Vartha Bharati reporter Ismail Kandakare gets prestigious PaGo award 2024
Vartha Bharati Kodagu District Special Correspondent K.M. Ismail Kandakare has been selected as the recipient of the prestigious PaGo award by the Dakshina Kannada District Working Journalists Association this year. The award-winning report, titled 'Give way or give way to death,' was published in the 'Vartabharati' newspaper on April 6, 2023.
The selection committee, comprising Senior Journalist Keshav Kunder and Journalism Lecturer Guruprasad T.N., chose Kandakare's report for its quality and impact. The award includes a cash prize of Rs. 10,001 along with a souvenir.
Kandakare, who holds a certificate course in Diploma in Journalism from Karnataka Open University, has previously been recognized for his journalistic contributions. He has received the Best Sports Reporting Award from both the Kodagu District Working Journalist Association and the Kushalanagar Taluk Working Journalist Association. Additionally, Kandakare's debut work, 'Mariam,' was published in 2021.
Apart from his journalistic endeavors, Kandakare is also involved in football, serving as both a player and coach. He currently works as a referee for the Karnataka State Football Association.
The award ceremony is scheduled to take place on May 9 at 11 AM at the Mangalore Press Club. Mangalore University Vice-Chancellor Prof. P L Dharma will present the award, while senior journalist Chidambara Baikampadi will deliver a speech as the guest speaker. The event will be presided over by Srinivas Naik Indaje, the president of DK District Working Journalists' Association, with Jitendra Kundeshwar, the general secretary of the association, coordinating the proceedings.
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Congress using hijab issue to pacify minority anger, alleges Karnataka LoP R Ashoka
Bengaluru: Leader of Opposition in the Assembly R. Ashoka has accused the Congress government of using the hijab issue to placate what he described as discontent among minority voters after the Davanagere by-election.
In a post on X on Wednesday, Ashoka alleged that the state government, instead of addressing issues such as price rise, corruption, farmers’ distress and law and order, was attempting to retain its minority vote base by reviving the hijab issue.
Referring to the 2022 dress code introduced by the BJP government, which prohibited hijab in schools and colleges, Ashoka said the Karnataka High Court had upheld the policy and emphasised the importance of discipline in educational institutions.
He questioned the Congress government’s move to revisit the issue and asked whether setting aside the court-backed policy to benefit one community could be described as secularism.
Ashoka further alleged that while the government was willing to permit hijab, it continued to prohibit saffron shawls.
He accused the government of dividing students on religious lines rather than treating schools and colleges as spaces of equality.
Drawing a comparison with Mamata Banerjee’s government in West Bengal, Ashoka claimed that excessive appeasement politics had harmed the state and warned that the Congress in Karnataka could face a similar political response.
He said voters in Karnataka would teach the Congress a lesson for what he termed “vote-bank politics” and for compromising constitutional and judicial principles.
