LIVE! ATS, IB, STF grill man for links with Pak operatives

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Sun, 09 July 2023

ATS, IB, STF grill man for links with Pak operatives

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23:53 Woman feared drowned in sea in Mumbai's Bandra

A 27-year-old woman is feared drowned in the sea in the western suburb of Bandra here on Sunday, a fire official said.

Rescue operations are underway for Jyoti Sonar, who drowned in the sea at Bandra fort this afternoon, the official said.

Personnel from the fire brigade, Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation and police have been pressed into service, he said. -- PTI

The Anti Terrorism Squad, Maharashtra, Intelligence Bureau, and the Special Task Force of Odisha police on Sunday grilled Abhijeet Sanjay Jambure, arrested for his alleged involvement in sharing of OTP with Pakistani intelligence operatives, an officer said.

The Odisha STF had arrested Abhijeet from Pune on June 29 and brought him to Bhubaneswar on transit remand after getting evidence against him on link with PIOs, the officer said.

Abhijeet, a graduate in Statistics from Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel University, Gujarat, was working in a private software company in Pune.

"Senior officers of the ATS, IB and STF grilled Abhijeet on Sunday to confirm his link with PIOs. Abhijit was in link with a Pakistani agent since 2020 and he was sending money to another arrested accused including Pathanisamanta Lenka of Odisha. ATS is likely to take the accused on transit remand. We will seek NIA help if needed," STF SP KK Panigrahi said.

Panigrahi said six persons were arrested in this connection and more arrests could be made.

The STF has taken Abhijeet on a four-day remand from Saturday.

The grilling of Abhijeet is significant as he is suspected to have links with Pakistani intelligence/Pakistani army intelligence officials, he said.

The STF official said that Abhijeet met one Danish alias Syed Danish Ali Naqvi of Khanki, Faislabad, Pakistan through Facebook Messenger, who identified himself as Freelancer at 'Chegg' in 2018. -- PTI

More than 3,400 police personnel were deployed on Sunday at 50 locations in the city to manage traffic in view of waterlogging on several road stretches due to heavy rains for the second consecutive day.

There was waterlogging since the morning hours, which resulted in traffic snarls across the city, and the traffic control room received complaints regarding congestion, uprooting of trees, potholes and signals not working, according to officials.

Police personnel were deployed at intersections where signals were not working, they said and added that data collected by the traffic police showed that there were potholes at four major locations -- Bagga roundabout, on Ambedkar Road, Rail Bhawan to Windsor Place on Raisina Road and Adhchini on Aurobindo Marg.

They said power failure resulted in signals not working.

Trees were uprooted at six locations -- Kishanganj Railway Colony, Tara Chand Mathur Marg, Ajmeri Gate, 12, Janpath, Khan Market and Madarsa to JLN Marg, the officials said.

"Trees were removed along footpaths and central verges and traffic movement was managed in best possible manner. The operations at some locations are still going on and services of other departments are also being taken," a senior traffic official said. -- PTI

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21:27 Repolling tomorrow in Bengal's violence-hit booths

The West Bengal State Election Commission announced that repolling will be held on Monday in all booths where voting for the rural elections has been declared void.

The SEC, which held a meeting on Sunday evening, went through reports of vote-tampering and violence which affected polling in many places, and passed the order, an official said.

Among districts where repolling was announced, Murshidabad has the highest number of booths at 175, followed by Malda with 112.

Violence-hit Nadia will see repolling in 89 booths, while North and South 24 Parganas districts will witness repolling in 46 and 36 booths respectively. -- PTI

Four persons have been arrested for allegedly stealing a 6000 kg iron bridge in the Malad area of Mumbai, the police said.

Pramod Tawde, senior police officer Bangur Nagar PS said that the cost of the entire stolen iron structure is around Rs 2 lakh.

The police said that on June 26, they received a complaint from the Adani company that a bridge built over a drain to carry large electric wires had been stolen.

"Acting on the complaint, we police scanned the footage of nearby CCTV and arrested four people," police said.

The officials also informed that the stolen bridge was an old bridge as a new bridge had been built there.

"One of the accused is an employee of the firm that was given the contract to build the bridge," added the police.

Further investigation into the matter is underway. -- ANI

Senior Nationalist Congress Party leader and Maharashtra minister Dilip Walse Patil on Sunday dismissed reports that he joined the Ajit Pawar camp because of a notice issued by the Enforcement Directorate.

Speaking at an event in his assembly constituency Ambegaon in Pune district, a week after he was sworn in as a minister in the Shiv Sena-Bharatiya Janata Party government, Walse Patil said he owes his political existence to the Pawar senior.

Walse Patil was one of the nine MLAs of the Nationalist Congress Party who joined the state cabinet last Sunday led by Sharad Pawar's nephew Ajit Pawar.

"I did not leave Sharad Pawar because of any notice from ED. I haven't received any notice from the ED, CBI or Income Tax," Walse Patil told the gathering.

He claimed there was no personal interest behind his decision to align with Ajit Pawar.

"I heard somebody saying that I took this decision because Parag and Govardhan Dairy had received a notice from ED. I would like to clarify that I have nothing to do with these dairies. No one from our family has invested even a single rupee in these dairies," the NCP veteran, once a close confidante of the Pawar senior, said. -- PTI

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20:38 Man held for threatening to blow up Lucknow metro station

A man was arrested in Banda for allegedly making hoax calls on the helpline numbers of the chief minister and the police, threatening to blow up a metro station in Lucknow, the police said on Sunday.

Additional superintendent of police Lakshmi Niwas Mishra said, "We have arrested one Ramesh Shukla, for making a hoax call of blowing up a metro station."

Security was heightened and a bomb disposal squad deployed at the Hazratganj metro station in Lucknow in response to the phone call reporting a bomb threat, which later turned out to be a hoax, officials said on Saturday.

According to police, the accused dialled the helpline numbers of CM and police on Friday night and said that one Dinesh Tiwari is going to blow up a metro station in Lucknow.

"Following investigation it was found that Dinesh had nothing to do with the call. Ramesh made the call to try to frame him," the officer said. -- PTI

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20:09 CRPF conducts sanitisation op around Jammu base camp of Amarnath yatra

The CRPF is carrying out an anti-sabotage and sanitisation operation in and around the Bhagwati Nagar Amarnath Yatra base camp in Jammu to ensure the safety and security of the pilgrims camping there due to inclement weather, officials said.

Assisted by sniffer dogs, metal detectors and surveillance equipment, the CPRF units conducted an extensive sanitisation exercise in the parking area and the roads leading to the base camp, the officials said.

The yatra from the camp has been suspended for the second day on Sunday due to heavy rains and about 5,000-6,000 pilgrims are waiting there, they said.

According to the officials, fresh batches of pilgrims were not allowed to leave Jammu due to the closure of the Srinagar-Jammu National Highway.

More than 80,000 pilgrims have paid obeisance at the cave shrine in the south Kashmir Himalayas since the beginning of the yatra on July 1. -- PTI

West Bengal Governor CV Ananda Bose

19:52 WB guv flies to Delhi to submit poll violence report

West Bengal Governor CV Ananda Bose on Sunday flew to New Delhi, where he is likely to meet Union Home Minister Amit Shah and submit a report on the violence that took place during the panchayat elections in the state, an official said.

At least 15 people were killed in violence during polling in the state on Saturday.

Bose is likely to meet Shah on Monday morning, the official told PTI.

The state governor had visited various places, mostly in North 24 Parganas district, and taken stock of the situation on Saturday during the polling.

He had met family members of an injured person and had also visited a hospital, where the person was undergoing treatment. -- PTI

Navneet Rana and her husband Ravi Rana

19:26 Uddhav supporters pull down posters of MP Navneet Rana, husband ahead of Amravati visit

Shiv Sena-UBT workers on Sunday pulled down posters of local MP Navneet Rana and her MLA husband Ravi Rana in Amravati in Maharashtra on the eve of the visit of Uddhav Thackeray to the Vidarbha city.

Thackeray is on a two-day tour of Vidarbha since Sunday.

The Rana couple had claimed they would recite Hanuman Chalisa from 9am to 2pm at Girls High School square here and their supporters had put up posters informing about it.

Incidentally, Navneet Rana, an Independent MP from Amravati, and Ravi Rana were held in April last year after giving a call to recite the Hanuman Chalisa in front of Matoshree, the private residence of Thackeray, who was chief minister at the time.

They were released on bail later. -- PTI

A vegetable seller in the Lanka area of Varanasi has deployed two bouncers to prevent buyers from getting aggressive while haggling the tomato prices, which have soared almost across the country, virtually making them a luxury item.

Ajay Fauji, a Samajwadi Party worker, had earlier cut a tomato-shaped cake in Varanasi on the birthday of Samajwadi Party President Akhilesh Yadav.

"I kept hearing about arguments over the tomato price among people. People at my shop too tried to haggle. So to put an end to the constant arguments, I decided to deploy bouncers in uniform at my cart," Fauji said.

Fauji, who is selling tomatoes at Rs 140-160 per kg, has bouncers deployed at his cart from 9 am to 5 pm.

He, however, refused to reveal how much he hired them for.

"No one will provide bouncers free of cost."

Asked how keeping bouncers at his cart has helped him, Fauji said even though people are coming in same numbers, they are less militant about the pricing now.

SP chief Akhilesh Yadav too shared the image of a news clip relating to Fauji and his bouncers, and tweeted, "The BJP should provide 'Z-Plus' security to tomatoes." -- PTI

Indian Army on Sunday said the bodies of two soldiers, who went missing after they were swept away by rain-triggered flash floods, were recovered from the Poonch district of Jammu and Kashmir on Sunday.

The deceased jawans have been identified as Naib Subedar Kuldeep Singh and Lance Naik Telu Ram.

The Jammu-based White Knight Corps in a tweet confirmed their deaths.

"During an area domination patrol in difficult terrain of Poonch, L/Nk Telu Ram while crossing a mountainous stream got swept away due to flash floods. Nb Sub Kuldeep Singh , the patrol leader while attempting to save L/Nk Telu Ram also laid down his life. GOC, @WhiteKnight_IA and all Ranks salute the valiant soldiers and stand in solidarity with their families," White Knight Corps stated.

A rescue operation was launched on Sunday to trace the two missing jawans.

Earlier, the PRO in a statement said that Naib Subedar Kuldeep Singh while crossing a river during an area domination patrol in the difficult terrain of Poonch was swept away in a flash flood. -- ANI

All the schools in Delhi will remain closed on Monday in view of the incessant rain in the national capital, Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal has announced.

Delhi recorded 153 mm rain in the 24-hour period ending at 8:30 am on Sunday, the highest in a single day in July since 1982, the India meteorological department said.

An interaction between a Western Disturbance and monsoonal winds is leading to an intense rainfall spell over northwest India, including Delhi, which experienced the season's first "very heavy" rainfall on Saturday.

"In view of the torrential rains in the last two days and keeping in mind the warnings of the meteorological department, all schools will remain closed on Monday," Kejriwal said in a tweet in Hindi. -- PTI

An Aam Aadmi Party leader from Gujarat who fought unsuccessfully from a Scheduled Tribe reserved assembly seat in the 2022 polls resigned from the party on Sunday opposing its "in principle" support to the Uniform Civil Code.

In his resignation letter addressed to AAP national convener and Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, Praful Vasava said the UCC was an attack on the Constitution.

Vasava, who lost from Nandod seat in Narmada district in the 2022 Assembly polls, in the letter said the AAP cannot talk about safeguarding tribal rights and at the same time express support to the UCC, which he claimed takes away special rights given to tribals.

Vasava accused the Centre over the killing of "tribals" in Manipur and urged the AAP to oppose fundamentalism and hate politics.

"UCC will threaten the constitutional rights, lifestyle and social structure of the tribals, Scheduled Caste, OBC, minorities and other communities," said Vasava in the letter in which he said he was resigning from the primary membership of AAP. -- PTI

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17:33 Delhi has seen 30% improvement in air quality: Minister

While air pollution is steadily rising across the country, the national capital has witnessed a 30 per cent improvement in its air quality, Delhi environment minister Gopal Rai said on Sunday.

Rai was speaking at the launch of the annual sapling plantation drive from the campus of the Indian Agricultural Research Institute in New Delhi.

During the drive, which usually begins during the monsoon, saplings will be planted across the Delhi to increase the city's green cover.

"Air pollution in Delhi has reduced by 30 per cent while it has steadily increased in the rest of the country," the minister said at the launch of the drive.

Rai also launched an online portal to allow Delhi residents to book free saplings.

"The city government is close to delivering on its promise of planting two crore saplings in the national capital in five years," he said.

"Before the state elections, we promised to plant two crore saplings. We planted 32 lakh in 2020-21, 35 lakh in 2021-2022, 50 lakh in 2022-23 and the target for 2023-24 is 52 lakh," the minister added. -- PTI

Former Lok Janshakti Party chief Chirag Paswan on Sunday dropped hints of joining the Bharatiya Janata Party-led National Democratic Alliance for which he had campaigned in the recent by-polls in Bihar.

At a meeting of Lok Janshakti Party (Ram Vilas), a splinter group of the LJP floated by his late father Ram Vilas Paswan, Chirag was "authorised" to take a decision with regard to the party joining "any alliance".

The meeting took place on a day senior BJP leader and Union minister Nityanand Rai called on Chirag and termed the residence of the Paswans as "my second home".

Rai refrained from talking about alliance with Chirag though he asserted "the BJP and late Ram Vilas bhai have shared values.

Both believe in making the people happy with their services".

When Chirag was asked about the possibility of joining the NDA, he said, "It will be against the 'maryada' (decorum) of a coalition for me to make any announcement before them. The alliance (NDA) is likely to hold another round of talks before making up its mind".

While Chirag's affinity towards the BJP and his admiration for Prime Minister Narendra Modi are well known, there is a proverbial thorn in the flesh.

His uncle Pashupati Kumar Paras, who had led a revolt soon after his father's death that resulted in a split in the LJP, is a minister in the Union cabinet. -- PTI

The body of a newborn baby was found in a garbage bin of a hospital in Maharashtra's Palghar district on Sunday, police said.

The body of a male infant was found in the garbage bin of a private hospital in Virar this morning, an official said.

An offence under section 318 (concealment of birth by secret disposal of dead body) of the Indian Penal Code has been registered against unidentified persons, he said.

The police are examining the CCTV footage from vicinity to identify the accused involved in the crime, the official said.

The staff of the hospital went to the dustbin to dispose waste in the morning, when they found the body of a newborn there, the hospital's administrative officer Tukaram Pashte said. -- PTI

The Sri Lankan Navy has arrested 15 Indian fishermen on board two trawlers for allegedly poaching in the country's territorial waters, according to an official statement on Sunday.

The Sri Lankan Navy and coast guard conducted a special operation to chase away Indian trawlers engaged in illegal fishing in Sri Lanka on the night of July 8, the Sri Lanka Navy said in a statement.

The operation off the Delft Island in Jaffna led to the arrest of 15 Indian nationals, it said.

The seized trawlers along with the arrested fishermen were brought to the Kankesanthurai Harbour and handed over to the Mailadi Fisheries Inspector for onward legal proceedings, it said.

Last month, the Sri Lankan Navy arrested 22 Indian fishermen belonging to the state of Tamil Nadu for illegal poaching.

So far in 2023, Sri Lanka Navy has seized 12 Indian poaching trawlers and arrested 74 Indian fishermen in island waters this year and handed them over to authorities for legal action, the statement added. -- PTI

Governor RN Ravi

16:16 Guv stoking hatred, violates oath: Stalin to Prez

Governor RN Ravi "instigates communal hatred" and he is a "threat" to Tamil Nadu's peace, Chief Minister MK Stalin has conveyed to President Droupadi Murmu, the government said on Sunday.

In a letter to Murmu, Stalin said that Ravi has violated the oath of office he took under Article 159 of the Constitution, the government said in an official release.

"Ravi is stoking communal hatred and he is a threat to Tamil Nadu's peace," Stalin said in a letter dated July 8, 2023.

On the recent issue of the Governor's move to dismiss minister V Senthil Balaji from the Cabinet, which he later backtracked from, Ravi showed his political slant, the CM claimed in his letter. -- PTI

A group of Dalit boys allegedly teased some upper caste girls at a village in Madhya Pradesh's Ujjain district, leading to tension in the area and prompting the police to deploy additional security force, an official said on Sunday.

The situation in Gurla village, located more than 30 km from the district headquarters, is under control following the incident on Friday, Unhel police station in charge Krishan Lalchandani told PTI over phone.

Five minor boys from the community have been taken into custody on a complaint by the girls, and six upper caste persons have also been arrested for allegedly beating up the boys, he said.

Some minor boys belonging to Dalit community allegedly passed lewd comments at upper caste girls on Friday evening, but no one then complained to the police, Lalchandani said.

On Saturday morning, some upper caste persons brought the Dalit boys to the police station after beating them, alleging they had teased girls from their community, he said.

The girls also came to the police station and on the basis of their complaint, a case was registered against five boys under relevant provisions of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act and the Indian Penal Code (IPC), the official said. -- PTI

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14:59 Yamuna water level in Delhi may breach danger mark on Tuesday: CWC

The water level in the Yamuna river in Delhi is rising and is expected to breach the danger mark of 205.33 metres on Tuesday, the Central Water Commission has said.

According to the CWC's flood-monitoring portal, the water level in the Yamuna at the Old Railway Bridge stood at 203.18 metres at 1 pm on Sunday.

The warning level is 204.5 metres.

The water level is likely to rise to 205.5 metres between 11 am and 1 pm on Tuesday, the CWC said in an advisory.

Northwest India has seen incessant rainfall over the last two days, with many areas in Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh and Rajasthan recording "heavy to very heavy" precipitation.

While Delhi recorded 153 mm of rainfall in a 24-hour period ending at 8:30 am on Sunday, the highest in a single day in July since 1982, Chandigarh and Ambala reported record rainfall of 322.2 mm and 224.1 mm respectively, according to the India meteorological department.

The catchment of the Yamuna river system covers parts of Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh, Haryana, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Delhi.

The low-lying areas near the river in Delhi are considered vulnerable to flooding and are home to around 37,000 people. -- PTI

A fourth-year B.Tech student allegedly died by suicide in his hostel room at the Indian Institute of Technology, Delhi, the police said on Sunday.

The deceased was identified as Ayush (20), a resident of Uttar Pradesh's Bareilly.

According to the police, the incident took place on Saturday at around 12 midnight.

"He was a student in the fourth year of IIT. Ayush committed suicide by hanging himself in his Udayagiri hostel last night around 12 o'clock. 20-year-old Ayush was a resident of Bareilly of UP. However, the reason for the suicide is being ascertained through investigation," the police official said.

More details awaited. -- ANI

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14:24 NRI Nooriya Haveliwala, convicted in 2010 drunk driving case, dies

Nooriya Haveliwala, an NRI who was convicted in a 2010 drunk driving case in which two persons were killed, died at a hospital in Mumbai earlier this week, the police said on Sunday.

Haveliwala was convicted of drunk driving and mowing down a police officer and a motorcyclist in Marine Lines area of south Mumbai in January 2010.

A trial court here had sentenced her to five years in jail.

After completing her sentence, Haveliwala (41) lived with her mother Alifya (88) in Colaba's Alipur Trust Building.

She had reportedly slipped into depression and was undergoing treatment, an official said.

Haveliwala died at Saifee Hospital in Charni Road on Tuesday, he said.

Haveliwala's mother informed the Colaba police about her daughter's death, after which a diary entry was made.

The LT Marg police will now inform the Bombay high court about her natural death on the next date of hearing of her appeal against her conviction in the case, he said.

The Colaba police were informed that she died on July 4 due to a chronic liver disease with partial hypertension.

"We have also shared the information with the LT Marg police station, where the case was registered," the official said. -- PTI

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14:04 Delhi rains: Kejriwal cancels govt officials' Sunday off, asks them to be on field

With heavy rains battering Delhi, Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal has cancelled the Sunday leave of all government officials and instructed them to be on the field.

He also said Delhi cabinet ministers and Mayor Shelly Oberoi will be inspecting the "problem areas" on the city.

In a tweet in Hindi, Kejriwal said, "Yesterday (Saturday), Delhi received 126 mm of rainfall. Fifteen per cent of the total rainfall that Delhi gets every monsoon was received in just 12 hours. People were severely affected due to waterlogging."

"Today, all the ministers of Delhi and the mayor will carry out an inspection of problem areas. Directions have been issued to all officers to be on the ground and their Sunday off has been cancelled," he said.

Delhi recorded 153 mm of rain in 24 hours ending 8:30 on Sunday, the highest in a single day in July since 1982, the India meteorological department said.

An interaction between a western disturbance and monsoonal winds is leading to an intense rainfall spell over northwest India, including Delhi which experienced the season's first "very heavy" rainfall. -- PTI

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13:54 BJP ally NPP opposes UCC in Arunachal Pradesh

The Arunachal Pradesh unit of the National People's Party has decided to oppose the immediate implementation of the Uniform Civil Code in the northeastern state.

The decision was taken at the state executive meeting of the party in Itanagar on Saturday, NPP state general secretary Paknga Bage said.

NPP state working president Likha Saaya told reporters, "Though NPP is in alliance with the BJP on developmental issues, but the regional party follows its own ideology".

The party unanimously adopted a resolution at the meeting opposing the UCC, citing the state's diverse multi-ethnic and multi-tribal composition, as well as its strong customary and traditional identity, Bage said.

Elaborating the reason as to why NPP is opposing UCC, Bage said since Arunachal Pradesh has its own unique laws, the NPP has unanimously adopted a resolution to go with the customary laws with certain modifications.

"The state and the central governments should focus on codifying the existing customary laws with necessary modifications to align them with tribal practices," he said. -- PTI

Two people were killed and three sustained injuries in separate incidents of lightning strike in Ballia, the police said on Sunday.

Pankaj Singh (33), a resident of Chaurava village, was working in his field on Saturday evening when he was struck by lighting which led to his death, they said.

On Friday evening, Chhabila Yadav (60), a resident of Aasna village, died when he was hit by lightning while sitting outside his house, the police said.

In Madhukipur village, three people -- Vimla, Om Prakash and Chhathu -- sustained burn injuries in a lightning strike while they were sowing paddy in a field, they said. -- PTI

Members of the Indian community holding the Tricolour, on Saturday (local time), gathered outside the consulate to protect their diplomats and the consulate office, and unitedly countered a pro-Khalistan protest in Canada's Toronto.

The Indian diasporas were seen raising slogans like "Bharat Mata ki jai", "Vande Mataram", "Long Live India" and "Khalistan Murdabad", and carried placards, written, "Khalistani are not Sikh", and "Canada stop supporting Khalistani Canadian terrorists".

The pro-Khalistani protesters, in the purported video, could be seen disrespecting the Tricolour.

Sunil Arora, one of the Indian diaspora in Canada, said, "We are standing here in front of the consulate to face the Khalistanis. We are trying to stop Khalistanis nonsense here and we are here for the solidarity of India and Canada, altogether. They are giving wrong information saying that they will kill our diplomats which is... and we are totally against that."

Another member of the Indian diaspora, Anil Shiringi said that they are there to support the Indian Consulate and stood up against the Khalistani's threat, which was given to Indian diplomats.

Vidya Bhushan Dhar, another member of the Indian community, who stood in the counter-protest outside the consulate, said, "Canada is a peaceful country and we wanted to remain peaceful and we should. Basically, we are trying to tell the government of Canada to take cognizance of this that this is not freedom of expression. This is for sure not a freedom of expression."

"When you tell somebody that you are killing somebody or you are displaying a killing act like the one which happened in Branton last week you are not basically showing the freedom of expression but you are promoting reason and separatism. So the government of Canada is requesting by the peace calling Canadians like me and Sunil ji that they take cognizance of this and take appropriate measures and cut the perforators to the site," he added. -- ANI

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13:00 Didn't demean any political leader, clarifies Kajol

Actor Kajol has issued a clarification after her comments that citizens today are being governed by political leaders who "do not have an educational system background" sparked social media outrage, saying she was simply highlighting the importance of education.

The actor, popular for 1990s hit films such as Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge, Karan Arjun, and Gupt, shared a brief post on Twitter and said she did not intend to demean any politician with her views.

"I was merely making a point about education and its importance. My intention was not to demean any political leaders, we have some great leaders who are guiding the country on the right path," Kajol tweeted on Saturday evening.

In a recent interview to an online media portal, the actor was asked if it is sad that despite a lot of progress in the country there are still some ideas that are holding back women.

"Change, especially in a country like India, is slow. It is very, very slow because we are steeped in our traditions and thought processes and, of course, it has to do with education. You have political leaders who do not have an educational system background."

"I'm sorry but I'm going to go out and say that. I'm being ruled by leaders, so many of them, who do not have that viewpoint, which I think education does give you, at least the chance to look out for a different viewpoint," the 48-year-old actor told The Quint during the promotion for her upcoming series The Trial - Pyaar, Kanoon, Dhokha. -- PTI

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12:49 Amarnath yatra resumes from J-K's base camps after three days

The Amarnath yatra resumed on Sunday from Panjtarni and Sheshnag base camps after remaining suspended for three days due to inclement weather in Kashmir, officials said in Srinagar.

As soon as the skies cleared around the cave shrine, the authorities opened the gates and allowed the stranded devotees to offer prayers at the naturally formed ice-lingam in south Kashmir Himalayas, they said.

"Those devotees who had already performed 'darshan' have been allowed to return to Baltal base camp," a senior official at the Panjtarni base camp said over phone.

Meanwhile, the Army has sheltered more than 700 Amarnath pilgrims at its camp in Qazigund in Anantnag district after they were stranded due to heavy rainfall in the valley. -- PTI

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12:24 2 Maha teachers booked for beating students

The police registered a case against two women teachers of a private school in Maharashtra's Thane district for allegedly hitting students with a steel ruler and making them stand on benches as punishment during the class, an official said on Sunday.

On July 5, around 10 students of Class 5 of the school in Ulhasnagar did not get declaration forms about fees and a membership document for the Parents Teachers Association signed by their parents.

One of the accused teachers then allegedly hit the 10 students on their hands with a steel ruler, causing injuries to them, the official from the Hill Line police station said.

An auto-rickshaw driver, who is the father of one of the victims, said his son informed the teacher allegedly beat him up and other children as they had not got the forms signed by their parents, the official said.

The students were also allegedly asked to stand on benches till the completion of the class, he said.

The other accused teacher also allegedly punished a 12-year-old student by asking him to stand with his hands raised for the entire lecture period.

The reason for the punishment was not specified in the FIR. -- PTI

Vehicles passing through a flooding road in Gurugram amid heavy rain/ANI

12:09 Heavy rains lash Haryana, Punjab; waterlogging in low-lying areas

Heavy rains lashed many parts of Punjab and Haryana on Sunday, leading to waterlogging in low-lying areas and traffic snarls.

For the second consecutive day, rains lashed Panchkula, Yamunanagar, Ambala, Karnal, Kurukshetra, Sonipat among other places in Haryana while Fatehgarh Sahib, Mohali, Rupnagar and Patiala in Punjab also received heavy showers, a Met official in Chandigarh said.

At some places in the two states, water entered houses causing inconvenience to the people.

In Ambala in Haryana, rain water also entered several shops at the wholesale cloth market.

Chandigarh, the common capital of the two states, continued to receive heavy showers.

It has been raining heavily in the Union Territory since Saturday.

The minimum temperature in the two states and Chandigarh have dropped by few notches after the rains.

More rains have been forecast in parts of Haryana and Punjab during the day. -- PTI

Three persons of a family were killed while two others were injured after their house collapsed due to heavy rain in Himachal Pradesh's Shimla on Sunday, the police said.

Officials said that the incident took place in Kotgarh village of Shimla on Sunday morning.

The victims were taken out of the debris after a rescue operation and rushed to a nearby hospital where doctors declared them brought dead.

"The deceased have been identified as Anil, Kiran, and Swapnil, and their bodies have been sent for post-mortem examination. We are further looking into the incident," Shimla superintendent of police, Sanjeev Kumar Gandhi said.

Earlier, a flash flood and a landslide occurred in Gramphu village and Chota Dharra in the wee hours of Sunday. No casualties were reported in the incident.

"District emergency operation center Lahaul Spiti informed an incident of Flash Flood and Landslide reported along the AEC BRO 94 RCC, NH 505 (Sumdo Kaza-Gramphu) which is blocked at different locations between Gramphu to Chota Dharra," an official statement issued by Himachal Pradesh State Emergency Operations Centre, informed. -- ANI

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh is all set to start his three-day official visit to Malaysia on Sunday, to deepen the defence cooperation between the two countries.

Taking to Twitter, the Defence Minister said, "Today, 9th July, I shall be reaching Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, on a three-day official visit."

"Looking forward to hold bilateral talks with my counterpart, Mr Dato' Seri Mohamad Hasan, and deepening the defence cooperation between the two countries," he added.

Rajnath Singh and Dato' Seri Mohamad Hasan will exchange views on regional and global issues of shared interest.

Singh will also call on Malaysia's Prime Minister YB Dato' Seri Anwar bin Ibrahim.

The ministry of defence statement said, "India and Malaysia have a common interest in peace and prosperity of the entire region.

The two democracies have a robust and multifaceted relationship which has expanded into several strategic areas, including defence and security."

Both countries are committed to working under the vision of the enhanced strategic partnership established during Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to Malaysia in 2015, the defence ministry statement said.

India and Malaysia share deep and warm relations. Recently in April, India and Malaysia agreed to settle trade in the Indian rupees, the ministry of external affairs announced. -- ANI

The Indore police have registered a case against Congress veteran Digvijaya Singh for allegedly sharing a controversial post on former Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) chief MS Golwalkar on social media, an official said on Sunday.

Following a complaint filed by local lawyer and RSS worker Rajesh Joshi, the FIR was registered on Saturday night against Singh under Indian Penal Code sections 153-A (promoting enmity between different groups on grounds of religion, race, place of birth, residence), 469 (forgery for purpose of harming reputation), 500 (defamation) and 505 (statements conducing to public mischief), said the official from Tukoganj police station.

In his complaint, Joshi alleged that Singh had shared a controversial poster on Facebook bearing the name and picture of "Guruji" (as Golwalkar was popularly name) to incite people by creating conflict among Dalits, backward classes, Muslims and Hindus, as per the FIR.

The complaint claimed Singh's Facebook post on Golwalkar allegedly hurt the religious beliefs of Sangh workers and the entire Hindu community, according to the FIR registered by police here in Madhya Pradesh.

In a statement sent to the media, a local Sangh official alleged that Singh had made a "false and unwarranted post" about Golwalkar on social media to tarnish the organisation's image.

Singh on Saturday tweeted a picture of a page carrying several controversial comments quoted to the former RSS head, known as Guruji among his admirers.

Golwalkar was quoted as saying that he would rather live under the British rule than have equal rights given to Dalits, backwards and Muslims. Some other controversial comments were also attributed to him.

Following the post, senior RSS functionary and its publicity department head Sunil Ambekar accused the former Madhya Pradesh chief minister of posting a "photoshopped" image.

It is baseless and is meant to cause social disharmony, he said, adding that 'Guruji' never made such remarks.

His life was spent removing social discrimination, he added.

Golwalkar was the longest serving RSS chief and was at the helm of the organisation from 1940-73. -- PTI

The steep discounts on Russia crude oil that India gorged on since the Ukraine war, have plunged but the shipping rates charged by Russia-arranged entities continues to remain 'opaque' and higher than normal, sources said.

Russia bills Indian refiners at a price shade less than the USD 60 per barrel price cap imposed by the West but charges anything between USD 11 to USD 19 per barrel, twice the normal rate, for delivery from the Baltic and Black Sea to the west coast, three sources with knowledge of the matter said.

The USD 11-19 per barrel shipping costs from the Russian ports to India - some of it on the 100+ tankers reportedly acquired by Russian actors for a shadow fleet - are higher than rates for comparable distances, such as a voyage from the Persian Gulf to Rotterdam.

Following Moscow's invasion of Ukraine in February last year, Russian oil was sanctioned and shunned by European buyers and some in Asia, such as Japan.

This led to Russian Urals crude being traded at a discount to Brent crude (the global benchmark). The discount on Russian Urals grade has however narrowed from levels of around USD 30 a barrel in the middle of last year to closer to USD 4 per barrel, sources said.

Indian refiners, who convert crude oil extracted from below ground into finished products such as petrol and diesel, are now the biggest buyers of Russian oil as Chinese imports have maxed out due to a massive electrification of vehicles and demand issues in a shaky economy.

Indian refiners ramped up purchases from less than 2 per cent of their entire buys in pre-Ukraine war times to 44 per cent to capture the discounted oil.

But these discounts have been shrinking as companies such as government-controlled entities like Indian Oil Corporation (IOC), Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Ltd, Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd (BPCL), Mangalore Refinery and Petrochemicals Ltd and HPCL-Mittal Energy Ltd as well as private refiners Reliance Industries Ltd and Nayara Energy Ltd continue to negotiate deals with Russia separately.

The discounts could have been higher if state controlled units, who account for roughly 60 per cent of the 2 million barrels per day of Russian oil flowing into India, negotiated together, sources said.

"Chinese demand has maxed out and Europe is not buying any seaborne crude from Russia. So India remains the only destination with increasing appetite. And if they (refiners) negotiated together, bigger discounts could have been extracted," a source said.

Delhi recorded 153 mm of rain in 24 hours ending 8:30 on Sunday, the highest in a single day in July since 1982, the India Meteorological Department said.

The Safdarjung Observatory, the city's primary weather station, recorded 153 mm of rainfall in 24 hours ending 8:30 am on Sunday, the highest since the 24-hour rainfall of 169.9 mm on July 25, 1982, a senior IMD official said.

The city logged 133.4 mm of rain on July 10, 2003, and an all-time high of 266.2 mm on July 21, 1958.

The Met Office has issued a yellow alert, warning of moderate rain which could cause more problems to the residents of Delhi.

The weather stations at Ridge, Lodhi Road and Delhi University recorded 134.5 mm, 123.4 mm, and 118 mm of precipitation, respectively.

According to the Met Office, rainfall below 15 mm is considered "light", 15 mm to 64.5 mm is "moderate", 64.5 mm to 115.5 mm is "heavy", and 115.6 mm to 204.4 mm is "very heavy".

Any amount exceeding 204.4 mm is classified as "extremely heavy" rainfall.

The heavy rain submerged parks, underpasses, markets and even hospital premises, and caused chaos on the roads.

Pictures and videos of commuters wading through knee-deep water flooded social media platforms, raising concerns about the efficiency of the city's drainage infrastructure.

Strong winds and showers also caused disruptions in power and internet connectivity in several areas. -- PTI

10:10 BJP appoints 10 new national executive members

Bharatiya Janata Party president J P Nadda on Saturday nominated 10 party leaders, including many former state unit chiefs, to the organisation's national executive.

A party statement said the new national executive members are Bandi Sanjay Kumar, Deepak Prakash, Satish Punia and Sanjay Jaiswal, former BJP presidents in Telangana, Jharkhand, Rajasthan and Bihar, respectively.

Suresh Kashyap, Vishnudeo Sai and Ashwani Sharma, who headed the party in Himachal Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Punjab, respectively, before being replaced by the incumbents, are among the other appointees.

Chhattisgarh BJP leader Dharamlal Kaushik, former Andhra Pradesh BJP president Somu Veerraju and Rajasthan leader Kirodi Lal Meena are other members, the party statement said.

Chhattisgarh and Rajasthan are slated to go for assembly polls later this year. -- PTI

The 28th rake of Indian-built semi-high-speed Vande Bharat Express will be 'saffron' in colour, railway officials said on Saturday.

The new saffron Vande Bharat Express is however not yet operational and is currently stationed at the Integral Coach Factory (ICF) in Chennai, where Vande Bharat trains are manufactured.

Railways officials told ANI that a total of 25 rakes of Vande Bharat Express are operational on their designated routes and two rakes are reserved. "While the colour of this 28th rake is being changed on a trial basis," they said.

Union Minister of Railways Ashwini Vaishnaw on Saturday inspected the Integral Coach Factory here, reviewed safety measures in Southern Railways, and also reviewed improvements in the Vande Bharat Express.

After conducting an inspection, the Union minister said that the new colour of the 28th rake of the indigenous train is "inspired by Indian Tricolour".

He said that 25 improvements have done in the Vande Bharat trains.

"This is a concept of Make In India, (which means) designed in India, by our own engineers, and technicians. So whatever feedback we are receiving from the field units, regarding ACs, toilets, etc., during the operation of

Vande Bharat, all those improvements are being used for making changes in the design," Vaishnaw said in a press briefing.

"A new safety feature, 'anti climbers', or anti-climbing devices, on which we are working, were also reviewed today. These will be standard features in all the Vande Bharat and other trains," he added.

Nationalist Congress Party chief Sharad Pawar on Saturday said he does not have any problem if the rebel faction led by his nephew Ajit Pawar does a rethink and returns to the party fold.

The rebel leaders, however, were no longer political greenhorns, he noted.

Speaking at a press conference in Nashik, the 82-year-old leader also quoted former prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee to state I am neither tired nor retired, and added that if one keeps good health, age does not matter.

On Ajit Pawar's claims that there were discussions within the NCP about joining hands with the BJP several times in the past, Pawar said discussions keep taking place all the time, but that did not mean that the decision to go with the saffron party was ever taken.

Asked whether he will appeal Ajit and other rebel leaders to return, Pawar senior said, "Nothing will be done from my end to escalate tensions.... if anyone wants to do a rethink, there is no problem...."

But these leaders were no longer hatchlings, they had grown "powerful," he said, referring to a Marathi poem.

The NCP was split last week after Ajit Pawar rebelled against his uncle and joined the Shiv Sena-BJP government in Maharashtra as deputy chief minister. Senior party leaders Chhagan Bhujbal and Dilip Walse-Patil and many other MLAs too sided with Ajit Pawar.

At the press conference, Sharad Pawar also said that he hoped the rebel group desisted from claiming the NCP's properties.

Clashes have taken places in some places between the two NCP factions over party offices.

"The Nationalist Welfare Trust has properties at different places and I am its president. My colleagues took a different stand. They can take a political stand. But staking claim to the original party or its property is not right. I think they will desist from taking this step by heeding their conscience," Pawar said. -- PTI

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