearly 30 per cent now. “Fossil fuels are a finite market and we will buy oil from wherever it is available. With the sanctions imposed on Russia, the oil prices in the Middle East (from where we earlier imported) have shot up. Russia’s pricing is viable for us,’’ External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar has said many times over and the world seems to have accepted that stand.

Meanwhile, President Putin has been talking about bringing the conflict in Ukraine to an end by offering “negotiations”. Now, it is to be seen that Zelenskky is willing to walk the extra mile. His return from the US and additional arms and ammunition that he has got along may delay the possibility of a ceasefire.

Meanwhile, 2023 will be marked significantly by India’s G20 Presidency and participation of members from across the world. India is also handling the Presidency of Shanghai Corporation Organisation (SCO) and Summits for both will be held in 2023 which is expected to see participation of many heads of state.
There has been an upswing in the interest the Western world has been showing in the Indo-Pacific. America’s altering equation with China has encouraged many developed nations to focus on this region specially after the Taiwan Straits episode.

Amidst all this, there is the threat of Covid resurgence and its impact on lives again as there is an upswing in cases across China and some other parts of South East Asia. India is naturally most concerned about whether this will impact their over 200 physical meetings that have been scheduled under the G20 Presidency as all arrangements have been made.

CBI reopens Lalu Prasad Yadav rail project scam case stalled in 2021 due to lack of evidence

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RJD chief Lalu Prasad Yadav (Photo | PTI)

The CBI is taking a fresh look at the enquiry against RJD chief and former chief minister of Bihar Lalu Prasad Yadav, in a Railway projects allocation bribery case, investigation were stalled in 2021 due to lack of sufficient evidence

According to sources in the CBI the matter, which dates back to the time when Yadav held the Railways portfolio in the UPA-led government, is being re-looked. The CBI recently filed a chargsheet in October this year against the RJD chief, his wife Rabri Devi and 14 others in an alleged land-for-jobs scam during his tenure in the Railways.

The investigation into the matter which was still at the preliminary enquiry (PE) stage was terminated by CBI in the absence of any material evidence of substantive proof. The PE, initiated in 2018, was based on allegations that Lalu Prasad’s son Tejashwi, now the deputy chief minister of Bihar, and daughters Chanda and Ragini had bought a company AB Exports, allegedly a shell company, through which property deals worth crores were done.

Money, allegedly taken by Yadav as bribe, when he was minister of the Railways for allotment of projects in New Delhi and Bandra Railway stations were routed through AB Exports. However due to lack of evidence the investigations were stalled in around May 2021.

Sources said amidst in the recent chargesheet filed by CBI in October where the names of Prasad’s daughter Misa Bharti and a former general manager of the Railways also figure as accused in the charge sheet filed before a special CBI court recently, the CBI is taking a re relook into the stalled PE of the 2018 matter. 

The PE into the land-for-jobs scam case, was registered by the CBI on September 23, 2021 and was converted into an FIR on May 18. As per investigations individuals were allegedly appointed as substitutes in group D positions within three days of applying in “undue haste” by Railway officials and were later regularised when the “individuals themselves or their family members transferred their land”, according to the agency.

The transfers were made through deeds in the name of Rabri Devi and daughters Misa Bharti and Hema Yadav, it was alleged.

The CBI has alleged that land measuring about 1.05 lakh square feet in Patna was acquired by Prasad’s family members by making payments to the sellers in cash.

Karnataka: Muslim writers ignored alternative sammelana on cards

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HUBBALLI: Voices of dissent are growing louder as it is alleged that organisers of the upcoming Kannada Sahitya Sammelana in Haveri are ignoring Muslim writers and poets. In rebellion, some senior Kannada writers are planning to organise an alternative meet, Jana Sahitya Sammelana, in Bengaluru on January 8.

Last week, when the Kannada Sahitya Parishat announced the names of writers and poets who are taking part in the sammelana, a section of Kannada writers objected to the list, saying Muslim writers have been ignored. While the state has hundreds of Muslim Kannada writers, only a few have been considered for the sammelana, they pointed out.

Since then, there has been a campaign on social media to organise an alternative event or Paryaya Sammelana, parallel to the Haveri meet. Many writers have agreed to be part of this rebel lit fest.

But organisers alleged that petty politics is being played in the name of sammelana. The Kannada Sahitya Parishat has no intention of avoiding writers based on their religion, they said. “There are six Muslim writers and poets who are part of the Haveri Sammelana. It has become a routine for some people to create a controversy during the mega Kannada event,” an organising committee member said.

In 1979, when the sammelana was held in Dharmasthala, a parallel Bandaya Dalit Sammelana was organised, as the interests of Dalit writers were compromised. The then sammelana president, Hampa Nagarajaiah, had turned down a demand to hold a discussion on Dalit issues and the then Chief Minister Devaraj Urs had to intervene for the smooth conduct of the sammelana.

That was the trigger and soon, the Bandaya Dalit literature became hugely popular across the state. Later, journalist and writer P Lankesh had called for an alternative Sammelana to the Hubballi meet, but did not meet with much success.

The upcoming 86th Sahitya Sammelana will be held for three days from January 6 in Haveri and final preparations are on to make it a grand event. It will be inaugurated by Chief minister Basavaraj Bommai, who has taken a special interest as his home constituency of Shiggaon is in Haveri district.

Congress invites Akhilesh, Maya, Jayant to join Bharat Jodo in UP leg

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Congress leader Rahul Gandhi waves at supporters during the 'Bharat Jodo Yatra', in Nuh district, Dec. 22, 2022. (Photo | PTI)

LUCKNOW:  In a big political move, the Congress party has extended invitation to several leaders, including Samajwadi Party president Akhilesh Yadav, BSP supremo Mayawati and RLD chief Jayant Chaudhary and also former deputy CM of Uttar Pradesh, Dinesh Sharma to join the Uttar Pradesh leg of its ongoing Bharat Jodo Yatra.ADVERTISEMENTAds by 

While all non-BJP opposition leaders have been invited to join the yatra, Dinesh Sharma has been invited as an educationist and former professor of Lucknow University. However, the political experts witness the Congress move as an attempt to unify the non-BJP parties through the Yatra ahead of the big battle of ballots due in 2024. Currently, Congress, which has reduced nearly to a non-entity in country’s politically most crucial state with just one MP from Congress chief Sonia Gandhi representing Rae Bareli in Lok Sabha — and two MLAs in state assembly, is struggling hard for its revival in UP.

Besides Sharma, Professor Ravikant, teaching Hindi in LU, has also been invited by the Congress party to join the yatra which is likely to enter UP from Loni border of Ghaziabad on January 3. The Yatra, led by former Congress chief Rahul Gandhi, will cover three districts Ghaziabad, Baghpat and Shamli before entering Haryana.

Besides Ghaziabad, Rahul Gandhi would lead the yatra in Baghpat on January 4 and Shamli on January 5 when, in the evening, he would leave UP through Kairana in Shamli district to enter Sonipat in Haryana. Rahul Gandhi would cover total 100 km in UP during the yatra.

According to UP Congress spokesperson Ashok Singh, as the people are not allowed to raise their views in the present dispensation, Bharat Jodo Yatra is the only option to decipher people’s minds. 

Preventive measures will not affect normal life: Karnataka CM on surge in Covid-19 cases

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BENGALURU: Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai on Monday said precautionary measures to prevent the spread of Covid-19 will be implemented in a phased manner without affecting the normal routine of common people and economic activities

Addressing the media at Suvarna Vidhana Soudha in Belagavi after the Cabinet meeting, Bommai said that the Cabinet discussed the prevailing pandemic situation and measures to be taken to contain its spread.

The meeting also decided to discuss with the Technical Advisory Committee (TAC) to create awareness among people, ramp up administration of precautionary dose, and do more tests, especially for people suffering from Severe Acute Respiratory Infection (SARI) and Influenza Like Illness (ILI), the mandatory wearing of masks inside and in public and implement other preventive steps in a phased manner, he said.

On issuing separate guidelines for New Year celebrations, Bommai said it will be like in the previous years, but with some additional measures in the wake of the rise in Covid cases in a few countries.

Bommai said the government wants the ongoing Belagavi session to be fruitful and issues pertaining to North Karnataka must be discussed in detail. The government is ready to discuss any issue taken up by the Opposition, he added.

ICICI-Videocon loan scam: Dhoot, Kochhar couple to be quizzed in CBI custody till Dec 28

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Founder and promoter of the Videocon group Venugopal Dhoot was remanded in CBI custody by a special court in Mumbai, along with former ICICI Bank CEO Chanda Kochhar and her husband Deepak Kochhar, till 28 December in connection with irregularities in a loan disbursement case – amounting to over Rs 3000 crore – sanctioned by ICICI bank to the group between 2009 and 2011.  

Dhoot was produced in the special court after he was arrested by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on Monday morning in Mumbai.

The arrest comes close to the arrests of former ICICI Bank CEO Chanda Kochhar and her husband Deepak Kochhar in the same case being probed by the CBI. He will be produced before a special CBI court.

The loan which was sanctioned to the Videocon Group at the time when Chanda Kochhar the chief of ICICI bank, was moved to the non-performing asset (NPA) category.

It caused losses to the tune of over Rs 1750 crores to the ICICI Bank, the CBI has alleged. Kochhar and her husband were arrested by the CBI last week, on Friday in connection with the case and were taken to Mumbai from Delhi by the CBI, where they were remanded to CBI custody till December 26.

While seeking Dhoot’s remand, the CBI also sought the remand extension of the Kochhar couple, stating that the three will be confronted and questioned together by the agency in presence of each other. All three persons were produced before the special court together.

The Kochhar couple was arrested by the CBI for “non-cooperation” with the agency during a questioning session on Friday, for which the duo was summoned to Delhi. Consistent incoherence in their deposition and non-cooperation prompted the agency to take them into custody on Friday, sources in the CBI said. The couple were remanded in CBI custody till Monday.

Seeking their remand to probe the matter further the CBI submitted before the court that the loan extended to the Videocon Group during Kochhar’s tenure had caused loss to the tune of Rs 1,730 crore to ICICI bank.

The agency alleged that when Chanda Kochhar took charge of ICICI bank, six loans were sanctioned to various companies of Videocon out of which at least two loans were sanctioned by committees where Chanda Kochhar was a member. In other instances, she influenced committees also to sanction loans to Videocon group, CBI said.

The CBI also alleged that in 2009, Rs 64 crore loan was given by the Videocon group to Nupower, which is Deepak Kochhar’s firm. The agency also informed the court that it is also probing the transaction by which a flat in Mumbai, valued around Rs 5.25 crore in 1996, was transferred to the family trust of Kochhars in 2016 at a throwaway price way less than a crore.

According to the case registered in Mumbai by the CBI Kochhar had allegedly favoured Videocon Group a multi-business entity, known for its electronic products, by allowing “deviations” in the bank’s lending policies. She was charged with criminal conspiracy and cheating by the agency for alleged irregularities in a loan extended to the Videocon Group in 2012 that turned into a non-performing asset for the ICICI Bank. The transaction however benefitted the Kochhars the CBI had alleged.

The ICICI in 2019, declared that it will classify Kochhar’s departure as “termination for cause” because she had broken the bank’s code of conduct and internal standards.

The case was out of news for a while but recently came under the spotlight following questioning of Venugopal Dhoot, the ex-chief of Videocon group, in November by the Directorate of Enforcement. Dhoot was quizzed by the agency in connection with the loan extended to the group by ICICI during Kochhar’s tenure.  The ED is investigating the money laundering angle in connection with the matter 

Chinese President Xi Jinping breaks silence over China’s war with Covid

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BEIJING: Chinese President Xi Jinping urged officials on Monday to take steps to protect lives in his first public remarks on Covid-19 since Beijing dramatically loosened hardline containment measures this month.

Having mostly cut itself off from the rest of the world during the pandemic, China is now experiencing the planet’s biggest surge in infections after abruptly lifting restrictions that torpedoed the economy.  Studies have estimated that around one million people could die over the next few months.

Many in the population are now grappling with shortages of medicine, while emergency medical facilities are strained by an influx ,  “At present, Covid-19 prevention and control in China are facing a new situation and new tasks,” Xi said in a directive, according to state broadcaster CCTV. 

“We should launch the patriotic health campaign in a more targeted way… fortify a community line of defence for epidemic prevention and control, and effectively protect people’s lives, safety and health,” Xi said. Hospitals and crematoriums across the country have been overflowing with Covid patients and victims, while China’s National Health Commission on Sunday announced it would stop publishing daily nationwide infection and death statistics.

The decision to scrap the daily virus count comes amid concerns that the country’s blooming wave of infections is not being accurately reflected in official statistics.

Beijing has admitted the scale of the outbreak has become “impossible” to track following the end of mandatory mass testing, as people are now not obliged to declare test results to authorities. And last week, Beijing narrowed the criteria by which Covid-19 fatalities were counted—a move experts said would suppress the number of deaths attributable to the virus. 

The winter surge comes ahead of two major public holidays next month, in which millions of migrant workers are expected to travel to their hometowns to reunite with relatives.
Authorities are bracing for the virus to hit under-resourced rural areas hard.

At Christmas, Pope urges end to ‘senseless’ Ukraine war

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Pope Francis

VATICAN CITY: Pope Francis on Sunday appealed for an end to the “senseless” war in Ukraine, in his traditional Christmas Day message broadcast around the world

The head of the Catholic Church addressed thousands of people gathered in St Peter’s Square, some of them holding Ukrainian flags, before delivering the “Urbi et Orbi” blessing (“to the city and the world”).

A call to peace is traditionally the focus of the pope’s message at Christmas, the holiday marking the birth of Christ, which he delivers from the central balcony of St Peter’s Basilica and is broadcast live worldwide.

The 86-year-old on Sunday first turned to “our Ukrainian brothers and sisters who are experiencing this Christmas in the dark and cold, far from their homes”.

“May the Lord inspire us to offer concrete gestures of solidarity to assist all those who are suffering, and may he enlighten the minds of those who have the power to silence the thunder of weapons and put an immediate end to this senseless war!” he said.

“Tragically, we prefer to heed other counsels, dictated by worldly ways of thinking,” he added, recalling “with sorrow” that “the icy winds of war continue to buffet humanity”.

‘Food as a weapon’

“Our time is experiencing a grave famine of peace also in other regions and other theatres of this third world war,” he said.

Francis referenced numerous countries in difficulty this Christmas, whether due to conflict or another crisis, from Afghanistan to Yemen, Syria, Myanmar, the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, Lebanon and Haiti.

For the first time, he also called for “reconciliation” in Iran, rocked by women-led protests for the past three months.

The pope has called for peace in Ukraine ever since Russia invaded its neighbour in February, condemning the war but seeking to maintain a delicate dialogue with Moscow.

However, he has been criticised in some quarters for not being more explicit in blaming Russian President Vladimir Putin.

In a magazine interview published last month, the Argentine pontiff denounced the cruelty of Russia’s troops in Ukraine, drawing a formal protest from Moscow.

On Sunday, the pope also urged those celebrating Christmas to remember those “who go hungry while huge amounts of food daily go to waste and resources are being spent on weapons”.

“The war in Ukraine has further aggravated this situation, putting entire peoples at risk of famine, especially in Afghanistan and in the countries of the Horn of Africa,” he said.

“We know that every war causes hunger and exploits food as a weapon, hindering its distribution to people already suffering.

“On this day, let us learn from the Prince of Peace (Christ) and, starting with those who hold political responsibilities, commit ourselves to making food solely an instrument of peace.”

Meaning of Christmas

On Saturday evening, the pope led the traditional Christmas Eve mass at St Peter’s Basilica, using a wheelchair as he continues to struggle with knee pain.

He prayed for “the children devoured by wars, poverty and injustice” and lamented that “men hungry for power and money swallow up their loved ones, their brothers”.

He called on people to “abandon the warmth of worldliness” and “rediscover the meaning of Christmas” in the face of “consumerism”, advocating for a Church that serves the poor.

The Vatican put the crowd Sunday at 70,000, while 7,000 people attended Saturday evening’s mass, with more following the service on screens outside.

“It’s very inspiring to be here with all these people,” Victoria Machado, who travelled with her family to the Vatican from Mexico, told AFP.

“We’re happy and moved to see the pope, even if we’re outside, and to feel this connection between each other,” the 19-year-old added.

Julie, a 50-year-old who manages a business in France, said the pope was a “very humble man, I think he’s capable of offering a message of peace and trying to unite people and ease tensions”.

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