Bhatkal: Collective body of Jamaats rules against fielding Muslim candidate in assembly elections
Bhatkal: The representatives of collective body of Jamaats, in a meeting led by Majlis-e-Islah wa Tanzeem here on Monday evening, decided not to field a Muslim candidate from Bhatkal in the upcoming Assembly elections.
The decision, however, proves to be a setback to the candidature of Inayatullah Shabandri, president of Tanzeem, who was considered a strong aspirant for the Bhatkal seat.
There had been heated debates regarding the fielding of a Muslim candidate in the constituency this year. There had also been an insistence that the Muslims, who have about 60,000 voters here, should unfailingly support a Muslim candidate.
In the backdrop of such demands and debates, the Tanzeem, which is a sociopolitical organization of Muslims in Bhatkal, called a meeting of collective body of Jamaats representatives here to discuss the issues. The meeting was attended by 48 representatives of various Jamaats, including those of Bhatkal, Shirali, Manki, Murudeshwara, Uppana, Samshi and Honnavar.
After much discussion at the meeting, followed by voting too, the plan to field a Muslim candidate was dropped. Most representatives in the Bhatkal area had supported the plan but a majority of the representatives from the Jamaats of the neighbouring areas had opposed it, as a result of which, it was decided not to give support a Muslim contestant.
The matter is learned to have been discussed earlier in a political affairs committee and executive committee meeting of the Tanzeem, where it was decided unanimously to field a Muslim candidate. When placed before the Sarva Jamaat, however, the decision taken at the Tanzeem meeting lost out.
Inayatullah Shabandri, who had contested the 2013 polls as a JD(S) candidate with the support of the Tanzeem, lost to the Independent candidate Mankalu Vaidya, in spite of getting more than 27,000 votes. The high number of votes he won, however, had fuelled the plan of fielding a Muslim candidate. In 2018, however, the JD(S) denied ticket to Shabandri as the Tanzeem had refused him support.
This year, Shabandri, who had high hopes of contesting and had even readied himself for a fight, is again disappointed with the decision of the Tanzeem. Being the president of the Tanzeem, however, Shabandri is forced to accept the decision of the organization.
The supporters had argued that there was excellent opportunity for a Muslim candidate to win the polls, as BJP legislator Sunil Naik is facing opposition in the party, while there are two factions in the Congress. In addition to such favourable winds, gaining other community members’ votes along with Muslim votes would ensure victory from a Muslim candidate, they argued. The decision in the Tanzeem meeting, however, proved a major setback for the argument.
Following the decision at the meeting, people are curious to find out whom the Tanzeem would support during this year polls.
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Jharkhand horror: Man kills live-in partner, chops body into 40 pieces
Ranchi (PTI): A 25-year-old man, who works as a butcher, allegedly strangled to death his live-in partner and chopped her body into 40 to 50 pieces in a forested area in Jharkhand’s Khunti district, police said on Wednesday.
The accused, identified as Naresh Bhengra, was arrested.
The matter came to light after around a fortnight after the killing when a stray dog was found with human body parts near Jordag village in Jariagarh police station on November 24.
Bhengra was in a live-in relationship with the deceased, a 24-year-old woman also from Khunti district, in Tamil Nadu for the past couple of years. Sometime back, he returned to Jharkhand, got married to another woman without telling his partner anything and went back to the southern state without his wife to join her.
"The brutal incident occurred on November 8 when they reached Khunti as the accused who had married another woman did not wish to take her home. Instead, he took her to a forest near his house at Jordag village in Jariagarh police station and chopped the body into pieces. The man has been arrested," Khunti Superintendent of Police Aman Kumar told PTI.
Inspector Ashok Singh who investigated the case said the man worked in a butcher shop in Tamil Nadu and was expert in slicing chicken.
“He admitted chopping the body parts of the woman into 40 to 50 pieces before leaving those in the forest for wild animals to feast on. The police recovered several parts on November 24 after a dog in the area was seen with a hand," Singh told PTI.
Singh said that the woman, who was unaware of his marriage, pressured him to return to Khunti. After reaching Ranchi, they boarded a train on November 24 and headed to the man's village.
"Under a plan, the man took her to Khunti in an autorickshaw near his home and asked her to wait. He returned with sharp weapons and strangulated her with her dupatta after raping her. He then cut the body into 40 to 50 pieces and left for his home to live with his wife," Singh said.
The woman, however, had informed her mother that she had boarded a train and would be living with her partner, the police officer said.
Following the recovery of body parts, a bag was also found in the forest with the murdered woman's belongings including her Aadhaar card. The mother of the woman was called at the spot and she identified her daughter's belongings.
"The mother suspected the man behind the crime who after being nabbed by the police admitted to chopping the woman into pieces," the official added.
The incident has sent shockwaves among people in the region, with the Shraddha Walker murder case of 2022 still fresh in their memory.
Walker was killed by her live-in partner who chopped her body into pieces before dumping them in the jungle in South Delhi’s Mehrauli.
