Voters will teach defectors a lesson: UT Khader
Mangaluru, Nov 20: People will teach a befitting lesson to the disqualified MLAs contesting the December 5 by- elections to the Karnataka assembly on BJP ticket, former Minister and Mangaluru MLA U T Khader said on Wednesday.
Addressing reporters here, he said the people have generally welcomed the Supreme Court ruling upholding the disqualification of the MLAs. However, the BJP has given ticket to those who have been adjudged as disqualified.
The voters are intelligent and they have been given an opportunity by the Supreme Court to give their verdict in the people's court, the Congress MLA said.
The nation is waiting to watch the lesson voters will teach the defectors, Khader said.
The bypolls in the state were necessitated after the resignation and subsequent disqualification of the 17 legislators by then Assembly Speaker K R Ramesh Kumar in July after the fall of the Congress-JD(S) government that paved the way for the BJP to come to power.
Though the Speaker had disqualified the MLAs till the end of the term of the present assembly in 2023, the Supreme Court had last week allowed them to contest the bypolls following which they had joined the BJP.
Sixteen of the disqualified MLAs have joined BJP and 13 of them have been given tickets to contest the by-polls.
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UP Cong holds statewide protest seeking probe into FIR against Swami Avimukteshwaranand
Lucknow (PTI): The Uttar Pradesh Congress on Wednesday staged a statewide protest demanding a fair and transparent inquiry into the FIR lodged against Swami Avimukteshwaranand Saraswati and those who filed the complaint against him.
In a statement issued here, the party said memorandums addressed to Prime Minister Narendra Modi were submitted through district magistrates in all districts of the state.
Uttar Pradesh Congress spokesperson Manish Hindvi told PTI that the memorandums were handed over through the district administration in all 75 districts.
In the memorandum, the party alleged that Saraswati and his disciples were "unnecessarily harassed and humiliated" by police on the occasion of Amavasya and were prevented from taking a ritual bath (at the Magh Mela). It further alleged that some disciples were manhandled and taken to a police station.
The memorandum also claimed that an FIR was later registered against Saraswati, his disciple Swami Mukundanand Brahmachari and several unidentified persons in a sexual harassment case. It termed the case a "conspiracy" aimed at tarnishing the seer's reputation.
Citing Articles 25 and 26 of the Constitution, the memorandum stated that these provisions guarantee religious freedom and the right of religious denominations to manage their own affairs.
It described the position of shankaracharya held by Saraswati as "one of the highest spiritual posts in Sanatan tradition" and alleged that the entire episode appeared to have been "orchestrated in a planned manner".
"We request that the background of the persons who got the FIR registered be investigated in a transparent manner by a retired high court judge and strict action be taken against them," the memorandum said.
It also sought a "fair and transparent probe" into the allegations levelled against Saraswati so that the truth could be established.
Earlier, Uttar Pradesh Congress president Ajay Rai had told reporters in Varanasi after meeting Saraswati that the party stood firmly with him.
The Congress said it would continue to press for an impartial inquiry into the entire episode.
On February 21, an FIR was lodged in Prayagraj against Saraswati and his disciple Mukundanand Brahmachari on charges of sexually abusing two persons, including a minor, over the past year at a gurukul and religious congregations, including the recently concluded Magh Mela.
Days after he was booked, Saraswati had said on Monday that he would not oppose his arrest and asserted that the "fabricated story" would be exposed sooner or later.
At a press conference on Wednesday, Saraswati alleged that criminals rule in Uttar Pradesh, level allegations and influence investigations, as he denied having any contact with the two persons for whose alleged sexual abuse he has been booked.
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