Will discuss cabinet expansion with BJP central leadership: CM Yediyurappa
Bengaluru, Aug 2: Amid criticism from the opposition over delay in cabinet formation, Karnataka Chief Minister B S Yediyurappa on Friday said he would discuss it with the central leadership during his Delhi visit next week.
"If there is even one person also, it is a government..even if there are 25 people also, it is government. Our's is a national party.
On August 6, 7 and 8, I'm going to Delhi. I will discuss with them (party high command), I will try to do the cabinet expansion at the earliest," he told reporters here.
"I will try on my behalf...permission has to be given by Delhi, but routine developmental works and transfers are not facing problems. As a Chief Minister I'm doing it. I seek your (media) cooperation also," he said.
Yediyurappas statement indicates that he would have to wait for the high commands approval before going ahead with the expansion of his Ministry.
He assumed charge as Chief Minister on July 26 and proved majority on the floor of the assembly on July 29.
According to top sources in Karnataka BJP, the cabinet expansion may take five to six days, as it can happen only after Chief Minister getting approval from central leaders.
Only 10 to 12 members are likely to be inducted into the Ministry in the first round, they said.
The Opposition Congress and JD(S) have hit out at Yediyurappa about the delay in ministry formation, alleging that the government machinery has come to a standstill and developmental works have come to halt.
The Chief Minister, who held a marathon eight hour long meeting with top bureaucrats,including Regional Commissioners, Deputy Commissioners of all districts and CEOs of various zilla panchayats, said day to day governance was not getting affected, despite absence of Ministers.
He instructed officials to take effective steps to avoid misuse of the "Anna Bhagya" scheme, providing seven kg of rice free of cost to every member of a BPL family every month, initiated by the previous Congress government.
Pointing out that 1.12 crore families are covered under the scheme, he said only those in need should get the benefits of this scheme, but there seemed to be large-scale misuse.
"According to my estimate in each district there are over a lakh of them who are misusing it illegally... so the misuse of it has to be stopped to benefit the poor.
Because we are purchasing rice at a market price and distributing, we are paying Rs 32-33 per kg," he said, adding that officials would conduct a survey about the beneficiaries.
Yediyurappa directed the Chief Secretary to visit a district every month and review the work there.
Secretaries, made in charge of districts, were asked to visit districts twice, conduct reviews and file their reports to the Revenue and Chief Secretary.
Pointing at the drought situation in some parts of the state, he directed officials to accord priority to providing drinking water, fodder for livestock and jobs to the needy under MNREGA scheme.
Yediyurappa said that during his Delhi visit he will work for getting pending MNREGA funds released and discuss several stalled projects of the state with the central government.
Speaking about Prime Minister's Kisan Samman Nidhi Scheme, he said 31.72 lakh beneficiaries have been identified and are being provided Rs 6,000 in three installments by the central government, which comes to about Rs 634.50 crore.
After him assuming office, the state government decided to provide additional Rs 4,000 in two installments to these farmers under the scheme he said, adding that "within 10 days, the first installment of Rs 2,000 will be released to them."
The total allocation of funds from Karnataka for implementing this scheme is Rs 2,200 crore.
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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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