Police action against Panchamasali Lingayats protest sparks uproar in Karnataka Assembly
Belagavi (Karnataka), Dec 12: The police lathi charge on Panchamasali Lingayat protesters near Suvarna Vidhana Soudha here earlier this week sparked uproar in the Karnataka Assembly on Thursday with state Home Minister G Parameshwara defending the police action and the opposition BJP demanding a government apology and judicial inquiry into the incident.
The Assembly witnessed multiple adjournments as BJP members insisted on a government statement. When Speaker U T Khader eventually allowed Minister Krishna Byre Gowda to respond, he blamed the previous BJP government for unresolved reservation issues, despite the Home Minister already addressing the police action.
The protests by the Panchamasali Lingayat community demanding reservation turned violent on Tuesday. Demonstrators, demanding inclusion in the 2A (15%) category of the OBC reservation matrix instead of the current 3B (5%), allegedly threw stones, prompting the police to resort to lathi charge.
Several protesters and police personnel were injured during the clashes. Among those detained were Basava Jayamruthunjaya Swami of Panchamasali Peetha, BJP MLAs Basangouda Patil Yatnal and Arvind Bellad, and Rajya Sabha MP Iranna Kadadi.
After an obituary reference to two former legislators, BJP leader R Ashoka demanded a statement from CM Siddaramaiah or the Home Minister.
Despite the Speaker's assurance to address the matter after the Question Hour, BJP protests forced an initial adjournment.
When the House reconvened, Home Minister Parameshwara defended the police action, citing maintenance of law and order.
Noting that over 10,000 people had gathered at the protest site, he said Siddaramaiah had sent a ministerial delegation to receive their memorandum. However, protesters insisted that the CM visit the site, which the minister deemed unreasonable.
Parameshwara accused protesters of marching towards Suvarna Vidhana Soudha despite restrictions, removing barricades, and pelting stones at the police, injuring 24 personnel.
He justified the lathi charge as a necessary measure to maintain law and order and said, "This government will not allow anyone to take the law into their hands, irrespective of their religion or community."
Responding to BJP criticisms, Parameshwara asked, "Should we welcome 10,000 protesters with kisses instead of trying to disperse them to maintain order?"
He also sought to know how former Home Ministers R Ashoka and Araga Jnanendra would have handled the situation.
Condemning the lathi charge, Leader of Opposition, Ashoka said during the previous BJP government, a larger protest by the Panchamasali Lingayat community in Bengaluru was managed peacefully.
He demanded a government apology, action against police officers responsible for the lathi charge, withdrawal of cases against protesters, and a judicial inquiry.
Congress MLA Vijayanand Kashappanavar, himself a Panchamasali Lingayat leader, alleged that the protest was "politically motivated" and orchestrated by BJP members.
He further accused RSS elements of instigating the violence, which led to a heated exchange between BJP and Congress legislators.
The Speaker’s decision to allow Minister Krishna Byre Gowda to speak instead of BJP MLAs added to the chaos, forcing an adjournment for lunch.
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Rupee hits fresh all-time low, settles 5 paise lower at 83.88 against dollar
Mumbai, Dec 12: The rupee depreciated by 5 paise to settle at an all-time low of 84.88 against the US dollar on Thursday, dragged down by negative domestic equity markets, outflow of foreign funds and rise in crude oil prices.
Forex traders said the rupee remains in a weakening mode due to dollar demand from importers and foreign banks.
At the interbank foreign exchange, the rupee opened at 84.85 and touched the lowest-ever level of 84.89 against the greenback during intra-day trade. The unit finally ended the session 5 paise down at a fresh all-time low closing level of 84.88 against the dollar.
On Wednesday, the rupee settled with a gain of 2 paise at 84.83 against the US dollar.
Rupee's previous record low closing level was recorded on December 9, when it settled 20 paise lower at 84.86 against the dollar.
On the domestic macroeconomic front, retail inflation declined in November to 5.48 per cent and came within the Reserve Bank's comfort zone mainly due to easing food prices, creating headroom for a rate cut at the central bank's rate-setting panel meeting under new Governor Sanjay Malhotra in February.
India's industrial production (IIP) growth slowed to 3.5 per cent year-on-year in October 2024, mainly due to poor performance of mining, power and manufacturing, as per official data released on Thursday.
Anuj Choudhary, Research Analyst at Mirae Asset Sharekhan, said the rupee touched a fresh all-time low on strong US dollar and weak domestic markets.
He further said the US dollar gained on rising inflation in the US. However, it was in line with estimates.
"Surge in global crude oil prices may further pressurise the rupee. However, any intervention by the RBI may support the rupee at lower levels. Traders may take cues from PPI (producer price index) and weekly unemployment claims data from the US. USD-INR spot price is expected to trade in a range of 84.65 to 85.10," he said.
Meanwhile, the dollar index, which gauges the greenback's strength against a basket of six currencies, was trading higher by 0.09 per cent at 106.81.
Brent crude, the global oil benchmark, fell 0.63 per cent to USD 73.06 per barrel in futures trade.
Jateen Trivedi, VP Research Analyst - Commodity and Currency, LKP Securities, said the rupee continued to hover in a weak range as the US inflation data came in line with expectations, signaling potential continuity in the Federal Reserve's rate-cut trajectory.
"... The dollar held its ground near the key 106 level, keeping pressure on the rupee. Additionally, FII selling resumed after a brief phase of buying, further contributing to rupee weakness," he added.
On the domestic equity market front, the 30-share benchmark index Sensex closed lower by 236.18 points or 0.29 per cent at 81,289.96 points. The Nifty was down 93.10 points, or 0.38 per cent, to 24,548.70 points.
Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) were net sellers in the capital markets on Thursday, as they offloaded shares worth Rs 3,560.01 crore, according to exchange data.
