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Rahul Gandhi demands CBI probe into the death of veterinary student JS Sidhharthan, accuses Kerala govt of shielding the accused SFI members

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Rahul Gandhi demands CBI probe into the death of veterinary student JS Sidhharthan, accuses Kerala govt of shielding the accused SFI members

Congress MP Rahul Gandhi on Wednesday called for a probe by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) into the death of a student, JS Sidhharthan, who was found hanging inside his college hostel on February 18.

“The Kerala government has a moral duty to act impartially. We demand a CBI investigation into the death of J S Sidharthan. The future of our youth cannot be sacrificed at the altar of ruthless political ambitions,” Rahul Gandhi said in his letter to Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan.

Condemning the CPI(M) government in Kerala for allegedly shielding the perpetrators of this crime, Rahul Gandhi said, “It has been brought to my notice that the university administration, as well as the law enforcement agencies, sought to shield the perpetrators instead of bringing them to book. I unequivocally condemn this deliberate ploy to cover up the case.”

Referring to the Student Federation of India (SFI), the student wing of the CPIM, Rahul Gandhi said, “The blanket impunity enjoyed by certain elements have only served to embolden them. The systematic attempts to stifle voices has turned certain student bodies into violent mobs.”

Rahul Gandhi said that JS Sidharthan was a “young student with a bright future”.

“His parents Shri Jayaprakash and Smt. Sheeba deserve justice. No parent should have to live with the trauma and pain of watching a young life extinguished. The blood-curdling details emerging regarding his inhumane torture is a reminder that the failure of an institution tasked to protect our students can result in a grave tragedy,” the Congress MP from Wayanad added.

Earlier on Tuesday, the Kerala Students Union (KSU) staged a protest march to the Secretariat as part of a statewide bandh in response to the tragic death of the student. The police used water cannons to disperse the crowd.

Kerala Governor Arif Mohammed Khan on Saturday suspended the Vice Chancellor of the Kerala Veterinary and Animal Sciences University, Dr MR Saseendranath in connection with the death of a second-year student at the university.

The victim was a student of the Government Veterinary College, Pookode in Thiruvananthapuram.

(This news report is published from a syndicated feed. Except for the headline, the content has not been written or edited by OpIndia staff)

UP: Anees Ahmed sentenced to life imprisonment for raping a Dalit woman after befriending her posing as Akash, had converted her to Ayesha

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UP: Anees Ahmed sentenced to life imprisonment for raping a Dalit woman after befriending her posing as Akash, had converted her to Ayesha

On 6th March, a man named Mohammad Anees Ahmed from Uttar Pradesh’s Hapur was sentenced to life imprisonment in a case of traping a Hindu woman by hiding his identity and converting her to Islam. The man has been convicted by a SC/ST court in Bulandshahr under the Religious Conversion Act, SC/ST Act and relevant sections of the IPC. The Special SC/ST Act Court also imposed a fine of Rs 4.56 lakh on the convict.

This is the first case of life term under the Prohibition of Unlawful Religious Conversion Act of Uttar Pradesh.

Mohammad Anees Ahmed had masqueraded as Hindu man Akash and tricked a Dalit woman from Mangolpuri, Delhi into befriending him. Around eight months back, he took her to the Gulaothi area of Uttar Pradesh’s Bulandshahar and started living with her in a rented home. He repeatedly had physical relations with her there under the pretext of marriage.

The offender then exposed his true religious identity and forcefully converted her to Islam as well as gave her a new name, Ayesha. After some time, he abandoned her and left the place. He also stole Rs 2.50 lakh and gold jewellery from her before leaving. The victim tried to call him to know the reason behind his actions but he hurled casteist abuses at her and claimed, “I cannot marry you because you are a chamar,” and disconnected the phone.

The complaint in this regard was submitted on 27th April 2022. The police filed a charge sheet in the court. The trial was carried out by the Monitoring Cell Bulandshahr in the High Court whereby five witnesses were questioned against the accused, marking this prosecution under the campaign “Operation Conviction” which is being run by the state’s Director General of Police.

The public prosecutor informed, “The chargesheet was submitted in Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribes (SC/ST) court after consideration. The case was registered on 15th March 2022. The female belongs to the SC/ST community while the culprit is a Muslim. The accused deceived the woman by pretending to be a Hindu, brought her to Gulaothi and later disclosed his true identity to her. He changed her religion and started calling her Ayesha. He then left her after taking her money and gold chain.”

The counsel added, “Sections 376(2), 420 and 406 of the Indian Penal Code as well as 3, 2 and 5 of the SC/ST Act and 3/5 unlawful religious conversion act were involved against the perpetrator. He was pronounced guilty under all the charges and was given life imprisonment which means until his last breath and a penalty of Rs 4.56 lakhs of which Rs 3.50 lakh will be provided to the victim. This is the first case of this nature where a convict is penalised for religious conversion.”

The Additional Superintendent of Police informed that police lodged the chargesheet in a little over a month and the authorities conducted a swift investigation. The police produced the witnesses in court on due dates. The statement of the doctor who performed a medical examination on the victim was obtained through video conferencing as she had gone to Bengaluru for her postgraduate course and couldn’t physically appear in court. He added that it was a very rare punishment after the implementation of the Prohibition of Unlawful Religious Conversion Ordinance, 2020.

Larger conspiracy to stop Republic, all media industry knew this was fake: Arnab Goswami after winning the fake TRP scam case

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Larger conspiracy to stop Republic, all media industry knew this was fake: Arnab Goswami after winning the fake TRP scam case

After getting vindicated in the Fake TRP case, Managing Director and Editor-in-Chief of Republic Media Network Arnab Goswami described the case as a “larger conspiracy to stop Republic”. He added that the rival media networks and politicians didn’t want the network to survive and “actually finish the Republic Media network”. According to him, this was a do-or-die battle for them. 

Notably, on Wednesday (6th March), a Mumbai court accepted an application filed by the Mumbai police seeking closure of the case filed by the Uddhav Thackeray government. Subsequently, the court ordered the withdrawal of the fake TRP case against Arnab Goswami and Republic TV. 

“A pliable Police Commissioner Param Bir Singh was used in the fake TRP case and Sachin Waze was absolutely nothing but the worst kind of criminal in uniform”, triumphant Arnab Goswami said after coming on air following the court ruling. 

Describing it as a “very big day”, Arnab Goswami noted, “I had the belief that lies don’t win, fabrication don’t win, conspiracies don’t win, hard work, truth, determination, will power wins. I had faith in my team, truth, and above all that faith in the Lord almighty that against all conspiracies the truth will come out.”

He added that the tragedy is that all the people in the media, and politicians had conspired at that point in time to bring the Republic to a grinding halt. All media industry knew that this was fake, they had no shred of doubt about it, even my biggest enemies, behind closed doors, noted that this was an attempt fixing me and fixing Republic and stopping the growth of the Republic using fabrication, illegal means, using falsehoods, using pliable police commissioner, Goswami said.  

He highlighted that the state (Maharashtra government) came before the court and gave an application that there has been no shred of evidence, we have been able to find in this case, the case should be closed as the evidence was fabricated and coerced and threatened to give statement against Republic. “Witnesses were threatened, coerced”, the court said and accepted an application filed by Mumbai police seeking closure of the TRP scam case and closed case. 

Accompanied by Arnab, Republic Journalist Abhishek Kapoor described the case as a ‘hate crime’ against the Republic and personally against Arnab Goswami. 

“I was flabbergasted over the manner in which the case can be fabricated, how can a Police Commissioner come out to say that Arnab Goswami pays Rs 500 to people to watch his network? Nobody believed it, people supported me and when I was put in jail, people supported me”, Goswami added noting that he never felt the load of the case as he knew the truth was on their side and they would win. 

He, however, noted that they waited for it as it was the technicality that was to be done. Regarding the timing of the ‘Fake TRP’ case against Republic, Arnab pointed out that the network had to fight with the Uddhav Thackeray government and was reporting on the Sushant Singh Rajput case, Palghar lynching case. He emphasised that they wanted to stop Republic as they had built a powerful enemy in the MVA government while the rest of the media was looking at it as commerce as their revenues, profits, etc were hit by Republic Network. 

“Even in 2024, we are the only media network run by a journalist and nobody has lever on us”, Arnab asserted and asked all those media organisations who ran falsehoods to put out the truth now that it has come out in the open. 

While interacting with his Republic media network employees, Arnab recalled how in October 2020, Mumbai CP Param Bir Singh, Param Bir Singh addressed a press conference which led to negative media reportage against him and Republic TV. 

He noted that an Aaj Tak anchor had put out his face accusing him of being a ‘TRP Chor’ and the entire Delhi media had surrounded his house with cameras saying they faked TRP because by then Republic Hindi had become the number 1 in the Hindi news slot. 

While referring to the court order in this case, Arnab emphasised that it is not a partial or ordinary withdrawal. He added that the state came and said in the court, which has never happened in history, that we coerced and threatened the people, and through threats, we tried to get 164 statements against Arnab. 

He asserted that this has never happened that the state has admitted coercion, fabrication, and false evidence, and that people were tortured, unheard things, and everything was done to bring evidence against the Republic and spoil their name.  

“I want you all to below the trumpet, we have built this network not by scamming or cheating but with hard work. We have fought this case for 3.5 years in court,” he told the gathering of Republic network employees.  

He highlighted how despite the headwinds, Republic launched two channels. He added that they wanted to leave the Republic without money and without capital, they wanted to freeze their network’s accounts, to send a message to journalists that a journalist can’t run a channel or be able to give salary to his employees. He also recalled how letters were written to friends and advertisers of Republic Media Network asking them to not advertise on their network. 

“The game has just begun,” shouted Arnab and his team regarding the verdict and the fight. 

‘Fake TRP’ scam which has now been closed by the court

In October 2020, Mumbai CP Param Bir Singh, in an explosive statement, accused Republic TV of ‘TRP manipulation’. In a witch hunt attack against Republic TV and Arnab Goswami, the Mumbai Commissioner had claimed, that the channel had illegally paid some households to keep some channels on even if they were not at home to boost their TRP.

The Mumbai Police had filed a complaint against three channels namely Fakt Marathi, Box Cinema, and Republic-TV for manipulating television rating points (TRPs).

After 3.5 years, today, the Mumbai court has closed the case noting that “Witnesses were threatened, coerced”.   

West Bengal: CID hands over Sheikh Shahjahan to CBI after Calcutta HC issued contempt notice for not following the order

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West Bengal: CID hands over Sheikh Shahjahan to CBI after Calcutta HC issued contempt notice for not following the order

The Crime Investigation Department handed over the suspended Trinamool Congress strongman Sheikh Shahjahan, accused of extortion, land grab, and sexual assault in Sandeshkhali, to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on Wednesday, following the Calcutta High Court’s directive.

The CBI team arrived at Bhabani Bhaban Police Headquarters in Kolkata to take custody of Sheikh Shahjahan.

Issuing a contempt notice to the West Bengal CID, the Calcutta High Court observed on Wednesday that an investigation into the attack on ED officials should be handed over to the CBI and the custody of accused Sheikh Shahjahan be done today.

Calcutta High Court also observed that state police have played hide and seek in the matter.

“The accused is a political influencer. The investigation should be handed over to the CBI and the custody of the accused by 4:15 pm today,” the High Court said.

The Bengal government earlier refused to hand over custody of Shahjahan to the CBI despite a Calcutta High Court order Tuesday to the police’s criminal investigation department, or CID.

Meanwhile, the West Bengal government on Wednesday sought an urgent hearing of its plea in the Supreme Court challenging a Calcutta High Court order that directed a CBI probe into the Sandeshkhali matter pertaining to an attack on Enforcement Directorate officials in Sandeshkhali on January 5 this year.

Earlier, Prime Minister Narendra Modi met the women victims of sexual assault in Sandeshkhali village of West Bengal on Wednesday, sources said.

The sources further added, “They put forward their ordeal and the Prime Minister heard them patiently like a father figure. The victims were very emotional with the fact that the PM understood their pain”.

After meeting PM Modi, the Sandeshkhali victim told ANI, “Thanking Prime Minister Modi, we told him openly about the atrocities being committed against every person. We told the Prime Minister how we were tortured… He assured us of help. We voted the Chief Minister to victory but she insulted us. She did not even talk to us. We felt very good after talking to PM Modi. We requested him to deploy the Central Force here because we have no faith in the state government.”

Calling the women of Sandeshkhali, his parivar (family), PM Modi on Wednesday accused the Trinamool Congress (TMC) government of shielding the accused in the Sandeshkhali case and said that it is a “matter of shame.”

“Under TMC’s rule, the women of this land have been tortured. Whatever happened in Sandeshkhali will put anyone to shame but the TMC government does not care about your issues. TMC government is hell-bent on saving the perpetrator. Their acts were first condemned by the High Court and then the Supreme Court as well. TMC leaders have committed atrocities on the women of the state. Leaders of TMC are torturing the women from poor, Dalit, and Adivasis groups. TMC government trusts its leaders more than it trusts the women of Bengal. TMC has full confidence in their leader but not in the women of West Bengal,” the Prime Minister said.

After weeks of no action, on February 29, Sheikh was arrested by West Bengal police, after which West Bengal’s Basirhat Court remanded him to 10-day police custody.

(This news report is published from a syndicated feed. Except for the headline, the content has not been written or edited by OpIndia staff)

Uttar Pradesh: Former MP and History-sheeter Dhananjay Singh sentenced to 7 years imprisonment in kidnapping, extortion case

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Uttar Pradesh: Former MP and History-sheeter Dhananjay Singh sentenced to 7 years imprisonment in kidnapping, extortion case

On Wednesday (6th March), the special MP/MLA court in UP’s Jaunpur sentenced former Jaunpur MP Dhananjay Singh to a seven-year jail term. The court also imposed a fine of Rs 75 thousand in the extortion and kidnapping of the project manager of Namami Gange Yojana, Abhinav Singhal. 

A day earlier, Jaunpur’s Additional Sessions Judge Sharad Kumar Tripathi held Singh and his associate Santosh Vikram guilty in the matter. Singh and his aide were found guilty of kidnapping, demanding extortion, abusing and threatening the project Manager Singhal. 

(Court order, Source – India TV)

Details of the case

On 10th May 2020, Muzaffarnagar resident Abhinav Singhal filed a case against Dhananjay Singh and his partner Vikram at the Linebazar police station. The case was registered under sections of kidnapping, extortion, conspiracy and others.

According to reports, Vikram and his associates were accused of kidnapping Singhal and then taking him to the residence of the former MP Dhananjay Singh. When they reached his residence, Singh came with a pistol in his hand. At gun point, he abused and threatened him to give extortion and use construction material only from his sources which were rejected in the past for being of low quality. 

In its order, the court noted that it has been proved that the accused forcibly called the plaintiff from his workplace to his home and intimidated and threatened him and the people of his company at gun point. Pressure was put on them that only and only the accused’s gravel and sand should be used in the Namami Gange project. Otherwise, the lives of the plaintiff and the people of his company will be in danger.

The former MP was arrested in this case and later got bail from the Allahabad High Court. 

Described as “Bahubali of Purvanchal’, history-sheeter Dhananjay Singh already has several criminal cases pending against him, but this is the first time he has been sentenced in a case. He was elected MLA several times and MP on a BSP ticket. He served as the Member of Parliament in the 15th Lok Sabha from 2009 to 2014 as a Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) member.

However, in 2011, BSP president Mayawati expelled him on charges of anti-party activities.

Presently with the Janata Dal (United), he had recently announced his intention to contest the Lok Sabha elections. However, because of his conviction in this case, he wouldn’t be able to contest the elections if the former MP fails to get respite from higher courts. Notably, those who receive a sentencing of two years or more, they get barred from contesting elections. 

His lawyer stated that he will appeal to the High Court as soon as he receives a copy of the decision. 

‘Comparing Sanatana Dharma to HIV, malaria against constitutional principles’: Madras HC castigates Udhayanidhi Stalin, but dismisses plea

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‘Comparing Sanatana Dharma to HIV, malaria against constitutional principles’: Madras HC castigates Udhayanidhi Stalin, but dismisses plea

On Wednesday, the Madras High Court pulled up Tamil Nadu minister Udhayanidhi Stalin for his disparaging remarks against Sanatana Dharma but dismissed petitions seeking quo warranto writs against him, Sekar Babu, and A Raja, who hold public office.

The quo warranto petitions questioned the validity of the official roles held by three DMK leaders. Submitted by two Hindu Munnani functionaries and another individual, these petitions contested the legitimacy of these leaders who reportedly took part in an “anti-Sanatana Dharma meeting” and allegedly gave speeches against religious customs.

T Manohar, who claims to be a Hindu Munnani office-bearer and two others, initiated the quo warranto petitions.

On Monday, the Supreme Court admonished Stalin for his comments and for attempting to consolidate numerous FIRs filed against him nationwide for relief. The court remarked that he should have been aware of the consequences as a minister.

The controversy started when DMK leader Udhayanidhi Stalin stated that Sanatana Dharma was against equality and social justice, advocating for its eradication. He likened it to diseases like coronavirus, malaria, and dengue, stressing the need for elimination rather than mere criticism.

In response to the widely debated ‘Sanatana row,’ Udhayanidhi Stalin, son of Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M K Stalin, pledged to confront all legal challenges against him. He urged DMK supporters to refrain from engaging in activities such as filing lawsuits against religious leaders or burning effigies. Additionally, he raised questions to Union Minister Amit Shah, Prime Minister Modi, Edappadi K Palaniswami, and the Ayodhya Seer for endorsing rewards on his life.

Stalin made these statements during the ‘Sanatana Eradication Conference,’ organized by the Tamil Nadu Progressive Writers Artists Association in Chennai on September 2, 2023.

Earlier this week, the Supreme Court expressed sharp disapproval of Tamil Nadu Minister Udhayanidhi Stalin’s comments on Sanatana Dharma.

A bench consisting of Justices Sanjiv Khanna and Dipankar Datta was handling a petition filed by Udhayanidhi Stalin to combine the first information reports (FIR) lodged in Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra, Jammu and Kashmir, Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, and Karnataka over the controversial remarks made by the DMK leader.

Election Commission asks Rahul Gandhi to be cautious in public speeches, advises to avoid words like ‘panauti’ and ‘pickpocket’

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Election Commission asks Rahul Gandhi to be cautious in public speeches, advises to avoid words like ‘panauti’ and ‘pickpocket’

Amid preparations by various political parties for the Lok Sabha election, the Election Commission of India (ECI) has issued an advisory to Congress leader Rahul Gandhi to be cautious in his public utterances, sources said.

They said ECI has advised the Congress leader to be “more careful and cautious” in his public utterances in future. The Delhi High Court had earlier asked the ECI to take appropriate action against the Congress MP for his speech in November last year in which he used the expression ‘pickpocket’ while attacking BJP leaders including Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

The Election Commission had also issued notice to Rahul Gandhi over his ‘panauti and pickpocket’ jibes at PM Modi.

The sources said that ECI reiterated its advisory of March 1 this year and said it should be followed in right earnest during campaigning. Rahul Gandhi is a star campaigner of the Congress.

“After considering all facts in the matter related to certain remarks against Prime Minister as ‘jaibkatra’ (pickpocket) and ‘pannauti’ including High Court of Delhi order dated December 21, 2023, and Rahul Gandhi’s reply, the Election Commission of India has advised the Congress leader be more careful and cautious in future,” a source said.

The Commission has asked Rahul Gandhi to take note of the advisory of the Commission to all parties, star campaigners and candidates while making public utterances.

Taking note of the various trends and cases of plummeting levels of political campaign discourse in recently-held elections, the Election Commission last week issued an advisory to all political parties to maintain decorum and utmost restraint in public campaigning and raise the level of election campaigning to “issue-based” debate.

The Election Commission will assess any indirect MCC violations as per advisory as a fair basis to rework the notices to be given in terms of time and content in the forthcoming elections, the sources said.

For the general election to the Lok Sabha and four state Legislative assemblies, all phases and geographical areas of the elections shall be the basis for determining “repeat” offences.

Chief Election Commissioner Rajiv Kumar recently emphasised that political parties should foster ethical and respectful political discourse that inspires rather than divides and promotes ideas instead of personal attacks.

The poll body has also put ‘star campaigners’ and candidates on ‘notice’ in case of violations that followed the previously known methodologies during elections to avoid breach of the Model Code of Conduct.

(This news report is published from a syndicated feed. Except for the headline, the content has not been written or edited by OpIndia staff)

Mumbai court rules that TRP case against Republic TV filed by Uddhav Thackeray govt is baseless, orders withdrawal saying witnesses were threatened

OpIndia Staff
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Mumbai court rules that TRP case against Republic TV filed by Uddhav Thackeray govt is baseless, orders withdrawal saying witnesses were threatened

On Wednesday (6th March), a Mumbai court ordered the withdrawal of the fake TRP case against Arnab Goswami and Republic TV. The court accepted an application filed by the Mumbai police seeking closure of the case filed by the Uddhav Thackeray government.

While issuing the order, the court observed that the case was based on false evidence. The Maharashtra state submitted in the court that the cases and evidence against Arnab Goswami and his channel Republic TV were fake and falsified. The additional chief metropolitan magistrate’s court in Mumbai has thus ordered to withdrawal of all these cases against Arnab Goswami and Republic TV in this matter.

It is notable that while some other channels were accused of paying money to artificially increase viewership data, the then Maharashtra government had filed the case against Republic TV without any evidence.

The court found that false evidence was filed against the channel in the court by the state. It was observed by the court that the witnesses were threatened and coerced to submit false testimony against Republic TV.

The detailed court order is awaited.

What did the state submit in its fresh application in this case?

The state had said in its application, “Most of the witnesses also stated on oath u/s 164 of CrPC that their statements were recorded by concerned police officers working with State Police machinery under threat and coercion. In this offence, BARC which is the sole authority for the collection of viewership technical data and controlling the same has not filed any complaint with any investigating authority. Given that said complaint is not being filled by the concerned government authority, technically it will be a futile exercise to continue with said present prosecution. A large number of persons are arrayed as accused in this without linking evidence.”

The application further noted, “The State Government has intimated to the Office of Commissioner of Police its decision to recommend the withdrawal of the above case/prosecution after considering the merits of the case. The concerned investigating authority has informed the office of the Public Prosecutor to act as per Section 321 of CrPC.”

It added, “As per the above-referred points it will be just and proper to stop the proceeding as per decision Dt 26/10/2020 of Govt of Maha u/s 321 of CrPC and letter dated 01.11.2023 issued by Investigating agency. It is submitted to withdraw the prosecution. Hence it’s humbly requested that the above referred criminal proceedings/ prosecution case be stopped/allowed to withdraw u/s 321 of CrPC. And for this act of kindness, the State is duty-bound as prayed.” OpIndia has a copy of this submission by the state.

‘Fake TRP’ scam

In October 2020, Mumbai CP Param Bir Singh, in an explosive statement, accused Republic TV of ‘TRP manipulation’. In a witch hunt attack against Republic TV and Arnab Goswami, the Mumbai Commissioner had claimed, that the channel had illegally paid some households to keep some channels on even if they were not at home to boost their TRP.

The Mumbai Police had filed a complaint against three channels namely Fakt Marathi, Box Cinema, and Republic-TV for manipulating television rating points (TRPs).

However, by the end of the day, it was revealed that in the original FIR, Republic TV did not find a mention anywhere. In fact, it was India Today that had been named in the original FIR. Hansa Research Group, which had filed the original complaint against two of its employees, had said that India Today and some other local channels were involved in the scam, and Republic was nowhere mentioned.

Later, the Joint Commissioner had to admit even India Today was named in the ‘Fake TRP’ FIR. In September last year, the Enforcement Directorate filed a charge sheet before a special court in Mumbai in which it confirmed that no evidence was found against Republic Media Network in the fake TRP case.

Republic TV’s alleged participation in bribing/influencing panel households to watch Republic TV or Republic Bharat channels was thoroughly investigated. The charge sheet stated that it became clear that the Mumbai police probe was ‘at variance’ with the ED investigation. The panel households back then had denied taking money to watch Republic TV or Republic Bharat.

Rameshwaram Cafe blast: NIA announces Rs 10 lakh bounty for information about the bomber

ANI
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Rameshwaram Cafe blast: NIA announces Rs 10 lakh bounty for information about the bomber

The National Investigation Agency (NIA) announced on Wednesday a bounty of Rs 10 lakh for information about the bomber in connection with the blast at Bengaluru’s Rameshwaram cafe.

The agency also emphasized that the confidentiality of the informants’ identities will be maintained.

The agency also released a picture of the bomber, captured from the CCTV footage while keeping a bag in The Rameshwaram Cafe, a popular eatery in Bengaluru’s Brookfield area.

In the picture released by the NIA, the bomber is seen wearing a cap, black pants, and black shoes.

“NIA announces a cash reward of 10 lakh rupees for information about the bomber in Rameshwaram Cafe blast case of Bengaluru. Informants’ identity will be kept confidential,” the NIA said in a post on ‘X’.

In the post, the NIA also stressed that “any information leading to his (bomber) arrest shall be rewarded.”

The agency has also requested to pass on the information through mail at “[email protected],” as well as two contact numbers: 080-29510900 and 8904241100.

The NIA declared the reward three days after the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) handed over the probe into the case to the anti-terror agency.

The case was handed over to the NIA on March 3, following the visit of an NIA team at the blast site. The blast took place at the cafe on March 1 in Bengaluru’s Whitefield area, where several people were injured following an explosion that occurred during the busy lunch hour.

Earlier, the Bengaluru Police had registered a case under the stringent Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act and Explosives Substances Act in connection with the explosion at the cafe.

The blast took place at 1 pm on March 1 and the police also found a suspect in the CCTV footage, keeping a bag inside the cafe. The police probe so far has indicated that an IED device with a timer was used to carry out the explosion. (ANI)

Bengaluru water crisis: State government takes control of all private tankers, people pay sky-high prices for tankers as borewells go dry

OpIndia Staff
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Bengaluru water crisis: State government takes control of all private tankers, people pay sky-high prices for tankers as borewells go dry

Bengaluru is grappling with a severe water crisis, impacting even prominent figures like Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and Deputy CM DK Shivakumar. Shivakumar revealed that the borewell at his residence had run dry, while a water tanker was observed entering Siddaramaiah’s official residence. As the prices for every water tanker increased after the Congress government took control of all the tankers, the groundwater table in the city worsened and several borewells in the city dried up.

The water crisis is so severe in the city that resident welfare associations have started rationing water, and issued a blanket ban on washing vehicles and swimming pool activities. Some societies have even asked residents to use disposable cutlery and wet wipes, to reduce usage of water to wash dishes, hands and faces.

In Bengaluru, the price of a ₹500 water tanker has surged to ₹1,500-₹2,000, and the onset of summer hasn’t even commenced. It’s becoming increasingly evident that access to water is slipping out of the grasp of the common man. The impending water crisis in Bengaluru is a stark reminder of the broader challenges facing Indian cities. This crisis didn’t materialize overnight; it’s been brewing for years.

The collaboration between politicians, bureaucrats, and civic authorities with the Builder Mafia and Land Mafia over decades has significantly contributed to the current predicament. Their collective actions have paved the way for the day when water scarcity becomes a reality for many.

The Deputy CM has pledged to secure an ample water supply for Bengaluru “at any expense” and has assured that prices for water tankers will be standardized. With groundwater levels depleting and over 3,000 borewells drying up, the situation is particularly dire in East Bengaluru. Residential communities have been urged to exercise caution in their water usage.

Earlier on 2nd March, deputy chief minister DK Shivakumar had posted from his X handle, “Taking into consideration the importance of meeting drinking water demands in Bengaluru, our govt has decided to take over water supply tankers. This step will ensure that no water trafficking ensues in such critical times and that every household gets a water supply. Therefore, all tube wells supplying water through tankers must register themselves with the govt by 7th March on the website. Also to adequately manage water supplies, daily meetings are being held by BWSSB and Corporation officials, and a meeting is scheduled for 4th March to discuss further on the issue.”

The Karnataka government seized upon this crisis to direct criticism towards the Center, citing its failure to approve the Mekedatu reservoir project.

To tackle drinking water concerns, a grant of Rs 10 crore is proposed for each Assembly constituency in Bengaluru. DK Shivakumar said, “We had initiated the Mekedatu project with the very intention of securing water supply for Bengaluru.  Despite our putting pressure on the Centre to approve the Mekedatu project with our padayatra, the Centre has not approved it. The Centre should at least approve the project at least now given the severity of the crisis.”

He added, “Some of the tankers are supplying water for RS 600 while some others are charging up to Rs 3,000. To standardise the pricing, we have asked all the water tankers to register with the authorities. Prices will be fixed based on the distance travelled by the tankers.”

Notably, for the past few weeks, Bengaluru has been experiencing a severe water crisis this year, months before peak summer, causing many residents of “India’s Silicon Valley” to ration their water consumption and pay nearly double the regular price to satisfy their daily water demands. Weak southwest monsoon rains have impacted groundwater levels and reduced water levels in the Cauvery River basin reservoirs that supply the southern Indian city, which is home to over 14 million people and thousands of IT enterprises and start-ups, according to a report. 

This is causing city residents to pay rising water tanker costs even before the peak summer season begins. Water tanker merchants also in some sections of Bengaluru are now asking up to 2,000 rupees ($24.11) for a 12,000-litre tanker, up from 1,200 rupees ($14.47) a month ago.

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