New Delhi, The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Wednesday questioned former Finance Minister P. Chidambaram in the INX Media money laundering case.
ED officials grilled the former Union Minister on several issues, including Foreign Investment Promotion Board (FIPB) clearance to INX Media in 2007, soon after he arrived at the agency’s office around 11 a.m.
The agency had issued summons to Chidambaram in November asking him to appear before it for the ED to record his statement.
The Delhi High Court had given Chidambaram interim protection from arrest in the case till October 25.
The ED and the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) were also probing how the UPA minister’s son Karti Chidambaram managed to get the FIPB clearance.
The junior Chidambaram was arrested on February 28 by the CBI for allegedly taking money to facilitate the FIPB clearance to INX Media when his father was part of the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government. He was later granted bail.
The son’s Chartered Accountant S. Bhaskararaman was also arrested later granted bail.
The ED probe so far showed that for the FIPB approval, INX Media’s Peter and Indrani Mukerjea met P. Chidambaram, so that there was no hold-up or delay in their application.
“P. Chidambaram asked for his son’s business interests to be kept in mind. The ED identified payments of Rs 3.09 crore by Peter Mukerjea to ASCPL and associated entities controlled by Karti P. Chidambaram through manipulated debit notes.
“During the investigation, it was admitted that debit notes were raised on the directions of Karti to show some transactions which in fact did not occur,” the agency has alleged.
The ED has said that the money so received by associated entities was channelled back into the ASCPL.
The ED has attached properties worth Rs 54 crore belonging to Karti Chidambaram and a firm in connection with the case. The ED has also attached properties belonging to the Mukerjeas in connection with the same case.
Karnataka Congress legislators lobby for cabinet posts
Belagavi Ahead of the cabinet expansion of the coalition government in the state on December 22, several party legislators are lobbying for their inclusion with party’s leader and former Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, said an official.
“Many legislators, including senior leaders have urged Siddaramaiah to recommend them to the party high command for the six cabinet posts vacant from the party’s quota in the 6-month-old JD(S)-Congress government,” a party official told IANS here on Tuesday.
As Congress Legislative Party (CLP) leader, Siddaramaiah discussed the cabinet expansion and appointment of chairmen of boards and corporations with about 70 legislators on short-listing some of them for approval by party President Rahul Gandhi in New Delhi on December 21.
“Siddaramaiah and Deputy Chief Minister G Parameshwara of the Congress will submit the list of names finalised at the CLP meeting to ensure regional balance and fair representation of them region and caste wise,” said the official from the state’s northwest city, about 500km northwest of Bengaluru.
Among the senior legislators – HK Patil, MB Patil, Ramalinga Reddy and Roshan Baig were left out of the cabinet, formed in June after two parties forged an alliance following a hung verdict in the May 12 Assembly elections.
In the 34-member ministry, the Congress made 15 of its 80 legislators cabinet ministers while the Janata Dal-Secular (JD-S) filled 9 out of 11 posts as part of its quota.
“As all the legislators, including seniors cannot be accommodated in the ministry due to the 34-member limit, some of them have been shortlisted for posts of state-run boards and corporations.
As per the worked-out formula, the Congress is entitled to 20 of the 30 state-run boards and corporations and JD-S the remaining 10 posts.
The cabinet expansion is slated to take place in Bengaluru after the 10-day winter session of the state legislature concludes on Friday here.
“Heads of boards and corporations will be named after the cabinet expansion,” added the official.
Actress Saira Banu pins hopes on CM for resolving property dispute
Mumbai, Veteran actress and wife of Dilip Kumar, Saira Banu, hopes that Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis will stick to his promise with regard to resolving a property dispute with builder Samir Bhojwani.
Interacting with mediapersons here on Tuesday, Saira Banu said she had sought a meeting with Prime Minister Narendra Modi who was here on Tuesday to discuss the issue following the builder’s release from jail.
Bhojwani had falsely claimed ownership of the two plots on which Kumar’s bungalow is built. The 96-year-old actor’s bungalow is located in the upscale Pali Hill area of suburban Bandra.
Saira Banu’s request for a meeting with PM was shared on Dilip Kumar’s official Twitter account. “Request from Saira Banu Khan: The Hon’ble @PMOIndia Shri @narendramodi Sir, Land Mafia Samir Bhojwani released from jail. No action taken despite assurances by CM @Dev_Fadnavis. Padma Vibhushit betrayed, threatened by money and muscle power. Request meeting with you in #Mumbai,” the tweet read.
Banu had also tagged Fadnavis in her tweet.
When asked about the star couple’s apprehension following Bhojwani’s release, Fadnavis told the media that he will speak to them and try to sort out the issue.
According to Saira Banu, Prime Minister Modi has directed Fadnavis to study and sort out the issue as soon as possible.
“We are hopeful that the Prime Minister will look into the matter and I hope our kind Chief Minister will also look into it and take due action. For the last three months, the CM has been promising me that he will talk to Bhojwani and resolve the issue. I hope he will stick to his words and do the needful.”
Giving details about the dispute, Saira Banu said: “We have been facing this court dispute and harassment by Samir Bhojwani for the last 10-12 years. This man (Samir Bhojwani) is an expert at land grabbing, forgery and fraudulent cases. He is doing these things because he has muscle power and money. He has big political connections, and therefore, no one is willing to take action against him.”
Saira Banu also stated that Bhojwani has violated BMC guidelines but they have not taken any action against him.
“Earlier, he wanted to build a cottage for his sister in front of our residence. At that time, we gave him permission. After that, we went out of Mumbai for two-three months and when we returned, we saw that he had built a two-three storey building instead of a cottage, and while doing so he had violated BMC rules but no one has taken any kind of action against him.”
Stating that Dilip Kumar’s residence is a famous landmark in Bandra, Saira Banu said, “The entire world knows that this is Dilip Kumar saab’s residence so how can he trespass on that land? He knows that Dilip saab has health issues and because of all this stress his health has deteriorated even more.”
Saira Banu added that Dilip Kumar has an emotional attachment with his house. “It is his only house and we all are emotionally attached to it. Dilip saab’s younger sister and brother have grown up in this house.
“He hasn’t worked in 300 films that he can afford to invest in properties. In his entire film career, he has hardly been part of 56 good films. He is a man who has contributed a lot for his country through his art.”
In December 2017, Saira Banu had lodged a police complaint alleging that Bhojwani was threatening and harassing her and Dilip Kumar over the property. Following the complaint, the Mumbai police had arrested Bhojwani.
Video of BJP MLA threatening woman SDM goes viral; inquiry ordered
Agra, A Bharatiya Janata Party MLA from Fatehpur Sikri assembly constituency of Uttar Pradesh has stirred a controversy after a video in which he can be seen threatening a Sub Divisional Magistrate in public went viral on social media.
“You don’t know how powerful I am, I am an MLA,” BJP MLA Chaudhary Uday Bhan Singh is seen threatening Kiraoli SDM Garima Singh in the video.
Chaudhary had gone to Agra to meet the SDM over issues faced by farmers demanding compensation over loss of crops due to a hailstorm earlier this year in April.
District magistrate N.G. Ravi Kumar told mediapersons that an inquiry has been ordered. ADM administration Nidhi Srivastav will conduct the inquiry and submit a report soon.
CBI arrests three IT officials in separate bribery cases
New Delhi, The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has arrested three Income Tax officials and an Indian Oil employee in three separate bribery cases, the agency said on Tuesday.
Income Tax Inspector Seema, who was posted in Delhi, was arrested on Monday for demanding and accepting a bribe of Rs 60,000 from the complainant.
“A case was registered on a complaint. It has been alleged that the complainant received notices from Income Tax officer, Ward No. 42(3), for not showing the cash in his account in the returns filed by him and also had not deposited the tax related to a contract of wine shop taken by him in Jaipur,” CBI spokesperson Abhishek Dayal said.
“Both these issues are under scrutiny in the Income Tax Department Ward No. 42(3), Income Tax Office, Civic Centre, New Delhi.”
It was further alleged that in lieu of settlement of the matter, the Inspector demanded bribe from the complainant, said Dayal. The CBI laid a trap and caught her while accepting the bribe.
Searches were conducted at the official and residential premise of the accused which led to recovery of incriminating documents, he said.
In another case, the CBI arrested an Income Tax Inspector Abhishek Kumar, who is posted in Jaipur, and another official of the department Surendra Pal for demanding Rs 2-lakh bribery.
“The CBI had registered the case against the Inspector, Income Tax, Ward No. 6 (2), Jaipur on a complaint alleging that the accused had demanded a bribe of Rs 2 lakh and after negotiation agreed to accept Rs 40,000 from the complainant for not taking action on notice issued to him by the Income Tax Department.
“The accused directed the complainant to deliver the amount to his subordinate official. The CBI laid a trap and caught the said official red-handed while accepting bribe of Rs 10,000 from the complainant on behalf of the Income Tax Inspector,” said the official.
In yet another case, the CBI has arrested an Indian Oil Corporation Ltd officer (Admin and Welfare) from Bihar’s Begusarai for demanding and accepting bribe of Rs 20,000 from the complainant for clearing his bills pertaining to vehicle given on hire to IOCL, Barauni.
The arrested accused were produced before the designated court and remanded to judicial Custody.
Shootout in Broad daylight in Bengaluru.
By : Pramesh S Jain
Notorious Most Wanted Dreaded Criminal Murder Accused nabbed after shootout by Bytarayanapura Police
As recently Deputy Chief and Home Minister of karnataka state ,Dr.G.Parameshwara, at the innaugration function of DJ Halli Police station addressing the gathering has warned criminals to stop all their illegal activities if not cops will break your leg shooting at your leg to teach you people a lesson and to curb crime rate in the city I have asked them to open fire on criminals and based on that only in last one year around 25 Shootout has took place by the Bengaluru city police in which notorious dreaded criminals has been nabbed and arrested he added.
The West Division police of Bytarayanapura Police has opened fire on notorious dreaded criminal rowdy sheeter Waseem alias Bodka waseem a most wanted criminal who was on the run from past many years.
The accused has been identified as Waseem alias Bodka Waseem,27,year old resident of J J Nagar.
He is a prime accused in Zabiulla murder case which took place on last Sunday.
DCP North,R.Chethan Singh Rathore,told media persons that,A murder of rowdy sheeter took place as on December 9th in which the accused waseem killed his own alloy Syed Zabiulla on Mysore Road.Syed Zabiulla and Syed waseem used to rob together but Zabiulla formed his own gang and started to rob people with his gang and getting enriged by this Syed waseem along with his gang attacked Zabiulla with sharp weapons and later they fled the crime spot and the cops gathered vital clues about the miscreants from the crime spot who has killed Zabiulla and based on credible Information the team nabbed his associates and were waiting for right opportunity to nab the prime accused in the case and 2 special teams were formed by
ACP,Kengerigate,S.Manjunath under the supervision of PIs as,Veerendra Prasad and Shivareddy and two teams swung into action to nab the criminals.Police inspector and his team swung into action and team received a tipped off that the accused waseem would pass via Nagarbhavi to Doddabasti our inspector and his team were waiting for him and when they spotted his car they chased him and Cordoned him and when they tried to arrest him he attacked the constable Harish Kumar with the lethal weapons and tried to evade arrest and even tried to escape and in the meanwhile the Bytarayanapura police inspector Veerendra Prasad opened one round fire in Air and asked him to surrender as he again tried to attack the cop and to protect the cop the inspector Veerendra Prasad opened fire on his leg in self defence in which he suffered bullet injuries on his leg and they both were rushed to hospital for the treatment and are undergoing treatment.
The accused is most wanted criminal who is wanted in more than 8 cases registered against him including two murders,three attempt to murders,two assaults and one Robbery cases in several police stations like,Bytarayanapura,Chandra layout,Kengeri,and J J Nagar police station and after his recovery we will conduct a thorough enquiry against him to recover the stolen property and a case has been registered in Bytarayanapura police station and further investigation is on under the supervision of ACP,Manjunath,and finally Bengaluru Police commissioner,T.Suneel Kumar,has appreciated,Addl CP,West,B.K.Singh,DCPs,as,R.Chethan Singh Rathore,Ravi.D. Channannavar,ACP,Kengerigate Sub-division,S.Manjunath,PIs,Veerendra Prasad and Shivareddy,with brave constable Harish Kumar who has played on his life to nab the notorious dreaded criminal he added.
Bytarayanapura police station and further investigation is on under the supervision of ACP,Manjunath,and finally Bengaluru Police commissioner,T.Suneel Kumar,has appreciated,Addl CP,West,B.K.Singh,DCPs,as,R.Chethan Singh Rathore,Ravi.D. Channannavar,ACP,Kengerigate Sub-division,S.Manjunath,PIs,Veerendra Prasad and Shivareddy,with brave constable Harish Kumar who has played on his life to nab the notorious dreaded criminal he added.
BJP MP demands Kamal Nath’s apology
BJP MP Sanjay Jaiswal on Wednesday slammed Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Kamal Nath for his claims that influx of Bihar and Uttar Pradesh migrants deprived state youth of employment opportunities and demanded that he be summoned to Parliament to apologise.
Raising the issue during Zero Hour in Lok Sabha, Jaiswal, who represents Paschim Champaran constituency of Bihar, said the newly elected Chief Minister should apologise, as he himself is from Uttar Pradesh’s Kanpur city and yet made such a statement.
“Kamal Nath has tried to divide the country on the basis of region. The House must condemn it. He should be summoned to the Parliament and asked to apologise,” Jaiswal said.
Kamal Nath has been at the centre of a storm over his government’s decision that only those industries which employ 70 per cent local youth could avail incentives from the state.
“People from states like Bihar and UP come here and local people don’t get jobs…,” he had said at his first press conference as Chief Minister.
Following which he faced criticism left, right and centre.
Kamal Nath, who took oath as Chief Minister of Madhya Pradesh on December 17, is a nine time Member of Parliament from Chhindwara. He has not yet resigned from Lok Sabha.
Fatima Sana Shaikh heartbroken with ‘Thugs…’ failure
(IANS) Actress Fatima Sana Shaikh’s last release “Thugs of Hindostan” bombed at the box office, leaving her heartbroken and sad.
Despite the presence of industry giants like Amitabh Bachchan, Aamir Khan and Katrina Kaif, the “Thugs…” fizzled out and both audiences and critics wrote it off for its weak storyline and direction.
Interacting with the media at Netflix web-series ‘Selection Day’ premiere on Tuesday here, Fatima said: “Yeah.. it hasn’t done well. It is very heartbreaking.
“It is very sad because we all tried to make a good film but unfortunately, it didn’t do well. People didn’t like it so, I am feeling very bad for it.”
Fatima is currently working on a project with Rajkummar Rao on Anurag Basu’s directorial — a sequel to “Life In A Metro”, though she said: “I don’t think it is called that.”
The “Dangal”-famed actress is looking forward to “Selection Day” which is a story of two brothers and their father who wants his sons to pursue cricket as their career.
“I am really excited and looking forward to see it because I found the trailer really interesting. I am also happy that lot of Indian shows are being made for Netflix and we (actors) are getting more opportunities. Even writers, directors and technicians.
“Now, we have lot of options in terms of viewing and performing. So, I feel it’s great that such show and series are out,” she said.
Speaking about her debut in “Dangal” which revolved around wrestling, Fatima said: “I run away from playing sports. It was the requirement for my film (Dangal) therefore, I had to do it otherwise, sports and I don’t get along really well.”
Expelled PDP leader joins NC
[Nasheman news] Srinagar A day after he was expelled from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), former Minister Basharat Bukhari on Wednesday joined the National Conference (NC).
Bukhari was expelled for his anti-party activities.
He was here at NC chief Farooq Abdullah’s residence and joined the party in the presence of two former Jammu and Kashmir Chief Ministers, as Omar Abdullah was also present.
Another expelled PDP leader, Peer Muhammad Hussain, was also expected to join the NC later in the day at the party headquarters here.
Uproar in LS, adjourned till noon
[Nasheman news] New Delhi The Lok Sabha was adjourned till 12 p.m. on Wednesday after the opposition created ruckus over different issues including the Rafale deal.
As soon as the House met, the Congress, AIADMK and Telugu Desam Party (TDP) members trooped near the Speaker’s podium and started sloganeering.
The Congress demanded a Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) probe into the 36 ready-to-fly Rafale fighter jets deal with France while the AIADMK members wanted Karnataka to take back its proposal to construct a dam across the Cauvery river at Mekadatu.
The TDP raised several issues related to their demand for special status to Andhra Pradesh.
Amid the din, Speaker Sumitra Mahajan tried to conduct the Question Hour. But her attempts failed as the disruptions continued.
She then adjourned the House till noon.