Nadia (West Bengal): A Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) team who had arrived in Hanskhali on Thursday visited the residences of the gang rape victim and the accused in the case.CBI DIG Akhilesh Singh with CBI Joint Director Ghanshyam Upadhyay on arriving at the house in Ganrapota Bilpara Village of the prime accused in which the minor girl was allegedly gang raped, found the house to be locked. The lock was then broken after which CBI officials entered the house.Further, the Central Forensic Science Laboratory (CFSL) team collected samples from the alleged crime scene at the residence of the accused.A 14-year-old girl died after she was allegedly gang-raped in Hanskhali in Nadia district earlier this month. The victim's family has accused the son of a Trinamool Congress panchayat leader in the case.Calcutta High Court on Tuesday granted permission to the CBI to investigate the case. In its detailed order, the High Court noted that in order to have a "fair investigation" and instil confidence in the family of the victim, the case was being handed over to the CBI.The state investigating agency was asked to hand over all papers relating to the investigation, as well as the custody of the accused to the central agency. The matter has been listed for May 2.A case under sections 376(2)(G) (gangrape), 302 (murder), 204 (tampering with evidence) of the IPC and relevant sections of the POCSO) Act was registered in the case.Meanwhile, Trinamool Congress (TMC) MP Sougata Roy said the West Bengal government is extremely concerned about crime against women and even a single incident is quite a shame for the party."Everyone is extremely concerned about crime against women. Even a single incident in the state under the leadership of a woman Chief Minister is quite a shame for us. We have to have zero tolerance in these matters. I hope police and administration will take care of this," Roy said.Notably, Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Monday questioned if the minor girl was actually raped or had a love affair that got her pregnant."How do you know if she was raped? The police are yet to ascertain the cause of the death. I had asked them. Was she pregnant or had a love affair or was sick? Even family knew it was a love affair. If a couple is in a relationship, how can I stop them?," the chief minister said during an address at the inauguration of the 'Biswa Bangla Mela Prangan' "This is not Uttar Pradesh that I can do that in name of Love Jihad," she further said.Pertinent to mention, the five-member fact-finding committee constituted by BJP chief JP Nadda will visit Hanskhali on Friday. The Committee include BJP MP Rekha Verma, Uttar Pradesh Minister Baby Rani Maurya, Tamil Nadu MLA Vanathi Srinivasan, Khusbu Sunder and West Bengal MLA Rupmitra Chaudhary.&nbsp;—ANI

 A Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) team who had arrived in Hanskhali on Thursday visited the residences of the gang rape victim and the accused in the case.  CBI DIG Akhilesh Singh with CBI Joint Director Ghanshyam Upadhyay on arriving at the house in Ganrapota Bilpara Village of the prime accused in which the minor girl was allegedly gang raped, found the house to be locked. The lock was then broken after which CBI officials entered the house.

Hanshkhali Horror: UP Min Skips Visit As BJP's Fact-Finding Team Meets Victim's Family

Delhi: The distraught relatives of the victims of a fire incident in a commercial building at Delhi's Mundka thronged the Sanjay Gandhi Hospital on Friday night looking for their family members.One of them, Ajit Tiwari, said his sister Monika (21) is missing since the incident."She started working at a CCTV camera packaging unit last month and received her first salary on Thursday. We got to know about the fire at 5 pm, but had no idea that the blaze occurred at her office building. When she did not return home by 7 pm, we started looking for her," Tiwari said.Monika lives with her two brothers and a sister at Delhi's Agar Nagar. She hails from Gonda district in Uttar Pradesh.Another woman was frantically looking for her elder daughter who also works at the CCTV camera packaging unit."My daughter Pooja has been working at the CCTV camera packaging unit for the last three months. We live in Mubarakpur and got to know about the incident at 9 pm. She has a cut mark below her left eye. We are looking for her at various hospitals. She is the sole breadwinner of our family of four. Her two younger sisters study in a school," the woman said.A massive fire ripped through a three-storey commercial building near the Mundka metro station in west Delhi on Friday evening, leaving at least 27 people dead and 12 injured, the police said.Around 60-70 people have been rescued from the building, they said, adding that some were still trapped inside.According to fire department officials, information about the blaze was received around 4.40 pm following which 24 fire tenders were rushed to the spot.Ankit, who works at one of the offices in the building, said a motivational session was going on at the second floor when the fire broke out."I am very fortunate that I am alive. I could have also lost my life. A motivational session was going on at the second floor of the building when we noticed the blaze. We broke the glass windows and somehow managed to escape," he said.Another man said his aunt is missing.The police said at least 27 people were killed and 12 injured in the fire. They did not, however, specify other details such as the gender or the age of the victims.The building in which the fire broke out is located near pillar number 544 of the Mundka metro station.—PTI

The distraught relatives of the victims of a fire incident in a commercial building at Delhi's Mundka thronged the Sanjay Gandhi Hospital on Friday night looking for their family members.

Delhi fire: Relatives of victims throng hospital looking for loved ones

Houston: Two people were killed and three others critically injured in a shooting at a flea market in Houston, the largest city of the US state Texas, authorities said.The shooting allegedly took place on Sunday due to a fight among the five male victims, the Harris County Sheriff’s Office said.The victims all appear to be in their early-to mid-20s and likely knew each other, officials said, noting they do not believe the shooting was random, Xinhua news agency reported. No innocent bystanders were hurt although the flea market was very busy at Sunday afternoon when the shooting took place. Harris County Sheriff, Ed Gonzalez said it is estimated that there were “thousands” at the flea market when the gun shots were fired. Two possible suspects were detained and a third was taken to a hospital, according to an ABC News report. The Sheriff’s office said at least two pistols have been recovered from the crime scene.—IANS

Two people were killed and three others critically injured in a shooting at a flea market in Houston, the largest city of the US state Texas, authorities said.

2 killed, 3 injured in US Houston flea market shooting

Amaravati: The Andhra Pradesh police registered a murder case against ruling YSR Congress MLC Ananta Satya Uday Bhaskar, for allegedly being involved in his former driver's death, but the victim's wife demanded that a probe by the Central Bureau of Investigation be ordered to render her justice. Over the last two days, Dalit organisations and the opposition Telugu Desam Party put in sustained pressure calling for the police to arrest the ruling party legislator. The victim's wife Aparna alleged that the police tried to silence her. "I was beaten up by women police to give a statement that my husband died in an accident. They also offered me inducements but I did not budge," Aparna, who is pregnant, said. Expressing doubts over the Kakinada police, she demanded that a CBI investigation be ordered into the case to render justice, even as she asserted that the MLC was responsible for the murder of her husband.Kakinada superintendent of police M Ravindranath Babu did not respond to calls for any clarification. Kakinada sub-divisional police officer V Bhima Rao said he was "busy in a meeting" and did not give any details about the case. After midnight on Thursday, the MLC brought the body of his former driver V Subrahmanyam in his car and handed it over to the victim's family, claiming it was a case of accidental death. The legislator fled the scene when the driver's family members raised a protest and demanded an explanation. The Sarpavaram police initially booked only a case of suspicious death under Section 174 of CrPC, though the victim's family members alleged it was a clear case of murder and pointed fingers at the MLC. The deceased, V Subrahmanyam, had worked as the MLC's car driver for the past five years. On Thursday night, Bhaskar came to Subrahmanyam's residence and took him away. Later, around 2 am he returned to Subrahmanyam's house with the latter's body and handed it over to the family. The legislator claimed the driver died in a road accident but when the family members protested, he fled the scene leaving the car behind. The Sarpavaram police confirmed that there was no trace of any road accident at the spot (Nagamalli Thota Junction) as the MLC had claimed. The victim's kin allowed a post-mortem to be done only after midnight on Saturday when the police finally agreed to add murder charges. Accordingly, a case under Section 302 (murder) of Indian Penal Code and also under various provisions of the SC/ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act was registered against Uday Bhaskar alias Babu. State director general of police KV Rajendranath Reddy said they would conduct a thorough investigation into the case once the post-mortem report was submitted. Meanwhile, former MP G V Harsha Kumar alleged that every effort was being made to save the MLC as he was a "benami" of several YSRC top leaders. "The high court should take suo motu cognisance of the case and conduct a detailed inquiry and bring the culprits to book," Harsha Kumar said. TDP president N Chandrababu Naidu spoke to the driver's wife over phone and assured her that his party would stand by her and ensure justice. He wondered why the police so far did not arrest the ruling party legislator."The police actions are giving rise to a lot of suspicions. The MLC has to be arrested forthwith,” the former chief minister demanded.—PTI

The Andhra Pradesh police registered a murder case against ruling YSR Congress MLC Ananta Satya Uday Bhaskar, for allegedly being involved in his former driver's death, but the victim's wife demanded that a probe by the Central Bureau of Investigation be ordered to render her justice.

YSRC MLA booked for ex-driver's murder, victim's wife demands CBI probe

Jaipur: &nbsp;A delegation of victims of a fraud allegedly committed by Sanjeevani Credit Cooperative Society met Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot at his residence here."The people of Sanjivani Peedak Sangh said Union Minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat along with the managing director of the society, Vikram Singh, took them into confidence to invest money, a release said.Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot, after listening to the delegation, assured of appropriate action in this matter.Sanjeevani Credit Co-Operative Society has embezzled earning of lakhs of people of Rajasthan. The state government will try its best to get back the money of all these people and every person involved in this robbery should be given the harshest punishment so that in future this type of fraud should not happen to anyone, the release said.The chief minister has appealed that people should take wise decisions while investing and do not fall in the trap of schemes with high returns.—PTI

 A delegation of victims of a fraud allegedly committed by Sanjeevani Credit Cooperative Society met Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot at his residence here.

Victims of Sanjeevani Society fraud meet CM Gehlot

 A delegation of victims of a fraud allegedly committed by Sanjeevani Credit Cooperative Society met Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot at his residence here.



Muzaffarnagar: A 48-year-old man was shot at when he objected to a neighbour's pet defecating on the sand he had purchased for constructing a house in Titwai village in Uttar Pradesh's Muzaffarnagar district.The victim, Sukrampal, is being treated at the hospital and his condition is critical. According to police, Sukrampal had piled up the sand near his under-construction house. The incident occurred on Monday night when Sukrampal and his neighbour Ashu had a confrontation over the latter's dog defecating on former's pile of sand. The wordy duel turned ugly with Ashu allegedly pumping a bullet into Sukrampal, leaving him critically injured. Station House Officer Mukesh Solanki said that the accused is now on the run and efforts are underway to arrest him.&nbsp;—IANS

A 48-year-old man was shot at when he objected to a neighbour's pet defecating on the sand he had purchased for constructing a house in Titwai village in Uttar Pradesh's Muzaffarnagar district.

UP: Man Shot At After He Objects To Dog Defecating On Sand

Lucknow:&nbsp;The Lucknow bench of Allahabad High Court has directed the Uttar Pradesh government to consider giving employment, within three months in a government department or undertaking, to a family member of Hathras case victim, who was allegedly raped and murdered in September 2020. The bench ordered the state authorities that they must abide by their promise made to the victim's family in writing on September 30, 2020, to give employment to one family member. A bench of Justice Rajan Roy and Justice Jaspreet Singh further directed the state authorities to consider relocation of the victim's family outside Hathras but within Uttar Pradesh, keeping in mind the family's social and economic rehabilitation and also the educational needs of the children of the family, within a period of six months. The bench passed the order on a PIL which was registered suo motu as "Right to Decent and Dignified Last Rites/Cremation" in 2020 after the victim's last rites were performed in haste after midnight, allegedly without the consent of the family. The victim's family had demanded that it needed a job and rehabilitation outside Hathras. The victim's family submitted before the court that after the incident, brothers and father of the victim were rendered jobless and the family had meagre agricultural land for its subsistence. The family of the victim also pleaded the court that due to the incident, it was difficult for them to lead a normal life in Hathras. Passing the order, the bench of Allahabad HC considered that the state government had granted employment to the spouses of deceased Vinay Tiwari and Manish Gupta, who were killed by police personnel and also gave them a huge compensation amount. In its order, the bench also directed the Hathras District Magistrate to provide the travelling and maintenance expenses to the witnesses deposing in the trial.—IANS

The Lucknow bench of Allahabad High Court has directed the Uttar Pradesh government to consider giving employment, within three months in a government department or undertaking, to a family member of Hathras case victim, who was allegedly raped and murdered in September 2020.


HC directs UP govt to give job to kin of Hathras rape victim

New Delhi: A hacking group allegedly backed by the Chinese government has been attacking governments, NGOs, news publications and think tanks globally -- including India's National Informatics Centre (NIC) -- sending them emails which, once opened, were used to steal their login credentials.
The group known as 'RedAlpha' has consistently spoofed login pages for NIC, which manages wider IT infrastructure and services for the Indian government. The hacking group weaponised some least 350 domains last year alone.
The China-sponsored hacking group spoofed organisations such as the International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH), Amnesty International, the Mercator Institute for China Studies (MERICS), Radio Free Asia (RFA), the American Institute in Taiwan (AIT), and other global government, think tank, and humanitarian organisations that "fall within the strategic interests of the Chinese government".
According to a report by cybersecurity firm Recorded Future, the group has also engaged in direct targeting of ethnic and religious minorities, including individuals and organisations within Tibetan and Uyghur communities.
"In recent years RedAlpha has also displayed a particular interest in spoofing political, government, and think tank organisations in Taiwan, likely in an effort to gather political intelligence," said the report.
The China-based hacking group targeted individuals via emails containing abasic PDF files with links to the phishing sites, typically stating that a user needs to click the link to preview or download files.
Over the past three years, RedAlpha continued to conduct credential-phishing activity using large clusters of operational infrastructure to support campaigns.
"In late 2019 and early 2020, the group likely shifted away from older infrastructure TTPs exhibited in public reporting, such as the registration of domains through GoDaddy and hosting on Choopa (Vultr) and Forewin Telecom infrastructure," the report revealed.
The researchers observed RedAlpha consistently register domains spoofing Taiwanese or Taiwan-based government, think tank, and political organisations.
"Notably, this included the registration of multiple domains imitating the American Institute in Taiwan (AIT), the de facto embassy of the United States of America in Taiwan, during a time of increasing US-China tension regarding Taiwan over the past year," they said. RedAlpha's activity has expanded over the past several years to include credential-phishing campaigns spoofing ministries of foreign affairs in multiple countries.
A Chinese government spokesperson told the MIT Technology Review that the country opposes all cyberattacks and would "never encourage, support, or connive" to carry out such activity. —IANS

A hacking group allegedly backed by the Chinese government has been attacking governments, NGOs, news publications and think tanks globally -- including India's National Informatics Centre (NIC) -- sending them emails which, once opened, were used to steal their login credentials.

China-Backed Hackers Spying On Govts, India's NIC Among Victims

Bengaluru: The Karnataka High Court has quashed a case lodged under the provision of the Prevention of Children from Sexual Offences Act (POCSO) and upheld the marriage between the accused and the victim.&nbsp;
The bench observed on Tuesday that the incident had taken place when the victim was 17 years. However, she married the accused after turning 18.&nbsp;
The couple also had a baby out of wedlock.
The bench headed by Justice Nagaprasanna opined that prosecution won’t be able to prove charges against the accused. In case of the victim turning hostile, the accused will come clean out of all charges and the case will not go to logical end.
The bench refused to accept the arguments of the prosecution against the accused.
The court stated that it is appropriate to end the case as there is consensus between parties. The accused and victim are married and have a baby.
It is not judicious to separate them from married life at this juncture, the bench added.
In 2019, the victim’s father had lodged a missing case.
During investigation, the victim was found with the accused.
In spite of girl pleading that she had willingly gone with the accused, her family had lodged a case of rape.
Since the girl was a minor, the police had lodged a POCSO case against him.
After serving 18-months of imprisonment he was granted bail. The accused and victim married in November 2020.&nbsp;
—IANS

The Karnataka High Court has quashed a case lodged under the provision of the Prevention of Children from Sexual Offences Act (POCSO) and upheld the marriage between the accused and the victim. 

 K'taka HC quashes POCSO case, upholds marriage of accused, victim

Hyderabad: Hyderabad on Thursday paid tributes to those who lost their lives in the twin bomb blasts at Gokul Chat and Lumbini Park 15 years ago.&nbsp;
Leaders of various political parties and some survivors of the blasts paid tributes to 42 persons who had lost their lives in the near simultaneous blasts on this day in 2007.
People paid floral tributes to the victims at Gokul Chat, the popular eatery in Koti area. The survivors again demanded that the guilty be hanged without any further delay.
Two powerful explosions had ripped through the popular eatery and an open-air theatre at Lumbini Park, near the state secretariat, on August 25, 2007, killing 42 people and wounding 68 others.
While 32 people were killed at Gokul Chat, 10 persons lost their lives at Lumbini Park, in the blasts that occured at around 7.45 p.m. that day.
An unexploded bomb was also found under a foot-over-bridge at Dilsukhnagar.
The case was initially investigated by the Andhra Pradesh Police. Following the bifurcation of the state, it was handed over to the Counter Intelligence (CI) wing of Telangana Police.
In 2018, a special court had sentenced two convicts to death and a third to life sentence. Three other accused, including Indian Mujahideen (IM) chief Riyaz Bhatkal and his brother Iqbal Bhatkal, are still at large.
Anique Shafiq Syed and Akbar Ismail Choudhary, the alleged IM operatives, were sentenced to death in connection with the case, while a third convict, Tariq Anjum, was awarded life sentence.
Two other accused, Farooq Sharfuddin and Sadiq Ahmed Sheikh, were acquitted for lack of evidence.&nbsp;
—IANS

Hyderabad on Thursday paid tributes to those who lost their lives in the twin bomb blasts at Gokul Chat and Lumbini Park 15 years ago. 

 Tributes paid to 2007 Hyderabad twin blasts victims

Hyderabad: Hyderabad, a key global hub of information technology, has also emerged as one of the major centres of cybercrimes with about 10 per cent of the cyber frauds nationally occurring here. As human life is increasingly becoming digital, cyber crimes are also on the rise. Widespread use of electronic devices that enable Internet access has led to an increase in exposure of individuals and organisations to cybercrimes.
From banks and companies to individuals like students, housewives and senior citizens are falling prey to the cyber criminals operating from remote places both in India and abroad. According to the National Crime Record Bureau, Telangana contributed to over 10 per cent of cybercrimes reported across the country in 2020. According to the Crime in India-2020 report released by the NCRB, while Telangana recorded 2,691 cases in 2019, the number of cybercrimes jumped to 5,024 in 2020, at a rate of 13.4 cases per lakh population.
During 2021, Telangana witnessed two-fold increase in cyber crime. A total of 8,828 cases of cybercrime were reported during the year. Of these 5,833 were major offences while 1,191 cases were of online fraud and impersonation. Customer care fraud, advertisement portal fraud, job frauds, loan frauds, and bank-related frauds were classified as major offences. Other offences include online impersonation frauds, cyberstalking, phishing, and obscene content.
According to police, most of the scams include unified payment interface (UPI) schemes, in which the fraudsters urge victims to scan QR codes in order to get payment and then trick them into sending money. Hyderabad Police alone booked 5,646 cases of cybercrimes, compared to 1,379 cases recorded in 2020.
The city registers about 100 FIRs every day and about 20 per cent of them are about cyber crimes like social media frauds, financial frauds, hacking and sexual harassment. According to a police official, UPI scams account for about 45 per cent of all cybercrime instances, followed by 15 per cent OTP frauds, phone customer service, investment fraud, and other cybercrime cases. The number of cybercrimes increased during Covid-19 pandemic as many senior citizens were avoiding going out and were instead making payments from their homes using internet portals and e-wallets. Early this year, Hyderabad witnessed a sensational case in which hackers broke into the servers of the A.P. Mahesh Co-operative Urban Bank and fraudulently transferred Rs 12.48 crore. Police investigations revealed that it all started in November last year when hackers sent about 200 phishing mails to employees of Mahesh Bank. "Two employees clicked the mails which contained the remote access Trojan virus. Through this the hacker was able to establish a connection with their computers. He then used the keylogger software and was watching whatever the employees were doing on their systems and had access to their username and password," said Hyderabad Police Commissioner Anand. On January 23, a day before hacking the server, he opened their systems and broke into the master admin and obtained user name and password. As the bank had made 10 staff members master admin and gave them common user id and password, the hacker could reach the master admin and enter the bank database and make the transactions. The hacker transferred Rs 12.48 crore into four bank accounts. The commissioner stated that the money was again transferred from the four accounts to 115 different accounts and again to another 398 accounts. A part of the money was withdrawn from 938 ATMs from across the country. Due to the timely action by the police, another Rs 2.08 crore was saved while Rs 1.08 crore was returned to the bank due to incorrect beneficiary details. The fraudsters, who had opened seven accounts with Mahesh Bank last year, siphoned-off around Rs 9.48 crore. The handlers and the account holders were paid a commission of 10 per cent by the fraudsters, while the remaining amount was sent to foreign countries through hawala and crypto currency. More than 100 police officers of Hyderabad travelled across the country for more than two months and the police spent Rs 58 lakh to probe the cyber fraud. The police arrested 23 accused, including four Nigerians but the main hacker remained elusive. The police believe that he may be in Nigeria or London. In another major cyber fraud, a Hyderabad-based aerospace multinational company lost Rs 2.30 crore as fraudsters diverted the amount by changing the domain name. In the case detected in Rachakonda Police Commissionerate this month, the company was tricked in by the fraudsters by changing one letter of the domain name being used by the company for interactions with a foreign manufacturing unit with which it had a contract. According to an official of the company, their supply chain team interacted with the vendor on a regular basis through emails under the domain name 'tfcmfg.com'. On June 11, 2022, unknown fraudsters sent emails with fraudulent domain name 'tfcmfq.com'. The city firm did not notice the change due to similarity in the domain names and also due to the fact the emails sent by fraudsters appeared as part of the same chain of emails between the firm and the vendor. In one of the emails, fraudsters sent four account numbers to credit the money. The firm's representatives transferred $289,721.97 (about Rs 2.30 crore). The firm later realized that it had been duped. Police officials say the fact that banks and major companies fell prey to fraudsters show the serious nature of the cybercrimes. They say citizens with less knowledge of technology and lack of awareness can easily become targets of the cybercriminals. Police say that people can protect themselves by not downloading unknown or suspicious apps or accept any phone calls from unknown numbers or click links sent by unknown sources through messages and mails. People often fall prey to cyber frauds by not taking basic precautions. The temptation to 'grab' lucrative offers, lottery, prize, job offers and loans land them in trouble. Police in Cyberabad commissionerate, which is one of the commissionerates covering Hyderabad and its outskirts, has been conducting awareness programmes in residential areas, shopping malls, theaters, bus stations, corporate offices and educational institutions. Early this year, Telangana claimed to become the first state in the country to launch an initiative to deploy cyber warriors at police stations. Two to five police personnel from each police station are being provided training to act as 'cyber warriors' to prevent and investigate cyber crimes, as well create public awareness. There will be two 'cyber warriors' in each police station in rural areas while their number will be three in each police station in semi-urban areas. However, in each of the police stations coming under police commissionerates or cities, five cops will be trained as 'cyber warriors'. The state police are focusing on building the capacity of the police personnel for Dark Web investigation to deal with rising cyber crime. The perpetrators resort to sophisticated cyber attacks, through Deep and Dark web, hacking, crypto currencies. Last year, the state saw the launch of Citizen Financial Cyber Fraud Reporting &amp; Management System (CFCFRMS ), an initiative to combat and overcome cyber related crimes through helpline number 155260, where lost money is recovered and given back to the victim. The statistics show that 45,893 complaints relating to financial frauds were received at the call centre in the CFCFRMS system and 9,644 complaints were received through National Cyber Crime Reporting Portal. In these cases, the victims lost over Rs 95 crore while transactions to the tune of over Rs 5 crore were successfully put on hold by the financial entities. —IANS

Hyderabad, a key global hub of information technology, has also emerged as one of the major centres of cybercrimes with about 10 per cent of the cyber frauds nationally occurring here. As human life is increasingly becoming digital, cyber crimes are also on the rise. Widespread use of electronic devices that enable Internet access has led to an increase in exposure of individuals and organisations to cybercrimes.

 Every fifth FIR in Hyderabad is filed by a cyber fraud victim

Thiruvananthapuram: Maldivian national Fousia Hassan, who was in the news during the height of the ISRO spy case here in 1994, died on Wednesday at a hospital in Colombo where she was undergoing treatment.
Although a Maldivian national, she was based in Colombo and was recently in the news after Hassan and Mariam Rasheeda, another Maldivian national who was also accused in the spy case, approached the Supreme Court through the CBI seeking a compensation of Rs 2 crore each for being wrongly implicated in the case. The ISRO spy case surfaced in 1994 when S. Nambi Narayanan, a top scientist at the ISRO unit here, was arrested on charges of espionage along with another senior officials of the space agaency, Hassan, Rasheeda and a businessman.
In September 2021, the CBI had registered an FIR at the Thiruvananthapuram Chief Judicial Magistrate's Court against 18 people, all of whom had probed the case and included top former Kerala Police and IB officials, who have been charged with conspiracy and fabrication of documents.
When the apex court decided to reopen the case, it asked all then accused and witnesses to inform the new CBI probe team if they have anything to say.
Incidentally had it not been for the Covid lockdown norms, the CBI team was to travel to Colombo to take a statement from Hassan and then from Rasheeda.
Things changed for Narayanan when the Supreme Court in 2020 appointed a three-member committee headed by retired judge Justice D.K. Jain to probe if there was a conspiracy among the then police officials to falsely implicate Narayanan.
The CBI freed Narayanan in 1995 and since then he has been fighting a legal battle against Mathews, S. Vijayan and Joshua who probed the case and falsely implicated him.
Narayanan has now received a compensation of Rs 1.9 crore from various agencies, including the Kerala government which in 2020 paid him Rs 1.3 crore and later awarded Rs 50 lakhs as directed by the Supreme Court in 2018 and another Rs 10 lakhs ordered by the National Human Rights Commission.
The compensation was because the former ISRO scientist had to suffer wrongful imprisonment, malicious prosecution and humiliation.
Now with Hassan dead, it remains to be seen the fate of the petition.
They have demanded that the compensation be recovered from the 18 officials who have now been named in the FIR. Rasheeda has filed another petition to register a separate case against then probe official S. Vijayan who had allegedly misbehaved with her. —IANS

Maldivian national Fousia Hassan, who was in the news during the height of the ISRO spy case here in 1994, died on Wednesday at a hospital in Colombo where she was undergoing treatment.

ISRO Spy Case 'Victim' Fousia Hassan Dead

Mainpuri (The Hawk): During her treatment at the Saifai Medical College hospital in Etawah, Uttar Pradesh, the 15-year-old rape victim who was allegedly raped by a relative and then set on fire passed away from her burn injuries, according to the police. The alleged rapist was the victim's uncle.
The girl was sexually assaulted by a relative who resides in the same hamlet as the victim about three months ago, according to the police.
Her mother took her to a community health centre on October 6 after she began complaining of pain in her stomach. There, the physician determined that she was pregnant after examining her.
When the mother of the victim brought up the issue with the mother and sister of the accused, they promised to get the girl married to the alleged rapist and took the girl with them. When the mother of the victim brought this up with them, the mother and sister of the accused volunteered to do this.
The incident allegedly took place in the late evening of October 8 and involved the accused lighting the girl on fire with gasoline.
Superintendent of Police (SP) Kamlesh Dixit stated that the girl was brought to a community health centre hospital, and from there, due to the severity of her burn injuries, she was sent to the Saifai Medical College.
According to statements made by the victim's parents to members of the media, the accused had been making threats against them, and they felt they had no choice but to cremate their daughter in Etawah on Monday rather than in the hamlet where they live.
The Superintendent of Police stated that the police had apprehended the accused as well as his mother, but the accused's sister, who is suspected of being involved in the crime, is still at large.
(Inputs from Agencies)

During her treatment at the Saifai Medical College hospital in Etawah, Uttar Pradesh, the 15-year-old rape victim who was allegedly raped by a relative and then set on fire passed away from her burn injuries, according to the police. The alleged rapist was the victim's uncle.

UP minor rape victim dies of burn injuries

New Delhi (The Hawk): Rajinder Premi, son of martyr Sarwanand Koul Premi, a well-known Kashmiri Pandit writer, and poet, who was gunned down by the Pakistani militants in 1990, filed a complaint with the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) on Wednesday alleging government indifference to the families of those affected by terrorism.
"The Commission would appreciate it if the J&amp;K government understood the suffering of the complainant, who has not only been forced to leave his native state but also endured significant personal loss on the way to seeking redress. The family had been forcibly removed, causing them great distress from the perspective of society as a whole and also of the family members individually. A suitable amount that could be sufficient to recompense their personal, physical, and other losses is therefore expected to be sanctioned by the J&amp;K administration, and such compensation should be granted in a time-bound manner without delay "What the NHRC wanted to happen.
The Commission has also learned from public sources that the complainant's late father, Sarvanand Koul Premi, was a freedom fighter who collaborated with numerous notable figures and was recently honoured with a Lifetime Achievement Award for his selfless contributions to society. On the 32nd anniversary of his death, the J&amp;K administration produced a monograph on his life and works written by renowned Kashmiri writer G.N. Aatish. Despite this, justice for the family of a terrorist in Kashmir has been delayed.
Even though the former J&amp;K SHRC had ordered the case to be transferred to a police officer with at least the rank of deputy superintendent of police (DSP), nothing has happened. The Commission has therefore ordered the Police Department to issue a fully revised and rectified FIR, including all factual details of trespassers, looting, kidnapping, etc.
Therefore, it is necessary for the J&amp;K government to launch a new investigation team to reexamine the horrible acts and bring the perpetrators to justice as soon as as.
The Commission has voiced its concern with the J&amp;K government's response to the early orders of construction of a cultural centre at S.K. Premi's native spot in Soaf Shali, Anantnag, and remembrance of his literary and cultural work.
It was noted that this case has been open since 2012, making the elapsed time about 9 years.
(Inputs from Agencies)

Rajinder Premi, son of martyr Sarwanand Koul Premi, a well-known Kashmiri Pandit writer, and poet, who was gunned down by the Pakistani militants in 1990, filed a complaint with the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) on Wednesday alleging government indifference to the families of those affected by terrorism.

NHRC requests J&K's report on martyr Premi's son's complaint of government indifference to terror victims

Nainital: The Uttarakhand High Court has directed the closure of a 2020 POCSO case after the alleged rape victim pleaded that she is now married to someone and wants to live her life without the legal hassles.
While hearing her application, Justice Sharad Kumar Sharma said under the law cases involving such offences are not closed in the normal course. However, continuing with the proceedings in the current matter would be futile.
Both sides have resolved their dispute and the victim also does not want the accused to be tried. Based on these facts, the court using its inherent powers under Section 482 of CrPC permits the closure of the case, the judge said.
The case is related to Udhampur district. The victim’s mother has in November 2020 complained that her minor daughter had been kidnapped. Later, the girl was rescued.
After a medical examination confirmed rape, section 356 and offences under the Protection Of Children from Sexual Offences Act (POCSO) were included in the FIR.
While the matter was being heard by a fast-track court in Rudrapur, the victim filed the application in the high court for closure of the case.
The victim said that she has “moved on” and had married someone after reaching adulthood, while the accused was also married.
Continuing the case will adversely affect both families, she said. —PTI&nbsp;

The Uttarakhand High Court has directed the closure of a 2020 POCSO case after the alleged rape victim pleaded that she is now married to someone and wants to live her life without the legal hassles.

HC Agrees To Close POCSO Case On Victim's Request

Aizawl (The Hawk): The next of kin of each person killed in the Mizoram stone quarry collapse will receive an ex-gratia payment of Rs 2 lakh, Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced on Wednesday.A PMO tweet attributed to Modi quoted him as saying, "My thoughts are with those who lost their loved ones due to the tragic stone quarry collapse in Mizoram. An ex-gratia of Rs 2 lakh would be given from PMNRF to the next of kin of each deceased, and the injured would be given Rs 50,000."After a significant portion of a stone quarry collapsed on Monday afternoon at Maudarh village in southern Mizoram's Hnahthial district, a total of 11 bodies have been discovered as of Wednesday.Vijoy Gurung, additional superintendent of police for the Hnahthial district, reported that intensive search efforts were being made to find one more body.He claimed that late on Wednesday night, an excavator's cabin buried in debris was where the body of Ajoy Chakma, 25, was discovered.The rescue operation is becoming very challenging as stone boulders, mudslides, and other obstacles are seriously hindering them, according to Gurung, who spoke to IANS. "The search operation team members are confident that they would be able to recover the body," Gurung said.Twelve workers, the majority of whom were not from Mizoram, have been officially counted as having died in the accident that happened on Monday afternoon.Five of the 12 workers, three from Assam, two each from Jharkhand and Mizoram, and three from West Bengal were reported in a report by the Deputy Commissioner of the Hnahthial district.At least five earth excavators, a stone crusher, and a drilling machine, according to some residents of Maudarh village, were also completely buried beneath the debris.The stone quarry has been in operation for 2.5 years and is situated about 160 km from the state capital Aizawl.The State Disaster Response Force, Mizoram Armed Police, Border Security Force, Assam Rifles, and Young Mizo Association volunteers are all taking part in the rescue effort.Stones are taken from the quarry by a private company named ABCI Infrastructures Pvt Ltd, which is building a road between Dawn village and Hnahthial.(Inputs from Agencies)

The next of kin of each person killed in the Mizoram stone quarry collapse will receive an ex-gratia payment of Rs 2 lakh, Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced on Wednesday.

PM announces ex-gratia for victims' families of the Mizoram stone quarry collapse

New Delhi (The Hawk): According to reliable sources, Aftab Ameen Poonawalla admitted to the police that it took him 10 hours to chop up his live-in partner's body into 35 separate pieces and that he burned her face until it was unrecognizably scarred.
Police teams have visited and searched the Mehrauli forest as part of the ongoing investigation to find additional remains of the 27-year-old victim, Shraddha Walkar.
After some remains, including a head, were found in the Trilokpuri area in June, the South district police teams have also contacted their counterparts at the Pandav Nagar police station in the East district to ask for assistance with a DNA test.
DNA testing has been requested for the Mehrauli area sample collection. Both DNA reports will be compared by the police.
The police teams also went to the rented Chattarpur home that the accused and the victim shared on Wednesday as a result of the lack of evidence.
According to the sources, officers also searched for the crime's weapon, which has been missing since Aftab's arrest on November 12.
Aftab's refusal to cooperate with the investigators has them in a tizzy in the interim.
"His assertions are inconsistent. He initially told the investigators that he had thrown the victim's victim's cell phone away in Maharashtra, but now he says that he dropped the phone in Delhi "the sources stated.
Aftab and Shraddha got into an altercation on May 18 after she suspected him of cheating on her, in what seemed like a scene from a Hitchcockian horror film.
Even worse, he beat her, sat on her chest until she passed out, and then strangled her.
(Inputs from Agencies)

According to reliable sources, Aftab Ameen Poonawalla admitted to the police that it took him 10 hours to chop up his live-in partner's body into 35 separate pieces and that he burned her face until it was unrecognizably scarred.

10 hours later, the Mehrauli murder suspect admits to chopping up the victim's body

Mathura: The post-mortem on the young woman whose body was found in a suitcase on the Yamuna Expressway in Mathura revealed two shots were fired at her, police said on Tuesday.
The 21-year-old woman, Ayushi Yadav, was killed allegedly by her father as the parents were unhappy over her inter-caste marriage, according to the police.
Acting Senior Superintendent of Police Martand Prakash Singh told newspersons the woman's father was nabbed on Sunday and her mother the next day considering her an equal partner in the crime after the recovery of the revolver used in the crime, and the car in which the body was carried.
The post-mortem examination on the woman, a resident of Delhi, was conducted by a panel of three doctors.
It found two bullets were fired at her one of which pierced through her chest and the other got stuck in her head, police said, adding the post-mortem was also video-graphed.
According to the police, Ayushi had married her classmate Chhatrapal Gurjar, a resident of Bharatpur, a year ago at the Arya Samaj temple.
Her father Nitesh Yadav and mother Brajbala were very upset over this.
The police have also retrieved their marriage certificate from her house. After getting married, she used to go to her husband's place whenever she wanted, and her parents were worried this was harming their social status. She had returned from her husband's place on Thursday also, the day of the incident and the father killed her with his revolver in a fit of rage, while the mother supported her husband in this, according to the police.
The police said the parents initially tried a lot to convince Ayushi, but she maintained that since she was an adult, she could take her decisions. The family could never reconcile with this. Singh said Ayushi was a final-year student of BCA at Delhi Global School of Technology and was very good in studies. She had cleared the entrance exam of NEET but did not appear for the interview and her parents were unhappy over it as they wanted to see her becoming a doctor. She would have turned 22 on December 1.
Meanwhile, on Monday her parents cremated her in the Laxmi Nagar area under police custody. The father lit the pyre but the brother, who also knew about the act, was not present. The police have also found several electronic pieces of evidence related to the crime and about the movement of the accused. —PTI

The post-mortem on the young woman whose body was found in a suitcase on the Yamuna Expressway in Mathura revealed two shots were fired at her, police said on Tuesday.

UP Honour Killing Victim Was Shot Twice By Father

Mumbai (The Hawk): On Saturday, Maharashtra took a moment to honour and remember the 166 martyrs and victims of the terrorist attacks on November 26, which rocked the whole world 14 years ago.
At the 26/11 Police Memorial in south Mumbai, Governor Bhagat Singh Koshyari, Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, and others presented floral tributes.
The Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus, Hotel Taj Mahal &amp; Palace, Hotel Trident-Oberoi, Nariman House, Cama Hospital, and other locations that were targeted also had similar solemn memorial services.
10 Pakistani terrorists entered Mumbai late on November 26, 2008, via the Arabian Sea route, and for the next 60 hours they carried out several acts of mayhem across a limited 5-sq.-km radius.
9 of the heavily armed desperadoes were slain, and 166 persons overall, including foreigners and security professionals, were also killed.
The only terrorist captured alive, early on November 27, hours after they began the attacks, was the gun-toting Ajmal Amir Kasab. He was tried, sentenced to death, and executed on November 21, 2012.
(Inputs from Agencies)

On Saturday, Maharashtra took a moment to honour and remember the 166 martyrs and victims of the terrorist attacks on November 26, which rocked the whole world 14 years ago.

Maha honours the martyrs, victims, and survivors of the 26/11 attacks

Mysuru, Karnataka (The Hawk): In a letter to President Droupadi Murmu on Monday, the mother of two victims in the Lingayat Mutt sex scandal requested that either they receive justice or permission for a mercy death.
Give us mercy murdering or deliver justice. You stand in for the oppressed classes. The letter stated, "You are like a mother to us and give us justice.
The letter noted that "few police have reached the conclusion that the alleged seer had not done anything and it is a conspiracy by us and our children."
"After lodging, we and our kids have no where to stay. Food has been a struggle for us. The people who are housing us are viewed with suspicion," the mother said.
"Beti padav and beti bachao's catchphrase is being turned into a joke. Our goal is fairness. I tried to end my life after my husband left me. I was told to visit Murugha Mutt, and that is where I began my life, she says.
My two daughters were brought to the seer's private room, Motherly President. They were returned after being sexually assaulted. I was helpless in that situation as well. Who will take us seriously? Who will lend a hand? I was swallowing the sorrow in silence as I awaited the day of justice," the mother said.
"Me and my girls are among those who lost housing as a result of the sexual assault case. Many kids have came to me and told me about being sexually exploited. My choice to seek justice through the Odanadi institution is currently being viewed as a crime, she claimed.
"Those who aided us are receiving retribution. Is it feasible for a poor mother to make false accusations against her daughters' character? Legal action is taken against those who have been truthful. "I am seeking justice on behalf of lakhs of moms and daughters who have been victims. It is an insult to the truth, it is a disrespect to the legislation that has been designed to safeguard children, and some police officials appear to have concluded that it is a conspiracy. Please take my request under urgent consideration. Allow me and my daughters to live honourably. If not, kindly accede to mercy killing, the letter requests.
(Inputs from Agencies)

In a letter to President Droupadi Murmu on Monday, the mother of two victims in the Lingayat Mutt sex scandal requested that either they receive justice or permission for a mercy death.

The Hawk

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Sunil Aswal

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Hanshkhali Horror: UP Min Skips Visit As BJP's Fact-Finding Team Meets Victim's Family

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