Tag: Gujrat

  • Raid pe raid: Police reach Elahi’s Gujrat residence to find him

    Raid pe raid: Police reach Elahi’s Gujrat residence to find him

    Former Punjab Chief Minister (CM) Pervaiz Elahi’s residence in Gujrat was searched thoroughly by the Punjab police and anti-corruption officials in the late hours of Monday.

    Pervaiz’s son Moonis Elahi alleged that although the police did not have a search warrant to conduct the raid, he allowed them access to the premises.

    According to media reports, police forcefully entered the premises when their knocking at the doors went unanswered.

    After the episode, Elahi moved the Lahore High Court (LHC) to prevent his arrest, however, the court rejected his plea.

    Prior to this, on Friday, the same officials’ squad used an armoured vehicle to break down the main gate of Elahi’s Gulberg residence in Lahore and entered the house.

    Officials are trying to arrest Elahi in a corruption case, however, according to his lawyers, pre-arrest bail has already been taken from a court until May 6 in the particular case.

  • Indian court acquits 69 people of murder of 11 Muslims in Gujarat massacre trial

    Indian court acquits 69 people of murder of 11 Muslims in Gujarat massacre trial

    A court in India has declared 69 people, which includes a former minister from the ruling Bharatiya Janata party (BJP), not guilty of the killing of 11 Muslims during communal riots in the western state of Gujarat in 2002.

    The case pertains to the killing of 11 Muslims who died in February 2002 during communal riots in Ahmedabad, when Hindu mobs set their homes on fire and rampaged through the city. An investigation into the attack found that the Muslims received no assistance from the police and were left at the mercy of the attackers.

    The Gujarat riots erupted after a train carriage carrying Hindu pilgrims being set on fire. Suspecting that Muslims had carried out the attack, Hindu groups started retaliatory attacks, and the incident soon turned into one of the most severe outbreaks of religious violence in India’s history after independence. While the official death toll of the violence was approximately 1,000 people, with most of the victims being Muslims, non-governmental organizations argue that the actual number of casualties was much greate

  • Indian govt calls BBC Modi documentary ‘propaganda’

    Indian govt calls BBC Modi documentary ‘propaganda’

    The Indian foreign ministry has dismissed a BBC documentary about Prime Minister (PM) Narendra Modi’s role in the 2002 Gujrat riots as “propaganda”.

    The first of the two-part series was aired in the UK on Tuesday with the second part scheduled to hit airwaves a week later. The documentary tracks Modi’s first steps into politics, including his rise through the ranks of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) to his appointment as chief minister of Gujrat.

    Modi was still holding the position when communal riots rocked the state, leaving more than 1,000 people dead, most of them Muslims.

    According to the documentary the inquiry team had assessed that Modi had prevented the police from acting to stop the violence targeted against Muslims, stating that he had specifically ordered law-enforcing authorities not to intervene. The documentary also features a former top UK diplomat who says that the violence had been planned by the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP)

    Arindam Bagchi, spokesperson for the foreign ministry, has termed the BBC documentary a “propaganda piece”.

    On Thursday, British PM Rishi Sunak was asked in parliament if he agreed with the report that Modi was directly responsible for the violence. In reply, Sunak defended his Indian counter-partner.

    “We don’t tolerate persecution anywhere”, the British Prime Minister said but added that “he did not agree with the characterisation” of Modi as depicted in the documentary.

  • ‘Pehaly insan bano, phir siyasatdan bano!’: Bilawal on Khan for holding public rallies

    Chairman Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari berated former Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan for holding public rallies as the aftermath of severe flooding keeps on unfolding across the country.

    “Pakistan is facing the biggest disaster in our history. One-third of our country is underwater! One-seventh of our citizens are affected, 35 million people. The former PM is holding concerts in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa & Punjab,” tweeted Bilawal, directing his anger towards Khan who addressed a public gathering in Gujrat, on September 2.

    The chief ministers of Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa are busy organising concerts of the former prime minister instead of helping flood victims, accused Bilawal.

    Calling Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf’s (PTI) behaviour “shameful”, Bilawal said, “Pehaly insan bano, phir siyasatdan bano! [First, become a human being, then become a politician].”

    Addressing a public rally in Gujrat, Khan warned the government against political victimisation of PTI activists. “If this continues, PTI will come to Islamabad, and there will be no place left for them to hide,” the former Premier said.

    Khan has repeatedly said that the PTI’s movement for Haqeeqi Azadi will continue alongside its flood relief work. In his recent speeches, Khan has made it clear that his struggle against ‘thieves’ will continue whether come what may.

    Pakistan is in the throes of devastating floods which have wreaked havoc across all four provinces. The scale of devastation has been estimated to be upwards of $10 billion.

  • ‘Threatened govt officials’: FIR registered against Rana Sanaullah for spreading terror

    A case was registered by the Punjab police against Interior Minister Rana Sanaullah on Thursday on charges of terrorism under Section 7 of the Anti-Terrorism Act (ATA). A complainant named Sheikh Aslam registered a First Information Report (FIR) at the Industrial Estate police station of Gujrat.

    In the FIR, Aslam stated that Rana Sanaullah appeared on Geo News programme ‘Naya Pakistan’ on August 21. During the show, Aslam said that the anchor [Shahzad Iqbal] ran some old clips and statements of Sanaullah that were aired on different TV channels on April 16, 2021 and January 29, 2022, respectively.

    In the clips, the minister had threatened the judiciary, the Punjab chief secretary, commissioner, other government officials and their children with dire consequences. Moreover, the FIR stated that Sanaullah threatened to kill government officials’ children and said they wouldn’t get any help from the judiciary.

    “Rana Sanaullah’s statement was to terrorise the judiciary, chief secretary and other government officials so they can’t do their job and fulfil their legal responsibilities”, added the FIR.

    The development was confirmed by Punjab Home Minister Hashim Dogar. In a tweet, the home minister said that the charges levelled in the FIR are serious and action would be taken in accordance with the law.

    Pakistan Muslim League-Quaid (PML-Q) leader Moonis Elahi also shared a copy of the FIR: “You [Sanaullah] make false cases against Imran Khan, now the Pakistani nation has registered a true case against you.”

    An official source told Dawn that the complainant was “wanted” by the Islamabad Police in some cases lodged with Kohsar and Aabpara police stations. The police had already issued him notices and they have initiated the process to declare him a proclaimed offender.

     

  • Gang caught running fake IPL to scam Russian gamblers

    Gang caught running fake IPL to scam Russian gamblers

    In a betting fraud similar to the 1973 movie The Sting, a gang staged a phony “Indian Premier League” competition with farmers serving as the participants.

    Before Indian police broke the scheme, the so-called “Indian Premier Cricket League” advanced to the quarterfinal round.

    Police claim that the tournament started three weeks after the original IPL ended in May, but that did not stop the gang, which they claim rented a secluded farm in the western state of Gujarat.

    According to Insp. Bhavesh Rathod, they set up a cricket field replete with “boundary lines and halogen lamps.” In addition, the accused had mounted high-definition cameras to the ground and employed computer-generated graphics to show results on a live-streaming screen.

    The group allegedly paid unemployed youth and labourers Rs1,054 (£4.20) per game to broadcast the matches live on the “IPL” YouTube channel.

    According to the authorities, players followed the orders of the “Russia-based mastermind” and alternately wore the jerseys of the Gujarat Titans, Mumbai Indians, and Chennai Super Kings.

    To give the competition an authentic feel, crowd noise sound effects were downloaded from the internet and a speaker with a talent for impersonating an Indian commentator from the real IPL was employed, according to Fox Sports.

    The cameraman simultaneously made cautious not to show the full field, beaming close-ups of the players instead.

    Russian gamblers were duped into placing bets on a Telegram channel the gang had set up, and the group would then use walkie-talkies to warn the phony umpire on the field.

    According to Rathod, the fictitious official “would signal the bowler and batsman to strike a six, four, or get out.”

    The policeman said, “We got a tip-off and we busted the racket while a ‘quarter-final’ match was being played.

    In the first instalment, the Russian gamblers gave the accused more than 300,000 rupees, according to Rathod.

    A gangster is duped by a bunch of con artists who set up a fictitious betting enterprise in the movie The Sting with Paul Newman and Robert Redford.

  • UK PM Boris Johnson begins his India tour from Modi’s home state Gujrat

    British Prime Minister (PM) Boris Johnson arrived in India on Thursday for his first-ever visit. He is expected to offer his help to India cut reliance on Russian oil and defense equipment, reports Reuters.

    Johnson has begun his two-day tour from Indian PM Narendra Modi’s home state of Gujarat. On Friday, Johnson will visit New Delhi to meet his counter partner, where the two of them will have a take on certain topics including a new defense partnership and a free trade agreement.

    Western countries have urged Delhi to speak out against the war in Ukraine. India, which imports Russian oil and is the world’s biggest buyer of its weapons, abstained in a United Nations (UN) vote condemning the invasion and has not imposed sanctions on Moscow.

    However, Indian PM Modi has expressed concern over the killing of civilians.

    Earlier this month, the United States (US) President Joe Biden told Modi that buying more oil from Russia is not in India’s interest. According to Johnson’s spokesperson, “Johnson will not lecture Modi on the matter.”

    It is pertinent to mention that the United Kingdom (UK) has been at the forefront in providing military aid and support to Ukraine. Johnson recently visited Kyiv to meet President Volodymyr Zelensky. 

    Previously, the India trip has been twice postponed because of Covid flare-ups in each country.

  • Child injured in pet lion attack in Gujrat

    Child injured in pet lion attack in Gujrat

    An 11-year-old boy sustained serious injuries when a pet lion attacked him in Gujrat, Punjab.

    According to media reports, the tragedy took place when the boy approached the cage of a hungry lion. The lion attempted to feast on the boy injuring him seriously.

    He was rushed to a nearby hospital where doctors are treating him.

     Soon after the incident, police in the province started a manhunt against the owner who is identified as Fayaz.

    SSP central, while taking the notice of the incident, directed police officers to book the lion owner at the earliest.

    “A case has been registered against a landowner named Fayaz along with two of his workers,” police said, adding that one of them has been arrested.

    Meanwhile, it is still uncertain whether the owner of the lion holds a license for keeping the wild animal.

  • Gujarat man loses 10 kgs in three months to commit burglary

    Gujarat man loses 10 kgs in three months to commit burglary

    Moti Singh Chauhan from Ahmedabad shed 10 kg for a very special reason and that is to commit a burglary, reports News 18.

    During police interrogation, he revealed that he ate only once a day for three months continuously, which enabled him to slim down and slide through a ventilator.

    According to the news outlet, two years ago, 34-year-old Singh was working at the house in Bhopal. He had gathered information about where the valuables were kept and he was also aware of the location of cameras.

    His former employers told the police that he would skip his dinner often.

    The local police found him in the footage of a Closed-Circuit Television (CCTV) camera of a hardware shop where he had gone to buy a trowel and a saw to cut the glass of the kitchen window to get inside the house.

    He managed to steal INR 37 lakh from the house on November 5, the police said.

  • Girl dies after gang-rape in Gujrat

    Girl dies after gang-rape in Gujrat

    A girl in Gujrat died after three men allegedly kidnapped and gang-raped her, ARY News reported.

    Three men abducted a girl from Chak Ghazi in Gujrat district on September 1. The accused gave a tranquilliser to the girl and then raped her.

    Later, the accused fled the scene leaving the victim in a critical condition.

    The victim died soon after the incident as the culprits dumped her after her condition worsened and fled the scene, said the police.

    Saddar Police Station Gujrat filed an FIR against the prime suspect Suleman, and his two accomplices, on the complaint of the victim’s mother.

    According to the police, the prime suspect has been arrested and an investigation is underway. Police have also sent samples for forensic tests.