Dharmasthala case: Govt monitoring social media posts, will take action if required, says Minister
Bengaluru (PTI): Karnataka Home Minister G Parameshwara on Friday said the government is monitoring social media for posts related to alleged mass burial in Dharmasthala and warned of action against those that could "instigate feelings in the society".
The state government has formed a Special Investigation Team (SIT) to look into the claims of alleged mass murder, rape, and mass burials in Dharmasthala over the past two decades.
These claims were made by an anonymous former sanitation worker, who claimed that he was forced to bury several bodies, including those of women and minors, in Dharmasthala, between 1995 and 2014.
The worker has given a statement to a magistrate alleging that some of the bodies showed signs of sexual assault.
"We are watching it and if in any way they are instigating feelings in the society, we will try to stop them. We are taking action against hate speech-related cases as you are aware. We will keep watch on such postings that may create an impact (on the society) wrongly," Parameshwara told media.
He cited past actions against communal postings in Dakshina Kannada district.
Meanwhile, Pronab Mohanty, SIT chief heading the probe in the Dharmasthala case, met the state Home Minister at his residence on Friday, amid speculation that he may be replaced, after his name appeared on the list of Director General-rank officers being considered for positions in the union government.
Mohanty is currently the Director General of Police (Internal Security Division) in Karnataka.
Responding to a question on the meeting, Parameshwara clarified that it was not regarding the investigation into the Dharmasthala case, as discussing it would be inappropriate.
"Mohanty's name is there in the list of empanelment of Director General-rank officers to serve in the union government. But he will not be immediately given any posting (at Centre). He had come to inform me about it. Also, as the government is bringing rules regarding fake news, online gambling -- Mohanty being the Internal Security Division head, had come to brief me about certain things ahead of the meeting in this regard today," he explained.
The Minister noted that the decision to relieve Mohanty of his state duties for a central government position rests with the Karnataka government, which would respond to any official request from the Centre.
"No such communication has come from the Centre yet. It is only an empanelment....." he added.
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Dense fog disrupts operations at Delhi airport; 228 flights cancelled, 5 diverted
New Delhi (PTI): Dense fog disrupted flight operations at Delhi Airport on Monday, with various airlines cancelling 228 flights and diverting five to nearby airports due to low visibility, an official said.
However, except for Air India, which had in an X post in the morning announced the cancellation of some 40 flights, no other airlines, including crisis-hit IndiGo, shared the numbers of their cancelled or delayed flights.
"As many as 228 flights -- 131 departures and 97 arrivals-- have been cancelled due to low visibility, so far," the airport official said.
In addition to this, five flights have been diverted so far, he said.
Earlier, the Delhi International Airport Ltd (DIAL), in a statement, said, "Our on-ground officials are working closely with all stakeholders to assist passengers and provide necessary support across Terminals.
"Low visibility (below minima), due to dense fog, has severely impacted operations at Delhi and other airports across northern India, which is unfortunately beyond our control," IndiGo said in a statement.
As operations are adjusted to prevailing weather conditions, some flights may experience delays, while a few others may be proactively cancelled during the day to prioritise safety and minimise extended waiting at the airport, the airline said in a statement.
IndiGo, however, did not say how many of its flights were cancelled or delayed.
The airline said its teams are "closely monitoring" the situation and coordinating with Delhi airport.
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IndiGo also said it issued advisories to its customers and "proactively" informing them, to minimise inconvenience.
“Poor visibility due to dense fog in Delhi this morning has impacted flight operations for all airlines. We are closely monitoring conditions and will resume operations as soon as it is safe to do so,” Air India said in a post on X in the morning.
It also said that some flights have been cancelled In the interest of safety, and to avoid prolonged uncertainty for the guests, while listing out some 40 arrivals and departures that it had cancelled for the day.
Delhi airport is the country's busiest, handling around 1,300 flight movements daily.
