Billava candidates more important than party affiliations for us: Shri Narayana Guru Forum president
Sathyajith Surathkal, the State President of the Shri Narayana Guru Vichara Vedike (SNGV), announced that the forum has decided to prioritize the candidate over the party affiliation and will extend support to Billava candidates in the upcoming Lok Sabha elections across several constituencies, irrespective of their party affiliations. This decision was made public during a press conference held at the Press Club in Mangaluru on Monday.
Surathkal highlighted the significance of the decision, stating that the 'Narayana Guru Samaja,' comprising 26 communities including Billavas, Eedigas, and Namdharis, has long sought representation in electoral politics. He emphasized the presence of a substantial Billava voter base, totaling 12 lakh voters, across Dakshina Kannada, Udupi, Uttara Kannada, and Shivamogga districts. Surathkal pointed out that despite this demographic strength, the BJP had not fielded a Billava candidate for over three decades. However, this year, Kota Srinivas Poojary has been nominated as the BJP candidate from the Udupi-Chikmagalur constituency after a hiatus of 33 years.
Regarding the Congress, Surathkal noted that the party had selected a Bunt candidate for the Dakshina Kannada constituency following the unsuccessful Lok Sabha campaigns of veteran leader B Janardhana Poojary.
Surathkal also outlined the efforts of the SNGV in advocating for the advancement of various backward communities, including their advocacy for representation in development boards, the inclusion of Narayana Guru's teachings in textbooks, and the renaming of airports in Mangaluru and Shivamogga.
The SNGV announced its support for Padmaraj R of the Congress in Dakshina Kannada, Kota Srinivas Poojary of the BJP in Udupi-Chikmagalur, and Geetha Shivaraj Kumar, the Congress candidate, in Shimoga. Surathkal assured personal involvement in campaigning for these candidates, expressing hope that their victory would lead to improved educational and economic conditions for the community members.
Responding to queries about his own candidacy, Surathkal lamented the lack of opportunity given to him by the BJP, attributing it to his caste and economic background. He criticized the party's preference for candidates who unquestioningly follow directives from party leaders, asserting his commitment to individuals who uphold self-dignity.
While Surathkal acknowledged the nomination of Kota Srinivas Poojary as a positive step, he maintained that there is room for debate on whether the selection truly represents the interests of the Billava community. He suggested alternative candidates who he believed could have been considered for the nomination based on their past performance in public service roles.
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Ashram Teacher, hailed as hero last year, booked for sexual abuse of minor boys
Ujjain: In September last year, a teacher at an Ujjain ashram “came to the aid” of a minor rape victim who was going door to door seeking help. The same teacher has now been arrested along with a caretaker for allegedly sexually abusing at least three minor boys at their ashram.
Three FIRs under relevant provisions of the IPC as well as under multiple sections of the POCSO Act have been registered by the police against the 21-year-old teacher, Rahul Sharma, and ashram caretaker Ajay Thakur. The police further informed that both have been sent to judicial custody, adding that there are many more victims who haven’t filed a complaint yet.
Ujjain SP Pradeep Sharma told The Indian Express: “So far three children have come forward and made the allegations. We have arrested two persons in this case.”
In September 2023, CCTV footage emerged of the minor girl, bleeding and partially clothed, after she was raped by an autorickshaw driver. The footage showed no one coming to her aid even as she walked around the area for an hour, with one resident even shooing her away.
Sharma had said he helped the girl after he spotted her outside the ashram. At the time, he had told The Indian Express: “This is a holy town, people here are supposed to be helpful, but no one helped her… there was no humanity.”
The police have ruled out any connection with the Ujjain rape case for now. “We sent through 200 CCTV videos and his role has so far been ruled out,” said a senior police officer. According to police, children from poor families were sent to be trained as pandits in this ashram, affiliated to the state Sanskrit board.
Around 10 days ago, a minor boy who was allegedly sexually assaulted by Thakur complained to his mother when he returned home. “The parents of the child came to the ashram. Then the ashram worker Thakur was sacked. Later, many more parents visited the ashram and levelled allegations,” said a senior officer.
The ashram authorities contacted police after several parents made allegations against Sharma and had a confrontation with the ashram official. An ashram official, Gajanand, said: “We called the police to help us but they arrested our staff. The allegations are false.”
However, the officer said: “When we arrived, we found that the ashram officials were the suspects. There are many more victims in this case and we tried to convince them to file a case. Policemen dressed in civil clothes also tried speaking to the children, but they refused as they were scared,” the officer said.
