Karnataka government issues order on use of loudspeakers at religious places
Bengaluru: Karnataka Government on Tuesday issued fresh orders on the installation and usage of loudspeakers at religious places across the state amidst the controversy that has gripped the state over the last few weeks.
The order was issued after CM Bommai held a meeting with top officials of the police department, Law Department, and Home Department regarding the matter.
The order stated that Karnataka Government Order dated 12.8.2002 will be strictly implemented henceforth and all the users of loudspeakers or public address systems shall obtain written permission from the Designated Authority within 15 days.
“Those who don’t obtain should voluntarily remove or should be removed by the Designated Authority.” the order added.
“A committee shall be formed at different levels to decide the application for the loudspeaker, public address system. The following committees shall decide the permission to be given.
“In all Police Commissionerate areas – Assistant Commissioner of Police, Jurisdictional Executive Engineer of the City Corporation, and a representative of Pollution Control Board.
“In all other areas, DySP, the jurisdictional Tehsildar, and a representative of Pollution Control Board.” the order said.
All the premises using loudspeakers and public address system should follow the regulations of the order and obtain written permission from the authorities and the order should be implemented with immediate effect, it stated.
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Congress using hijab issue to pacify minority anger, alleges Karnataka LoP R Ashoka
Bengaluru: Leader of Opposition in the Assembly R. Ashoka has accused the Congress government of using the hijab issue to placate what he described as discontent among minority voters after the Davanagere by-election.
In a post on X on Wednesday, Ashoka alleged that the state government, instead of addressing issues such as price rise, corruption, farmers’ distress and law and order, was attempting to retain its minority vote base by reviving the hijab issue.
Referring to the 2022 dress code introduced by the BJP government, which prohibited hijab in schools and colleges, Ashoka said the Karnataka High Court had upheld the policy and emphasised the importance of discipline in educational institutions.
He questioned the Congress government’s move to revisit the issue and asked whether setting aside the court-backed policy to benefit one community could be described as secularism.
Ashoka further alleged that while the government was willing to permit hijab, it continued to prohibit saffron shawls.
He accused the government of dividing students on religious lines rather than treating schools and colleges as spaces of equality.
Drawing a comparison with Mamata Banerjee’s government in West Bengal, Ashoka claimed that excessive appeasement politics had harmed the state and warned that the Congress in Karnataka could face a similar political response.
He said voters in Karnataka would teach the Congress a lesson for what he termed “vote-bank politics” and for compromising constitutional and judicial principles.
