Archives for October 2022

Lucknow/Sultanpur: The four people who died in a BMW car crash on Purvanchal Expressway in Uttar Pradesh last week appeared to be aiming at a speed of 300 kilometres per hour and were on Facebook Live as they reached 230 kmph.

In the chilling video that surfaced on social media, one of them is heard saying, “Charon marenge (All four of us will die).” The man at the wheel asks the fellow passenger to keep quiet so that he can drive.

The BMW hit a container-truck coming from the opposite side in the collision near Sultanpur on Friday. The four men were hurled out of the smashed car, which is now kept at Haliapur police station, an official said.

“Hit 300, we are going live. At least, it should be 290. The speed should be 300,” one of the men is heard saying in the video clip.

As the driver slowed down after reaching the speed of 230 kmph, an occupant asked in Hindi, “Why are you applying the brakes. Don’t slow down. If we slow down, we will not be able to pick up again.”

District Magistrate Ravish Kumar and police officials, including Superintendent of Police Somen Burma, soon reached the spot.

Uttar Pradesh Expressways Industrial Development Authority (UPEIDA) officials too arrived there.

Three of the victims were identified as Anand Prakash (35), resident of Dehri in Bihar, Akhilesh Singh (35) and Deepak Kumar (37), both from Aurangabad, Bihar. The authorities are trying to identify the fourth man, the DM said.

Officer-in-charge of Haliapur police station Ram Vishal Toman said a case has been registered against the container truck driver and search is on for him.

The expressway connecting Lucknow to Ghazipur district in eastern Uttar Pradesh was inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in November 2021, ahead of the Assembly elections in February-March.

The speed limit on the expressway is 100 kmph, a UPEIDA official said.

“Advanced Time Management System (ATMS), which is aimed at detecting speeding violations, is being installed on Purvanchal Expressway. The system is operational on the Agra-Lucknow Expressway,” the official added.

The ATMS sends a challan, seeking payment of a fine, to the vehicle owner if speeding is detected.

Ex-servicemen are also deployed to run patrol vehicles on the expressway to be on the lookout for speeding vehicles, he said.

Former JNU student Umar Khalid

New Delhi: The Delhi High Court will on Tuesday pronounce its verdict on a bail plea by former JNU student Umar Khalid, who was arrested over two years, in a UAPA case related to the alleged conspiracy behind the February 2020 riots in the city.

A bench of Justices Siddharth Mridul and Rajnish Bhatnagar had on September 9 reserved its order on the plea.

Khalid has argued that neither did he have a “criminal role” in the violence in North-east Delhi nor any “conspiratorial connect” with the other accused in the case.

He has submitted that there is no material to support the case of the prosecution against him and his Amravati speech in February 2020 which forms the basis of the allegations against him not only had a categorical call for non-violence but also did not lead to violence anywhere.

The Delhi Police opposed the bail plea by Khalid, saying the speech delivered by him was a “very calculated” and brought up issues like Babri Masjid, triple talaq, Kashmir, the alleged suppression of Muslims and the Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA) and National Register of Citizens (NRC).

The agency has argued that riots happened in two phases, first in 2019 and then in February 2020, and that misinformation was spread during the riots apart from blockade of roads, attack on police personnel and paramilitary forces, violence in non-Muslim areas, etc.

It has contended that the speeches delivered by various accused in the case have one common factor that “the essence was to create a sense of fear in the Muslim population”.

Khalid, Sharjeel Imam, and several others have been booked under the anti-terror law Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) and provisions of the Indian Penal Code for allegedly being the “masterminds” of the February 2020 riots, which had left 53 people dead and over 700 injured.

The violence had erupted during the protests against CAA and NRC.

The high court had issued notice to the Delhi Police on Khalid’s bail plea in April.

Khalid was arrested by Delhi Police in September 2020.

Besides Khalid, activist Khalid Saifi, JNU students Natasha Narwal and Devangana Kalita, Jamia Coordination Committee members Safoora Zargar, former AAP councillor Tahir Hussain and several others have also been booked under the stringent law in the case.

New Delhi,: The government on Monday suspended with immediate effect senior IAS officer and former chief secretary of Andaman and Nicobar Islands Jitendra Narain, accused of raping a woman in Port Blair.

The suspension came after Union Home Minister Amit Shah directed immediate strict action against Narain, who is presently posted as the chairman and managing director of the Delhi Financial Corporation, according to a Union home ministry statement.

The ministry said the government is committed to ensuring zero-tolerance towards the acts of indiscipline by its officials irrespective of their rank and status, especially regarding incidents involving women’s dignity.

The ministry received a report on Sunday from the Andaman and Nicobar Police regarding the alleged sexual assault of the 21-year-old woman by Narain, when he was serving as chief secretary of the archipelago, and others.

As the report indicated the possibility of grave misconduct and misuse of the official position on the part of Narain, an IAS of the AGMUT cadre of the 1990 batch, Shah directed immediate strict action against the officer concerned as per the law.

Accordingly, Narain has been placed under suspension with immediate effect and disciplinary proceedings have been ordered against him, the statement said.

An FIR has been registered and action in the criminal case is being taken separately by the Special Investigation Team of the Andaman and Nicobar Police.

As per the allegation of the woman, she was gang-raped by two officials, including the former chief secretary, in Andaman and Nicobar Islands at his official residence.

Following the allegation, a Special Investigation Team has been constituted, headed by a Senior Superintendent of Police, for investigation and a case has been registered at the Aberdeen police station.

The woman alleged that the other officer who was involved in the rape was Labour commissioner R L Rishi and they indulged in the alleged crime on two occasions.

When contacted, Narain told PTI last week that he cannot comment on the issue as “the matter is sub judice”.

The woman lodged the complaint with the police on August 21 in which she gave a detailed account of the alleged sexual attack on her twice – in April and May – and requested for preserving the CCTV footage of the then chief secretary’s residence for evidence.

She has also requested a Test Identification Parade (TIP) of the employees present at the residence of the official.

The complainant has also recorded her statement under section 164 of the Criminal Procedure Code (CrPC) before the chief metropolitan magistrate detailing the allegation.

Anyone giving a statement under this clause of the CrPC will face perjury charges in case it turns out to be false.

The woman claimed that she was in search of a job and was introduced to Rishi through a hotel owner who allegedly took her to the residence of Narain.

At Narain’s residence, the woman claimed, she was offered liquor which she refused. She claimed that they assured her of a government job but, subsequently, she was brutally sexually abused by the two men.

The woman also alleged that two weeks later she was called to the chief secretary’s residence again and the assault was repeated.

She said that instead of giving the promised government job, she was threatened with dire consequences if she revealed the matter to anyone.

Officials said that she has also filed a separate complaint with the police against a local journalist, who allegedly gave hints about her identity, and a police officer for leaking information about the case.

According to sources, Narain joined as chief secretary of Andaman and Nicobar Island in March 2021.

Justice D Y Chandrachud.

New Delhi: Justice D Y Chandrachud was on Monday appointed the 50th Chief Justice of India, Union Law Minister Kiren Rijiju said.

He will take oath on November 9, a day after incumbent CJI Justice Uday Umesh Lalit demits office on attaining the age of 65.

While Justice Lalit has a brief tenure of 74 days, Justice Chandrachud will serve as the CJI for two years.

“In exercise of the power conferred by the Constitution of India, Hon’ble President appoints Dr. Justice DY Chandrachud, Judge, Supreme Court as the Chief Justice of India with effect from 9th November, 22,” Rijiju tweeted.

Justice Chandrachud will demit office on November 10, 2024.

Bengaluru: A man who killed his drunken wife for not preparing food did not commit murder but culpable homicide, the Karnataka High Court has held and passed an order for his release from jail.

The High Court modified a lower court order by saying, “The prosecution is not able to explain the intention of the accused to commit the murder.”

However, there was provocation which enraged the accused to club his wife to death.

“As found from the prosecution evidence, the woman did not prepare the food, that prompted and enraged the accused to take such a drastic step all of a sudden and removed a club from the house and inflicted injuries as part of punishment and there was no intention on his part to cause death,” said the High Court.

Therefore, the court held that “the alleged act of the accused comes within the purview of exception-1 to Section 300 of IPC where the death of the woman was ‘culpable homicide not amounting to murder.’

Suresha from Mudigere in Chikkamagaluru district approached the High Court with the appeal in 2017.

A Division Bench of Justice K Somashekar and Justice T G Shivashankare Gowda heard the appeal.

The trial court convicted Suresha of murder and sentenced him to life imprisonment in November 2017. Suresha was living separately from his first wife Meenakshi. Another woman Radha, too, had separated from her husband Nanjaiah. Subsequently, Suresha and Radha ended up getting married and had two children.

In 2016, Suresha came back from work on a festival day to find she had not celebrated at that time. She had not cooked food either. She was addicted to drinks and was sleeping. Angry over this, Suresha fatally hit her with a club.

Modifying the conviction and order of sentence of the trial court, the High Court convicted him under section part-II of IPC (culpable homicide not amounting to murder) instead of section 302 of IPC (murder).

The period of six years, 22 days undergone by the accused in incarceration is sufficient for the offence punishable under section 304 part-I of IPC, the High Court said and directed the jail authorities to “set him at liberty forthwith, if he is not required in any other case.”

Shiv Sena MP Sanjay Raut

Mumbai: The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) pulled out its nominee from the Andheri (East) Assembly bypoll fray realising that he would lose against the candidate of the Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena, party MP Sanjay Raut said on Monday.

Raut, an accused in the Patra chawl redevelopment case being probed by the Enforcement Directorate, spoke to some reporters and his supporters on the premises of the special court.

The Shiv Sena MP was produced before special judge M G Deshpande on the expiry of his judicial custody which was extended till Tuesday.

After attending his bail hearing, Raut met with his supporters and family members on the court premises.

Initially, he was reluctant to talk to reporters saying he was not allowed to speak as he is in judicial custody.

“The BJP had conducted a survey which predicted that their candidate (Murji Patel) would lose the bypoll by at least 45,000 votes. This is the reason they decided to withdraw,” claimed Raut when asked about the BJP’s decision.

Queried on Maharashtra Navirman Sena (MNS) chief Raj Thackeray writing a letter to Deputy Chief Minister and BJP leader Devendra Fadnavis on Sunday asking him not to field the candidate, Raut replied “this is all scripted.”

Earlier in the day, Maharashtra BJP president Chandrashekhar Bawankule said his party has decided not to contest the Andheri East bypoll.

“The BJP had previously also not contested some of the bypolls,” he said while asserting that Murji Patel would have won.

Patel, who withdrew his nomination papers on Monday, was pitted against Rutuja Latke, the wife of Shiv Sena MLA Ramesh Latke whose death in May this year necessitated the bypoll, scheduled on November 3.

New Delhi (PTI): The Supreme Court on Monday agreed to examine a plea of the National Commission for Protection of Child Rights challenging the Punjab and Haryana High Court order that a minor Muslim girl can marry a person of her choice.

 A bench of Justices S K Kaul and Abhay S Oka issued notice and appointed senior advocate Rajshekhar Rao as amicus curiae in the matter to assist the court.

“This matter needs to be considered,” the bench said.

Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, appearing for the NCPCR, submitted that this is a “serious issue” and sought a stay of the observations in the judgment.

The top court said it will examine the issue and posted the matter for hearing on November 7.

The single-judge bench of high court on June 13 had passed the order on a plea by a Pathankot-based Muslim couple who had approached the court for protection.

The high court had said the issue for consideration in the case was not with regard to the validity of the marriage but to address the apprehension raised by the petitioners of danger to their life and liberty.

It had directed the Senior Superintendent of Police, Pathankot, to decide the representation of the petitioners and take necessary action as per law.

The court cannot shut its eyes to the fact that the apprehension of the petitioners needs to be addressed. Merely because the petitioners have got married against the wishes of their family members, they cannot possibly be deprived of the fundamental rights as envisaged in the Constitution of India, the high court had said.

Mangaluru: Barely two days after being put up at the main door of the Dakshina Kannada District Court complex, the board that restricted entry to only ‘judicial officers,’ is missing on Monday morning.

The new board was installed on Saturday, prohibiting citizens as well as lawyers from entering through the door. The office-bearers of the Mangalore Bar Association informed the judge of the prohibition immediately but received no response, said sources.

Now, the board with the message, “Restricted entry: Entry reserved for Judicial Officers only,” is not to be found at the door to the court complex.

“As citizens too have criticized the installation of the board, the Association has called for a meeting on Tuesday afternoon. The matter will be discussed at the meeting and we will arrive at a decision regarding the board,” Shridhar Yenmakaje, secretary of the Association has said.

NEW DELHI: The Gujarat government on Monday defended before the Supreme Court its decision to grant remission to the 11 convicts in the Bilkis Bano case saying remission was granted as they completed 14 years sentence in prison and their “behaviour was found to be good”.

The State government said it has considered the cases of all 11 prisoners as per the policy of 1992 and remission was granted on August 10, 2022, and the Central government also approved the pre-mature release of convicts.

It is pertinent to note that the remission was not granted under the circular governing grant of remission to prisoners as part of the celebration of “Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav”, it said.

The affidavit stated, “State government considered all the opinions and decided to release 11 prisoners since they have completed 14 years and above in prisons and their behaviour was found to be good.”

Gujarat government had granted remission to 11 convicts, who had gang-raped Bilkis Bano and murdered her family members during the 2002 Godhra riots.

The State government said that in a circular dated July 9, 1992, it had issued a policy for early releasing those prisoners who have completed 14 years of imprisonment who were imposed life imprisonment punishment.

“State Government is empowered to take the decisions on the proposal of premature release of prisoners under the provision of Section 432 and 433 of CrPC. However, considering the provision of Section 435 CrPC, it is indispensable to obtain the sanction of the government of India in cases in which the investigation of the offence was carried out by a central investigation agency. In the present case, the investigation was carried out by the CBI and the state government has obtained the approval / suitable orders of the government of India,” the affidavit said.

It further stated that all the convict prisoners have completed 14 plus years in prison under life imprisonment and opinions of the concerned authorities have been obtained as per the policy of July 9, 1992, and was submitted to the Ministry of Home Affairs, Government of India on June 28, 2022, and sought the approval of suitable orders of the government of India.

“The government of India conveyed the concurrence /approval of the Central Government under section 435 of the CrPC for premature release of 11 prisoners vide letter dated July 11, 2022,” it added.

The government also questioned the locus standi of petitioners who filed the PIL challenging the decision saying they were outsiders to the case.

The government has said the plea is neither maintainable in law nor tenable on facts, saying that the petitioners as the third parties have no locus to challenge the remission order.

Member of the Communist Party of India (Marxist) Subhashini Ali, journalist Revati Laul, social activist and professor Roop Rekha Verma and TMC MP Mahua Moitra had filed pleas against the release of convicts.

Earlier, the top court had issued notice to the Gujarat government and convicts and sought their responses on the pleas challenging remission order.

It had also asked the State to file the entire record of the proceedings in the Bilkis Bano case, including the remission order.

The pleas had sought setting aside of order granting remission to 11 convicts and directing their immediate re-arrest.

“It is submitted that it would appear that the constitution of members of the competent authority of the Gujarat government also bore allegiance to a political party, and also was sitting MLAs. As such, it would appear that the competent authority was not an authority that was entirely independent, and one that could independently apply its mind to the facts at hand,” the plea stated.

The plea said they have challenged the order of competent authority of the government of Gujarat by way of which 11 persons who were accused in a set of heinous offences committed in Gujarat were allowed to walk free on August 15, 2022, pursuant to remission being extended to them.

The petition said the case which led to the conviction of the 11 convicts was investigated by the CBI, accordingly, the grant of remission solely by the Gujarat government without any consultation with the Central government is impermissible in terms of the mandate of Section 435 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973.

The remission in this heinous case would be entirely against public interest and would shock the collective public conscience, as also be entirely against the interests of the victim (whose family has publicly made statements worrying for her safety), the plea stated.

The Gujarat government had released the 11 convicts, who were sentenced to life imprisonment, on August 15. All the 11 life-term convicts in the case were released as per the remission policy prevalent in Gujarat at the time of their conviction in 2008.

In March 2002 during the post-Godhra riots, Bano was allegedly gang-raped and left to die with 14 members of her family, including her three-year-old daughter. She was five months pregnant when rioters attacked her family in Vadodara.