Four persons who kidnapped and sold kids nabbed, one child rescued
Four people, including two women, who kidnapped children and sold them to childless couples were arrested on Wednesday. A two-and-half year-old boy kidnapped by the gang from Jama Masjid area was also recovered.
Police are probing the role of the four – Radha, 40, Sunita, 24, Saroj, 38 and Jaan Mohammed, 30 — in other cases of trafficking as well. The two-and-half yearold boy, who was rescued, had been kidnapped on June 5 when his parents had come to the Jama Masjid for an iftar party. DCP (central) MS Randhawa said police started a probe after the child’s father filed a complaint.
Police had printed over 2,000 copies of the child’s photograph and pasted it across Old Delhi. A soft copy of the photo was also circulated on Whatsapp groups and all local police stations.
A woman later approached the police saying that she wanted to adopt a child and had come in touch with one Saroj, who had offered to sell her a boy for ₹2.5 lakh. Saroj also forwarded the photograph of the child to the woman on Whatsapp. Police said the photograph matched with the one published on papers.
“The woman was suspicious and asked Saroj about the boy, but was told that the boy will be handed over to her by his parents. We arrested Saroj from Raghubir Nagar, but she had already abandoned the child at the time of her arrest,” said a senior officer.
Saroj told police that when she saw news reports of the missing child, she and her associates disappeared. The child was recovered by the local police in Madipur and produced before the child welfare committee. The police team then arrested Saroj’s associates Sonia, Radha and Jaan Mohammed.
Police said they are on the lookout for a man, Yusuf, who had actually kidnapped the child. The four told police that they stod outside IVF clinics to look for childless couples who may want to buy kids.
Thousands of people, carrying placards reading “Not in my name”, sang songs and lit candles in several cities, including New Delhi, Mumbai, Bengaluru, Hyderabad and London.
At the ashram, Modi invoked Vinoba Bhave to condemn violence and expressed his “pain and unhappiness” over the “current atmosphere” of violence ”.
“Constitution teaches us its (cow protection’s) importance. But do we get the right to kill a human (to save cow)? Is this how we worship cow? Is this cow protection? This cannot be the path of Bapu. Vinoba Bhave’s life doesn’t convey to us this message.”
The Prime Minister’s remarks come against the backdrop of growing incidents of cow vigilantism. Last week, a Muslim youth was killed on board a Mathura-bound train by people who taunted his family and repeatedly called them “anti-nationals” and “beef eaters”.
This is the second time in two years that the PM has spoken out against self-styled gau rakshaks. At an event in New Delhi last year, Modi had said self-styled cow vigilantes made him angry and called some of them anti-social.
The Congress dismissed Modi’s remarks as “another publicity stunt”.
“Today’s statement is (made) under pressure after yesterday’s protests,” Ghulam Nabi Azad, leader of the opposition in the Rajya, Sabha told reporters. “Only making statements on TV is useless. They are a mere eyewash. In three years no action has been taken by the BJP led governments in such cases... No one has faith in his (Modi’s) statement,” he said.
Later in the evening, the Prime Minister presided over a couple of events in Rajkot, the main centre for the politically important Saurashtra peninsula. The majority of farmers in Saurashtra are Patels or Patidars, a community that has been up in the arms against the BJPled state government over the issue of OBC status. Assembly elections are due in Gujarat by the end of this year.
In May, people lynched four Muslim cattle traders at a village in Saraikelka Kharswan district after calling them child traffickers. Such attacks waged by so-called cow vigilantes in India have targeted mostly Muslims. Cows are considered sacred by many Hindus, and slaughtering cattle or eating beef is illegal or restricted across much of the country.
Ali of Monua village in Ramgarh district, nearly 50km from Ranchi, was allegedly carrying four sacks of meat weighing around 200kg. The mob intercepted him at Bazartand, pulled him out of the van, and thrashed him.
Police arrived in 30 minutes and took him to Sadar hospital, Ramgarh, where he was referred to the Rajendra Institute of Medical Sciences in Ranchi. Ali died minutes after he was admitted to the bigger hospital.
Jharkhand police spokesperson RK Mallick said Thursday’s murder could be the result of a professional rivalry.
“Ali had a criminal record, and was an accused in the kidnapping and murder of a child. He traded in beef and had been getting calls for ransom from his business rivals and local criminals. Still, that does not give anyone the licence to kill him. We will arrest the killers soon,” he said.
Security was beefed up in Ram- garh to check any flare-up as the district is communally sensitive.
The chief minister’s office refused comments. But opposition parties criticised the BJP government for rise in mob attacks by self-styled cow protectors.
State Congress chief Sukhdeo Bhagat alleged the mobs have the government’s clandestine support. “This can be judged by the uncaring approach of the chief minister, who neither visited nor met any family of the victims in the state till date,” he said.
“Given the multi-tiered rate structure and the enormous paperwork involved, there should have been a six-month preparation time to allay fears of traders,” economist Mohan Guruswamy said.
Foodgrain, cereals and vegetables have been zero-rated, while other rate slabs are 5%, 12%, 18% and 28%. A cess will also be added to so-called “sin and luxury products”.
But experts believe the GST will lead to long-term gains for the $2 trillion economy.
“There will be formalisation of the economy, broadening of the tax base and this will lead to better tax collection,” said Soumya Kanti Ghosh, group chief economic advisor of the State Bank of India.
Traders too welcomed the GST, saying it is progressive, but some confusion remained.
“There are disparities. For example, the tax on a lock fitted in a door is 18%, but tax on the handle is 28%. Now these are bundled products, so how will a trader decide which rate to charge? This will add to accounting and compliance problems,” said Praveen Khandelwal, secretary general of the Confederation of All India Traders (CAIT).
The government says the rate on the main product will prevail.
The new system has attracted protests by small- and mediumscale entrepreneurs, traders, weavers and informal-sector workers over the tax rates.
Textile traders are on strike since June 27 against the proposed 5% GST, while those in the furniture business in New Delhi took to the streets over the 28% tax slab on their products. Diamond merchants of Surat are also said to be unhappy about the rates.
But the Bhopal-based spokesperson of the CAIT, Radhey Shyam Maheshwari, said: “This is a good opportunity for traders with irregular accounts to make everything legitimate.”
The government is confident that the traders will adjust to the new system. It has set up a “mini war room” in the Capital to tackle all GST-related teething problems.
The legal scuffle began after Bakshi was removed from the post of CPRL managing director in August 2013.
A highly placed source told PTI that more outlets in the Capital could be shut due to the CRPL’s failure to renew licences.
McDonald’s India spokesperson Barry Sum downplayed reports of possible job losses due to the closure. “We understand that the CPRL is retaining employees of the affected restaurants and will pay them their salary during the period of suspension,” he said.
As soon as news of the development spread, Delhiites rushed to their nearest McDonald’s outlets in the hope of landing one last burger before they downed shutters. Only a few emerged successful.
“I have been eating at McDonald’s for several years now. Their sudden decision to suspend operations is shocking. Where will I get them now?” asked Rohit Sharma, a 29-year-old IT professional working in Connaught Place.
McDonald’s burgers have been the most sought-after meal for many, from college-goers to corporate employees.
“I logged on to the McDonald’s website to get a burger delivered at my home. I had barely typed in my address and order details when a message that read – ‘Sorry, the assigned store(s) is not able to make deliveries now’ – flashed before my eyes,” bemoaned 20-year-old Pooja Dubey, a first-year BTech student. “This is the final nail in the coffin. Where can I get my favourite burger now?”
Experts believe the temporary closure of these outlets will further hit the reputation of the American food chain, which had already lost its tag of being the largest fast-food restaurant chain to Dominos Pizza about four years ago.
The gurgling sound you hear is probably that of Colonel Sanders laughing.
Kumar told HT that an FIR has been registered in this connection, and a team has been deployed to ensure the arrest of the accused.
District magistrate Yogeshwar Ram Mishra and senior superintendent of police, Nitin Tiwari visited the victim at the hospital and instructed the doctors to provide best possible care to her. She has been kept in a special ward.
He said PLA troops responded to India troops trespassing into Chinese territory.
“The Indian border troop personnel have entered the Chinese territory in the Sikkim sector of the India-China borders. They tried to stop the normal activities of the Chinese border defence forces in the Donglang region. We carried out appropriate responses to halt these activities to safeguard our national sovereignty and territorial integrity,” Wu said.
When asked about the ChinaBhutan boundary dispute in the Donglang area, Wu said it wasn’t true that PLA soldiers were operating in Bhutan.
“I have to correct you when you say that Chinese troops entered Bhutan territory.
“The personnel have been operating on the Chinese territory. We have made very clear to the Indian side that they should correct their wrong doing and withdraw their personnel from the Chinese territory,” he said.
The Donglang or Doklam area is located at the narrow but strategic tri-junction of India, China and Bhutan and not far from Nathu La pass. It is under Chinese control and lies within the TAR but is claimed by Bhutan. Thimphu doesn’t have diplomatic ties with Beijing, and the border dispute remains despite 24 rounds of negotiations between the two.
In separate press briefing, the foreign ministry said India must withdraw troops from the area to resolve the dispute.
“We urged the Indian side to withdraw troops... This is the precondition for the settlement of the incident and also the basis for us to conduct a meaningful dialogue,” spokesperson Lu Kang said.
Giving the briefing a touch of the dramatic, Lu briefly displayed a photograph of a map showing the Donglang area, saying it is part of Chinese territory.
“The Sikkim sector of the China-India border has a clear legal basis. There is solid legal evidence to support the delimitation of the Sikkim section of the China-India boundary. It is stated in Article One of the Convention Between Great Britain and China Relating to Sikkim and Tibet (1890) that the boundary of Sikkim and Tibet shall be the crest of the mountain range separating the waters flowing into the Sikkim Teesta and its affluents from the waters flowing into the Tibetan Mochu and northwards into other rivers of Tibet,” he said.
Lu did not comment on Bhutan issuing a demarche to China, asking Beijing to stop construction in the Donglang area.
“This will bring in greater transparency and reduce the time taken for accreditation,” the official added.
If the recommendation comes through, the task of identifying potential private accreditation agencies will begin soon, he added.
NAAC had suspended its application process in March to carry out an overhaul of its grading system. The move was initiated after complaints of subjectivity in the accreditation process – besides alleged corruption and misconduct by peer teams during field visits – emerged from various quarters.
“At present, we rope in teachers and professors from different institutions to carry out inspections for accreditation work. This, naturally, affects their normal routine. As there is an urgent need for independent assessors who specialise in conducting accreditation work, private players should be given an opportunity. However, this must be done under a strict regulatory framework to ensure that quality is maintained,” said former cabinet secretary TSR Subramanian, who has prepared the draft report on the new education policy.
A++ is the highest grade currently being provided by NAAC, which accredits universities, autonomous colleges, affiliated/ constituent colleges and scientific institutions, among others. Following complaints of corruption, weightage of 80% has been proposed for self-reported data analysed through software-based capturing and 20% for data provided by peer review teams.
The prediction for Friday is cloudy sky with light to moderate rain.
Weather officials said the monsoon gathered momentum from Sunday after a midway hitch as it sometimes needs some “push” or “drag” to advance over the landmass.
Atmospheric conditions such as a cyclonic circulation, a low pressure or a depression in the sea provide the much-needed push.
A cyclonic circulation over the Bay of Bengal in Odisha is pushing the monsoon current inland while a few other systems across central and northwest India are giving it a free ride to the country’s capital.