Yathindra didn’t say 'so-and-so' should become CM, says Siddaramaiah
Bengaluru.(PTI): Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Friday clarified that his son Yathindra Siddaramaiah did not name anyone as his successor.
Bringing a storm in the Congress Karnataka unit, party MLC Yathindra on Wednesday said, "He (Siddaramaiah) is at the fag end of his political life. At such a time, a leader is needed to guide and lead those who have progressive thinking, ideologically."
Minister Satish Jarkiholi is a leader with similar progressive ideological thinking, he said at Chikkodi in Belagavi district.
His statement was perceived as declaring Siddaramaiah’s successor. It came at a time when the power corridor in Karnataka is abuzz with rumours that Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar would succeed Siddaramaiah in November as per a compromise arrived at in 2023 based on a ‘rotational chief minister formula’.
Siddaramaiah, who will complete two-and-half years as chief minister this November, had asserted in the past that he would complete his five year tenure.
Speaking to reporters on Friday, Siddaramaiah blamed the media for wrongly presenting Yathindra's statement.
"What can I do if his statement is twisted? I spoke to him (Yathindra) and asked him what exactly he had said. He said he spoke only about principles. He did not say that ‘so-and-so’ should become chief minister," he said.
When asked about the need for such a statement in the midst of confusion over the successor, Siddaramaiah said, "You people do not stay quiet and keep asking such questions despite saying ‘no’."
Earlier in the day, Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar said he will speak to the person who should be spoken to.
"I am not going to speak now, but I will speak to whomever it is that should be spoken to," he told reporters here.
He was replying to a query by a reporter who sought to know why notice was not served to Yathindra, who was speaking about the change of guard.
Recently, two Congress MLAs, H D Ranganath and H A Iqbal Hussain, were served notices for their statement that Shivakumar should become the next chief minister of the state.
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NCB busts secret drug lab in Karnataka's Mysuru; four held
New Delhi (PTI): The Narcotics Control Bureau has busted a secret drug manufacturing laboratory in Karnataka's Mysuru and arrested four people from Rajasthan after seizing narcotics worth Rs 10 crore, the agency said on Friday.
This crackdown began on January 28 in Gujarat's Surat, where federal officials intercepted a SUV in the Palsana area. The vehicle was found carrying about 35 kg of Mephedrone.
Followingthe seizure, the Narcotcis Control Bureau (NCB) arrested the alleged mastermind of this trafficking racket named Mahindra Kumar Vishnoi and three others. All four suspects are residents of Rajasthan's Jalore district.
The investigation led to officials to a "clandestine" drugs manufacturing laboratory located in Hebbal industrial area of Mysuru.
The laboratory was being operated under the guise of a chemical manufacturing unit for cleaning purposes. The facility had been rented by a co-accused and relative of Vishnoi, the NCB said in a statement.
"Drugs worth Rs 10 crore (market value), Rs 25.6 lakh in cash, an SUV and 500 kgs of chemicals used in the manufacturing of drugs have been seized during the operation," it said, adding that the lab is understood to be established in 2024.
According to the NCB, Vishnoi is a "habitual offender" who "conceived" the idea of manufacturing synthetic drugs in secret labs while he was incarcerated in a drugs trafficking case. He has three drug-related cases registered against him in Rajasthan and one in Gujarat, the NCB added.
