Karnataka   

To each his own 

The top brass of the State police, trying to maintain utmost secrecy about the probe into the terror module busted by Davangere police recently, are adopting various ploys to dissuade the media from writing about the investigation. And their approach is tailored to suit the nature of the publications.

 A few days ago, a reporter from an English daily called a senior officer and sought the investigation details. To ensure that the reporter does not quiz him, the officer at once gagged the journalist by saying: “Yours is the most credible newspaper and you are a ‘highly respected’ reporter. Please do not write unconfirmed reports as some others are doing. Please maintain the reputation of your daily.”

 A journalist from a Kannada newspaper, known for its often fanciful take on events, also had a similar experience. Only he got a fairly colourful reply: “It is still in the embryonic stage. One should wait till the completion of the gestation period. If the media continues to force us for probe details, it would lead to an abortion.”

It was an emotional occasion for Kusum Pendse, the interior designer of the Golden Chariot, which was launched last week. After having worked closely with the train and giving it a final shape, one saw an emotional Ms. Pendse when the President flagged off Golden Chariot. “It is a feeling that one gets when the child that you have taken care of finally grows to be independent,” said Ms. Pendse, who has also worked on Maharashtra’s luxury train Deccan Odyssey.

Court proceedings and judicial functions are perceived to be solemn occasions and rarely attract big crowds. However, all recent functions organised by the High Court of Karnataka seems to have attracted people, be it the mediation in which the President participated or a related programme a few weeks ago at the Bangalore Mediation Centre on H. Siddaiah Road.

 On such occasions, Chief Justice Cyriac Joseph’s wit comes to the fore. Some participants and invitees to the mediation centre wanted to know why only advocates who have put in 15 years or more of service are eligible to be enrolled as mediators. The Chief Justice brought the house down with an analogy: both butchers and surgeons do the same job, the only difference is that a surgeon is trained while a butcher is not. Similarly, mediators too have to be trained and it would help if they had put in the requisite number of years in the profession.

K.V. Subramanya, Sharath S. Srivatsa and B.S. Ramesh

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