India

New Delhi, March 23 (IANS) Congress MP Manish Tewari on Thursday moved an adjournment notice to discuss the border row with China in the Lok Sabha.

"That this House do suspend Zero Hour and other businesses of the day to have a detailed discussion on the border situation with China.

"Since April 2020, China has engaged in what can only be described as a steady land grab. Seventeen rounds of Commander level talks have taken place between India and China with little success. All the while China continues to build significant infrastructure, including bridges, roads and accommodation for its troops. China is attempting to unilaterally change the status quo," the notice said.

The notice said the clashes in the Tawang Sector in Arunachal Pradesh were another indication of China's steady aggression aimed at changing the status quo on the border.

"What is more, such aggression is no longer limited in territorial scope as is
evidenced by the clashes that took place in Arunachal Pradesh, around 2000 kms away from the place of previous clashes. There is growing concern that China is unwilling to restore the status quo ante, a situation that puts India at a massive disadvantage. Despite this, China's large trade surplus with us has continued to surge since the military confrontations began in 2020."

He said the trade deficit for India stood at USD 101.02 billion, crossing the 2021 figure of USD 69.38 billion.

"I urge the government to take this matter with utmost seriousness and have a detailed discussion in Parliament with regard to the border situation with China," it said.

--IANS
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New Delhi, March 23 (IANS) The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has gathered a few more crucial evidences in connection with the Delhi excise policy scam case, sources said.

Recently, the federal anti money laundering agency grilled a number of people and seized electronic and documentary evidences.

ED sources have said that they are all set to file a second supplementary charge sheet in which BRS MLC K. Kavitha and fomer Deputy Chief Minister of Delhi Manish Sisodia may be named as the accused.

The ED had mentioned in the charge sheet that all the accused were using a number of cell phones which they later destroyed or deleted entire data in a bid to remove the evidences.

During her questioning, Kavitha, who is also the daughter of Telangana Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao, handed over around nine cell phones to the ED which were sent to the FSL for forensic tests.

The sources said that she was also confronted with Sisodia.

--IANS
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New Delhi, March 23 (IANS) BJP National President J.P. Nadda will host a dinner for all the OBC Morcha MPs of the party on March 28 evening at Delhi's Western Court Annexe, a party source said.

"As per a top party source, Nadda will host a dinner for all the OBC Morcha MPs on March 28 in Delhi. It will be a dinner meeting with the MPs. These MPs will be given tips to work in their areas, especially for the community."

"The main focus of the party is 2024 Lok Sabha election. We have already been told to organise an outreach programme for the community and take all the schemes and policies of the Central government to the OBC beneficiaries."

The source also said, "If we talk about Karnataka, we are at pace and organising many events and gatherings among the OBC community."

BJP OBC Morcha is already engaged in connecting with the community through various ongoing programmes.

There many Central government schemes for the OBC community which the party is seeing an advantage in the 2024 Lok Sabha election.

--IANS
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New Delhi, March 22 (IANS) Prime Minister Narendra Modi will visit Varanasi on a day-long visit on March 24, where he will address the One World TB Summit and dedicate and lay the foundation stone of various projects worth more than Rs 1,780 crore.

On the occasion of World Tuberculosis Day, marked on March 24, he will address the TB Summit, which is being organised by the Union Health Ministry and Stop TB Partnership.

During the event, he will launch various initiatives including the TB-Mukt Panchayat initiative, official pan-India rollout of a shorter TB Preventive Treatment (TPT), family-centric care model for TB and release of India's Annual TB Report 2023.A

Modi will also award select states and districts for their progress towards ending TB.

--IANS
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New Delhi, March 22 (IANS) The Supreme Court on Wednesday said it will hear on May 9 a clutch of pleas in connection with the criminalisation of marital rape.

Senior advocate Indira Jaising mentioned the matter before a bench headed by Chief Justice D.Y. Chandrachud. Jaising submitted before the court that common compilation and the order of arguments in the case is ready.

Solicitor General Tushar Mehta said the Centre's reply is ready and it has to be vetted, and added that he would argue the case for one-and-a-half days as it pertains to an important issue. The bench said, "List this on May 9, 2023".

On January 16, the Supreme Court sought response from the central government on a clutch of petitions seeking criminalisation of marital rape.

The top court decided to take up the matter itself instead of letting different high courts take a call.

In May last year, after the Delhi High Court's verdict that expressed 'split views' on criminalisation of marital rape, an appeal was moved in the Supreme Court challenging the exception to Section 375 of the Indian Penal Code.

Also, in July last year, the top court had stayed the Karnataka High Court judgment, which allowed the trial of a husband for allegedly raping his wife. In May, the apex court had issued notice in the husband's plea against the Karnataka High Court judgment, however, it had then refused to stay the high court's judgment and trial proceedings. And, petitions have also been filed in the apex court seeking criminalisation of marital rape.

On May 11 last year, a high court bench of Justice Rajiv Shakdher and Justice C. Hari Shankar expressed different opinions in the judgment on the exception to Section 375 of the IPC, which exempts forceful sexual intercourse by a man with his own wife from the offence of rape.

Justice Rajiv Shakdher supported striking down the contentious law stating that the exemption of the husband from the offence of marital rape is unconstitutional to which Justice Hari Shankar did not agree.

"The impugned provisions in so far as they concern a husband having intercourse with his wife without consent are violative of Article 14 and are therefore struckdown," said Justice Shakder.

--IANS
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Lucknow, March 17 (IANS) The Yogi Adityanath government in Uttar Pradesh has claimed that more than 10,000 encounters have taken place between police and criminals in the state in the past six years during which 63 criminals had been killed.

A police personnel had also been martyred, according to a data released by the state government.

"In terms of number of encounters, Meerut is at the top in the state with the highest number of 3,152 encounters taking place since 2017, in which 63 criminals were killed and 1708 criminals were injured," the official release said.

During the same period, besides, a policeman was also martyred while 401 cops were injured during the police encounters.

A total of 5,967 criminals were nabbed during the action of the Uttar Pradesh Police.

"The Uttar Pradesh Police has conducted 10,713 encounters since 2017 of which the highest 3,152 were conducted by the Meerut police, followed by the Agra Police, which carried out 1844 encounters in which 4654 criminals were arrested while 14 dreaded criminals were killed and 55 cops were injured, and Bareilly where as many as 1497 encounters were conducted in which 3410 criminals were arrested while 7 died. During the encounters in Bareilly, 437 criminals were injured. In these operations, 296 brave police personnel were injured while one was martyred," the statement said.

It further read, "As soon as Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath took over the reins of the state, improving the law-and-order situation in the state became his priority. The government adopted zero tolerance policy against mafia and criminals and intensified crackdown on such elements to strengthen the state's law and order."

The statement added that the state which was once "known for poor law and order situation and atrocities of mafias on innocent people, today, is being known not only in the country but abroad as a 'crime and fear-free state'".

--IANS
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Bengaluru, March 17 (IANS) Union Minister of State for Rural Development Sadhvi Niranjan Jyoti suffered minor injuries after her car met an accident with a truck in Karnataka's Vijayapura district on Thursday night.

The minister was immediately rushed to a hospital, where she was treated for minor injuries, the police stated.

According to the police, the truck driver was drunk and has been arrested.

The minister's car was severely damaged after the fully loaded truck overturned in front of it.

The minister was in Karnataka to attend a Mahila Samellan organised by the ruling BJP, in the runup to assembly polls.

Speaking to reporters, she said, "By the grace of God, I am totally safe after a vehicle mishap in Karnataka. My driver has suffered some injuries in the accident. Please pray for his speedy recovery."

--IANS
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New Delhi, March 17 (IANS) User fee collection at toll plazas on National Highways (NHs) during the financial year 2021-22 was at Rs 34,742.56 crore, the government informed the Parliament on Thursday.

Among the states, Uttar Pradesh witnessed the toll collection of Rs 4,183.74 crore while Rajasthan and Gujarat recorded Rs 3,933 and Rs 3,642.40 crore user fee collection on NHs respectively during the year 2021-22, the Union Ministry of Road Transport and Highways said in a written reply to Parliament.

On a question, whether the government or the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) has set any target of toll collection in current financial year 2023-24 and next three years, the ministry said that there is no such target set for current financial year as well for next three years.

However, user fee collection is expected to increase by 5 per cent due to annual traffic growth and by 3 per cent due to change in Wholesale Price Index (WPI) every year. Further, new fee plazas are put for commercial operation upon completion of NHs Stretch adding additional revenue every year, the ministry added.

--IANS
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New Delhi, March 17 (IANS) The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on Thursday said that they have arrested five Superintendents of Customs and two private persons in connection with an on-going investigation of six forgery cases.

The arrested individuals have been identified as Kumar Alok, Keshav Pandhi, Hemant Gethe, Brijesh Kumar, Dinesh Kumar -- all Superintendents of Customs, and Deepak Parekh and Ashish Kamdar (private persons).

An official said the CBI has registered separate cases against six Superintendents of Customs, Mumbai, two private individuals and other unknown persons on the allegations that the said public servants a conspiracy with private persons during their posting at UB Centre, Jawaharlal Nehru Customs House, and misused the provision of "Transfer of Residence" under the Customs Act.

It was alleged that the said syndicate used passports of various persons, who had stayed abroad for more than two years, especially in Gulf countries, to import various items including household items, electronic items and other unknown items by firstly undervaluing the goods and further concealing some other undeclared items along with the other declared items.

"The goods imported should have been ideally imported for the person whose passport was declared before the Customs but the goods were actually imported for many other persons settled abroad and still living abroad. The passport holder was allegedly given Rs 15,000 for allowing his passport to be used. The said modus-operandi was adopted by the syndicate in connivance with the Customs officers," the CBI said.

The official said that kickbacks allegedly paid to these Customs officers were around Rs 2.38 crore in lieu of clearing of such illegal consignments.

Searches were conducted at 19 places in the premises of the accused and their accomplices, situated at Mumbai, Delhi, Ghaziabad, Jaipur, Motihari (Bihar), Kurukshetra and Rohtak, which led to the recovery of various incriminating documents.

The arrested accused were presented before the Special Judge, CBI cases at Alibagh in Maharashtra. They were remanded to five days' CBI custody.

--IANS
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New Delhi, March 16 (IANS) A Delhi court has directed police to conduct a proper investigation into a case pertaining to looting during the 2020 riots while rejecting the anticipatory bail of an accused.

Additional Sessions Judge Pulastya Pramachala was hearing the the pre-arrest bail plea of Sunder, accused in various offences, including rioting and arson during riots in the Bhajanpura area.

"The Investigating officer's report shows that till the time of moving the bail application, the applicant remained untraceable by the police. His name has been taken by several eyewitnesses and he is also reported to be appearing in the video footage and in these circumstances, I do not find the applicant entitled to pre-arrest bail," the court said, while rejecting the bail.

"At the same time, I am not very much satisfied with the kind of investigation done in the case, wherein no attempt has been made to recover any looted materials. Hence, the matter is referred to the station house officer (SHO) to ensure that a proper investigation is done in this case... IO shall hand over a copy of this order to SHO for compliance," the court said in its order passed on Wednesday.

The Investigation Officer's reply was noted by the court in which it was stated that on March 6, Sunder, after joining the probe, confessed to having looted and vandalised several stores, including mobile phone shops.

"Neither anything has been said about an attempt made to recover the looted articles, nor the requirement of further investigation or interrogation of the applicant and on the contrary has been said, the IO reports that custodial interrogation is not required," the court said.

--IANS
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