The two sub-sects of the Hindu Brahmin community came to blows over the language in which to sing the Divya Prabandham hymns.

Tamil Nadu News: The two feuding Vaishnavite sects – Vadakalai and Thenkalai Iyengars – came to blows on Saturday in an annual dispute over the hymns to be sung before the deity at the Varadaraja Perumal temple in Kancheepuram. The dispute took a violent turn when dozens devotees had gathered to witness the deity being taken around the streets, and one group objected to the singing of the ancient Prabandham hymns. Members of both groups were caught on camera pushing, shoving, and hitting each other in front of the procession.

According to one report in The Hindu, Thirumangai Azhwar, was taken in a procession around Varadaraja Perumal, the stallion-mounted presiding deity. When the Thenkalai group began reciting hymns from the Divya Prabhandham, a collection of verses written by the 12 Alwars in Tamil, it angered the Vadakalai groups who were also present.

The main difference between Vadakalai and Thenkalai sects of the Iyengar community is the language in which their prayer books are written. While the Vadakalai sect focuses more on Sanskrit-based traditions and the commandments of Vedic literature, the Thenkalai sect focuses on Tamil-based traditions and the edict espoused in the Alwar literature.

In the past, the two sects have sparred over how the namam (caste-mark) on the forehead of Lord Venkateshwara’s idol in Tirumala should look – ‘U’ shaped namam for Vadakalais and ‘Y’ shamed namam for… continue reading full story

It is not just her fun videos that have brought her attention, but the way she responds to the inevitable abusive comments on her videos.

Kerala News: Why did you call me, she asks. She hasn’t done anything special, she says, only what everyone else was doing – making TikTok videos. Naseera Melattur, as she is known on her TikTok profile, feels there is nothing extraordinary in what she has been doing – making fun videos by lip-synching to film songs or dancing to them. However, it is not just those fun videos that have brought her attention, but the way she responds to the inevitable abusive comments.

In her videos, the native of Melattur, Malappuram in northern Kerala speaks in the sweet local slang, telling what she has to in a matter of seconds. “You say there is no one to ask (for me) at home.

Yes, there is no one, so are you coming to ask? Another comment was asking if there were no men at my home, only women. There is no need for men, brave women are strong enough. Why did Indira Gandhi rule in the 1970s, is it because there were no men in our land then? Without understanding any of this, can one simply rattle anything they want? Ok, see you, bye.”

“That is a question I had asked once in real life too,” Naseera says in an interview to TNM. “When my dad died and I needed to get his death certificate, policemen were repeatedly asking if there were no men at home. I mentioned Indira Gandhi at that time too. I didn’t understand why they were… continue reading full story

Vishnuprasad’s daughter was not informed about his death, and the family went ahead with the wedding as that is what the father would have wanted.

Kerala News: It happened in seconds – a house brimming with wedding festivities was suddenly gripped by tragedy when P Vishnuprasad, a Sub-Inspector in Thiruvananthapuram, collapsed midway while singing on stage. It was the eve of his youngest daughter’s wedding, and while the 55-year-old was rushed to hospital immediately after, he could not be saved. He passed away around 9.30 pm on Saturday, in Neendakara in Kollam district.

Vishnuprasad was singing ‘Raakili Ponmagale’ – a song sung by a father for his daughter in the Mammootty-starrer Amaram. While the live orchestra played along, the father was tapping his foot and swaying to the tunes, when suddenly, he collapsed to the right. According to police sources, Vishnuprasad was brought dead and had suffered a suspected cardiac arrest.

However, only his immediate family members knew what has happened – and they decided not to tell his daughter and go ahead with the wedding on Sunday – as Vishnuprasad had planned and would have wanted.

The immediate family members decided not to inform the bride, Archa, and Vishnuprasad’s wife about his untimely death. They were told that he was recovering in the hospital. On Sunday morning, even as Archa was getting decked up in her bridal outfit and jewellery, she was enquiring about her… continue reading full story

In 2019, between January and May 21, the Railway Protection Force (RPF) rescued 257 children from the South Western Railways limits.

Karnataka News: As many as 523 children have been rescued in Bengaluru division over the last one year, according to Railway Protection Force. This makes the Bengaluru division the worst affected in terms of child trafficking in the entire South Western Railways region.

“In the last one year, the RPF team Operation Nanhe Farishthe rescued 523 children who were trafficked into the city for bonded and child labour,” RPF Divisional Commissioner Debasmitha told Deccan Herald. Operation Nanhe Farishte is a special drive to rescue trafficked children.

 The RPF said that the number of missing children in India over the last two decades was two lakh.

In 2018, the RPF had rescued as many as 1,299 children (1,125 boys and 174 girls), of which 523 (458 boys and 65 girls) are from Bengaluru division. Hubballi division was the second-worst affected, where 490 children (407 boys and 83 girls) were rescued. In Mysuru, 286 children (260 boys, 26 girls) were rescued in 2018.

 In 2019, between January and May 21, 257 children (224 boys and 33 girls) were rescued from  South Western Railways limits.

 Of them, 206 children, including 183 boys and 23 girls, are from Karnataka, 13 children— 12 boys and one girl – are from Bihar and nine are… continue reading full story

For the first time in the state, the BJP secured a 51.4% vote share, while the Congress scraped through with a negligible 31.9%.

Karnataka News: May 23 was a day of historical significance for the BJP in Karnataka. The party accomplished what seemed like an unachievable feat just a couple of decades ago – the decimation of the Congress in Karnataka. It was a washout for the Congress-JD(S) alliance in Karnataka, as the BJP won 25 out of the 28 constituencies in the state. The results came as a massive embarrassment to the Congress, which had prided itself in reigning over Karnataka for decades at a time. The tables have turned and the status quo has been demolished.

For the first time in the state, the BJP secured a 51.4% vote share, while the Congress scraped through with a negligible 31.9%. Even a decade ago, the BJP in Karnataka could not have achieved such a monumental feat. So what changed in Karnataka in 2019?

The traditional Congress voters shifted to BJP

One of the reasons why the Modi wave swept Karnataka and demolished traditional vote banks is due to the pre-poll alliance the Congress forged with the sub-regional party – the JD(S).

The vote base of the Congress – comprising the OBC, minority and Dalits ended up voting for the BJP. One of the most shocking turn of events was the BJP’s victory in the Old Mysuru region, which was a fortress of the… continue reading full story

The Human Rights Forum claims that the deaths were a result of poor monitoring of welfare schemes in the district, including failure to provide the family with a ration card.

Andhra Pradesh News: Last month, the appalling news of two children losing their lives due to starvation came to light. Two-year-old Vennela passed away on April 28, while her three-year-old cousin Santhosh died about 6 months before that. Both the children had reportedly eaten mud out of hunger, which led to their deaths.

Kadiri Revenue Divisional Officer T Ajaya Kumar had conducted an inquiry into the incident. The inquiry report held Santhosh’s parents Nagaveni and Mahesh responsible for the deaths, claiming that it was a case of ‘child abuse and cruelty against children’. The report also listed the remedial measures to be taken by officials to support the surviving members of the family.

But according to members of a fact-finding team from the Human Rights Forum (HRF), the deaths of the children were the result of lack of proper monitoring of welfare schemes in the district.

Blame on impoverished family

On May 11, the fact-finding team visited the Hamali Quarters area of Kummaravandlapalle village in Kadiri, where the family had been living. They also visited the Government General Hospital in Anantapur, where Nagaveni and Mahesh were staying as their one-year-old child Lavanya was being treated at the Nutritional Rehabilitation Centre (NRC).

The family had migrated to Kadiri from Chikballapur in Karnataka a few years ago in search of livelihood. According to the HRF report, Mahesh, who does stone-cutting and earth-digging work, was not able to find employment regularly. He would earn around Rs 1,000 a week. Since the places of work were far from their home, he would visit his family once in two or three days to…  continue reading full story

Prashant Kishor and I-PAC are only new entrants to a small but close-knit group of family and friends that are part of the YSRCP chief’s inner circle.

Andhra Pradesh News: Yeduguri Sandinti Jagan Mohan Reddy, the man of the moment in Andhra Pradesh, has witnessed a decade-long meteoric rise in politics. As he gears up to take over as the second Chief Minister of the bifurcated state of Andhra Pradesh, the focus is on the 46-year-old who proved his political acumen by defeating the experienced 69-year-old Chandrababu Naidu.

However, as Jagan is set to take oath, it is important to name those who worked along with him for his success. The most recent being election strategist Prashant Kishor, who was roped in by the YSRCP in 2017 to help defeat Naidu’s ruling Telugu Desam Party (TDP).

It was Prashant Kishore and his team who ensured that Jagan managed to turn his image around and always be a step ahead of the TDP; whether it was campaigning on the ground, online campaigns, cadre strength or boosting the morale of party workers.

However, Prashant and I-PAC are only new entrants to a small but close-knit group of family and friends that are part of the YSRCP chief’s inner circle.

The first being K Nagireddy, or KNR, Jagan’s Personal Assistant, often referred to as the YSRCP leader’s shadow. A former journalist and trusted confidant for over a decade, KNR is known to handle almost everything related to Jagan from his personal commitments to his media interactions and… continue reading full story