Bengaluru: Woman coach, her friend arrested for stealing gold chain during swimming training
Bengaluru: The Thalaghattapura Police have reportedly arrested a female swimming coach and her friend for allegedly robbing a gold chain from the bag belonging to a woman who had come for swimming training at a private swimming pool in the city.
Mamata, a resident of Gowdanapalya near Subramanyapura, and her friend Swamy (42), a cab driver resident of Anjanapura, have been identified as the accused arrested.
The police have seized the gold chain of 46 grams worth Rs 3 Lakh from the possession of the accused.
The incident reportedly occurred on July 7 during a weekend swimming camp organised at a pool named Swim Swcare in Kembattanahatti near Talaghattapura. The complainant attended the camp with her daughter and had placed her gold chain and two gold bangles in a bag, which she then kept in a locker.
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Upon returning from swimming practice, she discovered that the gold chain and bangles were missing from the locker. She asked everyone present at the pool regarding her missing chain and subsequently lodged a complaint with the Thalaghattapura police.
During the investigation, police suspected and interrogated coach Mamata, leading to the discovery of the theft. The accused have been arrested, and further action has been taken, said the Police.
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Karnataka CM Siddaramaiah accuses EC of ‘bias’, defends state guarantee schemes ahead of bypolls
Bengaluru (PTI): Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah has accused the EC of "double standards" and "bias" after it sought details on the state’s guarantee schemes in Davanagere and Bagalkot districts, where bypolls are scheduled for Thursday.
In a post on 'X' on Wednesday, Siddaramaiah said the Election Commission of India had asked the Karnataka government for information on fund releases under five ongoing guarantee schemes in the constituencies going to polls.
The polls were necessitated following the deaths of senior Congress MLAs Shamanur Shivashankarappa and H Y Meti, respectively.
The schemes are Gruha Jyothi, which provides 200 units of free electricity to every household; Gruha Lakshmi, offering Rs 2,000 to women heading families; and Anna Bhagya, supplying 10 kg of rice per month to each member of BPL families.
In addition, Yuva Nidhi grants Rs 3,000 to unemployed graduates and Rs 1,500 to unemployed diploma holders aged 18–25 for two years, while Shakti enables women to travel free of charge within Karnataka on government non-luxury buses.
Siddaramaiah alleged that the ECI had remained silent when similar cash transfer schemes were announced in Maharashtra and Bihar ahead of elections, calling the scrutiny of Karnataka’s schemes a "clear case of bias".
"In states like Maharashtra and Bihar, cash transfer schemes were announced or fast-tracked just before elections, directly benefiting voters. Yet the ECI remained silent. This is not neutrality—it is complicity," he said.
The CM accused the BJP and NDA governments of "a double standard", noting that when they act, the ECI "looks the other way", but when Karnataka fulfils its promises, it faces "intense scrutiny".
He added that targeting the state’s guarantee schemes is "not just political but anti-poor, anti-women, and anti-Karnataka."
Siddaramaiah clarified that these schemes were not launched in connection with the bypolls but are ongoing programmes implemented as part of the Congress government’s commitments from the 2023 Assembly elections.
Funds are transferred regularly to beneficiaries in a transparent and structured manner, he added.
"The guarantees are part of governance—a direct investment in human dignity, household stability, and economic participation, not inducement," he said.
He also accused the BJP of "hypocrisy", saying that while it criticises Karnataka’s schemes as "freebies", it rolls out similar programmes in states it governs.
"The Karnataka model has set a benchmark for the country. What is deeply concerning, however, is the ECI’s selective approach," Siddaramaiah added.
