'Are you holy? Will expose your scams too!’ Karnataka CM’s warning to Cong

Mangaluru: The block level and District Congress Committee presidents in the state will be changed in the next one month for better reach into society and bring in organisational fortification, said Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee working president G C Chandrasheker on Saturday.

The All India Congress Committee and KPCC have a vision for bringing a change in how the party works with the last man and woman in the state, he said at a press conference here.

"We are looking at bringing development models into the state with a new vision. We are a party that likes to work with the opposition in the developmental aspects and keep all other matters away that do not relate to the development of the state.

"We have a great respect for the people of the coast who are considered to be forward-looking and perceptible, but it is also true that we do not have the numbers in the upper house and in the Urban Local Bodies (ULBs)," he said.

"Our endeavour is to not only create a strong pro-development workforce at the base level by strengthening the second and third level leadership in the state," he said.

Chandrasheker, who is also a Rajya Sabha member, said that he and his four colleagues of the rank of working presidents of the KPCC are going to every district to infuse the new thinking in our workers and leaders.

"This move will get a new surge considering the party is facing byelections in Shiggaon, Chennapatna and Sandhur segments and also vacant seats in the legislative council, followed by elections to the Urban Local Bodies and Panchayats" he said.

When asked about the reason for the changes, Chandrashekar said most of the people have already lived their tenures. The party wants to reward those who have not been given tickets to contest in the 2023 state assembly elections and 2024 Lok Sabha elections for political reasons.

There are quite good leaders and hard-working ground level workers who have great potential to lead the party in the coming years, he said.

"Women will get at least one top post in all District Congress Committees and block levels. There is also a move to give responsible positions for the workers and leaders coming from different strata of society, which are deliverable. The party will not shy away from it," he said.

The other two working presidents, Dr Manjunath Bhandary and Vasanth Kumar, were also present at the press conference.

Kumar said some of the regions in the state are dominated by the BJP. "We want to end this run and defeat the divisive models of the BJP." Bhandary said the Indian National Congress was aiming at a high development phase in the state and involve the opposition parties and their leaders in the development plans in the state. 

The founder of Taiwan's Gold Apollo, Hsu Ching-Kuang denied that his company manufactured the pagers used in the explosions that occurred in Lebanon on Tuesday, resulting in at least nine fatalities and nearly 3,000 injuries.

The detonations were triggered simultaneously by pagers used by militant-group Hezbollah members across the country.

News agency Reuters reported that images of the destroyed pagers revealed a format and stickers on the back that were consistent with those produced by Gold Apollo.

A high-ranking Lebanese security official said that Hezbollah had placed an order for 5,000 pagers from the Taiwanese company.

Earlier, a New York Times (NYT) report said that pagers used by Hezbollah members that simultaneously exploded on Tuesday came from Taiwan, with Lebanon claiming that explosives packed in sometime before they arrived in Lebanon.

However, Hsu clarified that the pagers involved in the incident were manufactured by a European company called BAC, which had the right to use Gold Apollo's brand. "The product was not ours. It was only that it had our brand on it," he said, without disclosing the name of the European manufacturer. Hsu further said that Gold Apollo was also a victim in this situation.

"We are a responsible company. This is very embarrassing," Hsu said.

According to media reports, Hezbollah's fighters started using pagers believing they could avoid Israeli tracking of their locations.

Hezbollah blames Israel, vows 'punishment'

Hezbollah vowed revenge against Israel following accusations that the latter was responsible for detonating pagers throughout Lebanon.

Ziad Makary, the Lebanese information minister, denounced the detonation of the pagers, which are commonly used by Hezbollah and other groups in Lebanon for communication purposes. He labeled the incident as an "Israeli aggression". Meanwhile, Hezbollah declared that Israel would face "its fair punishment" for the explosions.

Nagpur: Union Minister Nitin Gadkari on Sunday teased his cabinet colleague Ramdas Athawale over his ability to hold onto his cabinet spot across multiple governments. "It may not be guaranteed that our government will return for a fourth term, but what is definitely guaranteed is that Ramdas Athawale will become a minister," he remarked at an event in Maharashtra's Nagpur.

The playful jibe, with Mr Athawale present on stage, was followed by Mr Gadkari clarifying that he was "just joking."

Mr Athawale, leader of the Republican Party of India (RPI), has served as a minister three times and expressed confidence in continuing his streak if the BJP returns to power.

Mr Athawale on Sunday said his party RPI (A), an ally in the ruling Mahayuti government in Maharashtra, should get to contest on at least 10 to 12 seats in the upcoming assembly elections. Addressing a press conference in Nagpur, Mr Athawale said the RPI-A will contest the election on its party symbol and ask for three to four seats in Vidarbha, including north Nagpur, Umred (Nagpur), Umarkhed in Yavatmal and Washim.

Mr Athawale's party is part of the Mahayuti alliance, comprising the BJP, Shiv Sena led by Chief Minister Eknath Shinde and Ajit Pawar's NCP.

The Union minister said, "The RPI-A has made a list of 18 probable seats, which it will be sharing with the Mahayuti partners in a few days and expects to get at least 10 to 12 seats in the seat-sharing pact." He said the BJP, Shiv Sena and NCP should give four seats each from their quota for his party.

In Palghar earlier this week, Mr Athawale claimed that due to the inclusion of the Ajit Pawar-led NCP in the Mahayuti government, the RPI (A) did not get any ministerial berth in the state despite a promise.

He claimed that the party was promised cabinet positions, chairmanship of two corporations, and roles in district-level committees, but all this could not happen because of Pawar's inclusion.

The elections to 288 assembly seats in Maharashtra are likely to be held in November.

In the current assembly, the BJP is the single largest party with 103 MLAs, followed by Shiv Sena 40, NCP 41, Congress 40, Shiv Sena (UBT) 15, NCP (SP) 13 and others 29. Some seats are vacant.