Proposal to name metro station after St Mary elicit objections from BJP, some sections
Bengaluru (PTI): Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah's positive response to a proposal to name the upcoming metro station near Shivajinagar here, after St Mary, has elicited objections from some sections, including opposition BJP, which has termed the move as appeasement.
Participating in the inauguration of the annual feast at St Mary's Basilica on September 8, Siddaramaiah said his government would recommend to the Centre on the request made at the function.
The metro station is part of an under construction on the Pink Line in the city.
"A request has been made to name the metro station (after St Mary). I have spoken to Rizwar (Congress MLA Rizwan Arshad), who is from the constituency. If told as to which station should be named, we will send a recommendation to the central government," Siddaramaiah had said.
Accusing the Congress government of "appeasement politics", Leader of Opposition in Legislative Council Chalavadi Narayanaswamy said, the naming of the metro station should not be on religious basis and his party is going to oppose it.
"Will they remove the name Shivajinagar? They should not go beyond the limits for pleasing someone. Appeasement has become the first choice of the Congress party. Because of appeasement, the party has gone to dogs now, still they are doing appeasement politics. It will not work. We will not allow it," the BJP leader told reporters.
Reacting to objections, Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar said, "We have just discussed it. There is a request (to name after St Mary). There is nothing wrong in the request. We will take a call on that."
There were also demands by some to name the station after late Kannada actor Shankar Nag, who is credited for his vision regarding having a rapid transit system for Bengaluru in the 1980s.
Meanwhile, Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis also slammed the Congress government's proposal.
"I condemn the Karnataka government's move to rename Shivajinagar metro station in Bengaluru after St Mary. Its an insult to Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj. The Congress has continued its tradition of insulting the Maratha warrior king since the time of Nehru who made comments against Shivaji Maharaj in his book Discovery of India," he told reporters in Mumbai on Thursday.
Fadnavis said he was praying that the Almighty gives Siddaramaiah sense to not go ahead with such a decision that is based on religion and was against the Maratha warrior king.
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Karnataka govt to strictly implement the paid menstrual leave policy, after HC directive
Bengaluru (PTI): Karnataka Labour Minister Santosh Lad has said that the government will strictly implement the paid menstrual leave policy across all sectors at the earliest, following the High Court directive.
The High Court of Karnataka had recently directed the state government to "strictly and faithfully" implement the menstrual leave policy, pending formal enactment of the proposed legislation.
"I welcome the directive issued by the Karnataka High Court in support of our state government's ambitious menstrual leave policy," Lad said.
The state government has taken firm steps to implement the menstrual leave policy comprehensively, and as a model to the country, he said in a post on 'X' on Thursday.
"In line with the court's opinion that menstrual leave is a matter of women's dignity, justice, and humane recognition of their lived realities, we will strictly implement the paid menstrual leave policy--equivalent to one day per month, or 12 days per year--across all sectors at the earliest," he added.
The court had said that in the interregnum, it shall be incumbent upon the state to ensure effective operationalisation of the policy through the issuance of suitable guidelines, circulars, and administrative instructions, as may be necessary to secure its uniform, consistent, and rigorous implementation across all sectors.
The court issued the directive while hearing on a petition filed by 41-year-old Chandravva Hanumant Gokavi, who works in a hotel in Mudalgi of Gokak taluk in Belagavi district, before the Dharwad bench, seeking implementation of the November 20, 2025, order of the government providing one-day menstrual leave for all working women.
