Yatnal charging on BJP after taking contract from Congress: BJP MP Renukacharya
Mysuru: BJP leader MP Renukacharya has accused MLA Basangouda Patil Yatnal of working against the BJP, acting under a contract from the Congress party. The BJP leader was speaking at a media briefing held at a private hotel here on Saturday.
Earlier in the day, a delegation of BJP leaders in favour of the party's state President BY Vijayendra who are touring various districts in the state arrived at Chamundi hills in Mysuru on Saturday and offered prayers to Sri Chamundeshwari.
During the press conference, Renukacharya criticized Yatnal’s statements, he questioned, "He(Yatnal) says he will support Siddharamaiah, what does this mean?"
"Yatnal's rhetoric was a major reason for the BJP's losses in the recent general election and by-elections to three constituencies (Sandur, Channapatna,Shiggaon). He has allegedly engaged in 'match-fixing' with Vijayapura Minister MB Patil," Renukacharya claimed.
ALSO READ: BJP’s defeat in elections due to your loose talk: Renukacharya targets Yatnal
He further accused Yatnal of being a persistent troublemaker for senior BJP leader BS Yediyurappa, labeling him a "Shakuni" and "Mir Sadhaka" for his divisive actions. "BJP high command has appointed Vijayendra as the state President not Yediyurappa, and Yatnal's opposition against Vijayendra is akin to opposing the high command," he stated.
Meanwhile, Renukacharya challenged Yatnal to disclose the name of the national leader allegedly backing his(Yatnal) actions. "If Yatnal has the courage, let him name the leader," he stated.
Additionally, he also clarified that Union Ministers Prahlad Joshi and Shobha Karandlaje, who left during the protest against the Wakf issue, does not mean that they are aligned with Yatnal.
Renukacharya demanded disciplinary action against Yatnal by the pontiff for insulting leaders like Vishwaguru Basavanna. He also said that the pontiffs should make efforts to force the BJP to expel Yatnal.
He revealed that he has received threats following his remarks against Yatnal since Friday night. "I am not afraid of such threats, a meeting will be held soon in Murudeshwar. Later, another massive meeting will be held in Davangere with around 3-4 lakh people. Additionally, I will also meet national leaders and demand Yatnal's ouster," he added.
In the meantime, Tensions flared during the press conference as a group of BJP workers demanded Yatnal’s immediate expulsion, rather than holding any meeting.
When former MLA Renukacharya was speaking, the group stood up and shouted slogans, "Don't go around like this, Yatnal is not the only Hindu; we Hindus must stand united and remove him first!"
Despite attempts by BJP leaders to pacify the crowd, the protests continued.
Renukacharya eventually calmed the protesters by chanting "Bharat Mata Ki Jai" and resuming his address, though the workers continued to press for action against Yatnal.
Former ministers BC Patil, Katta Subrahmanya Naidu, Harathalu Halappa, and former MLA Somashekar Reddy and others were present at the press conference.
Let the Truth be known. If you read VB and like VB, please be a VB Supporter and Help us deliver the Truth to one and all.
Army showcases several AI-driven applications at AI Summit, Rajnath visits pavillion
New Delhi (PTI): From a climatology and diaster prediction system to a device that detects driver's fatigue to avert accidents, the India Army has showcased a slew of artificial intelligence-based applications at the AI Impact Summit here, with Defence Minister Rajnath Singh visiting the Army pavilion on Friday.
The Indian Navy has also put up a pavilion as part of the summit expo.
The AI Impact Summit is being held from February 16-20 at Bharat Mandapam, in which several heads of state, many global AI leaders, academicians and researchers, and heads of global tech giants, and philanthropists have taken part.
The Army has showcased several AI-based applications at its pavilion in Hall no. 4, and Defence Minister Singh interacted with military officials who gave him a tour of the pavilion, which has attracted both young and old-age visitors.
"Delighted to visit the AI Impact Summit at Bharat Mandapam today. India is rapidly emerging as a global leader in Artificial Intelligence and advanced technologies. The Summit showcases the immense talent of our innovators, researchers, startups, armed forces and industry leaders. India's AI vision MANAV, articulated by PM Shri @narendramodi at #IndiaAIImpactSummit2026, sets humanity’s direction towards a secure and future-ready world," Singh later posted on X.
"Guided by principles of morality, accountability, national data sovereignty, accessibility and robust systems, India is helping shape the next civilisational leap through responsible AI.
"AI is not just a driver of economic growth, but also a force multiplier for national security and good governance. I thank PM Modi for hosting the AI Summit in India. Compliments to the organising Teams and all participants for making this Summit a grand success," he added.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the summit on Thursday and unveiled the 'MANAV' vision for a human-centric approach and use of AI with a strong accent on sovereignty and inclusivity.
"Army officers and personnel, researchers and scholars, of course have come to our pavillion in the past few days, but youths too are showing keen interest in AI-based military applications. And, today the honourable defence minister visited and showed keen interest in knowing more about these applications," a senior Army official told PTI.
Some of the AI-based applications which have been showcased include 'Prakshepan' a military climatology and diaster prediction system; Xface -- a facial recognition system for rapid image and video-based verification in boosting security and surveillance mechanism; Nabhdrishti -- a telemetry reporting system which can capture positional data, imagery and orientation, "even based on images of an unidentified drone in flight"; and an AI-based device that detects driver's fatigue and alerts the person behind the wheels to avert accidents.
Lt Col A R Packianathan said 'Prakshepan' was launched by the defence minister last November.
The name draws from Sanskrit word 'Prakshepan', which means projection, he said.
At the Army pavilion, a dashboard has been displayed showcasing how the system works, with "near-live data".
"This application is a cutting edge military climatology application developed in-house by the Army's Directorate General of Information Systems. It has been powered by scientific and technical collaboration from several ministries with agencies like India Meteorological Department, National Centre for Medium Range Weather Forecasting, Central Water Commission, North East Space Application Centre, Geological Survey of India and Defence Geospatial Research Organisation," Lt Col Packianathan told PTI at the pavilion.
It has three prediction modules -- prediction of flood, of landslide and of an avalanche.
"This is India's first hybrid military climatology system capable of predicting landslides and avalanches 3-7 days in advance using multi-agency scientific datasets, terrain intelligence, and AI/ML (AI/machine learning) modelling," another Army official said.
The Indian Army in January had declared 2026 as the 'Year of Networking & Data Centricity' and said that this initiative will enhance connectivity, real-time decision-making and combat effectiveness, thereby strengthening resilience and agility for a future-ready force.
In line with the vision, the pavilion also showcases visual representations of Army assets and weaponry using holographic projections.
The Army has said that beyond military use, man of these application can have dual-use and help civilian administration and the masses as well,
So, 'Prakshepan' can provide early warnings to civil administration in remote areas, contributing to national disaster resilience and capacity building, Lt Col Packianathan said.
Similarly, the AI-based device that detects driver's fatigue and alerts the person behind the wheels can help avert accidents on highways for civilian drivers too, another official said.
