Sonia Gandhi pitches for collective leadership ahead of Karnataka Assembly bypolls
New Delhi, Oct 17: Ahead of the Assembly bypolls in Karnataka, Congress president Sonia Gandhi has asked the state unit to work under collective leadership and take dominant communities of the state into confidence, senior party leader S R Patil said on Thursday.
Patil, who met Gandhi at her residence here along with M C Venugopal, said he also discussed about the flood situation in details and about the forthcoming bypolls in 15 assembly constituencies in the state.
"The party chief advised us to work with collective leadership and take all major castes and communities into confidence," Patil told the media after the meeting.
She was referring to major communities, especially vokkaliga, lingayat and brahmin, he said.
Gandhi also advised the state leaders to shun personal ego and build a strong party in the state, he said.
She said the party should win in the coming by-elections in December, he added.
Patil thanked her for giving him the opportunity for the second time as the Leader of Opposition in Legislative Council of Karnataka.
The party had on October 9 appointed former Karnataka chief minister Siddaramaiah as the Leader of Opposition (LoP) in the Legislative Assembly in the state while Patil was appointed as the LoP in the Legislative Council.
Siddaramaiah had on Wednesday met Gandhi in the national capital.
Patil attacked the BJP government in the state for the "delay" in providing flood relief and took a dig at state BJP president Naveen Kumar Kateel.
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UP: Fake IAS officer marries woman, flees with Rs 15 lakh dowry
Gorakhpur (UP) (PTI): A newly married man fled with the Rs 15 lakh given to him as dowry by the bride's family, and it came to light later that he was an alleged serial scammer, police said on Sunday.
The accused, identified as Pritam Kumar Nishad from Etawah, allegedly posed as an IAS officer to deceive the woman into marrying him. He is currently absconding with his sister, and a case has been filed against him for cheating, dowry harassment, and forgery, officials said.
According to the police, the woman's family claimed that they spent nearly Rs 30 lakh for the wedding that was solemnised on March 11.
The match was arranged through a matrimonial group, where the accused introduced himself as an IAS officer, sharing purported interview clips, office visuals, and photographs with politicians to gain the family's trust.
Despite initially claiming he would marry without dowry, the accused allegedly demanded Rs 15 lakh shortly before the engagement. The bride's family paid Rs 10 lakh in cash during the engagement and the remaining Rs 5 lakh on the wedding day, the police said.
The fraud came to light on Saturday after the woman reached Etawah, and a wedding attendee informed the family that the accused was not a civil servant. When her relatives visited the address provided by him, they found her in a small rented room, while the accused and his sister had fled, the police added.
The woman has also alleged that the accused planned to take her to Goa and sell her, and accused him of inappropriate behaviour.
The police suspect that the accused may have been involved in multiple such marriages in the past. Based on a complaint lodged at the cantonment police station, an FIR was registered on Saturday evening.
Senior Superintendent of Police Dr Kaustubh said efforts are underway to arrest the accused.
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