Breaking News, July 31

A rape accused undertrial prisoner died while undergoing treatment at a state-run hospital in Odisha's Mayurbhanj district on Sunday, police said.

A POCSO court here has sentenced a man to 10 years of imprisonment for abducting and raping a minor girl in 2019.

Uncertainty prevailed over the availability of liquor in the national capital as the private liquor stores in Delhi were scheduled to shut shop from Monday after the expiry of their licenses. Sources, however, claimed that the Delhi government was likely to come out with a notification by late Sunday night, allowing liquor stores currently running in the city to remain open till August end.

The number of deaths from massive flooding in Kentucky continued to climb on Sunday amid a renewed threat of more heavy rains. Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear said on NBC's “Meet The Press” that the death toll had risen by one to 26 from last week's storms.

A small explosive device carried by a makeshift drone blew up Sunday at the headquarters of Russia's Black Sea Fleet on the Crimean Peninsula, wounding six people and prompting the cancellation of ceremonies honoring Russia's navy, authorities said. Meanwhile, one of Ukraine's richest men, a grain merchant, was killed in what Ukrainian authorities said was a carefully targeted Russian missile strike on his home.

Twelve people were reported drowned across Rajasthan on Sunday, including five children who died while taking a bath in an artificial pond in Sri Ganganagar district.

The TMC on Sunday described the Enforcement Directorate (ED) action on Shiv Sena MP Sanjay Raut as an attempt to stifle "opposition voices" by the ruling BJP at the Centre.

 Mumbai on Sunday recorded 322 new cases of coronavirus and two casualties that raised the tally of infections to 11,24,813 and toll to 19,651, an official from the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) said.

ED siezes Rs 11 lakh and 50 thousand from Shiv Sena MP Sanjay Raut's house 

Three people were killed and four others injured when a speeding truck rammed into an auto-rickshaw in Uttar Pradesh's Etawah district, police said on Sunday.

Two ‘kanwariyas’ were killed and four others were injured in separate incidents in Bhadohi and Budaun districts of Uttar Pradesh, police said on Sunday.

Five children drowned in a pond in Ramsinghpur of Rajasthan's Sriganganagar district while taking a bath on Sunday, police said. The tragic incident took place in Udasar village, SHO, Ramsinghpur, Dolaram Vishnoi said.

Realty major DLF's net debt reduced by 16 per cent during the April-June period to Rs 2,259 crore from the previous quarter on the back of strong housing sales. Its net debt stood at Rs 2,680 crore at the end of the last fiscal. In an investor presentation, DLF said the company is "committed to further debt reduction in the medium term". It asserted that the completed inventory and receivables from customers against sold units would be sufficient to discharge all current liabilities. "New products to generate healthy cash flows; consistent surplus cash generation to bolster cash position," the presentation said. The gross debt also fell to Rs 3,900 crore as of June 30 from Rs 4,755 crore at the end of the last fiscal. On the operational front, DLF's sales bookings doubled to Rs 2,040 crore during the first quarter of this fiscal from Rs 1,014 crore in the year-ago period. It is targeting 10 per cent growth in its sales bookings to about Rs 8,000 crore this fiscal.

A criminal wanted by Mumbai police in over 30 cases, including murder and extortion, was arrested in Goa while he was boarding a casino ship, an official said on Sunday. The arrest was made on Saturday night in a joint operation of Goa and Mumbai police. "Notorious criminal Vikrant Deshmukh, wanted by Mumbai police in connection with 33 different cases, including murder, extortion, dacoity and robbery, was arrested while he was boarding a casino vessel in Panaji," Superintendent of Police (North Goa) Shobhit Saxena told reporters. Deshmukh tried to flee from the spot, but was held by the Panaji police after a chase for some distance, he said. The tip-off about Deshmukh's presence was given by the Goa crime branch, which was working closely with Navi Mumbai police, he said.

The National Investigation Agency (NIA) on Sunday conducted searches in Bhopal and Raisen districts of Madhya Pradesh in a case pertaining to the activities of terror group ISIS, the agency said. The searches led to the seizure of incriminating documents and material, it said. Further investigation into the case is in progress, the agency said. 

One person has been arrested in connection with the murder of a youth from minority community in Surathkal here, police said on Sunday. The person arrested is the owner of the car that is said to have been used by the culprits for the crime. "More than 51 people have been inquired into in connection with the murder. We got the traces of a car while scanning the CCTV footage- White Hyundai Eon car- on the basis of footage and registration number we had taken eight cars into custody and inquired its owners," Mangaluru Police Commissioner N Shashi Kumar said.

Tamil Nadu cadre IPS officer Sanjay Arora appointed as Commissioner of Delhi Police with effect from August 1, 2022. 

A drone-borne explosive device detonated on Sunday at the headquarters of Russia's Black Sea Fleet, injuring six people, officials said. The explosion at the headquarters in the city of Sevastopol on the Crimean peninsula that Russia annexed from Ukraine in 2014 caused cancellation of observances of Russia's Navy Day holiday. The Black Sea Fleet's press service said the drone appeared to be homemade. It described the explosive device as “low-power” but Sevastopol mayor Mikhail Razvozhaev said six people were injured in the blast. There was no immediate information on where the drone began its flight.

An Aam Aadmi Party municipal councillor was shot dead by two unidentified persons in Punjab's Malerkotla district on Sunday, police said. Mohammad Akbar was shot from close range when he was in a gym, they said. "A person came in the gym and he shot him (Akbar)," said Malerkotla Senior Superintendent of Police Avneet Kaur Sidhu. A bullet hit Akbar and he died on the spot, police said, adding that the assailants fled after committing the crime. Efforts are on to trace the assailants, said Sidhu, adding a case has been registered in this regard. 

The Congress on Sunday suspended three Jharkhand MLAs, who were caught allegedly with a huge amount of cash in West Bengal's Howrah. The Congress had accused the BJP of trying to topple its coalition government in Jharkhand after the three MLAs were caught on Saturday. Addressing a press conference at the AICC headquarters here, party's Jharkhand in-charge Avinash Pande said Congress president Sonia Gandhi has suspended the three MLAs with immediate effect.

A three-year-old girl was mauled to death by a leopard in Gujarat's Amreli district, a forest department official said Sunday. The incident took place at Jeera village late night on Saturday, in which the leopard dragged and killed the girl. Her half-eaten body parts were recovered later, the official said. "Her mortal remains were found at some distance from the place where the leopard had dragged her. Efforts are on to nab the animal," he said. Two weeks ago, a one-year-old daughter of a farm labourer was similarly killed by a leopard in the same village. Amreli district has reported some incidents of leopard attack in the past few weeks. On July 23, a man was attacked and injured by a leopard at Vadli village in Jafrabad taluka of the district. On the same day, an elderly woman injured in Nageshree village of the same taluka. 

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday said the 'Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav' is turning into a mass movement and urged people to put 'tiranga' as profile picture of their accounts on social media platforms between August 2 and 15. In his Mann Ki Baat radio broadcast, Modi said under the 'Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav' from August 13 to 15, a special movement – ​​'Har Ghar Tiranga' is being organised. "Let us further this movement by hoisting the National Flag at our homes," he said. Modi also urged people to put from August 2-15  tricolour as the profile picture of their accounts on social media platforms.

While the Maharashtra government is moving forward with the Mumbai Metro-3 car shed project in Aarey Colony, a forest area in the city, environmentalists warn that not only leopards, but a host of other animals and birds face the threat of losing their habitat and lives. Apart from leopards, a wide range of species of flora and fauna is found in the Aarey forest, an 1,800 acre area termed as the city's 'green lung', located in suburban Goregaon and adjacent to the Sanjay Gandhi National Park (SGNP). This rich urban forest is a biotope that houses some newly-discovered species of scorpions and spiders, besides being a treasure trove of birds, butterflies, amphibians and mammals.

After nine consecutive months of relentless selling, foreign investors have turned net buyers and invested nearly Rs 5,000 crore in Indian equities in July on softening dollar index and good corporate earnings.  This is in sharp contrast to a net withdrawal of Rs 50,145 crore from the stock market seen in June. This was the highest net outflow since March 2020, when foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) had pulled out Rs 61,973 crore from equities, data with depositories showed.

A local court has awarded life imprisonment to a Delhi Police constable for abducting and killing his friend in 2008. Additional District and Sessions Judge Jai Singh Pundir awarded the sentence to constable Pradeep and also imposed a fine of Rs 80,000 on him for killing his friend Jaivir Singh. During pendency of the case, another accused Bittu had died. According to additional district government counsel Ashish Tyagi, police had registered a case against Pradeep and Bittu and arrested them for abducting and murdering Singh at Bhora Khurd village in the district on October 30, 2008. According to the FIR lodged by the victim's brother, Jaivir Singh was killed over a money dispute. 

Overnight rains in several parts of the national capital brought the minimum temperature down to 24.6 degrees Celsius, three notches below the season's average, on Sunday. The weather office said the relative humidity at 8:30 am was 95 per cent. The national capital recorded 12.9 mm rainfall in the last 24 hours ending at 8:30 am. The weather office has predicted a generally cloudy sky with light rain and thundershowers. The maximum temperature is expected to climb to 33 degrees Celsius. On Saturday, the maximum temperature in the national capital was 24.5 degrees Celsius, three notches below normal. 

The Public Works Department (PWD) in Uttar Pradesh has drawn up a massive plan for roads connecting to religious destinations. The PWD has chalked out an action plan for spending Rs 16,000 crore that is going to be provided by the National Highways Authority of India for upgrading the road infrastructure in the state. The major portion of the funds will be utilised for boosting future prospects of religious towns like Ayodhya and Mathura. The spokesman said that Rs 4,000 crore have been set aside exclusively to develop Ram Van Gaman Marg.

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Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Sunday conducted a search at Shiv Sena MP Sanjay Raut's residence in Mumbai in connection with a money laundering case, an official said. The action follows multiple summons issued by the ED against Raut, the latest being on July 27. Raut was summoned for questioning by the ED in a money laundering case linked to alleged irregularities in the re-development of a Mumbai 'chawl' and related transactions involving his wife and 'associates'. At 7 am on Sunday, ED officials, accompanied by CISF personnel, reached Raut’s residence and began the searches. The Rajya Sabha MP, who is in the Uddhav Thackeray camp, had denied any wrongdoing and alleged that he was being targeted due to political vendetta. “I swear by late Balasabheb Thackeray that I have nothing to do with any scam,” Raut tweeted shortly after the ED action. “I will die but won’t leave Shiv Sena,” Raut added. 

Authorities in the Portland, Oregon, region said they would keep cooling shelters open through Sunday night as a likely record-breaking heat wave brought scorching weather to the normally temperate region. At least seven people are suspected to have died from hyperthermia since the hot spell began a week ago. The most recent suspected heat-related death was announced by Clackamas County officials on Saturday, Portland television station KOIN-TV reported.

A POCSO court in this Uttar Pradesh district has sentenced a man convicted of raping a girl to 10 years of imprisonment. The convict, Parvez, has also been slapped with a fine of Rs 12,000 and on failure to pay the amount, he will have to serve an additional jail term, Alka Upamanyu, Special DGC, POCSO court, said. She said Parvez, a resident of Kannauj district in Uttar Pradesh, was working in Vrindavan when he committed the offence in 2019. The convict used to visit a roadside eatery run by the victim's mother, officials said.

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Amid continued disruptions in Parliament, Vice President M Venkaiah Naidu on Saturday said adversarial politics should not be allowed to impact the functioning of Parliament and state legislatures. Inaugurating a two-day orientation programme for new MPs virtually from Hyderabad, he said differences should be resolved through debates and discussions by cultivating the ability to understand others' opinions point but not necessarily agree with them. Expressing concern over the overshadowing of debates and discussions by rising disruption and confrontation, Naidu said people, especially the youth, are justifiably getting impatient and disillusioned with the way democratic institutions are functioning. "Both government and the Opposition have the collective responsibility for a smooth and effective functioning of the House," he said.

The Pakistani Meteorological Department forecasted "above-normal" rainfall in most parts of the country in August. The heavy rainfall can trigger flash flooding in hilly areas of eastern Punjab and northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) provinces, as well as urban flooding in plain areas such as major cities of the country's southern Sindh province, Punjab and KP, the department said in its Outlook for August. "Due to extreme hydro-meteorological events over catchments, riverine floods cannot be ruled out," it added. The report said that above-normal temperatures in high altitudes are likely to increase the rate of snowmelt in the northern areas of Pakistan, subsequently increasing the chances of base flow in the Upper Indus basin, Xinhua news agency reported. Northeastern areas of Punjab, southern parts of Sindh, as well as coastal areas of Balochistan, are expected to receive above-normal rainfall, the report added.

Ukrainian and Russian officials blamed each other for the deaths of dozens of Ukrainian prisoners of war in an attack on a prison in a separatist-controlled area. The International Red Cross asked to visit the prison to make sure the scores of wounded POWs had proper treatment, but said its request had not been granted so far. Meanwhile, Russia kept launching attacks on several Ukrainian cities, hitting a school and a bus station. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said on Saturday the International Committee of the Red Cross and the United Nations have a duty to react to the shelling of the prison complex in Ukraine's eastern Donetsk province, and he called again for Russia to be declared a terrorist state.

The Congress on Saturday alleged that the BJP's "Operation Lotus" in Jharkhand has been exposed after police stopped a car ferrying three MLAs of the grand old party with a huge amount of cash in West Bengal's Howrah. The Congress has been accusing the BJP of trying to topple its coalition government in Jharkhand by poaching its MLAs. "The BJP's 'Operation Lotus' in Jharkhand stands exposed tonight in Howrah. The game plan of 'Hum Do' in Delhi is to do in Jharkhand what they did in Maharashtra by installing E-D duo," Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh said on Twitter.

One man was wounded after gunmen opened fire on soldiers at a checkpoint providing area security for a visit by Guatemalan President Alejandro Giammattei to a town near the Mexican border. Rubén Téllez, a spokesman for the Guatemalan army, said on Saturday that soldiers were working a highway checkpoint intended to act as perimeter security for the presidential visit to La Laguna, a town in Huehuetenango province. Téllez said a car approached the checkpoint and its occupants then opened fire on soldiers, who returned fire. One man, possibly a Mexican, was shot in the legs during the incident and was taken for medical treatment.

Renowned Bengali singer Nirmala Mishra passed away at her residence in southern Kolkata's Chetla area in the early hours of Sunday after suffering a massive heart attack, a senior doctor treating her said.  A recipient of the Balakrushna Das Award, Mishra (81) had long been battling age-related ailments. Mishra suffered a massive heart attack around 12.05 am and was taken to the nearest nursing home, where she was declared dead, the doctor treating her told media when contacted. "Her body will be kept at the hospital tonight," he said. Mishra was one of the most respected and admired playback singers. She sang many songs for Odia and Bengali films.

An encounter took place between terrorists and security forces at Binner area in north Kashmir's Baramulla district, police said on Sunday. "Encounter has started at Binner area of Baramulla. Police and security forces are on the job," police added. The gunfight started on Saturday evening after a joint team of police and security forces received an input about the presence of terrorists in the area. The security forces cordoned off the area. Terrorists hiding there started firing drawing retaliation by the security forces. There have been a series of encounters between terrorists and security forces across Kashmir over the last few months.

Officials in New York City have declared a public health emergency due to the spread of the monkeypox virus, calling the city "the epicentre" of the outbreak. The announcement Saturday by Mayor Eric Adams and health Commissioner Ashwin Vasan said as many as 1,50,000 city residents could be at risk of infection. The declaration will allow officials to issue emergency orders under the city health code and amend code provisions to implement measures to help slow the spread. In the last two days, New York Gov. Kathy Hochul declared a state disaster emergency declaration and the state health department called monkeypox an "imminent threat to public health." New York had recorded 1,345 cases as of Friday, according to data compiled by the Centres for Disease Control and Prevention. California had the second-most, with 799.