Muslim vendors allege denial by Kudupu Temple authorities to set up stall during fair next week
Mangaluru, Dec 7: Muslim traders in Dakshina Kannada district have alleged that the state endowment department-administered Kudupu Anantapadmanabha temple here was not allotting stalls to vendors belonging to the minority community.
Stalls are coming up in the premises of the temple for the six-day 'Shasti Mahotsava' that begins on December 14.
In a memorandum to the Dakshina Kannada (DK) deputy commissioner Mullai Muhilan on Thursday, the president of the forum of Muslim traders B K Imtiyaz said a group threatened the temple authorities that there would be a disturbance if stalls were allotted to Muslim traders. After the threat came, the temple authorities did not allot stalls to Muslim vendors, he alleged.
He asked the district administration to intervene and permit poor Muslim traders to eke out a living by selling their items in the stalls during the six-day fair.
Additional deputy commissioner Santosh Kumar, who received the memorandum, said he has sought a report from the temple authorities on the issue.
The Kudupu temple is one of the 44 A grade temples with an annual income of over Rs 25 lakh in the district. The 'Shasti Mahotsava' is held in all Subrahmanya temples including in Kukke Subrahmanya and Kudupu.
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Sanjay Raut demands re-election, alleges irregularities in EVMs during Maharashtra polls
Mumbai, Nov 25: Shiv Sena (UBT) MP Sanjay Raut on Monday demanded a re-election in Maharashtra using ballot papers, claiming there were irregularities with the electronic voting machines (EVMs).
Talking to reporters, Raut alleged several complaints about EVMs malfunctioning and questioned the integrity of the recently held elections.
The BJP-led Mahayuti won 230 out of 288 seats in the assembly elections, while the opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi managed 46 seats, with Shiv Sena (UBT) winning just 20 out of 95 seats it contested.
"We have received nearly 450 complaints regarding EVMs. Despite raising objections repeatedly, no action has been taken on these issues. How can we say these elections were conducted fairly? Hence, I demand that the results be set aside and elections be held again using ballot papers," Raut said.
Citing some instances, he said a candidate in Nashik reportedly received only four votes despite having 65 votes from his family, while in Dombivli, discrepancies were found in EVM tallies, and election officials refused to acknowledge the objections.
The Sena (UBT) leader also questioned the credibility of the landslide victories of some candidates, saying, "What revolutionary work have they done to receive more than 1.5 lakh votes? Even leaders who recently switched parties have become MLAs. This raises suspicions. For the first time, a senior leader like Sharad Pawar has expressed doubts about EVMs, which cannot be ignored."
Asked about the MVA's poor performance in the elections, Raut rejected the idea of blaming a single individual.
"We fought as a united MVA. Even a leader like Sharad Pawar, who commands immense respect in Maharashtra, faced defeat. This shows that we need to analyse the reasons behind the failure. One of the reasons is EVM irregularities and the misuse of the system, unconstitutional practices, and even judicial decisions left unresolved by Justice Chandrachud," he said.
Raut stressed that though internal differences might have existed within the MVA, the failure was collective.
He also accused the Mahayuti of conducting the elections in an unfair manner.
"I cannot call the elections fair given the numerous reports of discrepancies in EVMs, mismatched numbers, and vote irregularities across the state," Raut said.
