Karnataka minister R Ashoka warns of confiscation of properties of protesters damaging public assets
Bengaluru, Dec 26: Sending out a stern warning, Karnataka Revenue Minister R Ashoka on Thursday said the state government would emulate Uttar Pradesh and confiscate properties of those who caused damage to public properties during protests against the Citizenship (Amendment) Act.
Everyone has to obey the law of the land and not give an opportunity for such an action by the government, he told reporters here.
"...the way in which Uttar Pradesh government has decided to confiscate the properties of those indulging in violence - if such things (violence) happen again (here), it will be brought in Karnataka also," Ashoka said.
Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath has said that properties of those involved in the violence would be seized and auctioned to compensate destruction of public and private assets during the protests over the amended citizenship law.
On Wednesday UP officials had said over 60 people have been "identified for violence" during last week's anti CAA protests in Rampur and Gorakhpur and issued notices, asking them to explain their position or pay for damage caused to public and private property.
Meanwhile, Karnataka BJP General Secretary and Member of Parliament Shobha Karandlaje too urged the state government to identify those who caused damage to public property during the protests in the state and make them pay for it.
"They should not be let away, no one has the right to destroy public property... any one can protest, but if they cause damage to public property, the government should make sure that they pay for it," she added.
Anti-CAA protests had reached its peak in the state last week and turned violent in Mangaluru, resulting in the death of two in police firing.
Defending the CAA, Ashoka said, India was not a charitable lodging place and every one has to abide by law of the land.
"The Act (CAA) that has been brought in, is right....
India is not a charitable lodging place for those from Pakistan and Bangladesh to come and stay here, there is laws and rules here and one has to abide by it," he said.
"Whether it is CAA or NRC it is the law of the country, Congress MLA should also follow them and so does BJP MLAs and everyone else," he said.
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South African police arrest suspect in mass shooting that killed 12, including 3 children
Johannesburg (AP): A 32-year-old suspect has been arrested in connection with a mass shooting which claimed the lives of 12 people including three children at an unlicensed pub earlier this month, South African police said on Monday.
The man is suspected of being one of the three people who opened fire on patrons in a pub at Saulsville township, west of South Africa's capital Pretoria, killing 12 people including three children aged 3, 12 and 16.
At least 13 people were also injured during the attack, whose motive remains unknown.
According to the police, the suspect was arrested on Sunday while traveling to Botlokwa in Limpopo province, more than 340 km from where the mass shooting took place on Dec 6.
An unlicensed firearm believed to have been used during the attack was recovered from the suspect's vehicle.
“The 32-year-old suspect was intercepted by Limpopo Tracking Team on the R101 Road in Westenburg precinct. During the arrest, the team recovered an unlicensed firearm, a hand gun, believed to have been used in the commission of the multiple murders. The firearm will be taken to the Forensic Science Laboratory for ballistic analysis,” police said in statement.
The suspect was arrested on the same day that another mass shooting at a pub took place in the Bekkersdal township, west of Johannesburg, in which nine people were killed and 10 wounded when unknown gunmen opened fire on patrons.
Police have since launched a search for the suspects.
South Africa has one of the highest homicide rates in the world and recorded more than 26,000 homicides in 2024 — an average of more than 70 a day. Firearms are by far the leading cause of death in homicides.
The country of 62 million people has relatively strict gun ownership laws, but many killings are committed with illegal guns, according to authorities.
According to police, mass shootings at unlicensed bars are becoming a serious problem. Police shut down more than 11,000 illegal taverns between April and September this year and arrested more than 18,000 people for involvement in illegal liquor sales.
