Crime
Actor abduction case dominates Thrikkakara bypoll
With just a week left for the crucial bypoll to Kerala’s Thrikkakara Assembly constituency, the 2017 actress abduction case has taken a center stage pushing back the K-Rail issue which dominated the campaigning till now.
On Monday, the assault victim sought Kerala High Court’s intervention following speculations that the case might be swept under the carpet. She also accused the Pinarayi Vijayan government of helping the accused actor Dileep and his aides.
Leader of Opposition V.D.Satheesan alleged that some CPI-M leaders were playing games to bail out the guilty.
Accusing the CPI-M leaders of playing double game, Congress candidate Uma Thomas said their talks about concern for women’s safety was nothing but a “sham”.
“I remember P.T.Thomas (her husband and two time Congress legislator from Thrikkakara who passed away in December last year) telling me that in all likelihood this case will not reach anywhere and eventually swept under the carpet. I am sure every voter in my constituency is keenly following the sudden turn of events in this case and this will be in their minds,” said Uma.
As per the Congress, after the crime, when the victim reached actor, producer, director Lal’s house, Thomas also rushed there and consoled the actress. Police was called in leading to the arrest of the accused who harassed her in a moving car which went around the city. Later, Dileep, who is the eighth accused and now out on bail, was also arrested.
Recently, at her first public function after the incident, the survivor was a surprise ‘chief guest’ for the distribution of the Kerala State Film awards where Vijayan was also present.
The social media went ga-ga over the incident showering praises on the Vijayan government for bringing the victim to the forefront.
But now after her petition, while the Congress-led UDF is raking it up, the CPI-M top brass appears to have gone defensive.
Responding to it, E.P.Jayarajan, the Left convenor manning the by-election, slammed the Congress.
“The Congress-led UDF is known for raking up dirty allegations during election time. Everyone knows which political party is helping whom,” said Jayarajan, adding that no one has a doubt on the position of the Left towards women’s issues.
State Law Minister P.Rajeev, another livewire at the election campaign, tried to downplay the fears raised by the victim.
“I am yet to ascertain the facts as to why she did this. Moreover, with the case being sub judice, one cannot comment in detail,” said Rajeev.
In her petition, the survivor alleged that there was a massive political intervention when the Crime Branch team is set to submit its final report on May 30 for further investigation.
She expressed deep concern that though Dileep was arrested in 2017, but things now appear to have turned topsy-turvy. Since she has no other way of getting justice, she is approaching the High Court.
The woman suffered a jolt last month when the chief of the Crime Branch DGP S.Sreejith was moved out and replaced with a new officer. The move has been attributed to Vijayan’s new political advisor P. Sasi.
Crime
Mumbai Crime: TV Actor Anuj Sachdeva Assaulted Over Parking Dispute In Goregaon Housing Society; FIR Registered

Mumbai, Dec 15: Actor Anuj Premchand Sachdeva, 40, was allegedly assaulted with a stick by another society member, Pradeep Singh, after the actor complained about a car being wrongly parked and later over Singh being angered by his dog barking, on the night of December 14 at Harmony Mall Residency in Goregaon West.
Following the incident, Sachdeva filed a complaint at the Bangur Nagar police station, and on Monday, an FIR was registered against Pradeep Singh. The incident caused a stir after the actor shared a video of the assault on social media.
According to the FIR, the actor resides in flat number 701 of Harmony Mall Residency, located on Link Road in Goregaon West. On Sunday, at around 10.30 pm, Sachdeva was walking his dog, named Simba, in the society’s parking area. At that time, he posted a photograph of a car parked out of a parking slot in the society’s WhatsApp group.
While the actor and his friend, Priyanka Pereira, were talking around 10.45 pm, an enraged resident, identified as Pradeep Singh, arrived at the spot and began arguing with him. Singh reportedly told Sachdeva that he would not remove his car and challenged him to do whatever he wanted.
During the argument, the actor’s dog barked, which further angered Singh. He allegedly picked up a wooden stick from the watchman and attempted to hit the dog. However, Pereira moved the dog away.
In a fit of rage, the accused then allegedly assaulted Sachdeva with the stick, striking him on the head, back, and right leg, causing injuries. Singh is also accused of threatening Pereira by saying, “You are a woman, stay at home,” and threatening to kill the actor.
Sachdeva recorded the attack on his mobile phone and later shared the video on social media. The altercation stopped after the society’s watchman intervened, following which the accused fled the scene in his car. The complaint further states that Singh threatened that the police could do nothing to him.
After receiving treatment at a private hospital, Sachdeva approached the police, who registered an FIR against Singh under Sections 118(2) (voluntarily causing hurt or grievous hurt by dangerous weapons or means) and 351(3) (criminal intimidation) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita.
The actor also uploaded the video on Instagram and stated, “I am posting this evidence before this person tries to do any damage to me or my property. He tried hitting my dog and me with a rod for notifying the society group regarding his car, which was parked in the wrong place in the society parking lot in Harmony Mall Residency, Goregaon West. This person is from A Wing, flat 602. Kindly share this with people who can take action. I am bleeding from my head.”
Crime
ED seizes Rs 79 crore properties of Punjab firm involved in water pollution

Jalandhar, Dec 15: In a money laundering probe related to an environmental crime, the Enforcement Directorate attached properties, including land, building and plant and machinery, worth Rs 79.93 crore belonging to a Punjab-based company involved in water pollution, an official said on Monday.
The Enforcement Directorate (ED), Jalandhar Zonal Office, provisionally attached the immovable properties of Malbros International Pvt Ltd on Saturday in the money laundering investigation related to environmental crime, under the provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), 2002.
The ED initiated an investigation based on a criminal complaint filed by the Punjab Pollution Control Board against Malbros International for violating the provisions of the Water (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1974, by injection of untreated wastewater through reverse boring into deep aquifers.
The ED investigation revealed that the company (with its industrial unit at village Mansoorwal, Tehsil Zira, District Ferozepur) was involved in the generation and acquisition of Proceeds of Crime by deliberately causing pollution of groundwater by persistently and covertly injecting untreated effluents into deep aquifers through reverse boring.
The company was also accused of repeatedly discharging wastewater onto land, drains, and an adjacent sugar mill.
Its daily functioning involved persistent illegal discharge of untreated effluents into land and groundwater, causing large-scale irreparable ecological damage in the form of water pollution and consequent health hazards, causing crop loss, cattle deaths and serious health impacts for residents of villages around its premises, said a statement.
Earlier, searches were conducted at six locations on July 16, 2024, and an amount of Rs 78.15 lakh cash was seized from the premises of Malbros International Pvt Ltd and its Directors under the provisions of Section 17 of the PMLA, 2002.
In a separate case, the Enforcement Directorate (ED), Shimla, teams conducted search operations at eight premises located in Himachal Pradesh and Punjab on Saturday in connection with an ongoing investigation into a large-scale fake/fictitious cryptocurrency-based Ponzi/Multi-Level Marketing (MLM) scam.
The perpetrators of the scam allegedly duped lakhs of investors belonging to the states of Himachal Pradesh and Punjab to the tune of Rs 2,300 crore
The search operations conducted by the ED resulted in the freezing of three lockers and bank balances/fixed deposits totalling Rs 1.2 crore.
The ED also recovered incriminating documents relating to investments made in numerous immovable properties, including benami properties, which were acquired by the accused individuals by utilising proceeds of crime (PoC) generated through the Ponzi scheme.
Crime
‘Fearing’ SIR, another person dies by suicide in Bengal’s Nadia district

Kolkata, Dec 15: Another person has died by suicide due to alleged fear of the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) exercise of the voter list being carried out by the Election Commission, in West Bengal’s Nadia district, said the police on Monday.
An elderly man in the Ranaghat area of the district has taken his own life. The deceased has been identified as Sushanta Biswas (60). His family claimed that he committed suicide by hanging himself at his home due to this fear on Monday morning.
According to the police, Sushanta Biswas lived in Matikumra Madhyapara under the Dhantala police station in Ranaghat. He worked in Kolkata.
According to his family, Sushanta Biswas had been living in fear since the SIR process began in the state. He was worried because his name was not on the 2002 voter list. He even stopped going outside. Neighbours tried to reassure him, but his fear persisted. He became increasingly depressed, fearing that his name might be removed from the voter list and that he might have to leave his home and move elsewhere.
A family member said Sushanta Biswas had filled out the enumeration form.
His wife, Namita Biswas, said, “He was always afraid. He had almost stopped talking. We tried to explain things to him, but he would only talk about the SIR. He would say, ‘If they take me to jail, I will get a six-year sentence’. My mother-in-law’s name is on the 2002 list. Our names were removed because we were living away. This morning, I woke up to find him hanging with a towel around his neck.”
A senior officer of Ranaghat Police District said, “The body has been recovered and sent for autopsy. It has been learnt that he died by suicide after living in fear for some days over his name not being on the 2002 voter list. A case has started. Investigation is underway.”
A few days ago, another person had similarly died by suicide in the same district over alleged fear of the Election Commission’s SIR process.
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