State women's commission chairperson urges CM to form committee on violence against female artistes
Sandalwood
Bengaluru: Dr. Nagalakshmi Chaudhary, Chairperson of the Karnataka State Women's Commission, has sent a letter to Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and Chief Secretary Shalini Rajneesh, urging the formation of a committee headed by retired justices to address the issue of violence against women in the Kannada film industry.
In her letter, Dr. Chaudhary highlighted the recent report by the Retired Justice Hema Committee on the atrocities faced by female artists in the Kerala film industry, including incidents of sexual assault, harassment, intimidation, and mental torture. The report has sparked widespread concern and discussion.
Dr. Chaudhary also informed that the State Women's Commission has scheduled a meeting on September 13 with female artists from the Karnataka film industry to discuss the challenges they face during and after film production, including the facilities and security measures provided to them.
Over 150 writers, female artists, and activists have already called on the government to establish a committee to investigate and address these issues in Sandalwood. Dr. Chaudhary has requested that the government expedite the formation of this committee, to be led by retired justices, to tackle the growing concerns within the industry.
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Sanjay Raut demands re-election, alleges irregularities in EVMs during Maharashtra polls
Mumbai, Nov 25: Shiv Sena (UBT) MP Sanjay Raut on Monday demanded a re-election in Maharashtra using ballot papers, claiming there were irregularities with the electronic voting machines (EVMs).
Talking to reporters, Raut alleged several complaints about EVMs malfunctioning and questioned the integrity of the recently held elections.
The BJP-led Mahayuti won 230 out of 288 seats in the assembly elections, while the opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi managed 46 seats, with Shiv Sena (UBT) winning just 20 out of 95 seats it contested.
"We have received nearly 450 complaints regarding EVMs. Despite raising objections repeatedly, no action has been taken on these issues. How can we say these elections were conducted fairly? Hence, I demand that the results be set aside and elections be held again using ballot papers," Raut said.
Citing some instances, he said a candidate in Nashik reportedly received only four votes despite having 65 votes from his family, while in Dombivli, discrepancies were found in EVM tallies, and election officials refused to acknowledge the objections.
The Sena (UBT) leader also questioned the credibility of the landslide victories of some candidates, saying, "What revolutionary work have they done to receive more than 1.5 lakh votes? Even leaders who recently switched parties have become MLAs. This raises suspicions. For the first time, a senior leader like Sharad Pawar has expressed doubts about EVMs, which cannot be ignored."
Asked about the MVA's poor performance in the elections, Raut rejected the idea of blaming a single individual.
"We fought as a united MVA. Even a leader like Sharad Pawar, who commands immense respect in Maharashtra, faced defeat. This shows that we need to analyse the reasons behind the failure. One of the reasons is EVM irregularities and the misuse of the system, unconstitutional practices, and even judicial decisions left unresolved by Justice Chandrachud," he said.
Raut stressed that though internal differences might have existed within the MVA, the failure was collective.
He also accused the Mahayuti of conducting the elections in an unfair manner.
"I cannot call the elections fair given the numerous reports of discrepancies in EVMs, mismatched numbers, and vote irregularities across the state," Raut said.
