4 Indians abducted in Libya; 2 from Karnataka freed

August 1, 2015

New Delhi: Aug 1: Militants owing allegiance to Islamic State (IS) in Libya on Wednesday abducted four Indians trying to return home from the conflict-hit North African country, where they taught in a university in Sirte — the hometown of slain dictator Muammar Gaddafi.

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Two of the teachers who hail from Karnataka — Mulbagal Vijaykumar from Bangarpet and Lakshmikanth Ramakrishna from Raichur — however, returned safely to the University of Sirte, said the government on Friday.

The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) and the Embassy of India in Tripoli are trying to secure the release of the others — T Gopikrishna from Srikakulam in Andhra Pradesh and Balaram from Hyderabad.

“Four Indians abducted in Libya – I am happy we have been able to secure the release of Lakshmikant and Vijay Kumar. Trying for other two (sic),” wrote External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj on Twitter on Friday. She also briefed Prime Minister Narendra Modi about the situation and efforts to secure the hostages' release.

The fresh abduction caused jitters in New Delhi, as another group of 39 Indians abducted from Iraq by IS-affiliated militants more than a year ago is yet to be released.

Three of the four on Friday were teachers at the university in Sirte in western Libya, while the fourth worked at the Jufra campus of the university.

Gaddafi, who ruled Libya for 42 years, was born in Sirte. He was killed near the city in October 2011 following a mass uprising against his rule.

As the IS militants took control of Sirte a few months ago, the city's security situation worsened, prompting the Indians to decide to return home.

They were reportedly trying to return through Tripoli and Tunisia, but were detained at a checkpoint around 50 km from Sirte, said MEA spokesperson Vikas Swarup in New Delhi. He did not identify the kidnappers.

Sources in New Delhi, however, said the ultras almost certainly owed allegiance to IS.

The Embassy of India in Tripoli came to know of the incident around 11 pm on Wednesday. New Delhi swung into action, despite being constrained by limited manpower in the Embassy.

Most embassy officials had been shifted from Tripoli to Tunis earlier this year in view of the growing instability in Libya and the deteriorating security situation in its capital.

The acting head of the mission, Mohammad Rashid Khan, got in touch with some unidentified “sources”, who told him the teachers had been taken back to Sirte.

This was followed by some informal negotiations through intermediaries over the next two days, and resulted in the release of two, said sources in New Delhi on Friday.

New Delhi had evacuated about 18,000 Indians from Libya in the wake of the uprising against the Gaddafi regime in 2011. Several Indian companies had to abandon projects awarded by the erstwhile Libyan government when the war had escalated. While some Indians stayed back, others returned over the past few years.

As political instability continued and clashes escalated, New Delhi in July 2014 issued an advisory asking all its citizens in Libya to leave the country.

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March 15,2024

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Bengaluru, Mar 15: Former Karnataka chief minister and senior BJP leader B S Yediyurappa was booked under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (Pocso) Act on Thursday for allegedly sexually assaulting a minor at his residence in Bengaluru last month.

Yediyurappa, 81, was booked after a woman lodged a complaint saying that she visited his residence on February 2 seeking justice in a rape case against her daughter and sought that a special investigation team (SIT) be formed to look into the case.

According to the first information report (FIR), Yediyurappa allegedly took the minor to a room, closed the door and sexually assaulted her. The woman further alleged in the FIR that when she confronted Yediyurappa, he said that he was checking if the girl was raped or not. Yediyurappa later allegedly apologised and asked the woman not to reveal the matter to anyone.

The Sadashivanagar police in Bengaluru have registered a case under Section 8 (commit sexual assault) of the Pocso Act and Section 354 (a) (sexual harassment) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC).

Reacting to the allegations, the former CM said that around one-and-a-half months ago, they (the victim and her mother) had come to his house seeking help and he had taken them inside. 

“After listening to her, I called the city police commissioner B Dayananda over phone seeking to address her problem. Later, they spoke against me and I then suspected that there is some health problem with her. I sent them to city police commissioner’s office. I even gave her some money as they were in distress. I came to know that an FIR has been registered and will look into it. But this is what I get for helping someone,” he added.

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March 21,2024

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Mangaluru: A man from Dakshina Kannada was duped of Rs 2.5 lakh after he was promised a Poland visa.

In a complaint, a resident of Belthangady, stated that the accused, Manoj, had promised a job for his son in Poland. 

Between May 22 of last year and March 19, he handed over Rs 2.2 lakh in various phases, citing different reasons.

However, since the accused failed to provide a visa or return the money, a case was registered at the Dharmasthala police station under IPC sections 417 and 420.

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March 28,2024

Mangaluru, Mar 28: Dakshina Kannada deputy commissioner Mullai Muhilan MP has warned the individuals and political parties against the poll code violations during private events. 
 
“Private events such as marriages, birthdays, housewarming ceremonies, and other non-political programmes do not require any permission. However, one should ensure that there is no violation of the model code of conduct (MCC) at these functions. Permission is needed if the events are attended by politicians or candidates,” the DC said. 

He said that these gatherings will be under the surveillance of MCC teams, as there are chances of luring voters by campaigning and supplying food, said the DC. The district has 38,386 new voters, of which, 19,619 are men.

He said that the notification of election in Dakshina Kannada Lok Sabha constituency will be issued soon, and the filing of nominations will be held between 11 am and 3 pm till April 4. 

Only five persons, including the candidate, will be allowed to enter the returning officer’s chamber to submit the nominations. A facilitation centre will be opened at the DC’s office. 

The expenditure of the candidate will be counted from the day the candidate files the nomination.

The DC said that the district is not an expenditure-sensitive constituency. Assistant expenditure observers and expenditure observers will monitor the expenditure of the candidates. An expenditure book will be provided to the candidate to record expenditure incurred, he explained.

Further, he said that no election materials can be printed without the name and address of the publishers, and the number of copies printed. Separate permission should be availed for procession prior to the submission of nomination papers from the ARO office, through the single-window system.

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