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CM Siddaramaiah condoles death of 3 K’taka soldiers in J&K accident

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Bengaluru, Dec 25: Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Wednesday expressed his condolences over the death of three soldiers from the state near Poonch in Jammu and Kashmir after a vehicle belonging to the Indian Army fell into a gorge.

The Chief Minister said, “I am deeply saddened by the loss of soldiers from Karnataka — Dayananda Tirukannanavar, Anoop, and Mahesh Marigonda. May their souls rest in peace. I pray to God to give their families the strength to bear this immense loss.”

The Chief Minister added that Karnataka will always remember the martyrdom and sacrifice of these brave soldiers.

Leader of Opposition in the Legislative Assembly R. Ashoka said, “The news of a road accident near the Line of Control in the Poonch district of Jammu and Kashmir on Tuesday evening, in which five soldiers, including three from Karnataka, lost their lives, is deeply saddening.”

“Subedar Dayanand Tirkannavar (45) from Sambra village near Belagavi, Anoop (33) from Bijadi in Koteshwar near Kundapur, and Mahesh Marigonda (25) from Mahalingapur are the three soldiers from Karnataka who were martyred. May their souls rest in peace, and may God give their family members the strength to bear this immense loss,” Ashoka stated.

Mahesh served in the 11th Maratha Regiment for six years. Mahesh was married three years ago. Anoop served in the Indian Army for 13 years and is survived by a 1-year-old child. He was married two years ago.

The Indian Army informed the district administration and families of the deceased and the mortal remains of soldiers were expected to reach their residences by Thursday.

Five soldiers were killed and five others injured in a road accident in J&K’s Poonch district on Tuesday, officials said.

Officials said that the army vehicle, which was on its way from Nilam Headquarters to the Balnoi Ghora Post, met with an accident upon reaching Ghora Post.

“The vehicle fell into a deep gorge around 300-350 feet deep resulting in on-the-spot death of five soldiers and serious injuries to five other soldiers. The vehicle was part of the 11 MLI (Maratha Light Infantry). After receiving the distress call, the quick reaction team (QRT) of 11 MLI immediately reached the spot and undertook rescue and relief operations,” an official said.

The injured soldiers were shifted to the hospital for treatment and the condition of a few of them is said to be critical, the official said.

The Nagrota-headquartered White Knight Corps of the army said on X: “All ranks of #WhiteKnightCorps extend their deepest condolences on the tragic loss of five brave soldiers in a vehicle accident during operational duty in the #Poonch sector. Rescue operations are ongoing, and the injured personnel are receiving medical care”.

Northern Command chief Lt Gen M.V. SuchindraKumar and all ranks also extended their deepest condolences on the tragic loss of five brave soldiers.

“DhruvaCommand stands firm with the bereaved families in this hour of grief”, it said in a post on X.

The army has been maintaining heightened vigil on the Line of Control (LoC) after intelligence reports that terrorists are waiting at the launch pads across the border to infiltrate into the Indian side before the mountain passes are closed by heavy snowfall this year.

Crime

Bengal STF nabs 3rd local associate of arrested Pakistani national with suspected ISI links

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Kolkata: The West Bengal Police on Wednesday informed that the Special Task Force (STF) of the state police has arrested the third local associate of the Pakistani national, Wahab Alam, having links with Pakistan’s Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI), who was arrested earlier this month from Habra in North 24 Parganas district.

The person arrested by the STF sleuths has been identified as Zafar Sams alias Sunny. An original resident of Topsia in East Kolkata, Sunny had been absconding since the arrest of Alam.

Finally, he was arrested in Rishra in Hooghly district. However, the state police have not disclosed the time of his arrest and other relevant details.

The STF officials are currently interrogating Sunny to get details of his involvement in Alam’s activities. “We doubt Sunny played a role in strengthening the sleeper cell or network that Alam was forming to smuggle secret information from India to ISI,” said a state police officer.

Two days ago, Imran Hosain, a second associate of Alam, was arrested by STF sleuths from his residence in Topsia.

Before that, the state STF sleuths arrested Mohammad Izaz, Alam’s closest associate, also from his residence in the same locality of Topsia.

It is alleged that Alam, after illegally entering West Bengal via Nepal in 2012, used to stay at Izaz’s residence and the latter was instrumental in arranging Indian identity documents for the Pakistani national.

The STF sleuths got information about Sunny after integrating Alam, Izaz and Imran, first separately and then together.

Earlier on August 14 night, the STF sleuths arrested three other suspected Pakistani spies, all three being Indian citizens, from the Sahebganj area of the India-Bangladesh border district of Cooch Behar.

The names of the arrested are Rashidul Haque, Nur Nasiruddin Ali and Shafiqul Islam.

Meanwhile, the National Investigation Agency (NIA) has started collecting information about Wahab Alam. The move came after the preliminary investigation by the STF revealed Alam’s alleged links with Pakistan’s spy agency, ISI. The NIA has contacted the Bengal STF to obtain details of the investigation and the information gathered so far.

The NIA will interrogate Alam and Izaz, and if necessary, Hosaain and the other three arrested from Cooch Behar.

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Crime

Two arrested for raping minor after taking her on bike trip in MP’s Satna

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Satna : Two youths have been arrested for allegedly raping a minor girl in Satna district of Madhya Pradesh after taking her to a secluded area on the pretext of giving her a motorcycle ride, police said on Wednesday.

The incident was reported from the Nai Basti area under the Kolgawan police station limits. The police action followed a complaint lodged by the minor along with her family members.

According to the police, the minor had come in contact with one of the accused, Sanju alias Anshul Sahu (24), through Instagram on July 14. The two subsequently remained in contact through social media and phone calls.

Sahu, a native of Khamhariya in Rewa district, is currently residing in the Hanuman Dhara-Nai Basti area of Satna, police said. On August 17, Sahu allegedly reached the minor’s house along with his friend Sachin alias Vivek Rawat (19). Rawat is a native of Gangev in Rewa district and currently resides in the Hanuman Nagar-Nai Basti area.

The two allegedly took the minor on a motorcycle to Nai Basti, telling her that they were taking her for a ride. Police said Sahu allegedly sexually assaulted the minor at the location.

When she resisted, he allegedly intimidated and threatened her. The accused later dropped the girl back at her home.

“After returning home, the minor narrated the incident to her family members and approached the Kolgawan police station on Tuesday.

Based on her statement, a case was registered and both accused were arrested,” police said.

The police registered a case under Sections 74, 75(1), 64(2)(m), 65(i), 127(2), 351(3) and 3(5) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), along with relevant provisions of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act.

The investigation into the case is underway, and police are examining the circumstances surrounding the incident and the communication between the accused and the minor before the alleged offence.

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Crime

Rajasthan CMO gets bomb threat in Jaipur, police launch probe

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Jaipur, Aug 18: Panic gripped Jaipur after the Rajasthan Chief Minister’s Office (CMO) received a bomb threat on Tuesday.

A threatening phone call was received at the Jaipur Police Control Room, prompting police and administrative officials to step up security measures.

Soon after receiving the information, Deputy Commissioner of Police (South), Rajarshi Raj, reached the spot and took stock of the situation.

Police teams have launched an investigation to identify the caller and determine the motive behind the threat.

Technical teams are also examining the call details and other available information to trace its origin.

Police officials are treating the threat seriously and are checking whether it poses any actual security risk.

Further details are awaited as the investigation continues.

This is not the first time that prominent locations in Jaipur have received bomb threats.

In July 2025, both the Chief Minister’s Office and Jaipur International Airport were reportedly threatened through emails.

Security agencies, including bomb disposal teams, conducted searches at the locations, but no explosives were found.

Jaipur has also witnessed several similar threats targeting schools, the airport, metro stations, court complexes and the Sawai Mansingh Stadium.

On May 30, 2025, a bomb threat was reported at Mansarovar Metro Station and the Metro Court-Family Court complex.

The Sawai Mansingh Stadium also received multiple bomb threats in May 2025.

Earlier in July 2025, Maheshwari Girls Public School in Vidhyadhar Nagar received a threatening email.

The school premises were evacuated and thoroughly searched by security teams. However, no explosive device was found.

The repeated threats have raised concerns over security in Jaipur, particularly as several high-profile government and public locations have been targeted in the past.

Police are now working to establish the identity of the person behind Tuesday’s call and determine whether the threat was genuine or a hoax.

Security agencies are maintaining heightened vigilance around the CMO and other sensitive locations in the city.

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