Legislators in Karnataka are constantly stirring up controversies. From drunken brawls to making embarrassing comments, we have seen it all. On Wednesday, JD(S) MLA and Minister for Tourism, Sa Ra Mahesh embarrassed the coalition government by misbehaving with a woman police officer.

The minister’s crudeness came to light after he publicly called Tumakuru Superintendent of Police Divya Gopinath a “bloody woman”. Police say that SP Divya was insulted and reduced to tears due the minister’s sense of entitlement.

On Wednesday, the funeral of the late Shivakumar Swami was being held at the Siddaganga Mutt in Tumakuru. Ministers and politicians cutting across party lines attended the ceremony and security was beefed up. Police were instructed not to allow public pass through the barricades.

SP Divya was also a part of the security arrangements. When Minister Mahesh and two other cabinet ministers Venkatarao Nadagouda and SR Srinivas, wanted to enter the building, SP Divya stopped them and did not allow them to enter the building without checking their IDs.

Outraged at being treated like a commoner, Sa Ra Mahesh shouted at SP Divya and said, “Don’t you know who we are, you bloody lady? We are ministers!”

Insulted by the minister’s outburst for just doing her job, SP Divya was reduced to tears.

Speaking to the media, Minister Mahesh said that he had not made any mistake.

“I have not committed any mistake. The SP did not allow my colleagues and I to enter the building. We wanted to pay our respects to the seer. Police other people, like minister Gali Janaradhana Reddy to enter, but stopped cabinet ministers. As a police officer, she should know who her ministers are,” Sa Ra Mahesh added.

The video of the incident went viral on Wednesday moments after CM HD Kumaraswamy and Home Minister MB Patil praised the police for their service when the seer’s body was kept for public viewing.

In the video, Mahesh is seen arguing with SP Divya. Srinivas is then seen touching SP Divya’s cheek and later pleading with her to not make it a big issue.

BJP leaders have questioned Mahesh’s behaviour, demanding his resignation for insulting a woman officer. Sa Ra Mahesh was also trolled on social media for his behaviour.

“JDS MLA and Minister Sa. Ra. Mahesh abuses Tumakuru SP Divya. Calls the women police officer “Bloody Rascal” Women officers was spotted crying. Officer had left her unwell kid & reported to work. This is what happens when a party with 38 MLA runs the state,” the BJP’s tweet reads.

However, CM Kumaraswamy, instead of pulling up the minister, defended him, and said that he did not commit any crime.

Agencies

Priyanka Gandhi, sister of Congress party leader Rahul Gandhi and one of the youngest scions of India’s most fabled political family, officially enters politics ahead of national elections.

The biggest democracy in the world is due to elect its leader for the next five years in fewer than 100 days. And the race has just become more interesting.

On Wednesday, the main Indian opposition Congress party announced that Priyanka Gandhi – the younger sister of party leader Rahul Gandhi and one of the youngest scions of the country’s most fabled political family – had officially entered politics.

The popular 47-year-old accepted a senior position and will be in charge of the party’s affairs in the key state of Uttar Pradesh, which sends 80 MPs to the 545-strong lower house of parliament and has produced nine Indian prime ministers.

The news had Congress staff across India dancing and burning crackers.

‘Crowd-puller’

Priyanka Gandhi’s appointment is expected to significantly help her brother in mounting a credible challenge to the dominance of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).

In the last elections in 2014, Congress saw its seat count in the lower house of parliament fall to just 44, while its vote share in Uttar Pradesh dropped to about eight percent.

Analysts said the party needed new ideas and new faces to revive their fortunes.

“This was in the offing,” Said Naqvi, a journalist and political analyst,

“She [Priyanka Gandhi] is a definite a crowd-puller and this decision will certainly weigh on the ruling BJP’s gameplay now.” 

Political dynasty

Priyanka Gandhi’s family has long dominated Indian politics.

Her great grandfather, Jawaharlal Nehru, was the first prime minister of independent India; her grandmother, Indira, and father, Rajiv, were also prime ministers, while her mother, Sonia, is a former Congress party president, who headed the party for nearly two decades, until Rahul took over in 2017.

Priyanka Gandhi herself is no stranger to politics but had confined herself to Amethi andRaebareli, constituencies which are represented by her brother and mother respectively.

She is married to businessman Robert Vadra, who the BJP has accused of corruption in his business dealings. The Congress party has dismissed the allegations as “politically motivated”.

In recent months, Congress has been on an upward curve, wresting power from the BJP in December’s regional elections in the key states of Rajasthan, Chhattisgarh and Madhya Pradesh.

The results dealt Modi his biggest defeat since taking office in 2014, boosting the opposition before the national polls, when more than 900 million eligible voters are expected to pick the country’s members of parliament who, in turn, will elect the prime minister.

‘Game-changer’

So far, most opinion polls have the BJP leading the race, with Modi’s popularity remaining high.

The outcome, however, is not seen as a foregone conclusion.

This month, the leaders of the regional Samajwadi Party (SP) and the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) announced the creation of a potentially formidable coalition aiming to challenge Modi. 

Meanwhile, in a show of strength, Mamata Banerjee, chief minister of the eastern state of West Bengal, a few days ago organised a massive rally attended by most of the parties opposing the BJP.

And now, Priyanka Gandhi’s official foray into the state’s politics is expected to add more pressure on Modi and his ruling party.

“Priyanka’s entry is a game-changer,” Jai Prakash, a farmer from Amethi, told media.

“People see a reflection of Indira Gandhi in her. She is more charismatic than Rahul,” he added.

“She is Congress’s trump card.”

Nasheman News : To be a premier investment destination, the Karnataka government began identifying farmlands in rural areas to set up industrial units, Chief Minister H.D. Kumaraswamy said on Thursday.

“To make Karnataka a premier investment destination, our government has begun the process of identifying large acres of farmlands in rural areas to set up industrial units,” Kumaraswamy said at a trade event here.

Unveiling the Indian machine tool manufacturers expo (Imtex) at the Bengaluru International Exhibition Centre, the Chief Minister said his government would soon set up an integrated facility for machine tool industry to create an ecosystem and make it competitive.

“As a joint initiative of the state and central governments, the Tumakuru Machine Tool Park will be set up in about 500 acres of land at Vasantha Narasapura industrial area in the district,” Kumaraswamy told the gathering.

Tumakuru is about 70 km northwest of Bengaluru.

For ease of doing business, the government has initiated a host of new programmes and events like Imtex and Tooltex to hasten industry-led growth.

“Our state’s technology engagement has attracted investments from the across the country and abroad, making Karnataka a favourite for investing in disruptive technologies like Artificial Intelligence, Automation, Data Analytics, Machine Learning, 3D Printing and Robatics,” said Kumaraswamy.

As a pioneer in industrial development, Karnataka has been following a new industrial policy since 2014 for enabling the manufacturing sector grow at 12 per cent and attract Rs 5 lakh crore investments and create 15-lakh jobs.

“Karnataka has recently been ranked by the central government as one among the country’s top three states for highest employment generation,” said Kumaraswamy.

The eight-month-old Janata Dal-Secular-Congress coalition government has also identified nine districts across the state to set up industrial clusters for fostering innovation and product diversification.

“We have identified Ballari, Bidar, Chikkaballapura, Chitradurga, Hassan, Kalaburgi, Kolar, Koppal and Mysuru for the clusters. We intend to expand our state network to tap the huge talent available in tier-2 and tier-3 cities,” said Kumaraswamy.

Industries Minister K.J. George, Revenue Minister R.V. Despande, Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) Vice President Vikram Kirloskar and leading industrialist Jamshyd N. Goderej were present on the occasion.

Leading Indian and overseas machine tool makers are showcasing their technologies and products at the 5-day expo-cum-summit.

Nasheman News : Congress President Rahul Gandhi on Thursday targeted Narendra Modi and said that the Prime Minister lies through his teeth even after reciting God’s name; Gandhi, on the other hand, fulfils his promises.

Addressing a large public meeting here, the Congress chief said he has kept his promise of loan waiver to farmers in Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Rajasthan after his party came to power in December 2018. However, Modi never thought about the crisis that farmers faced and has been too busy pampering his “15-20 industrialist friends”. 

“Narendra Modi wrote off Rs 3.5 lakh crore loans to his 15-20 friends, but never gave a single rupee loan waiver to farmers who toil day and night,” Gandhi said.

He said if his party formed the next government in Uttar Pradesh, then it would replicate the food processing units that have started coming up in Madhya Pradesh, where Congress took charge only a month back.

Once the Congress comes to power at the Centre, it would “bring back to Rae Bareli all the development projects that have been snatched away from the parliamentary constituency of his mother by Narendra Modi”, he added. 

Rae Bareli is the Lok Sabha constituency of Congress chairperson Sonia Gandhi. But in the next election Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, who was appointed General Secretary in-charge of eastern Uttar Pardesh on Wednesday, might contest from the seat.

He also appointed Jyotiraditya Scindia as the western Uttar Pradesh in-charge.

Gandhi also raked up demonetisation, Rafale deal and Goods and Services Tax (GST) issues, and said that the Modi government has destroyed the small businesses with its policies.

Nasheman News : Priyanka Gandhi’s formal debut in politics has re-ignited a fierce debate on political dynasties and opinion is sharply divided if family lineage is a slur or works as a spur in public life.

Going by the success rate of leaders with family roots, it seems that political upbringing does help in para-drop launches of electoral careers, proving that dynasties have paradoxical existence in democracies.

The newest member of the Gandhi family has walked onto the political turf carrying a legacy of five generations but no political party except perhaps the Communist bloc can claim to be dynasty-free.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi, whose ordinary tea-seller image had a mojo effect in last elections, has often mocked political families. But he has not been able to get rid of what is often considered to be a menace in his own party even though ordinary backgrounds of their leaders are routinely projected as a unique selling proposition of the ruling brigade.

Even a cursory look at the composition of the current Lok Sabha gives away the family roots of many politicians who are popular faces.

Among the second generation leaders include newly appointed interim Finance Minister Piyush Goyal, the son of the late BJP Treasurer Ved Prakash Goyal. In fact, there are many young BJP MPs who have taken over the baton from their fathers.

Anurag Thakur from Himachal Pradesh is the son of former state Chief Minister Prem Kumar Dhumal. Poonam Mahajan, the MP from Mumbai North Central, carries forward the legacy of her late father Pramod Mahajan, who was one of the most influential Ministers in the Atal Bihari Vajpayee government. 

Union Minister Maneka Gandhi and her son Varun Gandhi, though extension of the Gandhi lineage, hold the BJP flag in Parliament. Minister of State for Home Kiran Rijiju is the son of Rinchin Kharu, who was the first pro-tem speak of Arunachal Pradesh.

The problem in Congress is at another level. Under the umbrella Gandhi dynasty, there are several sub-families. 

Jyotiraditya Scindia from Madhya Pradesh is the son of late Madhavrao Scindia, Sachin Pilot is the son of late Rajesh Pilot and Sushmita Dev is the daughter of late Santosh Mohan Dev.

Apart from the two principal parties, dynasty is the basic foundation of most of the regional players who run their organisations as fiefdom. 

The Samajwadi Party in Uttar Pradesh represents Mulayam Singh Yadav’s clan. The Badals in Punjab drive Shiromani Akali Dal (Badal) and Shiv Sena is synonymous with the Thackeray family. Abdullahs are leading the National Conference while the PDP is led by the Mufti clan in Jammu and Kashmir. The late M. Karunanidhi’s son M.K Stalin spearheads the DMK. Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik is the son of the legendary Biju Patnaik.

The clan culture prevails across the board, covering the entire Indian political spectrum.

Nasheman News : In a swoop ahead of Republic Day, the Maharashtra Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) has arrested nine youths including a 17-year-old boy – who were detained earlier – for alleged links with the Islamic State (IS) terror group and plans to create criminal disturbances in the state, an official said here on Wednesday.

The ATS said during investigations in the past few days, it has recovered certain chemicals, powder, mobile phones, hard disks, mobile SIM cards, acid bottle, and knives from them.

They have been charged under various section of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act and the Bombay Police Act with further probe underway.

The ATS said operations were started by five police teams discreetly for several weeks and from January 13 they started picking up the suspects from Thane’s Mumbra town and in Aurangabad, both with a dominant minority population.

While four were picked up from Mumbra, the remaining five were caught from Aurangabad and have been brought to Mumbai for questioning.

As it became apparent that the group may be planning a strike, the ATS formed a dozen teams and raided several locations in the two districts till Tuesday.

Already on the ATS radar after a tip-off on the suspects passed by the Centre, the sources said the four Mumbra men were reportedly en route to Aurangabad to participate in a seminar organised by a Kerala-based organisation — Popular Front of India (PFI).

On questioning, the ATS got details of five others based in Aurangabad who were also picked up and detained. They are in the age group of 17-28.

The ATS officials claimed to have recovered certain objectionable material on the social media accounts of one of the detainees and now the investigators are scanning the phones, laptops, emails, social network sites and other details of all those detained.

Suspected for being part of IS sleeper cells in the state, the ATS has also carried out raids at over a dozen premises since the past three days.

The operation was the result of the high-alert sounded in the state in preparations for the Republic Day celebrations on Saturday with multiple Central and state agencies coordinating their intel inputs.

Nasheman News :  Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh on Wednesday protested against Pakistan’s proposal to allow only Sikh pilgrims to visit Kartarpur Sahib Gurdwara in the neighbouring country.

Pointing out that Sikhism founder, Guru Nanak Dev, was a universal guru revered by followers of all religions, especially Hindus, the Chief Minister urged the Indian government to take up the issue with Islamabad when the latter sends its draft agreement for regulating entry into its territory through the Kartarpur Corridor.

Amarinder Singh said while Islamabad was well within its rights to set terms and conditions relating to its territorial safety and security, it should take into consideration the fact that the first Sikh Guru’s ideology is not confined to Sikhs but is emulated by people of all faiths.

“The Sikh ethos prescribes non-discrimination, with even the concept of langar being caste-less service for all. Gurdwaras are open to all, without religious bias,” the Chief Minister said in a statement here.

“A large number of Hindus in India were ardent followers of Sri Guru Nanak Devji, and it was their cherished dream to visit the Kartarpur Sahib Gurdwara, which was closely associated with the first Sikh Guru,” he pointed out.

“There was for years the tradition of Hindu families converting their eldest sons to Sikhism. The influence of Sikhism in India was so strong that to exclude members of other religions was not something that Pakistan government should even remotely consider. 

“To keep such followers out of Kartarpur Sahib just because they were not Sikh was not logical,” he said, urging the Indian government to take up the matter with the Pakistan government on priority.

Citing media reports of the draft agreement being prepared by the Pakistan government on entry through the Kartarpur Corridor, the Chief Minister also objected to the condition of the number of pilgrims proposed by them.

“It is not correct to limit the number of people to 15 in a group. Individual yatris should be permitted,” he said, advocating ‘khulle darshan’ for devotees.

He said that the restriction of 500 pilgrims per day should also not be there, especially in November 2019, when the 550th birth anniversary of Guru Nanak Dev will be celebrated.

The Chief Minister also expressed concern at the reported clause making a passport imperative for travel by pilgrims. “With Punjab’s large rural population having no passports, such a move would deprive them of making the historic pilgrimage.”

The Chief Minister urged the governments of India and Pakistan to sit across the table and thrash out all issues to facilitate smooth and hassle-free travel by pilgrims through the corridor before coming to a formal agreement in this regard.

“Such regressive steps, as were reportedly being considered by the Pakistan government, to control entry through the corridor would negate the positive initiative taken by their government and it is up to the Indian government to resolve all such issues amicably so that the pilgrims get the maximum benefit from the historic decision of the two nations,” Amarinder Singh added.

The Kartarpur Sahib Gurdwara, located about three kilometres from the international border near the town of Dera Baba Nanak in Gurdaspur district of Punjab, is significant for the Sikh community as it is here that Sikhism founder Guru Nanak Dev spent 18 years of his life and it was his final resting place.

Nasheman News : Former Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh and his wife on Wednesday moved the Delhi High Court, challenging a trial court’s order directing to frame charges against them in a disproportionate assets case.

Virbhadra Singh and his wife have requested the Delhi High Court to set aside the trial court’s order.

A trial court on December 10, 2018 ordered the framing of criminal misconduct and other charges against Virbhadra Singh, his wife Pratibha Singh and seven others in a disproportionate assets case. The charges will be formally framed against them on January 29.

The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) had alleged that Virbhadra Singh possessed assets worth around Rs 10 crore, which were in his and his family members’ names.

The CBI said Virbhadra Singh failed to give a satisfactory answer regarding the assets which did not tally with his known income.

The trial court has ordered to frame charges under section 13 (2) read with section 13 (1)(e) of Prevention of Corruption Act (public servant who commits criminal misconduct and possesses pecuniary resources or property disproportionate to his known sources of income) against the former Chief Minister.

The court also ordered framing of charges under sections 465 (forgery), 471 (using as genuine a forged document or electronic record) and 420 (cheating) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC).

The court has ordered to frame charges dealing with abetment and forgery against Life Insurance Corp agent Anand Chauhan and Virbhadra Singh’s associates Chunni Lal, Joginder Singh Ghalta, Prem Raj, Lawan Kumar Roach, Vakamullah Chandrashekhar and Ram Prakash Bhatia.

The CBI alleged that Pratibha Singh intentionally and actively abated Virbhadra Singh in investing his unaccounted money in her and their children’s names.

Nasheman News : Congress President Rahul Gandhi on Wednesday made it clear that the appointment of his sister Priyanka Gandhi as General Secretary for Uttar Pradesh East was part of plans to rebuild the party’s base in the state and said the Congress will cooperate with the BSP and SP to defeat the BJP in whatever ways possible.

Asserting that the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) was rattled, Gandhi said it was up to Priyanka Gandhi to decide whether or not to contest the coming Lok Sabha elections. 

“I fully respect Akhileshji and Mayawatiji. They have done their alliance and they are not our enemies. We are fighting together. If remaining parties want to join us, it is welcome,” he told reporters after the appointment of Priyanka Gandhi and Jyotiraditya Scindia was announced. 

“Their (SP and BSP) ideology is very much similar to that of the Congress. And we have to defeat the BJP in the state. Wherever cooperation is possible, we will cooperate to defeat the BJP. We can work together,” he said. 

“… But we have to make our own space to spread the Congress ideology and for that it (appointment of Priyanka and Scindia) is a big step. I am fully confident that they will work to bring a positive change. 

“I have given them a mission in Uttar Pradesh to realise the ideology, which is our ideology, for the poor and weaker sections,” he said. 

Asked if Priyanka Gandhi would contest the Lok Sabha elections, he replied: “It depends on her. We are not going to play on the backfoot. We have not played on the backfoot in Gujarat also. We do politics for people. So we will play on the front foot. 

“I am fully confident that Priyanka and Scindia will give Uttar Pradesh what the state needs and what the youth of the state need.”

Gandhi said that with the appointment of Priyanka Gandhi, a new thinking will grip Uttar Pradesh politics. 

“I am happy that Priyanka, who is very capable, will work with me and I am personally very happy,” he said, adding that Scindia too was a dynamic youth leader.

Attacking the BJP government in Uttar Pradesh, he said: “We want to tell the people of Uttar Pradesh that you people have wasted a lot of time by giving the BJP the mandate. The BJP has destroyed Uttar Pradesh. 

“Remove them, we will give a new direction to the state and will bring it to the number one position. I am not talking about caste or religion but with you we want to fulfil your dreams. The BJP is rattled.”