Bhatkal: Rider killed on spot as tanker hits bike, runs over him; wife seriously injured
Bhatkal: In an accident that occurred on the National Highway 66 stretch near Noor Masjid here on Saturday morning, a 61-year-old rider was killed on the spot and his wife was grievously injured as a speeding tanker hit their bike from behind and ran over the biker who had fallen on the road.
The deceased rider is identified as Eshwara Naik (61), a resident of Murdeshwara. His wife, Bharathi Naik (47), is under treatment at the Bhatkal Government Hospital.
The couple was reportedly traveling to Bhatkal to attend a program, when the tanker, which came down the NH at high speed, hit their bike. As Naik was thrown off the bike due to the intensity of the collision, a tyre of the tanker reportedly ran over his head, resulting in Naik sustaining serious injuries and dying on the spot.
The local residents have been complaining about intense rise in traffic on the stretches between Kwality Hotel and Noor Masjid and between Shamsuddin Circle and Nawayat Colony in Bhatkal since the work to widen the National Highway 66 passing through the city remains incomplete. There is a hike in the number of accidents involving the heavy vehicles that are driven at high speed. Pedestrians and two-wheeler riders find it extremely difficult to use the stretch. The citizens have also pointed out that the authorities concerned have not provided a service road along the stretch to alleviate their problems.
The locals urged the officers to complete the work to widen the highway as soon as possible to prevent more cases of loss of life.
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Women's quota bill would have ensured defeat of democracy, Constitution: Aaditya Thackeray
Mumbai (PTI): Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Aaditya Thackeray on Saturday said that the passage of the women's quota bill would have ensured a "total defeat of democracy", alleging that the legislation, linked with a delimitation exercise, was a political tool designed to reduce the voice of states.
Thackeray, in a post on X, claimed that the Bill would have amended the Constitution for the political means of the ruling regime to increase seats, reduce the voice of many states and enable the gerrymandering of constituencies to ensure unfair victories.
"The very amendment that would have ensured the total defeat of democracy and the Constitution in India stands rejected by the unity of the Opposition MPs," he wrote.
The legislation should have been called "Delimitation to ensure unfair victory Bill", the former minister said, adding that there was a genuine need to enable 33 per cent reservation for women in the current number of seats.
"Now, it is up to the government to ensure that it is implemented in the 543 seats of the Lok Sabha for the 2029 elections and all elections across India, if that is the real intent of the government," he wrote.
A Constitution Amendment Bill to implement reservation for women in legislatures in 2029 and increase the number of Lok Sabha seats was defeated on Friday in the Lower House.
While 298 members voted in support of the Bill, 230 MPs voted against it. Out of 528 members who voted, the Bill required 352 votes for a two-thirds majority.
According to the Constitution Amendment Bill, Lok Sabha seats were to be increased to a maximum of 850 from the current 543 to "operationalise" the women's reservation law before the 2029 parliamentary polls, following a delimitation exercise based on the 2011 Census.
