Gone, red beacon as well as his post - Tipu Sultan Mosque sacks imam

May 17, 2017

Kolkata, May 17: Days after openly defying the Centre's order and stating that he would keep using the red beacon on his vehicle, the Tipu Sultan Mosque trustee board sacked Shahi Imam Maulana Noor-ur Rehman Barkati for "objectionable and inflammatory remarks against the country".

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Notably, Barkati had recently threatened 'jihad' and refused to take off the beacon from his vehicle.

A police complaint was lodged against Barkati by the Board on Monday in Bowbazar police station for forcefully snatching away the keys of the mosque's official room.

Head of the Board, Anwar Ali Shah, told news agency over phone that the office room was opened in the mosque under the direct order of the High Court and is being used to store the official documents.

"The documents of complaints against Imam Barkati is stored in the room. It seems he has taken away the keys to destroy those documents so that it does not reach the trustee board for validation," he had alleged.

Barkati, considered close to West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, is known for his repeated controversial and provocative comments.

Only last week he had warned of a 'jihad' if India was declared a Hindu Rashtra, and also refused to take off the red beacon from his car saying the privilege was granted to the Shahi Imam by the British government.

Following the Centre's ban on the use of red beacon in non-emergency vehicles, Barkati had on May 11 said: "I am a religious leader and I have been using the red beacon for the past several decades. I don't follow the orders of the Centre. Who are they to order me? In Bengal, only the orders of the state government are effective. I will use red beacon. In Bengal, no one has removed red beacon."

A day later, he had claimed that he would not remove the red beacon "even if Prime Minister Narendra Modi asked him to".

His comments were criticised by most Muslim leaders and clerics in the state.

Siddiqullah Chowdhury, state Library Minister and a cleric, had even demonstrated against Barkati on May 13 near the mosque.

A number of police complaints were also lodged against the Imam in different police stations of Bengal.

Later, the Kolkata Police officers visited Barkati and the red beacon was removed from his car.

He had also drawn flak for commenting that Muslims would "fight for Pakistan if India became a Hindu state".

His comments led to a hue and cry, with the BJP and other Sangh Parivar outfits dubbing him "anti-national" and senior West Bengal minister Siddiqullah Chowdhury, regarded as a prominent face of the ruling Trinamool Congress, calling Barkati an RSS agent.

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News Network
March 19,2024

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Bengaluru, Mar 19: Former Karnataka Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai on Monday said that the Congress will split in three months after the upcoming Lok Sabha polls and its impact will be visible on the Siddaramaiah-led state government.

"Due to internal squabbles, the state government will not last long," the BJP leader said.

Talking to reporters on Monday, he said the sitting MP from the Gadag-Haveri constituency, Shivakumar Udasi, has done a lot of development work and implemented the Central government's schemes effectively.

"Prime Minister Narendra Modi will surely become the PM for the third time. The overall response has been good in the Gadag-Haveri Lok Sabha constituency," the former Karnataka chief minister said.

Asked if he was contesting the election in a half-hearted manner in the Gadag-Haveri seat, Bommai said "such a question does not arise when the party's high command gives instructions".

He said he would respect his opponent and not take anyone lightly. 

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News Network
March 16,2024

Mangaluru: In the wake of complaints regarding middlemen menace, sleuths of Lokayukta on Friday, March 15, conducted a raid at the Mangaluru Urban Development Authority. 

The Lokayukta team found unaccounted money and several files, which were not disposed of for a long period.

Lokayukta SP CA Simon said that the Lokayukta has received complaints that middlemen have been interfering in the MUDA office, and files pertaining to the public are not being cleared on time.

A raid that commenced in the evening on March 13, lasted for 18 hours. During the raid, Lokayukta officials found cash in a bag in MUDA office, and also with officials and others. MUDA officials could not inform the source of money found in their office, the SP said.

Further, he said that many people gathered at the MUDA office during the Lokayukta raid, and have raised complaints about the harassment at the urban development authority. “We have gathered evidence for MUDA officials carrying out file disposal processes through brokers on phone calls. The investigation on the MUDA network will be continued,” he said.

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News Network
March 17,2024

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Beltangady, Mar 17: A three-year-old boy was crushed to death under the wheels of an auto-rickshaw in front of his house at Panakaje Mundadi in Belthangady taluk of Dakshina Kannada. 

The gut-wrenching tragedy took place on Saturday, March 16 morning when the boy ran out of home to the road. 

The victim has been identified as Kaushik, the son of Chandrashekhar and Usha couple. Their home is situated adjacent to the main road at Panakaje.

It is learnt that the auto-rickshaw failed to notice the boy who suddenly darted towards the road and hit him. 

Even though the injured boy was rushed to a private hospital in Ujire and later to Mangaluru, he breathed his last. 

The Beltangady traffic police have registered a case in connection with the incident.

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