Free travel to those who participate in Janaagraha convention
Bus Owners Association’s diktat draws flak
Mangaluru, November 22: The direction of the Dakshina Kannada District Bus Owners Association to the bus owners, drivers and conductors to allow the people, who participate in Janagrah convention organized by the VHP and Bajrang Dal at Nehru Stadium on November 25 in support of Ram Mandir construction at Ayodhya, to travel freely has received widespread criticism.
In a meeting with the office bearers of the Bus Owners Association, MLA Vedavyas Kamath appealed the bus owners to provide free travelling facility to the people who would participate in the convention. Following this, association president Dilraj Alva and general secretary Prakash Shekha directed the bus owners, drivers and conductors to take the people free of cost to the Janagrah convention. This decision has received widespread criticism and being debated in the social media. Earlier also, bus owners association used to support the Hindutva organizations indirectly. Now, by directing the bus owners and drivers to allow the people in the buses freely, the Association has been supporting the Hindutva organizations openly, people accused in the social media.
DYFI
At the time of election, the efforts of BJP and the Sangha Pariwar in communal polarization are part of their political strategy. As part of that agenda, they have organized the convention in Mangaluru on November 25 demanding Ram Mandir construction at Ayodhya. This was completely a political programme with a hidden agenda engineering communal hatred.
The decision of the private bus owners association to provide free travel facility to the people to a political programme is condemnable. It was a shocking news that the association has served notice to all bus owners. A public transportation system should not be misused for certain communal programmes. People of the district should raise their voice against such a decision, said DYFI state president Muneer Katipalla.
Muslim merchants association
Muslim Merchants Association has said that the bus owners association decision is illegal. This would lead problems for the common people to travel in buses. Will the association office-bearers who act as per the Sangh Parivar’s direction, accept if other organizations appealed like this, association president Ali Hassan asked.
Won’t affect passengers: Dilraj Alva
“Following the appeal of MLA Vedavyas Kamath, the bus owners were requested to allow those who participate in Janagrah convention to travel in the buses freely. This is not the new development. Earlier also same kind of facility was made. But I don’t know why this issue is being blown out of proportion. We are not cutting the routes of any buses for this purpose. It is just asked the bus owners to provide the people free travelling opportunity”, Association President Dilraj Alva told Varthabharathi.
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Another North Goa nightclub sealed; Kejriwal says corruption led to fire tragedy
Panaji (PTI): As part of a crackdown against tourist establishments violating laws and safety norms in the aftermath of the Arpora fire tragedy, Goa authorities on Saturday sealed a renowned club at Vagator and revoked the fire department NOC of another club.
Cafe CO2 Goa, located on a cliff overlooking the Arabian Sea at Vagator beach in North Goa, was sealed. The move came two days after Goya Club, also in Vagator, was shut down for alleged violations of rules.
Elsewhere, campaigning for local body polls, AAP leader Arvind Kejriwal said the fire incident at Birch by Romeo Lane nightclub at Arpora, which claimed 25 lives on December 6, happened because the BJP government in the state was corrupt.
An inspection of Cafe CO2 Goa by a state government-appointed team revealed that the establishment, with a seating capacity of 250, did not possess a no-objection certificate (NOC) of the Fire and Emergency Services Department. The club, which sits atop Ozrant Cliff, also did not have structural stability, the team found.
The Fire and Emergency Services on Saturday also revoked the NOC issued to Diaz Pool Club and Bar at Anjuna as the fire extinguishers installed in the establishment were found to be inadequate, said divisional fire officer Shripad Gawas.
A notice was issued to Nitin Wadhwa, the partner of the club, he said in the order.
Campaigning at Chimbel village near Panaji in support of his party's Zilla Panchayat election candidate, Aam Aadmi Party leader Kejriwal said the nightclub fire at Arpora happened because of the "corruption of the Pramod Sawant-led state government."
"Why this fire incident happened? I read in the newspapers that the nightclub had no occupancy certificate, no building licence, no excise licence, no construction licence or trade licence. The entire club was illegal but still it was going on," he said.
"How could it go on? Couldn't Pramod Sawant or anyone else see it? I was told that hafta (bribe) was being paid," the former Delhi chief minister said.
A person can not work without bribing officials in the coastal state, Kejriwal said, alleging that officers, MLAs and even ministers are accepting bribes.
