Power dept employees’ protest turns violent, over 100 detained
Lucknow:Scores of Uttar Pradesh Power Corporation Limited workers were today detained after they indulged in a violent protest demanding regularisation of contractual employees, police said. “The contractual employees of the power department were staging a sit-in dharna to demand regularisation of their employment. When the police tried to remove them, the employees indulged into brick batting,” Additional Superintendent of Police Rajesh Kumar said. “The protesting group went on a rampage and torched two vehicles, including a police jeep and a motorcycle,” he said. “Police then resorted to a baton-charge to disperse the agitating employees,” Kumar said adding that, “more than 100 people have been detained in this regard.” Meanwhile, the Power Employees Joint Action Committee has decided to observe black day on February 12. “The committee has appealed all the power employees for a 48 hours work boycott from February 24,” the committee spokesman, Girish Pandey, said on Tuesday. (PTI)
Police yet to arrest culprit in the rape of minor tribal girl
Koraput (Odisha):Police are yet to arrest the accused in the rape of a minor tribal girl student of an ashram school in Odisha’s Koraput district who delivered a boy child. Jeypore SDPO Rajendra Senapati said on Tuesday the 12-year-old was raped in her village and the police are on the lookout for the accused. The standard six girl of the Umuri Ashram school for SC/ST students delivered a boy child in the hostel on February 4 but the officials concerned had suppressed the matter and had sent the girl and her newborn home without informing the administraton. The matter came to light on Saturday evening after the district collector received a complaint and ordered an inquiry. The girl and the infant were shifted to a government hospital yesterday after a government team visited the girl’s home at Upper Kanti village in Semiliguda block, Koraput disctrict collector Yamini Sarangi said.(PTI)
4-year-old boy succumbs to occult practices; couple arrested
Meerut:An alleged occult-driven couple sacrificed a four-year-old boy by strangulating him with a rope at Rali Chauhan village here, police said on Tuesday. The accused couple, Siyanand and Sangita, have been taken into custody and are being interrogated on the matter, they said. The incident took place on February 2 when the victim, Golu, went missing from his house. The locals claim they heard his cries, but later could not trace him, they said. The minor’s body was recovered from a field located in Rali Chauhan village yesterday, they said. According to a preliminary report, the boy was strangulated by a rope and several bones near his cervical spine were also found to be broken. The murder is believed to be a part of occult ritual practiced by the couple, they said. The investigation is underway in the matter, police said. (PTI)
Three gold bars seized from Spicejet aircraft
Kochi:Customs officials have seized three gold bars valued at about Rs 90 lakh from a Spicejet aircraft which arrived here from Dubai and have also detained one passenger in this connection. The gold bars, weighing one kg each, were seized from Spicejet SG018, which arrived here from Dubai on Monday night and was to leave for Hyderabad, a customs press release said today. During a thorough search by officials, the gold bars were found concealed in the pouch containing life jacket below one of the seats of the aircraft. A gold assayer examined the bars and found them to be of 24 carat purity. The passenger, hailing from Kanuur district, who tried to smuggle in the gold bars has been detained by customs officials, the release added. (PTI)