Archives for 2022

Mumbai: Shiv Sena MP Sanjay Raut on Sunday said if the control of the Enforcement Directorate is given to their party, then even BJP leader Devendra Fadnavis will vote for the Sena.

His reaction comes in the backdrop of Shiv Sena candidate Sanjay Pawar losing the sixth seat in the Rajya Sabha polls from Maharashtra held on Friday, a contest which had become a high-prestige battle between the ruling Sena and the opposition BJP in the state.

Fadnavis, the leader of opposition in the state Assembly, is credited for the BJP’s victory on the sixth seat, won by party nominee Dhananjay Mahadik by defeating Shiv Sena’s Sanjay Pawar.

Prior to the polls, Raut had alleged that the BJP was using central agencies to put pressure on independents and smaller parties to vote in favour of the BJP candidates.

The independents and smaller parties, some of whom had pledged support to the Sena, played a crucial role in the BJP’s victory.

Talking to reporters on Sunday, Raut said, “If the ED’s control is given to us for two days, then Devendra Fadnavis too will vote for us.”

The Shiv Sena’s chief spokesperson had on Saturday described BJP’s victory on three Rajya Sabha seats in Maharashtra as the “mandate of horse-trading”. He had also accused the Election Commission (EC) of siding with the opposition party, which he claimed “put pressure” on the poll panel.

Some horses were up for sale at a higher price and shifted sides despite assurance of their votes to our candidate, he had said.

When asked about these comments, Raut on Sunday said, We only expressed our feelings. They (those who did not vote for the Sena) as well the BJP are aware of what we are saying.

Raut had earlier said three MLAs of the Bahujan Vikas Aghadi (BVA), an independent MLA from Karmala Sanjaymama Shinde, Swabhimani Paksha MLA Devendra Bhuyar and PWP MLA Shyamsunder Shinde did not vote for the ruling Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA-comprising the Shiv Sena, NCP and Congress), despite assuring to do so.

The Sena leader said they had taken note of this development and that Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray was distressed over the defeat of Sanjay Pawar.

Thiruvananthapuram: A 38-year-old woman on Sunday died at the government medical college hospital here due to scrub typhus, the second death due to the disease in the last three days.

Thiruvananthapuram native Subitha who died this morning was admitted on June 10, hospital authorities told PTI.

“She was brought here on June 10, but died early this morning. As of now, we don’t have any similar case,” a senior hospital source told PTI.

Fifteen-year-old Ashwathy, a native of Cherunniyoor, a hamlet located over 40 km away from here had died on June 9 due to the disease that is known as ‘chellu pani’ in local parlance.

Scrub typhus is an infectious disease caused by Orientia tsutsugamushi, a mite-borne bacterium. Chigger mites, the larval stage of mites, transmit the disease from animals like rats, squirrels, and rabbits to humans.

Prayagraj: The Prayagraj Development Authority (PDA) on Sunday demolished the house of the alleged mastermind of Friday’s violence here amid heavy police deployment.

A day earlier, the properties of two people accused of rioting were demolished in Saharanpur where stone-pelting had taken place as well.

Superintendent of Police, City (Saharanpur), Rajesh Kumar had said the two accused who created ruckus were identified as Muzammil of Rahat Colony and Abdul Vakir of Khata Khedi. Municipal corporation teams bulldozed their illegal properties, he said.

In Prayagraj, a senior PDA official on Sunday said, “Javed Ahmad’s house — JK Ashiyana — is located in the Kareli area of Prayagraj. Police personnel and a JCB machine reached the Kareli police station around 10.30 am and demolition commenced around 1 pm.”

“The house was built without getting its map passed by the PDA. For this, he was issued a notice on May 10 and was told to present his side on May 24. On the given date, neither Javed nor his lawyer turned up. No document was presented as well, and hence on May 25, demolition orders were issued,” he said.

Speaking to PTI, Superintendent of Police (City) Dinesh Kumar Singh said, “In the morning, some family members of Javed Ahmad took some of their belongings, and left the place through the back door. As of now, no one is inside the house.”

He said three machines, including two JCBs, were used. The area around the house has been cordoned-off and demolition was carried out, Singh added.

On Saturday, Senior Superintendent of Police, Prayagraj, Ajay Kumar said that alleged mastermind of the stone-pelting here Javed Ahmad, alias Pump, had been arrested.

On Friday, people pelted stones at police personnel in Prayagraj and Saharanpur during protests after Friday prayers in mosques.

At least four other cities witnessed similar scenes during the marches that were carried out to protest the controversial remarks on Prophet Mohammad made by now-suspended BJP spokesperson Nupur Sharma.

In Prayagraj, the mob set on fire a few motorcycles and carts, and also attempted to set ablaze a police vehicle. Police used tear gas and lathis to disperse the protesters and restore peace. A policeman was injured.

In a tweet in Hindi on Saturday, Mrityunjay Kumar, the media adviser to the chief minister, had said, “Unruly elements remember, every Friday is followed by a Saturday” and posted a photo of a bulldozer demolishing a building.

Nupur Sharma was suspended by the BJP as several Islamic nations denounced her comments on the Prophet during a TV debate.

Thiruvananthapuram: Indian students who had to leave studies midway as they fled the Russia-Ukraine conflict will be offered admission in Russian universities without them losing out on their previous academic years, Roman Babushkin, Deputy Chief of Mission of Russian Embassy in New Delhi, said here on Sunday.

Babushkin said the students would be admitted to Russian universities where they can continue with their respective courses from where they were left off without losing out on the previous years of study.

The statement came in response to queries by reporters on the fate of the over 20,000 students who fled Ukraine after Russia invaded that country in February this year.

Ratheesh C Nair, the Honorary Consul of the Russian Federation and Director of the Russian House in Thiruvananthapuram, said in cases wherein the students held scholarships, it was possible that the same would be accepted in Russian varsities.

However, the fees being paid in Ukraine might not suffice in Russia, he hinted.

He said the students in Kerala can get in touch with the Russian House here with their marksheets and other academic records and the same would be forwarded to the Russian varsities which would get in touch with the students and their parents.

On the conflict in Ukraine, Babushkin alleged that the regime there was protecting neo-Nazis and that the war was a result of crossing of a “Lakshman Rekha” of Russia.

“It was a ‘lakshman rekha’ for Russia, a red line of red lines which was crossed by the West,” he said.

He alleged that also, western nations like the USA do not want the war to end in Ukraine as defence companies from there were benefiting from the supply of weapons to Ukraine.

He further alleged that while the USA has invested billions in setting up and supporting the regime in Ukraine, Russia never believed in such things and left it to the people to decide who should govern them.

He claimed that neither Russia nor its war with Ukraine can be blamed for the food crisis in the world as the latter’s contribution of wheat in the global market was barely one per cent.

New Delhi: A 23-year-old woman, who has accused Rajasthan minister Mahesh Joshi’s son Rohit Joshi of raping her, was allegedly attacked with blue ink near Kalindi Kunj Road in southeast Delhi, police said on Sunday.

The attack took place on Saturday when the woman and her mother came to Delhi from Jaipur for some work, they said, adding that an FIR has been registered.

Deputy Commissioner of Police (Southeast) Esha Pandey said a PCR call was received after some miscreants threw a liquid on a woman and ran away.

A preliminary enquiry revealed it was a blue liquid and looked like ink, the police said.

The victim gave a statement, saying she was walking with her mother near Kalindi Kunj Road on Saturday when two people in an auto-rickshaw threw something at her and fled.

The woman was thoroughly examined at the AIIMS Trauma Centre, Pandey said.

“The blue liquid prima facie looks like ink. In the matter, a case under section 195 A (threatening any person to give false evidence), 506 (criminal intimidation), 323 (voluntarily causing hurt) and 34 (common intention) of the Indian Penal Code was registered at the Shaheen Bagh police station and an investigation is underway,” she added.

The DCP said police were looking for CCTV footage from the area to identify the culprits and ascertain the sequence of events.

Taking to Twitter on Sunday, Delhi Commission for Women (DCW) chairperson Swati Maliwal accused Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot of trying to shield his minister’s son.

“The woman who accused Rohit Joshi, son of Rajasthan minister Mahesh Joshi, of rape was attacked with some liquid by two unidentified people in Delhi…..@ashokgehlot51 sir, instead of shielding your minister’s son, arrest him. I am issuing a notice to the Delhi Police for an FIR on this attack,” she tweeted in Hindi.

In a notice issued to the Delhi Police later, the DCW sought a copy of the FIR registered in the matter, details of the accused arrested, steps taken to ensure the safety and security of the victim, and an action-taken report.

The Delhi Police on Friday questioned Rohit Joshi in connection with the rape case registered against him. This was a day after a Delhi court granted him anticipatory bail in the case.

Following the woman’s allegation that Rohit Joshi raped her on multiple occasions over a year, a case was registered against him under sections 376 (rape), 328 (causing hurt by means of poison, etc., with intent to commit an offence), 312 (causing miscarriage), 366 (kidnapping, abducting or inducing woman to compel her mar riage, etc), 377 (unnatural offences) and 506 (criminal intimidation) of the Indian Penal Code.

New Delhi: A 24-year-old man faked his kidnapping in central Delhi as his parents were allegedly against his relationship, police said on Friday.

He has been identified as Gaurav Mishra, a resident of Anand Parbat, they said, adding that he runs his own charger manufacturing unit.

On Tuesday around 11 pm, police got a call from his father that Mishra was abducted by some persons and he has been gagged and kept in a dark room at an unknown place, police said.

With the help of technical surveillance, the location of Mishra was traced near Anand Vihar bus stand. Police rushed there but he was not found and his phone was also switched off, police said.

On checking CCTVs near his manufacturing unit, Mishra was seen walking alone towards Rohtak Road, they said.

Later, his phone got switched on and the location was found to be near Anand Parbat. He was tracked down and brought to the police station, Deputy Commissioner of Police (central) Shweta Chauhan said.

He disclosed that he loves a girl of his locality and wants to marry her but his parents are against their relationship, police said.

As Mishra had given false information to parents and police and misused government machinery, appropriate legal action is being taken against him, police added.

Mangaluru: In an incident reported from KC Road in Talapady near Ullal here, an 11-year-old boy committed suicide after the hostel authorities denied his request of making a phone call to his mother to wish her on her birthday.

The deceased 9th-grade student has been identified as Poorvaj (11), a student of Sharad Vidyaniketan School here.

According to the reports, Poorvaj is a resident of Hosakote in Bengaluru and was staying in the school hostel here. On Saturday, he reportedly requested the hostel officials to allow him to make a call to wish his mother on her birthday. The request was rejected by the officials.

Upset over the move of the hostel to deny his request of making a call, Poorvaj hanged himself in his hostel room.

A case in this regard has been registered at Ullal Police Station.

New Delhi: BJP MP and former cricketer Gautam Gambhir on Sunday extended support to suspended party leader Nupur Sharma against threats to her following her insulting remarks against Prophet Mohammad, and hit out at “secular liberals” for their “silence”.

He tweeted, “Silence of so called ‘secular liberals’ on the sickening display of hatred & death threats throughout the country against a woman who has apologised is surely deafening.”

Sharma’s remarks made in a TV debate last month had drawn condemnation from many Islamic countries and sparked protests from Muslims in different parts of India.

Cuttack: South Africa outclassed India by four wickets in a one-sided second T20 International on Sunday to take a 2-0 lead in the five-match series. Batting first, India managed only 148 for six in 20 overs with Dinesh Karthik’s unbeaten 30 off 21 balls helping the hosts reach a respectable total and Shreyas Iyer’s sedate 40 off 35 balls being the saving grace at the top-order.
Anrich Nortje took two wickets while Wayne Parnell and Kagiso Rabada were economical with a wicket each.

In reply, Heinrich Klaasen’s superb 81 off 46 balls laced with seven fours and five sixes, made it a walk in the park for the Proteas as they knocked off the runs in 18.2 overs despite Bhuvneshwar Kumar’s fantastic figures of 4 for 13.

Brief Scores:

India 148/6 (Shreyas Iyer 40, Dinesh Karthik 30 not out, Ishan Kishan 34, Anrich Nortje 2/36, Kagiso Rabada 1/15).

South Africa 149/2 in 18.2 overs (Heinrich Klaasen 81, Bhuvneshwar Kumar 4/13).

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and BJP national president JP Nadda

New Delhi,: The BJP on Sunday authorised its president J P Nadda and Union minister Rajnath Singh to hold consultations with different political parties, including those in the opposition, on the president’s election, in what is being seen as an outreach by the ruling party to arrive at a consensus on the choice for the top constitutional post.

The two senior leaders will talk to both ruling National Democratic Alliance (NDA) and opposition United Progressive Alliance (UPA) constituents, besides other political parties as well as independent members, the BJP said in a statement issued by its general secretary Arun Singh.

Nadda and Singh will start holding these consultations soon, it added.

The election for the next president will be held on July 18, in which 4,809 electors, including MPs and MLAs, will vote to elect incumbent Ram Nath Kovind’s successor.

Going by its strength in the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha as well as in many state assemblies, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is in a comfortable position to ensure the victory of the candidate nominated by it in the upcoming election.

Singh, who enjoys a good rapport with leaders across the political spectrum, was also part of the BJP’s committee during the 2017 presidential polls to deliberate with opposition parties.

In 2017, then BJP president Amit Shah had constituted a three-member panel of then senior Union ministers Singh, Arun Jaitley and M Venkaiah Naidu to hold talks with all the political parties over the presidential polls.

The BJP had fielded then Bihar governor Kovind as its candidate in the polls. Kovind went on to become the president after defeating opposition-backed Meira Kumar.

With relatively less numbers on its side this time, the BJP-led NDA’s nominee will require the support of one of the two fence-sitters — the Biju Janata Dal (BJD) and the YSR Congress Party.

In the last presidential polls, both parties had supported Kovind.

Meanwhile, Congress president Sonia Gandhi has also reached out to several opposition leaders, including Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) chief Sharad Pawar and Trinamool Congress (TMC) supremo and West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, for the presidential polls.

Banerjee has called a meeting of opposition parties in Delhi on June 15 in the backdrop of the presidential election.

The presidential polls will be held on July 18 and the counting of votes, if needed, will be taken up on July 21.