Congress MLA Raju Kage demands separate North Karnataka state
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Belagavi (PTI): Congress MLA Bharamgouda (Raju) Kage has written to President Droupadi Murmu and Prime Minister Narendra Modi, demanding separate statehood for 15 districts of North Karnataka, alleging that the region has faced injustice, discrimination and neglect in every sector.
Renewing the decades-old demand of the people of North Karnataka, Kage said he supported the signature campaign started by the North Karnataka Struggle Committee for a separate state.
“I would like to express my strong demand for the creation of a new state comprising 15 districts of North Karnataka — namely Bidar, Kalaburagi, Vijayapura, Yadgir, Bagalkote, Belagavi, Dharwad, Gadag, Koppal, Raichur, Uttara Kannada, Haveri, Vijayanagara, Ballari, and Davanagere — for administrative convenience and holistic development,” Kage wrote in the letter to Murmu, PM Modi and Karnataka Governor Thaawarchand Gehlot.
The Congress MLA’s office shared the letter dated November 4 with PTI on Wednesday.
According to Kage, since the unification of Karnataka, this region has continuously faced injustice, discrimination, and neglect in every sector.
“The formation of a separate state will give birth to another proud Kannada-speaking state, which will be a matter of great pride for us. North Karnataka is a region rich in all kinds of resources and has made a significant contribution to the preservation of the Kannada language and the unification of Karnataka.”
Extending support to the signature campaign of the representatives of the North Karnataka Struggle Committee, Kage said over one crore people have already given written consent and signed in favour of the demand.
“People from all sections of this region are demanding a separate state for their overall and inclusive development. Therefore, I humbly request you to kindly consider our appeal and recommend to the Central Government the formation of a separate North Karnataka state,” the MLA said.
He also noted that a memorandum was submitted to the President on January 3 and the PMO on January 5 this year.
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Illegal betting case: ED attaches ₹177 crore assets linked to Congress MLA K.C. Veerendra
Bengaluru: The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Thursday said it has attached assets worth ₹177.3 crore belonging to Congress MLA K.C. Veerendra, also known as ‘Puppy’, and his associates in connection with an illegal online betting and gambling case, Deccan Herald reported.
According to the ED, the attached properties include immovable assets such as agricultural land and residential sites, along with other movable assets. The agency said these assets are believed to be proceeds of crime generated through illegal online betting and gambling activities.
The ED claimed that its investigation uncovered that Veerendra and his associates were the masterminds behind a nationwide illegal online betting network operating with the same modus operandi.
“The investigation has established that the accused generated substantial proceeds of crime by cheating the public through online betting and impersonation scams. In the scheme, unsuspecting players were induced to stake money on rigged illegal gaming websites, which functioned like online casinos. Their deposits, running into crores of rupees, were collected through payment gateways into designated payment aggregator accounts,” Deccan Herald quoted the agency as saying.
“The victims were initially shown fake winnings to build trust and were later blocked from withdrawing money. The investigation revealed the use of hundreds of mule accounts and multiple payment gateways for laundering the proceeds of crime,” the agency said.
Earlier, the ED carried out search and seizure operations at more than 60 locations across several states, during which large quantities of cash, gold bullion, gold and silver jewellery, vehicles, digital devices and incriminating documents were seized.
The ED also arrested Veerendra under Section 19 of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), and a prosecution complaint has been filed before the Special PMLA court. Based on the evidence gathered, the agency has provisionally attached properties held directly and indirectly by him, which are believed to be linked to money laundering.
“With this, the ED has attached assets worth more than ₹320 crore in the present case under the provisions of the PMLA, 2002. Further, during the course of the investigation, proceeds of crime exceeding ₹2,300 crore have been identified so far, which were generated through illegal online betting and gambling activities and subsequently laundered through multiple layers of transactions,” the agency said.
