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Maharashtra

‘Where’s the confusion?’, Priyanka Chaturvedi on renewed ‘Op Sindoor’ debate on martyrs

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Mumbai, July 1: Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Priyanka Chaturvedi on Wednesday questioned the renewed political debate over the number of soldiers martyred during ‘Operation Sindoor’, while recalling that both the Indian Army and the Indian Air Force had recognised the loss earlier and had paid tributes to the six personnel who made the supreme sacrifice in the line of duty.

The controversy over Defence Minister Rajnath Singh’s statement over “no soldiers” deaths in the Parliament, days after ‘Operation Sindoor’, started after six martyred jawans were immortalised by inscribing their names on the National War Memorial in the national Capital on Monday.

In a post on X, Chaturvedi said, “Am I the only one who recalls that during Op Sindoor, the then-DGMO, LG Rajeev Ghai, at an official Press briefing, had paid tribute to the 5 personnel who made the supreme sacrifice during the Operation. Also recall Air Chief Marshal A.P. Singh, having personally visited Sergeant Kumar’s family to pay his respects. And now, the National War Memorial has their names etched in stone as a tribute for their ultimate sacrifice. Where’s the confusion?”

Chaturvedi referred to the instance when General Rajiv Ghai, then a Lieutenant General serving as the Director General of Military Operations (DGMO), had paid solemn tribute to the fallen heroes during an official Press conference on May 11, 2025.

Air Chief Marshal AP Singh and his wife, Sarita Singh, had also personally visited the family of the late Sergeant Surendra Kumar, who laid down his life during ‘Operation Sindoor’, to pay their respects.

Chaturvedi’s remarks came as Congress, Shiv Sena (UBT)’s ally in the INDIA Bloc, trained guns at the Centre and the Defence Minister, as it claimed that the latter tried to gloss over the supreme sacrifice of soldiers during ‘Operation Sindoor’, thus not giving them the respect and honour that the martyrs deserved.

Congress accused the Centre of deliberately misleading Parliament and demanded Rajnath Singh’s resignation.

The Ministry of Defence firmly rejected these allegations as factually incorrect and warned against politicising sensitive military matters.

The Ministry clarified that this statement was taken out of context. The Ministry explained that he was specifically countering a false, viral rumour spreading online that Indian Air Force pilots had been shot down, rather than denying ground casualties.

The six brave soldiers martyred in ‘Operation Sindoor’ include Subedar Major Pawan Kumar, Rifleman Sunil Kumar, Lance Naik Dinesh Kumar, Agniveer Murali Naik, Havildar Sunil Kumar Singh, and Indian Air Force Sergeant Surendra Kumar.

Five of these personnel belonged to the Indian Army, while one belonged to the Indian Air Force.

Their names are being inscribed at the National War Memorial to ensure that their supreme sacrifice remains alive in the nation’s memory forever.

Crime

Fake social media account, Chat GPT used in Ketan Agarwal murder

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Pune, Sep 20: A fake account on social media platform Instagram, along with ChatGPT and murder films, was used by Siya Goyal and her co-accused in the alleged murder of her fiance Ketan Agarwal, reveals the charge sheet filed by the police in the sensational case.

The 5,053-page charge sheet, filed on Saturday, detailed the alleged conspiracy behind the death of the 26-year-old businessman at Lohagad Fort in Pune in June, NDTV reported.

Agarwal was allegedly pushed off the fort on June 18 by his fiancee Siya Goyal, who was assisted by her purported lover Chetan Chaudhary, and another accused, identified as Ritesh Hange. All three have been arrested by the police.

According to the charge sheet, the accused had initially discussed seriously injuring Agarwal and even explored the possibility of hiring someone from outside Maharashtra to carry out the attack.

Police claimed the plan was later dropped because they feared the hired assailant could expose the conspiracy or create problems for them. Investigators have mentioned that a person contacted during this stage has since become a witness, the media report said.

As per the charge sheet, the accused subsequently decided to kill Agarwal themselves and watched murder films and used ChatGPT for the purpose. They also listened to podcasts on how to avoid detection by police as part of their preparations.

Goyal and her co-accused also researched last year’s Meghalaya honeymoon murder case where Indore resident Raja Raghuvanshi was allegedly killed by his wife, Sonam, during the couple’s honeymoon in the state’s East Khasi Hills district.

Moreover, investigators stated that a fake Instagram account named ‘Mahi’ was created using the photograph of a woman known to the accused in order to “lure” Agarwal to the fort.

Subsequently, messages from the account encouraged the victim to visit the spot on June 18 for a surprise birthday plan for Goyal.

According to the chargesheet, the fake account was part of a plan devised by Ritesh Hange to bring Agarwal to the fort. The account was deleted after the incident.

Further, the charge sheet also revealed that the accused conducted a recce of locations around Lonavala before selecting Lohagad Fort.

According to investigators, Goyal and Chaudhary visited Tiger Point and other locations in search of an isolated spot.

Police said that Lohagad was eventually selected because of a death at the fort in March last year. The accused thought they could make Agarwal’s death appear like an accidental fall at the spot.

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Crime

Stall operator booked after two die of electrocution in Mumbai Lalbaug Ganesh pandal

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Mumbai, Sep 20: An FIR has been filed following a tragic electrocution incident near a Ganesh festival pandal in Mumbai Lalbaug area early on Sunday, which resulted in the deaths of two people, including an 8-year-old girl.

Two people, including an eight-year-old girl, died and four others were seriously injured after receiving electric shocks from a loose wire at a Pepsi-Cola stall near Aastha Hospital on Dattaram Lad Marg in Kalachowki, Mumbai, early Sunday.

Police have registered an FIR against nearby stall operator Kamal Shetty under Sections 106(1) and 125(b) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, alleging negligence, and have begun an investigation.

According to information from the fire brigade, the incident occurred at around 2 a.m. on Sunday when devotees were present near the pandal.

Two boys and three girls, aged between 8 and 20, reportedly came into contact with the electrical current and suffered burn injuries.

Following the incident, all five victims were rushed to Masina Hospital in Byculla for treatment. Doctors declared the 8-year-old girl Raghni Ghanshyam Yadav dead upon arrival.

Meanwhile, a second victim, a woman who was admitted to Global Hospital in Parel, later succumbed to her injuries. Her identity was yet to be ascertained.

Kiran Akbar Naik, 19, Tanvi Narsh Hande, 19, Sahil Sandip Tare, 19, and Ruhi Singh, 12, were undergoing treatment for injuries sustained in the incident.

Among the injured, one girl was reportedly in critical condition and was shifted to Global Hospital in Parel for further treatment. The remaining three injured victims are undergoing treatment at Masina Hospital and have been admitted to the intensive care unit (ICU), where their condition remains serious.

According to the FIR filed at Kalachowki Police Station, the wire allegedly came into contact with the girl, Raghni, and others nearby.

The girl was declared dead at Masina Hospital, while another woman, identified as 33-year-old Sujata Thorati, died at Global Hospital. Four injured persons were admitted for treatment.

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Maharashtra

17-year-old among three killed in Mumbai high-end car accident (Lead)

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Mumbai, Sep 20: A 17-year-old was among the three people who were killed in a serious accident involving a high-end car on the Mumbai Coastal Road early on Sunday, officials said.

Another person is critically injured and is currently receiving treatment.

According to information received from the Coastal Road Control Room, the accident occurred at around 5.20 a.m. near Lotus Jetty, opposite Lala College.

The car was travelling from Marine Drive towards Haji Ali when the driver allegedly lost control of the vehicle due to overspeeding.

The speeding vehicle crashed onto the Coastal Road and hit a boundary wall. It fell off the bridge into an area where construction work was underway.

The severity of the accident was evident from the extent of the damage to the car.

The vehicle tore off through the signboard hanging from the bridge. The roof of the car was pushed inwards, the windshield was shattered, and the bonnet was completely destroyed.

Following the accident, all four occupants of the car were rushed to Nair Hospital, where emergency medical teams assessed their condition.

According to an update issued by the Chief Medical Officer (CMO) of Nair Hospital at around 8.40 a.m., three of the occupants were declared brought dead by doctors.

Two of the deceased have been identified as 21-year-old Shanay Gajjal and 17-year-old Dhirya Seth. The identity of the third deceased is yet to be ascertained.

The injured has been identified as 23-year-old Aditya Oswal.

Speaking about the incident to media, Senior Police Inspector Meena Jagtap said: “At around 5:20 a.m., a black BMW was travelling from Marine Drive towards Haji Ali in the northbound direction when it fell from the Coastal Road. There were four people in the car. Three people died, while Aditya is currently at Nair Hospital.”

She said that it is yet to be ascertained whether the occupants of the car were in an intoxicated state when the accident occurred.

Police are investigating the case.

Further details are awaited.

On September 3, several people were booked after Mumbai Police took cognisance of a viral video showing luxury and high-performance cars speeding and racing dangerously inside the Marine Drive-Southbound Coastal Road tunnel.

Meanwhile, earlier this week, three people were critically injured after a speeding off-road SUV (Sport Utility Vehicle) hit them near PKC Hospital in Vashi, Navi Mumbai.

The driver fled the spot after the crash instead of helping the injured.

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