Udupi, Apr 29: The people of Karnataka should choose a double engine government in the State by voting for BJP in the May 10 Assembly elections instead of a reverse gear' government of the Congress, Union Home Minister Amit Shah said on Saturday.

Addressing a massive gathering here, he said the Central government led by Narendra Modi had brought various schemes worth Rs 2,26,418 crore during the last four years in Karnataka, whereas the previous UPA government provided only Rs 99,000 crore to the State during their rule.

"A reverse gear government by Congress will only turn Karnataka into their ATM state. The BJP has to come to power to ensure prosperity, development and peace," he said.

Shah asked the people not to trust the Congress who had backed the Popular Front of India (PFI) while they were in power for political advantage. The BJP government banned the organisation and threw its leaders behind bars, he said.

The BJP's declared policy is zero tolerance towards extremist activities, Shah said, while Congress tried to divide the society during their governance.

The guarantee card' released by the Congress will not work in Karnataka. "The survival of the Congress is not guaranteed. Who will trust their guarantee card for governance," he asked.

"Corruption, appeasement politics and family rule are their only guarantees," Shah charged.

The Union Minister said the people have rejected Congress guarantee schemes issued in Assam, Tripura, Manipur and Uttar Pradesh during the elections. The people of Karnataka will follow suit, he said and urged the voters in the coast region not to give a single seat to the Congress in the region.

He said the BJP government in Karnataka scrapped the four per cent reservation for Muslims and enhanced quota for Lingayats, Vokkaligas, OBC and SC-ST sections as the party believed in equality. "Even Ambedkar was not in favour of quota based on religion," he said.

Listing the achievements of the NDA government led by Narendra Modi, he said the 10 years of UPA rule under Manmohan Singh can in no way be compared to the nine years of development works carried out by the BJP government led by Modi. "The entire world recognises Modi's achievements and is proud of him," he said.

Lashing out at Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge's remark that Prime Minister Modi is like a poisonous snake, Shah said no one will make such comments against Modi. Such attempts to defame the Prime Minister should be opposed, he said.

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He highlighted the subsidy schemes for fishermen in the coastal area and the benefits extended to them during the Covid-19 pandemic. The Centre had also imposed import duty on arecanut to help growers to get an impressive income.

Shah also cautioned the people against voting for the Janata Dal (S) candidates in the State. "The JD(S) is a B team of the Congress and a vote to them will only mean a vote to Congress," he said.

The Union Minister said a vote for the BJP in 2023 will ensure development of Karnataka through a double engine government and lay the foundation for a BJP government at the Centre led by Modi in 2024 also.

Karnataka goes to polls on May 10 and the results will be declared on May 13.

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Ranchi (PTI): A 25-year-old man, who works as a butcher, allegedly strangled to death his live-in partner and chopped her body into 40 to 50 pieces in a forested area in Jharkhand’s Khunti district, police said on Wednesday.

The accused, identified as Naresh Bhengra, was arrested.

The matter came to light after around a fortnight after the killing when a stray dog was found with human body parts near Jordag village in Jariagarh police station on November 24.

Bhengra was in a live-in relationship with the deceased, a 24-year-old woman also from Khunti district, in Tamil Nadu for the past couple of years. Sometime back, he returned to Jharkhand, got married to another woman without telling his partner anything and went back to the southern state without his wife to join her.

"The brutal incident occurred on November 8 when they reached Khunti as the accused who had married another woman did not wish to take her home. Instead, he took her to a forest near his house at Jordag village in Jariagarh police station and chopped the body into pieces. The man has been arrested," Khunti Superintendent of Police Aman Kumar told PTI.

Inspector Ashok Singh who investigated the case said the man worked in a butcher shop in Tamil Nadu and was expert in slicing chicken.

“He admitted chopping the body parts of the woman into 40 to 50 pieces before leaving those in the forest for wild animals to feast on. The police recovered several parts on November 24 after a dog in the area was seen with a hand," Singh told PTI.

Singh said that the woman, who was unaware of his marriage, pressured him to return to Khunti. After reaching Ranchi, they boarded a train on November 24 and headed to the man's village.

"Under a plan, the man took her to Khunti in an autorickshaw near his home and asked her to wait. He returned with sharp weapons and strangulated her with her dupatta after raping her. He then cut the body into 40 to 50 pieces and left for his home to live with his wife," Singh said.

The woman, however, had informed her mother that she had boarded a train and would be living with her partner, the police officer said.

Following the recovery of body parts, a bag was also found in the forest with the murdered woman's belongings including her Aadhaar card. The mother of the woman was called at the spot and she identified her daughter's belongings.

"The mother suspected the man behind the crime who after being nabbed by the police admitted to chopping the woman into pieces," the official added.

The incident has sent shockwaves among people in the region, with the Shraddha Walker murder case of 2022 still fresh in their memory.

Walker was killed by her live-in partner who chopped her body into pieces before dumping them in the jungle in South Delhi’s Mehrauli.