Bengaluru, April 20: Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Friday filed his nomination to contest the ensuing state Legislative Assembly elections from Chamundeshwari constituency in Mysuru, an official said.
"Siddaramaiah, along with his son Yathindra, visited the Chamundeshwari temple atop Chamundi Hills in Mysuru to pray to goddess Durga before filing his nomination," an official from the Chief Minister's Office told here.
The 69-year-old veteran leader contested from Chamundeshwari seat seven times since 1983 and won five times. He later shifted his constituency to Varuna in Mysuru district, from where he was elected twice since 2008, including the last assembly polls in 2013.
Siddaramaiah has paved way for his son, Yathindra, to contest the May 12 assembly elections from his home constituency Varuna. Yathindra, who will be contesting the state elections for the first time, also filed his nomination papers on Friday.
Siddaramaiah switched over to the Congress from the Janata Dal-Secular (JD-S) in August 2006 following differences with its supremo and former Prime Minister H.D. Deve Gowda and his second son and former Chief Minister H.D. Kumaraswamy.
He is also only second lawmaker in the southern state to complete the five-year term as Chief Minister in 40 years after Devaraj Urs did from 1972-78, as about 10 chief ministers could not compete their full term in between for various reasons.
Meanwhile, JD-S state president Kumaraswamy filed his nomination for the state polls from both Channapatna and Ramanagara assembly segments in Ramanagara district, about 50km southwest from here.
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Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu dismisses defence minister in surprise announcement
Jerusalem, Nov 5: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Tuesday dismissed his popular defence minister, Yoav Gallant, in a surprise announcement that came as the country is embroiled in wars on multiple fronts across the region.
Netanyahu and Gallant have repeatedly been at odds over the war in Gaza. But Netanyahu had avoided firing his rival. Netanyahu cited “significant gaps” and a “crisis of trust” between the men in his Tuesday evening announcement.
“In the midst of a war, more than ever, full trust is required between the prime minister and defence minister,” Netanyahu said. “Unfortunately, although in the first months of the campaign there was such trust and there was very fruitful work, during the last months this trust cracked between me and the defence minister.”
In the early days of the war, Israel's leadership presented a unified front as it responded to Hamas' October 7, 2023, attack. But as the war dragged on and spread to Lebanon, key policy differences have emerged. While Netanyahu has called for continued military pressure on Hamas, Gallant had taken a more pragmatic approach, saying that military force has created the necessary conditions for a diplomatic deal that could bring home hostages held by the Hamas group.
Gallant, a former general who has gained public respect with a gruff, no-nonsense personality, said in a statement: “The security of the state of Israel always was, and will always remain, my life's mission."
Gallant has worn a simple, black buttoned shirt throughout the war in a sign of sorrow over the October 7 attack and developed a strong relationship with his US counterpart, Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin.
A previous attempt by Netanyahu to fire Gallant in March 2023 sparked widespread street protests against Netanyahu. He also flirted with the idea of dismissing Gallant over the summer but held off until Tuesday's announcement.
Gallant will be replaced by Foreign Minister Israel Katz, a Netanyahu loyalist and veteran Cabinet minister who was a junior officer in the military. Gideon Saar, a former Netanyahu rival who recently rejoined the government, will take the foreign affairs post.
Netanyahu has a long history of neutralising his rivals. In his statement, he claimed he had made “many attempts” to bridge the gaps with Gallant.
“But they kept getting wider. They also came to the knowledge of the public in an unacceptable way, and worse than that, they came to the knowledge of the enemy - our enemies enjoyed it and derived a lot of benefit from it,” he said.
