Crime
From courts to politicians, bulldozer under attack in Assam, Tripura
Besides other parts of the country, the BJP’s bulldozer politics has also drawn severe criticism both from the political spectrum and the courts in the northeastern states specially in Assam and Tripura.
During his recent three-day (May 8-10) visit to Assam, Union Home Minister Amit Shah said that 10,700 bighas encroached upon by infiltrators have been freed.
The Assam government has also cleared over 3,800 hectares of forest land of encroachments during the past few years.
Before Assam’s BJP led government’s eviction drive, the saffron party led Tripura government after coming to power in March 2018 bulldozed a large number of opposition party offices across Tripura.
The Assam government had last year undertaken eviction drives in different districts to free government land encroached by hundreds of people for years. Various opposition parties including the Congress had criticised the BJP government for evicting the people without making alternate settlements.
In one of the violent eviction drive, two persons, including a 12-year-old boy, were killed while 20 others were injured after a mob clashed with the police in Darrang district on September 23 last year.
A video of the clashes, which went viral, also showed a photographer engaged by the Darrang district administration stomping on the body of a man shot by the police.
The eviction drive was launched by the police and the district administration to vacate 4,500 bighas (602.40 hectares) of government land, allegedly encroached upon by several hundreds of Bengali-speaking Muslim families in Darrang district.
Hearing a public interest litigation filed by Debabrata Saikia, Leader of Opposition in the Assam Assembly, the division bench of the Gauhati High Court headed by the then Chief Justice Sudhanshu Dhulia (who was recently elevated to the Supreme Court) had termed the Darrang district incident as “a big tragedy and very unfortunate” and directed the state government to file a detailed affidavit in the matter.
“This was a big tragedy, very unfortunate. Those who are guilty, if at all, must be punished, no doubt about that. Khoon zameen par gir gaya (blood has been spilt),” the Chief Justice had remarked.
The court wanted to know whether the National Rehabilitation Policy is applicable in Assam, and directed the state government to file a detailed affidavit in the entire matter within three weeks.
The Assam government had ordered a judicial inquiry into the incident.
Assam government officials said that around 800 families of Bengali-speaking Muslims were unlawfully occupying about 4,500 bighas (602.40 hectares) of government land for many years and the government recently decided to use the land for agricultural purposes by removing the settlers.
Besides various opposition parties including the Congress and the Badruddin Ajmal-led All India United Democratic Front (AIUDF), the All Minority Organisations Coordination Committee, which includes the All Assam Minority Students Union and the Jamiat-e-Ulema, among others, had organised a series of agitations against the eviction drive.
Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma had earlier claimed that the Popular Front of India (PFI) was involved in the Darrang violence.
Besides Sarma, other BJP leaders accused the migrant Muslims of encroaching upon a huge area in Assam.
Muslims comprise 34.22 per cent of the 3.12 crore population of Assam, of which 4 per cent are indigenous Assamese Muslims and the remaining are mostly Bengali-speaking Muslims.
Muslim votes are the determining factor in at least 30 to 35 seats out of Assam’s total 126 Assembly seats.
Of Assam’s 34 districts, 19 districts have 12 per cent or more Muslim population, and in six districts (out of these 19 districts), the Muslim population constitutes 50 per cent or more.
In Tripura, after the BJP government wrested power from the Left parties defeating the CPI-M led Left Front, it bulldozed 185 CPI-M party and Left trade union offices across the state alleging that all these party offices were set up on government land.
The BJP government had also demolished eight Congress party offices in different districts.
CPI-M central committee member Jitendra Chaudhury said that BJP governments across the country tried to enforce one party rule.
“The BJP not only bulldozed the physical structures of the opposition parties, they also bulldozing the society, mindset of the people, communal harmony and the democratic structures of the country. They are not maintaining the demarcation between the party and the government,” Chaudhury told IANS.
Supporting the BJP government’s stand and action, the party’s Rajya Sabha member Manik Saha said that the government has been doing its work as per the law.
“If any party or individual occupying the government lands and properties, these should be vacated by the law enforcing agencies. A few of our party offices were also removed in Tripura,” Saha, who is also the president of the BJP Tripura unit, told IANS.
After coming to power in the politically important Agartala Municipal Corporation (AMC), the civic body led by Dipak Majumder evicted many hawkers from shops in the capital city.
Almost all opposition parties and civil society activists criticized the AMC’s action.
They argued that without making alternate arrangements and rehabilitation of the hawkers, the authority should not do this unilaterally.
Crime
Newlywed poisons husband, 3 family members in Maharashtra Jalgaon

Jalgaon, Oct 11: A shocking incident has come to light in Maharashtra Jalgaon district, where a newlywed woman attempted to kill her husband and three members of his family by mixing rat poison into their food just two days after their wedding, officials said on Sunday.
Police have arrested two women, including the bride, who were allegedly attempting to flee after the incident. The case came to light after the affected family members fell ill, prompting police to launch an investigation into the suspected poisoning and the circumstances surrounding the women’s disappearance.
The incident took place in Velhane village in Parola taluka of Jalgaon district. According to officials, the couple got married on October 7, and the alleged poisoning occurred on October 9, the third day of their wedding celebrations.
Police said the bride allegedly mixed rat poison into the food prepared for her husband and his family members. After the food was consumed, she reportedly left the house with another woman, taking some jewellery and the money received during the wedding with her.
The incident came to light when members of the family began experiencing health problems after consuming the food. The elders of the house were subsequently admitted to a government hospital in Dhule for treatment, officials said.
After receiving information about the suspected poisoning, police reached the spot and initiated an investigation into the incident.
The incident triggered anger among the family members and local residents, who gathered outside the police station and blocked the road. They demanded that the two women be arrested and that appropriate charges be filed against them.
The police intensified their efforts to locate the accused. The two women, who were allegedly trying to escape, were eventually detained near Nimgul village in Dhule district, officials said.
After their arrest, preliminary details emerged about the accused women’s backgrounds. Police found that the bride, identified as Suman Subhash Sahni, was a resident of Jharkhand. The other woman, identified as Aarti Suryaksh Patel, was also reportedly from Jharkhand.
It was also reported that the man had married Suman after paying Rs 2.5 lakh.
Police are investigating the allegations and gathering further details to establish the exact circumstances of the incident.
Crime
Gujarat Police nab three more accused in Punjab’s Mad Sandhu murder case

Ahmedabad/Valsad, Oct 11: The Gujarat Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) and Valsad Special Operations Group (SOG) have arrested three men wanted in connection with the murder of social media influencer and makeup artist Madhu Sudan Singh alias Mad Sandhu, who was shot dead in Punjab Amritsar earlier this month.
The three accused, identified as Harsimranjit Singh alias Simu Singga, Fateh Singh and Arman Singh, were detained in Vapi in Valsad district following a joint operation by the state police units.
According to the Gujarat ATS, Mad Sandhu was shot dead by two unidentified persons near a car washing centre on Lorahka Road in Amritsar on October 3.
“A case was subsequently registered at Cantonment Police Station in Amritsar City,” officials said.
The ATS received information about the suspects from senior officials of the Crime Investigation Agency (CIA) in Punjab, who shared details of the case with their counterparts in Gujarat.
Following instructions from senior officers, an investigation was initiated under the supervision of Superintendent of Police (SP) K. Siddharth, with Deputy Superintendent of Police (DySP) Harsh Upadhyay and Police Inspector Krupesh Patel leading the investigation.
The inquiry revealed that the three men allegedly involved in the murder were in Vapi.
Harsimranjit Singh, Fateh Singh, and Arman Singh, are all originally from Sange village under Sadar Police Station in Tarn Taran district of Punjab.
Given the possibility that the suspects could leave the area, the ATS shared their profiles, location details and other relevant information with the Valsad SOG.
Police Inspector D.D. Parmar and his team subsequently detained all three men in Vapi.
A Gujarat ATS team comprising Police Inspector J.N. Chavda, Police Sub-Inspector M.L. Solanki, Police Sub-Inspector K.R. Patel, Police Sub-Inspector V.B. Khant and other personnel then brought them to the ATS office for questioning.
“During interrogation, investigators gathered details about the alleged roles of the three accused in the murder, the reconnaissance conducted before the shooting and other aspects of the case,” the ATS said.
The Punjab Police was subsequently informed of their detention.
On October 10, a Punjab Police team arrived at the Gujarat ATS office, took custody of the three accused and transported them to Punjab for further legal proceedings.
The investigation into the murder is being pursued by the Punjab Police.
Earlier, the Ahmedabad Crime Branch arrested Parminder Prasad alias Parminder Kaka, the alleged main shooter in the murder, in the Vadaj area of Ahmedabad on October 8, following an input from the Amritsar Police.
According to Crime Branch officials, Parminder allegedly opened fire on Mad Sandhu and arranged the motorcycle used in the attack.
Punjab Police subsequently took him to Amritsar for further investigation, while investigators were also probing the suspected links of the killing with the network of foreign-based gangster Goldy Dhillon.
Crime
NCB seizes 53 kg drugs worth Rs 43 crore in Guwahati, arrests two

Guwahati, Oct 11: The NCB arrested two drug traffickers and seized 53.937 kg of Methamphetamine/WY Tablets, suspected to be originating from Myanmar and valued at approximately Rs 43 crore in the illicit market, in Guwahati, an official said on Sunday.
The Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB), Guwahati, achieved a significant breakthrough on October 6 in its sustained campaign against organised narcotics trafficking with the help of an intelligence input, said an official statement.
Officers of the NCB intercepted two trucks and subjected them to intensive and systematic searches and detected specially fabricated concealed cavities inside the fuel tanks of both vehicles, it said.
The tanks were ingeniously modified to facilitate the clandestine transportation of narcotics and evade detection by enforcement agencies, it said.
The operation led to the recovery of the contraband and the on-the-spot arrest of two drug traffickers, both residents of Bishnupur, Manipur, it said, adding that the investigation indicated that the seized consignment originated from Myanmar.
The seizure has disrupted a major trafficking attempt, and the investigation is being pursued to identify the international suppliers, domestic receivers, financiers, transporters, handlers and other associates involved, with the objective of tracing the entire supply chain and dismantling the network in its entirety, said the NCB.
Meanwhile, under the special “Absconder Drive Fortnight” aimed at apprehending accused persons wanted in various NDPS cases, the NCB Guwahati apprehended six key accused, said the NCB.
Of those arrested, two are residents of Assam, while one each hails from Bihar, Madhya Pradesh, Manipur and Tripura. The apprehensions mark a significant step towards bringing persons evading the legal process to justice, said the NCB.
The focused drive underscores NCB’s resolve to pursue wanted accused beyond geographical boundaries and strengthen investigations and prosecution through sustained follow-up in pending NDPS cases.
The NCB’s enforcement strategy in Assam and the North Eastern Region goes beyond individual seizures, focusing on identifying and dismantling the entire drug trafficking network, including international sources, transit routes, financiers, logistics providers, distributors and key operators, said the statement.
Recognising the organised and cross-border nature of drug trafficking, the NCB continues to strengthen intelligence sharing and coordinated action with State Police, ANTFs, Assam Rifles, BSF, CRPF, SSB, Customs, DRI, NIA, ED and other agencies to target trafficking networks and their financial and logistical infrastructure, it said.
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