THRISSUR l saturday l may 11, 2024 l `9.00 l PAGES 14 l city EDITION Delhi court to frame charges against Brij Bhushan Singh The BJP MP and former chief of the Wrestling Federation of India is an accused in a sexual harassment case filed by female wrestlers ‘Sufficient evidence against accused’ Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Priyanka Rajpoot ordered framing of charges against Singh under sections 354 (assault or criminal force to woman with intent to outrage her modesty), 354A (sexual harassment), and 506 (criminal intimidation) of the IPC. “There is sufficient evidence to frame charges against the accused,” the judge said in her order on Friday May 21 Co-accused Tomar also to be charged ■ Six wrestlers had filed complaint against Singh and the Delhi Police filed the chargesheet on June 15. The court, however, discharged Singh in a complaint filed by the sixth victim, citing lack of evidence to support the charges ■ The court also ordered framing of charges against co-accused and ex-WFI assistant secretary Vinod Tomar for the offence of criminal intimidation When the court will officially frame charges against Brij Bhushan Singh CHENNAI ■ MADURAI ■ VIJAYAWADA ■ BENGALURU ■ KOCHI ■ HYDERABAD ■ VISAKHAPATNAM ■ COIMBATORE ■ KOZHIKODE ■ THIRUVANANTHAPURAM ■ BELAGAVI ■ BHUBANESWAR ■ SHIVAMOgGA ■ MANGALURU ■ TIRUPATI ■ TIRUCHY ■ TIRUNELVELI ■ SAMBALPUR ■ HUBBALLI ■ DHARMAPURI ■ KOTTAYAM ■ KANNUR ■ VILLUPURAM ■ KOLLAM ■ TADEPALLIGUDEM ■ NAGAPATTINAM ■ THRISSUR ■ KALABURAGI Justice at last as two sentenced to life for Dabholkar’s murder S u d h i r S u r ya w a n s h i @ Mumbai Close to 11 years after rationalist Dr Narendra Dabholkar was shot dead in Pune, a special session court on Friday sentenced two of the accused to life imprisonment while acquitting three others, including alleged key conspirator Dr Virendrasinh Tawde. All five accused were linked to the Sanatan Sanstha. Apart from Dr Tawde, an ENT surgeon, Mumbai-based lawyer Sanjeev Punalekar and his aide Vikram Bhave were acquitted for lack of evidence. Sachin Andure and Sharad Kalaskar, who alleged shot dead Dabholkar, were convicted. Rationalist, anti-superstition activist and founder of the Maharashtra Andhashraddha Nirmoolan Samiti, Dr Dabholkar was 67 when he was shot dead by two bike-borne assailants on the VR Shinde bridge in Pune on August 20, 2013. The shocking murder was initially probed by the Pune City Police and was handed over the CBI in 2014. W h i l e D r Taw a d e w a s chargesheeted in September 2016, Andure and Kalaskar were chargesheeted in February 2019. The chargesheeting of Punalekar and Bhave happened in November 2019. The accused were booked under Indian Penal Code sec- Dr Narendra Dabholkar Questions about plot, mastermind unanswered Dabholkar’s son Dr Hamid said, “At one level, we are satisfied that the two assailants have been sentenced to life. But questions about the mastermind and overarching conspiracy behind the murder remain unanswered.” tions 34 (common intention), 120 B (conspiracy), 302 (murder), relevant sections of the Arms Act, and Section 16 (terrorism) of the UAPA. The court blamed the competent officer’s negligence for the failure to prove the charges under UAPA. As for Dr Tawde, the judge said there was ample scope for doubt, the prosecution had failed to convert the suspicion into evidence. “In the case of Bhave and Punalekar, even if there is scope for suspicion, there is no evidence,” the judge said. The charges against Andure and Kalaskar were proved beyond doubt, he added. Kejri gets 21 days to hit campaign trail SC grants him interim bail till June 1; says it took a holistic and libertarian position in view of the general elections S u c h i t r a K a lya n M o h a nt y @ New Delhi In a major relief to jailed Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, the Supreme Court on Friday granted him interim bail till June 1 to participate in the general election campaigns, while imposing certain conditions on him. He was in Tihar jail since March 21 for alleged money laundering tied to the Delhi excise policy scam. In its eight-page order, a two-judge bench led by Justice Sanjiv Khanna directed Kejriwal to surrender on June 2. Hours later, Kejriwal stepped out of Tihar and thanked the judges for their liberal order. “We have to save the country from dictatorship, I will fight 1 Kejriwal can’t visit the office of the Chief Minister and the Delhi Secretariat Arvind Kejriwal addresses supporters after coming out of Tihar Jail | Express take into consideration the peculiarities associated with the person in question and the sur- As part of the admission process for the courses in colleges, a complete academic calendar from the admission of students to the declaration of results for the two semesters of the first year has been prepared | P4 E x p r e s s N e w s Se r v i c e @Kochi The Kerala High Court on Friday orally observed that the enforcement directorate (ED) is not a ‘super investigating agency’, and its main responsibility is to trace the assets derived from the proceeds of crime, provisionally attach the property and ensure the prosecution of offenders. The court made the observation when ED’s counsel submitted that as an investigating agency, it has to look into all the aspects of the 2021 Kodakara black money case, in which accusations were raised against some BJP leaders. The HC was considering a petition filed by the state president of AAP, alleging lethargic attitude by ED in probing the case. “The Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) can be invoked only when the FIR is registered for a scheduled offence. The state police will reg- ED’s duty is to attach or recover any property suspected to have been acquired with the proceeds of crime in the case of any offence listed in the schedule of law. ED is not a super CBI or whatever it is Justice Gopinath P ister the FIR under those offences mentioned as predicate offences in the PMLA and its jurisdiction will end after registering an FIR. ED’s job is limited to two enactments, one is the Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA) and the other is PMLA. What is their responsibility? They are not an investigating agency in that sense. ED’s duty is to attach or recover any property suspected to have been acquired with the proceeds of crime in the case of any offence listed in the schedule of the law. ED is not a super CBI or whatever it is,” said Justice Gopinath P . The central agency stated 62-yr-old turns up in jail 21 yrs after jumping parole E x p r e s s N e w s Se r v i c e @ T’Puram titans of gujarat Gujarat Titans’ B Sai Sudharsan (top) & Shubman Gill scored centuries to put on a record partnership of 210 for the opening wicket against Chennai Super Kings in Ahmedabad on Friday. Gill’s ton was the 100th century in IPL history | SPORTZPICS Huge holes spotted on Varkala Cliff trigger safety concerns S h a i n u M o h a n @ T’Puram The holes spotted on Varkala Cliff The Varkala Cliff was declared a Geo Heritage Site by the Geological Survey of India in 2014. “We found very deep holes on the cliff, near the Nature 2 Shall not sign official files unless it is required and necessary for obtaining clearance/ approval of L-G rounding circumstances. In fact, to ignore the same would be iniquitous and wrong.” The bench noted that the legality and validity of the arrest itself is under challenge before them and that they are yet to take the call. “The situation cannot be compared with harvesting of crops or plea to look after business affairs. In this background, once the matter is sub judice and the questions relating to legality of arrest are under consideration, a more ho- degree courses to begin on July 1 E x p r e s s N e w s Se r v i c e @ Raipur Huge holes have been detected on the iconic Varkala Cliff, triggering safety concerns in one of the most popular tourist destinations in the state. It took a truck load of sand to fill the two carters formed on the 6.1km-long red laterite cliff, already under threat of erosion. The formation of the two “very deep” holes is part of the total degeneration of the cliff caused by severe sea erosion, wave attack, widespread illegal constructions and lack of proper sewage system. Four commandments 4-year ED not a super investigating agency, says High Court 12 Maoists killed in Chhattisgarh encounter, 2024 toll reaches 103 Security forces on Friday gunned down 12 Maoists during an encounter in Chhattisgarh’s Bijapur district, taking the number of Left-wing extremists eliminated so far this year in the state to 103. Two security personnel were also injured in an Improvised Explosive Device (IED) blast triggered by the Naxalites during the operation, police officials said. This was the third major strike on Naxalites by security forces in the past month. On April 16, the forces had killed 29 extremists in an encounter in Kanker district. Chhattisgarh CM Vishnu Deo Sai congratulated security forces and officials for the successful operation.The latest offensive took place in a forest near Pidia village when a joint team of security personnel was out on an anti-Naxal operation. with all my might but need the support of 140 crore people,” he told the media. While rejecting the Enforcement Directorate’s (ED) stiff opposition to the bail, the court said, “Arvind Kejriwal is the Chief Minister of Delhi and a leader of one of the national parties. No doubt, serious accusations have been made, but he has not been convicted. He does not have any criminal antecedents. He is not a threat to the society. The investigation in the present case has remained pending since August 2022.” While the ED argued that the grant of interim bail would amount to placing politicians in a beneficial position compared to ordinary citizens, the bench said, “courts always Care Hospital, four days back, and we swiftly unloaded one truck of sand to fill them to avoid accidents and landslides,” said Sanjay Sahadevan, advisor to Varkala Tourism Development Association. The Association has sent a letter to Tourism Minister P A Mohammad Riyas regarding the incident. According to sources, tourism authorities have decided to take up the issue with the District Disaster Management Authority (DDMA) so as emergency measures could be initiated to protect ● More on P4 the cliff. When a man in his early 60s, accompanied by his son-in-law, arrived at the office of the superintendent of the Poojappura Central Prison on Thursday afternoon, officials thought they were visitors. However, they were in for a real shock when the duo informed them of the purpose of the visit. As it turned out, the elderly man, wh o i d e n t i f i e d h i m s e l f a s Thankachan, had jumped parole 21 years ago, and had returned to the prison now to surrender! A native of T hodupuzha, Thankachan had been sentenced to life imprisonment in 2000 in a murder case. After serving three years in jail, he was granted a 30day ordinary leave from Poojappura prison. The short time he spent outside was enough for Thankachan to make up his mind and abscond, instead of returning to the four walls of the prison. The turning up of the man, who is 62, caught every prison official by surprise. “We have seen people, who were absconding for 12 years, being brought back by policemen. This was the first time we saw a man wilfully turning up at the prison, that too after being on the run for 21 years,” said superin● More on P4 tendent D Sathyaraj. that there are allegations against numerous persons in the case. The petitioner submitted before the court that even after three years, ED is still maintaining its earlier statement that a file has been opened and investigation is progressing. Nothing happened after that, the plea stated. ED’s counsel Jaisankar V Nair submitted that in 2021, the agency conducted a preliminary investigation, and it registered an Enforcement Case Information Report in 2023. A probe is in progress and efforts are being made to ascertain the proceeds of the crime as well as money trail in the case. A meticulous investigation is required in such cases to find out the money trail, the proceeds of crime and persons involved and perpetrators of offence of money laundering. The case under ED probe involved the offence of money laundering arising out of a scheduled offence of dacoity, ● More on P4 the ED stated. 3 Kejriwal must not make any comment on his role in the present case 4 CM must not interact with any witness and/or have access to any official files connected with the case listic and libertarian view is justified, in the background that the 18th Lok Sabha General Elections are being held,” the order said. Retired SC judge Madan B Lokur described it as a “good order that can have a large significance at the Centre and Delhi”. Another retired judge P K S Baghel termed the order as good for a healthy democracy adding it would definitely , give a good boost to the AAP in the upcoming Lok Sabha elections on May 25 in Delhi. EC raps Kharge letter on voter turnout data M UK E SH RA N J A N @ New Delhi Taking strong exception to Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge writing to leaders of the INDIA bloc over the voter turnout data, the Election Commission of India (ECI) on Friday accused him of obstructing the Lok Sabha elections and trying to push ‘a biased narrative’ under the guise of seeking clarifications. The ECI, in a five-page letter along with annexures, dismissed the charges of mismanagement and delay in the release of the voter turnout data. It also termed the allegations unwarranted and “reflective of a biased and deliberate attempt to spread confusion”. The poll panel said Kharge’s letter came to its notice as it was placed in the public domain in the middle of the electoral process. Battle lines drawn as Akhilesh strives to reclaim MSY’s legacy N A M I TA B A J PAI @ Lucknow THE battle for Kannauj, a former Samajwadi Party bastion, suddenly turned fiercer after SP chief Akhilesh Yadav entered the contest at the last moment, replacing his nephew Tej Pratap Yadav as the SP candidate. When the SP had initially announced Tej Pratap Yadav as the candidate for Kannauj, the BJP immediately pounced upon the regional party accusing it of dynastic politics. But now with Akhilesh in the fray, the optics have changed making the contest no longer a cake walk for the sitting BJP MP Subrat Pathak, who had emerged as giant killer in the 2019 election, defeating Akhilesh’s wife Dimple Yadav. Subrat himself admitted as much, saying he had thought it would be like an India-Nepal match when Tej Pratap was the opponent; but with Akhilesh’s entry, it has turned to an India-Pak match, which can go either way Kan. nauj is known as the ‘perfume capital of India’ and Subrat belongs to one of the oldest perfume business families. The constituency goes to polls in the fourth phase on May 13. Akhilesh chose to be a candidate from Kannauj after much flip-flop. According to sources, he finally decided to take the plunge to avenge the humiliating defeat of his wife in 2019 and reclaim the political legacy of his father late Mulayam Singh Yadav. His entry was dramatic, on the eve of the deadline for nomination, claiming ‘pressure from partymen’. Kannauj LS constituency Subrat Pathak(L) and Akhilesh Yadav Illustration: Mandar Pardikar was formed in 1967 and Ram Manohar Lohia was the first MP from the seat. In due course, Mulayam, who used to call himself a disciple of Lohia, established his party in this Muslim-Yadav dominated seat and gradually consolidated it into an SP bastion. Of the 16 elections since 1967, the SP has won seven times. The Congress and the BJP won twice each. Mulayam contested from Kannauj in 1999 and then left the seat to launch his son Akhilesh, who took the plunge in 2000 Kannauj bypoll. However, the winning streak of SP’s first family was broken in 2019 when Subrat, a Brahmin, trounced Dimple by 12,000 votes. In the 2014 election, Dimple won by a margin of 19,000 votes. Before his 2019 win, Subrat had fought and lost two LS polls from Kannauj. This time, he has a formidable opponent. His supporters, however, claim the Yogi-Modi factor will help him. On the other hand, things don’t look bright for Akhilesh either. In the absence of his father, he has to work twice as much to gain voter trust.
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