Completely ban corporate funding of elections: S M Krishna
Bengaluru: Veteran politician and former External Affairs Minister S M Krishna has called for a "complete and total" ban on corporate funding of polls, saying there is a need to end political corruption and cleanse the electoral system in the country.
The root of administrative corruption lies in political corruption, and the root of political corruption lies in electoral corruption, said Krishna, who has seen electoral politics from close quarters for over five decades.
"We first need to cleanse the electoral system. The process is going on here and there. There have been some reforms which are just in the initial stages", the former Karnataka Chief Minister told PTI.
"But I am happy that there is no political corruption at the top in the Centre. There is not a single allegation of corruption or nepotism. The Prime Minister (Narendra Modi) himself is absolutely and impeccably clean and honest. This is a very big positive development", he said.
"Slowly, things will fall in its place. A situation will arise where people will choose candidates on the basis of the performance of the party in the government and in the opposition", the former Maharashtra Governor said.
Krishna, who joined BJP over three years ago after more than 45 years' association with the Congress, said electoral reforms need to pick up pace and we must think of bringing in public funding of elections and a complete and total ban on private funding, which means funding from corporate companies.
"It is a long way to go, but I am confident that we will have clean politics. If we have to see the emergence of clean politics, electoral reforms are a must.
Unless money power is eradicated, there cannot be clean politics. My emphasis is for the eradication of money power, which is the first step we have to take", he said.
Secondly, appealing for votes on communal and caste basis during elections must become a penal offence, the 88-year-old leader added.
Asked if he thought there should be a retirement age for politicians, Krishna said politics is not a government job to fix retirement age.
With age comes maturity, knowledge and experience, the BJP leader said, adding, Morarji Desai became Prime Minister at the age of 81, and he did a fantastic job.
"Suppose, hypothetically speaking, if he (Desai) had retired at the age of 60 of 65, then the country would have been deprived of such a sagacious leadership", Krishna said.
Atal Behari Vajpayee became Prime Minister at the age of 74, and he did a fantastic job. L K Advani became Home Minister at the age of 71 and he did a wonderful job, he said.
"But at the same time, it is also essential...that the youngsters must be given opportunity".
There should be a blend of age and youth; maturity and initial starters. Elders should not be totally discarded, but their knowledge and experience must be utilised to groom the younger generation, Krishna said.
"It is like what we say in Kannada; 'Old Roots and New Leaves", he added.
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Udupi: Two men from Belthangady awarded life imprisonment for attempt to murder a woman in 2022
Udupi: Two men from Belthangady have been sentenced to life imprisonment by a court in Udupi for attempting to murder a woman in Manchikumeri in 2022.
The sentenced men, Mithun and Nagesh Poojary, are learned to have attempted to murder Sumathi, wife of Ramanath Rai, a resident of Manchikumeri, who had a Nandini Milk Parlour at Tiger Circle, Manipal.
On February 18, 2022, Sumathi was reportedly alone at home when, at around 7 pm, Mithun, learned to be her nephew, and his friend Poojary came to the house. As Sumathi opened the door, the duo barged in and tried to strangulate her with an intention of murdering her. Sumathi reportedly lost consciousness under the attack.
The men packed her body in a sack and were then putting the sack into a suitcase to carry the body out, when they noticed that Rai and neighbours had arrived. They are learned to have opened the door when Rai knocked the door and then tried to escape. They were, however, caught by the neighbours and handed over to the police.
Further, Sumathi was found by the group in an unconscious state inside the suitcase in the house. She was rushed to the Manipal Hospital and learned to have recovered after a week of medical treatment.
A case had been registered at the Manipal Police Station.
The Udupi Principal District and Sessions Court judge Kiran S Gangannavar, who heard the case, has declared both Mithun and Poojary guilty in the case. He has awarded them life imprisonment, fined them Rs 20,000 each and, under Column 325, sentenced them to rigorous imprisonment of 5 years and fined them Rs 5,000 each.
Judge Gangannavar has directed that, of the fine, Rs 45,000 be handed to the attack victim Sumathi as relief.
Jayarama Shetty represented the government as Public Prosecutor.
