Hubballi murder case: Bendigeri inspector, constable suspended for dereliction of duty
Hubballi: Hubballi-Dharwad Police Commissioner Renuka Sukumar has suspended Inspector Chandrakanth and constable Rekha Havareddy of the Bendigeri Police Station for dereliction of duty in the case 20-year-old girl's murder in the city on Wednesday.
Anjali Ambigera was stabbed to death at her home within the Bendigeri Police Station jurisdiction limits early Wednesday morning by Vishwanath, also called Girish Sawant, for rejecting his advances in spite of Sawant's repeated requests. A disappointed Sawant reportedly had warned Anjali that she would meet the same fate as Neha Hiremath, a student in the city who was stabbed to death in mid-April by her classmate for rejecting his proposal.
Worried by the death threat issued to Anjali, her family members approached the Bendigeri Police and asked the officers to file a case against Sawant. The police officers, however, rebuked the family of imagining things and refused to investigate into the matter.
Since the murder of Anjali, her family has been accusing the Bendigeri Police of failing to perform their duty in providing safety to the people, adding that the youngster's death could have been prevented had the police officials considered their complaint seriously.
The Police Commissioner, who had earlier directed the Bendigeri Police officials to investigate the case, issued an order on Wednesday for the suspension of the inspector and the constable.
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Karnataka makes teenage pregnancies audit mandatory
Bengaluru (PTI): The Karnataka government on Tuesday issued an order mandating an audit of all adolescent pregnancy cases across the state, aiming to systematically track, review and address the underlying causes of pregnancies among girls aged 10 to 18 years.
The order makes adolescent pregnancy audit mandatory by the Taluk Health Officer (THO) for all pregnancies occurring among girls aged 10 to 18 years across the state.
The move is intended to strengthen early identification, counselling and preventive interventions by integrating efforts across health, education and social welfare departments, while leveraging existing programmes such as the National Health Mission (NHM) and Rashtriya Kishor Swasthya Karyakram (RKSK).
“Adolescent pregnancy remains a significant public health and social concern with implications for maternal health, neonatal outcomes, and socio-economic development,” the order said.
It noted that pregnancies among girls aged 10 to 18 years are associated with increased risks of maternal complications, adverse birth outcomes, school dropout and social vulnerability.
According to the order, all adolescent pregnancies identified in the state must be compulsorily reported by both government and private healthcare institutions on the Reproductive and Child Health (RCH) platform.
The audit framework will examine multiple socio-medical factors, including age at marriage, educational status, awareness of reproductive health, access to contraception, and family vulnerabilities.
It will also assess linkages with schemes such as RKSK, Integrated Child Development Services (ICDS) and school health programmes to identify service delivery gaps.
At the Taluk level, a dedicated audit committee will be constituted under the chairmanship of the Taluk Health Officer. Its members will be drawn from primary health centres, field health staff, Anganwadi services and schools.
The government further directed that counselling services, including those through Sneha Centres, access to contraceptives, and targeted outreach to vulnerable adolescent groups—such as school dropouts, migrants and socially disadvantaged households—must be strengthened.
“The audit shall examine age at marriage, educational status, awareness on reproductive health, access to contraception and counselling services, socio-economic and family vulnerabilities,” the order said.
The order mandates strict confidentiality in handling all cases, in compliance with child protection laws, while also ensuring adherence to legal reporting requirements.
