Kerala tourist buses suspend services to Karnataka, Tamil Nadu
Kochi (PTI): The Luxury Bus Owners Association on Sunday announced that they will suspend all interstate services from Kerala to Karnataka and Tamil Nadu.
In a statement, the Luxury Bus Owners Association, Kerala State Committee said that interstate tourist bus services from Kerala to Tamil Nadu and Karnataka will be suspended from 6 pm, Monday.
Association State President AJ Rijas said the decision was taken after neighbouring states began levying heavy fines, imposing unlawful state-level taxes, and seizing All India Tourist Permit (AITP) buses belonging to Kerala operators.
General Secretary Maneesh Sasidharan said that despite having valid AITPs issued under the Central Government’s Motor Vehicles Act, tourist vehicles from Kerala are being stopped, fined, and detained in Tamil Nadu and Karnataka.
“For over a year, Tamil Nadu authorities have been collecting tax arbitrarily from Kerala-registered vehicles, causing repeated harassment to operators and passengers. During this period, the Kerala government had taken a very sympathetic and supportive approach, refraining from retaliatory measures in the hope of a cooperative resolution,” the association said.
Many are now afraid to operate interstate services due to the threat of financial loss and vehicle seizure, they said.
The association clarified that this service suspension is not a voluntary protest, but a compelled action taken for the safety of vehicles, drivers, and passengers.
The association has requested the Kerala Transport Minister and the Transport Commissioner to intervene immediately with the Governments of Tamil Nadu and Karnataka and the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways, to put an end to these unlawful practices and to ensure uniform implementation of the AITP framework across all southern states.
The association has also written a letter to Kerala Transport Minister KB Ganesh Kumar to address the issue.
“With timely intervention from the Kerala government and the central authorities, the issue can be resolved amicably and normal interstate tourist operations can resume soon,” the association added.
Let the Truth be known. If you read VB and like VB, please be a VB Supporter and Help us deliver the Truth to one and all.
Two arrested in K'taka for assaulting minors, uploading CSAM content
Bengaluru (PTI): Two men were arrested for allegedly sexually assaulting two minor girls, recording the acts on mobile phones and uploading the videos online as child sexual abuse material, police said on Thursday.
The accused have been identified as Kiran Kumar (29), hailing from Chitradurga district, and Aditya M K (20), hailing from Shivamogga district, they said.
A probe was initiated after information was received from the NCRP portal regarding a suspected instance of creation of Child Sexual Abuse Material (CSAM) for online dissemination, police said.
Accordingly, a case was registered at Kaggalipura Police Station under relevant sections of the IT Act on May 10, they added.
Investigation revealed that two minor girl victims were exploited and videos were created and uploaded to the internet. The child victims have subsequently recorded their statements as per procedure and further necessary legal steps have been taken, Pronab Mohanty Director General of Police, Cyber Command, said in a statement.
Based on the statements of the victims, the accused persons, who allegedly assaulted the minors, recorded the acts on mobile phones and uploaded the videos online, were arrested, he said.
Following the probe, sections 65(2) (rape) and 70 (gangrape) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, along with relevant sections of the POCSO Act, have been added to the FIR, police said.
Officials collected relevant information and on May 12, arrested the accused persons and seized three mobile phones belonging to them, in which the videos had allegedly been recorded, he said.
The accused were later produced before the court and taken into police custody for further investigation, he added.
According to him, in CSAM cases, police usually apprehend offenders who have downloaded such content or have kept them in their possession after obtaining them from elsewhere, usually the internet.
"The present case is one of the very few instances where content creators and uploaders have been apprehended," Mohanty added.
