Crime file: Kolkata Police asks rape victim's father to return body to Bihar; Man held for online harassment of girl; Woman kills 2 kids, herself over dowry and more
Kolkata: The father of the 16-year-old gang rape victim who died in a city hospital after attempting suicide, today alleged that Kolkata Police asked him to leave the state and return to Bihar with his daughter's body.
"The police officials last night threatened me and asked me to leave the state and return to Bihar with the body. The police officials and some local toughs also threatened that if I did not they would stop me from driving my taxi," said the victim's father, who is a taxi driver.
There was a tussle between the Left parties and Kolkata Police last night over the cremation of the body of the girl, who died in a city hospital on Wednesday due to injuries sustained when attempting to set herself on fire at her home on December 23.
The Left leadership will meet Governor M K Narayanan during the day over the issue and submit a deputation, party sources said. The girl's father, who is close to the CITU, said it was decided by the family and the trade union that the body would be kept in Peace Haven mortuary in the city and a condolence rally would be taken out during the day. But the body was taken away forcefully by the police for cremation while being taken to the mortuary late last night without the family's consent, the girl's father and CITU sources said.
"The police took away the body forcefully and tried to cremate it at Nimatala Ghat crematorium but could not as the death certificate was with the girl's father. After the news spread we too rushed to the crematorium and protested forcing the police to retreat," CPI(M) state secretariat member Rabin Deb said.
"The police gave the excuse that the condolence rally with the body cannot be allowed as there is dearth of policemen due to New Year celebrations," he alleged.
Rubbishing the allegations Joint Commissioner of Police (HQ) Rajeev Mishra told PTI, "It is a totally false allegation. Whatever was done was done in consultation with Bidhahnagar police, under whose jurisdiction the girl's house falls, and the family members. We did not forcefully take away any body."
Deputy Commissioner of Bidhannagar Police (Detective Department) Arnab Ghosh said, "The incident happened in the jurisdiction of Kolkata police so we can't comment on it." The body is presently in the custody of the family and CITU, which has decided to go ahead with the condolence rally in the city this afternoon.
The girl's family has also alleged negligence by R G Kar Medical College Hospital, where she had been admitted. Ruling Trinamool Congress has accused the Left Front of launching a "false propaganda" against the state government.
"The CPI(M) is alienated from the people and they are desperately trying to launch a wrong propaganda against the government over this (gang rape) issue. But the people will not accept this," TMC General Secretary Mukul Roy said. He said the girl's death was a sad incident and the administration did whatever was necessary to bring the culprits to book.
"The accused are in jail and a charge sheet has been filed against them."
Doctors at the hospital said the girl was admitted with nearly 80 per cent burns and damaged lungs and she died at around 2 PM yesterday. The girl had been gang raped at Madhyamgram in the northern fringes of the city. She was first gang raped on October 25 and found lying in a field near her house. She was forcibly taken away by the same gang and raped and brutalised when she was returning home with her parents after lodging a complaint at the local police station.
The severely injured girl was later found lying unconscious near the railway track at Madhyamgram the same day. Her family had changed residence from Madhyamgram to Dum Dum in the city after the brutal incident.
Six people were arrested after local residents demanded immediate action against the gang, but the victim's family members alleged that on December 23, a close associate of the gang leader Chottu had visited their Dum Dum residence and threatened them with dire consequences if the girl did not withdraw her complaint. She attempted suicide the same day.
Man held for online harassment of girl, created fake FB account and posted pictures
Visakhapatnam: A 28-year-old man Sirigudu Kishore of New Colony in the city was arrested on Tuesday on the charges of defaming his girlfriend by posting her photographs and her father’s phone numbers on the Facebook with a fake account.
Kishore, an M.Com post-graduate, was employed as a computer operator at the Prakash parcel service. He developed friendship with the victim, even though he was engaged with a distant relative already.
The girl fell in love with Kishore believing his words. However, the girl refused to continue friendship with him after she came to know that Kishore would marry another girl.
With an intention to take revenge, Kishore downloaded the photographs of the girl from her Facebook account and posted them on the fake account.
He also posted the phone numbers and abusive messages in the name of the girl and asking the prospective customers to call the phone numbers.
Some persons started calling the girl after seeing her images on the Facebook. Irritated over calls, the girl lodged a complaint with II Town police station on December 4 and subsequently the case was transferred to Cyber Crime Investigation Cell (CCIC).
Based on the complaint, CCIC inspector K. Satyanarayana Rao and his team investigated the case.
Additional deputy commissioner of police (Special Branch), Mohammad Khan said that based on IP address of the accused, police arrested Kishore near Lakshmi Talkies on Monday evening and seized an assembled CPU and a communications modem from him.
Next: Woman kills 2 kids, herself over dowry
Woman kills 2 kids, herself over dowry
Anantapur: A woman hanged her two children and later, ended her own life at Cherlopalli village in D. Hirehal mandal on Tuesday. It is alleged that harassment by husband and mother-in-law for additional dowry forced the woman to take the extreme step.
Susheelamma, 35, had married Thimmappa of Cherlopalli village eight years ago and had two children — Radhika, 7, and Shashikumar, 3.
Thimmappa was allegedly harassing her for additional dowry. Unable to take it anymore, Susheelamma killed her son and daughter by hanging them from the ceiling at her residence.
Later, she hanged herself too. Rayadurg police registered case against Thimmappa and his mother based on the complaint by the parents of Susheelamma.
Next: Man held for selling sword
Man held for selling sword
Hyderabad: Cops have arrested a 30-year-old man for trying to sell a sword on Tuesday. Sardar Ravinder Singh, a gas-cutting worker from Kishanbagh, Bahadurpura, bought the sword from Nanded in Maharashtra, and was trying to sell it here.
Police said Ravinder Singh, who went for a pilgrimage to Nanded, bought the sword for Rs 900 and was trying to sell it for Rs 3,000. Task Force police nabbed and handed him over to Afzal Gunj police.
Next: Woman electrocuted
Woman electrocuted
Hyderabad: A woman died after receiving shock while filling water at her house in Panjagutta on Tuesday.
The victim was identified as 29-year-old P. Uma. According to Panjagutta police officials, while filling water, Uma tried to put down the water pipe from the terrace to the ground floor.
The pipe accidentally came in contact with a live wire. Uma received an electric shock and died.
The body was shifted to the Gandhi Hospital mortuary and was later handed over to the victim’s family after post-mortem. A case was registered and is being investigated.
Next: Fake passport racket busted at rgia, 3 held
Fake passport racket busted at rgia, 3 held
Hyderabad: Shamsh-abad police has arrested three people with fake passports. While two people were part of a fake passport racket based in Malaysia, the third person came from Dubai with fake passport on Tuesday.
The leader of the gang, a Kerala native, is still absconding. Shamsh-abad police said two people, Mohammed Adnan from Santho-shnagar and his friend Md. Abul Fayaz were arrested after Adnan was nabbed at the airport.
“We nabbed Adnan at the airport after he came from Dublin airport. Later during interrogation, we found that Fayaz provided the fake Indian passport to Adnan. We traced Fayaz and arrested him near his house at Tolichowki,” D. Mahesh, RGIA police SI said.
During probe, Fayaz revealed that he got two fake passports from a person from Kerala named Sunil Kumar, who lives in Malaysia.
Next: Man killed over water
Man killed over water
Nellore: Police suspects the role of locals behind the murder of Kovur Ramaiah of Velicherla village in Allur mandal.
Some unidentified persons hacked Ramaiah to death when he was returning home from Allur on Monday night. The deceased had a misunderstanding with some locals over water supply to his lands.
Based on a complaint lodged by his relatives, police has booked cases against eight persons. Allur SI Vijayakumar said they would nab the accused soon.
Next: Cotton worth Rs 60 Lakh gutted in fire at godown
Cotton worth Rs 60 Lakh gutted in fire at godown
Khammam: A major fire broke out in a godown stocked with cotton at a private mill on the premises of APIIC Industrial Park at Annarugudem village under Tallada mandal in Khammam district on Tuesday.
However, no casualty was reported in the incident. Four fire fighting units from Sattupalli, Madhira, Kothagudem and Khammam rushed to the spot and controlled the flames.
Locals of the area tried to douse the flames before the firefighters arrived. It is learnt that fire originated from an electric short circuit when a poclain shifting the cotton bales accidentally touched a switch board.
According to preliminary reports, cotton worth Rs 60 lakh was gutted in fire. Wyra DSP B. Sai Sri took stock of the situation.
Next: Doctor held for sexual abuse of teen patient
Doctor held for sexual abuse of teen patient
Chennai: A 30-year-old doctor was on Monday arrested for alleged sexual harassment of a girl patient who approached him with complaints of stomach pain near Thiruverkadu.
Police sources said the doctor had abused the girl on the pretext of check-up.
The doctor, Siddartha Seelan, runs a private clinic at Pallikuppam P.H. Road. On Monday, a 19-year-old girl, who works in a private firm in the area, had visited his clinic as she suffered from stomachache.
The doctor, in the name of check-up had allegedly abused and misbehaved with the girl, ThiruvÂerkadu police sources said.
“The girl, who was in shock, approached us and we recorded her statement in the presence of a woman SI and arrested the doctor based on the girl’s complaint,” Thiruverkadu inspector (L&0) M. Jayachandran said.
The doctor is expected to examine a woman patient in the presence of a woman attendant but investigations revealed that he failed to do so in this case and had also tried to exploit the girl, he added.
Next: Wife raises suspicion on activist husband’s death
Wife raises suspicion on activist husband’s death
Chennai: The wife of late social worker M.S. Sivakumar (56) who died on November 6 after being found unconscious on the road, following an accident, approacÂhÂed city police commissioner S. George on Tuesday, rÂaÂiÂÂsing suspicions about her husÂband’s death and the alleged involvement of a trio against whom SivakÂuÂmar was fighting legal battles.
Rathi Sivakumar, a resident of Kerala and a social worker herself, was in the city along with her 17-year-old daughter PriyadaÂrsÂhÂiÂni, with a petition seeking action against a trio - a private school authority in KoÂraÂttur and two businessmen from the city - against whom Sivakumar had legal tussles.
In September 2011, a class 9 girl student of the school committed suicide after allegedly being scolded by her teachers.
Sivakumar took the case and even the Madras high court directed the Korattur police to investigate the case further, two days after Sivakumar died.
In her complaint, the woman raised suspicions regarding the multiple inteÂrÂnal injuries, one in the head and another in the heÂart and also observed that her husband had won enemies while indulging in soÂcÂial work.
“There was no injury on his shoulder, but the report says that he fell off the bike and died,” she wrote in her complaint.
Sivakumar was found unconscious with bleeding injuries opposite Central railway station on NoveÂmÂbÂer 5 and was admitted to the GH nearby, where he was declared dead the next day.
He spent his life helping thÂoÂse in distress in courts and was known for providing a decent burial to unclaimed bodies in city hospitals.
Next: Customs seize gold worth Rs 1.5cr
Customs seize gold worth Rs 1.5cr
Chennai: Custom officials detained five persons and seized gold worth Rs 1.5 crore in three separate incidents in a span of seven hours at Chennai airport on Tuesday.
Of the five, two of them had powdered half-a-kg gold biscuits each, made them into small balls (the size of ball bearings), put them in a capsule and swallowed them.
According to airport sources, customs officials are on a strict vigil, following a tip-off about gold being smuggled into Chennai.
Around 7 am, customs officials detained two Sri Lankan nationals who reached the city by a Sri Lankan Airlines flight.
Their baggage check and strip search yielded nothing. But the officials took them to the medical centre for an internal scan after the two started to create a commotion, complaining of stomachache.
The scan revealed that the two had ingested capsules with gold balls. They were given medication and the capsules retrieved from them. One kilogram of gold worth Rs 30 lakh was seized from the duo.
Custom sources said since it takes only over an hour from Colombo to Chennai, smugglers tend to employ such techniques, unmindful of the health risks involved.
Three hours later, around 10 am, another duo that arrived from Singapore in an Air India flight aroused suspicion and was detained.
The officials seized 3 kg of gold biscuits, worth Rs 90 lakh, from them. The two, hailing from Chennai, had made the gold blocks into thin strips, painted them and stitched them along the inner layer of the baggage, sources said.
Similarly, a Sivagangai native, who carried 1 kg of gold in his baggage and a half-a-kg in his rectum, was detained by the officials. He had arrived at Chennai in a 1.15 pm Air India Express flight from Singapore, the sources added.
Custom officials said with the New Year and marriage season approaching, gold sales will rocket and they have been directed to ensure constant vigil.
Next: 4 pilgrims killed in road mishap near Chidambaram
4 pilgrims killed in road mishap near Chidambaram
Cuddalore: Three women and a man died and 19 others sustained injuries in a road accident at the Sethiathope junction near ChidambÂaÂrÂam in the wee hours of TuÂeÂsdÂay.
The deceased were ideÂnÂtified as Nandhini (15), LaksÂhmi (60), her daughter KrisÂhnaveni (40) and MurÂugaÂnandham (28), all hailing from Valparai, in CoimÂbaÂtore district.
The police said the accident occurred around 12.30 am when a private bus, en route to Chidambaram, collided with a mini-bus carrying 23 pilgrims from Valparai to MelmaruÂvatÂhÂur.
The mini-bus was dragged for some distance by the bus before it fell into a roadside pit.
While Nandhini died on the spot, Lakshmi, KrishÂnaveni and MurÂugÂanÂanÂdham died on way to the Chidambaram government hospital.
The injured were admitted to the Rajah Muthiah medical college and ChidÂambaram GH.
Bus driver Ranjith Kumar (30) has been arrested. Traffic was disrupted for two hours on the KumÂbakÂonam-Chennai NH due to the accident.
A case has been registered and further enquiries are on.
Next: Melmaruvathur pilgrims injured in accident
Melmaruvathur pilgrims injured in accident
Tiruvannamalai: Ten passengers travelling by a tourist bus heading for Melmaruvathur were injured on Tuesday morning when the bus ran out of control at Eachur, near Vandavasi.
According to Anakavur sub-inspector Jameez Babu, Botharaj, a native of Perumapattu village, near Thiruppathur, Vellore district, had arranged a tourist bus to take 58 devotees, several of them women, belonging to his village, to Melmaruvathur for the New Year.
The journey began in the early hours of Tuesday. But when the bus reached Eachur village, in Cheyyar taluk, driver Kannan lost control of the vehicle when he tried to overtake another vehicle at a curve.
He applied the brake but the bus entered a paddy field lying below the road, injuring 10 tourists, several of them women, the police said.
The injured were rushed to the Vandavasi government hospital for treatment. A case has been registered and further investigations are on.
Next: Car rams truck, driver killed
Car rams truck, driver killed
Chennai:A man died and two persons were grievously injured after a car rammed into a stationary truck on the Pallavaram-Thoraipakkam radial road in the wee hours of Tuesday.
Sekar, 42, a native of Villupuram, had taken his sand-laden truck for delivery at a construction site on Rajiv Gandhi Salai. While returning along the Thoraipakkam radial road, he had a flat tyre and parked his truck by the roadside, the police said.
Around 5 am, a private firm’s car, coming from Chromepet, rammed into the truck. Car driver Karthik, 35, probably did not notice the parked truck due to the early morning mist.
Truck driver Sekar got caught between the two vehicles. Karthik and another occupant, Perumal, a security guard, were seriously injured in the accident.
The three of them were rescued and rushed to the Chromepet government hospital where they were administered first-aid and later shifted to the government general hospital.
Later in the day, Sekar succumbed to the injuries while the other two are battling for life, said the police.
St Thomas Mount traffic investigation wing have registered a case and are investigating.
Next: Man ‘fakes’ robbery to avoid debtors
Man ‘fakes’ robbery to avoid debtors
Bangalore: To avoid repaying a loan, a 45-year-old farmer set the Rajanukunte police on a wild goose chase, claiming that he had been robbed of Rs 21 lakh by three unidentified men near his house on Monday night.
The farmer has been identified as Anjan Gowda, a resident of Kakolu in RajanÂukunte.
The police said Anjan also has political ambitions. Anjan told the police that he was returning home around 8 pm on Monday when he was waylaid by the three robbers, who allegedly force fed him some poison before escaping with his bag containing Rs 21 lakh cash.
But the police suspect his story as the doctors at a hospital where he was taken to told the police that Anjan was in fine fettle.
Anjan told the police that he got the money after he and his friends sold four acres of land in Gowribidanur on Monday. He had got his share of the money and was returning home when the alleged robbery occurred, he claimed.
A senior police officer said, “The complainant’s story keeps changing every ten minutes.
We have been asking him to give us the names and numbers of his other ‘partners’ to verify his claims, but he keeps saying he does not have their details.
He doesn’t seem to remember the exact location of his land either. We suspect that he made up the story to get out of his loan problems.”
Anjan had apparently taken Rs 20 lakh from one of his friends a few months ago. His friend was asking Anjan to return the money as he needed it for a wedding in the family.
Officials believe that Anjan hatched the plot to avoid returning the money.
A case has been registered by the Rajanukunte police, who are investigating.
