RV Deshpande faces backlash from Bhatkal Tanzeem members over repeated neglect
Bhatkal: In an incident reported on Monday, the executive committee members of Majlis Islah wa Tanzeem Bhatkal expressed their dissatisfaction towards former Karnataka minister R. V. Deshpande during a gathering held at the Majlis Islah wa Tanzeem office in Bhatkal on Monday.
According to reports, the executive members expressed their discontent over the lack of support and assistance from Deshpande over the years, despite consistently voting in his favor in multiple elections. Tensions escalated during a meeting on Sunday, where Deshpande and Karnataka minister Mankal S. Vaidya visited the Tanzeem to discuss the upcoming general elections scheduled for May 7th in the Uttara Kannada district.
Allegations were made by the Tanzeem members that their longstanding support for Deshpande over the past three decades had not translated into tangible benefits for the Bhatkal constituency or its residents. This led to a heated exchange between the members and Deshpande, with the former minister expressing surprise and hurt at the claims made against him.
Abdul Raqeeb MJ, the General Secretary of Majlis Islah wa Tanzeem Bhatkal, confirmed the discontent among Tanzeem members, stating that there has been a growing dissatisfaction against Deshpande among the people of Bhatkal for several years. He criticized Deshpande for what was perceived as a lack of significant contributions to the development of Bhatkal and surrounding areas, especially in comparison to neighboring districts and constituencies.
"There is a General anger against the Congress party in general and Deshpande in particular. Because we have been seeing him as the senior most politician in the region and one who has sought votes from our community in all the elections in the last four decades but has not worked for the development of Bhatkal and the Muslim community here. He always believes that people of Bhatkal are rich and can take care of their development by themselves and that they do not need aid from the government or the ministries." He said.
Raqeeb also severely criticised the Congress party for what he described as neglecting the Muslim community on core issues such as triple talaq and hijab controversies, despite relying on their votes. He emphasized that while the Muslim community has consistently supported the Congress party, their concerns have often been overlooked, leaving them to face challenges alone.
Regarding the elections, Raqeeb mentioned that the Tanzeem is collaborating with other Muslim organizations in the Uttara Kannada district to address their concerns and issues, including those at the national level, with the Congress candidate.
The altercation reportedly led to a few members losing their composure, but the situation was eventually brought under control. Deshpande, while leaving the premises, expressed his dismay at being blamed for the lack of development in Bhatkal and its surrounding areas.
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Media dinner shooting suspect wrote about targeting of administration officials, Trump says
Washington (AP): The man accused of trying to storm the ballroom at the White House Correspondents' Association dinner with guns and knives had written about targeting Trump administration officials, and his family raised concerns with law enforcement before the event, President Donald Trump said Sunday in an interview on Fox News Channel.
The accused gunman's family had alerted police in Connecticut, Trump said, revealing new details about a chaotic encounter that disrupted one of Washington's glitziest annual events the night before.
The suspect, identified by law enforcement officials as 31-year-old Cole Tomas Allen of Torrance, California, was expected to face criminal charges on Monday from the Justice Department, whose acting leader, Todd Blanche, said the suspect travelled by train from California and checked in as a guest days earlier at the Washington hotel where the Saturday night gala dinner was held with its typically tight security.
Law enforcement officials who have interviewed Allen's relatives, examined the gunman's electronic devices and his writings preliminarily believe he intended to target administration members in attendance at the dinner.
He attempted to charge into the cavernous ballroom at the Washington Hilton but was tackled to the ground in a violent scene that resulted in shots being fired, Trump being hurried off the stage and guests ducking for cover beneath their tables.
“It does appear that he did in fact set out to target folks who work in the administration, likely including the president,” Blanche told NBC's “Meet the Press.”
The suspect is believed to have purchased the two firearms he carried within the last couple of years, Blanche said. He is not being cooperative and is expected to face multiple charges on Monday.
Video posted by Trump showed the suspect running past security barricades as Secret Service agents ran toward him. One officer was shot in a bullet-resistant vest but was recovering, officials said. The gunman was taken into custody and was not injured, but was being evaluated at a hospital, police said.
“He failed,” Blanche said on CBS's “Face the Nation.” “Law enforcement did their jobs.”
Authorities believe the suspect fired the shot that hit the Secret Service officer, who is expected to make a full recovery, Blanche said.
“He's going to be great, he's going to be fine, and thank God he was wearing a bulletproof vest,” Blanche said Sunday on ABC's “This Week.”
Social media posts that appear to match the suspect show he is a highly educated tutor and amateur video game developer.
A May 2025 profile photo of Allen appears to match the appearance of the man in a photo of the alleged attacker being taken into custody that was posted Saturday night by Trump.
The photo, posted to the social networking site LinkedIn, shows him in a cap and gown after graduating with a master's degree in computer science from California State University, Dominguez Hills.
Allen earned a bachelor's degree in 2017 in mechanical engineering from the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena. He listed his involvement there in a Christian student fellowship and a campus group that battled with Nerf guns.
The shooting at the security barricades happened minutes after the event got underway.
The Secret Service and other authorities swarmed the room as guests ducked under tables by the hundreds. Gasps echoed through the ballroom as guests realised something was happening. Hundreds of journalists immediately got on phones to call in information.
“Out of the way, sir!” someone yelled. Others yelled to duck. From one corner, a “God Bless America” chant began as the president was escorted offstage. Outside the hotel, members of the National Guard and other authorities flooded the area as helicopters circled overhead.
After an initial attempt to resume the event, it was scrapped for the night and will be rescheduled.
Trump was unusually conciliatory after what he saw as a third attempt on his life in less than two years. He suggested that his personal politics had made him a repeated target, but he also called for unity and bipartisan healing in an increasingly violent world.
“It's always shocking when something like this happens. Happened to me, a little bit. And that never changes,” Trump told reporters in a hastily organised news conference at the White House late Saturday.
