Chair hurled at Union Minister of State V. Somanna during public event in Koppal
Koppal: Tension prevailed for a brief period at Hitnal village in Koppal taluk on Monday after a chair was allegedly hurled at Union Minister of State for Railways and Jal Shakti, V. Somanna, during a public function.
The incident occurred when Somanna was attending the foundation stone–laying ceremony for a railway flyover near Hitnal village.
According to reports, a group of Congress workers expressed anger over the alleged exclusion of Koppal MP K. Rajashekar Basavaraj Hitnal and District In-charge Minister Shivaraj Tangadagi from the invitation list for the program. During the incident, a chair was reportedly thrown, but the Minister was unharmed as his security personnel intervened in time.
Following the incident, chaos ensued at the venue for some time, with protesters allegedly throwing chairs and staging a demonstration in front of Somanna’s vehicle, accusing the organisers of violating protocol.
The railway flyover project, being taken up for Rs 27 crore, connects the Hitnal–Munirabad–Ginigera stretch.
Reacting to the incident, Somanna said the project was fully funded by the Central government and denied any breach of protocol. “There was no violation of etiquette related to the programme. The disturbance was created intentionally,” he said.
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Chose different path but did not break relationship: Uddhav Thackeray on Ajit Pawar
Mumbai (PTI): Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray on Wednesday condoled Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar's death in a plane crash, and said even though the NCP chief chose a different path in politics, he did not let their relationship suffer.
In a post on X, the former chief minister said in Pawar's death, he has lost a steadfast leader and an excellent former cabinet colleague.
As finance minister, Pawar was an extremely disciplined leader with a firm grip on his department, he said.
Ajit Pawar had served as deputy CM in the Uddhav Thackeray-led government from 2019 to 2022.
"We developed a special bond as colleagues. Ajit Pawar was open-hearted. He would speak his mind. He was not someone who held a grudge for long. Even though he chose a different path in politics, he did not let our relationship break," Uddhav Thackeray said.
Pawar broke away from the Maha Vikas Aghadi alliance of the Shiv Sena, NCP and Congress in 2023 and joined the BJP-led NDA, a move which split the Nationalist Congress Party.
He was known as a leader who valued his party workers, and he was truly a 'Dada' (elder brother), Thackeray said, as he offered tributes to Ajit Pawar on behalf of the Thackeray family and Shiv Sena (UBT).
His son and former minister Aaditya Thackeray described Pawar's death as shocking. "Words fail me," he said, adding that he had the opportunity to work with Ajit Pawar for five-six years, first in the government and then in the opposition.
"His commanding grip on legislative affairs and his affectionate nature won over many like me. Even when I was in the opposition, I had publicly said this many times," Aaditya said.
