Bengaluru, Feb 14: Karnataka on Monday reported 1,568 new cases of COVID-19 and 25 fatalities, taking the tally to 39,28,237 and death toll to 39,665.

There were 6,025 discharges, pushing the total number of recoveries to 38,57,323, a health bulletin said.

Of the new cases, 754 were from Bengaluru Urban that saw 2,089 people being discharged and five virus-related deaths.

The total number of active cases across the state is now 31,215.

While the positivity rate for the day stood at 2.25 per cent, the case fatality rate (CFR) was 1.59 per cent.

Of the 25 deaths, five are from Bengaluru Urban; Belagavi, Bidar, Dakshina Kannada, Dahrwad, Tumakuru and Udupi (two each), followed by others.

After Bengaluru Urban, Shivamogga recorded the second highest number of cases with 91, Mysuru 78, Belagavi 63, Dakshina Kannada 55, Ballari 50, followed by others.

Bengaluru Urban district now has a total of 17,71,622 cases, Mysuru 2,28,661 and Tumakuru 1,59,246.

Cumulatively, a total of 6,35,33,019 crore samples have been tested, of which 69,546 were on Monday alone.

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Chennai: Journalist and political commentator Sujit Nair has expressed concern over speculation that the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam and the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam could explore a post-poll understanding to prevent Vijay-led Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam from forming the government in Tamil Nadu.

In a social media post, Sujit Nair said the election verdict in Tamil Nadu reflected a clear public demand for political change and argued that the mandate should be respected irrespective of political preferences.

Referring to reports and political discussions surrounding a possible understanding between the DMK and AIADMK, he said he hoped such developments remained only speculative conversations and did not turn into reality.

Nair stated that if such an alliance were to take shape, it would raise serious questions about ideological politics in the country. He said TVK had emerged through a democratic electoral process and that the legitimacy to govern in a parliamentary democracy comes from the people’s verdict.

According to him, attempts to prevent an electoral winner from forming the government through unexpected political arrangements may be constitutionally valid, but many people could view them as politically opportunistic.

He further said that such a move could particularly affect the political image of the DMK, which has historically projected itself around ideology, social justice and opposition politics. Nair said that in ideological terms, the DMK appeared closer to TVK than to the AIADMK, and joining hands with its long-time political rival only to remain in power could weaken its broader political narrative.

He added that the same questions would apply to the AIADMK as well, as the party had spent decades positioning itself against the DMK and such an arrangement could create discomfort among its cadre and supporters.

Drawing a comparison with Maharashtra politics in 2019, Nair said he had expressed similar views when the Shiv Sena formed an alliance with the Indian National Congress and the Nationalist Congress Party after the Assembly elections.

He said post-poll alliances between long-standing political rivals often create a public perception that ideology and electoral mandates become secondary when political power equations come into play.

Nair also said such developments increase public cynicism towards politics and reinforce the belief among voters that ideology is often sidelined after elections.

He maintained that the Tamil Nadu verdict was emphatic and said respecting both the spirit and substance of the mandate was important for the credibility of democratic politics.