Congress MLA Umesh Jadhav who skipped CLP meet surfaces, says he is with party
Bengaluru, Jan 24: Amid reports that he was being wooed by BJP, Congress MLA Umesh Jadhav who skipped the recent CLP meeting and remained incommunicado surfaced in his native Kalburgi Thursday and said he was still with the party, but dropped hints he was keeping his options open.
“I haven't even thought about it. I'm in Congress," he told reporters when asked whether he would remain in Congress in view of the reported offer by BJP to give him ticket for the coming Lok Sabha elections.
However, the MLA, who was upset at not being made a minister, said he will go by the instructions of his voters and supporters on accepting the saffron party’s offer.
I cannot decide it; I will have to discuss with my voters, people and supporters about it... will take decision in the interest of people," he added.
Jadhav along with Ramesh Jarkiholi, B Nagendra and Mahesh Kumatahalli had skipped the January 18 Congress Legislature Party meeting, following which notice were issued to them asking why action should not be taken against them under the anti-defection law.
Jadhav, however, had written to CLP leader Siddaramaiah stating that since he was "unwell and not able to travel" he would not attend the meet. He had also requested that his absence may be "excused."
Asked as to why he was not reachable by the Congress leadership all these days, the MLA said he was bit upset for some reasons and had given his phone to his brother and gone outside the state.
Denying reports that he was staying in a resort or hotel, he said, he was on a personal visit outside the state.
On a photograph showing him with BJP MLA Ashwath Narayan, Jadhav said it was not taken in Mumbai recently. It must have been taken some other time, he said adding the BJP MLA was his "close friend" and they knew each other for 15 years.
He claimed work in his constituency was happening at a slow phase under the coalition government." I don't know why work is getting delayed those in positions have to answer."
Stating that he had expected Minister post "for the sake of development work", Jadhav said he would not take it even if offered now.
Asked about reported comments by Kalburgi district in-charge minister Priyank Kharge that he can leave the party if he wanted, Jadhav said such attitude was the reason for Congress' present state.
In the Lok Sabha, Congress used to have 300-400 seats.
"by making such statements we now have around 45-50 you understand," he said adding it damaged the party.
Jadhav took exception to a protest against him in front of his house a few days ago that he had sold himself.
They should be ashamed, let them show the proof, I will work at their house, he added.
According to reports, there is rift between Jadhav and Priyank Kharge and former union minister Mallikarjun Kharge in Kalburgi and BJP was trying to take advantage of it by wooing him with the Kalaburgi Lok Sabha seat offer.
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Ahmedabad plane crash: Six months on, college hostel lies in ruins, sans bustle of students
Ahmedabad (PTI): Six months after the AI-171 plane crash, the B J Medical College hostel complex in Ahmedabad stands as a haunting reminder, with its charred walls and burnt trees replacing the once lively chatter of students with an eerie stillness.
Scattered across the crash site are grim remnants of daily life - burnt cars and motorcycles, twisted beds and furniture, charred books, clothes and personal belongings.
The Atulyam-4 hostel building and the adjoining canteen complex stand abandoned, with entry strictly prohibited.
For residents near the site, memories of the incident still linger, casting a lasting shadow on their lives, with some of them saying they are still afraid to look up at the sky when an aircraft passes overhead.
On June 12, Air India flight AI-171, a Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner bound for London, crashed moments after take-off from the Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International Airport, killing 260 persons.
The aircraft slammed into the BJ Medical College hostel complex in Meghaninagar, turning a lively student neighbourhood into a landscape of ruin and grief.
"The area now lies very silent, only a few birds chirp here," Sanjaybhai, a security guard deployed at the premises by authorities to prevent trespassing, told PTI.
Mahendrasingh Jadeja, a general store owner whose shop is just 50 metres from the point where the aircraft struck, described it as an unimaginable calamity. "In all my years, I have never seen anything like this."
Pointing to a tree behind his shop, the 60-year-old said the aircraft first struck there before crashing into the hostel building.
"It was a scorching summer afternoon. Not many people were outside. When I heard a loud crashing sound, I ran out of my shop. We were all terrified," he recalled.
"Even today, we instinctively look up whenever a plane passes overhead," he added.
Another local, Manubhai Rajput, who lives barely 200 metres from the site, said he witnessed the horror unfold on June 12.
"The plane was flying unusually low. Before I could understand what was happening, there was thick black smoke and a deafening crash," he said.
For over three decades, Rajput and his neighbours lived close to the airport without giving much thought to the aircraft overhead.
"We never looked up at the sky. But that day is etched in my mind. The plane hit a tree first, and then there was a loud sound," he said.
Rajput recalled how hundreds of locals rushed to the site even before police, fire services or the Army arrived.
Tinaben, another resident of Meghaninagar, said she never imagined something like this could happen in Ahmedabad.
"Despite being close to the airport, this area always felt safe," she said.
As an aircraft roared overhead during the conversation, Tinaben paused, looked up nervously and said, "It's still scary."
A senior official of Civil Hospital Ahmedabad, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the state government has yet to decide what to do with the damaged site.
Currently, investigations are going on and the site is strictly prohibited for people, he added.
