Row over Waqf properties: BJP's protest is nothing but politics, says CM Siddaramaiah
Hubballi (PTI): Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Monday termed the BJP's state-wide protest against the Congress government on the Waqf issue as nothing but politics.
Upping the ante following allegations by a section of farmers in certain parts of Karnataka that their lands were marked as Waqf properties, BJP on Monday held a state-wide protest, accusing the Congress government of indulging in "land jihad".
"BJP never fights on issues, they always make false allegations, they protest for the sake of politics. Where is the issue? Basavaraj Bommai (BJP MP and former CM) had earlier said every inch of Waqf property that has been encroached has to be recovered, now he is speaking against it for political reasons," Siddarmaiah said.
Speaking to reporters here, he alleged that for the sake of politics, the BJP is "taking this issue forward and fighting," but people have understood that the Waqf property issue is not something that is new, and notices were served during all previous governments including the BJP.
"I have said very clearly after holding a meeting that notices issued to farmers should be immediately revoked, and any unauthorised amendments in land records without due notice must also be nullified. And farmers should not be evicted for any reasons, whether they are Muslims or Hindus or Christians anyone else," he added.
The Chief Minister on Saturday directed officials that all notices issued to farmers be immediately revoked, and said any unauthorised amendments in land records without due notice must also be nullified.
There were allegations by a section of farmers from Vijayapura district that their lands were marked as Waqf properties, and similar charges have surfaced from a few other places.
The CM termed the BJP'S move to stage protest "as nothing but politics" as the government had already directed officials to immediately retract all notices sent to farmers and assured that none of them will be evicted.
Stating that the decision to withdraw notices were made soon after he got to know about it and not under any pressure from the BJP, Siddaramaiah said: "they too had issued notices in 216 cases when (B S) Yediyurappa, (D V) Sandanada Gowda, Jagadish Shettar (of BJP), and JD(S) leader H D Kumaraswamy were CM, why?"
Responding to a question on former Mysuru MP Prathap Simha's reported statement against him that he has become a Muslim, while targeting him on the Waqf issue, Siddaramaiah said: "...what else can you expect from a communal person? He has no respect for the constitution and democracy, and indulging in communal things is his craft, dividing society in the name of religion and caste is his politics..."
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Traffic fraud: Fake 'no-entry' sticker racket busted in Delhi, mastermind among 3 held
New Delhi (PTI): Police here have busted a crime syndicate involved in traffic fraud and extortion, arresting three people including the alleged mastermind who sold fake stickers to help commercial vehicles bypass no-entry restrictions, an official said on Saturday.
The police said they dismantled a third organised syndicate linked to traffic-related frauds, with the arrest of Rinku Rana alias Bhushan, his associate Sonu Sharma and Mukesh Kumar alias Pakodi, who was also connected to another extortion syndicate.
According to the police, Rinku Rana was running a well-organised network that facilitated the movement of commercial goods vehicles during restricted hours by selling fake 'marka' or stickers for Rs 2,000 to Rs 5,000 per vehicle every month. The stickers were falsely projected as authorisation to evade traffic challans.
During raids, the police recovered Rs 31 lakh in cash, property documents worth several crores of rupees, over 500 fake stickers and six mobile phones allegedly used to operate the syndicate.
The crackdown followed a complaint filed by a traffic police officer in April this year after a commercial vehicle tried to evade checking by producing a fake sticker claiming exemption from enforcement action.
Investigation revealed that social media groups were being used to coordinate the illegal movement of vehicles and alert drivers about traffic police checkpoints, police said.
"A parallel system was being run to cheat drivers and vehicle owners while undermining traffic enforcement. On the basis of evidence, provisions related to organised crime under the BNS were invoked," a senior police officer said.
Sonu Sharma, the police said, managed social media groups through which stickers were sold and real-time alerts were circulated regarding traffic police movement. He also acted as a link between Rana and drivers operating in the field.
In a related development, Mukesh Kumar alias Pakodi, an associate of Rajkumar alias Raju Meena, who was earlier arrested under the Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act (MCOCA), was also apprehended.
Mukesh allegedly helped extort money from transporters and was involved in blackmailing traffic police personnel by recording enforcement actions, the police said.
Investigators alleged the syndicate led by Rajkumar deployed drivers to deliberately violate traffic rules and secretly record police officials during challans, later using manipulated videos to extort money under threat of false allegations.
The police said that in total, eight accused belonging to three different organised crime syndicates linked to traffic frauds and extortion have been arrested so far.
Further investigation is underway to trace the remaining members, conduct financial probes, and analyse digital evidence recovered during the raids, officials added.
