"100 Siddaramaiah's will have to come to arrest me," Union Minister HD Kumaraswamy hits back at CM
Bengaluru: Taking a jab at Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah's remarks about his arrest in the mining case, Union Minister for Heavy Industries and Steel and Karnataka JDS President, HD Kumaraswamy, retaliated on Wednesday.
"I have no fear. It would take 100 Siddaramaiahs to arrest me," Kumaraswamy said during a press conference at JP Bhawan on Sheshadri Road in Bengaluru on Wednesday.
Kumaraswamy mentioned that he had sought the Governor's approval for prosecution against him in the Sri Sai Venkateswara Minerals case. He said, "Permission was sought in November 2023. It has been about ten months," he noted.
He further alleged, "MUDA is claiming that the property is mine, but no Chief Minister has shown such hypocrisy. Now, they are saying they will arrest me. We are not afraid of such threats. The state Congress government is acting out of jealousy because I am a Union Minister. They are trying to target me with a dead case—a case without my signature."
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Kumaraswamy asserted that he would fight a legal battle regarding the Sai Venkateswara Minerals case. "In such situations, we must resort to the law. We have to bow down to the law of the land. I have not even given this company the space of a needle. The central government has not granted any permission, and the state exchequer has not lost a penny. Given this, how could the SIT seek the Governor's permission for prosecution?" he questioned.
He also remarked on the Congress's past accusations, saying, "Earlier, Congress leaders claimed there were 21 cases against the BJP. They couldn’t prove a point of power. Now, they are targeting me. Siddaramaiah should at least bring a case with some substance."
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Kerala: Court imposes 41-year jail term on man for sexual assault of minor
Kozhikode (Kerala) (PTI): A Kerala court on Wednesday sentenced a man to 41 years in prison for sexually assaulting a minor boy near Valayam in 2021.
Nadapuram Fast Track Special Court judge K Naushad Ali sentenced 64-year-old Panchara Musa, also known as Ganapathiyat Musa, under various provisions of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act and the Indian Penal Code (IPC), according to special public prosecutor Manoj Aroor.
As the sentences are to run concurrently, the convict will have to serve the highest term of 20 years’ imprisonment, SPP Aroor said. The court also imposed a fine of Rs 52,000 on Musa.
The incident took place in August 2021 when the accused allegedly took the 14-year-old boy to a bus stop in Valayam town and sexually assaulted him, the prosecutor said. The accused also gave Rs 50 to the boy, he added.
Following the incident, the boy and his father lodged a complaint at the Valayam police station.
A case under various provisions of the POCSO Act and the IPC was registered, and the accused was subsequently arrested, the SPP said.
The prosecution examined 16 witnesses and submitted 16 documents to substantiate its case against the accused, he added.
