Video of Rajyotsava awardee Mohandas Shenoy's comments on Muslims sparks outrage on social media
Mangaluru: A viral video of this year's Kannada Rajyotsava awardee Argodu Mohandas Shenoy making derogatory remarks about the Muslim community has sparked debate on social media.
The video clip from a Yakshagana presentation shows the artiste in the lead role of the episode, Vikramaditya, played by Argodu Mohandas Shenoy, belittling the community while speaking to a character resembling a Muslim.
Argodu is heard in the clip telling the Muslim, "This is the way your religion functions, changing everything… We write from left to right, you write from right to left… While we read the scriptures, you shout the name of Allah… What would we understand this to mean? That you aim to change everything, claiming that we did not say anything… But then, why have you not changed the place of eating?"
The artiste making the comments was confirmed to be 72-year-old Shenoy by four senior Yakshagana artistes, who wished to remain anonymous, when contacted by Vartha Bharati. Shenoy allegedly has been repeating such statements whenever he presents the character on stage. A fifth individual, who claimed to be associated with the art form for atleast two decades, also told Vartha Bharati has also confirmed the artiste making defamatory remarks in indeed Argodu Mohandas Shenoy and that the person presenting the character of the Muslim man in the episode was Ramesh Bhandary, a senior artiste from Badagutittu, the northern school Yakshagana.
The video clip has sparked widespread outrage on social media, with netizens expressing their anger regarding the statements made by the Yakshagana artiste in the role of Vikramaditya.
When contacted for comments, however, Shenoy said that he had not seen the video clip. Shenoy reportedly retired as a Yakshagana artiste two years ago.
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Karnataka makes teenage pregnancies audit mandatory
Bengaluru (PTI): The Karnataka government on Tuesday issued an order mandating an audit of all adolescent pregnancy cases across the state, aiming to systematically track, review and address the underlying causes of pregnancies among girls aged 10 to 18 years.
The order makes adolescent pregnancy audit mandatory by the Taluk Health Officer (THO) for all pregnancies occurring among girls aged 10 to 18 years across the state.
The move is intended to strengthen early identification, counselling and preventive interventions by integrating efforts across health, education and social welfare departments, while leveraging existing programmes such as the National Health Mission (NHM) and Rashtriya Kishor Swasthya Karyakram (RKSK).
“Adolescent pregnancy remains a significant public health and social concern with implications for maternal health, neonatal outcomes, and socio-economic development,” the order said.
It noted that pregnancies among girls aged 10 to 18 years are associated with increased risks of maternal complications, adverse birth outcomes, school dropout and social vulnerability.
According to the order, all adolescent pregnancies identified in the state must be compulsorily reported by both government and private healthcare institutions on the Reproductive and Child Health (RCH) platform.
The audit framework will examine multiple socio-medical factors, including age at marriage, educational status, awareness of reproductive health, access to contraception, and family vulnerabilities.
It will also assess linkages with schemes such as RKSK, Integrated Child Development Services (ICDS) and school health programmes to identify service delivery gaps.
At the Taluk level, a dedicated audit committee will be constituted under the chairmanship of the Taluk Health Officer. Its members will be drawn from primary health centres, field health staff, Anganwadi services and schools.
The government further directed that counselling services, including those through Sneha Centres, access to contraceptives, and targeted outreach to vulnerable adolescent groups—such as school dropouts, migrants and socially disadvantaged households—must be strengthened.
“The audit shall examine age at marriage, educational status, awareness on reproductive health, access to contraception and counselling services, socio-economic and family vulnerabilities,” the order said.
The order mandates strict confidentiality in handling all cases, in compliance with child protection laws, while also ensuring adherence to legal reporting requirements.
