Page 903 - Law Crime
Mother-daughter stripped in police custody: NHRC issues notice to Chhattisgarh DGP
The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) has issued notice to Chhattisgarh Director General of Police (DGP) over reports of an elderly woman and her daughter being allegedly stripped naked and severely beaten by a woman police personnel in front of male police officials at City Kotwali Police Station in Bilaspur.As per reports, a 60-year-old woman and her 27-year-old daughter, arrested on the charges of theft, were stripped naked and severely beaten by a woman police personnel in front of male police officials at City Kotwali Police Station on October 14, the commission said.The NHRC on Monday took suo motu cognisance of a media report on the matter."Reportedly, being a patient of hypertension, the mother had requested for medical treatment but was not heard. The injuries were inflected even on their vital body parts," the NHRC observed.The Commission has issued a notice to the DGP calling for a report in the matter within four weeks along with action taken against the guilty ...
Father Kuriakose Kattuthar's death 'a pre-planned murder': Kerala nun's brother
Brother of Kerala nun, who had accused former Jalandhar Bishop Franco Mulakkal of rape, on Monday alleged that the sudden demise of eye-witness Father Kuriakose Kattuthara is a "pre-planned murder".Speaking to ANI, the nun's brother demanded a thorough investigation into the death of Father Kattuthara.Father Kuriakose Kattuthara was found dead in Punjab's Jalandhar on Monday. The exact cause of death is yet to be ascertained ."I am shocked to hear the sudden demise of Father Kuriakose Kattuthara as he was one of the witnesses and was, in fact, the first witness in the case. I think it is a pre-planned murder. Father Kuriakose Kattuthara had said that his life was under threat. A thorough investigation should be conducted into his death without any political interference. All witnesses should be given police protection," he said.The nun's brother further underlined that Father Kuriakose Kattuthara was living in fear since Franco Mulakkal was released on bail."Earlier he was absolutely .
CBI arrests its Deputy SP in bribery case allegedly involving its Special Director
The CBI has arrested its Deputy Superintendent of Police Devender Kumar in connection with bribery allegations involving its Special Director and second-in-command Rakesh Asthana, officials said Monday. The agency carried out searches at his office and residence on Sunday evening and claimed to have recovered mobile phones and iPad that were being analysed, the CBI officials said. In a first, the CBI booked its Special Director Asthana in a case of alleged bribery. It is alleged that Asthana, with whom CBI Director Alok Verma is openly having a feud with allegations and counter-allegations being levelled from both sides, had favoured businessman Sathish Sana in a case in lieu of bribe of Rs 5 crore received by middleman Manoj Prasad. Prasad was arrested when he visited India on October 16, 2018. The case has been handed over to an officer of the CBI against whom Asthana had levelled allegations of insubordination and doubtful integrity. Kumar, who was earlier the investigation officer
Guj: Minor raped, local farm labourer arrested
A 13-year-old girl was abducted and raped allegedly by a local farm labourer in Vav in Gujarat's Banaskantha district, police said Monday. The incident happened in Dethdi village in the early hours Saturday and a complaint was filed by the minor's mother Sunday, a Vav police station official said. "She has alleged that Hemraj Thakor (20) kidnapped the victim when she was asleep in her house and raped her. Thakor is a native of Bhadiya village in Radhanpur taluka of Patan district and works as a farm labourer in Dethdi village." the official said. Thakor was arrested Sunday and has been charged for rape and kidnapping under relevant sections of the IPC and the POCSO Act, sub inspector H I Bhatia of Vav police station said.
Pakistani dies after immolation to protest police bribery
Pakistani officials say a rickshaw driver who set himself on fire to protest police demands for bribes, has died of severe burns in Karachi. Mohammad Khalid died on Monday morning, two days after setting himself on fire. Khalid's self-immolation according to a letter featured on Pakistan's Geo Television station was an act of protest against police demands for bribes. Khalid reportedly refused to pay a bribe to an officer who then fined Khalid a ticket amounting to a quarter of his daily earnings. Amir Ahmed Shaikh, the police chief in Karachi, said an investigation is underway. Following the incident, Shaikh ordered the police not to impose heavy fines on rickshaw drivers for traffic violations in the city. A rickshaw is a motorized three-wheeled vehicle usually carrying one passenger.
Court sends son of former BSP MP Ashish Pandey to 14 day jail, fresh bail plea to be heard tomorrow
A Delhi court on Monday sent son of former BSP MP Ashish Pandey, who had brandished pistol at guests and threatened them in the foyer of a five-star hotel here, to 14-day judicial custody. Metropolitan Magistrate Dharmender Singh sent the accused to jail till November 5 after the police said that he was not required for further custodial interrogation. Later in the day, the accused moved a fresh plea seeking bail which is likely to come up for hearing tomorrow. The court had earlier rejected his bail plea and issued a non-bailable warrant against him. Pandey had allegedly brandished a pistol at guests of a five-star hotel threatening them in the foyer, a video of which went viral on the social media. He hails from Lucknow and is the son of former Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) MP Rakesh Pandey. His brother, Ritesh Pandey, is an MLA in Uttar Pradesh. A plea was filed by Delhi Police which had registered an FIR on the complaint of the assistant security manager of The Hyatt Regency alleging
28-yr-old man kills wife, her paramour in Rajasthan
A 28-year-old man was detained for allegedly killing his wife and her paramour in Rajasthan's Sriganganagar district, police said Monday. The accused, Gurtej Singh, strangled his wife to death and hit her cousin Sarvjeet Singh with a stone, leading to his death, SHO of the Ghadsana police station Mohammad Anwar Ali said. According to preliminary investigation, Gagandeep, the wife of the accused, was having an illicit affair with her cousin Sarvjeet, the SHO said. Bodies were handed over to family members after postmortem. A case was registered in the matter, Ali said, adding that a probe was underway.
PM owes answer to people on CBI row: CPI
The CPI said Monday Prime Minister Narendra Modi should clarify the situation in CBI as the credibility of the premier investigation agency is at stake after two senior officials levelled corruption charges against each other. CPI national secretary D Raja said questions are being raised over CBI's functioning after its Special Director and second-in-command Rakesh Asthana was booked by the agency last week for allegedly receiving bribes. Asthana, too, had written about 10 cases of alleged corruption and irregularities against CBI Director Alok Verma in his letters to his letters to the Cabinet Secretary and the Central Vigilance Commission about a month ago. "The CBI is directly under the prime minister and the PM should clarify what is going on in the CBI. The PM should clarify what is wrong or right. The prime minister owes an answer to people of the country," Raja said. "What is happening in CBI has seriously impacted the credibility and functioning of the institution. The CBI is .
Poland Supreme Court judges return to work after EU court ruling
Poland's Supreme Court chief justice asked 23 of the court's judges to return to work on Monday, days after the European Union's top court ordered Poland to "immediately suspend" their retirement under a disputed law. The European Commission, the bloc's executive arm, took Poland's government to the European Court of Justice (ECJ) for lowering the age at which Supreme Court judges must retire from 70 to 65. The ECJ ordered a temporary suspension of the retirement law on Friday, saying it threatened judicial independence. The decision was the latest salvo in a bitter battle over sweeping judicial changes introduced by the rightwing Law and Justice (PiS) government since it took office in 2015. The changes have also led the EU to trigger unprecedented proceedings against Poland over "systemic threats" to the rule of law that could see the country's EU voting rights suspended. Supreme Court spokesman Michal Laskowski told reporters in the capital Warsaw on Monday that chief justice ...
Delhi court allows chief secretary's plea seeking special public prosecutor in assault case
A Delhi court on Monday allowed the plea of Chief Secretary Anshu Prakash seeking direction to conduct the prosecution through the counsels nominated by the Delhi Police and not through lawyers empanelled by the AAP government. The court allowed the prosecution to be conducted by an officer of Delhi Police not below the rank of Additional Commissioner of Police who has not been connected with the investigation of this case in any manner. "Further, Siddharth Aggarwal and V Madhukar Advocates are permitted to conduct the prosecution on behalf of the officer of Delhi Police so appointed in this regard," it said. "Let the Commissioner of Police, Delhi, assign the prosecution of this case to some officer not below the rank of Additional Commissioner of Police," it added. The court further said that the investigating agency should supply the copies of charge-sheet and documents to the officer appointed so that he can conduct the prosecution from the next date of hearing. Additional Chief ...
Action council meets CM, seek protection for Nun
Members of the 'Save Our Sisters Action Council', which had recently protested against Bishop Franco Mulakkal, accused of raping a nun, Monday met chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan seeking protection for the victim and those who supported her. The members met Vijayan and informed him that the victim and the other nuns who supported her feared for their lives and sought protection for them. The protest was held recently in Kochi demanding the Bishop's arrest, they said. In a release, Fr Augustine Vettoly, convener of the action council, said they also wanted the probe to be conducted in a time-bound manner, a special court to be set up for trial proceedings and special prosecutor appointed. The members also met Kerala Assembly Speaker P Sreeramakrishanan and wanted P C George, MLA, who had made several allegations against the victim, to be removed from the ethics committee and debarred, the release said. The action council's move seeking protection for the nun came on a day
Panel in place to review acquittals in child sexual abuse cases: Police to HC
Several committees are already in place for examining acquittals of the accused in child sexual abuse cases, the Delhi Police informed the Delhi High Court on Monday. The police, in its report to a bench of Chief Justice Rajendra Menon and Justice V K Rao, mentioned the issue of filing appeals against acquittals by trial court and said that a proper procedure is already in existence to ensure timely filing of the appeal. The response of the police came on an application, filed in a pending petition of NGO Bachpan Bachao Andolan (BBA), which highlighted the backlog of cases and other issues in the effective implementation of the Prevention of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act. The application, filed through advocates Shilpa Dewan and Anand Kumar, sought direction to the AAP government to constitute a panel to review the child sexual abuse cases where the accused have been acquitted so as to file appeals. The police, in its response, said a standing committee comprising senior ..
British supermarket Morrisons loses court appeal over data breach-PA
LONDON (Reuters) - Morrisons, Britain's fourth biggest supermarket, has lost a Court of Appeal challenge against a group of its staff whose personal details were posted on the internet by a former employee, the Press Association reported.
NHRC issues notice to DGP Chhattisgarh over stripping of two women in Bilaspur
The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) on Monday issued a notice to Chhattisgarh DGP over allegedly stripping and beating a 60-year-old woman and her 27-year-old daughter in police custody in Bilaspur.
SC asks Centre if observation homes, JJBs equipped with video-conferencing facility
The Supreme Court Monday asked the Centre to apprise it on whether observation homes, where minors in conflict with law were kept, and juvenile justice boards (JJBs) are equipped with the video-conferencing facility. Referring to the provisions of the Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act, the bench said: "The Act mandates that observation home should be there in every district. It is better to have a home which is properly maintained and have video conferencing facility." In the long run it will be cheaper for the states and also comfortable for children, it said, adding, "You do not need to take a child 200 kilometre just to attend JJB". Passing a slew of directions, a bench of Justices Madan B Lokur and Deepak Gupta also asked all the trial courts across the country to consider the possibility of pruning the list of witnesses, in consultation with public prosecutor and defence counsel. The bench said that in cases of petty offences, principle of 'bail not jail' ...
Modi turned CBI into national disgrace: Kejriwal
In the wake of the CBI registering a corruption case against its Special Director Rakesh Asthana, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Monday said the BJP has turned the CBI into a "national disgrace".
Sexual harassment: SC seeks response from media regulatory bodies
In view of the ongoing accusations of sexual harassment at workplace, the Supreme Court (SC) on Monday sought a response from various media regulatory bodies as to why they have not taken any steps in informing the police about violations of law committed by media organisations.The top court has asked Press Council of India, Editors Guild of India and Indian Broadcasting Federation and News Broadcasting Standards Authority (NBSA) to file affidavits on whether they have reported to police the cases of media persons who have violated the statutory requirement under relevant laws.The court observed that some of the offences have criminal liability and that it is quite clear that no prosecution has taken place by these bodies against alleged offenders (media persons and organisations).
Amritsar train tragedy: Case filed in Bihar court against Sidhu's wife
A complaint case was filed Monday against Punjab minister Navjot Singh Sidhu's wife, seeking registration of a case against her for failing to discharge her duties that led to the death of nearly 60 people in a train accident in Amritsar Friday. The complaint claimed that Navjot Kaur Sidhu, who was the chief guest at a Dussehra function in Amritsar, and the organisers were solely responsible for the incident and the court should therefore take cognizance of the matter and order a trial against her. The case was filed by social activist Tamanna Hashmi in the court of Chief Judicial Magistrate Arti Kumari Singh, who fixed November 3 as the date for its hearing. Four persons from Bihar were killed in the tragic incident. Hashmi, in his complaint, contended that a large crowd had gathered on the occasion of "Ravan Vadh" in Amritsar on the fateful day due to the presence of Navjot Kaur Sidhu, a former MLA and the wife of the minister, who is also a former India cricketer. Kaur's presence ..
Sexual misconduct charges against Chandy, Venugopal : Cong says will not defend or protect anybody
The Congress Monday said it will not defend or protect anybody and the law should take its due course after a case was registered against former Kerala chief minister Oomen Chandy and Congress MP K C Venugopal on a complaint of sexual misconduct filed by Solar scam accused Saritha S Nair. Congress spokesperson and Mahila Congress chief Sushmita Dev said an FIR has been filed and the women have every right to file it and the police has every right to investigate. "The law must take its due course. We are not here to defend or protect anybody against whom there is an allegation. She has every right to file an FIR. Police has every right to investigate. It does not matter whether it is Oomen Chandy or anybody else," she told reporters here when asked about the charges against Chandy. The Crime Branch of the Kerala Police has registered cases against Chandy and Venugopal on a complaint of sexual misconduct filed by Nair. Director General of Police (DGP) Loknath Behara said the cases ...
CBI arrests Dy SP Devendra Kumar in bribery case
The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on Monday arrested Devendra Kumar, a Deputy Superintendent of Police with central probe agency's SIT in connection with Moin Qureshi case.The arrest of the Deputy SP comes a day after the CBI had registered a case against Kumar under Indian Penal Code sections pertaining to Prevention of Corruption Act among others.The case was registered against Kumar and many others including CBI special director Rakesh Asthana based on a complaint received by Hyderabad based businessman Sathish Babu Sana.Confirming registration of the case yesterday, CBI in its official statement had observed that, "The acts of the public servants and private persons as mentioned in the complaint prima facie disclose the commission of offences punishable under section 120B of Indian Penal Code and section 7, and 13 (20 read with 13 (1)(d) of Prevention of Corruption Act 1998 and section 7A of Prevention of Corruption Act (as amended in 2018)".Sathish Banu Sana in his ...