Chhattisgarh Assembly Speaker & former Chief Minister Raman Singh on Saturday described the encounter of 31 Naxalites in the Maad area on the Narayanpur-Dantewada border as a 'huge success', adding that the vision of Home Minister Amit Shah has done a tremendous job in the double-engine government, ANI reported. Speaking to ANI, Raman Singh said, "This is a huge success, I congratulate the Chief Minister, Home Minister and the entire team for this great operation. The thinking and vision of Union Home Minister Amit Shah have done a great job in the double-engine government and they deserve congratulations... Congratulations to everyone for such a big operation for the first time." His response came after a total of 31 bodies of Naxalites were recovered by DRG Dantewada and STF Narayanpur in the ongoing joint operation in the Maad area on the Narayanpur-Dantewada border, said police to ANI. According to ANI, Chhattisgarh Deputy Chief Minister Vijay Sharma said that this has been Chhattisgarh's biggest security operation so far. "This is a very big operation in which 31 bodies have been recovered so far, this is the biggest operation in Chhattisgarh so far," Chhattisgarh Deputy Chief Minister Vijay Sharma told ANI. Chhattisgarh Minister Ramvichar Netam also congratulated the security personnel involved in this operation, stating that the government is working to eliminate Naxal by 2026 in the state. Chhattisgarh Minister Ramvichar Netam said "I congratulate and salute all the Jawans that were involved in this operation. It is certain that the resolution that Union Home Minister Amit Shah ji has to eliminate Naxalism from the state by 2026, we are working to achieve that target. Under the leadership of CM Vishnu Deo Sai, all the armed forces are running operations and Naxalites are either surrendering or being eliminated and we are moving ahead towards a decisive victory..." After receiving the information that leaders of Naxal in the region would be meeting at the Narayanpur-Dantewada border, Dantewada DRG, Narayanpur DRG, and STO teams launched an operation and killed 31 Naxalites, the police said to ANI. According to ANI, the police claimed that a huge number of arms and ammunition had also been found. "... We had received information that the top Naxal leaders of the region will be meeting at the Narayanpur-Dantewada border. Dantewada DRG, Narayanpur DRG, and STO teams were dispatched two days ago. There was an intense exchange of fire since yesterday afternoon and continued till late night. The dead bodies of 31 Naxals have been recovered. A large number of arms and ammunition have also been recovered... We had information of SCZM and DVCM rank Naxals to be present here and they were likely there owing to the large quantity of weapons... The geographical condition of the encounter site was difficult... East Bastar Division Company 6 has caused us a lot of trouble and loss... 1 jawan was injured after which he was airlifted to Raipur. He is under observation and in a stable condition," Narayanpur SP Prabhat Kumar said to ANI. (With inputs from ANI)
05 October,2024 01:52 PM IST | Raipur | mid-day online correspondentPrime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday launched Rs 23,300 crore initiatives related to agriculture and animal husbandry sectors at Washim in Maharashtra, reported news agency PTI. PM Modi, who is on a one-day visit to Maharashtra, arrived at the Nanded airport in the morning, from where he was flown to Washim in a helicopter. In Washim, he offered prayers at the Jagdamba Mata temple in Poharadevi. He later paid tributes to Sant Sevalal Maharaj and Sant Ramrao Maharaj at their 'samadhis' (memorials) in Poharadevi. During PM Modi's Maharashtra visit, the PM then inaugurated Banjara Virasat Museum, celebrating the rich heritage of Banjara community. During an event held later, PM Modi disbursed PM-KISAN Samman Nidhi's 18th instalment of Rs 20,000 crore to around 9.4 crore farmers. With the release of this instalment, around Rs 3.45 lakh crore have been released to farmers under this scheme, officials said. The PM also launched the 5th instalment of NaMo Shetkari Mahasanman Nidhi Yojana disbursing about Rs 2,000 crore. He inaugurated more than 7,500 projects under the Agriculture Infrastructure Fund (AIF), worth over Rs 1,920 crore. The major projects include custom hiring centres, primary processing units, warehouses, sorting and grading units, cold storage projects, post-harvest management projects among others, reported PTI. During PM Modi's Maharashtra visit, the PM also launched 9,200 Farmer Producer Organizations (FPOs) with a combined turnover of around Rs 1,300 crore. He launched the Unified Genomic Chip for cattle and indigenous sex-sorted semen technology. This initiative aims to increase availability of sex sorted semen at affordable price to farmers and reduce the cost by around Rs 200 per dose. Unified Genomic Chip, GAUCHIP for indigenous cattle and MAHISHCHIP for buffaloes, have been developed along with genotyping services. With the implementation of genomic selection, young high-quality bulls can be identified at an early age, reported PTI. Modi inaugurated five solar parks with a total capacity of 19 MW across 'Maharashtra under 'Mukhyamantri Saur Krushi Vahini Yojana 2.0'. During the programme, he also honoured beneficiaries of the Mukhyamantri Majhi Ladki Bahin Yojana, the Maharashtra government's financial assistance scheme for women. (With inputs from PTI)
05 October,2024 01:45 PM IST | Washim | mid-day online correspondentA sudden major cyberattack in Uttarakhand brought the entire IT system of the state to a standstill, which has had a serious impact on government work. Due to the cyberattack, the most important government websites and services of the state have completely shut down, including important platforms like CM Helpline, Land Registry, and e-Office. Work in government offices is stalled for the second day today, due to which administrative work has been affected across the state, including the Secretariat. Speaking to ANI, about the cyberattack, Nikita Khandelwal, Director, ITDA Information Technology Development Agency, said, "During scanning on October 2, it was found that the machine has been affected by malware, so as a precaution we have shut down our data centre, due to which all applications have been shut down and all are being scanned." "After testing, efforts are being made to be up by tomorrow morning. 186 government websites have been affected by the cyber-attack," he added. This story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed, agencies. Mid-day accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability, trustworthiness, reliability and data of the text. Mid-day management/mid-day.com reserves the sole right to alter, delete or remove (without notice) the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever
05 October,2024 01:39 PM IST | Dehradun (Uttarakhand) | ANIThe customs officials seized 12 newly launched iPhone 16 Pro Max from a group of four passengers at the Indira Gandhi Terminal Airport, said the Customs Department on Thursday. The incident occurred on October 1, when these four passengers were trying to smuggle these iPhones from Dubai to India. "Customs at IGI Airport, Delhi seized 12 iPhone 16 Pro Max from a group of four passengers who were trying to smuggle these iPhones from Dubai on October 1," said Customs in an statement. Further investigation is underway in the matter. Earlier on October 1, in a different incident, a woman passenger travelling from Honkong to Delhi flight was intercepted by Customs officials at Indira Gandhi International (IGI) Airport with 26 iPhone 16 pro max, the department reported. The customs department at Delhi's IGI Airport arrested the woman passenger for smuggling the devices concealed in a vanity bag, said officials. The arrest was made on the basis of specific intelligence input received by the Customs Department, according to officials. "Based on intelligence, Delhi Airport Customs intercepted a lady passenger travelling from Hongkong to Delhi carrying 26 iPhone 16 Pro Max concealed inside her vanity bag (wrapped in tissue paper)," said customs. Earlier on Monday, a passenger travelling on a Dammam to Delhi flight was intercepted on Monday by Customs officials at IGI Airport for concealing two gold bars inside the battery compartment of his mobile phone. Acting on intelligence, the Customs department at IGI Airport, Delhi, recovered the two gold bars, weighing approximately 200 grams, hidden inside the traveller's phone. In a separate operation on September 28, Customs officials at IGI Airport seized 2,739 grams of gold, valued at Rs 1.80 crore, from seven Uzbek passengers, including a juvenile, who were travelling from Almaty. Six passengers were arrested under the Customs Act, 1962, and the juvenile was apprehended under the Juvenile Justice Act, 2015. This story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed, agencies. Mid-day accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability, trustworthiness, reliability and data of the text. Mid-day management/mid-day.com reserves the sole right to alter, delete or remove (without notice) the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever
05 October,2024 01:37 PM IST | New Delhi | ANIUnion Home Minister Amit Shah on Friday dismissed as “baseless” the assertions of former J&K chief minister Omar Abdullah that the government had directed the union territory chief secretary to notify rules of business to make the elected government powerless. In a post on microblogging site X, NC vice-president Omar Abdullah said on Friday that the BJP had virtually accepted its defeat in the J&K elections and that is why the J&K chief secretary had been directed to notify change in rules of business so that the Lt governor became more powerful and the elected chief minister and his council of ministers were rendered more powerless. “The BJP has clearly accepted defeat in J&K. Why else would the Chief Secretary be assigned the duty to change transaction of business rules of the government to curtail the powers of the Chief Minister/elected government and assign the same to the LG? This information has come to me from within the Secretariat. Officers would be well advised to resist any pressure to further disempower the incoming elected government,” Omar said in his comment. Dismissing Omar’s statement as a figment of his imagination that had no basis at all, Amit Shah said in his X post comment, “Mr @OmarAbdullah’s tweet is misleading and speculative in nature.” “There is not even an iota of truth, as there is absolutely no such proposal. The Jammu and Kashmir Reorganization Act of 2019 passed by the Parliament of India provides for notifying the transaction of business rules, and the same was notified in the year 2020. The people of J&K have wholeheartedly supported the efforts of the Government of India to bring in a democratically elected government through the historic free and fair election process in which the citizens participated enthusiastically”. Meanwhile, the BJP high command on Friday summoned key leaders of the party to Delhi to discuss the formation of government in J&K. BJP sources told IANS, “The BJP high command has summoned 13 top leaders from the J&K unit for a crucial meeting in Delhi tomorrow to be chaired by party president and Union Minister J.P. Nadda.” “Those called to attend the meeting include BJP’s election in-charge and Union Minister G. Krishna Reddy, Ram Madhav, J&K in-charge, Tarun Chugh, co-in-charge, Ashish Sood, J&K BJP President Ravinder Raina, Working President Sat Sharma and four General Secretaries of the J&K BJP, Ashok Koul (General Secretary Organisation), Dr Devender Manyal, Sunil Sharma and Vibodh Gupta,” the sources added. Two former Deputy Chief Ministers, Kavinder Gupta and Dr Nirmal Singh, as well as Darakhshan Andrabi and Devender Rana, have also been asked to attend. “The meeting will gather feedback on the Assembly elections and develop strategies for forming a government in J&K following the election results. The discussions will also focus on potential alliances with independent candidates who may be likely winners in certain constituencies,” the sources said. “Ram Madhav has been assigned the job of contacting various parties to explore options for the BJP to establish the next government in J&K. Madhav previously played a key role in the formation of the BJP-PDP alliance government after the 2014 assembly elections,” the sources informed. This story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed, agencies. Mid-day accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability, trustworthiness, reliability and data of the text. Mid-day management/mid-day.com reserves the sole right to alter, delete or remove (without notice) the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever
05 October,2024 01:36 PM IST | Srinagar | IANSBihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar announced that Rs 307 crore in relief funds have been directly transferred to the bank accounts of 4.39 lakh families affected by the first phase of floods across 13 districts. The funds, provided at a rate of Rs 7,000 per family, were transferred via the Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT) system from the CM's official residence at 1 Anne Marg. Kumar also stated that the remaining flood-affected families would receive their relief funds before Durga Puja, by October 9. "Today, from 'Sankalp' at 1 Anne Marg, Rs 307 crore was transferred directly to the accounts of 4.39 lakh families across 13 districts affected by the first phase of floods through DBT at a rate of Rs 7,000 per family. Instructions have been given to transfer the amount to the remaining flood-affected families before Durga Puja," said Kumar. He added that farmers affected by the floods would receive compensation after a prompt assessment of crop damage. Additionally, the Chief Minister ordered the restoration of damaged dams and roads and directed that the medical system be strengthened to prevent flood-related diseases. Earlier, Kumar tweeted about his visit to Darbhanga, where he inspected a food packaging centre for flood victims. He directed authorities to provide relief materials promptly and ensure that flood-affected families receive ex-gratia relief of Rs 7,000 each. Kumar also visited the flood-hit areas of Kiratpur Kusheshwar Asthan and Biraul, where he inspected a community kitchen and spoke with flood-affected families. He also provided an incentive of Rs 10,000 to the mother of a newborn born in a relief camp. Congress MP Akhilesh Prasad Singh had urged the government to be 'proactive' in helping the flood victims. "We urge the government to be 'proactive' and come forward to help the flood victims. This is a double-engine government, citing which votes are taken from the public, but where are they now?" he said. Speaking about Chief Minister Nitish Kumar's inspection of flood-affected areas, he added, "What is a chief minister for?... This is the duty of the chief minister, which he cannot escape... If he (Nitish Kumar) does not work even during a calamity, then what is he the chief minister for?" The chief minister had inspected the flood-affected areas and checked on the relief efforts being carried out in the state, according to a statement from his office. A massive volume of water was released from the Kosi and Gandak barrages, affecting northern Bihar and Nepal. Floods in Sitamarhi followed a breach in the Mandar dam in Belsand block on September 29. Rivers like Bagmati, Kamla Balan, and the Adhwara Group are in spate, with several villages submerged. This story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed, agencies. Mid-day accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability, trustworthiness, reliability and data of the text. Mid-day management/mid-day.com reserves the sole right to alter, delete or remove (without notice) the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever
05 October,2024 01:18 PM IST | Patna (Bihar) | ANIPrime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday visited the Jagdamba Mata temple at Poharadevi in the Washim district of Maharashtra and offered prayers. He also paid tributes to Sant Sevalal Maharaj and Sant Ramrao Maharaj at their 'samadhis' in Poharadevi. The prime minister arrived at the Nanded airport this morning, where he was welcomed by BJP leader Ashok Chavan. From there, he flew to Poharadevi in a helicopter. The PM is on a one-day visit to Maharashtra. After Washim, he will travel to Thane and Mumbai to inaugurate a host of infrastructure projects. PM to launch metro line, lay foundation stones of infrastructure projects in Maharashtra Prime Minister Narendra Modi will be on a visit to Maharashtra on Saturday, during which he will launch several development initiatives costing over Rs 56,000 crore, officials said. Modi will first visit Washim, where he will inaugurate the Banjara Virasat Museum, celebrating the rich heritage of the Banjara community, after offering prayers at Jagdamba Mata temple in Poharadevi and paying tribute at the 'samadhis' of Sant Sevalal Maharaj and Sant Ramrao Maharaj, an official release said. Later in the day, he will inaugurate and lay the foundation stone for various development projects worth over Rs 32,800 crore in Thane. In Mumbai, he will inaugurate the BKC to Aarey JVLR section of Mumbai Metro Line - 3 costing around Rs 14,120 crore, and will also take a ride in the metro between BKC and Santacruz stations. At 12 noon, PM Modi will launch various initiatives related to the agricultural and animal husbandry sector worth around Rs 23,300 crore in Washim. In line with his commitment to empower farmers, PM Modi, during the event in Washim, will disburse the 18th instalment of the PM-KISAN Samman Nidhi worth about Rs 20,000 crore to around 9.4 crore farmers, it said. With this, the total funds released to farmers under PM-KISAN will be around Rs 3.45 lakh crore. He will also launch the 5th instalment of NaMo Shetkari Mahasanman Nidhi Yojana and disburse Rs 2,000 crore, it said. The PM will dedicate to the nation more than 7,500 projects, costing Rs 1,920 crore, under the Agriculture Infrastructure Fund (AIF). The major projects include custom hiring centres, primary processing units, warehouses, sorting and grading units, cold storage projects, post-harvest management projects etc. (With inputs from Agencies)
05 October,2024 01:11 PM IST | Washim | mid-day online correspondentCongress leader Rahul Gandhi on Saturday attacked the BJP government, saying there was no use of bowing before Shivaji Maharaj after scaring people, destroying the Constitution and institutions in the country, reported PTI. Rahul Gandhi in Maharashtra on Saturday unveiled a statue of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj, the founder of the Maratha empire, in Kolhapur city of western Maharashtra. Addressing a public meeting before unveiling the statue, Gandhi slammed the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) over the collapse of the statue of the warrior king at Rajkot fort in Sindhudurg district, and said the party's ideology is not right. "There is no use of bowing before bowing before Shivaji Maharaj after scaring people, destroying the Constitution and institutions in the country," Rahul Gandhi in Maharashtra said, reported PTI. His comments were apparently targeted at Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who had apologised to Shivaji Maharaj and those hurt by the collapse of his statue. "Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj is not just a name or a king. For us, he is our deity. Today, I bow my head at his feet and apologise to my deity," PM Modi had said on August 30 during his visit to Maharashtra, reported PTI. The 35-foot statue, which fell on August 26, was unveiled by the PM on December 4, 2023, on the occasion of Navy Day. Rahul Gandhi in Maharashtra said Chhatrapati Shivaji's message to the world was that the country belongs to everyone. The Indian Constitution is a manifestation of what the warrior king stood for, Rahul Gandhi in Maharashtra said. If people like Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj and Shahu Maharaj were not there, the Constitution also would not have been there, the Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha said. PM Modi offers prayers at Poharadevi temple in Maharashtra's Washim Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday visited the Jagdamba Mata temple at Poharadevi in Washim district of Maharashtra, and offered prayers, reported PTI. He also paid tributes to Sant Sevalal Maharaj and Sant Ramrao Maharaj at their 'samadhis' in Poharadevi, reported PTI. The prime minister arrived at the Nanded airport this morning, where he was welcomed by BJP leader Ashok Chavan. From there, he flew to Poharadevi in a helicopter. The PM is on a one-day visit to Maharashtra. After Washim, he will travel to Thane and Mumbai to inaugurate a host of infrastructure projects. (With inputs from PTI)
05 October,2024 12:56 PM IST | Kolhapur | mid-day online correspondentVoting began in Haryana for the 90 assembly seats on Saturday and saw a voter turnout of 9.53 per cent till 9 am, said the Election Commission of India, ANI reported. As per the data released by the ECI, the highest poll percentage was recorded to be 12.71 per cent in Jind, followed by Palwal at 12.45 per cent, Ambala at 11. 87 per cent, Fatehabad 11.81 per cent, and Mahendragarh 11.51 per cent till 9 AM. Till 9 am, Faridabad recorded an 8.82 per cent turnout, while Gurgaon, Hisar and Jhajjar recorded 6.10, 8.49, and 8.43 per cent, respectively. The Haryana polls started at 7 am and will go on till 6 pm. A total of 1,031 candidates are competing in all 90 constituencies, and 20,632 booths have been set up for voting, ANI reported. The results for the Haryana Assembly elections will be revealed on October 8, alongside Jammu and Kashmir. According to Haryana's Chief Electoral Officer, Pankaj Agarwal, 2,03,54,350 voters, including 1,07,75,957 males, 95,77,926 females, and 467 third-gender voters, will cast their votes in the Assembly Elections on October 5, ANI reported. 1,031 candidates are running in 90 assembly constituencies, and 20,632 voting stations have been set up for the election. The Chief Electoral Officer mentioned that a total of 29,462 police personnel, 21,196 home guards, and 10,403 Special Police Officers (SPO) have been deployed all over the state of Haryana. To ensure that voters can vote without fear, strict surveillance will be kept up throughout the state. The JJP-ASP coalition will run candidates in all assembly constituencies in the state, with JJP running 70 of the 90 Haryana Assembly seats, while the ASP will run in 20 of them. In the 2019 Haryana Assembly elections, the BJP won 40 seats of 90, forming a coalition government with the JJP, which won 10 seats at the time. The Congress secured 31 seats. However, JJP later broke out of the coalition, ANI reported. (With inputs from ANI)
05 October,2024 12:45 PM IST | Chandigarh | mid-day online correspondentDespite withdrawing their 'total cease work', angry junior doctors in West Bengal maintained their sit-in on Saturday in central Kolkata, they claim that during a protest to demand justice for the murdered woman medic of RG Kar Medical College and Hospital, several of them were baton-charged by the police, PTI reported. Withstanding the rain, they held their protest throughout the night in the Esplanade area. According to PTI, some were witnessed standing with umbrellas in one hand, while the others managed to take shelter under a temporary plastic shade at the Dorina crossing in the area, protesting the police's alleged use of a baton during their Friday demonstration from the SSKM hospital in the city's southern section to Esplanade. The junior doctors dropped their 'total cease work' at state-run medical colleges and hospitals around 8:30 pm on Friday but threatened to start a hunger strike till death if the West Bengal government didn't meet their demands within 24 hours. They also placed a big clock at the protest site in order to keep track of time. "When you are fighting for a significant cause, you cannot expect things to be easy. We anticipated better treatment from the state government. The baton charge and the verbal abuse from the police were both unnecessary, and we demand an apology," Debasish Halder, a representative of the protesting junior medics, told PTI. "We will not vacate this place until that is provided," he added. Medics from RG Kar Medical Colleges along with their peers from various hospitals also tagged along in the protest, PTI reported. "It's time for the state government to respond and show that they are genuinely eager to resolve this issue. The clock is ticking for them," added Aniket Mahato, another junior medic. The ongoing protest has caused significant traffic disruptions, with a police team surrounding the protest site at the Dorina Crossing. As per PTI, the protesters highlighted that securing justice for the deceased female medic remains their foremost priority. Among their nine demands, they have asked for the immediate removal of the State Health Secretary N S Nigam, as well as responsibility for the alleged administrative incompetence and corruption within the Department of Health, PTI reported. Their other demands include the establishment of a centralised referral system for every hospital and medical college in West Bengal, the creation of task forces and the installation of a bed vacancy monitoring system to guarantee that their places of employment have the necessary facilities for CCTV, on-call rooms, and restrooms. Moreover, they are advocating increased police protection in hospitals, the hiring of permanent woman police personnel, and the swift filling of vacant positions for doctors, nurses and other healthcare workers. "Elections for student councils must be conducted immediately in every medical college in the state. All colleges must recognise the Resident Doctors' Association (RDA), and elected representation of students and junior doctors must be ensured in all committees managing colleges and hospitals," Halder asserted to PTI. A prompt investigation into allegations of corruption and lawlessness inside the West Bengal Medical Council (WBMC) and the West Bengal Health Recruitment Board (WBHRB) is another demand made by the junior doctors. According to PTI, on Thursday night, they held a governing body meeting of the Junior Doctors' Forum after their senior colleagues asked them to terminate their "total cease work" and resume regular responsibilities. The junior doctors had resumed their cease work on October 1, following an attack by a patient's family on medics at the College of Medicine & Sagore Dutta Hospital last week. Earlier, the junior doctors had participated in a 42-day complete "cease work" following the rape-murder of a woman medic at the RG Kar Medical College and Hospital on August 9. They in the end halted the strike on September 21 after a dialogue with West Bengal's state officials and resumed essential medical services, PTI reported. (With inputs from PTI)
05 October,2024 12:31 PM IST | Kolkata | mid-day online correspondentA special court in Pune has summoned Rahul Gandhi in a criminal defamation case filed by the grandnephew of Vinayak Damodar Savarkar, accusing the Congress leader of making objectionable remarks against the Hindutva ideologue, reported news agency PTI. The Pune court issued the summons to Gandhi on Friday, asking him to appear before it on October 23. Last year, Savarkar's grandnephew, Satyaki Savarkar, had lodged a complaint against the Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha in this connection in a Pune court. Last month, the case was transferred to the special court for MPs and MLAs from the Judicial Magistrate First Class (FMFC) court. Advocate Sangram Kolhatkar, who represents Satyaki Savarkar, told PTI that the special court for MPs an MLAs, presided over by Joint Civil Judge and Judicial Magistrate (First Class) Amol Shinde, issued the summons against Gandhi stating that his attendance is necessary to answer a charge punishable under section 500 (defamation) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) in the case, and he is required to appear in person before the Pune court on October 23, reported PTI. In his complaint, Satyaki Savarkar alleged that Gandhi, in his speech made in London in March 2023, claimed that V D Savarkar had written in a book that he and five to six of his friends once beat up a Muslim man and he (Savarkar) felt happy. Satyaki Savarkar said no such incident ever took place, and that V D Savarkar never wrote any such thing anywhere. He termed Gandhi's allegation as "fictitious, false, and malicious", reported PTI. The court had asked the police to investigate the allegations and file a report. The Vishrambaug police station had carried out the inquiry and said that there is a prima-facie truth in the complaint. Nashik court summons Rahul Gandhi in defamation case over remarks on Savarkar A court in Maharashtra's Nashik district has summoned Congress MP Rahul Gandhi in a defamation case filed against him for his alleged objectionable remarks against Hindutva ideologue Vinayak Damodar Savarkar, reported news agency PTI. Additional Chief Judicial Magistrate, Nashik, Deepali Parimal Kaduskar, issued a process (summons/notice) to Gandhi on September 27, noting that the "statement made against a patriotic person prima-facie seems to be defamatory," reported PTI. Rahul Gandhi will have to appear either personally or through his legal representative on the next date of the defamation case, which is yet to be decided. The complainant, who is the director of an NGO, claimed he watched a press conference addressed by Gandhi in Hingoli and also a speech made by the Congress leader in November 2022, reported PTI. He alleged that Gandhi, on the two occasions, by his words and visual representations knowingly harmed the reputation of Veer Savarkar and also tried to defame the latter's image in the society. "The speech of the accused along with press statements try to ruin the reputation of the complainant's idol Swatantryaveer Savarkar and his contribution to the society along with his noble work in the pre-independence period," he said, reported PTI. According to the complainant, Gandhi said "Savarkar is BJP and RSS jin" which was defamatory in nature, reported PTI.
05 October,2024 12:06 PM IST | Pune | mid-day online correspondentADVERTISEMENT
