High Court Fines AP Council Chairman Rs.10,000 for Delay in Affidavit

Vijayawada: The Andhra Pradesh High Court has imposed a cost of ₹10,000 on the AP Legislative Council chairman for failing to file a counter affidavit as directed.

A single-judge bench headed by Justice G. Ramakrishna Prasad heard a petition filed by MLC Jayamangala Venkata Ramana, seeking a direction to the Council chairman to accept his resignation submitted earlier. The court had previously directed the chairman to file a counter affidavit.

During Tuesday’s hearing, the chairman’s counsel sought more time, following which the court imposed the cost and directed the chairman to deposit the amount with the AP High Court Advocates Association by Wednesday. The court also instructed the Association’s president to utilise the amount to purchase law books for its library.

The matter was posted for the next hearing on September 19.

Man tortures wife after tying her to pillars

Nellore: A man brutally tortured his wife by tying her hands and legs to the pillars of their house and thrashing her with a belt in Kalujuvvalapadu village of Tarlupadu mandal, Prakasam district.

The accused, Gurunadham Balaji, married his wife Bhagyalakshmi about 12 years ago. The couple have four children, two daughters and two sons, aged between four and ten years. Locals said Balaji, allegedly addicted to alcohol, frequently subjected his wife to violence. He had also been living in Hyderabad with another woman, abandoning his family.

On Saturday night, after returning to the village, Balaji reportedly demanded money that his wife had earned from her work at a local bakery. When she refused, he tied her up and inflicted brutal torture, allegedly suspecting her fidelity. The shocking assault, captured on video, showed the woman crying in pain and unable to defend herself.

The video, which went viral, was allegedly filmed by the woman living with Balaji in Hyderabad.

Alerted by her screams, local youth intervened, rescued the victim, and informed the police. Initially, villagers alleged that the police only took photographs and left without registering a case. However, later in the evening, Podili CI and Tarlupadu SI shifted the victim to hospital for treatment.

Police have launched a search for Balaji, who is currently absconding. The incident has triggered widespread outrage, with villagers demanding strict punishment for the accused.

CBI court jails ex-excise inspector, trader in Rs.32 crore fraud

Visakhapatnam: Principal Special Judge for CBI Cases, Visakhapatnam, C.N. Murthy, on Tuesday convicted Kalaka Ramdas, then Inspector, Central Excise and Customs, Srikakulam Range; Polaki Janakiram, a native of Vandrangi village in Srikakulam district; and Sri Balaji General Trading Company (SBGTC), represented by Janakiram, a native of Kusulapuram in Srikakulam district.

They were sentenced to five years’ simple imprisonment and fined ₹1,01,000, ₹2,51,000 and ₹2,01,000 respectively — a total fine of ₹5,53,000.

According to the CBI, Sabbir Hazi Issak Noorani, a private individual, entered into a criminal conspiracy with P. Janakiram to cheat the excise and customs departments. In furtherance of this conspiracy, Janakiram impersonated one Palla Kesava Rao and established SBGTC.

By forging signatures and posing as Kesava Rao, Janakiram applied to VSEZ, Visakhapatnam, for a trading licence and import–export code. He also applied to the Central Excise Department to declare the premises a warehousing station under the Customs Act.

Investigations revealed that Janakiram, impersonating Kesava Rao and in collusion with Sabbir Noorani, procured duty-free materials from firms at Maligaon and through imports, then fraudulently cleared them as deemed exports to firms in Mumbai against Advance Release Orders (AROs), in violation of EXIM Policy Guidelines.

This was done in conspiracy with public servants including Ramdas, then Inspector of Central Excise and Customs, Srikakulam Range, causing a loss of Rs.32.28 crore to the exchequer.

Jana Sena leader Kolli Babi surrenders in Kaikaluru clashes case

Kakinada: Jana Sena leader Kolli Veera Venkata Satya Vara Prasad (34), alias Kolli Babi of Kolletikota village in Kaikaluru mandal, Eluru district, surrendered before Eluru DSP D. Sravan Kumar on Tuesday.

He is one of the accused in the September 5 Ganesh idol procession clashes, in which P. Ajay was seriously injured. Based on his complaint, Kaikaluru police registered cases, with Babi listed as A7 in the case.

DSP Sravan Kumar said nine persons had already been arrested and remanded. Following Babi’s surrender, Kaikaluru town police arrested him. He appealed to the public not to organise processions, rallies, meetings, or agitation programmes, as Section 30 is in force in Kaikaluru mandal. He warned that violations or false campaigns on social media would invite strict action.