Conscience itself will deliver justice: Shivakumar on obscene remark row

Posted on by Vividh Bharathi

Bengaluru, Dec 21 (IANS) Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister D. K. Shivakumar said on Saturday that conscience itself will deliver justice in the derogatory remark case against BJP MLC C. T. Ravi.

The Deputy Chief Minister’s remark came close on the heels of the release of Ravi, who was arrested over alleged derogatory remark against Minister Laxmi Hebbalkar.

On Ravi’s allegations that police harassed him throughout the night, Shivakumar told reporters: “In this matter, you and the police are involved. Whether it’s at his house or his party, I am the cause of everything.”

“Let the BJP accept that disrespecting women and using abusive language is their culture. We will not object,” said Shivakumar.

“C.T. Ravi has not only spoken disrespectfully about Minister Lakshmi Hebbalkar but also about CM Siddaramaiah. In the Assembly, he used the term ‘Nitya Sumangali’ (a Kannada term used to demean a woman). BJP leaders must introspect whether Ravi’s remark was right or wrong,” he claimed.

“Chikkamagaluru (native place of Ravi) is known for its cultured people. Unfortunately, someone like him hails from there,” he added.

“If any leader from our party had spoken like this, I would have condemned it. However, BJP leaders are standing in defence of their leader,” he claimed.

State Home Minister G. Parameshwara said, “The matter is before the court. I won’t issue any statements as the matter is sub-judice. It is not appropriate to discuss the issue.”

“The police claim that they have initiated steps lawfully. The matter is before the court and they will decide what is right and what is wrong. I have been told that while obtaining information on various circumstances, the judgment has come without asking the version of police. Now, we can’t comment or criticise the decision,” Parameshwara stated.

When asked about the Legislative Council Chairperson Basavaraj Horatti stating that there are no records of Ravi making derogatory remark, Minister Parameshwara said that he does not know anything.

–IANS

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Bengal school job case: CBI takes custody of prime accused Bhadra

Kolkata, Dec 18 (IANS) The officers of the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) brought Sujay Krishna Bhadra, a prime accused in the cash-for-school job case in West Bengal, to the agency’s Nizam Palace office in central Kolkata early on Wednesday morning.

Sources said that the CBI officers quietly reached the Presidency Central Correctional Home in south Kolkata late on Tuesday night and took custody of Sujay Krishna Bhadra.

From there, without much ado, Sujay Krishna Bhadra was taken to the central government-run ESI Hospital at Joka on the southern outskirts of Kolkata.

After a thorough medical checkup Sujay Krishna Bhadra was brought to the agency’s Nizam Palace office early on Wednesday morning.

Earlier, on Tuesday afternoon, the CBI officers had shown Bhadra as arrested after presenting him online at a special court in Kolkata.

His current term of CBI custody is December 21 and he will be presented at the special court on the same day.

The court has permitted Sujay Krishna Bhadra to hold meetings with his counsel for an hour daily during his days of CBI custody.

However, his counsel will not be permitted to be present when he is being interrogated by the central agency officials.

On December 6, a single-judge Bench of the Calcutta High Court granted conditional bail to Sujay Krishna Bhadra in the case registered in the matter against him, by the Enforcement Directorate (ED), which is conducting a parallel probe in the school job case.

After getting bail in the case registered by the ED, Sujay Krishna Bhadra approached a Division Bench of the Calcutta High Court for anticipatory bail, apprehending his arrest by the CBI.

However, on December 16, the Division Bench of Justice Joymalya Bagchi and Justice Gaurang Kanth rejected the plea for anticipatory bail by Bhadra’s counsel.

Finally, on Tuesday the CBI managed to show him as arrested and also get him in custody for further interrogation.

–IANS

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Tejashwi writes to Nitish, flags irregularities in BPSC exam

Patna, Dec 23 (IANS) The controversy surrounding the 70th BPSC examination has taken a serious turn, with Leader of Opposition in Bihar Tejashwi Yadav levelling allegations of malpractice and institutional corruption in the recruitment processes.

Tejashwi Yadav has written a letter to Chief Minister Nitish Kumar outlining eight demands, emphasising the need for transparency and fairness in competitive examinations.

Yadav has alleged that the examination conducted on December 13, 2024, was marred by malpractice, pointing to systemic corruption within the Bihar Public Service Commission (BPSC).

“The cancellation of the examination at the Bapu Examination Centre in Patna and the re-examination at the same venue is a measure aimed at concealing institutional flaws,” Yadav said in his letter.

The RJD leader claimed that BPSC had used employees from a private agency, rather than government employees, to conduct such a significant exam. He strongly criticised the credibility of the examination process.

Tejashwi pointed out that all future exams must be conducted solely by government employees, and advocated for removing private agencies from the process.

“I want to urge the Chief Minister to Identify and penalise those responsible for the malpractice in the December 13 exam. I also demand a high-level independent inquiry into the allegations of corruption in the BPSC,” he said.

Tejashwi demanded a comprehensive reform in BPSC to ensure transparency and eliminate corruption in government recruitment. The state government should provide suitable remedies or compensation to candidates whose efforts were undermined by the irregularities, establish a mechanism to hold the Commission accountable for lapses and ensure the integrity of the merit-based selection process without external influences or biases.

He claimed that reports of irregularities were not limited to the Bapu Examination Centre but also emerged from several other centres. The BPSC has acknowledged the lapses, which indicates systemic flaws.

“I demand the cancellation of the entire 70th Preliminary Examination and the organisation of a re-examination for all candidates to ensure fairness,” Yadav said.

He further said around 90,000 registered candidates were allegedly unable to complete the application process due to corruption and procedural inefficiencies. He advocated for allowing these candidates to fill out the examination form and participate in the re-examination.

“Allegations levelled by students that private coaching institutes predicted more than 25 per cent of the questions in the paper raise concerns about potential leaks. A thorough investigation is needed into it. An independent and impartial judicial probe is required to investigate the widespread irregularities,” he said.

Tejashwi Yadav in his letter said thousands of candidates have been protesting in harsh weather conditions, expressing discontent with the BPSC’s handling of the situation.

He criticised the insensitive behaviour of the state government towards the agitating students.

Tejashwi urged Chief Minister Nitish Kumar to cancel the 70th Preliminary Examination to eliminate doubts about fairness. He said that the Commission should announce a re-examination date with clear guidelines to rebuild candidate confidence.

–IANS

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