Archives for 2022

Apprehending ‘unlawful activities’ in the district, prohibitory orders under Section 144 were promulgated with immediate effect.

MATHURA: Apprehending “unlawful activities” in the district, prohibitory orders under Section 144 were promulgated here with immediate effect, top district authorities on Friday said.

“Prohibitory orders will remain in force till March 12,” Navneet Singh Chahal, District Magistrate Mathura said.

He said the orders have been imposed under apprehension of unlawful activities during festivals of different communities and few competitive examinations scheduled to take place.

NEW DELHI:  All private vehicles carrying up to eight persons will now have six airbags. Union Minister of Transport Nitin Gadkari has approved a draft gazette notification which will make six airbags compulsory.

The move is aimed at enhanced passenger safety. It is likely to result into cost escalation of vehicles. The new regulation making side curtain airbags mandatory for new vehicles will ensure safety for the occupants in case of side impacts.

This move was under deliberation over a few months. Earlier, two airbags — one for the driver seat and another for the other front seat — were made mandatory in July 2019 and January 2022, respectively. Now, four additional airbags are mandated, including two side and torso airbags and two side curtain or tube airbags covering all outboard passengers. Gadkari informed this via tweets on Friday.

“In order to enhance the safety of the occupants in motor vehicles carrying upto eight passengers, I have now approved a Draft GSR Notification to make a minimum of six Airbags compulsory,” Gadkari said.
Adding a frontal airbag to a car costs between Rs 5,000-8000, while a side and curtain airbag (which is included in the total count) can cost much more. This would translate into an increase of nearly Rs 30,000 to Rs 50,000 in the prices of small to mid-level segment vehicles.

KOTTAYAM: A court in Kerala on Friday acquitted Roman Catholic Bishop Franco Mulakkal of the charges of raping a nun in a convent in the state, citing various reasons including the victim’s inconsistent version of incidents and lack of corroborative evidence to prove the prosecution case.

The complainant is a member of the Missionaries of Jesus, a diocesan congregation under the Jalandhar Diocese.

Acquitting the Bishop, judge of the Additional District and Sessions Court I, Kottayam, in the order said the victim’s claim that she was raped on 13 occasions under duress cannot be taken reliance on the basis of her solitary testimony.

Observing that there was no consistency in the victim’s statement, the court said the grievance projected by her to her companion sisters was that the accused was taking retaliatory steps for not yielding to his sexual desires, whereas her version before the court was that she was forced to do sexual intercourse with the accused on 13 occasions including fingering on the first occasion.

“Prosecution has failed to give proper explanation for the inconsistent version”, it said.

Noting that the victim’s original version to the doctor was that there is no history of penetrative sex, the court referred to various judgments and said in view of the victim’s inconsistent version, it is of the view that she cannot be categorised as a sterling witness and also cannot be categorised as a wholly reliable witness.

The court said apart from the victim’s testimony, “there is no corroborative evidence to prove the prosecution case”.

“The police could not seize the mobile phone used by the victim which would have provided some input into the alleged vulgar messages sent by the accused. The explanation offered for the non-production of the phone is thoroughly dissatisfactory”, the court said.

It said the laptop also was not subjected to scientific analysis, as it is claimed that the hard disk got damaged.

The court said this was a case in which the grain and chaff were inextricably mixed up.

“It is impossible to separate the grain from the chaff. There are exaggerations and embellishments in the version of the victim. She has also made every attempt to hide certain facts”, it said.

The court said it was evident that the victim was swayed under the influence of others who had other vested interests in the matter.

“The in-fight and rivalry and group fights of the nuns, and the desire for power, position and control over the congregation is evident from the demand placed by PW1 (victim) and her supporting nuns who were ready to settle the matter if their demands for a separate region under the diocese of Bihar is accepted by the church,” it said.

“As held by the Hon’ble apex (Supreme) court in Jayaseelan (supra) when it is not feasible to separate truth from falsehood, when grain and chaff are inextricably mixed up, the only available course is to discard the evidence in toto.

“In the said circumstances, this court is unable to place reliance on the solitary testimony of PW1 (victim) and to hold the accused guilty of the offences charged against him,” the court said in its order acquitting Mulakkal of the offences under various IPC sections.

A visibly relieved and emotional Mulakkal, who arrived in the court to hear the verdict, burst into tears, hugged his followers and lawyers, sharing his joy over the verdict.

“Daivathinu Sthuthi (praise the Lord),” he said when reporters repeatedly sought his reaction.

A group of nuns of Kuravilangad Convent here, who were standing with the victim, were on the verge of tears when they said they were yet to believe such a verdict came out from the court and they did not know what had happened.

The survivor and her supporters stay in the Kuravilangad convent in Kottayam.

Sister Anupama, who was the face of the nun’s years-long fight for justice, said they would surely challenge the verdict in the higher court and take forward the fight of their hapless colleague.

“We will continue our stay in the convent and take forward our fight till our sister gets justice. Police and prosecution showed justice to us but we did not get the expected justice from the judiciary,” the nun told reporters.

Criminal lawyer B Raman Pillai, who led the Bishop’s legal team, said they have got the right to file the appeal against the verdict.

“Even if they go for appeal, there is no tension as prosecution charges against the Bishop are false,” Pillai told PTI.

Explaining the factors that contributed to the verdict in his party’s favour, the lawyer said the prosecution case was very weak, investigation was very poor and statements of most of the witnesses came in favour of the accused because they were telling the truth.

Investigators, lawyers and social activists who stood with the nun in her fight against Mulakkal expressed shock over the verdict, saying it was totally unexpected.

Terming the verdict as “very, very unfortunate” and “unnatural’, senior IPS officer S Harishankar, who had led the special investigation team in the rape case, said 100 per cent conviction was expected in the case and the verdict would be an “astonishment” for the entire legal system of the country.

“An appeal will be filed in the higher court challenging this verdict. The state police chief already gave instructions in this regard,” he told reporters.

Mulakkal is the first Indian Bishop arrested in connection with a rape case.

In her complaint to the police in June, 2018, the nun had alleged that she was subjected to sexual abuse by Mulakkal between 2014 and 2016.

The SIT arrested the Bishop in September 2018 and charged him with wrongful confinement, rape, unnatural sex and criminal intimidation.

Trial in the case, which started in November 2019, had concluded on January 10.

The court had restrained the print and electronic media from publishing any matter relating to the trial in the case without its permission.

Bengaluru: Karnataka Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai on Thursday sought central assistance to raise the number of oxygenated beds and oxygen plants in the state.

Bommai sought the assistance today while taking part in a video conference held by Prime Minister Narendra Modi with Chief Ministers of various states over the COVID-19 situation in the country.

“I explained the measures taken by the state government to control and manage Covid. The Prime Minister appreciated the high rate of testing and vaccination in the state which is higher than the national average,” the CM was quoted as saying by his office in a release.

Noting that the PM was also apprised about measures initiated to ramp up the medical infrastructure, he said, “I sought the central assistance to raise the oxygenated beds and oxygen plants.”

The Prime Minister gave instructions on making all preparations based on the experience of the first and second wave of Covid, as the pandemic is expected to peak in February, the CM said.

During the third wave over 94 per cent infected are in home isolation, and therefore the Prime Minister wanted to give priority to ensuring supply of medicines, appropriate care and measures to instill a sense of confidence among the infected, he said.

Further Bommai said, the Union government has suggested ramping up testing, purchase of ambulances and improving medical infrastructure under the Rs 32,000 crore package it has provided.

“The union government has provided Rs 32,000 crore for states after the second wave to raise the health infrastructure. Many states have so far not utilised it. States too need to chip in with their own share of resources to improve the health infrastructure like ICU, Oxygen plants, oxygenated plants and purchase ambulances to make best use of the project,” he said.

According to the release, Modi appreciated the 5T plan of Testing, Tracking, Tracing, Triaging and Technology adopted by the state government to control COVID, and also praised the use of technology for monitoring the health of those in home isolation.

NEW DELHI: Congress general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra on Thursday released the party’s first list of 125 candidates, including 50 women, for the upcoming assembly elections in Uttar Pradesh.

The party has also fielded Unnao rape victim’s mother Asha Singh from the Unnao Assembly constituency.

Addressing a press conference, she said 40 per cent of the Congress candidates are women and another 40 percent are youth and by doing so the party is making a new and historic beginning.

She said the party has fielded such candidates who have struggled for seeking justice in Uttar Pradesh and the party wants them to come to the forefront and be a part of power in the state.

“With 40 percent women and 40 percent youth, we hope to start a new kind of politics in Uttar Pradesh,”she said.

“Our list gives a new message. We want to tell those who have struggled for their rights and for seeking justice in the past, that they have the power to fight for their rights and the Congress party will give that power to them to be a part of power in the state,” Vadra also said.

The AICC general secretary in-charge for Uttar Pradesh did not answer whether she will contest the elections herself.

She said the party will not run a negative campaign in these polls and will instead run a positive campaign for a bright future of Uttar Pradesh while highlighting the issues concerning the people and those of women and development.

Taking on the Uttar Pradesh government, she said, it has been “dictatorial” and the discussion in elections is skewed.

“Our focus would be to bring issues of people to centre-stage,” she said.

Uttar Pradesh is scheduled to have seven-phase polls beginning from February 10.