Shivakumar appeals to supporters not to visit Delhi
Bengaluru, Sep 15: Arrested Congress leader DK Shivakumar has appealed to his supporters not to come to New Delhi to express solidarity with him, in the backdrop of a large number of them barging into a court there on Friday,when he was produced in connection with a money laundering case.
Conveying this in a press release, his brother D K Suresh said Shivakumar has asked his supporters not to come to Delhi on Tuesday when he is likely to be produced in the Special Court dealing with cases relating to ED.
A Delhi court on Friday had extended the custodial interrogation of Shivakumar by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) by four days till September 17 in the case.
"I request all party workers, supporters and well wishers of Shri D K Shivakumar to not to come to New Delhi on Tuesday (17.09.2019).
This request is on behalf of my brother D K Shivakumar too," Suresh said in a press release.
He said, "We request everyone to be in their respective places in the state and arrival of more people in Delhi will cause inconvenience to the administration and judiciary."
"As law abiding citizen, it's our responsibility to maintain smooth functioning of administrative and judicial systems.
Therefore we request and expect everyone's cooperation and support in this regard," he added.
Shivakumar, 57, sitting Congress MLA from Kanakapura assembly segment, is in the ED custody since his arrest on September 3.
On Friday, when Shivakumar was produced before the court on the expiry of his 9-day custodial interrogation by the agency, additional forces from Delhi police and CRPF were deployed inside and outside the courtroom to control the large number of supporters who had gathered.
But even the heavy deployment of security personnel could not stop the supporters from barging inside the courtroom.
Before being escorted out of the court on Friday, Shivakumar had reportedly asked his supporters present at the premises, to go back home.
The ED had in September last year registered the money laundering case against Shivakumar, Haumanthaiah, an employee at the Karnataka Bhavan in New Delhi, and others.
The ED had filed the PMLA case against him and others based on a charge sheet (prosecution complaint) filed by the Income Tax Department against them last year before a special court in Bengaluru on charges of alleged tax evasion and hawala transactions worth crores.
Thousands of members of the dominant Vokkaliga community, in a show of strength had recently held a protest rally here against the arrest of one of their senior leader Shivakumar and expressed solidarity with him.
Some key Vokkaliga leaders also charged the NDA government of indulging in "vendetta politics" and "targeting" the community.
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West Asia conflict: PM Modi takes stock of fuel, power, fertiliser supply
New Delhi (PTI): Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday reviewed with senior ministers the situation related to crude, gas and other petroleum products, and power and fertiliser sectors in view of the evolving West Asia situation.
Government sources said the focus of the meeting was on ensuring uninterrupted supply, stable logistics and efficient distribution across the country.
Union Ministers Rajnath Singh (Defence), Amit Shah (Home), Shivraj Singh Chouhan (Agriculture), S Jaishankar (External Affairs), Nirmala Sitharaman (Finance), J P Nadda (Health), Piyush Goyal (Commerce and Industry) and Ashwini Vaishnaw (Railways) were among those who attended the high-level meeting, sources said.
Union ministers Sarbananda Sonowal (Ports and Shipping), Manohar Lal Khattar (Power), Pralhad Joshi (Food and Consumer Affairs), Kinjarapu Rammohan Naidu (Civil Aviation) and Hardeep Singh Puri (Petroleum), NSA Ajit Doval and the prime minister's two principal secretaries, P K Mishra and Shaktikanta Das, were also present.
The situation related to crude, gas, petroleum products, and power and fertiliser sectors was reviewed in view of the evolving West Asia situation, the sources said.
The government is taking proactive steps to ensure an uninterrupted supply of all essential goods, including petroleum products, they said.
The meeting took stock of the current global situation in the wake of the West Asia conflict and the measures taken to protect consumer and industry interests, which is the key focus of the government, the sources said.
On March 12, PM Modi had said that the war in West Asia has triggered a worldwide energy crisis, posing a critical test of national character that requires dealing with circumstances through peace, patience and increased public awareness.
The prime minister emphasised that his government is working relentlessly to address disruptions that have emerged in international supply chains.
"Continuous efforts are also underway to determine how we can overcome the disruptions that have occurred in the supply chain," Modi had said.
The prime minister has spoken to many global leaders since the West Asia conflict started on February 28, when the US and Israel attacked Iran. Iran has retaliated by targeting Israel and several of its Gulf neighbours.
Iran controls the Strait of Hormuz, a key shipping route through which 20 per cent of the world's energy is transported. Since the conflict, very few ships have been allowed by Iran to cross it.
The blockade has resulted in severe disruptions in energy supply to many countries, including India.
Since the conflict, Modi has had telephonic conversations with leaders from Saudi Arabia, UAE, Qatar, Bahrain, Kuwait, Jordan, France, Malaysia, Israel and Iran.
