‘Our Water Our Right' campaign: Greens, forums to hold protest
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The leaders, who held a meeting at the Maratha Mandir in Belagavi on Tuesday, reached a unanimous decision in this regard.
Dilip Kamath, an environmentalist, said that the Gadgil Report and Kasturirangan Report were submitted to the central govt in the past. The Gadgil Report, which meticulously analysed the extinction and survival of the Western Ghats, warned that no activities that could harm the environment should be carried out in the vicinity of the Western Ghats region.
The report also highlighted the biodiversity of the Western Ghats region and the immense benefits it brings to the country, providing a detailed report on the protection of the Western Ghats.
Everyone needs to join hands for the survival of the Western Ghats by abandoning the Kalasa Banduri project.
Sujit Mulgund, a social activist, said that water is already being supplied to Hubballi-Dharwad through Malaprabha reservoir.
Farmers in Bagalkot and Ramdurg taluks are using water from the Malaprabha reservoir to grow two crops, while farmers in Navalgund, Nargund, and Dharwad are using this water for more than two crops. The amount of water used from the Malaprabha reservoir has increased, with claims that this project is for drinking water.
Representatives and officials of the area informed that the areas of Hubballi, Dharwad, Navalgund, and Nargund will not face any shortage of drinking water till 2041.
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They expressed concern that work is now underway to transport more water to the twin cities through a pipeline, which could lead to a shortage of drinking water in the Belagavi area. The Mahadayi diversion project will be abandoned as it will harm the Western Ghats.
Captain Nitin Dhond, an environmentalist, stated that the Mahadayi River travels approximately 1,500 kilometres from its source to the sea. The Malaprabha River plays a significant role in environmental protection by providing habitat for numerous plants and trees.
It is a good move to supply drinking water to Hubballi and Dharwad from the Malaprabha reservoir. Belgaum may face drinking water problems in the future as more water is lifted from the Malaprabha River to supply water to industrial areas of Hubballi, Dharwad, and sugar factories of politicians.
Therefore, it is not appropriate to implement any projects here which will harm the Malaprabha River and the Western Ghats.
Advocate Nitin Bolbandi, farmer leader Chunappa Poojeri, Sidagouda Modagi, Mallesh Chougale, environmentalists, farmer leaders, and Dalit leaders were present.
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India Today
5 hours ago
- India Today
What is the Dharmasthala mass-burial case and the horror stories of skeletons
"Many of the female bodies were without clothing or underwear. Some bore clear signs of sexual assault and violence: wounds or strangulation that indicated violence... More than 100 women, including students, were raped, murdered and buried...," wrote a former sanitation worker from Karnataka's Dharmasthala in a complaint dated June 3, accompanied by photo evidence of skeletal remains.A week later, the worker, who had requested anonymity, appeared in a court under heavy police protection, his body wrapped from head to toe with only a transparent strip over the eyes to help him navigate. He had come to testify about the allegations he made in his letter, claiming he was forced to dispose of over a hundred murder victims, many of them women who, he alleged, were sexually assaulted, between 1998 and complaint (with pictographic evidence) and testimony has blown the lid off what victim families and activists have long tried to expose: a series of chilling crimes buried in silence. The silence of decades is because the Lord Manjunatha shrine, which is at the heart of Dharmasthala town, is managed by an influential family. The former sanitation worker claimed that some of the perpetrators were linked to the temple is an important pilgrimage centre in Karnataka, drawing believers even from outside the whistle-blower sanitation worker was on the payroll of the shrine the dark truth surfaced earlier in the 2012 Sowjanya rape-murder case, the latest revelations by the sanitation worker have reignited urgent demands for a thorough investigation. Calls for a Special Investigation Team (SIT) to probe the Dharmasthala mass burials have now intensified, with two senior advocates formally joining the appeal for a fair, independent latest call for justice coincides with a renewed push from the family of Ananya Bhat, a first-year MBBS student who went missing in 2003 during a college trip to 60-year-old mother, Sujatha, a former stenographer with the CBI, lodged a fresh complaint at the Dharmasthala Police Station on July that her daughter may be among the unidentified victims mentioned in the sanitation worker's testimony, Sujatha's plea adds urgency to growing demands for an SIT probe into the alleged Dharmasthala mass IN SCHOOL UNIFORM, STRIPPED OF DIGNITY: WHISTLEBLOWER'S CHILLING ACCOUNTThe former sanitation worker, from the Dalit community, who worked for the Dharmasthala temple administration from 1995 to 2014, filed his explosive complaint on July 3 with the Dharmasthala the letter, he alleged that over nearly two decades, he was coerced into burying or burning the bodies of numerous victims, many of them women and minors, who bore signs of sexual assault and brutal to his complaint, he was regularly threatened with death if he refused to comply, with supervisors warning, "We will cut you into pieces, your body will be buried like the rest".Some of the burials, the whistleblower claimed, were carried out on the banks of the holy Netravathi River, sites chosen, he alleged, to ensure the bodies would remain undetected and decompose quickly in the soft, damp one haunting detail, the whistleblower said he was forced to bury a schoolgirl, aged between 12 and 15, in 2010 near a petrol bunk in Kalleri. The girl's body, then clad in her school uniform with the skirt and innerwear missing, showed marks of sexual assault and strangulation, reported The New Indian Express, earlier in incident involved a 20-year-old woman whose face was burned with acid, her body wrapped in newspaper, and instructions given for it to be burnt using sanitation worker's complaint, backed by photographs of skeletal remains he claims he was forced to exhume secretly, and submitted to the police, paints a disturbing picture of a long-running sanitation worker fled Dharmasthala overnight in December 2014 after a minor girl in his own family was allegedly sexually assaulted by someone linked to his supervisors. After spending years in hiding in neighbouring states, he returned, risking his life, driven by a deep sense of guilt and a renewed determination to seek complainant said after he dug up the skeletal remains, he submitted the photos to the police along with his Aadhaar card, and an old employee ID to establish the bodies that are being exhumed are given a proper funeral, the souls of those who have suffered will find peace and my sense of guilt will also be reduced... I believe the deceased deserves a respectful farewell..." the worker was quoted as saying in the letter, expressing a personal need for to cooperate further, he has offered to identify additional burial sites and name the perpetrators, but only under the protection guaranteed by the Witness Protection Act, claimed that some of the perpetrators in the rape-murders were linked to the temple administration and held considerable influence."Some of the persons I have named are very influential and have a tendency to eliminate those who oppose them," he wrote, expressing fear for his a precaution, the whistleblower's legal counsel confirmed that he has also submitted a sealed envelope naming the accused to Supreme Court advocate KV Dhananjay, in the event that he is silenced or TEMPLE TOWN SHAKEN BY DARK ALLEGATIONSDharmasthala, a popular pilgrimage town, is located in Karnataka's Dakshina Kannada district. It is even visited by top politicians, celebrities and it is perhaps the only prominent shrine where Hindu priests conduct their rituals, while the temple administration is overseen by the Jain community, according to senior crime journalist Shams Tahir Khan, the managing editor of Crime Tak, India Today Digital's sister the Dharmasthala is administered by a Jain Heggade Rajya Sabha MP Veerendra Heggade is the current hereditary administrator of the Dharmasthala temple town, situated about 75 km from Mangaluru, is a spiritual hub, attracting thousands of devotees the whistleblower's allegations point to a darker underbelly, implicating powerful individuals allegedly connected to the temple administration. While the complainant has not named specific perpetrators, citing fear for his life, he has indicated that "powerful persons" were behind the crimes and has promised to reveal their identities once granted protection under the MLA Arvind Bellad dismissed the mass-burial allegations in Dharmasthala, made by the former sanitation worker, as "baseless"."Anyone who knows about the good work being done in Dharmasthala will understand that these allegations of mass burials are baseless. If at all such allegations exist, the government will investigate them," Bellad, who represents the Hubli-Dharwad West constituency, told India Today TV on the allegations have stirred unease in a town synonymous with spiritual legacy. The complainant's claims of being assaulted and threatened suggest a culture of intimidation claims of the involvement of influential people have fuelled demands for an independent probe, as locals and activists fear that local authorities might be pressured to suppress the investigation.A DECADE AFTER SOWJANYA, ALLEGATIONS OF COVER-UPS RESURFACEFollowing the complaint by the former sanitation worker, the Dakshina Kannada police registered a case on July 4 under Section 211(a) of the BNS.A week later, on July 13, the whistleblower, his entire body covered to conceal his identity and protect his family, appeared before the Principal Civil Judge and Judicial Magistrate First Class in Belthangady to record his sanitation worker's revelations are not the first time Dharmsthala has been linked to allegations of violence, assault, rape, murder and 2012, the rape and murder of 17-year-old Sowjanya, a student in Dharmasthala, shocked the case, which remains unresolved, became a rallying point for activists demanding justice. The initial Special Investigation Team (SIT) formed to probe her case was widely criticised for its handling, with allegations of mishandled evidence and failure to pursue influential case's outcome left the region unsettled, with many believing justice was denied due to interference by powerful 2012 case highlighted a pattern of alleged police inaction, as families reported being dismissed or intimidated when attempting to file instance, Sujatha, the woman whose daughter Ananya disappeared, claimed the police had initially declined to register her complaint. The police said her daughter had claimed she then approached Dharmadhikari Veerendra Heggade and his brother Sri Harshendra Kumar, but was subjected to verbal abuse and told to mother, Sujatha, has offered to undergo a polygraph test and has requested that Heggade and Kumar do the same, adding that they might possess critical reports have fuelled distrust in local authorities, amplifying calls for a high-level SIT to investigate not only the recent allegations but also decades-old cases of missing women, unnatural deaths, and sexual assaults in chief of Karnataka State Commission for Women, Nagalakshmi Choudhary, in a letter to Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on July 14, highlighted allegations that police often failed to respond adequately when families reported missing persons or deaths, suggesting systemic issues in the region's law enforcement.A group of advocates on July 16 met Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and submitted a memorandum demanding an SIT probe, monitored by a sitting or retired judge. They demanded the appointment of an ADGP-level officer to head the SIT, the inclusion of a dedicated FSL team, video recording of the investigation, thorough crime scene analysis, and immediate arrest and custodial interrogation of all involved, regardless of their the gravity of the alleged crimes, the advocates, in the memorandum to Siddaramaiah, stated that the "distressing information" pointed to the involvement of "highly influential" and "powerful personalities" with significant political clout, reported news agency sanitation worker's testimony has reignited a firestorm of demands for justice, with the skeletons he unearthed, both literal and figurative, laying bare a potential web of systemic violence and cover-up in Dharmasthala. Advocates Ojaswi Gowda and Sachin Deshpande have echoed the call for justice, highlighting the "disastrous SIT investigation in the Sowjanya case".Now, after years of fear and intimidation, the whistleblower's revelations have galvanised activists, families, and legal professionals. Calls for a fresh police probe with "unimpeachable integrity" are becoming louder. Only a free and fair probe will reveal if the allegations of mass rape-murders and a cover-up levelled by the former sanitation worker have any basis at all.- Ends
India Today
5 hours ago
- India Today
RSS hint on Modi's retirement BJP's golden chance to name Dalit PM: Siddaramaiah
Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Thursday challenged the BJP to name a Dalit as its next Prime Ministerial candidate, citing Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) chief Mohan Bhagwat's recent signal on Prime Minister Narendra Modi's political retirement. In a post on X, he targeted BJP State President BY Vijayendra, accusing him of hypocrisy and questioning the BJP's treatment of Dalits and backward wrote, 'The RSS Sarsanghchalak, Mohan Bhagwat, has already signalled the political retirement of Narendra Modi who is now 75. This is the BJP's golden chance to make a Dalit the next Prime Minister. Let that initiative start with you. Rather than giving lectures to others, why don't you propose a Dalit leader as BJP's Prime Ministerial face? Whether it is Govind Karjol or Chalavadi Narayanaswamy, if you propose their names, I will be the first to congratulate you.'Responding to Siddaramaiah, Vijayendra countered, 'If Congress stands by Dalits, let them announce Kharge as PM candidate.' In his post, Siddaramaiah continued his attack on Vijayendra, writing, 'Mr @BYVijayendra, the BJP State President who cannot even secure the stability of the very chair he occupies, has the audacity to advise the Congress on who should be our Prime Ministerial candidate. This is not just a display of his ignorance and self-deception, but also an exhibition of his arrogant entitlement.'He criticised the BJP's history with Dalit leaders, citing the example of Bangaru Laxman, 'a Dalit leader whom the BJP elevated as the party's national president only to disgrace him with corruption allegations and send him to jail, a humiliation that eventually led to his death.'He further questioned, 'The BJP never fails to flaunt the name of President Droupadi Murmu. But why has the same BJP never projected her as the Prime Minister of this country? The party brags about making APJ Abdul Kalam the President, yet can Mr Vijayendra answer why the BJP, in the current Lok Sabha, does not have a single Muslim MP?'Siddaramaiah accused the BJP of systematically undermining backward class leaders and cited the case of S Bangarappa. 'S Bangarappa, a prominent backward class leader, was politically finished by your father BS Yediyurappa. And now, Mr Vijayendra, you are attempting to end the political career of his son, Kumar Bangarappa. Both father and son have made this their family mission.''Let me tell you, be it Bangarappa or Narendra Modi, their safety in BJP exists only as long as they remain subservient to the casteist Hindutva agenda. Mr Modi must be aware of this uncomfortable truth himself,' he then challenged Vijayendra to step aside and nominate a Dalit leader as BJP's State President. 'If you are truly concerned about the dignity of Dalits and backward classes, why don't you relinquish your position as State BJP President and offer it to a Dalit leader? In case you are struggling to find a name, let me suggest one name, which is Govind Karjol. Though he now parrots your party's tunes, having worked with him, I can vouch that he is fundamentally a decent man. If you or your party have the courage and conviction, declare Karjol as BJP's State President and your Chief Ministerial face for Karnataka.'He added, 'And why didn't you or your father carry the basket of 'Chaddis' that was mockingly placed on Chalavadi Narayanaswamy's head by caste bigots? Do you have an answer for that, Mr Vijayendra?'On Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge, Siddaramaiah said, 'Mallikarjun Kharge is not just the AICC President but a respected statesman of this country. His rise is not through playing a 'Dalit card' but through decades of dedication, integrity, and commitment to public service. His journey never needed any political patronage. And let me be very clear, in Congress, it is our party that decides who our Prime Ministerial candidate will be, not the BJP.'advertisementHe accused the BJP of tokenism in dealing with Dalit leaders and said their contributions are used only to attack others. 'BJP's sole purpose is to use Dalit leaders to defame those in other parties while ensuring they never rise to positions of real power or respect within the BJP itself,' Siddaramaiah concluded by stating, 'The BJP's treatment of Dalits and backward classes has always been tokenistic. Your history speaks for itself and so does your hypocrisy.'- Ends IN THIS STORY#Karnataka
New Indian Express
5 hours ago
- New Indian Express
Denying justice to family of Dalit youth murdered in Hisar shows ugly face of BJP-RSS's 'Manuwadi' system: Rahul
The Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha claimed that Ganesh's family alleges that he was killed by police, and even after nine days, no action has been taken. When the family sought justice, they were the ones harassed instead, he also alleged. "This is not an isolated incident - in the last 11 years, atrocities against Dalits, Adivasis, and minorities have skyrocketed unchecked. Why? Because the BJP in power has given free rein to violence cloaked in discrimination," the former Congress chief alleged. Gandhi further said the Narendra Modi government has not only remained silent on these atrocities but has also weakened constitutional institutions, turning the police and administration into "weapons" for such crimes and "shields" for the perpetrators of such crimes. "In Modi's era, being a Dalit, being poor, being marginalized - has become akin to a crime," he claimed. "Ganesh Valmiki's death is not just the death of an individual - it is the murder of the Constitution, the murder of Baba Saheb's dreams," Gandhi also said. "I stand firmly with the victim's family. This is not just one family's fight for justice; it is a battle for social justice and the soul of India. Immediate and strict action against the guilty will be the minimum justice required," the Congress leader said.
