Cong-JDS triumph in by-poll will change equation in national politics: Deve Gowda
Ballary, October 29: Former prime minister and JDS supremo H.D. Deve Gowda predicted that the triumph of the Congress-JDS combine in the by-election would change the equation in the national politics.
Addressing an electioneering in favour of Congress candidate V.S. Ugrappa at Kudligi Assembly constituency on Monday, Deve Gowda said that “let us keep our ego and differences aside and face the election together to send a strong message to the entire country. If we won all the five constituencies, then the scenario of the national politics would change”, he opined.
“V.S. Ugrappa is a born fighter. Congress-JDS workers have to elect him with a huge margin of votes in Ballary Lok Sabha constituency. There were differences among us. It was true. But I know how to utilize the time fruitfully. We should defeat the BJP for the future of the country. You might think that how Deve Gowda and Siddaramaiah, despite fighting each other, came together. But here we do not have selfishness”, he said.
Former chief minister Siddaramaiah said that “Janardhana Reddy alleged that I have involved in illegal mining. If he has guts, let him prove his allegation against me. Why did Sriramulu go to the house of a Judge at Hyderabad when Janardhana Reddy was in jail in the illegal mining case? Janardhana Reddy has challenged me to come to open debate on illegal mining. I would accept his challenge. Let him fix the time and place for the open debate. Janardhana Reddy could not come to Ballary. I don’t know whether he has permission to come to Bengaluru or not”, he said.
The Congress has made alliance with the JDS to protect the democracy in the country. Siddaramaiah-led government was a pro-people government. Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s was not ‘sab ka sath, sab ka vikas nahi’. It’s ‘sab ka sath, Mallya ka vikas’, ‘sab ka sath, Ambani ka vikas’, Congress leader in Lok Sabha Mallikarjuna Kharge alleged.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi was a liar. While saying bhaiyo, aur behno outside the Parliament, he has been cheating the people. In the last four and half years administration, he has not implemented even a single pro-people programmes. He is not answering any questions of the opposition parties in the Parliament. When Rahul Gandhi asked about Rafale deal, he has not given any answer so far. So, the Congress has chosen the path of protest against Rafale deal, Kharge said.
The Narendra Modi government has failed on all fronts. The very purpose of demonetisation was failed. Even the GST was also failed due to lack of prior preparation. In total, they have failed on all fronts, he alleged.
Congress candidate V.S. Ugrappa, Minister D.K. Shivakumar, Former Minister Satish Jarakiholi, Rajya Sabha Member B.K. Hariprasad, MLC CM Ibrahim and others were present.
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Israel launches first airstrike on Lebanon since ceasefire, accusing Hezbollah of breaching truce
Beirut, Nov 28: The Israeli military on Thursday said its warplanes fired on southern Lebanon after detecting Hezbollah activity at a rocket storage facility, the first Israeli airstrike a day after a ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah took hold.
There was no immediate word on casualties from Israel's aerial attack, which came hours after the Israeli military said it fired on people trying to return to certain areas in southern Lebanon. Israel said they were violating the ceasefire agreement, without providing details. Lebanon's state-run National News Agency said two people were wounded.
The back-to-back incidents stirred unease about the agreement, brokered by the United States and France, which includes an initial two-month ceasefire in which Hezbollah members are to withdraw north of the Litani River and Israeli forces are to return to their side of the border. The buffer zone would be patrolled by Lebanese troops and UN peacekeepers.
On Thursday, the second day of a ceasefire after more than a year of bloody conflict between Israel and Hezbollah, Lebanon's state news agency reported that Israeli fire targeted civilians in Markaba, close to the border, without providing further details. Israel said it fired artillery in three other locations near the border. There were no immediate reports of casualties.
An Associated Press reporter in northern Israel near the border heard Israeli drones buzzing overhead and the sound of artillery strikes from the Lebanese side.
The Israeli military said in a statement that “several suspects were identified arriving with vehicles to a number of areas in southern Lebanon, breaching the conditions of the ceasefire.” It said troops “opened fire toward them” and would “actively enforce violations of the ceasefire agreement.”
Israeli officials have said forces will be withdrawn gradually as it ensures that the agreement is being enforced. Israel has warned people not to return to areas where troops are deployed, and says it reserves the right to strike Hezbollah if it violates the terms of the truce.
A Lebanese military official said Lebanese troops would gradually deploy in the south as Israeli troops withdraw. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to brief media.
The ceasefire agreement announced late Tuesday ended 14 months of conflict between Israel and Hezbollah that began a day after Hamas' Oct. 7, 2023 attack out of Gaza, when the Lebanese Hezbollah group began firing rockets, drones and missiles in solidarity.
Israel retaliated with airstrikes, and the conflict steadily intensified for nearly a year before boiling over into all-out war in mid-September. The war in Gaza is still raging with no end in sight.
More than 3,760 people were killed by Israeli fire in Lebanon during the conflict, many of them civilians, according to Lebanese health officials. The fighting killed more than 70 people in Israel — over half of them civilians — as well as dozens of Israeli soldiers fighting in southern Lebanon.
Some 1.2 million people were displaced in Lebanon, and thousands began streaming back to their homes on Wednesday despite warnings from the Lebanese military and the Israeli army to stay out of certain areas. Some 50,000 people were displaced on the Israeli side, but few have returned and the communities near the northern border are still largely deserted.
In Menara, an Israeli community on the border with views into Lebanon, around three quarters of homes are damaged, some with collapsed roofs and burnt-out interiors. A few residents could be seen gathering their belongings on Thursday before leaving again.
