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No, government is not going to fix AC temperature in your homes

Nirwa Mehta
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No, government is not going to fix AC temperature in your homes

As if the heat wave-like condition and dust storms up north are not enough, the temperatures on Twitter soared as Times of India reported how the government is now going to decide on how much should be the temperature on your air conditioner.

Times of India news report on air conditioner temperature.

The Times of India report states that soon the new air conditioners will come with a default setting of 24 degrees Celsius and will allow temperature setting between 24 and 26 degrees Celsius only. This move will promote a greener efficiency in electricity consumption. While the first part of the sentence is correct, that the new ACs may soon come with a default setting of 24 degrees Celsius, the latter part that the temperature setting between 24 and 26 degrees Celsius would only be allowed is false.

As per an official statement released by the ministry of power, an adivsory went out to AC manufacturers that

…the manufacturers were advised to keep the default setting of air conditioners at 24 degree Celsius and also to carry out labelling indicating the optimum temperature setting for the benefits of consumers both from financial and their health points of view. These temperatures setting will be in the range of 24-26 degree Celsius.

This means that the “LABELLING” on the machine would have benefits of setting temperature on optimum level from both, financial as well as health viewpoints. And that such optimum temperature range is between 24-26 degree Celsius.

The statement further reads,

After an awareness campaign of 4-6 months, followed by a survey to gather public feedback, the Ministry of Power would consider making this mandatory.  If all the consumers adopt, this will result in savings of 20 billion units of electricity in one year alone.

All the manufacturers and associations of air-conditioner manufacturers present in the meeting have agreed on this and appreciated it as a step in the right direction.  Accordingly, they have agreed to support this campaign.

Again, this ‘mandatory’ step is of ‘labelling’ which currently would be an ‘advisory’. Which means, for next 4-6 months, the ‘labelling’ and setting the default temperature (which is obviously adjustable as per a consumer’s wish) will be set to 24 degrees.

So, no, the government is not deciding what temperature should be kept for your air conditioner. It is just issuing and adivsory.

As expected, the journalists, who are usually entrusted with the task of checking facts, were the first to question the government’s motive behind this. While there were many, the one who shone bright like a diamond under the blazing sun was Nidhi Razdan of NDTV, who has earlier displayed her lack of basic understanding on how things work.

Nidhi referred to this ‘move’ as ‘Nanny State 101’.


Good Samaritans who are blessed with an IQ of more than a teaspoon took it upon themselves to explain it to Nidhi how ‘default settings’ work. They also explained how such steps are being taken across the world to combat global warming and other environment related issues.


Japan has introduced ‘Cool Biz’ campaign, where to reduce energy costs, workplaces have set their temperature at 28 degrees Celsius. Such campaign there runs from May to October.

But Nidhi was adamant that government must issue a clarification for the ‘order’.


The confusion was caused by wrong informtation reported by the Times of India, but then there is no cure for people like Nidhi who want to stay confused.

Clashes between two communities forces Hindu family to flee from Saharanpur

OpIndia Staff
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Clashes between two communities forces Hindu family to flee from Saharanpur

Alleging lack of action by the police and fearing harassment from goons, a Hindu family has fled their village, Banheda Khas, in Devbandh, Saharanpur. As per reports, an argument took place between one Amit and one Salim over the credit of supply of cold drink, which quickly turned violent. According to Amit, he is being pressured to withdraw his complaint against the culprits, failing which, they threatened him that he will be thrown out of the village.

As per reports, Amit Kumar supplied cold drinks in the village and Salim was his old debtor. On 15th June, Salim asked for more credit, to which Amit declined, which quickly took a violent turn. Amit alleged that the police, instead of filing a complaint, filed a non-cognizable report, following which Salim has been asking him to withdraw his report.

Fearing for their lives, the family which belongs to the Prajapati community has fled the village. The fear of getting attacked by Salim, they had stopped stepping out of the house, and now have decided to a safer village. Families of Sandeep, Amit, Sohanlal and others have moved from the village to Uttarakhand village.

Earlier, few days after the BJP lost the Kairana by-polls, a Hindu family migrated to Haryana, fearing for their lives from Nadim, their neighbour, who had been allegedly regularly beating them up. Earlier in 2016, a report by NHRC (National Human Rights Commission) reported exodus of over 250 Hindu families from Kairana. The inquiry was undertaken after a complaint was received of a woman belonging to Kashyap caste was abducted, gang-raped and killed.

Tea seller’s daughter’s dreams take off, makes it to flying branch in Indian Air Force

OpIndia Staff
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Tea seller’s daughter’s dreams take off, makes it to flying branch in Indian Air Force

In yet another heartwarming tale of success for people from a humble background, Aanchal Gangwal, daughter of a tea seller from Madhya Pradesh, was among the 22 selected from all over the country to the flying branch of Indian Air Force. She was also the only one from MP. Gangwal, who hails from Neemuch district in north-west part of MP, decided to join the armed forces after she saw them rescue flood-affected areas of Uttarakhand a few years back. The family’s financial condition did not deter her from her dreams of soaring the skies. She worked hard to avail scholarships and also prepared for various competitive exams.

She cracked the Air Force Common Admission Test (AFCAT) and cleared her interview in the sixth attempt. About 6 lakh students had appeared for the AFCAT and only 22 of these were selected. Of these 22, five were girls.

Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan even took to Twitter to congratulate her for her perseverance and determination.

These inspiring stories show how where there is a will there is a way. Earlier, Deshaladan Charan, son of a poor tea seller in Jaisalmer, cracked the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) exams and ranked an impressive 82. A coolie in Ernakulam, Kerala, had also cracked Kerala Public Service Commission exams with the help of free WiFi at the railway station.

Lingayat minority status granted by Congress ahead of Karnataka elections challenged in High Court

Jhankar Mohta
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Lingayat minority status granted by Congress ahead of Karnataka elections challenged in High Court

As per reports, advocate Amruthesh NP has filed a petition in the Karnataka High Court challenging the state’s decision to grant minority status to the Lingayat community. The primary grounds for the challenge is that Veershaivas and Lingayats fall under the Hindu religion and the unity and integrity of these communities must not be impaired.


The petition explains the history of both Veerashaivas and Lingayats. It emphasizes that both these communities are, in fact, synonymous. It is further stated in the petition that the attempt to portray both communities as different from one another and to accord minority status upon them was made by people with political intentions.

In a desperate bid to retain power, the Congress was seen leaving no stone unturned ahead of the Karnataka elections by adopting an approach which did not focus on the achievements of the Siddaramaiah government but broadly focussing towards disrupting the apple cart of the BJP. Congress was, during its campaigning in the run-up to Karnataka elections resorting to every political, communal and social trick in the book to dent the electoral prospects of the opposition parties. More than a positive vote for itself, it seems to be banking on a division of votes amongst the opposition to retain power. In continuation of the divide and rule policy of the Congress, Karnataka CM Siddaramaiah recommended a separate minority religion tag for the Lingayat community.

Law Minister, T.B. Jayachandran, had said quoting the cabinet decision, “After due deliberations and some discussion on concerns of various sections of society cabinet has decided to accept the recommendations of the state minority commission which based on the report of an expert committee, Karnataka State Minorities Commission (KSMC) headed by Justice Nagamohan Das has recommended considering grant of recognition as religious minority to the Lingayat and Veerashaiva Lingayat, believers of Basava Tattva, under Section 2(d) of the Karnataka Minorities Act. It was also decided to forward the same to the Central government for notifying under Section 2(d) of the Central Minority Commission Act.

However, this diabolic move of the Congress party, trying to throw in a number of identity cards, with an aim to divide the Hindu society on caste, region and religious basis had been rejected by the people. The Vokkaliga and Lingayats, who make up a significant percentage of the overall population of Karnataka, had emphatically voted for non-Congress parties.

While the party was busy playing caste politics, Senior Congress leader Jaffer Sharief was quick to make a jibe at his parties tactics by calling the Congress Lingayat card a ‘political stunt’ and stated that no one could ‘fool them’ by trying to divide them. He also stated that the move which saw the Congress government in Karnataka recommend a minority tag for the Lingayat community will not succeed at polls.

Punjab : AAP leader’s son among two found dead because of suspected drug overdose

OpIndia Staff
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Punjab : AAP leader’s son among two found dead because of suspected drug overdose

Two young men have reportedly died of a suspected drug overdose at Chheharta area in Amritsar city. According to reports, one of the victims is Karan Pasi, the son of local AAP leader Moti Lal Pasi.

Neighbours of the deceased Karan Pasi reportedly alerted the police after foul smell started coming from the house locked from inside. They reportedly peeped through keyholes and noticed two people lying inside. Police have recovered the bodies of 26-year-old Karan Pasi and his friend Harpreet Singh in the early hours of Friday. Both men had reportedly died at least 48 hours earlier.

Inside the house, the bodies were on a bed and the police have also recovered syringes near the bodies. Harish Behal, SHO of Chheharta station has reportedly told media that they had recovered syringes from the spot but the exact cause of death will be established only after an autopsy.

Karan Pasi was reportedly married to a girl who lives in New Zealand. He was supposed to travel there in July. Karan’s mother had recently undergone treatment for spine-related ailments from a hospital in Chandigarh and she had gone to her maternal home with Karan’s father.

Karan is believed to have called his friend Harpreet to his house in the absence of his parents. Karan’s father Moti Lal Pasi is a local AAP leader. According to reports Karan’s family members had no idea about his drug habit. The bodies had started to decompose emanating foul smell.

Drug abuse is believed to be prevalent in Punjab. Another man was found dead at Paragdas Chowk in Amritsar in what according to police is also a suspected drug overdose case. Recently on 9th June, an NRI from Cyprus was also found dead in his hotel room. According to reports, as many as 9 deaths have happened due to a drug overdose in the last 1 month.

Normalising Paedophilia: I am afraid the ‘progressives’ are at it again

K Bhattacharjee
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Normalising Paedophilia: I am afraid the ‘progressives’ are at it again

The latest fad to have gripped the West after ‘Fat Pride’ appears to be the normalization of paedophilia. In an independently organized TEDx event at the University of Würzburg (Germany), Mirjam Heine, who has a background in Psychology waxed eloquence on the misery of paedophiles and how they are unfortunate humans deserving of our sympathy and understanding.


Heine talks of a character, Jonas, to evoke sympathy in the hearts of people for paedophiles. She begins her talk with the words, “Let me tell you about Jonas, Jonas is 19 years old. He studies law in Munich. In his spare time, he likes to play soccer.” And then, began her ‘heartfelt’ defence of paedophiles. “Jonas has a secret which he thinks he cannot share with anyone, not even with his best friend or his parents. He is just too afraid of anger, rejection and repulsion. Jonas knows that he has to suppress his sexual drive for his entire life and that there will never be a loving or fulfilling partnership that he can enter. Because Jonas is a paedophile.”

During her entire talk, Heine maintains a carefully constructed tone of sorrow and dejection. The objective of the talk appeared to be to absolve paedophiles of their twisted nature and put the blame on the society at large. Heine appears to make the argument that the society at large is equally responsible for the crimes that paedophiles commit as it has little tolerance for paedophiles and the illness has a lot of stigmas associated with it. She says, “We shouldn’t increase the suffering of paedophiles by excluding them, by blaming and mocking them. By doing that, we increase their isolation and we increase the chance of child sexual abuse.”

Heine appears to have hopped on to the fledgeling #NotAllPedophiles movement. She emphasizes that there is an urgent need to distinguish between paedophilia and child sexual abuse and that not all paedophiles sexually abuse children. Heine also calls paedophilia a sexual orientation. She touches on the extent of the menace when she quotes statistics on the prevalence of the illness in our society but their reliability is a matter of dispute “Because paedophilia is so secretive and so few people are willing to admit it, there is no meaningful way to get a reliable estimate,” as said by Dr James Cantor who is a psychologist and sexual behaviour scientist at the University of Toronto.

Heine’s solution to the entire problem appears to be more visibility and tolerance for paedophiles. This is consistent with current trends of homosexual and transgender activism. Activists appear to believe that the problem for the vastly high rates of HIV infection among the community and depression and suicide rates could be solved by a little more tolerance and that another gay character in their favourite movie. And these unhealthy trends in LGBT activism have been picked up by paedophile apologists. A criminal psychologist in the past has also claimed that paedophilia is a sexual orientation like homosexuality and heterosexuality.

Apologists and advocacy groups for Paedophilia often equate the illness with homosexuality and heterosexuality by asserting that it’s a sexual orientation despite the fact that homosexual and heterosexual intercourse involves adults who are capable of informed consent.

Paedophile advocacy is not a very recent phenomenon. Readers might be surprised to know that there was an actual paedophile political party in the Netherlands which was allowed to contest the country’s general election by the Judiciary in 2006. The primary agenda of the party, which called itself ‘Brotherly Love, Freedom and Diversity party (PNVD)’, was the legalization of child pornography and the lowering of the age of consent to 12 years old.

There is a significant section of paedophiles who perceive themselves to be part of a social movement to gain acceptance for their actions. They appear to believe that age of consent should be abolished and that children are capable of giving informed consent and that paedophiles are even beneficial for children. Paedophile advocacy groups exist all over the world and there was even an international paedophile advocacy group, ‘International Pedophile and Child Emancipation’. Attempts are underway to distinguish between ‘Good Pedophiles and Bad Pedophiles’ as well with the advent of an internet-based mutual support group for paedophiles, ‘Virtuous Pedophiles’, whose members claim to believe that all sex between adults and children is wrong.

Kerala Communist chief mounts a strange defence, says ‘BJP workers can join other parties in future, only if they are alive’

OpIndia Staff
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Kerala Communist chief mounts a strange defence, says ‘BJP workers can join other parties in future, only if they are alive’

The Kerala chief of the Communist Party of India (Marxist), Kodiyeri Balakrishnan, in a recent interview to Indian Express, has mounted a strange defence against political violence. He said that “Only if BJP workers are alive can they join our party tomorrow”.

CPM Kerala chief Kodiyeri Balakrishnan also denied that his party’s involvement in any way in the state’s political killings and rejected allegations that his party-men aimed to eliminate those from rival fronts. The Communist party leaders seem to have been on the back foot since the rise of the BJP in the state.

“RSS grows in India through communal violence. Like other parts, you cannot foment communal riots here (in Kerala). So here, they are trying to destroy the Marxist party. We don’t need to do that. Only when a BJP worker is alive tomorrow, can he join the Communist party. If he is not there tomorrow, how can he turn? So many BJP leaders are coming towards us…OK, Vasu, Unnikrishnan, Asokan have all joined us. We are not trying to eliminate anyone. No communist will think like that because that person should join us tomorrow. Only if workers of other parties are alive can they join the communist party”, Balakrishnan said.

Balakrishna also spoke about the recent Chengannur by-elections, in which the Communist party had won. He said that the mandate is a prize for the secular politics of the LDF and the policies of our government. He is of the view that the BJP has been always active as a ‘sleeping group’ in Kerala politics. “In past elections, RSS men opposed to us voted for the Congress. They wanted to defeat the CPM so they voted for Congress”, Balakrishnan said.

When questioned about the inefficiency of the state police department in handling law and order issues in the state, Balakrishnan responded by saying that the problems have persisted during UDF regime also but has decreased when compared to UDF regime. He blamed the media for sensationalizing the issue when incidents happen.

The party chief also said that there is a need of an alliance of parties to counter BJP in the coming 2019 elections. He said, he is hopeful of getting more than 18 seats out of 20 seats in Kerala alone. He was of the view that, there should be doing more in the states like West Bengal and Tripura to increase their tally in the next elections.

The party chief said he is open to talks with BJP/RSS leaders whenever such incidents happen. He said that the party has taken a decision to take a lead to ensure such attacks don’t happen. “The party will not condone anyone who gets involved in such attacks. Some incidents have taken place where party workers were involved and we have thrown them out of the party”, he said.

Kannur, the hometown of Kerala chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan has been witnessing violent bloodbaths with political murders since a while now. Kannur district is notorious for left-wing terror and has been termed as India’s ‘political murder capital’ by many commentators.

The killings of the RSS/BJP workers have been on the rise since the Communists took power in the state. The state Chief minister has been a mute spectator, who seems to have no interest in stopping the alleged massacre of the RSS/BJP in the state by the communists.

The influence of fundamentalist Islam in the state of Kerala grew substantially over the last few years and is a grave cause of concern for national security. In November last year, Kerala Police confirmed that 6 more youths from Kannur, who allegedly worked with the radical group Popular Front of India (PFI), have joined ISIS.

Trouble mounts for Kerala Cardinal as Vatican removes him as head of archdiocese over land deal row

Jhankar Mohta
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Trouble mounts for Kerala Cardinal as Vatican removes him as head of archdiocese over land deal row

As reported by The Indian Express, the long drawn controversy over allegations of dubious financial dealings causing huge losses to the Church reached a crescendo, with Cardinal George Alencherry on Friday being stripped of all administrative powers as the head of the Ernakulam archdiocese by the Vatican, though, he will continue to remain the Cardinal and head of the Church, he would not have any role in the governance of the Archdiocese of Ernakulam.


The letter from Rome announced Bishop Jacob Manathodath of Palakkad diocese to be appointed as the new apostolic administrator of the archdiocese. It also mentioned the decision to remove Alencherry was taken in the light of the communication received from the Apostolic Nuncio.

This unprecedented move from Pope Francis is a severe blow on Alencherry, who is the head of the Kochi-based Syro-Malabar Catholic Church and is also among the Indian Cardinals eligible to elect the Pope.

The Archdiocese had suffered a loss of 90 crores following a controversial land dealing involving criminal conspiracy, breach of trust and misappropriation of money executed by the Cardinal in 2016.

Action has been recommended against Cardinal George Alencherry for causing loss to the diocese. It has been recommended by a church panel probing land deals in the Archdiocese of Ernakulam, a case which also involves black money. The report was then sent to Rome via Apostolic Nuncio (the Vatican representative) in Delhi.

Church sources said that Rome had taken serious note of the outrage and demand of around 200 priests in Kerala’s Kochi who had staged a protest outside Cardinal George Alencherry’s house to demand his resignation over his alleged involvement in shady land deals.

After being removed as the apostolic administrator of the archdiocese the Cardinal would, however, have to explain to the public the locus standi for his continuation as the head of the Church.

Cardinal George Alencherry, the head of Syro-Malabar Catholic Church had found himself in big trouble after the Kerala High Court directed the police to file a criminal complaint against him and three others, namely, two priests Joshy Puthuva, Sebastian Vadakkumpadan and Saju Varghese Kunnel, a real estate broker involved in the land deals, alleging their involvement in a dubious land dealing.

This case pertains to the Cardinal, been accused of favouring a middleman who sold Church land worth 27 crores for a price of 13 crores. In spite of selling below its market value, the Church had received only 9.3 crores. In his defence, the Cardinal had claimed that the balance had remained unpaid due to demonetization.

Actions are the seed of fate, deeds grow into destiny: Surrounded by immense controversies, little did the Cardinal know that whatever he would wish for would unexpectedly come true. Had he known he would definitely use his intellect before putting across a hilarious ‘holy’ defence in front of the High Court. He had claimed in the High Court that only the Pope can punish him under Canon law if he had committed any wrongdoing in the land sale case. As Bob Marley once said, ‘Every man gotta right to decide his own destiny.’

Kerala’s Chief Minister Pinarayi and the politics of tragedy

Madhavan
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Kerala’s Chief Minister Pinarayi and the politics of tragedy

Over the last few days, those outside Kerala have heard a lot about the state’s Chief Minister, Pinarayi Vijayan. He was in Delhi for the Niti Aayog meeting and had a couple of very busy days. He had a conference with the CMs of Andhra, Karnataka and West Bengal; went to meet the CM of Delhi, Kejriwal, at the Lieutenant Governor’s residence along with the other 3 CMs but Kejriwal did not want to come out and the LG did not want to let them in; became party to a letter addressed to PM Modi about Kejriwal’s dharna inside the LG’s residence (not sure what the PM was supposed to do if Kejri didn’t want to come out); then went to meet Kejriwal’s wife to show sympathy.

About the same time that Vijayan was politicking in Delhi and basking in the limelight of a fawning mainstream media, the state he is supposed to be governing was going through a natural tragedy that has to date claimed 14 Malayalee lives, and counting, including many women and children.

It is highly unlikely that you, dear reader, have heard or read about the landslides that occurred in Kozhikode district of Kerala on 14/15 June in the mainstream media (I haven’t seen any headline coverage). Must be the tyranny of distance! The situation is so bad that the administration has banned vehicular traffic on an important, arterial road in the district. But the state’s CM who should have been with his people, helping them and consoling them, was busy in faraway Delhi, posing for cameras and poking his nose into the politics of another state. All the while his administration has been twisting every possible regulation to protect an illegal amusement park owned by a ruling party MLA and built by encroaching land in an environmentally sensitive and where there are reports of fresh landslides. And the worst part of this saga is that Vijayan, being the CM, has not bothered to even visit the disaster site or meet the victims’ families.

This kind of insensitive behaviour is nothing new to Comrade Pinarayi. By now it is pretty well known in the state that he holds petty politicking to be more important than constitutional duties or humane values. There are several examples that establish this. RSS Swayamsevak Vadikkal Ramakrishnan was one of the first victims of the Marxist party’s bloodlust in Kerala and  Vijayan was one of the accused in the case.

Since then he has developed a reputation for being an expert operator of politics of violence in the state. In a more recent example, a young boy named Jishnu Pranoy was found dead under suspicious circumstances in a private engineering college. When his parents tried to approach the Chief Minister, seeking a fair investigation into their son’s death, not only did he deny them an audience but also remained a mute spectator when the bereaved mother was dragged through the streets and assaulted by the police.

There are several more examples of Vijayan abdicating basic human empathy and duty towards his people in pursuit of a narrow political ideology. When two political activists, one belonging to the CPI(M) and the other to RSS, were murdered in Mahe earlier this year, the Kerala CM chose to visit and console the family of only his party worker.

In a similar incident that happened a couple of years ago, when a BJP karyakarta was murdered by comrades just a short distance from his house in Pinarayi, his native village, the CM visited the place shortly after that but chose to not visit the grieving family who was literally his neighbors.

He, similarly, has to date not visited, offered condolences or apologized to the widow and 2-year-old kid of the Dalit man named Sreejith murdered by the Kerala police despite being in charge of the state’s Home Ministry. In contrast, he showed extreme agility to go to Haryana and meet the family Junaid who was murdered after getting into a fight over a train seat and even donated 10 lakh rupees. All because he can use to it score political points over BJP and Modi by furthering the dubious beef-lynching narrative.

Clearly, there is a pattern to Vijayan’s empathy; it comes through only if he can use a tragedy to further his political agenda. Otherwise, he doesn’t care for his people, no matter if someone is a member of his party, a neighbour or a citizen living in the state he governs. Compassion is not something that finds a place in his worldview. Every person and incident is relevant only as a means to further his political and buttress his position in power. Constitutional propriety and basic human values are damned.

BJP leader Mohammad Anwar brutally stabbed to death in Karnataka’s Chikmagalur

OpIndia Staff
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BJP leader Mohammad Anwar brutally stabbed to death in Karnataka’s Chikmagalur

BJP General Secretary for Chikmagalur unit, Mohammad Anwar was killed by bike-borne assailants last night. According to reports, 44-year-old Anwar was stabbed several times by unidentified persons around 9.30 PM last night. He succumbed to his injuries on the spot.


According to reports, Anwar was attacked last night near the Gowri Kaluve area. The police have launched an investigation into the incident. None of the attackers has been identified so far. The police have reportedly stated that prima facie, the incident appears to be due to personal animosity.

BJP Karnataka General Secretary and Chikmagaluru MP Shobha Karandlaje have stated that Anwar was killed by fundamentalists. She has added that Anwar has been receiving threats from local fundamentalist goons.


The state BJP has seen may workers killed over the recent months. Several RSS and BJP workers have been killed in the state. The killing of its workers was one of the main issues the BJP had alleged the ruling Congress party with before the Karnataka assembly elections.

In CPM ruled Kerala and TMC ruled West Bengal, several BJP workers have been killed in alleged politically motivated attacks.

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