CM Siddaramaiah to lead show at Backwards Classes sammelan in Delhi
New Delhi: In what is being seen as a potentially significant political move, Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah is set to take center stage at a massive Backward Classes sammelan scheduled for July 25 at Delhi’s Talkatora Stadium.
The event, organised by the All India Congress Committee (AICC), follows the recent convention in Bengaluru where OBC, Dalit, and minority groups converged in a show of renewed Ahinda solidarity, The New Indian Express reported on Tuesday.
With its eyes on the 2029 Lok Sabha elections, the Congress aims to scale up the backward class consolidation strategy—one that has been developed and championed by Siddaramaiah—for national impact.
Political observers suggest this may mark a turning point for the Congress. “There’s a huge block of Kurubas across the country. When you add communities like fishers, Edigas, Yadavas, it could point to a social shakeup,” TNIE quoted its source as saying.
Despite their size, these communities have never had a representative reach the office of Prime Minister—something the Congress intends to spotlight in its campaign.
At the forefront of this movement is Siddaramaiah, a two-time Chief Minister and prominent Kuruba leader, widely regarded for his grassroots outreach and commitment to social justice. His emergence as the symbol of a new social justice coalition has reportedly re-energised Congress circles.
Talkatora Stadium is expected to see a crowd on Friday which will rally for nationwide adoption of the Bengaluru Declaration, demand a nationwide caste census modelled after Telangana’s survey of collecting social, economic and political data, relaxation of the 50% reservation cap for backward classes, and implementation of reservation in private educational institutions, added the report.
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Bangladesh court sentences Sheikh Hasina to 10 years in jail in corruption cases
Dhaka (PTI): A Bangladesh court on Monday sentenced deposed Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina to 10 years in jail in two separate corruption cases related to alleged irregularities in allocations of land in a government housing project.
Dhaka Special Judge’s Court-4 Judge Rabiul Alam handed down the verdicts, sentencing Hasina to a total of 10 years’ imprisonment — five years in each case, state-run BSS news agency reported.
The court sentenced 78-year-old Hasina, her nephew Radwan Mujib Siddiq, and her nieces, Tulip Rizwana Siddiq and Azmina Siddiq, and others in the cases over alleged irregularities in the allocation of plots under the Rajuk New Town Project in Purbachol.
The judgment was pronounced at around 12.30 pm.
Tulip Siddiq was sentenced to four years’ imprisonment — two years in each case — while Radwan Mujib Siddiq and Azmina Siddiq were each sentenced to seven years’ imprisonment in both cases.
Rajuk member Mohammad Khurshid Alam, the only accused to surrender before the court, was sentenced to one year’s imprisonment in each case, totalling two years.
The court also fined all convicted persons Tk1 lakh each and ordered them to serve an additional six months in prison in default of payment.
Hasina has been living in India since she fled Bangladesh on August 5 last year in the face of the massive protests. She was earlier declared a fugitive by the court.
The cases were filed by the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) over alleged abuse of power in the allocation of two 10-katha plots.
According to the prosecution, the accused manipulated the allocation process and violated existing rules and regulations of the Rajdhani Unnayan Kartripakkha (Rajuk).
