Siddaramaiah rubbishes reports that he instigated rebels to bring down coalition govt
Bengaluru, Jul 25: Senior Congress leader and former Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Thursday rubbished reports he had instigated the rebels to resign and destabilise the coalition government headed by H D Kumaraswamy.
Cautioning media houses against peddling "false news", Siddaramaiah said he would give them a befitting reply if they repeat the allegation in front of him.
In a series of tweets, the Congress strongman in Karnataka said the rebels were trying to "shift the blame on me but the facts would surface once the dust settles."
"Media houses are reporting that few rebel MLAs have claimed that I instigated them to resign and destabilise our government. This is nothing but a false allegation with malafide intention. I will give them a befitting reply if they repeat the same in front of me," Siddaramaiah said.
He said, "The rebel MLAs are trying to shift the blame on me after widespread public backlash against them for betraying and back-stabbing both the electorate and the party.
Everything will be clear when the dust settles but by then they would have bitten the dust."
Recalling his days as chief minister, Siddaramaiah said there were many baseless allegations against him - "a venom he digested to serve people with good intent."
"Time will answer everything! Satyameva Jayathe!!" Siddaramaiah said.
As the coordination committee chairman of the coalition government, Siddaramaiah was charged with not letting the JDS and the Congress state presidents to be part of the penal led by him.
The JDS state president-turned-rebel MLA A H Vishwanath had been targeting Siddaramaiah for not bringing out the common minimum programme as agreed upon by the two parties at the time of forming the coalition government.
Vishwanath had also charged him with betraying JDS supremo H D Deve Gowda by making him trust the Congress during the Lok Sabha election and then working for his defeat from the Tumkur constituency at the fag end of his political career at the age of 87.
Media houses are reporting that few rebel MLAs have claimed that I instigated them to resign & destabilize our govt. This is nothing but a false allegation with malafide intension.
— Siddaramaiah (@siddaramaiah) July 25, 2019
I will give them a befitting reply if they repeat the same in front of me.
1/3@INCKarnataka
Rebel MLAs are trying to shift the blame on me after wide spread public backlash against them for betraying & back-stabbing both the electorate & the party.
— Siddaramaiah (@siddaramaiah) July 25, 2019
Everything will be clear when the dust settles but by then they would have bitten the dust.
2/3@INCKarnataka
There were numerous baseless allegations on me even when I was @CMofKarnataka. This is not the first & will not be the last but I have digested this venom to serve people with good intent.
— Siddaramaiah (@siddaramaiah) July 25, 2019
Time will answer everything!!
Satyameva Jayathe!!
3/3@INCKarnataka
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Kerala court sentences man to life imprisonment for doc's murder in hospital
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Kollam (PTI): A teacher convicted in the sensational murder of Dr Vandana Das inside a hospital here was sentenced to life term on Saturday, and the prosecution said it will move an appeal seeking death penalty for the accused. The victim's family also batted for "maximum punishment".
Dr Das was brutally killed inside a taluk hospital in May 2023 by G Sandeep.
Kollam Additional District and Sessions judge P N Vinod sentenced Sandeep to a total of 30 years for various offences under the then Indian Penal Code (IPC) and said that after he serves that period, his life imprisonment for Das' murder will commence.
The court also imposed a fine of Rs 2.35 lakh on the convict.
Though the prosecution had sought death penalty for the accused during the arguments on sentence, the court was of the view that the case does not fall under the rarest-of-rare category to warrant the maximum punishment.
It was also of the view that there was a chance of the convict getting reformed as he told the court that the rest of his life would be one of repentance, the order on sentence said.
"At the same time, I agree with the stand of the prosecution to the effect that the sentence should commensurate with the gravity of the crime and the sentence should not only be reformative, but should also have a deterrent effect."
"In my view, the said objective can be achieved by directing that the term sentences that will be imposed will run consecutively and life sentence that has to be imposed will commence only after the expiration of terms sentences," the judge said.
After the verdict, special public prosecutor (SPP) Prathap G Padickal told reporters outside the court that he will recommend to the prosecution to file an appeal seeking enhancement of the life imprisonment to death penalty.
The victim's father said that the verdict has come as a relief for the family, but that he cannot authoritatively say whether his late daughter has got justice. He indicated his dissatisfaction with the punishment, saying that steps will be taken to seek its enhancement after discussions with the public prosecutor.
Dr Das' mother said that the family can only wish for the maximum punishment and it was up to the court to decide what sentence should be given. She said that the family will go in appeal, but declined to comment on whether her daughter got justice.
She tearfully said that she wants the convict to suffer the same pain that her daughter underwent "as he stabbed her 27 times".
The court on March 17 had convicted Sandeep for various offences under the IPC, including murder, destruction of evidence and wrongful restraint.
It had also held him guilty under the provisions of the Kerala Healthcare Service Persons and Healthcare Service Institutions (Prevention of violence and damage to property) Act 2012.
Sandeep was brought to the taluk hospital by the police for medical treatment during the small hours of May 10, 2023 and he went on a sudden attacking spree using a pair of surgical scissors kept in the room where his leg injury was being dressed.
A school teacher by profession, he had initially attacked the police officers and another person who had accompanied him to the hospital and then turned on the young Dr Das, who could not escape to safety.
She was stabbed several times and later succumbed to her injuries in a private hospital in Thiruvananthapuram where she was rushed following the attack.
Dr Das was a native of the Kaduthuruthy area of Kottayam district and the only child of her parents.
She was a house surgeon at Azeezia Medical College Hospital and was working at the Kottarakkara taluk hospital as part of her training.
Sandeep had called the emergency number 112, claiming that his life was in danger. When local police located him, he was standing close by his home, surrounded by local residents and his relatives, and had a wound on his leg following an alleged quarrel.
He was then taken to the hospital for dressing the wound.
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