Here are the big stories from Karnataka today

Karnataka Today newsletter: Opposition BJP begins State-wide protest again Waqf Board notices, and more

The war of words in Karnataka over the waqf property notice issue further intensified with Chief Minister Siddaramaiah seeking to know why BJP had issued notices over 216 waqf properties during its rule and why it was protesting even after the government decided to withdraw the notices. Leaders and workers of Opposition BJP took out a state-wide protest on November 4, demanding the resignation of minority welfare and waqf minister BZ Zameer Ahmed Khan.

Meanwhile, former minister K.S. Eshwarappa claimed that Karnataka will witness a ‘blood revolution’ if the properties registered in the name of waqf are not cancelled. Mr. Eshwarappa alleged that lakhs of acres of land belonging to Hindus, Hindu temples and Hindu religious institutions had been registered in the name of waqf.

As Deepavali festivities come to an end, many pourakarmikas in Bengaluru are saying that they could not celebrate the festival as they were busy sweeping the streets to clear firecracker waste. The data shared by the BBMP shows that 93 festival blackspots were created in three festival days, and an additional 300 tonnes of waste was collected against the usual quantity.

On a normal day, 3,200 tonnes of mixed waste is collected and transported to the landfill at Mittaganahalli. According to a senior BBMP official, firecrackers and other festival waste contributed to generation of an additional 260-300 tonnes of mixed waste. About 40 compactors were dedicated to collection of festival waste. The BBMP is hopeful of clearing all the blackspots on November 5. 

Bangalore University has made a U-turn and withdrawn its earlier condition that 50% seats should be reserved for Karnataka students for providing seven acres of additional land to the National Law School of India University (NLSIU) at its Jnanabharati campus in Bengaluru.

The condition of reserving seats for students from Karnataka has been left to the discretion of the government. Bangalore University passed a resolution in this regard in the 177th syndicate meeting on October 29. Bangalore University has already given 23 acres of land on lease to NLSIU in Jnanabharati campus. NLSIU had requested additional land for campus expansion.

The Karnataka government will seek an explanation from the authorities about the death of infants in the Belagavi district teaching hospital attached to the Belagavi Institute of Medical Sciences (BIMS). As many as 169 infants were stillborn or died soon after birth in the hospital in the last 10 months. Of them, around 41 died in the last few months.