Author: Rahul M

Several bike taxi riders across Karnataka have launched an indefinite hunger strike demanding the withdrawal of the government’s ban on bike taxis. The protest, which has spread across cities such as Bengaluru, Mysuru, Mandya, Davangere, and Ramanagara since Sunday, is being led by the Bike Taxi Welfare Association, which has submitted an open letter to Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and Transport Minister Ramalinga Reddy. In the letter dated June 27, the association appealed for a clear and inclusive regulatory framework, stating that the ban had stripped thousands of gig workers of their primary source of income. The letter noted that bike…

The Bengaluru police Sunday arrested a man from Assam for allegedly killing his live-in partner and disposing of her body in a municipal garbage truck following a domestic dispute. The police said the woman, Asha, 40, and the accused, Samshuddin, 32, worked for a housekeeping company, and had been in a relationship for the past 18 months. Asha was a widow from Bengaluru who had two adopted children living in a hostel, said the police. Samshuddin, who is married and has his wife and children in Assam, had been cohabiting with Asha for five to six months, they said. According…

Chief Minister Siddaramaiah will on July 4 meet farmers protesting against the acquisition of 1,777 acres of land, spread across 13 villages in rural Bengaluru, by the Karnataka Industrial Area Development Board (KIADB), and discuss the matter at a Cabinet meeting on July 2.Around 800 families from these villages in the Devanahalli-Channarayapatna region in rural Bengaluru have been protesting since 2022 against the acquisition of land by KIADB for a high-tech defence and aerospace sector park. The original decision for the land acquisition was taken in January 2022 by the BJP government headed by Basavaraj Bommai. Amid the protests, Large…

Three people were arrested for allegedly murdering a lecturer in Karnataka’s Chikkaballapur after cheating him of Rs 15 lakh in the guise of securing him a teaching job in London, the police said Sunday. The deceased has been identified as Chintamani native Ramanji, 30, a double-degree holder with an MSc in agriculture. He worked as a lecturer at a reputed private institution in Bengaluru. The police said that while one of the accused, Sudhakar, is Ramanji’s friend, the others are Sudhakar’s brother Manoj, and friend Manjunath. All three were sent to 14 days’ judicial custody. Story continues below this ad…

The Bengaluru police have booked a woman for allegedly insulting and obstructing Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) officials during a door-to-door visit at an apartment to collect data for a survey of sub castes among Scheduled Castes (SCs) on June 23. The alleged incident occurred at an apartment within the HSR Layout police station limits between 1.15 pm and 1.45 pm. The police booked Pavithra K, a resident of a fourth-floor apartment in Sector 6 of the HSR Layout, based on the complaint of Ramya S, BBMP’s Bommanahalli Zone Commissioner. When the BBMP team, including revenue inspectors and tax collectors, visited flat number…

Bengaluru policeman Sunday succumbed during treatment of injuries sustained in a road accident five days ago. The deceased has been identified as Mahboob Guddahalli, 40, a sub-inspector attached to the Thalaghattapura police station. The car that the sub-inspector was travelling in was hit by a truck near Surya City under Hebbagodi police limits. Two suspects in a drug case, identified as Sayed Wasim and Sayed Amir, who were being brought to the Thalaghattapura police station in the car, fled the scene after the collision. The truck and the truck driver involved in the accident could not be identified till the…

Forest department officials busted a poaching operation and seized 74 kg of wild meat near Bengaluru on Sunday. During the operation, officials seized carcasses of nine deer and one wild boar, along with two rifles, cartridges, two cars, and two motorbikes. Based on a tip-off that a gang of poachers was hunting wild animals and selling meat, a car was inspected at the Bannerghatta-NICE Road junction in the city. An accused identified as Prathap, 31, was arrested after carcasses of four deer and a boar were found in the car. Based on his statement, a raid was carried out at…

A day after Cooperation Minister K N Rajanna indicated that Public Works Department minister Satish Jarkiholi will be the next Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) chief, Jarkiholi Sunday played down the remarks. Responding to media queries in Belagavi, Jarkiholi said, “It might be his personal opinion. He had said it many times. It is not new. Let us wait for a decision.” Rajanna had told reporters Saturday that a leadership change in the state was inevitable, and Jarkiholi would take over as the KPCC chief in the coming days. His remarks came after Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, along with Cabinet ministers…

The Chikkaballapur district administration has banned public entry to Nandi Hills and Skandagiri Hills between June 30 and July 3 on account of the state Cabinet meeting scheduled to be held at the Nandi Hills on July 2 (Wednesday). The order has also restricted the booking of rooms in the hill-top resort on Nandi Hills for the four days. Justifying the decision to ban the entry of the public, P N Ravindra, Deputy Commissioner, Chikkaballapur, said there is only one road to go up and come down the Nandi Hills, and that route will see a lot of movement of…

Three men have been arrested in connection with the recent deaths of a tigress and her four cubs at Male Mahadeshwara Hills Wildlife Sanctuary — India’s largest single-day tiger mortality since Project Tiger’s launch. The accused — Konappa, Madaraju, and Nagaraj — are residents of Koppa village within the sanctuary. They have been charged under the Wildlife Protection Act 1972 and the Karnataka Forest Act 1963. A local court sent the accused to judicial custody for three days. Forest Minister Eshwar Khandre confirmed the arrests on Saturday, stating that all three suspects were directly involved in poisoning cattle carcass that…