Mandya Lok Sabha seat: JDS postpones Nikhil's nomination date
Bengaluru, Mar 21: The Janata Dal (Secular) on Thursday postponed the filing of nomination by Nikhil Gowda from Mandya Lok Sabha seat to next Monday.
Nikhil Gowda is the son of Karnataka Chief Minister H D Kumaraswamy and grandson of JDS supremo and former prime minister H D Deve Gowda, who is launching the third generation of his clan from party citadel Mandya.
"We did plan the filing of nomination by Nikhil today (Thursday), but after much deliberation, we postponed it to March 25," JDS MLC T A Sharavana said.
Sharavana said the reason behind postponing the nomination date was that March 25 falls on Monday, which happens to be the day of Lord Shiva, the family deity of the Gowda family.
"We have planned the event in a grand manner, which people of Mandya had never seen before," the JDS leader added.
JDS insiders told PTI that the mighty show of strength by multilingual film actress Sumalatha while filing her nomination papers on Wednesday made the party leadership postpone Nikhil Gowda's nomination and plan a grand event.
Sumalatha, widow of popular Kannada film actor and former Congress MP from Mandya, Ambareesh, has decided to contest the election as an Independent after being denied a ticket. She accused the Congress of not recognising the work done by Ambareesh for the party.
Deve Gowda was supposed to visit Mandya on Thursday, but it was cancelled at the last minute, said party spokesperson Ramesh Babu, without citing any reason.
Meanwhile, the Bharatiya Janata Party's probable candidate for Mandya -- Dr Siddaramaiah, who had lost the Mandya Lok Sabha bypoll last November -- has started campaigning, though the saffron party has not released the list of candidates.
The BJP said it would put up its candidate as it is apprehensive that Sumalatha might withdraw her nomination at the last minute.
In the assembly election last May, the JDS had won from all the eight assembly segments under Mandya, besides winning the Mandya by-election.
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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.
