Karnataka govt. to organise state-wide mass awareness programme on Constitution
Bengaluru: Karnataka government on Thursday said it is organising a statewide ” Constitution Awareness Jatha” (mass awareness) from January 26 to February 23, to mark the 75th anniversary of the adoption of the Indian Constitution.
A Constitution Workshop and Expo will also be organised on February 24 and 25 morning, and a mega Constitution Awareness Convention on February 25 evening, it said.
The Social welfare department is organising the events in collaboration with various other departments, state PSUs and NGOs and already Rs 18 crore has been approved for the purpose and each district has been released Rs 25 lakh, the government said in a release. ”As we enter the 75th year of adoption of the Constitution, it is a good milestone to look at how the Constitution has performed and what are the challenges that lie ahead. Also, the structure of the Indian Constitution is being debated and its embedded values appear to be under threat due to misconceptions or vested interests. Therefore, saving and preserving the Indian Constitution which was laboriously constructed is the biggest challenge of the present times,” it said. Therefore, the Government has taken a decision to create mass awareness to reaffirm the power of the Indian constitution through this “constitution and Unity of India” programme, it added.
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The Constitution Awareness Jatha would be organised in all the 31 districts. The jatha will have a LED mobile van that will play the multimedia on the essence of Constitution, how it has been prepared and adopted.
The LED van will be followed by 4-5 more tableaus which depict contents related to the Constitution and other connected things specific to the districts, it said, adding, there will be wide participation from the government, private and civil society.
There could be cycle rallies, it further said, adding that the district administrations have been given the freedom to design and conduct it.
The jatha will travel through the districts and reach every gram panchayat, thus involving the elected members at the grass roots. It would take 27 days to cover the district. In bigger districts more than one tableaus are planned by the district administration.
The MLA/MLC and MPs have been requested to participate in the Jatha in their respective jurisdictions. During the Jatha, the officials will also verify those citizens who are not covered in the state government’s guarantee programmes and who could be otherwise eligible, it said.
The Jatha will have local halts, where cultural troupes will perform and there will be participation from the college students, workers, farmers and Self Help Groups (SHGs). There will also be on the spot competitions on the Constitutions. The jatha will be flagged off by the District Incharge Ministers on January 26, and it would be just after the hoisting of the national flag, the release said, adding, the details of the jatha and the route maps will be available in the website created especially for this purpose. The second part of the programme is a Workshop and Expo, intellectual discourse and discussion by experts on many facets of the Constitution. It will be done at Palace grounds in Bengaluru on February 24 and 25. Concurrently there will be an expo on Constitutional values and science and Technology by KREIS (Karnataka Residential Educational Institutions Society) and other organisations. This intellectual discourse will be on topics like the concept of equality, liberty, secularism and social justice. The participants would be from the state, the country and few from outside India too. At the end of the round table, a declaration will be drafted based on the discussions. This is jointly organised and curated by the National Law School of India University (NLSIU), Institute of Social and Economic Change (ISEC), and Karnataka Law University. These institutions would be collaborating with other institutions and NGOs in organising the round table. The third part is a Mega convention on Constitution awareness on February 25 at the Palace grounds where the public from all walks of life will gather. The expected gathering would be around a lakh and from all over the state, the government said, adding, this will be the valediction programme of the entire event and will be attended by many intellectuals and public representatives from across the country.
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Islamabad locked down ahead of planned protest by Imran Khan's party in Pakistan
Islamabad (PTI): Amid stringent measures put in place by the Pakistan government to thwart the protest march on Sunday, jailed former prime minister Imran Khan's party is preparing to proceed with its highly anticipated march towards Islamabad.
The Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party, led by former Prime Minister Imran Khan, has called on the public to join the march to "break the shackles of slavery."
The federal government has taken several steps to block the protest, including deploying heavy security forces, sealing key roads, and setting up barriers around the capital.
The Interior Ministry has emphasised that, in accordance with court orders, no protests or sit-ins will be allowed in Islamabad, and any attempts to disrupt public order will be met with legal action.
Khan, in a statement, urged the masses to unite for the protest, calling it a movement for freedom and justice.
The PTI leaders earlier on Sunday held a high-level meeting at the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister’s House to finalise the strategy for the planned protest, Geo News reported.
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Ali Amin Gandapur has said that he will arrive in Swabi at 3pm to oversee the preparations for the planned protest and lead the party's march to Islamabad, the report added.
The chief minister also directed the party's activists intending to attend the march to reach Swabi by 3pm.
Ignoring calls by the government to postpone the protest – the second one in as many months – Khan's Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) declared to go ahead with its planned march to Islamabad coinciding with the arrival of a large Belarusian delegation even as the authorities issued a warning of a potential threat during the protest.
The PTI gave a call last week for a long march to Islamabad to press for three demands: the release of the incarcerated party founder and other leaders, against the alleged “stolen mandate” during February 8 elections and restoration of the judiciary by revoking the recent 26th amendment to the Constitution that granted legislators more power in appointing top judges.
Meanwhile, Khan’s wife, Bushra Bibi, has opted not to participate in the protest but will oversee the convoys from the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister's House.
In preparation for the protest, Islamabad’s federal government has fortified security measures, sealing off several key roads and blocking routes leading to the Red Zone, where critical government buildings are located.
Containers have been placed across the city, including along the Srinagar Highway, GT Road, and the Expressway, limiting access to strategic areas like D-Chowk, Islamabad Airport, and the A-11 point at New Margalla Road.
Rangers, along with police and Frontier Constabulary (FC), have been deployed to monitor the area. The federal government has also warned against any unlawful protests, stating that no one will be permitted to hold a demonstration in violation of judicial orders, with legal action promised against any violators.
Also, Pakistan Railways has suspended all train services between Lahore, Rawalpindi, and Peshawar in light of the ongoing PTI protest, the Express Tribune reported.
According to railway authorities, services between Peshawar and Rawalpindi, Lahore and Rawalpindi, as well as between Multan and Faisalabad to Rawalpindi, have been halted immediately.
Additionally, all 25 train bookings for Sunday, November 24, have been cancelled, and passengers will receive immediate refunds for their tickets.
The suspension of services and the cancellation of bookings have impacted daily commuters and travellers, as Pakistan Railways responds to the security situation surrounding the ongoing protests.
Section 144 – which prohibits gatherings of individuals – has been in effect in Islamabad since November 18. On the other hand, the Punjab government too has enforced Section 144 across the province from November 23 to November 25, banning protests, public gatherings, rallies, and sit-ins.
Despite the heightened security and restrictions, the PTI has remained persistent about proceeding with its protest march and subsequent sit-in to press for its demands.
Additionally, internet and mobile services have been partially suspended in Islamabad, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, and Punjab as a precaution.
Users in Islamabad are facing partial disruptions in internet services at various locations, while it remains unhindered in neighbouring Rawalpindi.
Meanwhile, mobile services also remain fully operational in Rawalpindi.
Public transport, including metro bus services in Islamabad and Rawalpindi, has been halted, and all bus terminals at Faizabad, linking the twin cities, have been barricaded.
Khan, 72, has been implicated in dozens of cases since his government was dismissed through a no-confidence motion in 2022. He has been in Adiala Jail at Rawalpindi since last year facing, according to his party, over 200 cases; got bail in some of them, convicted in some others, and hearings going on for some more.
Khan's party won the largest number of seats in the February general elections despite contesting as independents as the party was denied an election symbol and the PTI chief has already alleged that the ruling Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) and its coalition partners, including Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) had “stolen the mandate” to grab power at the federal level.
Relations between the PTI and the PML-N-led coalition government -already tense since Khan’s ouster in 2022 - have strained even more in recent times.
