Bengaluru (PTI): JD(S) leader H D Kumaraswamy on Sunday said Prime Minister Narendra Modi has given him an opportunity to serve as a Minister in the new Cabinet that will be sworn-in this evening, and credited the people of "Kannada Naadu" for it.

While maintaining that he has not placed a demand for any portfolio, the former Chief Minister reiterated his desire to be the Agriculture Minister.

"Under Narendra Modi's leadership a decision has been made, after discussion with BJP national President (JP Nadda), Home Minister (Amit Shah) and Defence Minister (Rajnath Singh). They have identified me and given me an opportunity. The entire credit for this has to go to people of Kannada Naadu in my opinion," Kumaraswamy said.

Addressing reporters in New Delhi, he said his intention was to serve the people of the country and the state honestly, using the opportunity.

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"To implement Narendra Modi's vision I want to work honestly and thereby bring a good name to him and to our state. This is my resolve."

The son of JD(S) patriarch H D Deve Gowda has made no secret of his desire to become the Agriculture Minister, and has repeatedly expressed it before and after the polls.

By winning the Mandya Lok Sabha seat, the former CM has not only managed to regain the JD(S)' lost bastion, but has also successfully managed to retrieve his party's lost political relevance in Karnataka, by allying with the BJP.

Kumaraswamy defeated Venkataramane Gowda (also known as Star Chandru) of the Congress by a margin of 2,84,620 votes.

Noting that he has left it to the PM to decide and has made no demand for any portfolio, Kumaraswamy while replying to a question, said, "If I get it, I will be happy, because I've been interested in Agriculture since beginning."

"The Prime Minister has reposed faith in me, he has respect towards my father. I'm not interested in making money. Under Modi's leadership, I want to stay among people. I want to connect with people to resolve their issues, if I get such a portfolio, it will help me to serve as a Minister better," he said.

Kumaraswamy asserted that JD(S) performance in the Lok Sabha polls and his win is a "revival" for the party.

"Narendra Modi's leadership and Kannadigas have given me and my party a revival. Kannadiga's have accepted the BJP-JD(S) alliance and have given me the strength. I thank the people of the state, especially voters of Mandya and Bangalore Rural segments," he said.

Citing health reasons for his father Deve Gowda's inability to travel to Delhi, Kumaraswamy said if he is able to successfully work and stay good to the faith that the people have reposed in him, he will be "happy".

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Ranchi (PTI): A 25-year-old man, who works as a butcher, allegedly strangled to death his live-in partner and chopped her body into 40 to 50 pieces in a forested area in Jharkhand’s Khunti district, police said on Wednesday.

The accused, identified as Naresh Bhengra, was arrested.

The matter came to light after around a fortnight after the killing when a stray dog was found with human body parts near Jordag village in Jariagarh police station on November 24.

Bhengra was in a live-in relationship with the deceased, a 24-year-old woman also from Khunti district, in Tamil Nadu for the past couple of years. Sometime back, he returned to Jharkhand, got married to another woman without telling his partner anything and went back to the southern state without his wife to join her.

"The brutal incident occurred on November 8 when they reached Khunti as the accused who had married another woman did not wish to take her home. Instead, he took her to a forest near his house at Jordag village in Jariagarh police station and chopped the body into pieces. The man has been arrested," Khunti Superintendent of Police Aman Kumar told PTI.

Inspector Ashok Singh who investigated the case said the man worked in a butcher shop in Tamil Nadu and was expert in slicing chicken.

“He admitted chopping the body parts of the woman into 40 to 50 pieces before leaving those in the forest for wild animals to feast on. The police recovered several parts on November 24 after a dog in the area was seen with a hand," Singh told PTI.

Singh said that the woman, who was unaware of his marriage, pressured him to return to Khunti. After reaching Ranchi, they boarded a train on November 24 and headed to the man's village.

"Under a plan, the man took her to Khunti in an autorickshaw near his home and asked her to wait. He returned with sharp weapons and strangulated her with her dupatta after raping her. He then cut the body into 40 to 50 pieces and left for his home to live with his wife," Singh said.

The woman, however, had informed her mother that she had boarded a train and would be living with her partner, the police officer said.

Following the recovery of body parts, a bag was also found in the forest with the murdered woman's belongings including her Aadhaar card. The mother of the woman was called at the spot and she identified her daughter's belongings.

"The mother suspected the man behind the crime who after being nabbed by the police admitted to chopping the woman into pieces," the official added.

The incident has sent shockwaves among people in the region, with the Shraddha Walker murder case of 2022 still fresh in their memory.

Walker was killed by her live-in partner who chopped her body into pieces before dumping them in the jungle in South Delhi’s Mehrauli.