Apr 20: Karnataka reports biggest single day spike of 21,794 COVID cases, 149 deaths
Bengaluru, Apr 20: Karnataka has reported its biggest single day spike of 21,794 COVID-19 cases and 149 related fatalities, taking the total caseload 11.98 lakh and the toll to 13,646, the Health department said on Tuesday.
The state had previously reported its biggest single day spike of 19,067 cases on Sunday.
Out of the 21,794 fresh cases reported on Tuesday, 13,782 were from Bengaluru Urban alone.
The day also saw 4,571 patients getting discharged after recovery.
Cumulatively 11,98,644 COVID-19 positive cases have been confirmed in the state, which includes 13,646 deaths and 10,25,821 discharges,the Health department said in a bulletin.
Out of 1,59,158 active cases, 1,58,407 patients are stable and in isolation at designated hospitals, while 751 are in Intensive Care Units.
Among 149 deaths reported on Tuesday, 92 were from Bengaluru Urban, Bengaluru Rural (13), Bidar and Kalaburagi (7), Ballari (5), followed by others.
Among the districts where the new cases were reported, Bengaluru Urban accounted for 13,782, Tumakuru 1,055, Kalaburagi 818, Mysuru 699, Bengaluru Rural 513, Dakshina Kannada 482, followed by others.
Bengaluru Urban district topped the list of positive cases, with a total of 5,70,035, followed by Mysuru 63,018 and Ballari 42,745.
Among discharges too, Bengaluru Urban was on top with 4,49,889, followed by Mysuru 57,745 and Ballari 39,829.
A total of over 2,38,64,354 samples have been tested so far, out of which 1,47,488 were done on Tuesday alone.
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Today's Media Bulletin 20/04/2021
— K'taka Health Dept (@DHFWKA) April 20, 2021
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Fascism will not be allowed to enter through the back door of vote rigging: CM Siddaramaiah
New Delhi: Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Sunday asserted that fascism would not be allowed to enter India “through the back door of vote rigging” and called upon citizens to collectively defend the country’s democratic foundations.
Speaking after participating in an anti–vote rigging protest organised in New Delhi, Siddaramaiah said the gathering was not merely a political demonstration but a stand to protect Indian democracy. “We have come to the heart of our republic not as Congress workers or voters, but as protectors of Indian democracy,” he said.
Emphasising the importance of the right to vote, Siddaramaiah said it was the most sacred right guaranteed by the Constitution and the very foundation of democracy.
“Through voting, a farmer shapes the future of his children, a worker safeguards his dignity, a youth realises dreams, and a nation expresses its collective will,” he said.
He accused the BJP-led Union government of attempting to undermine this right through what he termed systematic vote rigging, including the alleged misuse of the special revision of electoral rolls. “This power is being stolen repeatedly,” he alleged.
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Warning against authoritarian tendencies, Siddaramaiah said history had shown that dictatorship does not begin with violence but with the misuse of institutions and manipulation of democratic systems.
“Across the world, authoritarian regimes pretend to protect democracy while quietly subverting it. This is what the BJP is doing today,” he charged.
He alleged that the ruling party was controlling institutions, intimidating electoral machinery, distorting voter lists, suppressing voter turnout in opposition strongholds, and misusing money and power. “This is not mere maladministration. Vote rigging is an attack on the very idea of India,” he said.
Siddaramaiah further claimed that governments formed through “stolen votes” could not be considered democratic.
“Such regimes survive through fear, fraud and distortion of the people’s mandate,” he said, adding that vote rigging posed the biggest threat to the republic since Independence.
Praising Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi, Siddaramaiah said he had shown exceptional courage in exposing alleged irregularities in voter lists, booth-level manipulation and “systematic, organised vote rigging” across several states, including Karnataka, Haryana and Bihar.
Referring to Karnataka, Siddaramaiah cited Mahadevpura and Aland constituencies as examples highlighted by Gandhi. In Mahadevpura, he said, thousands of allegedly fake and fraudulent voter entries and discrepancies in electoral rolls pointed to a narrow BJP victory. In Aland, he said, attempts were made to remove the names of legitimate voters ahead of the 2023 Assembly elections.
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He noted that a Special Investigation Team (SIT) had recently filed a chargesheet accusing seven persons, including a former BJP MLA and his son, of attempting to delete the names of around 6,000 voters in Aland.
“This is a significant legal step in the fight against vote rigging,” he said.
Siddaramaiah concluded by stating that the fight against vote rigging was rooted in constitutional morality, Ambedkarite thought and the core principle of democracy. “Sovereignty belongs to the people, not to any party, regime or those who seek to steal elections,” he said.
