Don't treat Cong lightly and work hard for BJP's win LS polls: Vijayendra to partymen
Bengaluru (PTI): Asserting that there is a pro-BJP wave in the state and country, the party's state chief B Y Vijayendra on Wednesday called on cadres to work unitedly for its victory in the Lok Sabha polls, and not take the opposition lightly at a time when the Congress is ruling the state.
He was speaking at the first meeting of the state unit's new office bearers at the party office here.
"In every election, there are different types of challenges. We must not take our opponents lightly, if we are to successfully meet those challenges," Vijayendra said, pointing out that the Congress is in government in Karnataka.
He requested party members to ensure that the pro-people programmes of the central government led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi reach the people.
ALSO READ: Altercation erupts over temple trustee election in Kundapur: Complaints filed
Vijayendra, who was appointed as the state BJP chief on November 10, had appointed new office bearers to the party on December 23.
Highlighting the achievements and programmes of the Modi government, the BJP state president said that party workers should help take central government schemes to the doorsteps of the people.
He said that every election, right from the zilla panchayat and taluk panchayat elections and the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) polls as well as the legislative council elections should be taken seriously and "we should step forward to give strength to our party workers".
Noting that this responsibility has come at a very important time, he further said, "We should all be responsible and perform our duty. What is most important for us is the time at which we have got this responsibility."
The BJP and JD(S) will fight the Lok Sabha elections together and the goal is to win all 28 seats in the state, Vijayendra said.
Calling the ruling Congress "power drunk", he said, "Along with giving a suitable answer to the Congress party, we have to work towards strengthening Narendra Modi's hands... We have to send a message that Karnataka is not just a BJP stronghold in South India, it is also a secure fort."
Suggesting that the challenge before BJP workers is not a big one, Vijayendra said there is a pro-Modi atmosphere in the country and state, and he is also very popular.
He advised party office bearers to focus on converting Modi's popularity into votes and get going right away.
"The question of resting should not arise. Until the next Lok Sabha elections are over, we should not have Sundays, festivals, holidays...," he said.
"There should not be a question of us resting till the target of Lok Sabha elections is reached. Narendra Modi has been serving the country continuously for the last nine-and-a-half years without rest, so we should work together as one," Vijayendra addec, urging partymen to work as one team under the banner of Hindutva, without any caste differences.
Let the Truth be known. If you read VB and like VB, please be a VB Supporter and Help us deliver the Truth to one and all.
Iran, US receive proposal for 45-day ceasefire and reopening of Strait of Hormuz
Dubai (AP): Iran and the United States received a draft proposal late Sunday calling for a 45-day ceasefire and the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz, two Mideast officials speaking on condition of anonymity told The Associated Press.
The proposal comes from Egyptian, Pakistani and Turkish mediators, hoping the 45-day window would provide enough time for talks to reach a permanent ceasefire. Iran and the US have not responded to the proposal, which was sent to Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi and US Mideast envoy Steve Witkoff, the officials said.
The head of intelligence for Iran's paramilitary Revolutionary Guard was killed Monday in an attack targeting him, Iranian state media said.
Strikes on cities across Iran have killed more than 25 people from Sunday to Monday, while in Israel's Haifa, two people were found dead and two others were missing in rubble a day after an Iranian attack.
US President Donald Trump on Sunday stepped up his threat to hit Iran's critical infrastructure hard if the country's government doesn't reopen the Strait of Hormuz by his Tuesday deadline.
Trump punctuated his threat with profanity in a social media post, saying Tuesday will be “Power Plant Day, and Bridge Day, all wrapped up in one, in Iran.”
The war began with joint US-Israel strikes on Feb. 28 and has killed thousands, shaken global markets, cut off key shipping routes and spiked fuel prices. Both sides have threatened and hit civilian targets, bringing warnings of possible war crimes from the United Nations and international law experts.
Here is the latest:
An Iranian drone strikes the UAE telecommunications building
----------------------------------------------------------------------
An Iranian drone attack damaged a telecommunications building in Fujairah in the United Arab Emirates on Monday, the state-run WAM news agency reported.
The attack targeted a building of the state-funded du telecom company.
No one was injured, WAM reported, quoting officials in Fujairah.
South Korea's spy agency sees no signs of North Korea supplying Iran
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
South Korea's National Intelligence Service says there are no signs North Korea is providing Iran with weapons or other war-related supplies.
The spy agency's officials told lawmakers Monday that North Korea may be taking a cautious approach to preserve the possibility of dialogue with the Trump administration, according to two lawmakers who attended the closed-door briefing.
North Korea's Foreign Ministry has condemned the US-Israeli attacks on Iran as illegal, but the NIS said Pyongyang has not sent an official condolence message over the death of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Iran's late supreme leader.
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, in recent years, has embraced the idea of a “new Cold War” and attempted to expand cooperation with countries confronting the US, including an economic delegation sent to Iran in April 2024.
South Korea plans to send ships and special envoys to Saudi Arabia
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
South Korea plans to send at least five ships to Saudi Arabia's Yanbu port in the coming weeks to establish new oil transport routes in the Red Sea.
The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Resources said Monday the ships will be deployed in phases beginning in mid-April, and the number of vessels could increase depending on contracts with Saudi partners.
Officials did not disclose the companies involved but said some domestic refiners may use non-Korean shipping firms.
South Korea also plans to send special envoys to Saudi Arabia, Oman and Algeria to step up diplomatic efforts to secure alternative fuel supplies, ruling party lawmaker Ahn Do-geol said.
The foreign ministry did not immediately reveal when the envoys would be sent.
Iran executes a man over the January protests
------------------------------------------------------
Iran has executed another man convicted over charges stemming from the nationwide protests that swept Iran in January.
The judiciary's Mizan news agency identified the man hanged as Ali Fahim in a report on Monday.
It was unclear when he was executed.
Fahim had been convicted of allegedly storming a military base to seize weapons.
Amnesty International said Fahim and others convicted in the case “were subjected to torture and other ill-treatment in detention, including beatings, floggings, prolonged solitary confinement, and death threats at gunpoint before being convicted in grossly unfair trials that relied on forced confessions extracted under torture and lasted only a few hours.”
The Human Rights Activist News Agency had said Fahim and others had entered a Tehran base of the all-volunteer Basij militia, an arm of the Revolutionary Guard, after it had been burned, then had been forced into confessions.
Iranian missiles hit central Israel
---------------------------------------
Israeli rescue services reported Monday morning that several sites were hit by missiles launched from Iran toward multiple cities in the centre of Israel.
In Petah Tikva, paramedics provided medical treatment to an injured woman in serious condition with a chest injury from shrapnel and evacuated her to the Beilinson Hospital.
Firefighters in that city are handling cars on fire and continue searching to ensure there are no people trapped in the rubble.
In Tel Aviv, a man slightly injured by glass shrapnel was evacuated to the Ichilov Hospital.
Footage provided by the rescue service Magen David Adom shows damage to residential buildings due to the attack.
Meanwhile, Israel's military warned the public Monday morning of another missile barrage coming from Iran, the fourth such alert of the day.
