Man Arrested for murder of woman found dead on Dharwad outskirts
Dharwad: Dharwad Rural Police on Thursday arrested a man in connection with the murder of a young woman whose body was found on the outskirts of the city earlier this week.
The deceased has been identified as Zakia Mulla, who had completed her paramedical course and was waiting for employment opportunities. According to police, the accused is Sabir Mulla, the man she was supposed to marry.
Addressing the media, Dharwad Superintendent of Police Gunjan Arya said Zakia and Sabir had studied paramedical courses at the same college and were in a relationship for about three years. Their families had also held marriage talks, and a date had been fixed for their engagement ceremony next month.
However, differences reportedly arose between the two after Zakia questioned Sabir over his closeness with other women. This led to frequent arguments between them. Police said that following these disputes, Sabir allegedly took Zakia to a secluded area on January 20 and strangled her to death.
In a dramatic turn, the accused himself approached Dharwad Town Police Station after the murder, claiming that Zakia was missing and requesting police to help trace her. He also personally called the Superintendent of Police and informed her about the alleged disappearance.
Police said Sabir remained present at the spot when officers arrived and behaved as though he had no knowledge of the crime. However, his conduct raised suspicion. He was taken into custody and, during interrogation, confessed to the murder.
Zakia’s body was later found on the outskirts of Dharwad, confirming the crime.
The police said Sabir Mulla was arrested based on technical evidence collected during the investigation.
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Governor's move an insult to assembly, will protest his unconstitutional action: CM Siddaramaiah
Bengaluru: Chief Minister Siddaramaiah has criticised Governor Thawar Chand Gehlot for not skipping the Cabinet-approved address and reading his version of the address at the first joint session of the year, alleging that the move violated constitutional provisions and amounted to an insult to the elected legislature.
Karnataka Governor Thawar Chand Gehlot addressed the joint session of the state legislature on Thursday, but read only three lines of the government’s prepared speech before leaving the House. A day earlier, he had refused to address the session.
Speaking to reporters at Vidhana Soudha on Thursday on the Governor’s shortened address to both Houses of the legislature, he said, “As per the Constitution, it is the Governor’s duty to address the joint session held at the beginning of every year and when a new government is formed.”
He said that under Articles 176 and 163 of the Constitution, the Governor is required to read the address prepared by the Cabinet, a practice that has been followed since the Constitution came into force.
“By delivering a speech drafted by himself, the Governor had violated constitutional provisions and insulted the Assembly of elected representatives,” the Chief Minister alleged.
The Chief Minister highlighted that the Congress party and the state government would protest what he termed an unconstitutional act and that agitations had been planned across the state.
He alleged that the Governor had acted as the “puppet” of the Centre, accusing the Central government of using the Governor to deliver a different address to cover up its own failures, and said the Governor had not fulfilled his constitutional duty.
He further alleged that the Centre had repealed the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act and introduced a new scheme called ‘VB-G RAM G’, a move strongly opposed by the state government. He said the first step taken by the Centre was to remove Mahatma Gandhi’s name from the Act.
Recalling the Congress-led UPA government’s initiatives, Siddaramaiah said that during Manmohan Singh’s tenure as Prime Minister in 2005, landmark legislations such as the Right to Food, Right to Information, Right to Education and Right to Employment were implemented in line with constitutional principles.
He added that the employment guarantee programme, aimed at providing at least 100 days of work to the rural poor, continues to benefit Dalits, labourers, women and small farmers.
He claimed that under the Centre’s new Act, job security for beneficiaries had been weakened, particularly affecting women and Dalits, who together formed a large share of those employed under the earlier scheme. He said the previous law allowed small farmers to take up work on their own land and ensured employment throughout the year, which was the government’s responsibility.
Siddaramaiah alleged that under the new arrangement, poor workers would be required to work at locations decided by the Central government. He also pointed out that earlier, Gram Sabha’s and Panchayats had the authority to prepare employment action plans, but this decentralised decision-making process had been removed under the new Act.
