NEW DELHI, (ANI): Jailed conman Sukesh Chandrashekhar, the prime accused in a Rs 200-crore money laundering case has written to Delhi Lieutenant-Governor Vinai Kumar Saxena about “mental harassment and threats” by Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal and former Delhi minister Satyender Jain.

Chandrashekhar has alleged that the AAP leader was harassing him to withdraw complaints filed against him and others associated with them.

In his letter to the LG, Chandrashekhar alleged said, “I have been severely threatened and harassed by Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal and Satyender Jain, through the Jail Administration and their loyal jail staff. One month back when I was lodged in jail-14, Mandoli, Satyender Jain, deputed his confidant staff such as Rajender, Superintendent and Jay Singh Deputy Superintendent to threaten me and to again start extorting me but I was very firm that I would not succumb to their threats and pressure.”

Chandrashekhar alleged that last week Jain had given him “a final opportunity” to accept their demands and to hand over all evidence against them in my possession to him. He said that the message was given by him through Jail-14 Superintendent Rajkumar on December 31.

He alleged that Jain had offered him a seat in the Karnataka assembly elections and sand mining contracts in Punjab, in exchange for withdrawing all statements given to the high-powered committee and media and asked him to hand over all the chats, screenshots and voice recordings against them.

“He (Jain) further warned that if I do not agree then, he will make sure I will be transferred from one jail to another in Mandoli and will be tortured and harassed in a way that I, myself would be driven to a stage of committing suicide or will face the same fate like Sushant Singh Rajput, and the case will be closed and further he gave me 48 hours’ time to decide, or else prepare to face the music,” Chandrashekhar alleged in his letter made available through his advocate Anant Malik.

Chandrashekhar had on January 7 alleged that was transferred to jail-13 from jail-14 for no reason. “This jail-13 is a jail where heinous hardcore criminals and gangsters are lodged, comparatively to jail-14 where I was previously lodged. The strength of jail-14 was 250 and the strength of jail-13 is 1600,” he said.

The conman in his letter urged the LG to hand over the probe (investigation) in his case to a central agency as he alleged that the the matter is becoming serious and “Kejriwal and mainly Jain are panicking and would go to any extent, and their real colours have to be exposed in public.”

Chandrashekhar is the prime accused in a Rs 200-crore money laundering case and has been charged with duping the wife of former Ranbaxy owner Shivinder Singh, Aditi Singh, while he was lodged in a Delhi jail. The Enforcement Directorate (ED) is probing the money trail of the proceeds in the case. (ANI)

MUMBAI, (ANI): The Mumbai Police nabbed a person who allegedly threatened to blow up Mount Mary Church in Bandra area, police said on Monday. According to the police the accused was arrested from Kolkata after he sent a mail threatening to blow up the Mount Mary Church.

The police traced the accused’s location by tracking the IP address and arrested him. Mumbai Police further informed that the motive of the accused in sending those mail is yet to be ascertained and will be known only after the enquiry.

On December 30, the Mount Mary church in Bandra received a threatening email warning of an attack by the terrorist organisation Lashkar-e-Taiba, informed police officials. Police registered a case u/s 505(3) of IPC against unknown persons.

The police officials later in the day informed that another email was received following the first one where the sender claimed to be the mother of the child who allegedly sent the first threat email. “In it, the mother apologized saying that her child is mentally ill so he sent such a message,” informed police officials.

In a separate incident on the same day, the Mumbai Police control room received an anonymous call on Friday night saying that there will be explosions in Mumbai on New Year’s Eve. The caller identified himself as Azhar Hussain from Uttar Pradesh and said that he has weapons and RDX.

Acting on the call, a team from the Azad Maidan Police station immediately started the investigation and arrested the caller. The police later found out that the call was a hoax, and arrested the caller. The police revealed that the accused caller was identified as Narendra Kavle and he had made this call in an inebriated condition.

Further investigations are underway in both cases, the police have said. (ANI)

CHENNAI, (PTI): The Dearness Allowance (DA) for government employees including teachers, pensioners and family pensioners would be increased from 34 per cent to 38 per cent with immediate effect, Chief Minister M K Stalin said here on Sunday.

The increase, effective January 1, 2023, would benefit about 16 lakh staff and the decision was taken after considering the representation of government employees, he said.

Though the move would entail an additional annual expenditure of Rs 2,359 crore, the government has taken up the financial burden considering the welfare of state employees.

On the protest of government teachers seeking ‘equal pay for equal work’, he said a committee of three top officials, headed by Finance Secretary-Expenditure, would be set up. The government has decided to take steps based on the recommendations of the panel, he said.

Terming the DA hike a ‘New Year gift,’ he appealed to the staff to cooperate with the government in its efforts aimed at people’s welfare and prosperity. (PTI)

VASAI, (ANI): The Waliv Police in Vasai in Maharashtra on Wednesday produced actor Sheezan Khan in the Vasai court in the death case of TV actress Tunisha Sharma. Tunisha was found dead on the sets of her ongoing TV show Alibaba – Dastaan-e-Kabul on Saturday.

A day later, her ex-boyfriend and co-star from the show, Sheezan Khan was arrested on charges of abetment to suicide. If reports are to be believed, Khan and Tunisha broke up 15 days before she died by suicide. Sharma was also reportedly hospitalized after she suffered anxiety attacks a few months ago. The actress suffered from depression and anxiety around 2018 as well.

To find out the reality of what transpired between the deceased Tunisha Sharma and Sheezan Khan, the Police started to scan through the WhatsApp chats between the two. According to the police, they have recovered chats of around 250 to 300 pages from June to this December through which they are trying to know the real reason why the Alibaba – Dastaan-e-Kabul stars decided to part ways.

The police also said that they will send an electronic mail (e-mail) to WhatsApp to retrieve the deleted chats between Sheezan and his “secret girlfriend”. The police further said that they plan to question Sheezan today on the matter of these deleted chats which he allegedly had with his “secret girlfriend”.

The police is probing the matter on the lines of why Sheezan deleted his chats with one girl only and will also investigate if they were connected after Tunisha’s death. Sheezan’s “secret girlfriend” has been identified and will be interrogated by the police soon, police said.

However, earlier in the day, Waliv Police retrieved the WhatsApp chats and recordings of Sheezan Khan and said that they did not find anything objectionable there.

“Tunisha was upset with her breakup and was already suffering from anxiety because of which she felt lonely after the two parted ways,” the police said adding that they have also obtained audio recordings from the phone. It also mentioned that they would question the deceased actor’s family regarding Tunisha’s anxiety and record her mother’s statement once again.

Earlier, a doctor from F&B Hospital gave details about the moment on December 24 when the late actor was brought to the hospital by her colleagues. The doctor at the hospital, Dr Surendra Pal, told ANI that Tunisha was dead when they examined her and said, “Except for a deep strangulation mark on her neck, no other mark was found on her body.”

Her fans, family and members of the television and film industry bid a teary farewell to the 20-year-old Tunisha at the Mira Road crematorium ground in Mumbai. Celebrities including Vishal Jethwa, Ashnoor Kaur, Avneet Kaur, and Shivin Narang and others attended Tunisha’s funeral. (ANI)

KOTA, (PTI): Days after an associate professor of the Rajasthan Technical University was arrested for allegedly demanding sexual favours from a student, one of his former students has made similar allegations against him.

Separately, the university on Monday removed another professor, Rajiv Gupta, from the post of dean after deciding to reopen a two-year-old case against him pertaining to the alleged harassment of a contractual employee.

Gupta, however, would continue to work as a professor at the university.

Girish Parmar was arrested on December 21 and sent to three-day police custody the next day for allegedly demanding sexual favours from a final-year student and failing her in his subject after he was rebuffed.

He also tried to mount pressure on the student through one of her classmates, who has also been arrested, according to police.

In fresh trouble for Parmar, a student of a private college where he was the principal, lodged a complaint against him on Sunday alleging he harassed her, according to police.

An FIR has been registered at R K Puram police station here, the police said.

During the investigation so far into the case lodged against Parmar on the complaint of the RTU student, it was found that he married twice but both his wives left him, they said.

He would get a few of his favourite students to set question papers and check answer sheets. While his favourite students were given high marks, those he was conspiring to trap would get low marks or were failed, they added.

RTU officials said the university has decided to reopen a two-year-old harassment case against professor Gupta.

The case, which was lodged on a complaint by a contractual employee of the university, was closed after police filed their final report in the matter, they said.

In view of the reopening of the case, professor Gupta has been removed from the post of dean, faculty affairs. However, he would continue to remain a professor at the university, RTU Vice-Chancellor S K Singh said.

The investigation in the case against professor Gupta is yet to be started, Deputy Superintendent of Police Amar Singh said.(PTI)

KABUL, (ANI): Iran is using former Afghan soldiers for their military force and they are also being sent to fight in Syria alongside Ukraine, said Taliban’s acting minister for refugees and repatriation, Khalil Rahman Haqqani on Friday, TOLOnews reported.

“I have shared this issue with them (Iranian authorities), Afghans have previously been used in the fighting in Iraq and Syria, and it may have occurred in the war in Ukraine as well,” Haqqani said during his visit to Afghanistan’s Parwan.

TOLOnews reported citing the military analysts who stated that Iran is rather inducting the former Afghan soldiers who have been found as refugees in Tehran after the fall of the Afghan government to the Taliban in August last year. Former soldier Sarwar Niazi claimed, “They were compelled to contact other groups to cover their family’s expenses, not only in Iraq and Syria but also in the Ukraine war, where they were also recruited by the Russians.

However, the Iranian embassy in Kabul refuted the claim that Tehran is sending former Afghan soldiers to fight in the war in Ukraine, as per TOLOnews. The Taliban took control of Kabul on August 15, causing the US-backed government to step down. The country has been battered by the deepening economic, humanitarian, and security crisis following the organization’s takeover.

Afghanistan is currently grappling with a serious humanitarian crisis as according to international assessments, the country now has the highest number of people in emergency food insecurity in the world, with more than 23 million in need of assistance and approximately, 95 per cent of the population having insufficient food consumption.

Moreover, the situation of human rights in Afghanistan has worsened since the collapse of the Afghan government and the Taliban’s return to power in August last year.

Additionally, the Ukraine crisis has had a massive impact on the rise in food costs and how it was out of reach for many Afghans. Even while war has stopped in the nation, grave human rights violations–particularly against women and minorities–remain unabated.

Women and girls in Afghanistan are facing a human rights crisis, deprived of the fundamental rights to non-discrimination, education, work, public participation, and health, reported Khaama Press. (ANI)

NEW DELHI, (ANI): Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma took a jibe at the Congress on Saturday over the recent elections for the party president, saying he expects those who voted for Shashi Tharoor to join the BJP soon.

Speaking to ANI on Saturday, the Assam CM said, “The outcome of the Congress’ so-called internal elections was known and declared even before the counting of votes. The only democratic people in the Congress were the 1,000 delegates who showed the courage to vote for Shashi Tharoor. I expect them to join BJP soon.”

Tharoor, who was rivalling senior party colleague Mallikarjun Kharge for the post, said only those lacking the courage to fight are tempted to join the BJP. Kharge trounced Tharoor to become the first non-Gandhi Congress president in 24 years.

Kharge received 7,897 votes in the presidential contest to Tharoor’s 1,072 in the October 17 polls. In a video, the Thiruvananthapuram MP replied to Sarma’s statement, saying, “Those who show courage will never join the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). Only the ones who do not have the courage to fight might be tempted to do so.”

Kharge was elected Congress president on October 19. Soon after his poll victory, Kharge said the party has presented an “example of strengthening the country’s democracy by conducting organisational elections” at a time when “democracy is in danger” in the country.

Addressing the media after his victory, Kharge said Congress has “continuously strengthened democracy” in the 75-year history of the country and protected the Constitution. “Now when democracy is in danger, the Constitution is being attacked and every institution is being bulldozed, the Congress is the example of a party fighting to stregthen the country’s democracy by conducting organisational elections at the national level. I thank everyone concerned with the election,” he had said.

Kharge also congratulated Tharoor saying that they discussed ways to take the party forward. Tharoor had visited Kharge’s residence to congratulate him on his victory. “I want to congratulate my partner Shashi Tharoor as well. We were contesting the election as representatives. He met me and we discussed how to take the party forward,” Kharge said. (ANI)

New Delhi: The India International Excellence Awards 2022 (IIE Awards) has facilitated more than 600 undergraduate and postgraduate students from 12 different States of India.

While nearly 212 students are from the post graduate category, the rest are from the under graduate category.

The awardees were presented with a scholarship as well as a certificate and memento each, to recognize their excellence in studies, in the face of the Covid pandemic, which ruffled the education system in the country.

The main criteria for qualifying students included recognition of academic success, financial need, community and social involvement as well as outstanding efforts to complete their academic years/schedules in spite of disease or illness.

In addition to students, the awards were given to other categories including food, fashion design and entrepreneurship.

Sheila Fernandes, co-ordinator for the UG category says most of the students hail from Western and Northern India, while about 10 percent are from the Eastern states.

The India International Excellence Awards, held twice a year, recognizes and felicitates students, companies, businessmen, entrepreneurs and others for academic excellence, creativity, innovation, quality and outstanding performance in their respective sectors.

Nominations for the second edition of the 2022 awards are now open, Fernandes said, adding that students can apply directly or self-nominate themselves for the same.