SC Grants Bail to Ex-Minister's Son Ashish Mishra, in Lakhimpur Kheri Violence Case 2
The Supreme Court on Monday gave bail to ex-Union minister Ajay Mishra’s son Ashish Mishra in the case related to the 2021 Lakhimpur Kheri violence that claimed eight lives, and restricted his movement to Delhi or Lucknow.
On January 25 last year, the top court had given interim bail to Ashish Mishra in the “unfortunate ghastly incident” of violence.
A bench of Justices Surya Kant and Ujjal Bhuyan also granted bail to farmers in the case and directed the trial court to expedite hearing.
“Taking into consideration all the attending circumstances, the interim order is made absolute …We are informed that out of 117 witnesses, seven have been examined so far. In our view the trial proceedings need to be expedited.
“We direct the trial court to fix the schedule, keeping in view the other time-bound or urgent matters that are pending but prioritising the pending subject,” the bench said.
The violence in the district had erupted when farmers staged a protest against Uttar Pradesh Deputy Chief Minister Keshav Prasad Maurya’s visit to the area.
Four farmers were mowed down by a sports utility vehicle. A driver and two Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) workers were then allegedly lynched by angry farmers. A journalist also died in the violence that triggered outrage.
Kamala Harris Endorsed by Joe Biden: Dramatic Shift in 2024 Presidential Race 4
President Joe Biden has exited the presidential race, endorsing Vice President Kamala Harris as his successor. This unprecedented move dramatically alters the campaign landscape just 107 days before the election.
Harris, set to become the first woman of color on a major party’s ticket, will now contend with former President Donald Trump. Trump’s campaign must quickly shift tactics, having been geared up for a rematch with Biden. Though Trump expressed disappointment over this development, his team asserts its readiness to face Harris.
Meanwhile, Harris faces an extraordinary challenge: leading a campaign just four weeks before the Democratic convention. With her background as a former prosecutor and daughter of immigrants, Harris brings a fresh dynamic to the race, which could energize a diverse electorate and pose significant challenges to Trump.
NEET-UG: Over 11,000 Candidates Scored Zero or Negative Marks 6
More that 11,000 NEET-UG candidates have scored zero or negative marks in the controversy-ridden medical entrance exam this year, according to the centre-wise results announced by the National Testing Agency.
The lowest marks scored by any candidate in the crucial exam is -180 at a centre in Bihar.
According to an analysis of the city- and centre-wise results released on Saturday by the NTA, over 2,250 candidates have scored zero marks, while over 9,400 candidates have scored marks in negative.
There are several candidates at the centre under scanner in Jharkhand’s Hazaribagh who have scored less than zero marks.
While there are multiple candidates from few centres who have scored zero marks, no clusters are seen as the number of such candidates from each centre is not very high.
According to officials, zero marks in the exam doesn’t necessarily mean the answer sheets were blank or no questions were attempted.
“It is possible that the candidate attempted some questions right and some questions wrong which led to negative marking.
In the NEET-UG, for every correct answer, four marks are awarded and for every incorrect answer, one mark is deducted. No marks are awarded or deducted for questions that are not attempted.
The NTA on Saturday released city- and centre-wise results of the medical entrance exam which is under the scanner over alleged irregularities, including paper leak.
An analysis of data indicated that while the candidates who allegedly benefitted from the paper leak and other irregularities have not done well, some centres have a high concentration of well-performing students.
More than 2,000 NEET-UG candidates from Sikar centres scored above 650 marks while over 4,000 have scored above 600 marks.
The voluminous result data of over 23 lakh candidates from 4,750 centres was not released in a cumulative format but in a drop-down menu for each centre. The data was released on the direction of the Supreme Court which is hearing several petitions over the alleged irregularities as lakhs of aspirants await a final verdict on fate of the exam.
The Supreme Court is hearing several petitions about the alleged irregularities in the conduct of the test on May 5 at 4,750 centres in 571 cities, including 14 cities abroad.
The top court had ordered that the results be announced while masking the identities of aspirants. It had said it wanted to ascertain whether candidates appearing at allegedly tainted centres secured more marks than those writing the exam elsewhere.
The court will resume hearing the arguments in the matter on July 22 on a batch of pleas seeking cancellation, re-test and a court-monitored probe into the allegations of malpractice in the prestigious exam.
Karnataka HC Recalls Order Stating Only Viewing Child Pornography Is Not an Offence 8
The Karnataka High Court has recalled its recent order, which stated that only viewing child pornography is not an offense under the IT Act.
A division bench of Justice M. Nagaprasanna withdrew the order stating that the bench had earlier ‘misread’ Section 67B (b) while passing the order on Thursday.
“We are also human beings and mistakes do happen on our side. There is always an opportunity for corrections. An inquiry will be done in this regard and a new order will be delivered. This order is cancelled,” the bench said.
It also noted that the order was passed under Section 67B (a) of the IT Act, following a petition filed in this regard by the state government.
Section 67B (b) of the IT Act states that creating text or digital pictures, collecting, searching, browsing, downloading, making advertisements, circulating, exchanging, or picturising children in an obscene, indecent manner is open for investigation under the section.
The high court had earlier observed that only watching child pornography is not an offense under the provisions of the IT Act, granting relief to a man accused of viewing a website containing child pornography for 50 minutes.
The complaint was registered against the petitioner under Section 67B of the IT Act (publishing or transmitting material containing children) in March 2022.
The petitioner’s counsel argued that Section 67B could not be applied in the case as his client had only viewed the website, and not circulated anything.
Maha BJP Chief Dares MVA to Declare if It Will Provide Reservations to Marathas by Reducing OBCs' Quota 10
Amid the ongoing protests over Maratha and OBC reservation issues, Maharashtra unit BJP chief Chandrashekhar Bawankule on Saturday dared the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) to declare whether it will provide reservations to the Maratha community from the existing OBC quota.
He further said that the MVA should give such a written assurance in its assembly election manifesto.
“MVA should announce that it will provide reservations for the Maratha community by reducing the OBC quota. MVA should give such an assurance in its election manifesto. My challenge is that MVA’s 31 MPs should announce that they will reduce the OBC reservation and give it to the Maratha community. However, MVA leaders cannot declare it as they are liars,” he said at a press conference.
“The Maratha community must get reservation but it is BJP’s clear stand that it should not be at the expense of OBCs. The reservation was given to the Maratha community by Devendra Fadnavis when he was the Chief Minister and it was also upheld in the High Court. However, Uddhav Thackeray could not maintain this reservation in the Supreme Court when he was the Chief Minister. However, MVA has always taken a two-pronged stand regarding reservation,” said Mr Bawankule at the press conference.
His statements came days after MVA did not attend the all party meeting convened by the Chief Minister Eknath Shinde to discuss the stalemate over reservation, and arrive at a consensus formula.
However, the Opposition defended its move saying that the government should address the issue citing separate meetings held by CM Eknath Shinde and Deputy CM Devendra Fadnavis with Maratha and OBC leaders without keeping them in the loop.
Mr Bawankule said that a vote for MVA candidates in the upcoming Assembly elections will harm 14 crore people of the state.
“MVA’s only agenda is to disrupt the public welfare schemes of Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led government in the state and not allow the people of the state to benefit from those schemes. If the MVA government comes to power, the grand coalition (MahaYuti) government, it will scrap various welfare schemes announced by the state government and the Centre,” he said.
A special PMLA court in Ranchi on Saturday convicted five Jamtara residents under the anti-money laundering law for running an “organised” cyber crime syndicate, official sources said. A Netflix series named “Jamtara” that streamed in 2020 is said to have been based on real-life incidents of phishing phone calls and bank accounts scamming launched by some criminals from this district giving it the moniker of ‘cyber crime capital’ for many years.
Police and other probe agencies later went full steam against these criminals, many of whom were youngsters.
The sources told PTI those convicted under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) include Ganesh Mandal (51), his son Pradeep Kumar Mandal (30), Santosh Mandal (51) and his sons Pintu Mandal (33) and Ankush Kumar Mandal (27).
All the five are residents of Mirga village under Narayanpur police station area of the district.
The quantum of sentence is expected to be announced by the court on July 23, the sources said.
The federal probe agency had filed a charge sheet against the five accused in May, 2019.
The ED slapped criminal charges under the PMLA against these cyber criminals after taking cognisance of a Jharkhand Police FIR and charge sheet that charged them with illegal withdrawal and transfer of money from the ATMs/bank accounts of gullible people in guise of being a bank officials.
The ED said its investigation found that the accused “in connivance with other persons, acquired funds in their bank accounts and family member’s bank accounts by cheating the bank customers, some other individuals, and invested the same in the construction of houses and purchase of vehicles.” Jamtara, located around 210 km from the state capital Ranchi, reported 76 cases of cyber crime and 187 fraudsters were arrested in 2021. Over 72 cases were registered and more than 97 people arrested in cyber crime cases during 2022.
ED Arrests Haryana Congress MLA Surender Panwar in Illegal Mining-Linked Money-Laundering Case 14
The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has arrested Haryana Congress MLA Surender Panwar in an “illegal” mining-linked money-laundering case, official sources said on Saturday.
The 55-year-old legislator was taken into custody in the early hours in Gurugram. He will be produced before a special Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) court in Ambala where the central agency will seek a custodial remand, the sources said.
The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has arrested Haryana Congress MLA Surender Panwar in an “illegal” mining-linked money-laundering case, official sources said on Saturday.
The 55-year-old legislator was taken into custody in the early hours in Gurugram. He will be produced before a special Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) court in Ambala where the central agency will seek a custodial remand, the sources said.
The agency had raided the premises of the MLA in January on the charges of “large-scale illegal mining” in the Yamunanagar area of the state.
It had then arrested former Indian National Lok Dal (INLD) legislator from Yamunanagar, Dilbag Singh, and one of his associates, Kulwinder Singh, in the case.
Assembly elections for Haryana’s 90 seats are slated to be held later this year.
The money-laundering case stems from several FIRs registered by the Haryana Police for probing alleged illegal mining of boulders, gravel and sand that took place in the past in Yamunanagar and nearby districts in spite of a ban imposed by the National Green Tribunal (NGT).
The ED is also probing an alleged fraud in the “e-Ravana” scheme, an online portal that was introduced by the Haryana government in 2020 to simplify collection of royalties and taxes and prevent tax evasion in mining areas.
It is estimated, as per the ED, that the alleged illegal mining generated slush funds of about Rs 400-500 crore over the last few years.
National Testing Agency Announces Centre and City-Wise Results of NEET-UG 16
The National Testing Agency (NTA) on Saturday announced the centre and city-wise results for the medical entrance exam NEET-UG, which is under scanner over alleged irregularities.
The results, which were initially announced on June 5, have been published in this format following an order of the Supreme Court, which is hearing several petitions about the alleged irregularities in the conduct of the exam, including a paper leak.
The exam was conducted on May 5 at 4,750 centres in 571 cities, including 14 cities abroad, for more than 24 lakh candidates.
The court had ordered that the results be announced while masking the identities of the aspirants, saying it wanted to ascertain whether candidates appearing at allegedly tainted centres secured more marks than those writing the exam elsewhere.
The top court will resume hearing the arguments on July 22 on a batch of pleas seeking cancellation, a re-test, and a court-monitored probe into the allegations of malpractice in the prestigious exam.
Samajwadi Party Seek Bigger Seat-Sharing Pie In Maharashtra Polls 18
Upbeat after the Lok Sabha performance in Uttar Pradesh, leaders of the Samajwadi Party (SP) have said they expect that the INDIA bloc allies will give them the respect they deserve in the seat-sharing for the upcoming Maharashtra assembly elections.
In an event organised on Friday to felicitate the newly-elected SP MPs, the Maharashtra unit of the party sounded the bugle for the assembly elections, due in October.
The Samajwadi Party’s Bhiwandi East MLA Rais Shaikh accused the BJP, Shiv Sena (without specifying the faction) and Congress-NCP of doing injustice to his party’s workers.
The constituents of the Opposition’s MVA alliance in Maharashtra, including the Shiv Sena (UBT), NCP (SP) and Congress, are also part of the larger, national-level INDIA grouping.
“We are becoming partners now. Today, the foundation of the INDIA alliance rests on the Samajwadi Party. If (party chief) Akhilesh Yadav ji says something, no INDIA leader can refuse. We will get the seats we deserve. We want the respect we deserve,” Shaikh said.
Seat-sharing talks have started, he added.
“We are just two MLAs (himself and Abu Azmi), but we can outmatch 100 MLAs…Our 10 MLAs will overwhelm 288 (the strength of the Maharashtra assembly),” he said.
While the SP, part of the INDIA grouping, did not contest any Lok Sabha seat in Maharashtra, it won 37 seats in Uttar Pradesh, delivering a blow to the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).
In Maharashtra it has only two MLAs, both from the Muslim community.
Awadhesh Prasad, SP MP from Faizabad, said the party’s “Pichhada, Dalit, Alpsankhyank (PDA)’ social engineering formula should be implemented across the country.
“No government can be formed here without the support of the SP,” Prasad said.
SP MLA Abu Azmi, who represents the Mankhurd-Shivajinagar assembly constituency in Mumbai, said the party’s morale was very high in Maharashtra post the Lok Sabha polls.
North Indians should not be challenged or else they will give a befitting reply, Azmi said.
“I don’t want to sour my mouth by taking his name. How many shops and vehicles were vandalised by him?….Make me the home minister once, I will handle them in such a way that they will never forget,” he said.
While Azmi did not name anybody, the Raj Thackeray-led Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) had launched a campaign against the north Indians in 2008, which turned violent.
Earlier in the day, the SP MPs visited the famous Siddhivinayak temple and Mani Bhavan Gandhi Museum here. They also visited Chaityabhoomi in Dadar, the place where Dr B R Ambedkar was cremated.
Congress Working Committee member and Lok Sabha MP Shashi Tharoor on Friday criticised his party-ruled Karnataka’s bill mandating job reservations for Kannadigas in the private sector, describing it as “unconstitutional” and “unwise”.
He, however, expressed happiness over the Siddaramaiah-led government’s decision to withhold the bill.
“That was not a wise decision. If every state brings such a law, it would be unconstitutional. According to the Constitution, every citizen has the right to live, work and travel freely in any part of India,” Tharoor told reporters, reacting to a query.
He said the Supreme Court had rejected a similar bill when a government in Haryana tried to introduce it.
“I don’t know why Karnataka thought of it, on what basis,” the Thiruvananthapuram MP said, adding that businesses from the state would be relocated to neighbouring states like Tamil Nadu and Kerala if such a law were implemented.
Earlier this week, the Karnataka state Cabinet had cleared the “Karnataka State Employment of Local Candidates in Industries, Factories, and Other Establishments Bill, 2024” on Monday, making it compulsory for private firms to reserve jobs for Kannadigas.
As the move drew criticism from the industry, with NASSCOM cautioning that companies would move out of Karnataka, the state government put the bill on hold.
The bill was expected to be tabled in the Assembly on Thursday.
