Two men arrested in Karnataka for 'abusive' video against Deve Gowda family: Police
Bengaluru: Two men have been arrested and remanded to judicial custody in Karnataka for allegedly posting a video abusing former prime minister H D Deve Gowda and his family on social media.
On a complaint from a ruling JD(S) office-bearer, the two, said to be party supporters, were arrested Saturday under IPC sections 504 (Intentional insult with intent to provoke breach of the peace) and 505 (statements conducing to public mischief), police said.
The duo was peeved at the poor performance of JD(S) in the recent Lok Sabha election and blamed "family politics" of the JDS supremo Gowda for it, police said.
Identified by police as Siddaraju, a petrol pump attendant, and Chamraju, a cab driver, they were produced before a court which remanded them to judicial custody.
The arrest comes amid the raging debate over liberty of citizens following the arrest of a journalist in Uttar Pradesh for allegedly making objectionable comments against UP Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath on social media.
Incidentally, the Supreme Court Tuesday ordered immediate release of the journalist, Prashant Kanojia, saying fundamental right to liberty is "sacrosanct" and "non-negotiable".
The court, however, deprecated the journalist for his posts against Adityanath and said it did not approve of them.
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No more street vending on B’luru’s main roads, as govt plans to bring new policy for street hawkers
Bengaluru: Deputy Chief Minister D.K. Shivakumar on Friday said that the state government has decided to formulate a new policy for footpaths in Bengaluru, under which street vending will not be allowed on main roads and sub-main roads.
Addressing the media after a budget preparation meeting and executive meeting of GBA corporations at Vidhana Soudha, Shivakumar said discussions were held with MLAs from the GBA region regarding the corporations’ budgets and key civic issues.
Leader of Opposition R. Ashok also participated in the meeting and shared his views. Officials from multiple departments, including police, BESCOM, BMRCL, BWSSB and BDA, along with ministers and legislators, were present.
He stated that all five municipalities have prepared their individual budgets, while MLAs have submitted their demands, including calls for ward-wise grants.
“We have decided to bring a new policy for footpaths. Citizens are struggling to walk as footpaths are encroached upon by street vendors,” Shivakumar said.
Highlighting the need to balance livelihoods and public convenience, he added that “a separate space will be provided for street vendors, and specific roads will be designated for their business,” ensuring that pedestrians can use footpaths without obstruction. He noted that there was unanimous agreement among MLAs on this approach.
Issuing a warning to vendors, Shivakumar said that authorities will act against those violating the rules. “If vendors operate during the day and leave their carts on the roadside at night, authorities will clear them. People should be aware of this,” he said.
Providing data on street vendors, he said that around 60,000 vendors have registered so far, of which 30,000 have applied for vehicles, and a tender has already been floated.
“Only those with street vendor identity cards will be allowed to do business. Those without ID cards will not be permitted to operate on the streets,” he added.
