Ensure Those Displaced By 'Post-Poll Violence' Return Home: Court To Bengal

The Calcutta High Court directed the West Bengal government today to take steps to ensure that people displaced in the alleged post-poll violence in the state return to their homes.

The court also extended the deployment of central forces in the state till June 26, when the matter would be listed for hearing again.

"We cannot shut our eyes to the spate of complaints as disclosed and the allegation on the role of the police administration for which we feel that the deployment of the central forces may continue for a limited period," the court observed.

A division bench presided by Justice Harish Tandon directed the West Bengal government to take immediate action to ensure that people displaced due to the alleged post-poll violence in the state return to their homes.

The court directed the police administration to ensure the safety and security of such displaced persons and keep a constant vigil in the area of their residence and ensure that no threat perception or any kind of violence takes place in such areas.

Hearing petitions regarding allegations of post-poll violence in West Bengal after the Lok Sabha elections, the division bench directed the state to take note of those complaints and take immediate action as required, including registration of the complaints or FIRs.

The court had earlier ordered the deployment of the central forces in the state till June 21.

The state's Advocate General (AG) Kishore Dutta informed the court that from June 4, when the Lok Sabha election results were declared, till June 18, a total of 859 complaints have been received through email by the Director General of Police's (DGP) office.

He stated that out of these, 204 complaints constitute cognisable offences, and FIRs have been registered based on those.

Mr Dutta said that 175 complaints relating to non-cognisable cases have been registered.

The AG stated that 219 were duplicate complaints, 26 were incomplete and 14 were under scrutiny.

Observing that serious allegations have been made about violence in the state following the elections, the court said that the question would be whether the continuation of the deployment of central forces in such a scenario is inevitable.

AG Dutta submitted that 10 to 12 or even 20 complaints a day about cognisable cases throughout the state do not depict a picture that the state police is unable to handle the situation and said that it does not warrant central forces to remain deployed in the state.

He further submitted that the central forces cannot remain deployed after the parliamentary election is over and that maintenance of public order is primarily a state subject.

He claimed that the state government has taken all possible steps to combat any incident of violence and none of the parties have been able to make out a case of dereliction on the part of the police administration in discharging their duty.

Additional Solicitor General Asok Kumar Chakrabarti, representing the central government, stated that if the court directs, it will continue the deployment of the central forces in the state.

Lawyer-petitioner Priyanka Tibrewal gave a list of people displaced from their homes and of those whose houses were looted, in an affidavit submitted before the court.

It was alleged by Leader of Opposition in West Bengal Assembly Suvendu Adhikari and lawyer Priyanka Tibrewal in their separate PILs that people belonging to a particular political party were being subjected to atrocities following the conclusion of the Lok Sabha election process.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

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Preparations On In Jammu And Kashmir For Assembly Polls: PM In Srinagar

Preparations for the assembly elections in Jammu and Kashmir have begun and the Union territory will regain its statehood too, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said today in Srinagar.

Addressing an event after laying the foundation stone and inaugurating 84 developmental projects worth Rs 1,500 crore in the Valley, PM Modi said the Centre has taken the recent terror attacks in the Union Territory very seriously and the enemies of Jammu and Kashmir will be given a befitting reply.

He praised the young men and women of Jammu and Kashmir for the high turnout in the recently concluded Lok Sabha polls and said they have ensured a victory of democracy.

PM Modi said the wall of Article 370, which was scrapped in August 2019, collapsed and the fruits of the Indian Constitution were ensured in Jammu and Kashmir.

"Today the Indian Constitution has truly been implemented in Jammu and Kashmir," he said.

The Prime Minister said the forces inimical to peace and development are making last-ditch efforts today to stop the progress of Jammu and Kashmir.

"The Centre has taken the recent terror attacks very seriously. The Home Minister held a meeting and reviewed the entire mechanism. I want to assure you we will leave no stone unturned to punish the enemies of Jammu and Kashmir," he said, assuring that permanent peace will be established in Jammu and Kashmir.

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ASHA Workers Cheated Of More Than Rs 24 Lakh On Pretext Of Jobs: Cops

A man has been arrested in Maharashtra's Latur district for allegedly cheating four ASHA (accredited social health activist) workers of more than Rs 24 lakh by promising to get them jobs in the state health department, police said on Wednesday.

While Sudhir Karbhari was arrested and remanded in police custody till Saturday, co-accused Shrikant Dasrao Shinde and Rajratan Ramrao Suryawanshi were absconding, said a police official.

As per the complaint filed by Surekha Choudhary, an ASHA worker posted at Honali village in Deoni tehsil, between March 2021 and June 2024, the three accused collected a total of Rs 24.3 lakh from her and three other ASHA workers, promising to provide them jobs in the sub-divisional health department.

They accused also provided them fake appointment letters, she claimed.

Deoni police are conducting further probe.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

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In Jolt To Congress, Haryana MLA And Daughter To Join BJP Tomorrow

In a jolt to the Congress in Haryana where assembly polls are due in October, the party's senior leader Kiran Choudhary and her daughter Shruti Choudhary will join the ruling BJP on Wednesday.

Confirming the development, Kiran Choudhary, who is also a sitting MLA, told PTI she is quitting the Congress and joining the BJP on Wednesday.

Her daughter Shruti Choudhary, a former MP, is a working president of the Haryana Congress.

Kiran Choudhary, daughter-in-law of former Haryana chief minister Bansi Lal, is considered the bete noire of senior Congress leader Bhupinder Singh Hooda and is learnt to be upset with the denial of ticket to Shruti Choudhary from Bhiwani-Mahendragarh constituency in the recently concluded Lok Sabha polls.

The Congress had given the ticket from the seat to sitting MLA and Hooda loyalist Rao Dan Singh, who lost to BJP's sitting MP Dharambir Singh.

"Shruti and I will be joining the BJP in Delhi on Wednesday," Kiran Choudhary said.

Taking a veiled dig at Mr Hooda, Ms Choudhary said, "They have pushed me into a corner. There is a limit to humiliation one can suffer." 

Ms Choudhary said both she and her daughter will resign from the primary membership of the Congress to join the BJP. Ms Shruti will quit as working president of Haryana Congress, she said.

In the recently held Lok Sabha polls, the Congress and the BJP won five seats each. 

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

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Rahul Gandhi Resigns From Wayanad Seat, Retains Raebareli

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi has resigned from the Wayanad Lok Sabha seat of Kerala and retained the Raebareli constituency in Uttar Pradesh, the Lok Sabha Secretariat said on Tuesday.

A Lok Sabha bulletin said his resignation has been accepted with effect from June 18.

Ending speculation on the issue, Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge announced on Monday the decision on the two seats after the party's top brass held discussions at his residence in the national capital.

Rahul Gandhi's sister Priyanka Gandhi Vadra will make her electoral debut by contesting the Wayanad bypoll.

Following Rahul Gandhi's resignation from one of the two seats he had won, the Congress' tally in the Lower House now stands at 98.

This is the first vacancy to be created in the just-formed 18th Lok Sabha.

"Shri Rahul Gandhi, an elected member of Lok Sabha from two constituencies viz Wayanad and Rae Bareli parliamentary constituencies of Kerala and Uttar Pradesh, respectively, has resigned his seat in Lok Sabha from Wayanad parliamentary constituency of Kerala and his resignation has been accepted by the speaker with effect from June 18," a Lok Sabha bulletin said.

If Priyanka Gandhi is elected from Wayanad, it will be the first time that all three Gandhi family members -- Sonia Gandhi, Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi -- will be in Parliament together.

Sonia Gandhi is now a member of the Rajya Sabha.

Before a 1996 amendment in the electoral laws, there was no bar on the number of seats a person could contest.

If a candidate wins from two seats, he or she has to quit one within 14 days of the election or faces the possibility of losing both the seats.

The winning candidates will take oath as Lok Sabha members on June 24 and 25.

The first session of the new Lok Sabha commences on June 24.

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"Oh, You Defeated Me": Naveen Patnaik To BJP MLA In Odisha Assembly

BJD president and former Odisha chief minister Naveen Patnaik on Tuesday greeted newly elected first-time BJP MLA Laxman Bag, who defeated him in the recently concluded Assembly polls from Kantabanji seat in Bolangir district.

Mr Patnaik, known for his composed demeanour, was making his way through the House after taking the oath as a member of the Assembly when he came face-to-face with Mr Bag, who stood up from his seat.

"How are you?" Mr Bag inquired with folded hands.

As Mr Bag introduced himself, Patnaik responded, "Oh, you defeated me." Accompanied by Aul MLA and former minister Pratap Keshari Deb, Mr Patnaik congratulated Bag.

The entire house including Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi and his deputies - KV Singh Deo and Pravati Parida - also stood up from their seats to greet Mr Patnaik in the Assembly, where he was an undisputed leader for 24 years.

The narrative of Me Patnaik's defeat was twofold. Not only had he lost his chief minister's chair, held firmly since 2000, but he also faced an unexpected defeat in Kantabanji, which he contested alongside his traditional Hinjili assembly seat.

In Hinjili, Mr Patnaik clung to victory by a slender margin of 4,636 votes.

BJP's Bag amassed 90,876 votes against Mr Patnaik's 74,532, securing the seat by 16,334 votes.

Mr Bag, 48, confessed his initial doubts about toppling a political titan like Mr Patnaik. "The voters were silent throughout the campaign, but they voted for me," he recounted, still grappling with the magnitude of his victory.

In a poignant scene, many newly elected MLAs were seen prostrating themselves before entering the Assembly building, underscoring the gravity and solemnity of the political shift that had just unfolded. 

(This story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)

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3 Injured In Clash Between 2 Groups In Odisha, Prohibitory Orders In Place

Three people were injured and several motorcycles damaged in a clash between two groups in Odisha's Balasore town on Monday, following which prohibitory orders under section 144 of the CrPC were imposed, officials said.

Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi spoke to Balasore's Collector Ashish Thakare, and asked him to take immediate measures to bring the situation under control, they said.

Maintaining that he would not allow any disturbance to the law and order situation of the state, Majhi urged people to maintain peace.

Protesting the blood of animal sacrifice on the road, a group of people sat on dharna in the Bhujakhia Pir area of the town. The other group allegedly hurled stones at them, following which the clash broke out, police said.

Both sides hurled stones at the other, injuring three people and damaging over half a dozen motorcycles, they said.

Police had to baton charge the mob to bring the situation under control, following which the prohibitory orders were imposed, they added.

The injured persons were admitted to the Balasore district hospital, officials said.

At least 150 police personnel have been deployed in the area to prevent any further flare-up, they said.

Night patrolling would also be held in some sensitive areas, they said.

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