Muzaffarnagar: The Uttar Pradesh police on Monday registered an FIR against controversial BJP MLA Suresh Rana for violation of the Model Code of Conduct ahead of upcoming Assembly elections.

Rana was booked on charges of inciting hatred after he said that curfew will be imposed in Kairana, Deoband and Moradabad if he is elected again next month.

Rana, an accused in the 2013 Muzaffarnagar riots and the party candidate from Thana Bhawan seat in neighbouring Shamli district, had made the remarks at a gathering in his constituency on Saturday, evoking criticism from opposition.

“If I emerge as the winner (in UP polls), curfew will be imposed in Kairana, Deoband and Moradabad,” he said.

A case was registered against Rana under IPC Section 505 (Making a statement with intent to incite) and Section 125 (Promoting enmity between classes in connection with election) of The Representation of the People Act for his controversial remarks, Thana Bhawan circle officer Sunil Kumar Tyagi said.

The officer said that it was found that the MLA’s statement violated the model code of conduct for elections.

Rana on Monday tried to do some damage control claiming that his remarks were meant for goons who have spread terror in the state.

“What I meant was many people have planned to leave western UP fearing the terror spread by goons and robbers.

There is no city in that region where people have not planned to move out due to the fear of these goons,” Rana said.

Curfew Will be Imposed in Kairana, Deoband and Moradabad if I win, Says BJP MLA Suresh Rana

“…when BJP forms government in UP, these goons who are part of the mafia, whose actions are feared and who forced residents to flee will have to leave the state. The residents of UP won’t leave due to fear. The goons will have to leave the state,” he added.

Kairana made headlines last year after BJP MP Hukum Singh alleged that there was exodus of Hindus and released a list of more than 300 Hindu families who had reportedly fled the town following repeated extortion threats and violent attacks.

Singh had alleged that the ruling Samajwadi Party was preventing action against anti-social elements responsible for the exodus since they happened to be its supporters.

Hitting out at Rana, SP leader Juhi Singh said, “What does he want to do by imposing a curfew, he does not seem educated even to know when a curfew is imposed”.

“One list was brought out by Hukum Singh, which was wrong. They are just telling wrong things to people so that they don’t ask them the important questions like what schemes have you brought for Kairana, for UP,” she said.

BJP leader Rita Bahuguna Joshi sought to distance from the MLA’s remarks saying “the party is not responsible if a candidate says something”.

“Modi ji and Amit Shah are saying that such statements should not be made. I don’t know in what context he (Rana) has said it but I understand that our party is contesting the UP elections on the development plank,” Joshi said.

Rana has also been booked for allegedly violating the model code of conduct after he held a public gathering and took out a road show at Hathi Karonda village in his constituency in Shamli district on Sunday without the permission of the authorities, police said.

(Agencies)

Bengaluru: Refusing to budge, former Karnataka chief minister SM Krishna today said quitting the Congress was a “closed chapter” even as top leaders of the party tried in vain to win him back into the fold.

Seeking to cash in on the development that stunned the Congress, the BJP too is making attempts to reach out to Krishna, stating that the party will benefit if the octogenarian decides to join it.

“…it is a closed chapter,” Krishna told reporters here when questioned about the attempts by the Congress high-command to persuade him to reverse his decision.

On his reported telephonic conversation with Ahmed Patel, political secretary to Congress president Sonia Gandhi, on an invite for talks with her, Krishna said, “I can speak to Sonia Gandhi anytime. My cordial relationship with her will continue.”

Taking potshots at the Congress leadership a day after his exit from the party, Krishna had yesterday said it did not need “mass leaders” but only wanted “managers” as he complained of being sidelined due to his age.

“With pain and anguish, I have decided to quit Congress,” he had stated, adding that “self-respect” was important for him, but declined to spell out the next step saying he would have to think about it.

Chief Minister Siddaramaiah today requested Krishna to withdraw his resignation in the interest of the party and the state.

He said, “SM Krishna has been in the Congress for a long time, about 45-46 years. He has held various positions including that of the chief minister, Central minister, party president, Governor and Assembly Speaker. He is a respected politician.

“My appeal is that he should not leave the Congress at this stage. He should withdraw his resignation in the interest of the party and the state.”

Sources say several disgruntled Congress leaders are contemplating to raise a banner of revolt against Siddaramaiah and the party’s leadership following Krishna’s resignation.

Dissidence had been simmering within the party following the chief minister’s decision to sack 14 ministers and induct 13 members into his council of ministers in June, 2016.

Another party veteran and former Karnataka Congress chief Janardhana Poojary, describing Krishna’s resignation as “a big blow and loss” to the party, lashed out at Siddaramaiah for his “arrogance”.

Meanwhile, Karnataka BJP chief BS Yeddyurappa said he would meet Krishna soon and invite him to the party.

He said, “SM Krishna is a senior political veteran; he has resigned from Congress’ primary membership. I wanted to meet him today, but he is going to Mandya. I will try to meet him.”

Stating that Krishna had made it clear that he was not retiring from politics, Yeddyurappa said, “It is our natural wish that he should come along with us. Let us see, what he will decide…I am ready to welcome him to the party. If he comes, it will add more strength to us,” he added.

Not wishing to comment on Yeddyurappa’s wish to meet him, Krishna said he was travelling to his native Maddur in Mandya district.

(Agencies)

Pune: A 26-year-old security guard has been apprehended in connection with the murder of a 23-year-old woman IT professional from Infosys, who was found dead last night in a conference room of the company in Rajiv Gandhi Infotech Park at Hinjawadi here, police said today.

“On the basis of the CCTV footage from the company premises and other clues, we zeroed down on a security guard from Assam, who after the incident, fled and now has been held in Mumbai,” said Arun Waikar, the senior police inspector with Hinjawadi Police Station.

The suspect has been identified as Bhabhen Saikia, who was deployed as a guard at the Infosys unit, and is being brought to Pune, he said.

OP Rasila from Kerala, who was working as a system engineer with Infosys was found dead after she was allegedly strangulated with the help of a computer cord and was hit hard on the face, police said.

According to police, the incident might have taken place at around 5 PM, but police received the call around 8 PM last night.

ACP Vaishali Jadhav-Mane had told PTI last night that the techie was working in the conference room on the ninth floor of Infosys’s Phase-II campus whereas her two team mates were online from Bangalore.

“Her manager was trying to call her, but there was no response. He then called and asked a security guard to go and check, and when the security guard went to see her, the woman was found lying on the floor in an unconscious state in the conference room,” the officer had said.

An offence has been registered under the section of 302 (murder) and further investigation is on, said police adding the process of post mortem is underway.

(PTI)

New Delhi: The Supreme Court of India on Monday appointed former CAG Vinod Rai to head Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) along with noted historian Ramachandra Guha, former Indian cricketer Diana Edulji and IDFC official Vikram Limaye.

SC in its hearing declined Centre’s request to appoint secretary of sports ministry as the member of the committee. SC referred to its earlier judgement debarring ministers and govt servants from holding office in BCCI.

SC also named Amitabh Chaudhary, Anirudh Chaudhary of BCCI and Vikram Limaye to represent BCCI at the ICC meeting in the first week of February.

Earlier on January 24, the apex court rejected all nine names submitted by the (BCCI) counsel, but granted senior lawyer Kapil Sabil permission to provide suggestions for an interim panel to run Indian cricket.

During the hearing, the SC dismissed the names to be appointed as BCCI administrators, submitted in a sealed envelope, while asserting that any individual over the age of 70 will not be appointed as BCCI administrators.

In its order from January 2, during which it had removed Anurag Thakur as BCCI president and disqualified all the board and its state association office bearers who had failed to meet the new norms set by the Justice Lodha Committee, the SC had stated that cricket administrators would be allowed to hold office for a cumulative period of nine years, inclusive of the time they hold office in their respective state associations as well as the BCCI. However, as this was in contrast to that of July 18 which stated that the cumulative tenure would be limited to nine plus nine years that is, nine years within the BCCI and nine in state associations the SC last week offered further clarify and set the ineligibility clause as “an office-bearer of the BCCI for nine years or a State Association for the same period”.

On January 20, the centre moved the SC against the implementation of the Lodha Committee recommendations on behalf of the Railway Sports Promotion Board, Services Sports Control Board and All India Universities – three sporting bodies that held full membership of the BCCI earlier but now stand relegated to associate member status without voting rights as per the Lodha panel’s “one state-one vote” recommendation.

(Agencies)

PTI

New Delhi: Congress leader Kapil Sibal on Friday said the Bharatiya Janata Party would never succeed with its campaign for a “Congress-mukt Bharat”. “Congress ideology is based on the basics of the Constitution. An inclusive and secular India is the base of the Constitution. How can you discard it?” he said, according to PTI.

Sibal’s remarks came soon after Prime Minister Narendra Modi described the party as a “thing of the past”. Speaking at a campaign rally in Jalandhar on Friday, Modi said, “Will Punjab even think of getting into a sinking boat that has nothing to offer…The party is on its death bed.”

On the BJP’s ‘Congress-free India’ slogan, Sibal said it was a step towards the party’s “divisive agenda, which means a non-secular India, an intolerant India, an India where nobody else has any relevance”. “That is something that can never happen.”

Sibal further questioned the BJP’s acceptance of Congress defectors into its party despite consistent criticism.

(Agencies)

Image credit: Danish Ismail/Reuters

Kashmir: Mobile internet services for prepaid connections were restored in Jammu and Kashmir late on Friday, six months after they were suspended. Authorities had suspended all internet services to quell the protests that followed the killing of Hizbul Mujahideen militant Burhan Wani in July 8, 2016.

A majority of the restrictions across the Valley, including curfew, was lifted on November 19, 2016. Mobile internet services on postpaid numbers were also restored then. For a while, the only mobile service functional in some parts of Kashmir was Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd and the only internet connectivity was the BSNL broadband service.

Moreover, this Republic Day, it was only for the second time in recent years that mobile phones and internet services were not barred in the state, which has been plagued by unrest and clashes between security personnel and citizens since Wani’s killing. For more than a decade since 2005, the restrictions were imposed on both Republic Day and Independence Day as explosions were triggered using cellphones.

(Agencies)

New Delhi: At least 20 trains were delayed, two rescheduled and one cancelled on Saturday due to fog in many parts of north India, a railway official said.

According to the Northern Railway official, the Thirukkural Express and Firozpur Intercity Express were rescheduled, while the Kathgodam-Jaisalmer Ranikhet Express was cancelled.

Meanwhile, according to Delhi International Airport Limited, at least three Delhi bound flights were diverted due to fog and other operational reasons.

(IANS)