Crime
Navjot Singh Sidhu lodged in Patiala jail in 1988 road rage case
Former Punjab Congress chief Navjot Singh Sidhu on Friday surrendered before a court in his hometown Patiala in Punjab in a 1988 road rage case in which the Supreme Court enhanced his punishment to a year’s rigorous imprisonment over the death of a 65-year-old man.
Earlier in the day, Sidhu requested the apex court to grant him a few more weeks to surrender, citing health grounds.
Senior advocate A.M. Singhvi, appearing for Sidhu, requested to mention the matter before the court but it declined permission, asking Sidhu to give a letter, requesting more time to surrender to the registry. “Can’t mention like this,” it said.
In Patiala, a few party leaders reached his residence before his surrender to extend moral support to Sidhu, 58, a former legislator from Amritsar East and a three-time Amritsar MP from the BJP.
Sidhu surrendered in the court of Chief Judicial Magistrate Amit Malhan. After a medical check-up, the former cricketer-turned-politician was lodged in the Patiala Central Jail.
Sidhu has been lodged in an ordinary barrack as the AAP government in Punjab last week decided to junk special cells in jails for VIP prisoners.
Interestingly, Bikram Singh Majithia, one of the most powerful Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) leaders, is in judicial custody in the same jail where Sidhu has been lodged.
Both Sidhu and Majithia, who is facing charges in a drugs case, were once close friends but are now political enemies.
They were in fray from Amritsar East in the recently-held Assembly polls and the seat witnessed a bitter battle. They faced defeat from AAP’s greenhorn Jeevan Jyot Kaur.
With the apex court imposing the imprisonment, Sidhu said he “will submit to the majesty of law”.
“Will submit to the majesty of law…,” Sidhu, who is not averse to even sharp criticism of his own party and its policies and leaders, said in a tweet on Thursday.
The judgment came when Sidhu, riding on an elephant, was staging a protest, along with party workers, against price rise in Patiala where the incident of road rage was reported in 1988.
The apex court, which reserved the judgment in March, overturned its 2018 judgment, which had reduced the punishment for Sidhu in the case, after a review petition was filed by the family of Gurnam Singh, who had died in the incident.
On December 27, 1988, the cricketer-turned-politician and one of his friends, Rupinder Singh Sandhu, had on December 27, 1988, hit Gurnam Singh, 65, on his head near the Sheranwala Gate crossing in Patiala.
Police said Sidhu fled from the scene after committing the crime. Gurnam Singh was taken to a hospital where he was declared dead.
Sidhu said Gurnam Singh died of a cardiac arrest and not because he was punched in the head.
Sidhu was acquitted of the murder charges by a trial court in September 1999. However, the Punjab High Court reversed the verdict and held Sidhu and his co-accused guilty of culpable homicide not amounting to murder in December 2006. It sentenced them to three years in jail and imposed a fine of Rs 1 lakh each.
Both Sidhu and Sandhu filed an appeal in the Supreme Court, which stayed their conviction in 2007.
In 2018, the Supreme Court acquitted him of culpable homicide and convicted him of causing hurt in a road rage case in which one person died.
In February 2022, the apex court agreed to hear a plea seeking review of its May 15, 2018 verdict, where it let off Sidhu with a mere Rs 1,000 fine.
Crime
Delhi Assembly, Sardar Patel Vidyalaya, several govt offices receive bomb threats; checking on

New Delhi, Sep 8: The Delhi Assembly, Sardar Patel Vidyalaya (SPV) and several government establishments in the national capital received bomb threats through email on Tuesday, officials said, prompting security agencies to immediately activate standard operating procedures and launch extensive checks at the affected locations.
The threats were reported during the morning hours, following which security agencies and emergency response teams were rushed to the locations as a precautionary measure. Officials said the areas were secured and detailed anti-sabotage checks were initiated to rule out any possible security threat.
Teams from the Delhi Police, bomb detection and disposal squads, dog units, and the Delhi Fire Services reached the locations and cordoned off the concerned areas as part of the standard security protocol followed after receipt of a bomb threat.
So far, nothing suspicious has been found at any of the locations searched by the security teams, officials said. The premises are being checked thoroughly, and authorities are continuing to monitor the situation as part of the precautionary arrangements.
Further investigation into the email and the source of the threat is underway.
The latest threat has come amid existing security concerns surrounding the Delhi Assembly, which has received similar bomb threats in the past.
Earlier, on August 14, multiple locations in Delhi, including the Delhi High Court, had received bomb threats, prompting heightened security arrangements in the national capital ahead of Independence Day.
The Delhi High Court had received the threat through email, with the message warning of an alleged blast at the court at 2.11 p.m. on August 15. The email was titled ‘BOMB Blast Delhi High Court @ 2:11PM’ and specifically mentioned the timing of the purported explosion.
The same email had also threatened explosions at district courts in Delhi at 3:11 p.m. on August 15, adding to security concerns in the national capital ahead of the Independence Day celebrations.
In addition to the High Court, five other locations had received bomb threats through phone calls. These included Jamnagar House, Jhandewalan Building, the MB Road Saket office, Terminal 3 of the Indira Gandhi International (IGI) Airport, and the Sub-Divisional Magistrate (SDM) office in Delhi Cantonment.
Crime
Inter-state transformer theft gang busted in Pune, three arrested

Pune, Sep 8: Pune Crime Branch has busted an inter-state gang involved in stealing transformers and copper wires from them in and around the city, arresting three accused and recovering stolen property worth Rs 12.73 lakh, officials said on Tuesday.
According to police, the Unit 7 team was conducting patrols when Constable Vinayak Salve received confidential information that some people involved in transformer thefts would arrive in the Wadegaon area of Haveli taluka.
Acting on the information, Police Inspector Wahid Pathan directed PSI Rahul Kolpe to verify the information and initiate legal action. A trap was subsequently laid at Wadegaon, where police intercepted a goods tempo bearing registration number MH-12-GT-6675 on Sunday.
Three men travelling in the vehicle were detained and questioned. They were identified as Mohammed Sahebjaan Mangrekhan, 30, Adarsh Chandraprakash Pandey, 22, and Chandrasen Shivratan Dharia, 28. Police said all three are originally from Uttar Pradesh and were residing in Pune district.
During questioning, the accused confessed to stealing copper wires from eight transformers over the past five to six months. The thefts reportedly took place in Wadegaon, Ashtapur, Sangvi Sandas, Nhavi Sandas, and Hingangaon areas under the jurisdiction of Lonikand Police Station.
Police said the arrests helped solve eight cases registered at Lonikand Police Station under Section 324(4) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita and Section 136 of the Indian Electricity Act.
The three accused were arrested, and further investigation is underway to determine whether other people were involved in the gang and identify where the stolen copper material was being sold.
Earlier, on May 27, Pimpri-Chinchwad Police had arrested three members of a gang involved in 48 cases of electricity transformer theft across Pune district.
Chakan North police had cracked the case while investigating the theft of copper wires from a transformer installed at Nexus Healthcare in Biradwadi village, Khed taluka. The theft reportedly took place between May 15 and 16.
Crime
Assam: Vigilance Cell searches senior official’s residence over alleged disproportionate assets

Guwahati, Sep 7: A nine-member team of Assam Chief Minister’s Vigilance Cell on Monday conducted a search at the official residence of Dhemaji District Development Commissioner (DDC) and senior Assam Civil Service (ACS) officer, Debeswar Bora, in connection with an ongoing probe into alleged irregularities and suspected possession of assets disproportionate to his known sources of income.
The vigilance team arrived in Dhemaji from Guwahati in two vehicles and carried out the search at Bora’s government accommodation.
The officer was also questioned by the investigators during the operation.
Officials have so far not disclosed details of the case or specified the documents, assets or other materials examined during the search.
According to preliminary information, the Vigilance Cell initiated the case following a complaint filed by a doctor.
The allegations reportedly relate to Bora’s tenure as Joint Secretary in the Medical Education and Research Department under the state Health Department.
The complaint is understood to have led to a preliminary enquiry into alleged irregularities during his earlier posting.
During the course of the enquiry, certain properties and assets allegedly linked to the senior officer came under the scrutiny of the Vigilance Cell.
Sources said properties located in Guwahati and Lakhimpur are among those being examined as part of the probe.
Investigators are also reportedly looking into the ownership of some of the properties, which are allegedly registered in the names of Bora’s wife and other family members.
The probe is expected to examine the sources of funds used for acquiring the properties and whether they correspond with the known income of the officer and his family.
The search at the DDC’s official residence is part of the ongoing investigation and is expected to help the Vigilance Cell gather documents and other material relevant to the allegations.
The Vigilance Cell has not yet issued an official statement on the case or disclosed the findings of Monday’s search. Further details are awaited as the investigation progresses. The allegations remain subject to verification and due legal process.
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