Maharashtra Ministers' visit to Belagavi next week not good: K'taka CM Bommai
Belagavi, Dec 2: Karnataka Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai said it was not good for the two Maharashtra Ministers to visit Belagavi.
The two Ministers -- Chandrakant Patil and Shambhuraj Desai -- have been appointed to tackle the border issue with their legal team and have planned a visit to Belagavi, which is at the centre of a controversy.
It is reported that the two are likely to meet leaders of the Maharashtra Ekikaran Samiti (MES), which has been spearheading the movement to merge Belagavi with Maharashtra.
Their visit is taking place when the Maharashtra government's petition regarding Belagavi was heard recently in the Supreme Court.
"Already our Chief Secretary has written to the Chief Secretary of Maharashtra through fax. In the given situation it is not good for them to visit here and hence, they should not come here. We have already communicated to them. The Karnataka government will continue to take steps which were taken in the past," Bommai told reporters in Belagavi.
To a question, Bommai said the drinking water project in Jat Taluk in Maharashtra should take place.
"The Kannada-speaking people in Jat Taluk of Maharashtra have been suffering for drinking water. In such a situation, the Maharashtra government has said that it has planned drinking water project. Let that project happen and people in that region get water," Bommai said.
The Chief Minister had said in the past that the Panchayats of Jat Taluk had passed a resolution requesting merger of their Taluk with Karnataka in the wake of severe water crisis. As Maharashtra raked up the Belagavi issue, Bommai said it would revisit the resolution passed by Jat Taluk Panchayats.
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Young woman from MP who shot to fame during Kumbh found to be minor, case registered against husband
Khargone (MP) (PTI): The National Commission for Scheduled Tribes on Friday confirmed that a young woman from Madhya Pradesh who became famous due to her viral videos during the 2025 Maha Kumbh has been found to be a minor after an inquiry.
Citing the findings of an inquiry panel set up by the commission, local BJP leaders alleged that her interfaith marriage in Kerala last month was a case of "love Jihad", and sought legal action.
While the panel had submitted its report in March, ST commission chairman Antar Singh Arya confirmed its findings to the PTI on Friday.
A case for alleged kidnapping and offences under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act has already been registered against her husband, a Muslim man, at Maheshwar on the basis of the inquiry findings, police said.
The girl gained national fame after her videos while selling garlands and rudraksha at the Maha Kumbh went viral on social media and also earned her a role in a film.
The National Commission for Scheduled Tribes set up an inquiry panel after receiving a complaint on March 17 from Pratham Dubey, a resident of Uttar Pradesh, that she was a minor and was being exploited.
Maheshwar BJP MLA Rajkumar Mev and BJP mandal president Vikram Patel, armed with documents, told reporters on Friday that her marriage in Kerala was a case of "love Jihad" and she should be brought back home.
'Love jihad' is a term used by right-wing groups to allege a conspiracy by Muslim men to lure Hindu women into marriage to convert them to Islam.
Police said an investigation is underway, and further action would be taken accordingly.
The girl, who belongs to the nomadic Pardhi community, got married at a temple in Kerala in March. The interfaith marriage drew angry reactions from rightwing Hindu groups.
Her family members and film director Sanoj Mishra -- who had offered her a film role after she became famous -- too alleged that it was 'love Jihad'.
As per the inquiry conducted by the ST commission, records at the Maheshwar government hospital showed the woman's date of birth as December 30, 2009 which meant she was 16 years and two months old at the time of marriage, said Dubey, the complainant.
On a complaint filed by her father, police registered a case against the girl's husband at Maheshwar police station on March 25 for alleged kidnapping and under the POCSO Act and the SC/ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act.
Police sources said that a separate case was also registered on March 24 under section 137(2) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (taking a minor from lawful custody of guardian without their consent) based on the the commission's findings.
