Thiruvananthapuram (PTI): Kerala government on Wednesday sent a letter to the Union Education Ministry seeking to stop further proceedings in the implementation of the PM SHRI scheme in the state.

State General Education Secretary K Vasuki sent the letter requesting the union government to temporarily stop the proceedings, a source said.

The letter was sent after receiving the legal opinion of the Advocate General, the source added.

The General Education Department's move came weeks after Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan had announced the LDF government's decision to put on hold the implementation of the PM SHRI in view of strong resistance from the coalition partner CPI.

He had said that a seven-member Cabinet sub-committee had been constituted to study the implementation of the central school scheme.

Though the Department had recently signed an MoU with the Centre without even discussing the matter in the Cabinet, the CPI strongly opposed it, saying that the action would pave the way for the implementation of the RSS agenda in the education sector in the state.

Expressing happiness over the sending of the letter, CPI state secretary Binoy Viswam said that the Left parties, including the CPI and the CPI(M), cannot take any decision other than requesting the Centre to stop its implementation in the state.

It is a success of everyone who strongly objects to the "infiltration of the RSS" in the education sector, Viswam added.

In 2020, the Centre announced the PM-SHRI scheme, which aims to upgrade existing schools into institutions aligned with the vision of the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020, supported by funds from the central and state governments in a 60:40 ratio. The Union Cabinet approved the scheme in September 2022.

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Madikeri (Karnataka) (PTI): Four people were arrested for allegedly assaulting, illegally confining and attempting to extort money from a 39-year-old businessman who was lured through a honeytrap set up on social media, police said on Monday.

The accused have been identified as Rachana, Malati, Darshan and Ravi.

Police said efforts are underway to nab the remaining suspects involved in the incident, which occurred on December 12 in Madikeri, the district headquarters of Kodagu.

According to the complaint, the victim, a resident of Maddur taluk in Mandya district, was befriended by a woman identified as Rachana through Facebook, who later sought financial assistance and received Rs 5,000 from him via PhonePe on November 28.

When he asked her to return the money, the woman allegedly asked him to travel to Mysuru or Kushalnagar, promising to meet him.

The police said the woman later called the victim to Madikeri on December 12 and took him to a house near the market area, where they spent some time and consumed alcohol in the evening.

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Later that night, citing an emergency, the woman left the house. After her departure, three men allegedly broke into the house and attacked the victim, assaulting him with a stick and the handle of a sword, causing injuries to his face, mouth, chest and leg, the FIR stated.

The complainant alleged that he was forcibly confined, stripped and a nude video of him was recorded. The accused also allegedly threatened him with a toy gun, demanding Rs 50 lakh and warning that the video would be uploaded on social media if the money was not paid.

Police said the victim was held captive and somehow managed to escape in the early hours of December 13. However, after he escaped, the accused allegedly attempted to kidnap him in an autorickshaw, an incident that was captured on CCTV cameras.

Based on his complaint at the Madikeri Town police station, a case was registered under Sections 310(2) (dacoity), 127(2) (wrongful confinement), 118(1) (voluntarily causing hurt or grievous hurt by dangerous weapons or means) and 3(5) (common intention) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, a senior police officer said.

“Four accused, including two women, have been arrested. Efforts are on to nab two more absconding accused. Further investigation is on,” he added.