Mangaluru: In an alleged bizzare incident reported on Wednesday night at the Mangaluru International Airport, the security personnel reportedly manhandled a minor boy for taking pictures at the airport premises here.

The 17-year old who was manhandled by the security staff of the airport has been identified as Anas, a resident of Macchampadi near Manjeshwar.

According to the allegations made by Anas and his family, he had been to airport to see off his brother who was going to Dubai. Anas reportedly clicked pictures of his brother leaving for the flight when an irked security personnel snatched his mobile phone and deleted the pictures he had clicked.

When Anas and his family questioned the security staff the reason for snatching his phone and deleting the pictures, other security staffs joined him and manhandled Anas in front of his mother and sisters.

“On Wednesday night at around 10 pm I was clicking pictures of my brother’s departure, when the security officials suddenly assaulted me and snatched my mobile phone to delete the pictures. Upon resisting and questioning their act, they grabbed my collar and dragged me out. My mother and sisters along with my 15-year old brother requested them to release me. The security officials then tried to assault my brother as well. Later they called Bajpe Police and handed me over to them. When I admitted and recorded my statement to Bajpe Police they released me” Anas told Vartha Bharati.

Anas also asserted that he was unaware of the rules and restrictions of clicking pictures at the airport and hence he clicked a few picture to click the moments of his brother’s departure.

Vartha Bharati also tried to contact Director of Mangaluru International Airport for comments on the incident but the senior official remained unavailable.

Let the Truth be known. If you read VB and like VB, please be a VB Supporter and Help us deliver the Truth to one and all.



New Delhi, Apr 25: Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge on Thursday wrote to Prime Minister Narendra Modi and sought time from him to explain in person the party's 'Nyay Patra'.

In his two-page letter, he told the prime minister that he is being misinformed by his advisors about things that are not even written in the 'Nyay Patra' -- the Congress' manifesto for the Lok Sabha elections.

The letter comes after the prime minister attacked the Congress over its manifesto, alleging that the party aims to "redistribute the wealth" of people and give it away to "infiltrators".

Modi also accused the Congress of snatching women's "mangalsutra".

In his letter, Kharge said the Congress' 'Nyay Patra' aims at providing "nyay (justice)" to the youngsters, women, farmers, labourers and marginalised people across all castes and communities.

"It has become your habit to seize on a few words taken out of context and create a communal divide. You are lowering the dignity of the chair by speaking in this manner," he said.

"You are being misinformed by your advisors about things that are not even written in our manifesto. I would be more than happy to meet you in person to explain our 'Nyay Patra' so that, as prime minister of the country, you don't make any statements that are false," he added.

The Congress chief also said he is neither shocked nor surprised by the language used by the prime minister in his recent speeches.

"It was expected that you and other leaders from your party would start speaking in this manner after you saw the dismal performance of the BJP in the first phase of the elections," Kharge said in the letter.

The Congress has been talking about the deprived poor and their rights ("nyay"), he said and added, "We are aware that you and your government do not have any concern for the poor and dispossessed."

"Your 'suit-boot ki sarkar' works for the corporates whose taxes you reduced while the salaried class pays higher taxes. The poor pay GST even on food and salt and the rich corporate claim GST refunds. That is why, when we talk of inequality between the rich and the poor, you are purposely equating it with Hindu and Muslim," Kharge claimed.

"Our manifesto is for the people of India -- whether they are Hindu, Muslim, Christian, Sikh, Jain or Buddhist. I think you have still not forgotten your pre-Independence allies the Muslim League and colonial masters," he charged.

Kharge claimed the Congress has always served to empower the poor while "you have ruled to snatch the earnings and wealth of the poor".

He said in the letter, "Your government was the one who used demonetisation as an 'organised loot and legalised plunder' to transfer the money deposited by the poor in the banks to the rich in the form of loans. Then, as part a of conscious design, these loans were surreptitiously written off by your government. The lakhs of crores of corporate loans that your government has written off since 2014 is a transfer of wealth from poor to rich. No farmer's loans, artisan's loans, MSME loans or student loans were waived off by you."

"You and your government have repeatedly turned away from the atrocities that the poor and backward women are facing … Today, you talk about their 'mangalsutra'. Isn't your government responsible for the atrocities against women in Manipur, against Dalit girls, garlanding of rapists? When farmers are committing suicide under your government, how are you protecting their wives and children?," Kharge asked.

The Congress chief suggested that Modi read about "Nari Nyay" that, he said, the party will implement when its comes to power.

Kharge also advised the prime minister to not "get carried away by your own people who are clapping at your speeches".

"They are not allowing you to hear the crores of right-thinking citizens who are disappointed by your speeches," the Congress chief said.

Sharing Kharge's letter on X, Congress General Secretary Jairam Ramesh said, "Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge ji has just written to the prime minister, saying that he would be happy to meet him to explain the reality of the Congress' 'Nyay Patra', which Mr Modi may have missed in his persistent efforts to distort and defame it."