Zero tolerance for someone like Prajwal Revanna, K'taka govt allowed him to leave country: PM Modi
New Delhi, May 6: Prime Minister Narendra Modi has asserted that there should be zero tolerance for someone like Prajwal Revanna, and accused the Congress government in Karnataka of allowing the JD(S) MP to go out of the country and releasing the incriminating sex videos after the polls were over in the region dominated by Vokkaligas.
Modi told Times Now that the responsibility to take action in the raging matter lay with the state government as it was a law and order issue, according to the transcript of the interview provided by the broadcaster.
He said the presence of thousands of videos implies that it is of the time when the JD(S) was in alliance with the Congress. These videos were gathered when they were in power and they released it during the elections after Vokkaligas exercised their franchise, he added.
The videos were released after he was sent out of the country, the prime minister said, calling the development very suspicious. If the state government had information, it should have kept a watch and there should have been vigil at the airport, he said.
"You did not do anything, the government of India was not informed. This means that it was a political game and they know that these videos were from the time they were in alliance and they accumulated these videos. However, this is not my issue, my issue is that any culprit should not be spared. These games should be stopped in our nation," he said, according to the transcript.
He added, "As far as Modi is concerned, as far as the BJP is concerned, as far as our Constitution is concerned, I am of the clear view that there should be zero tolerance against such people. Stringent punishment should be given using all the legal options available."
Replying to a question, he said, "We should bring him back and strict action should be taken against him. There should be no ifs and buts."
The Congress and Janata Dal (Secular) ran an alliance government in Karnataka after the 2018 polls and parted ways after fighting the 2019 Lok Sabha polls together.
Former prime minister H D Deve Gowda-led party entered into an alliance with the BJP in September last year and they are fighting the current Lok Sabha polls together.
The Congress has used the issue of Revanna's alleged sexual exploitation of a large number of women, captured in nearly 3000 video clips, to target the BJP.
Revanna, Gowda's grandson, is again in the fray from Hassan, where polling was held on April 26. The regional party enjoys influence in south Karnataka, especially among Vokkaligas, the community Gowda belongs to.
To a poser about his charge against the Congress over issues like inheritance tax and redistribution of wealth, the prime minister said he has cited the language, words and written assurance of the party and its leaders to make his point.
"This time I have exposed them to the hilt. That is why they are rattled. When they go seeking votes of one community, they speak differently, and when they approach the other community, they take a neutral stand. This is their duplicity," he said.
This is unlike the BJP which always talked about building the Ram temple, abrogation of Article 370, and the Uniform Civil Code, he noted.
On the other hand, the Congress has been continuously lying while attacking the BJP by alleging that it intends to change the Constitution, he said, adding that some BJP members said something and the Congress blew it out of proportion.
"They are refusing to hear our version. Now, the Congress asks where wealth distribution and inheritance tax are mentioned in its manifesto. The Congress shouldn't have double standards. The Congress will have to answer," Modi said.
Expanding his arguments against reservation based on religion, he said such an idea goes against the Constitution. Citing his government's welfare measures, Modi said he does not discriminate on the basis of religion.
Spoke on a range of subjects in an interview to Times Network. Do watch! https://t.co/irzYi0v6q0
— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) May 6, 2024
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Putin meets Iran's FM Araghchi, says Russia ready to do its best to help bring peace to West Asia
Moscow (PTI): Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi on Monday met Russian President Vladimir Putin, who hailed the Iranian people for fighting bravely and heroically for their sovereignty and said Moscow is ready to do its best to help bring peace to West Asia as soon as possible.
Araghchi, who held talks with Omani and Pakistani leadership before arriving in Russia, met Putin in St. Petersburg and thanked him for supporting Iran, state-owned TASS news agency reported.
"Russia is ready to do everything in its power to ensure that peace in the Middle East is achieved as soon as possible," Putin said during his meeting with Araghchi, which was also attended by Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov.
Revealing that he received a message from Iranian Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei last week, Putin asked Araghchi to convey his "gratitude for this message and best wishes for his health and well-being."
He praised the Iranian people for fighting "bravely and heroically" for their sovereignty, Iran's state-run PRESS TV reported.
"We really hope that, based on the courage and desire for independence, the Iranian people, under the guidance of the new leader, will weather this difficult period of trials and peace will come,” Putin said.
He also stressed that Russia “intends to maintain” its strategic relations with Iran.
Araghchi said that the world witnessed Iran’s strength in countering the US during the recent war, and that the Islamic Republic is a "stable and powerful establishment."
"With their courage, the Iranian people succeeded in resisting the US aggression and will be able to endure it,” he said.
He said that it became clear that Iran has “great friends and allies” like Russia, and conveyed “warmest greetings” from Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei and President Masoud Pezeshkian to the Russian leader.
Araghchi said relations between Moscow and Tehran represent a “strategic partnership at the highest level” and will continue to develop "regardless of circumstances."
"We are grateful to you for the solid and strong positions in support of the Islamic Republic of Iran," he said.
Foreign Minister Lavrov said that the talks between President Putin and the Iranian Foreign Minister were "useful and constructive."
Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov later said that Russia is "ready to provide any good offices, any mediation services that are acceptable to the parties."
"We will be ready to do everything so that ultimately peace ensues, guaranteed peace, and that there is no return to hostilities," Peskov was quoted as saying by TASS.
He was asked how Moscow can assist in future negotiations on the Iranian settlement.
Araghchi arrived in Russia after his whirlwind trip to Islamabad, which, according to him, was “very productive” and involved “good consultations" with Pakistan's Army Chief Field Marshal Asim Munir, amid uncertainty over the second round of peace talks to resolve the war in West Asia.
"We held good consultations with our friends in Pakistan. The trip was successful. We assessed the outcome of our recent (meetings) and discussed in what direction and under what conditions talks can move on,” Araghchi said in a video posted on his Telegram channel upon his arrival in St Petersburg.
Referring to the second round of talks between the US and Iran to resolve the conflict in West Asia, Araghchi said: "Developments have taken place in the negotiations."
"Despite some progress in earlier rounds, the talks failed to reach their objectives due to the Americans' approach, the excessive demands they made, and the wrong approaches they adopted. Therefore, it was necessary to consult with our friends in Pakistan to review the latest situation,” Iran's official news agency IRNA quoted him as saying.
He said that the trip to Pakistan was a good opportunity to review developments related to the US-Israeli war against Iran, expressing confidence that “these consultations and coordination between the two countries will be highly significant.”
Araghchi arrived at St. Petersburg's Pulkovo Airport early Monday, where he was welcomed by Russian officials and Iran’s ambassador to Russia, Kazem Jalali, the report said.
The first round of peace talks between Iran and the US, held on April 11 and 12, failed to bring the desired result for the parties to the conflict.
The Iranian minister arrived in Islamabad for the second time on Sunday after a short visit to Oman, where he held talks with Sultan Haitham bin Tariq al-Said on security in the Strait of Hormuz and diplomatic efforts to end the Iran-US conflict.
After Araghchi left Pakistan for Oman on Saturday, President Donald Trump announced that US negotiators Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner would no longer be going to Islamabad for talks with Iran, contending that Washington held all the cards on the matter.
Trump on Sunday reiterated that the US and Iranian officials can talk by phone for a peace solution to the conflict.
On Tuesday, Trump extended the two-week ceasefire with Iran indefinitely to give Tehran more time to prepare a unified proposal to end the war, just hours before the truce was set to expire.
The war began when the US and Israel jointly attacked Iran on February 28, killing Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and several top commanders. The retaliation by the Islamic Republic extended the war to the entire Gulf region.
