Bengaluru: Senior BJP leader Subramanian Swamy on Wednesday cautioned the party leadership against removing B S Yediyurappa as the Karnataka Chief Minister as he brought the party to power in the State.

“It was Yeddiyurappa who first brought BJP to power in Karnataka. Some conspired to remove him since he would not be a ‘chamcha’. Without him, the party cannot return to power in the State. Only upon his return to the BJP could the party win again. Why repeat the same mistake?,” the 81-year-old Rajya Sabha member tweeted.

The Lingayat strongman that Yeddiyurappa is got support from Subramanian Swamy even as many seers of Lingayat Mutts have started rallying behind the Chief Minister amid speculation on his removal from the post.

Talks of change of leadership, which have been on for quite some time, gained momentum after Yediyurappa’s visit to Delhi last week. He has since strongly dismissed the talks as baseless.

New Delhi: A new generation of Akash surface-to-air missile was successfully flight-tested on Wednesday by the DRDO from an integrated test range off the Odisha coast in a boost to India’s air defence capabilities.

The defence ministry said the missile was test-fired at around 12:45 PM from a land-based platform and that the “flawless performance” of its weapons system was confirmed by the complete flight data.

“Once deployed, the Akash-NG weapon system will prove to be a force multiplier for the air defence capability of the Indian Air Force,” the ministry said in a statement.

It is learnt that the new variant of the Akash missile (Akash-NG) has a slightly better range compared to the original version that can strike targets at a distance of around 25 km.

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh congratulated the DRDO, the Indian Air Force and production agencies Bharat Electronics Limited (BEL) and Bharat Dynamics Limited (BDL) for the successful test-firing of the missile.

Separately, the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) also successfully flight-tested an indigenously developed low weight man-portable anti-tank guided missile, paving the way for its production for the Army.

The missile is being developed to strengthen the combat capabilities of the Indian Army.

The ministry said the Aakash-NG missile was flight-tested at around 12:45 PM from a land-based platform.

“The Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) successfully flight-tested the new generation Akash Missile from the Integrated Test Range (ITR) off the coast of Odisha on July 21,” it said.

“The flight trial was conducted at around 12:45 PM from a land-based platform with all weapon system elements such as multifunction radar, command, control and communication system and launcher participating in the deployment configuration,” it added in a statement.

The Akash missile system has been developed by the DRDO’s laboratory in Hyderabad in collaboration with other wings of the premier defence research organisation.

In order to capture flight data, ITR deployed a number of monitoring mechanisms such as electro-optical tracking systems, radar and telemetry.

“The flawless performance of the entire weapon system has been confirmed by complete flight data captured by these systems. During the test, the missile demonstrated high manoeuvrability required for neutralising fast and agile aerial threats,” the ministry said.

DRDO Chairman G Satheesh Reddy applauded the efforts of the team that was involved in the test-firing of the missile.

In December last year, the government approved the export of Akash missile system and set up a high-level committee to authorise sale of major platforms to various countries.

A committee comprising Defence Minister Singh, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar and National Security Advisor Ajit Doval was set up to authorise exports of major indigenous platforms.

About the man-portable missile, the defence ministry described the successful trial as a major boost for the government’s ‘Aatmanirbhar Bharat’ (self-reliant India) campaign.

“In a major boost towards ‘Aatmamirbhar Bharat’ and strengthening of Indian Army, the DRDO successfully flight-tested indigenously developed low weight, fire and forget Man-Portable Antitank Guided Missile (MPATGM) on July 21,” the ministry said.

It said the missile was launched from a man-portable launcher integrated with a thermal site and the target was mimicking a tank.

“The missile hit the target in direct attack mode and destroyed it with precision. The test has validated the minimum range successfully. All the mission objectives were met,” the ministry said in a statement.

It said that the missile has already been successfully flight-tested for the maximum range.

“The test brings the development of indigenous third-generation man-portable anti-tank guided missile close to completion,” the ministry said.

Guwahati: Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on Wednesday asserted that the concept of secularism needs to be defined in the context of `Indian civilisation’.

Attacking Leftist intellectuals, liberals and the media, Sarma said, at a function where RSS Chief Mohan Bhagwat launched a book, claimed the country’s intellectual society is still dominated by the left-liberals with the media giving them more space while ignoring alternate voices.

“An intellectual terrorism has been unleashed and the Lefts in the country are more leftists than Karl Marx. There is no democracy in media….they have no space for Indian civilisation but there is space for Karl Marx and Lenin”, he claimed.

Mediapersons may agree in private to an alternative narrative but they prefer giving space to left -liberals saying that this reflects an independent view, Sarma alleged.

“The left thinking has to be challenged and more thought provoking books based on history, of our long struggle for existence must be documented in the right perspective”, he said.

The Chief Minister however did not specify how secularism would be defined in the context of Indian civilisation, though he asserted that India India has been a secular country since Rig Vedic times.

“We have given the concept of secularism and humanity to the world. Our civilisation is five thousand years old and we have accepted diversity of thought, religion and culture since ages”, the Chief Minister said.

Referring to the Citizenship Amendment Act, Sarma said that there are two perspectives on this- for protestors outside Assam, the demand is why should only Hindus be given citizenship, Muslim migrants should also be covered.

In Assam, however, the protest against the Act was that neither Hindus nor Muslims from other countries should be given citizenship.

“It was the so-called secular protestors at the national level who tried to give a communal colour to the entire protests”, he said.

The CAA is for those “who are victims of partition and not beneficiaries of a communal country created on the basis of religion”, he said.

Sirsa: Farmers on Wednesday blocked a national highway here at three different points to demand the release of five protesters who were arrested last week following an attack on Haryana Assembly Deputy Speaker Ranbir Gangwa’s car.

The Samyukta Kisan Morcha (SKM), an umbrella body of various farmers’ unions, spearheading stir against the farm laws, has also demanded the withdrawal of cases including sedition charges against over 100 protesters booked in connection with the incident involving the attack on Gangwa’s car on July 11.

Meanwhile, the indefinite fast of farmer leader Baldev Singh Sirsa as protest against the arrests and registration of cases entered the fourth day on Wednesday.

A team of the health department conducted Sirsa’s medical checkup at the protest site. The protesters blocked the highway for two hours at different points, including Khuian Malana toll plaza and Panjuana village.

While emergency vehicles were allowed to pass, the blockade, however, resulted in traffic jams on both sides of the road.

Police in strength had been deployed to prevent any untoward incident.

Many passengers, including some students, were seen getting down from the buses and walking on foot and using other means to reach their destinations.

The police have booked over 100 people, mostly unidentified, for sedition, obstructing public servants in discharge of their duty, murderous attempt on an elected representative and damaging public property after the attack on the deputy speaker’s vehicle.

The protesting farmers had earlier claimed that the administration has not been able to show any video or other evidence to prove that the farmers indulged in violence on July 11.

Chhotaudepur (Guj): A young tribal couple from a village in Gujarat’s Chhotaudepur district was allegedly abducted, tied to a tree and thrashed with sticks as a punishment for eloping, police said on Wednesday.

The police have arrested nine men for the alleged attack that took place in Chiliyavant village under the Rangpur police station in Chhotaudepur district on Tuesday, Deputy Superintendent of Police A V Katkad said.

A video of the incident, which surfaced on social media, showed some men taking turns to beat the couple, who were tied to a tree, with sticks in the presence of other villagers, the police said.

On learning about the incident through the video, the police rushed to the village on Wednesday and arrested the accused on the charges of rioting, kidnapping and illegal confinement based on a complaint lodged by the victim girl, the official said.

“The couple had eloped on July 18 with an intention of getting married. However, angry villagers eventually traced them to a neighbouring village and brought them back to Chiliyavant on Tuesday morning. The accused tied the duo to a tree and thrashed them with sticks,” the DySP said.

The victim in her complaint has claimed that the accused were angry because a local tradition bars marriage of man and woman from the same village, it was stated.

A similar incident took place in Dhada village under Rangpur police station a month ago, where a tribal couple was assaulted by five men as a punishment for eloping.

Kolkata: Latching on to the Pegasus snooping row, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee Wednesday accused the Modi government of trying to establish a “surveillance state”.

She also asked the Supreme Court to take cognizance of snooping scandal that purportedly targeted politicians, activists, journalists and even judges using the Pegasus spyware, and asked Opposition parties to come together to defeat the BJP in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections.

“BJP wants to convert a democratic country into a surveillance state rather than a welfare state,” she said addressing the Martyrs’ Day rally in Kolkata online.

The TMC observes Martyrs’ Day on July 21 every year to commemorate the killing of 13 people in police firing on a rally of Youth Congress workers against the then Left Front government in 1993 when Banerjee was in the Congress.

The TMC supremo also accused the Centre of spending the money collected through tax on fuel and other commodities for spying using a “dangerous software” instead of funding welfare schemes.

“I know my phone is being tapped. All opposition leaders know that our phones are being tapped. I can’t speak to NCP leader Sharad Pawarji or other opposition leaders or chief ministers because we are being snooped and spied on by the Centre. But snooping on us won’t save them in 2024 Lok Sabha polls,” Banerjee told the rally.

Slamming the BJP-led NDA government for its “monumental failure” in handling the second wave of the COVID crisis, the TMC supremo termed the saffron party a “highly loaded virus party” which needs to be defeated at any cost.

Banerjee thanked leaders of the Congress, NCP, SP, Shiv Sena and several other parties for joining her rally virtually from New Delhi.

She said all those opposed to the BJP and its “authoritarian regime” should defeat it.

“BJP has taken the country to darkness, we all have to come forward to take it to new light,” the Bengal leader said.

“Khela Hobe” (will play), she declared, renewing the battle cry she made during the state assembly elections, adding the fight will continue till BJP is ousted from power.

Firozabad: A professor, who allegedly made derogatory remarks against Union Minister Smriti Irani on Facebook, was sent to jail after he surrendered in a court here.

Shaharyar Ali surrendered to Additional Sessions Judge Anurag Kumar and moved an interim bail application on Tuesday.

The judge cancelled the bail plea after which the professor was sent to jail.

Firozabad Police had booked Ali, head of History department at SRK College, in March for an alleged obscene Facebook post against the women and child development minister. The college had then served him with a suspension notice.

Earlier this month, the Supreme Court refused to grant protection from arrest to Ali.

An anticipatory bail plea filed by the professor was also rejected by the Allahabad High Court in May. Refusing to grant Ali protection from arrest, Justice J J Munir said there was no material on record to show that the professor’s account was hacked.