New Delhi (PTI): The Congress on Monday took a swipe at the BJP over former Karnataka Chief Minister Jagadish Shettar crossing over to it ahead of the May 10 Assembly elections, claiming the ruling party is "falling like a house of cards".
Shettar joined the Congress in Bengaluru in the presence of AICC president Mallikarjun Kharge, general secretaries K C Venugopal and Randeep Singh Surjewala (Karnataka in-charge), KPCC president D K Shivakumar and Legislature Party leader and former chief minister Siddaramaiah, among others.
In a tweet on his joining, Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh said, "A massive shift in Karnataka politics! Former CM and a widely respected leader across the state, Jagadish Shettar, has joined the Congress party today."
"@INCKarnataka is on track to form the government with a full majority. BJP is falling like a house of cards," Ramesh said.
Shettar on Sunday had resigned as the Hubli-Dharwad (Central) MLA after the BJP denied him the ticket to contest the Assembly polls.
The 67-year old six-time MLA, Shettar was asked by the BJP top brass to make way for others, but he on his part had asserted that he wanted to contest one last time.
After joining the Congress, Shettar alleged that he had been humiliated by the BJP by denying him a ticket and that the party is today in the control of "very few people."
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Nainital (PTI): A 55-year-old advocate allegedly died by suicide after shooting himself inside his car at the Nainital district court parking lot here on Monday, police said.
According to the police, Puran Singh Bhakuni, a resident of Mallital, was found in the rear seat of his vehicle with a gunshot wound to his temple.
Police recovered a licensed pistol from his hand and a suicide note from the car’s dashboard. The note stated that Bhakuni was unwell and suffering from depression.
"We received information through lawyers around noon. The deceased was lying in the back seat with a pistol in his hand and blood near his ear," Circle Officer Anjana Negi said.
Forensic teams and ballistic experts reached the spot to collect evidence, as no witness reported hearing the gunshot.
Government counsel Sushil Sharma stated that Bhakuni left home at 9 am and was found dead at 9.30 am.
Sharma raised concerns over the circumstances, noting that the body was in the rear seat, and demanded a thorough probe to rule out foul play. Bhakuni, who worked as a notary, had married six months ago, he said.
Police took the body into custody and sent it for a postmortem to confirm the cause of death.
The forensic laboratory will examine the suicide note and the ballistics of the weapon, the police said, adding that the investigation is ongoing.
