"Thought he may go to Karachi or Lahore...", Rajnath Singh's dig at Rahul's 'Bharat Jodo Yatra'
Nandagad (KTK), Mar 2: Accusing the Congress of raising questions over the valour of armed forces, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on Thursday said, its 'Bharat Jodo Yatra' was aimed at "launching" their leader Rahul Gandhi, and he thought that the latter may go to Karachi or Lahore as part of the march.
Kick-starting the second part of BJP's 'Vijay Sankapla Yatre' here, he appealed to the people to support the party in the Assembly elections, due by May, to form a government with two-third majority.
The yatre from four different directions across the poll-bound State, in specially designed vehicles or "Rathas", are being launched by the party's central leaders in parts. The first part was launched by BJP National President J P Nadda in Chamarajanagara district on Wednesday.
"Do you know about the young Congress leader, he is being launched now, and for that they had the Bharat Jodo Yatra. India got divided during partition in 1947, so I thought Rahul Gandhi who was on Bharat Jodo Yatra may go to Karachi or Lahore, but he did not go there," Singh said.
Addressing a public meeting here, he asked as to who did Gandhi try to jodo (unite), when the whole of India is united and together.
"One cannot do politics for long by fooling people, only those who do politics with confidence and maintaining eye contact with the people can be successful, and only those in the BJP can do it," he said, as he hit out at the Congress accusing them of using slogans, 'Modi theri kabr khudegi' (Modi your grave will be dug).
"They are not digging Modi's grave, but are digging their own with such slogans. The amount of mud slinging that our Congress friends engage in against BJP and PM Modi, our Lotus will boom that much," Singh said.
Charging the Congress with raising questions on the courage and valour of our defence forces, he asked, "what happened to them?....As the Defence Minister I want to say, we are proud of our Military forces, the kind of brave deeds they have done, if I say it openly, you will be even more proud."
Earlier in the day, Singh visited Sangolli Rayanna's memorial here and paid respects, following which he launched the Yatre.
Sangolli Rayanna (1798-1831) was the army chief of the erstwhile Kittur Kingdom ruled by Rani Chennamma and fought against the British who hanged him to death from a Banyan tree near Nandagad in Belagavi district in 1831.
Singh said, this day and this public meeting is good for the BJP as election results for three north eastern states are being declared today, and among them in Tripura and Nagaland the party is forming the government once again, while in Meghalaya it has increased the number of seats.
The Defence Minister called on the people to take a resolve to form a BJP government in the state once again, and this time with two-third majority, to build a "New Karnataka".
Pointing out that after the 2018 Assembly polls as there was no clear majority to any party, BJP could not serve the state for the entire five years term, Singh said, "it is the wish of the party and its leadership that this time we should get two-third majority in Karnataka and form the government."
The party veteran from the state B S Yediyurappa has also said that he will put his entire strength and work for BJP getting two-third majority, he said, "if BJP is given a mandate for full five years, no one can stop Karnataka from becoming the number one state in south of India."
Noting that Yediyurappa, citing his age and health reasons, decided to quit as CM (in July 2021), Singh said, with his consent Basavaraj Bommai was made the CM.
"When the son of this soil, Yediyurappa resigned voluntarily after serving the state for long, it had to be respected. When Yediyurappa, who has high stature in the party decided to quit as CM, PM Modi and the entire Parliamentary Board decided to make him the member of the Parliamentary Board, which is the highest decision making body," he said, adding that Yediyurappa's service can never be forgotten.
Highlighting various initiatives of the Modi-led government in the state for the development and progress of Karnataka, the Defence Minister spoke about HAL manufacturing helicopters in Tumakuru, opening of new Airports, and industrial corridors.
Claiming that BJP always walks the talk and fulfills the commitment made to the people, he pointed to abrogation of Article 370, and abolition of 'teen talaq", among others, as he also listed boost to UPI transaction and Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT) among the achievements of Modi government.
He also highlighted India's growing stature globally and it emerging as an economic power, under the current BJP dispensation at the Centre.
Averring that the BJP government under Modi will not tolerate terrorism and those supporting it, he said, as part of this PFI was banned.
The Defence Minister also said that India now produces bombs, tanks, missiles among various other ammunitions required for national security within the country and no longer imports them to the extent earlier. "We are now into Make in India and Make for the World"
While Singh flagged off second yatre today from Nandagad, Union Home Minister Amit Shah is slated to launch the third and fourth yatre from Basavakalyana in Bidar district and Avathy in Devanahalli near Bengaluru, on March 3, in the morning and afternoon, respectively.
According to party leaders, more than 50 state and national leaders will take part in this campaign, which will cover all 31 districts and 224 constituencies of the State.
The tours will cover 8,000 km, along which the party has planned over 80 rallies, 74 public meetings and about 150 road shows, they said, adding that it is expected to "touch" about four crore people.
The 20-day long yatre will culminate with a mega rally in the district headquarters town of Davangere on March 25 which will be attended by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
The yatre that will begin from four different places will consist of 10-12 leaders in each of them.
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3 Indians arrested in Canada for shooting outside home
Ottawa (PTI): Three Indian nationals have been arrested by Canadian police on an anti-extortion patrol and charged after bullets were fired at a home.
Harjot Singh (21), Taranveer Singh (19) and Dayajeet Singh Billing (21) face one count each of discharging a firearm, and all have been remanded in custody until Thursday, the Surrey Police Service (SPS) said in a statement on Monday.
The suspects were arrested by patrol officers after an early morning report of shots fired and a small fire outside a home in Surrey's Crescent Beach neighbourhood, the LakelandToday reported.
On February 1, 2026, the SPS members were patrolling in Surrey’s Crescent Beach neighbourhood when reports came in of shots being fired and a small fire outside a residence near Crescent Road and 132 Street.
The three accused were arrested by SPS officers a short time later, the statement said.
SPS’s Major Crime Section took over the investigation, and the three men have now been charged with Criminal Code offences, it said.
All three have been charged with one count each of discharging a firearm into a place contrary to section 244.2(1)(a) of the Criminal Code.
The investigation is ongoing, and additional charges may be forthcoming. All three have been remanded in custody until February 5, 2026.
The SPS has confirmed they are all foreign nationals and has engaged the Canada Border Services Agency, it said.
One of the suspects suffered injuries, including two black eyes, the media report said.
Surrey police Staff Sgt. Lindsey Houghton said on Monday that the suspect had refused to comply with instructions to get out of the ride-share vehicle and started to "actively resist."
"As we were trained, he was taken to the ground and safely handcuffed," said Houghton.
A second suspect with a black eye was also injured in the arrest after refusing to comply, Houghton said.
The arresting officers were part of Project Assurance, an initiative that patrols neighbourhoods that have been targeted by extortion violence.
Houghton said the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) is also involved because the men are foreign nationals, and the trio may face additional charges.
It's not clear if the men are in the country on tourist visas, a study permit, or a work permit, but Houghton said CBSA has started its own investigation into the men's status.
Surrey has seen a number of shootings at homes and businesses over the last several months, but there's been an escalation since the new year.
