Bengaluru Apr 25 PTI Former Chief Minister Siddaramaiah has condemned the arrest of Gujarat independent MLA Jignesh Mevani in Assam over a tweet In a set of tweets the senior Congress leader flayed the BJP for silencing the dissent through immoral means I condemn BJP4India govts act to snatch away freedom of speech by arresting Gujarat MLA Dalit leader jigneshmevani80 Silencing the dissent critics through immoral means is an autocratic approach Siddaramaiah tweeted He called upon all true Indians who respect Constitution of India to stand with MevaniSiddaramaiah said many more Jignesh Mevanis will emerge to fight against the fascist BJP government Mevani was re-arrested in Kokrajhar by the Assam Police on Monday for allegedly assaulting officials after a court granted him bail in a case related to a tweet by him against Prime Minister Narendra Modi The independent MLA supported by the Congress was booked under IPC Sections related to voluntarily causing hurt assault or criminal force to deter public servant from discharge of his duty and others police said The Gujarat legislator was arrested on April 19 from Palanpur town in Gujarat after an FIR was registered against him in Kokrajhar PTI GMS NVG NVG

Bengaluru Apr 25 PTI Hindu organisations are up in arms against a Christian school for making Bible classes compulsory for even non-Christian students The more-than-century old Clarence High School here has come under the scanner of the Hindu outfits for directing all the students including non-Christians to compulsorily take part in Bible lessons According to details shared by Mohan Gowda spokesperson of the Hindu Janajagruthi Samithi the institution forced parents to sign a declaration in which they have to accept that their child attended Bible classes In the Declaration by Parents it was said You affirm that your child will attend all classes including morning assembly scripture class and clubs for hisher own moral and spiritual welfare and will not object to carrying the Bible and Hymn book during hisher stay at Clarence High School Gowda said the policies of the school say only those parents and children who have no objection to the guidelines can apply for admission This is nothing but compelling someone to follow someone elses faith which violates the Supreme Court ruling and misuse of Article 25 of the Indian Constitution dealing with religious liberty It also violates the Child Rights Protection Act Parents have also expressed their anger against the policy the Hindu activist claimed On Monday the Hindu activists visited the school and spoke to the school management regarding this They said they have apprised the Block Education Officer about it too They added that they would meet the Primary and Secondary Education Minister B C Nagesh on the issue The school authorities were not available for comment PTI GMS NVG NVG

Bengaluru Apr 24 PTI Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday said sports power is contributing to the power of the country Sports power is becoming the power of India and the identity in sports is becoming the identity of the nation Modi said in a recorded speech played at the inauguration of the Khelo India University Games KIUG -2021 The games that were supposed to take place the previous year could not take place due to the COVID-19 pandemic The Prime Minister said the joy in the faces of sportspersons who took part in the Tokyo Olympics was not just about winning medals but about playing the games for the nation Modi asked the students taking part in the KIUG-2021 not to think that they were playing for themselves their families or the universities but for the country This spirit will help win medals in future Modi said in his video message The Prime Minister said the students should play with dedication and practice for success You should play with dedication because many of you play at the State-level national-level and international-level Modi reminded the players He hailed Bengaluru for emerging as a sports hub besides making a name in the ITBT sector and also as a startup hub For this he congratulated the Karnataka government Vice-President Venkaiah Naidu who inaugurated the event at the Kanteerava Stadium welcomed the idea of including native games like Mallakhamb Indigenous games should be given top priority Naidu said He also called upon the participants to inculcate team spirit for sucess The Vice-President told the gathering that sports activities should be encouraged at the grassroots- level Speaking about the nation entering the international sports arena Naidu said India being a young nation with a substantial young population can fair better than any country in the world Nation and culture together make for a better future Naidu said He called upon people especially youngsters to lead a healthy lifestyle People look at the West leaving the best here Naidu said in his inimitable style A colourful culture programme amid the dazzling light followed The star attraction was the Mallakhamb by the participants Karnataka Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai Union Minister for Sports Minister Anurag Thakur and Karnataka Sports Minister Dr K C Narayana Gowda too addressed the gathering PTI GMS SA NVG NVG