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Top-rung Maoist Milind Teltumbde among 26 slain reds

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A top CPI (Maoist) Central Committee Member Milind Teltumbde — who carried a booty of Rs 50 lakh — is among the 26 Maoists, including 4 women, who were gunned down by the security forces in Gadchiroli district, Home Minister Dilip Walse-Patil said here on Sunday.

Milind, aged around 57, is the brother of human rights activist and scholar Anand Teltumbde — the brother-in-law of Vanchit Bahujan Aghadi President Dr. Prakash Ambedkar.

Anand Teltumbde is among the so-labelled ‘Urban Maoists’ who were raided in early and mid-2018 in connection with the Koregaon Bhima-Elgar Parishad cases, and is currently lodged in the Taloja Jail, Raigad.

Among those eliminated include at least four women Maoists, 13 carrying huge rewards on their heads and three Commanders of various Dalams active in the Naxal-infested district and surroundings — making it one of the most successful security operations in recent years.

The prominent Commanders who have been obliterated include: Kishan alias Jaiman of Korchi Dalam and Sannu alias Kovachi of Kasansur Dalam, Lokesh alias Mangu Podyam of Company No. 4.

Besides Teltumbde with a reward of Rs 50 lakh, Mangu Podyam alias Lokesh carried a booty of Rs 20 lakh, and Shivaji Ravji Gota alias Mahesh with Rs 16 lakh on his head.

Those who carried lower amounts of rewards include: Kishen alias Jaiman and Sannu alias Kovachi (both Rs 8 lakh), and Tilak Manku Jade alias Bhagatsingh alias Pradeep (Rs 6 lakh).

The others are: Manso Sukhram Boga alias Vimla, Dalsu Raju Gota alias Bandu, Dalpat Lalsai Kachlami alias Pramod, Musakhi alias Kosa, Sadhu Sonu Boga alias Prakash, Lacchhu, Dilip Hirooram Tulayi alias Navluram (all Rs 4 lakh) and Chetan Pada Rs 2 lakh).

The security forces recovered a large cache of arms and ammunition comprising 5 AK-47 rifles, 5 SLRs, three mm pistols, an INSAS gun, a 12-bore gun, and a .303 rifle, besides other weapons.

The encounter, spread over Saturday early hours to late afternoon or more than 12 hours, is one of the biggest with 16 C-60 Commandos and over 500 personnel participating in the operation in the dense forests on the Maharashtra-Chhattisgarh borders.

The high fatalities notwithstanding another 70-plus extremists are reported to have fled under cover of darkness as many of their associates fell to the bullets of the security forces.

Top police officials suspect that a major forest convention was underway to possibly plan out some armed operation.

However, the security officials managed to get a realtime whiff from the intelligence networks, and resulted in the warfare lasting nearly 12 hours.

Jade and Vimla Boga happened to be the personal bodyguards of Milind Teltumbde, and the identity of a few of the slain Maoists is being established, said officials.

In the past around 4 years, the Maharashtra security forces have registered massive victories against the insurgents, and killed around 90 so far besides recovering big caches of weapons, arms and ammunition.

More than 40 Maoists including 4 commanders were gunned down in a bloody gun-battle in the district on April 22-23, 2018 – till date the biggest anti-Maoist operation.

On May 21 and October 11 this year, 13 and five Maoists respectively were killed in the encounters in different areas of Gadchiroli, followed by the November 13 operations that saw 26 Maoists eliminated.

In addition, on March 3-4 last year (2020), the security forces stormed a huge arms and ammunition manufacturing factory thriving in the deep jungles of the district.

Crime

MMRDA declares airport-adjacent structure illegal; Kirit Somaiya demands immediate demolition

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Mumbai, Sep 10: Tensions have escalated near Mumbai’s Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport (Terminal 2) after the Maharashtra Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA) confirmed that a religious structure operating near the high-security zone lacks statutory planning permissions and is unauthorised.

Former Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MP Kirit Somaiya has alleged a deliberate attempt at unauthorised land occupation — characterising the structure as “Land Jihad” — and has pressed state authorities and site operators to initiate criminal action against the trustees and individuals responsible.

Following complaints regarding unauthorised construction near sensitive airport land, MMRDA verified that no official approvals, building sanctions, or permissions were ever granted for the religious structure.

MMRDA has issued formal notices to Mumbai International Airport Limited (MIAL) directing the immediate removal and demolition of the unauthorised structure to ensure the perimeter remains clear.

Somaiya has formally requested both MMRDA and MIAL to go beyond physical clearance by registering a First Information Report (FIR) against the managing trustees and individuals associated with the illegal construction.

The controversy highlights ongoing scrutiny surrounding unauthorised encroachments adjacent to critical national infrastructure. Officials note that unregulated structures near VIP corridors, taxi parking lanes, and terminal facilities pose significant security hazards.

The matter aligns with previous judicial observations where courts have emphasised that public safety and secure zones near international hubs supersede unauthorised religious claims or structures erected without explicit administrative approvals.

Authorities from MIAL and local police departments are currently reviewing directives provided by MMRDA regarding execution steps and necessary security arrangements during the scheduled clearance drive.

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Crime

Priyanka Gandhi office warns against her deepfake videos asking people to invest money

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New Delhi, Sep 10: Congress MP Priyanka Gandhi on Thursday urged people to stay cautious of misleading and fabricated videos allegedly featuring her and asked them not to fall prey to fraudulent and deceitful calls for investment in real estate projects or any other futuristic ventures.

Priyanka Gandhi’s office flagged the issue after her deepfake videos surfaced and were seen in circulation on multiple social media platforms.

It has urged the Congress leader’s followers and others to neither click on those posts nor give consent to any requests made in the AI-generated video.

Issuing a formal scam alert on Instagram, Priyanka Gandhi’s office warned the public against fake, AI-generated videos that have apparently used her face and voice to cheat the people and hoodwink them into fraudulent investments.

“Fake videos using AI-generated images and voice of Smt Priyanka Gandhi Vadra ji is circulating on WhatsApp, Instagram and other social media platforms asking people to invest money,” Cong MP’s office informed on its Insta handle.

“These are scams. Please do not click or invest,” it further said.

The Congress MP also asked the people to block such posts at the first instance and also report them to the relevant authorities for suitable action.

Such scams using deepfake and AI-generated videos of famous personalities have mushroomed in the past few years, making many gullible investors prone to huge financial losses.

A deepfake video is made by using AI to simulate a person’s face and voice, making it a facsimile copy of the target.

The scammers distort and misuse the cutting-edge technology to generate misleading videos, featuring unauthorised images of prominent figures and then try to rob people of their money.

In the recent past, deepfake videos of industrialists like Infosys founder Narayana Murthy and Reliance’s Mukesh Ambani also surfaced, where the online scammers and fraudsters used AI-doctored videos to lure citizens into fraudulent investment traps, leading to huge losses to investors.

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National News

Jammu Municipal Corporation demolishes 20 shops in Satwati area

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Jammu, Sep 10: Jammu Municipal Corporation officials on Thursday demolished 20 shops in Satwati area of the city even as the shopkeepers alleged that no prior notice was served to them.

Reports said the Jammu Municipal Corporation today demolished around 20 shops at Satwari Chowk, triggering anger among shopkeepers who alleged that the decades old commercial establishments were demolished without any prior information or notification.

The shops, according to the affected shopkeepers, had been operating at the location for around 50 years, with the occupants claiming that they had been regularly paying monthly rent to the municipal authorities.

Angry shopkeepers alleged that the demolition was carried out without giving them adequate notice or information, leaving them with little opportunity to remove their belongings or make alternative arrangements. The action comes against the backdrop of the long-pending issue of rehabilitation of shopkeepers affected by development works in the Satwari area.

The UT Cabinet had earlier approved a rehabilitation and resettlement scheme for shopkeepers and open-space kiosks affected by road widening at Nai Basti, Satwari Chowk.

A Jammu Municipal Corporation official, however, said that the affected shopkeepers would be relocated to another site within six months.

The assurance has failed to convince the affected traders, who said they had heard assurances of rehabilitation earlier as well, but continued to face uncertainty over their livelihood. The issue of rehabilitation of Satwari shopkeepers has been raised repeatedly by traders’ bodies.

The Chamber of Commerce and Industry has previously stated that affected shopkeepers had been paying rent to the municipal authorities and had sought alternate sites and rehabilitation.

Shopkeepers affected by the Jammu Municipal Corporation actions argue that relocation promises are uncertain and have demanded immediate financial compensation.

In June 2026, Jammu Development Authority (JDA) cleared over 30 illegal structures near the Jammu railway station, reclaiming state land valued at Rs 10 crore.

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