Three months after taking charge as Leader of Opposition, no official vehicle for Siddaramaiah
Former CM questions bias of Speaker Kageri over the issue
Bengaluru: Former Karnataka Chief Minister and Leader of Opposition in Karnataka Assembly, Siddaramaiah on Monday expressed anguish for not being allotted government car more than three months after taking oath as leader of opposition.
“Chief Minsiter, Deputy Chief Ministers and Ministers were allotted government vehicle soon after they took oath of their respective posts and here I am waiting for the government vehicle even after three months of taking oath as the Leader of Opposition” Siddaramaiah quipped.
Siddaramaiah further informed he had written a letter to the speaker of the assembly Vishveshwar Hegde Kageri regarding this.
“Leader of Opposition is entitled to get official car, staff and other privileges, even after three months of being appointed as the LoP, I am yet to get these facilities. I had written to the speaker two months back but yet no action has been initiated in this regard” the former CM said.
He also questioned the bias stand of the speaker in the issue pointing that the CM and other ministers were given vehicles soon as they took charge, but he was ignored even after months of taking the charge of the office.
“Why is there bias by the speaker between the ruling party and other party? What message does he want to convey with such acts?” Siddaramaiah questioned.
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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.
