Dharwad: Magisterial probe ordered in building collapse as toll touches 12
Dharwad, Mar 21: Karnataka Chief Minister H D Kumaraswamy Thursday ordered a magisterial inquiry into the Dharwad building collapse, as the toll rose to 12 with five more bodies being pulled out from the debris.
Police also arrested the building's design engineer Vivek Pawar while four other accused are at large including the relative of former Karnataka minister Vinay Kulkarni, police sources said.
On the third day of rescue operation, bodies of five people, including that of eight-year-old Divya Unakal, Dakshayani (45) and Sangamesh (42), were retrieved from the rubble, police said.
Kumaraswamy said at least 12 people had lost their lives and 54 people had been rescued, with fears that 14 more were still trapped.
"A magisterial inquiry has been ordered. If required, the government is ready for high level inquiry," Kumaraswamy told reporters after visiting the spot and speaking to the relatives of the victims and injured.
Kumaraswamy said he cannot announce any compensation since the model code of conduct for Lok Sabha polls was in place but he has entrusted the chief secretary to announce adequate compensation to the next to the kin of the deceased and injured.
Anger and frustration were palpable as more bodies were retrieved from the accident site with loud wails of relatives.
Locals sought to know how the civic agencies turned a blind eye to sub-standard materials being used for the construction, though everybody was apprehensive about the strength of the four-storey building.
Earlier the BJP MLA from Hubballi-Dharwad central and former Karnataka chief minister Jagadish Shettar visited the spot and took the stock of the situation.
He had demanded Rs 10 lakh to the families of the victims.
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South African police arrest suspect in mass shooting that killed 12, including 3 children
Johannesburg (AP): A 32-year-old suspect has been arrested in connection with a mass shooting which claimed the lives of 12 people including three children at an unlicensed pub earlier this month, South African police said on Monday.
The man is suspected of being one of the three people who opened fire on patrons in a pub at Saulsville township, west of South Africa's capital Pretoria, killing 12 people including three children aged 3, 12 and 16.
At least 13 people were also injured during the attack, whose motive remains unknown.
According to the police, the suspect was arrested on Sunday while traveling to Botlokwa in Limpopo province, more than 340 km from where the mass shooting took place on Dec 6.
An unlicensed firearm believed to have been used during the attack was recovered from the suspect's vehicle.
“The 32-year-old suspect was intercepted by Limpopo Tracking Team on the R101 Road in Westenburg precinct. During the arrest, the team recovered an unlicensed firearm, a hand gun, believed to have been used in the commission of the multiple murders. The firearm will be taken to the Forensic Science Laboratory for ballistic analysis,” police said in statement.
The suspect was arrested on the same day that another mass shooting at a pub took place in the Bekkersdal township, west of Johannesburg, in which nine people were killed and 10 wounded when unknown gunmen opened fire on patrons.
Police have since launched a search for the suspects.
South Africa has one of the highest homicide rates in the world and recorded more than 26,000 homicides in 2024 — an average of more than 70 a day. Firearms are by far the leading cause of death in homicides.
The country of 62 million people has relatively strict gun ownership laws, but many killings are committed with illegal guns, according to authorities.
According to police, mass shootings at unlicensed bars are becoming a serious problem. Police shut down more than 11,000 illegal taverns between April and September this year and arrested more than 18,000 people for involvement in illegal liquor sales.
