Row over journalist meeting Saeed, Cong seeks to corner govt
New Delhi: A row erupted over yoga guru Ramdev’s close aide Ved Pratap Vaidik’s meeting with Mumbai attack mastermind Hafiz Saeed with Congress on Monday seeking to corner the government inside and outside Parliament over whether it had given its approval. The government on its part distanced itself from the meeting and declared it had nothing to do with the journalist “directly, indirectly or even remotely” and asserted there was no sanction from its side. “There is no Track-2 or Track-3 diplomacy involved,” it added. Vaidik had met the chief of Jamaat-ud-Dawa, said to be the parent organisation of terror outfit Lashkar-e-Toiba(LeT), in Lahore on July 2 while touring Pakistan along with a group of journalists and politicians invited by a peace research institute. As the Congress demanded his arrest, Vaidik defended his parleys with Saeed, saying he has been meeting all kinds of people and that it was a “simple thing” for him. He also rejected suggestions by Congress that he might have acted as government’s envoy, saying he was “nobody’s envoy but my own”. The meeting generated heat in Parliament with Rajya Sabha witnessing two adjournments during Question Hour. (PTI)
Man acquitted of charge of raping woman on pretext of marriage
New Delhi: A man, accused of raping a woman on the false promise of marriage and cheating her, has been acquitted by a Delhi court as the alleged victim deposed that the physical relations between them were consensual and she was now married to him. Additional Sessions Judge Nivedita Anil Sharma freed the man, a resident of Ramesh Nagar in West Delhi, saying there was no material on record to suggest that the woman was ever raped, cheated and beaten by him or that he molested her. “It is clear that the case of the prosecution is neither reliable nor believable and is not trustworthy and the prosecution has failed to establish the offences of rape, cheating, beating or outraging the modesty,” the court said. “The evidence of the woman makes it highly improbable that such an incident ever took place. In fact, she has deposed that she had physical relations with the accused with her free consent,” it said. The judge also referred to American musician Kurt Cobain who had said, “Rape is one of the most terrible crimes on earth and it happens every few minutes. The problem with groups who deal with rape is that they try to educate women about how to defend themselves. What really needs to be done is teaching men not to rape. Go to the source and start there.” According to the prosecution, the woman in her complaint had alleged that between January 2012 and September 2013, the man had raped her at various places, including a resort in Manesar, on the false promise of marriage. She had alleged that he also cheated her by not disclosing his real name and also beat and molested her. (PTI)
2500 kg beef recovered, 1 held
Ahmedabad: Police on Monday recovered 2500 kg beef from a truck from Karanj police station area in the city and arrested a person in this regard. The police said on a tip-off, when a police team tried to stop the vehicle between Patharkua and Bijlighar, the driver tried to run over a police official. The police fired two rounds and forced the mini truck to stop. During search, beef was recovered from the vehicle. (UNI)
13 crib deaths in Malda hospital
Malda (WB): A total of 13 crib deaths have taken place in Malda Medical College and Hospital in the past 72 hours with one infant succumbing till evening on Monday. Hospital superintendent cum Medical College vice-principal M A Rashid told PTI that all the infants had low birth weight and respiratory problems. While seven infants died on Saturday, five succumbed yesterday. In order to deal with the situation, more sisters have been put on duty in neonatal, paediatrics and sick new-born critical care unit, Rashid said. Besides, 14 doctors have been posted in the three wards and would work for extended hours. The hospital, he said, has requested the state government to post more doctors. The government hospital had been in the news for the death of 23 infants due to an unspecified illness in June. (PTI)