SDPI to contest in 100 seats in K'taka assembly poll
Mangaluru, Jan 31: The Social Democratic Party of India (SDPI) will contest in 100 seats in the coming assembly elections in Karnataka, SDPI state secretary Afsar Kodlipete said on Tuesday.
Addressing reporters in Udupi, he said the first list of the SDPI candidates has already been released. The party will contest eight seats in the twin districts of Dakshina Kannada and Udupi.
He said the JD(S)-Congress government and the BJP government had proved to be 'failures' in the last five years. The present BJP government is steeped in corruption, he alleged.
After the BJP government came to power, five percent commission is being sought for approval of projects and 40 percent commission to pass the bills, he claimed.
The SDPI leader further alleged that VHP leader Sharan Pumpwell was involved in all the murders of Muslims in Udupi and DK districts since 2016. He wondered why the state government is not taking action against his reported speech claiming that Hindu youths had murdered Fazil of Surathkal to avenge the killing BJP youth wing leader Praveen Nettaru.
He charged the BJP government with adopting a 'discriminatory approach' towards cases involving the murder of Muslim youths. While Praveen Nettaru murder case was handed over to NIA, the murder cases of Jaleel at Katipalla and Fazil in Surathkal were not handed over to central agencies, he said.
SDPI Udupi district president Shahid Ali and party candidate for Kaup assembly segment Hanif Muloor were present.
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Modi should leverage his ties with world leaders to de-escalate war in West Asia: Omar Abdullah
Jammu (PTI): Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah on Monday said India can play a meaningful role in de-escalation in West Asia, given Prime Minister Narendra Modi's strong relations with the warring countries and their neighbours.
He said Pakistan was leveraging ties with Iran and the United States, and that any effort towards ending the war should be welcomed.
"As I said in the House (Assembly), we would like the war to end as soon as possible. The role that the prime minister can play may not be possible for anyone else because of his good relations with all these countries," Abdullah told reporters on the sidelines of a function here.
He, however, said any escalation would not be easy to manage.
"Any such move by US President Donald Trump, despite the long history of Iran resisting external domination, would not be easy," the chief minister said.
Asked about Pakistan mediating in the war, he said, "I will simply say that if any country can play a role in preventing this war, no one should have any objection to it."
He added, "I will repeat what I said … our prime minister has good and close relations with all countries — whether it is Israel, the United States, Iran, or the countries around Iran. If those relationships can be used to make some progress and help ease the situation, it would be a good thing."
Abdullah said attacks by terror groups like Lashkar-e-Taiba and Jaish-e-Mohammed in India, as suggested by a report from the United States, are not unlikely.
Meanwhile, he asserted that any efforts to end the war, be it from Pakistan, must not be resisted.
"Pakistan is using its good relations with Iran and the United States to its advantage, and it has done so. How can we object to that? If that angle helps in stopping the war, would you want them not to act and let the war continue? We want the war to stop. If any country can play a role in that, it should. And if we can play an even better role, then we should do so," he said.
On unemployment in J-K, the chief minister said the issue cannot be resolved overnight, and government jobs alone are not the solution.
He stressed the need to explore alternative avenues, highlighting the importance of Mission Yuva in promoting entrepreneurship.
"Mission Yuva provides not just funding but also support in preparing DPRs and post-startup assistance, such as marketing. In just nine months, distributing Rs 1,000 crore and approving numerous schemes is a significant achievement," he said.
Abdullah credited the coordination between the government and Jammu and Kashmir Bank for the scheme's progress.
