Yathindra didn’t say 'so-and-so' should become CM, says Siddaramaiah
Bengaluru.(PTI): Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Friday clarified that his son Yathindra Siddaramaiah did not name anyone as his successor.
Bringing a storm in the Congress Karnataka unit, party MLC Yathindra on Wednesday said, "He (Siddaramaiah) is at the fag end of his political life. At such a time, a leader is needed to guide and lead those who have progressive thinking, ideologically."
Minister Satish Jarkiholi is a leader with similar progressive ideological thinking, he said at Chikkodi in Belagavi district.
His statement was perceived as declaring Siddaramaiah’s successor. It came at a time when the power corridor in Karnataka is abuzz with rumours that Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar would succeed Siddaramaiah in November as per a compromise arrived at in 2023 based on a ‘rotational chief minister formula’.
Siddaramaiah, who will complete two-and-half years as chief minister this November, had asserted in the past that he would complete his five year tenure.
Speaking to reporters on Friday, Siddaramaiah blamed the media for wrongly presenting Yathindra's statement.
"What can I do if his statement is twisted? I spoke to him (Yathindra) and asked him what exactly he had said. He said he spoke only about principles. He did not say that ‘so-and-so’ should become chief minister," he said.
When asked about the need for such a statement in the midst of confusion over the successor, Siddaramaiah said, "You people do not stay quiet and keep asking such questions despite saying ‘no’."
Earlier in the day, Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar said he will speak to the person who should be spoken to.
"I am not going to speak now, but I will speak to whomever it is that should be spoken to," he told reporters here.
He was replying to a query by a reporter who sought to know why notice was not served to Yathindra, who was speaking about the change of guard.
Recently, two Congress MLAs, H D Ranganath and H A Iqbal Hussain, were served notices for their statement that Shivakumar should become the next chief minister of the state.
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'Someone must be held accountable': HC converts civil suit on Goa nightclub tragedy into PIL
Panaji (PTI): The Bombay High Court on Monday converted a civil suit against Birch by Romeo Lane nightclub into a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) saying "someone has to be held accountable" for the tragedy in which 25 people were killed.In a stern observation, Goa bench of the High Court of Justices Sarang Kotwal and Ashish Chavan said the local panchayat had "failed to take suo motu cognisance" of the club and had taken "no action despite complaints."
The division bench directed the Goa government to file a detailed reply on the permissions granted to the nightclub.
The High Court, while fixing January 8 as the next date of hearing, pointed out that commercial operations were continuing in the structure despite it having been served a demolition order.
The original petition was filed after the December 6 tragedy by Pradeep Ghadi Amonkar and Sunil Divkar, the owners of the land on which the nightclub was operating.
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Advocate Rohit Bras de Sa, the lawyer representing the petitioner, was made amicus curiae in the matter and has been asked to file a detailed affidavit in the matter.
In their petition, Amonkar and Divkar highlighted "the alarming pattern of statutory violations that have remained inadequately addressed despite multiple complaints, inspections, show-cause notices, and even a demolition order".
They contended that these violations posed "immediate threats to public safety, ecological integrity, and the rule of law in the state of Goa."
Investigations by multiple agencies into the nightclub fire have revealed various irregularities, including lack of permissions to operate the nightclub.
The Goa police arrested five managers and staff members of the club, while co-owners Gaurav Luthra and Saurabh Luthra have been detained in Thailand after they fled the country.
