New Delhi, March 28: The Delhi Police has registered an FIR against Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) national convenor and former Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, along with other party leaders, for alleged violations of the Public Property Act.

The case is currently being heard in Rouse Avenue Court, with the next hearing scheduled for April 18.

The FIR was lodged following a directive from a Delhi court, which ordered the police to take action against Kejriwal and other leaders in response to a complaint filed by Shiv Kumar Saxena.

Saxena provided evidence in court alleging that large posters and banners of AAP were illegally put up in the Dwarka area.

Additional Chief Judicial Magistrate Neha Mittal, on March 11, issued the directive to file an FIR against Kejriwal and others regarding the defacement of public property following a complaint lodged by Saxena, who submitted visual proof of unauthorised banners displaying Kejriwal and other AAP leaders across the city.

Taking serious note of the issue, the court stated that such unauthorised hoardings not only diminish the city’s aesthetics but also pose a traffic hazard.

The case has been registered under Section 3 of the Delhi Prevention of Defacement of Property Act, 2007. The court emphasised that fatalities due to falling illegal hoardings have been reported in the past, making strict action necessary.

In addition to Kejriwal, the court also ordered the registration of an FIR against former MLA Gulab Singh and former councillor Nitika Sharma. The Delhi Police filed a compliance report in the Rouse Avenue Court, confirming the FIR’s registration.

The matter dates back to 2019, when large hoardings were allegedly erected in Dwarka, leading to accusations of misuse of public funds. A complaint was filed at the time, and now, with the court’s order, the police have initiated action.

The development has triggered a stir in political circles. While AAP has yet to issue an official statement on the matter, opposition parties have started targeting the party over the allegations.

Jammu, March 28: The number of terrorists killed in an anti-terrorist operation in Jammu and Kashmir’s Kathua district has risen to five after two more bodies were recovered on Friday in the forest area where they had been hiding.

Official sources said that five terrorists had been killed. At the same time, three jawans of the special operations group (SOG) of J&K Police died in the operation in Ghati Heights of Sufiyan Jakhole village of Kathua district.

Seven security personnel, including Deputy SP border, Dheeraj Katoch and a para commando of the Army, were injured in this operation.

The injured have been shifted to a hospital in Jammu city, while the Dy SP is being treated at the government medical college (GMC) hospital in Kathua.

Paying tribute to the martyred policemen, Lt. Governor Manoj Sinha said, “I bow to the valorous martyrs of J&K Police, who laid down their lives for our motherland. My deepest condolences to their families. In the ongoing Kathua encounter, several terrorists were neutralised. J&K Police & Security Forces are on the job. Operation in progress.”

The operation against the terrorists was resumed this morning with the first light. Given the number of terrorists seen at Sanyal village on Sunday and the fact that five terrorists were killed now in Ghati Heights of Safiyan Jakhole village, it is confirmed that this is the same group which had escaped from Sanyal village and was trying to cross over to Billawar in Kathua district through Ghati Heights.

Official sources said that civilians observed the movement of terrorists at the village Safiyan Jakhole Ghati heights at 7 a.m. Thursday and sounded police.

“Teams of local police and the SOG headed by SDPO Border, Dheeraj Katoch rushed to the spot and engaged terrorists in the gunbattle, who were well equipped with sophisticated weapons like M4 Carbines. Later, Army personnel, including para commandos, were air dropped, and reinforcements of police and paramilitary personnel reached the spot to join the operation,” said the officials.

“Three SOG personnel who were part of the first team to reach the spot were martyred in the operation while the DySP Border was injured. One para commando and six policemen, including the Dy SP, sustained injuries. Three terrorists were neutralized till last evening. Their bodies are lying on a hill and will be brought down once the operation is over,” the officials said earlier.

“The body of one of the terrorists has been burnt. All of them are believed to be Pakistanis,” the officials added.

The police martyrs have been identified as Tariq Ahmad, son of Kabir Hussain of Reasi, Jaswant Singh, son of Angrez Singh of Londi, Hiranagar and Balwinder Singh, son of Prem Singh of Kana Chak, Kathua, all selection grade constables of J&K Police.

“Terrorists are believed to be part of Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) outfit. They appeared to be well-trained. The gunfight triggered intense firing and explosions, with the Army using rocket launchers to eliminate the terrorists, who fired heavily with M4 Carbines and other sophisticated weapons and also used grenades. Local youth were seen assisting the security forces in carrying heavy weapons and ammunition deep inside a gorge,” said the officials.

Senior police officers are camping at the spot, supervising the operation.

“Special Army para commandos were airdropped in the evening yesterday to further strengthen the cordon around the area. The bodies of terrorists were noticed by drones and would be retrieved when the operation ends,” official sources said.

Kolkata, March 28: The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), on Friday, will submit the case diary in the RG Kar rape and murder case at the Calcutta High Court’s single-judge bench of Justice Tirthankar Ghosh.

The court is conducting a fresh hearing in the matter following a clearance from the Supreme Court earlier this month.

This will be the second day of the fresh hearing at Justice Ghosh’s bench and all eyes and ears will be on the proceedings to see whether the CBI counsel gives some clarification on question asked by the court during the previous hearing — whether it was a case of “rape” or “gang-rape.”

On the first day of the fresh hearing on March 24, Justice Ghosh had directed the central agency to clarify its observation on this “rape versus gang-rape” theory.

At the same time, besides seeking the case diary in the matter, Justice Ghosh directed the CBI to give some clarification on whether the second round of investigation was about just “evidence tampering and altering”, or whether there were more accused in the main crime of rape and murder other than the already convicted civic volunteer, Sanjay Roy.

Recently, a special court in Kolkata convicted Sanjay Roy, so far as the sole convict in the crime of rape and murder, and sentenced him to life imprisonment. However, the CBI has already approached the Calcutta High Court, challenging the special court order and demanding life imprisonment for Roy.

On the first day of the fresh hearing at Justice Ghosh’s bench on March 24, the West Bengal government counsel and four-time Trinamool Congress Lok Sabha member Kalyan Banerjee took a “tactically balanced stand” in the matter.

While making a submission that the state government was not opposed to any fresh investigation, Banerjee also raised a question on the legal tenability of such a fresh probe after the special court had already pronounced the sentence for Sanjay Roy.

To recall, with the Supreme Court, earlier this month, permitting a parallel hearing in the case at Calcutta High Court, the counsels of the victim’s parents approached Justice Ghosh’s bench with a fresh petition.

The matter was admitted by Justice Ghosh, and accordingly, March 24 was fixed as the first day of the fresh hearing.

Earlier, when the victim’s parents approached Justice Ghosh’s bench, the latter was not agreeable to hearing the matter since it was already being heard at the apex court. However, after the apex court’s approval parallel hearings can happen both at the apex court and the high court, besides the one already continuing at a special court in Kolkata.

The body of the junior woman doctor was recovered from a seminar hall within the premises of R.G. Kar Medical College and Hospital on the morning of August 9 last year.

The initial probe was being conducted by a special investigation team of Kolkata Police, whose members also arrested the sole convict in the case and civic volunteer Sanjay Roy. However, later, the probe was handed over to the CBI following an order of the Calcutta High Court.