1. Police Get Preliminary Postmortem Report on Siddhartha
The Government Wenlock District Hospital on Friday, 2 August, submitted a preliminary report of the postmortem conducted on the body of Cafe Coffee Day founder VG Siddhartha, who was found dead in the Netravati on Wednesday morning.
Doctors at the hospital termed it preliminary finding as histopathology and forensic reports are awaited. They refused to divulge the contents of the report, saying it was the Investigation Officer’s prerogative to divulge the details.
Senior police officers, who confirmed having received the report, refused to divulge the details as it is the part of an ongoing investigation process. “We will make the details public at the right time,” a senior officer said.
(Source: The Hindu)
2. Bhaskar Rao Takes Over as Bengaluru Police Commissioner, Predecessor Remains Absent
Bhaskar Rao, a Bengaluru man, on Friday evening, took over the reins of the city police, the first to do so in 36 years. Celebrations, however, were on hold as his predecessor boycotted the event.
As the 35th commissioner of Bengaluru City police, Rao assumed office in unprecedented circumstances. With his predecessor Alok Kumar, who holds the dubious record of helming the Bengaluru City police for one of the shortest terms lasting 47 days, absent, Rao did not receive the customary guard of honour on arrival.
With Alok Kumar not around to hand over the ceremonial baton, Rao picked up the staff lying on the table of his new chamber, before signing the certificate of transfer of charge (CTC) around 6:20 pm to become Bengaluru’s police commissioner.
(Source: The Times of India)
3. Disqualified MLA Vishwanath Quits Electoral Politics, Says Won’t Join BJP
AH Vishwanath, one of the rebel MLAs who resigned from the legislative Assembly and was subsequently disqualified by the Speaker, announced his retirement from electoral politics.
He told reporters in New Delhi on Friday, “I have decided not to contest the by-poll from Hunsur assembly constituency (which he represented), but will continue to remain active in politics.”
Vishwanath, who served as state president of the JD(S) till recently, was among the 17 Congress and JD(S) MLAs, whose resignations, allegedly at the behest of the BJP, ensured the collapse of the previous Congress-JD(S) coalition government. Reports had suggested that some of the rebels, Vishwanath among them, would be inducted into the Yediyurappa’s cabinet.
(Source: The Times of India)
4. Mayor Sorry for Plastic-Wrapped Gift for New CM
For all her talk against plastic, Mayor Gangambike Mallikarjun was caught offering a plastic-wrapped gift to the newly sworn-in Chief Minister B S Yediyurappa, earning the wrath of environmentalists. After a video of her dry fruits basket, covered completely in plastic, went viral on social media, the mayor was forced to admit to her faux pas, following which she vowed to lead by example by paying a penalty of Rs 500 for her mistake.
In her eagerness to greet the chief minister and request cooperation for the ongoing corporation projects, Gangambike on Tuesday presented Yediyurappa with the basket covered with a plastic sheet. A day later, her gift went viral on social media and drew flack.
(Source: Deccan Herald)
4. IMA Scam: IPS Officer Hilori Quizzed on Role in 2018 Probe
The special investigation team (SIT) probing the Rs1,500-crore I Monetary Advisory (IMA) Ponzi scheme on Friday questioned IPS officer Ajay Hilori for more than three hours about his role as investigating officer in a 2018 inquiry of the firm.
Hilori, commandant, 1st Battalion, Karnataka State Reserve Police (KSRP), served as deputy commissioner of police (east) between June 2017 and October 2018. The main showroom of IMA Jewels, an IMA Group entity, is near Bowring Hospital in Shivajinagar, which is within the jurisdiction of the DCP (east).
SIT chief investigating officer BR Ravikanthe Gowda and investigating officer S Girish took Hilori into a chamber and directed staff not to disturb them after the IPS officer arrived at the SIT office, in the CID headquarters on Palace Road, around 11:30 am.
(Source: The Times of India)
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