St. Gerosa School incident: FIR filed against BJP MLAs for forcing students to chant Jai Shri Ram
Mangaluru: An FIR has been registered against two Karnataka BJP legislators, Vedavyas Kamath and Y Bharath Shetty, along with three others, for their alleged involvement in inciting and forcing students to chant religious slogans at St Gerosa English Higher Primary School in Mangaluru.
According to the school management, Kamath led a protest in front of the school without seeking clarification from them, during which students were reportedly compelled to chant religious slogans including Jai Shri Ram.
The FIR also names two corporators, Sandeep Garodi and Bharath Kumar, and Bajrang Dal leader Sharan Pumpwell in connection with the incident. The accused are alleged to have incited people and engaged in protests that included directing slogans against Christianity, potentially instigating enmity between religious communities.
Due to the sensitive nature of communal issues in Dakshina Kannada, where Mangaluru is located, such actions could have led to law and order problems, prompting the filing of the FIR, the police said. The case has been registered under sections 143, 153A, 295A, 505(2), 506, and 149 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC).
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BJP central leadership backs Kerala chief Surendran amid Palakkad bypoll loss
Thiruvananthapuram (PTI): The national leadership of the BJP on Monday threw its weight behind the Kerala state unit and its chief K Surendran despite a major vote loss in the Palakkad Assembly bypoll, asserting that the party had put up a "good fight" in the recently concluded election.
Rejecting reports that Surendran had expressed a willingness to quit taking moral responsibility for the defeat in Palakkad, considered one of its strongholds in Kerala, the BJP accused the CPI(M)-led LDF and the Congress-led UDF of "spreading rumours."
"Nobody is resigning neither party has sought anybody's resignation. I think this will settle the matter," senior BJP leader and party's in-charge Kerala, Prakash Javadekar, said in a post on 'X'.
Youth Congress state president Rahul Mamkootathil won the Palakkad seat with a margin of over 18,000 votes, even making inroads into BJP stronghold areas, delivering a shock to the saffron party, which had been hoping to win the seat after finishing second in the past few elections.
Adding to the BJP's woes, the Left improved its performance in the seat, narrowing the gap with the party.
"BJP has given a good fight in recently concluded by-elections in Kerala and got a massive mandate in Maharashtra. We will win Palakkad and many more assembly seats in 2026. We are here to make a difference in Kerala politics. People are looking up to BJP," Javadekar said.
The senior leader claimed that more than 15,00,000 voters have become voluntarily members of the BJP, by giving missed call and full information.
"Our membership drive will continue vigorously," Javadekar said.
His statement came amidst reports that the defeat had triggered widespread dissent within the Kerala BJP against Surendran.
Surendran's critics within the party allege that he unilaterally decided to field C Krishnakumar, his preferred candidate, for the Palakkad seat.
Before the candidate's announcement, some senior leaders had publicly advocated for the firebrand party leader Sobha Surendran.
In protest against Krishnakumar's candidature, BJP's popular television face Sandeep G Varier resigned and joined the Congress just ahead of the by-poll, delivering a significant blow to the saffron camp.
In the by-poll, BJP's Krishnakumar secured 39,549 votes (28.63 per cent), while Congress candidate Mamkootathil won with 58,389 votes (42.27 per cent). CPI(M)-backed P Sarin garnered 37,293 votes (27 per cent).
Surendran sought to downplay the setback, stating it is common for the BJP to see reduced votes in Kerala by-elections.
He claimed that many votes for the BJP candidate "Metro Man" E Sreedharan during the 2021 Assembly polls were apolitical, with cross-party support. However, he admitted, "In Palakkad, there was a decrease in the number of votes. We will introspect on it."
