Court martial orders dismissal of Maj Gen for sexual harassment
Chandigarh: A serving Major General of the Indian Army has been ordered to be dismissed by general court martial (GCM) on Sunday following allegations of sexual harassment of a young woman officer. The GCM verdict came early on Sunday. The court was held in the jurisdiction of the Western Command. The verdict of the GCM is subject to confirmation by the Chief of the Army Staff, sources said. The senior Army officer, who has denied the charges levelled against him and has claimed that he has been made a victim of of the Army’s factional feud at the top level, has the right to appeal against the order. The Major General was charged under Section 69 of the Army Act read with Section 354 (outraging modesty of a woman by criminal force or assault) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) for conduct unbecoming of an officer. The officer was posted in the North-East sector (Assam Rifles in Nagaland) with the Eastern Command when he was accused of sexual harassment, through a written complaint, by the Captain-rank woman officer of the Judge Advocate General branch of the Army. The court proceedings against him started in June this year. He was attached to an Army formation in Ambala for disciplinary proceedings. Sources said that lawyers of the Major General will appeal against the GCM verdict. (IANS)
BJP wins Gujarat bypoll
Ahmedabad: The ruling BJP comfortably won the bypoll from Jasdan Assembly seat in Gujarat Sunday, taking its tally in the House to 100. With this, the BJP now has 100 MLAs in the 182-member Gujarat Legislative Assembly, while the Congress tally has come down to 76. The saffron outfit had won 99 seats in the 2017 assembly polls and the Congress 77. Polling for the Jasdan Assembly seat was held on December 20 and a voter turnout of 71.27 per cent was recorded. The by-poll became a battle of prestige between the ruling BJP and the opposition Congress in the wake of the latter winning the just held assembly elections in Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and Chhattisgarh. (PTI)
Cong wins Jharkhand bypoll
RANCHI: The Congress on Sunday won the Kolebira assembly byelection in Jharkhand, said an Election Commission official. Congress candidate Naman Bixal Kongari defeated the BJP candidate by over 9,000 votes, the official said. Kongari polled 40,343 votes while the BJP candidate Basant Soreng managed to get 30,685 votes. MThe sitting legislator Enos Ekka’s wife Menon Ekka managed to get only 16,445 votes. The polling took place on December 20.The seat fell vacant following conviction of former Minister Enos Ekka in the murder of a school teacher. There were five candidates in the fray. (IANS)
BSF recovers 17 kg heroin, pistol in Punjab’s Ferozepur sector
CHANDIGARH: In a major haul, the Border Security Force on Sunday recovered 17 kg of heroin, one Pakistan-made pistol and ammunition along the international border with Pakistan in the Ferozepur sector, a BSF spokesman said. The recovery was made following a search carried out in the area of border out post (BoP) Karma in Ferozepur sector, around 300 km from Chandigarh, on Sunday, BSF said. BSF troopers had observed suspicious movement ahead of the border security fence early on Sunday. However, the troops could not take immediate action due to dense fog in the border belt. The recovered heroin is worth over Rs 85-crore in the international market. (IANS)
Assets worth crores found during raid at MP officer’s house
Indore: The Special Branch of the Police on Sunday conducted a raid at the house of an officer in Madhya Pradesh’s Indore city and unearthed assets worth crores, police said. RN Saxena, a sub divisional officer in the Forest Department, has been accused of accumulating assets more than his salary allowed. A Lokayukta team is continuing the search. Apart from cash, jewellery and documents pertaining to several properties in his name were found. (IANS)
Ex-serviceman held with 9 kg charas in Nagrota
Jammu: Police arrested an ex-army man on Sunday with 9 kg of high quality charas from Nagrota area along Jammu-Srinagar National Highway, officials said. Mohammad Ayoub Malik, who hails from south Kashmir’s Anantnag district, was signalled to stop his car at a check point but he tried to speed away, officials said. After a brief chase, the police arrested Malik and recovered charas worth lakhs of rupees in the international market, they added. Malik was trying to smuggle the consignment outside the state, officials said. A case under Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act was registered and further investigation has been taken up to nab others involved in the illicit trade, officials said. In another case, the police recovered 110 kg of poppy straws from a Punjab-bound truck during checking at Jakhani along Jammu-Srinagar National Highway in Udhampur district on Sunday. The driver of the vehicle Veer Singh of Amritsar (Punjab) was arrested and a case under NDPS was registered, they said. With this consignment, the police have seized 852 kg poppy straw in the district this month, officials said. (PTI)
Under-construction structure collapses in Mumbai; 3 killed
Mumbai: At least three people were killed and six others injured when a two-storey under-construction structure in a chawl collapsed on Sunday morning, police said. The incident took place at around 9.15 am at Motilal Nagar in Goregaon (West) when the slab of the two-floor building gave way during construction, an official said. The structure was part of a chawl (tenement) of the Maharashtra Housing and Area Development Authority (Mhada), he said. Fire brigade and police personnel rushed to the spot after getting information about the collapse and started a rescue operation, he said. At least three fire engines, one rescue van and an ambulance were deployed for the operation, the official said. At least nine people trapped inside the debris were rescued and rushed to SiddharthHospital in Goregaon, he said. Three of the injured were admitted in the hospital, while the others were discharged after treatment, he said. An accidental death report was registered at the Goregaon Police station and a probe is underway, he said. (PTI)