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Wrestler Bajrang Punia Returns His Padma Shri As A Mark Of Protest; Keeps It On The Footpath

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A day after Sakshi Malik decided to retire from professional wrestling due to the appointment of Brij Bhushan Singh’s close aide Sanjay Singh as the Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) Chief, fellow wrestler Bajrang Punia has taken another drastic step. Punia took to his official handle on X, writing to Prime Minister Narendra Modi about his desire to return his Padma Shri award.

A video surfaced on X (formerly Twitter) of Punia keeping his Padma Shri on the footpath outside of PM’s residence, having been surrounded by police officials and media personnel. The police officials seemed to be requesting him not to return his award, but the 29-year-old was likely adamant on doing it.

“Our protest site was vandalized” – Bajrang Punia

Punia took to X and recalled the events when they started protesting and how the authorities stopped them from doing it by destroying their site.

“Dear Prime Minister ji, hope your health is well. You must be busy in many work but I am writing this to draw your attention to what is happening to the wrestlers of the country. You must be aware that the women wrestlers of the country started a protest in January this year against Brij Bhushan Singh, accusing him of sexual harassment. I too had joined their protest. The protest stopped after the government promised strong action.”

“Our protest went on for 40 days. There was much pressure on us during those days. Our protest site was vandalized and we were also not allowed to protest any more. We did not know what to do next so we went to immerse our medals in the Ganga. Then we were stopped by the farmer leaders and coaches.”

The Haryana-born wrestler acknowledged government’s awards to them since several years, but also admitted that mistreatment of women have left him gutted. Hence, Punia has decided to relinquish it.

“The government has given us a lot. I was conferred with the Padma Shri in 2019. I also received the Arjuna, Khel Ratna award. When I got these awards, I was on cloud nine. But today the sadness weighs more. And the reason is a woman wrestler left the sport because of her security.”

“Sports have empowered our women athletes and changed their lives but the situation is such that the women who could have been the brand ambassadors of beti bachao, beti padhao are now leaving the sport. And we, the wrestlers who were ‘awarded’ could not do anything. I can’t live my life as a Padma Shri awardee while our women wrestlers are insulted. Hence I return this award to you,” he wrote.

Sanjay, who is also the UP Wrestling Association vice-president, was crowned as the new chief of WFI as panel emerged victorious, winning 13 out of 15 posts in the polls. 2010 CWG Gold medalist Anita Sheron also contested the election, but Singh received 40 votes, with the former receiving only 7. Brij Bhushan reacted to the massive development, hoping to have the wrestling events resume across the country.

Teary-eyed Sakshi Malik desired for a woman WFI chief:

Hours after Sanjay Singh emerged as the winner of the elections, Malik resigned and lamented the lack of woman as WFI’s chief. She said during a press conference:”If the president would be a woman, harassment would not happen. But, there was no participation of women earlier and today you can see the list, not even a single woman was given a position. We had fought with complete strength but this fight will continue. The wrestlers of the new generation have to fight.”

National News

Regime change certain in 2027: Akhilesh lashes out at BJP, Election Commission

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Lucknow, Oct 11: The Samajwadi Party (SP) Chief Akhilesh Yadav on Sunday asserted that a change of power was certain in 2027 Assembly elections and criticized the Election Commission (EC) over alleged police action on the protesters in the national capital.

Speaking to the press, after paying respects to Loknayak Jayaprakash Narayan at the Jayaprakash Narayan International Centre (JPNIC) in Lucknow on latter’s birth anniversary, the SP supremo said that the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) will be shown the door by people in 2027 Uttar Pradesh polls and the ‘partisan’ Election Commission won’t be able to save its ‘sinking’ fortunes.

Swearing by the Loknayak Jayaprakash Narayan (JP)’s ‘Total Revolution’ (Sampoorna Kranti) slogans, Akhilesh Yadav said that the movement remains relevant even today for challenging the regime and his party will bring out the ‘desired’ result by walking down that path.

“The process of change has begun. The anguish among the public will accelerate the process of change,” he added, after garlanding the statue of Loknayak Jayaprakash Narayan at the memorial.

The SP supremo also took a swipe over Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath over the Ayodhya seat, days after he challenged the latter to contest the elections from the holy city.

Responding to the Chief Minister’s questions regarding Ayodhya, Akhilesh Yadav said that “arrogant individuals” would not be able to withstand the strength of his ‘PDA’ (Pichhda, Dalit, Alpsankhyak—Backward, Dalit, and Minority) alliance.

The SP Chief said that the public is now familiar with the BJP’s politics and the party will have to give befitting reply to its actions.

He claimed that a change would occur in 2027 and that the process has already begun.

He said that the BJP is rattled by political strength of the PDA and questioned the role of Election Commission.

He said that EC’s duty is to encourage maximum voter participation and ensure a smooth voting process.

Raising the issue of the alleged assault on residents of Uttar Pradesh in Delhi, Akhilesh Yadav questioned the Election Commission’s accountability and demanded its resignation.

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Crime

Newlywed poisons husband, 3 family members in Maharashtra Jalgaon

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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.

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Crime

Gujarat Police nab three more accused in Punjab’s Mad Sandhu murder case

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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.

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