Tag: current affairs

18Apr By source belowNo Comments

Gaming

Leopard spotted in Asola Bhati sanctuary; Delhi’s natural world is alive and protected, says Sirsa

The Delhi Forest and Wildlife Department on Thursday reported a fresh sighting of a leopard at Asola Bhati Wildlife Sanctuary, the city’s lone wildlife sanctuary near Tughlakabad.The leopard, officials said, was spotted drinking water from a water hole in the afternoon. Environment Minister Manjinder Singh Sirsa took to X, saying, “A leopard in Delhi? Yes… and it’s not lost, it’s home. From wild cats to spotted deer, Delhi’s natural world is alive and protected.” Story continues below this ad He added, “Under PM @narendramodi Ji’s vision and CM @gupta_rekha Ji’s leadership, we’re proving that a modern city can still make space for the wild. And we are not just witnessing this biodiversity… we are actively safeguarding it and taking care of it.” Speaking to The Indian Expre...

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18Apr By source belowNo Comments

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Congress strongman and ex-MLA Jai Kishan dies at 66: ‘Even if he was not winning polls, he was loved’

A truck carries Sultanpur Majra veteran Jai Kishan’s body to the cremation ground at Y Block in Mangolpuri, followed by a huge crowd chanting his name, disrupting traffic. For a man who had lost the last three Assembly elections from Sultanpur Majra, the outpouring of grief, however, was not unusual – he was loved, despite his losses, say many.Jai Kishan, a senior Congress leader, died of a heart attack after returning from a wedding on Wednesday evening, days after he attended an All-India Congress Committee (AICC) meeting in Gujarat. He was 66. According to his family, Kishan was diabetic and was “depressed” after his third consecutive loss in the Delhi elections in February. Story continues below this ad Standing with folded hands, bidding adieu to all who came to atten...

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18Apr By source belowNo Comments

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Bengal Governor shrugs off Mamata’s request, to visit Murshidabad today

Dismissing Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee’s request, West Bengal Governor CV Ananda Bose has decided to visit violence-hit areas of Murshidabad on Friday morning.  Raj Bhavan officials said that the Governor might leave for Murshidabad Thursday night itself. After returning from Delhi on Thursday morning, Governor Bose met a delegation of BJP leaders, led by state unit chief Sukanta Majumdar at Raj Bhavan. Majumdar was accompanied by a group of people who allegedly had to flee their homes after last Friday’s violence during the protest against the newly enacted Waqf law. Story continues below this ad After meeting the violence-affected families, Bose told mediapersons: “I am going to Murshidabad to see for myself the ground realities. I will have an objective view of the m...

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18Apr By source belowNo Comments

Gaming

Murshidabad violence | HC no to NIA probe: ‘Centre free to order’

Refusing to order probe by National Investigation Agency (NIA) into the last week’s violence in Murshidabad district during a protest against the new Waqf law, the Calcutta High Court on Thursday ordered the formation of a three-member committee for identification and rehabilitation of people displaced by the violence.A Division Bench of Justice Soumen Sen and Justice Raja Basu Chowdhury said that the prime responsibility was currently to restore and rehabilitate those who have been displaced during the arson and violence. The committee will comprise a member each from the National Human Rights Commission, the West Bengal State Human Rights Commission and State Legal Services Authority. Story continues below this ad The court also said the central forces should remain depl...

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18Apr By source belowNo Comments

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Had intel of escalation, so police were accordingly deployed: Govt to HC in Murshidabad violence case

In its report to the Calcutta High Court on last week’s violence in Jangipur in Murshidabad district during a protest against the newly enacted Waqf law, the West Bengal government stated that following the April 8 violence in Raghunathganj area, the administration had received intelligence report of possible escalation in situation on April 11 after the Friday prayers and had accordingly deployed a large contingent of police force at Sajur More in Suti area.In its 34-page report to the Division Bench of Justice Soumen Sen and Justice Raja Basu Chowdhury, the government stated that protests against the Waqf law by different outfits began from April 4 across Jangipur but they remained “peaceful and non-violent”. On the first day of violence on April 8, the government affidavit said a huge c...

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18Apr By source belowNo Comments

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Third arrest made in Murshidabad violence case: Priest ‘scared to come’, shradh of father-son duo could not be performed

The Das family in Murshidabad’s Samserganj area could not perform the shradh ceremony of the father and son killed in last Friday’s violence as the priest didn’t turn up “out of fear”. On April 11, Harogobindo Das (70) and his son Chandan (40) were killed by a mob at Jafrabad in Samsergunj area during the violence during the newly enacted Waqf law. “Today was the shradh ceremony. We had asked a purohit (priest). But he said he can’t come because it is a security issue,” Chitradeep Das, a relative of Harogobindo, said. Story continues below this ad “We arranged another purohit (priest). But he stays in Basudevpur, which is 5 km away. He said he can’t come because there is no security here. I went to the his house and got Gangajal. We have decided that when we feel secure, w...

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18Apr By source belowNo Comments

Politics

Gangster Passia behind 14 attacks in Punjab detained in US

Central intelligence agencies in India have received information that absconding gangster Harpreet Singh, alias Happy Passia, a close associate of Pakistan-based gangster-turned-terrorist Harvinder Singh Sandhu alias Rinda, have been detained in the US. Earlier this year, NIA had announced a reward of Rs 5 lakh on Happy Passia over his alleged involvement in grenade attacks on a house in Chandigarh and police stations in Punjab. Over the last seven months, 16 grenade attacks have been reported in Punjab, targeting police posts, religious sites, and residences of public figures, including BJP leader Manoranjan Kalia. Passia’s name has cropped up during investigations into at least 14 such attacks. Story continues below this ad A source said they have received information fr...

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18Apr By source belowNo Comments

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Maharashtra: Top state awards for Mahesh Manjrekar, Anupam Kher, Kajol & Mukta Barve

Minister of Cultural Affairs Ashish Shelar on Thursday announced the recipients of the state’s highest honours to be presented by the Department of Cultural Affairs. The five major awards include the Chitrapati V Shantaram Lifetime Achievement Award, Chitrapati V Shantaram Special Contribution Award, Late Raj Kapoor Lifetime Achievement Award, Late Raj Kapoor Special Contribution Award and Gansamradni Lata Mangeshkar Award. The announcement was made during a press briefing at Mantralaya. This year, the Chitrapati V Shantaram Lifetime Achievement Award will be conferred on renowned actor, director and producer Mahesh Manjrekar. The award comprises a cash prize of Rs 10 lakh, along with a memento, citation and a commemorative silver medal. The Chitrapati V Shantaram Special Contribution Awar...

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18Apr By source belowNo Comments

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‘Developed Maharashtra–2047’ vision: Fadnavis holds warroom meet on social sector

In a bid to turn into reality the ‘Developed Maharashtra–2047’ vision, the state government on Thursday announced the formation of various committees. While the advisory committee comprising senior Cabinet ministers will be headed by Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, the coordination committee comprising senior bureaucrats will be led by Chief Secretary Sujata Saunik. Apart from these, sectoral committees on agriculture and allied sector; industry and service sector; infrastructure sector; social; administration and environment sector have also been announced. Each of these committees will be headed by administrative heads of the respective departments and comprise senior officials as well as members from the non-government sector. “The aim is to take Maharashtra’s economy to one trillion ...

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17Apr By source belowNo Comments

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CBI seeks NBW against Choksi in another bank fraud case

IN A bid to bolster its extradition request further, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has sought a non-bailable warrant against fugitive jeweller Mehul Choksi in a bank fraud case filed in 2022, alleging losses caused to a consortium of banks led by Canara Bank to the tune of Rs 55.27 crore. Choksi was arrested in Belgium on April 12, following an extradition request by India, in the investigation into the Rs 13,000-crore Punjab National Bank consortium fraud case. On Wednesday, the CBI moved a special court in Mumbai seeking issuance of an open non-bailable warrant against Choksi. A chargesheet in the case was filed last year against Choksi and six others, including firms linked to him, namely Bezel Jewellery India Pvt Ltd (previously known as D’damas Jewellery), and Gitanjali Ge...

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17Apr By source belowNo Comments

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RSS-affiliate to hold 1,008 ‘conversation camps’ in Delhi to bring Sanskrit ‘back to daily life’

In what it has termed a “cultural renaissance”, RSS-affiliated Sanskrit Bharati will organise 1,008 free ‘Sanskrit conversation camps’ in collaboration with the Delhi Sanskrit Academy across the Capital — an initiative of the BJP government. According to sources, while 58 Delhi University colleges and at least two on the premises of Jawaharlal Nehru University are among the academic institutions where camps will be organised, local madrasas could also be added to the list of venues for the ‘Sanskrit Sambhashan Shivir Abhiyan’ scheduled between April 23 and May 3. Though the academic activities of Sanskrit Bharati, which set up its branch in the Capital after the mid-1990s, continue year-round and smaller camps have been held in the past, this is the first time that a programme is being org...

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17Apr By source belowNo Comments

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Unable to conceive after 9 years of marriage, woman fakes pregnancy — and kidnaps newborn from Delhi hospital

Married for nine years, a 27-year-old woman was unable to give birth to a child of her own. So, she hatched a plan. She moved back with her parents over six months ago so she could fake a pregnancy. When her husband began demanding to know the due date, the woman decided that desperate times called for desperate measures.On Tuesday, she visited Safdarjung Hospital, spoke to staff and patients while keeping an eye out for newborn children — she found one in ward 5 and whisked the infant away. She came home and told her husband and family she had given birth. Hours later, police landed at her doorstep and arrested her for allegedly kidnapping the newborn. Police said the child was reunited with the parents. Story continues below this ad According to police, around 4 pm on Tu...

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17Apr By source belowNo Comments

Gaming

Bengaluru man creates fake website for HSRPs, arrested

A 57-year-old Bengaluru-based man, whose printing press shut down during Covid-19 and who allegedly created a fake website promising High Security Registration Plates (HSRPs) to people, was arrested by the south region cyber police on Wednesday. The accused identified as Vinod Bawde (57) would charge a higher rate than the government website and in some cases not provide the registration plate as well. An officer said as per procedure, a person wanting to purchase the HSRP has to go online, submit the necessary documents and pay a fee on the government website transport.maharashtra.gov.in following which the high security plate is sent. Story continues below this ad In this case, the accused created another website indnumberplate.com and offered to provide the numberplate....

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16Apr By source belowNo Comments

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‘We are raising over Rs 30,000 crore through off-budget financing to push capital expenditure in state’

With the state witnessing a rise in revenue expenditure and stagnation in capital expenditure that holds key to growth and achieving its target of a GDP of USD 1 trillion, Praveen Pardeshi, the first Chief Economic Advisor (CEA) to Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, said that the government has decided to fund capital expenditure through off-budget source of funding and has planned to raise and spend around Rs 30,000 crore on several key projects — completion of around 140 irrigation projects stalled over several decades; development of 7,000 km of concretised rural roads; and setting up sewage treatment plants across 490 small towns in the state — over the next two to five years. As the state has appointed a CEA to the chief minister for the first time, Pardeshi said that his t...

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16Apr By source belowNo Comments

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Bombay HC grants bail to murder accused in jail for 9 years

Citing the right to speedy trial and overcrowded prisons in the city, the Bombay High Court granted bail to an accused in a murder case who has been behind bars for nearly nine years. The accused, Jamesraj Kounder, was arrested in 2016 allegedly for killing his brother, in collusion with his brother’s wife. While the wife was granted bail in 2017 by the sessions court, Kounder remained behind bars. So far, only 11 witnesses have been examined, with a total of 32 witnesses likely to be heard. Kounder sought bail filing an application from jail and lawyers Gunjan Mangla and Sia Chaudhary, were appointed through legal aid. Story continues below this ad They argued that trials are taking a long time to conclude and some prisons where undertrials  are kept are simultaneously ov...

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16Apr By source belowNo Comments

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Former sales tax officer booked for Rs 4.6 cr GST fraud

The state Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) Wednesday booked a former sales tax officer from the Goods and Service Tax department for his alleged involvement in submitting forged documents of a private limited company and obtaining a tax refund of over Rs 4.69 crore. According to the ACB officials, the officer, in collusion with unidentified persons, used a shell company purportedly from Kurla to obtain a GST refund that the company never paid. The accused was identified as Gajanan Krishna Lad, who retired from service in 2024. Story continues below this ad The officials said that Lad, along with his accomplices, allegedly submitted an application for the company Intercrib Market (APC) Pvt. Ltd. seeking a refund for tax they allegedly paid. “Some unknown individuals submitted f...

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16Apr By source belowNo Comments

Gaming

Hand over two south Mumbai flats to owners in four months: SC to Mumbai Police

THE SUPREME Court last week directed the Mumbai Police to vacate two flats in south Mumbai within four months and hand them over to the owners — a Shroff family, which had in the 1940’s given the flats to the Mumbai Police on rent.Currently, the Mumbai Police are using the two flats measuring 600 sqft each, located at Amar Bhavan building at Opera House in south Mumbai, to house their staff. The police were earlier paying a monthly rent of Rs 700 for each flat. While passing the order on Tuesday, a bench of Justices J B Pardiwala and R Mahadevan said, “We set aside the impugned order passed by Bombay High Court and allow the original writ petition preferred by the applicants. We grant four months time to the respondents from today to hand over vacant and peaceful possession of both flats t...

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16Apr By source belowNo Comments

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After HC nudge, Police register FIR on woman’s complaint of ‘losing’ Rs 75 L worth shares in 2019

Ten days after the Bombay High Court pulled it up for ‘shameful’ delay in action on a complaint of an NRI woman, a victim of a fraud in which 31,690 of her shares of Wipro India Ltd worth over Rs 75 lakh were transferred from her IDBI Demat account without her sanction in 2019, the Cuffe Parade Police informed had it has registered FIR against the Bank and its officials. The HC said the probe should be taken to its logical end and will be monitored by the court. It pulled up IDBI Capital Markets and Securities Ltd for not showing seriousness in the case and taking no action against the concerned employee. On April 4, a division bench of Justices Revati Mohite-Dere and Neela K Gokhale, while hearing a plea by a 48-year-old woman, originally from Mulund, had directed the Police to register a...

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16Apr By source belowNo Comments

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ED attaches land worth Rs 1460 cr in ponzi case against Sahara India

The Enforcement Directorate provisionally attached 707 acres of land estimated to be worth Rs 1,460 crore in and around Aamby Valley City in Maharashtra’s Lonavala in connection with the money laundering case against Sahara India and its group entities, the agency said Tuesday.The central agency said that the land was bought in benani names with the funds allegedly diverted from Sahara group entities. The action was carried out by the ED’s Kolkata zone office under the provisions of Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), 2002. Story continues below this ad The agency started their investigation in the matter on the basis of three predicate offences of cheating and criminal conspiracy against  Humara India Credit Co-operative Society Ltd. (HICCSL) and others by Odisha, ...

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16Apr By source belowNo Comments

Gaming

Day after, debris of violence cleared from the streets, Bhangar slowly limps back

Tuesday morning revealed the extent of the previous day’s violence in Bhangar in South 24 Parganas of West Bengal. Charred remains of police vans, motorbikes kept outside the Uttar Kashipur police station were evidence of Monday’s mob frenzy when ISF supporters clashed with police, leaving at least 16 cops injured.The clashes took place after ISF supporters were stopped from heading to Kolkata to join demonstrations against the new Waqf law. Efforts to clear the debris commenced promptly on Tuesday morning; and by afternoon, the road near the Sonepur Bazar bridge was cleared, signaling the gradual return to normalcy in the south Bengal town. Story continues below this ad So far, nine people have been arrested for Monday’s violence. While eight were arrested from Uttar Kash...

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16Apr By source belowNo Comments

Gaming

Two Senas exchange barbs over Sindhudurg murder

Amid the ongoing political controversy over the murder of Massajog village sarpanch Santosh Deshmukh in Beed district, yet another controversy is brewing between the two Shiv Senas in coastal Sindhudurg district over the abduction and murder of a young man. The two Senas on Tuesday exchanged barbs over the murder of Siddhivinayak Bidwalkar, who was abducted in March 2023 from Chendvan village in Kudal tehsil of Sindhudurg district over a dispute related to payment of Rs 22,000 linked to illegal liquor business. Last week, a video went viral showing Bidwalkar being beaten before his murder. On April 9, police registered a case of abduction and murder, and arrested four accused Siddhesh Shirsat, Ganesh Narvekar, Sarvesh Kerkar and Amol Shirsat as they were named by relatives of Bidwalkar as ...

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13Apr By source belowNo Comments

Gaming

Swiss diplomat’s rape: Never solved, why 2003 case that rattled Delhi, embarrassed India, has found itself back under spotlight

It was a case that had rattled Delhi over two decades ago, and raised a question: Is the country’s capital safe for women? Any woman?On the night of October 14, 2003, a 28-year-old woman, returning to her car after a movie screening at the Siri Fort Auditorium in South Delhi, was overpowered by two men in the dimly lit parking lot. As one of them took the wheel, the other raped the woman in the backseat of her own car. After half an hour, the assailants dumped her four kilometres away near the IIT-Gate and disappeared with the vehicle. The woman rang her workplace – the Swiss Embassy – situated at Nyaya Marg, Chanakyapuri. Soon the Delhi Police was informed. The police had its task cut out: the survivor in this case was a diplomat and the pressure, both at local and international level, to...

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13Apr By source belowNo Comments

Politics

‘We are a welfare state’: Uttarakhand HC stays demolition of slums in Dehradun

Hearing an urgent matter, the Uttarakhand High Court on Saturday stayed an ongoing drive to free water bodies and seasonal streams of encroachments in Dehradun, saying arbitrary action under the cover of court orders will not be allowed. During the last hearing, the court had asked the state to install CCTV cameras and the DGP to inform the SHOs in the respective area to take action against those dumping debris into water bodies. The matter was listed on April 15. However, on April 5, the administration started the serving notices to residents in slums in Vikasnagar, and demolitions were initiated later, prompting an urgent hearing. Chief Justice G Narender said that the state should have sent notices, conducted a survey, and proceeded. “All this is done to force the court to tie its own h...

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12Apr By source belowNo Comments

Gaming

‘Filled four admission forms, got no response’: EWS students, parents stranded after CBSE withdraws Delhi school’s affiliation

For the past few days, Sonu, who works as a driver with app-based platforms, hasn’t been reporting for work. The Zamrudpur resident has been going to different schools and filling out admission forms for his son, who is set to enter Class IX. “My son scored 93% marks in Class VIII; he has always been one of the top five students in his class. And yet I am struggling to find a school to take him in,” he said.Sonu’s son had been studying at Daisy Dales Senior Secondary School in East of Kailash. In November last year, however, the school’s senior secondary division was disaffiliated from the CBSE — leaving several students in the lurch. But it is parents like Sonu who are worst hit — their children were admitted under the EWS (Economically Weaker Section) quota. Varsha’s son had been studyin...

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12Apr By source belowNo Comments

Gaming

International drug cartel operating in Delhi busted, 2 foreigners arrested

With the arrest of two foreigners – one from Nigeria and one from Uganda – and seizure of drugs valued at over Rs 1 crore, the Delhi Police on Friday claimed to have dismantled an international drug cartel operating in the Capital, which was primarily targeting students and youngsters. The operation was carried out under the police’s Nasha Mukt Bharat Abhiyan, a policy of zero tolerance against drugs. “After weeks of sustained efforts, actionable intelligence was received, following which the team mounted a 20-hour-long wait-and-watch operation. On April 3, a raid was carried out at Krishna Park Extension in Tilak Nagar,” said DCP (Crime Branch) Vikram Singh. Story continues below this ad Two suspects were apprehended – Humphrey Muwong, a 33-year-old Ugandan national, and ...

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11Apr By source belowNo Comments

Gaming

ASHA worker, electrician: Meet 5 of the 19 Delhi residents who got Ayushman cards

ASHA workers, drivers, domestic help, and electricians — they were among the first 19 beneficiaries from Delhi who were handed over Ayushman Bharat cards under the Centre’s flagship health insurance scheme by Union Health Minister J P Nadda and Delhi Chief Minister Rekha Gupta at Vigyan Bhawan Thursday.While some looked forward to undergoing surgical procedures using the insurance card, others wanted to know how they could utilise it, at which hospitals, and by when. The Indian Express spoke to five beneficiaries. Anusaya Behra (54), Shalimar Bagh An ASHA worker, Anusaya received a call from her senior asking her to visit Vigyan Bhawan to get her Ayushman Bharat card. Story continues below this ad A resident of Rohini, she and her husband Pradeep live with their son, daugh...

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