Botswana: Women Wearing Trousers Denied Access to Police Station

Gaborone, Botswana — Bokaa is a village located approximately 50 kilometres from Botswana's capital city, Gaborone. Like many other villages in Botswana, Bokaa has a chief commonly referred to in Setswana as Kgosi, and each chief has a traditional gathering place known as the Kgotla.

Traditionally, Setswana culture does not allow women and girls to enter the Kgotla wearing trousers or pants, and requires them to wear dresses and skirts. Most Batswana observe this rule with great respect and accept it as common cultural practice across the country.

I have been attending meetings at different Kgotlas around the country since I was ten-years-old. Having the utmost respect for Setswana culture, I can confidently say that I have never entered a Kgotla wearing trousers.

However, in Bokaa the chief's Kgotla and office are located in the same compound as Bokaa's only police post (station). Although there is a fence and independent gate separating the Kgotla from this station and other government offices, women are prohibited from visiting the premises wearing trousers, and are often sent back home if they are wearing anything other than a dress or skirt.

I was recently working on one of the Bokaa Westland farms assisting in building a pit latrine for an elderly woman. As anyone would expect, I was wearing overalls, the most practical attire for the somewhat arduous and grubby task. Due to my involvement in crime prevention initiatives in the area, Bokaa's Police Commander called me, requesting I come to his office for a brief meeting.

It was already dusk so I had to head straight to the police post, in order to return to the farm before dark. On arrival, Bokaa's Chief, Kgosi Sue Mosinyi, met me with disproval and was very upset to see me wearing trousers. I tried to explain to him that I was not going to the Kgotla, but instead on my way to the police post for a meeting with the Commander.

Chief Mosinyi remained indifferent, proceeded to ‘pardon' me and gave me a stern warning never to show up there again wearing trousers. I was shocked and incredulous, as I had never experienced such an unreasonable response from any other chief.

However, in Bokaa this has been an on-going contention. In a similar incident last month, I was part of an all-night patrol with the police and other volunteers, many of whom are women. The day before the patrol, we had a long debate with officials explaining it would be both impractical and too cold to patrol wearing dresses and skirts. Our reasoning was overruled and they forbade us from entering the premises wearing trousers.

This rule forces the female Cluster Police volunteers from Bokaa Police Post to carry out their daily duties wearing skirts and dresses, because they have to meet every day at that premises before dispersing into the village to patrol. However, Chief Mosinyi has made an exception for the official and permanent female police officers, by permitting them to enter the premises wearing trousers because “it is part of their uniform.”

Concerned about these restrictions, I had a meeting with Chief Mosinyi. I asked him why this rule, which traditionally applies only to the Kgotla, is problematically extended to public spaces and law enforcement offices that should be accessible to anyone at all times, regardless of their attire.

Although I emphasised that a fence clearly separates the offices from the Kgotla, he explained, “The Kgotla, his office and the police offices are one and the same thing”, adding that as the Chief it is his duty to preserve our culture and to ensure that females remain and behave like females.

He went on to explain that he also makes exceptions for women in emergencies, and other women recognised as outsiders, who do not reside in the village. Chief Mosinyi said he is especially strict with female villagers and sends them back home if they show up wearing trousers, because they are well aware of this practice in his village.

However, his justification is not only inadequate for me, but also problematic for many women who have the right to unrestricted access to the premises.

Firstly, the glaring problem is that it restricts women's access to Bokaa's only police post. This poses some serious problems in a country with high rates of domestic violence and rape, low rates of reporting, where victim blaming is rife and where domestic violence is often dismissed and trivialised as a ‘family issue'. Women residing in Bokaa are undoubtedly aware of this cultural practice, but are they aware of their constitutional rights, and that the undue extension of this practice impinges on these rights?

I hold the Kgotla in high regard, as I believe it is one of the oldest forms of democracy that maintains peace in my country. I can respect the rule that prohibits me from entering the Kgotla, but I cannot accept it when this rule is extended to public spaces, especially spaces that people seek out for security and protection. It is unreasonable, unjust and discriminatory.

Bokaa's Chief and others across the country need to recognise the physical boundary that separates the public offices from the Kgotla as well as the boundary of tradition. Either the premises allow for appropriate and equitable access, or the police and government offices must move elsewhere.

When custodians of culture impose their own biases, and when these practices disproportionately hinder the human rights of others, the meaning of our culture and democratic rights are undermined. This applies to many customary laws that persist across SADC solely in the name of tradition, but contribute to the persistence of gender inequality. A cultural practice that denies my equal rights, because I am a woman, is unconstitutional.

Gogontlejang Phaladi is a philanthropist, youth ambassador, motivational speaker, activist, writer and founder of the Pillar of Hope Project. This article is part of the Gender Links Opinion and Commentary Service, special series on celebrating Phenomenal Women, bringing you fresh views on everyday news.

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Hacking contest for Police officers in Japan

Six police officers are taking part in a hacker competition, hoping to learn more about technology useful for combating cybercrime.

The National Police Agency officers joined the qualifying round that began Thursday in Yokohama for SECCON 2013, the nation's largest hacker competition. They are the first Japanese police officers to participate in such an event.

Their participation comes amid the heightened threat posed by hackers trying to steal corporate information and paralyze key infrastructure.

The Dark Side of Asaram Bapu

Less than 35 kilometres from the centre of Ahmedabad lies the dusty town of Motera, now made famous by one of India’s best known spiritual gurus, self-styled philosopher and friend to the rich and the powerful. Nearly 42 years ago, a developing friendship with the powers that be in Gujarat earned Asaram Harpalani, the son a coal and wood seller, 10 acres of fertile agricultural land. The land did not come to him all at once, it accumulated over the years as friendships strengthened. Harpalani, who was born in 1941 in Berami village of Pakistan’s Sindh province, set up a small ashram on the land, the first of over 400 ashrams that exist today across the world. Soon enough, this self-styled religious preacher dropped his tongue twister of a surname and began calling himself Asaram Bapu.

His controversial intervention in the Delhi rape case—when he said “galati ek taraf se nahin hoti hai,” suggesting the victim of the sexual assault was equally responsible for the crime—has recently brought unwanted national attention to the man, but in Gujarat, Asaram and his Motera ashram have been in the eye of a storm since July 2008. The controversy involves the deaths of two ten-year-old cousins, Abhishek and Dipesh Vaghela, at the ashram’s Bal Kendra, on 3 July, a month after they were admitted there as students. On 23 January this year, seven disciples of Asaram accused in the Vaghela case were summoned by an Ahmedabad court.

In the aftermath of the disappearance of the Vaghela brothers from the heavily guarded Bal Kendra, the ashram administration, including Asaram and Darshan Sai, had initially played down the seriousness of the incident. The parents of the children were told that they had run away home, a fact vociferously contested by them. “My brother Shantibhai and I enrolled our children at the Motera ashram for education,” said Praful Vaghela, father of Dipesh.

“We paid Rs 15,000 each but were not given pucca receipts. It was just a handwritten receipt. The children were given yellow T-shirts and white pajamas as uniform in the ashram. In that month, we visited them at least six to eight times. On 28 June, when we visited the ashram, their hair was tonsured and both had sandalwood tikas on their foreheads. I was uncomfortable with this,” said Vaghela. According to him, the children told him that the tonsuring was done in the presence of Asaram. On the afternoon of 3 July, Shantibhai met the children at the ashram. At 9 pm the same day, Praful Vaghela received a call from the ashram administration inquiring if the children had come home. The Vaghelas went to the ashram and looked for the children. At the end of their futile search, Pankaj Saksena, the administrator of the gurukul told them to go around a peepal tree 11 times and ask for the children.

They did so but “nothing happened”. The family, Vaghela claimed, wanted to file a police complaint, but the Ashram administration did not allow them to do so. The family waited out the night and proceeded to the Chandkeda police station the next morning. Two office bearers of the ashram—Vikas Khemcha and Ajay Shah—were already there at the police station. “They went in and spoke to the police. Then they came out and told us to go inside. The police got angry with us when we demanded that a complaint be filed. They did not let us file one,” says the distressed father.

During this period Asaram sent a message to the parents that they should go to a char rasta (crossroad), pick up seven stones, put the stones in hot water along with the children’s clothes and then take out the wet clothes inside out and hang them to dry in the children’s room. The children would return within four hours. “The ashram people told us to wait for the mandatory four hours as directed by Asaram. Nothing happened,” said Vaghela. On the third day of the search, the ashram administration told the Vaghelas another bizarre story—the thumbnail of a 10-year-old gurukul resident had indicated that the missing children were at Kallol. Not surprisingly, that was not where the children were found. Their bodies were finally recovered from a dried-up riverbed close to the ashram.

Vaghela can still vividly recall the harrowing sight—his son Dipesh’s arms were missing from the shoulder down. All the internal organs were missing, only the hollowed out ribcage remained. His left leg appeared to be cut off at the ankle, the right leg seemed burnt. His nephew Abhishek’s body was half burnt as well. Instead of helping the family, the policemen harassed them and refused to register complaints against Asaram and the ashram. “When I said the guilty should be arrested, we were told the consequences could be dire. Then we saw a tempo full of ashram inmates coming to the place where the bodies were recovered, armed with weapons and sticks. We ran away,” said Vaghela. Till this point, Asaram had always enjoyed a cosy relationship with the media. But when the media started reporting on the Vaghela case, many other skeletons started tumbling out of the ashram closets. The media, including several women reporters, were targeted and mercilessly beaten up. Kuldeep Singh Kalair, a reporter with Divya Bhaskar, was locked up in a room in the ashram and beaten by sadhaks. He had to be rescued by the police.

The incident served to lend credence to the allegations of tantric practices by Asaram and his followers. The rumours had been around for a while, but before the deaths of these boys these were mere whispers. Meanwhile, in the Chhind- wara town of Madhya Pradesh, two other children were found dead in the residential institution run by Asaram. The students—Ramakrishna Yadav (a nursery student) and Vedant Moraya (Class 1 student)—were found in the hostel toilet on 31 July 2008. Here too, angry residents protested and demanded the closure of the ashram.

Vaghela continues to maintain that Asaram and his son are involved in black magic and tantric practices, a claim he has made in his deposition before the Justice (retired) DK Trivedi Commission of Inquiry. The Commission, appointed by Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi to probe the deaths following the public outcry, has already been censured by the Gujarat High Court for going soft on Asaram and his son. The high court order on a petition filed by Asaram (15637/2012), challenging the Commis- sion summons to appear before it, stated: “a picture emerges where the Commis- sion has, on its knees, with folded hands craved the convenience of the petitioner and his son to record their evidence before it and this has continued for a period of more than one and a half years”. When Asaram appeared before the Commis- sion, after being summoned on six different occasions, he was accompanied by an entourage of slogan-shouting followers. Eyewitnesses say that even as the deposition before the Commission was on, Asaram would leave the room without permission, either to drink milk or address his followers.

This brazenness in the face of the law is in keeping with this guru’s attitude to life. Initially, after the Motera ashram was set up, the numbers who came to listen to him were not large, but as local politicians started paying obeisance, they swelled. At the core of his attraction was an aggressive discourse that preached an ethic of ‘tit for tat’. The attitude is still visible at the sprawling Motera ashram.

Beyond a huge peach-coloured arch, plastered with flex banners of the white-bearded preacher in elaborate head gear, two listless guards in khaki uniform watch people enter and exit the ashram. Many prostrate themselves at the ashram entrance before entering or leaving. Asaram speaks to the people via recorded discourses heard through the ashram compound, but few who come into the ashram seem interested in listening to the recorded version. It is the white kurta-pajama-clad male disciples, spread across various age groups, who catch their attention. They are everywhere—behind the various counters, walking around, talking in groups and working. They speak rough even with each other and some even use colourful expletives to make a point.

At the far corner of the ashram stands the heavily guarded Bal Kendra. The presence of the guards is in keeping with the fear the name of Asaram invokes among present-day and former disciples when they discuss the godman. Two who have shared a close rapport with Asaram—Raju Chandak, a secretary, and Amrut Prajapati, personal physician—are running scared ever since they called it quits. Both claim to be privy to numerous illegal activities at the ashram. While Chandak has been shot at and wounded by three bullets following his deposition before the Trivedi Commission, Prajapati says he has been attacked at least six times by the ashram goons. Both are scared of sting operations done by the ashram, which have been furnished as proof before investigating agencies. Speaking to Open on telephone, a scared Chandak kept demanding proof that this reporter was not a part of a sting operation. “Asaram and his goondas have ruined my family life. We are running all the time because he has threatened to eliminate me. An attempt was also made. There is sexual exploitation going on at the ashram. I am being attacked because he does not want the illegal activities made public,” said Chandak.

Prajapati spoke to Open at the Ayurveda Yog Centre in Ahmedabad’s Odav Circle. Responding to an advertisement for an ayurvedic doctor at one of Asaram’s ashrams, the BAMS-educated Prajapati met the godman for the first time in 1988. He was offered Rs 15,000 a month for a job that included food and accommodation. “I was entrusted with the job of setting up their ayurvedic formulation laboratory and allied services at the Surat ashram,” said Prajapati. As the number of disciples grew, Prajapati says Asaram insisted that they compromise on the quality of raw material used to prepare medicines. “Cow’s ghee was replaced by mixed ghee. I am also a witness to corruption and womanising. I saw these things closely when I became his personal physician. I could go to Asaram’s room at any time. One afternoon I went to his Jatikara farmhouse in Delhi. This was the day after his mother died. There was a woman in the room and it was a sight I should not have seen,” said Prajapti.

“On 20 August 2005 I left the ashram after being threatened by them. I was scared. In September 2005, I was attacked by 10-15 people when I was visiting a friend in Ghaziabad. They threatened to kill me if I spoke against Asaram or the ashram. After the attacks I do not inform my patients about my schedule. I don’t even tell my family about my travel plans. This is the price I’m paying for the inability of the Gujarat police to protect me. There will never be justice. Even the Trivedi Commission will not be able to do anything to Asaram,” said Prajapati.

The death of the boys is not the only allegation of wrongdoing against Asaram and his ashram. The cases against him range from the sinister to the bizarre, from land grab (in February 2009, the Gujarat government admitted in the legislative assembly that the Asaram ashram had encroached on 67,099 sq. m of land in Ahmedabad) to this allegation by a man blinded in one eye during a discourse, who has alleged that toffees were showered from a high-speed rotating machine at those in attendance. One such toffee hit him in the eye.

Ashram spokesman Uday Sangani, an accused in the Vaghela case, dismisses the cases against Asaram and his associates as politically motivated. “It is perceived that Bapuji is close to the BJP due to his Hindutva teachings, hence the Congress has started this harassment.” He has been associated with the ashram for the past 17 years.

Source: http://tinyurl.com/lddjl4d

Social network app nabs Metro smoker

A SOCIAL media app helped nab a recalcitrant smoker on the Metro this morning.
The man was seen smoking in a Metro Line 9 subway car heading towards southwestern Songjiang District around 10:30am, police said. He refused to extinguish the cigarette in spite of complaints from other passengers, before one of them took his picture and reported the case to Shanghai Metro police via WeChat, a social networking service.
Metro police confirmed around 1:30pm that they found the smoker and the case was under investigation.

Source: http://tinyurl.com/lpnfz9p

New norms in the works for use of alternative materials to sand

NEW DELHI: Seeking to strike a balance between growing needs of construction industry and environmental concerns to preserve river beds amid excessive sand mining, the government may opt for changing specifications of the Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) to ensure substitutes of sand can be used by builders across the country.

Now, the BIS stipulates that the concrete can be made only with naturally accessed materials, making it impossible for the realty sector to rely on alternatives to sand like m-Sand (manufactured sand), copper slag, powdered glass and recycled construction waste among others which are increasingly being used in many EU nations, Singapore and the US.

"I am soon going to write to the BIS," said the Union environment and forest minister Jayanthi Natarajan.

She told the TOI that there was a need to firm up views in this matter through consultations within government while keeping in mind growing environmental concerns.

It is learnt that her ministry will bat for promoting green construction norms that are being practiced in other parts of the globe.

Though the need to have a definite policy in this regard have long been expressed within and outside the government by proponents of sustainable growth, the recent episode of Gautam Budh Nagar district in Uttar Pradesh where the then local subdivisional magistrate (SDM) Durga Sakthi Nagpal had brought the instances of large scale illegal mining into focus by taking action against sand miners in July.

The national green tribunal (NGT) had subsequently restrained sand mining across the country without taking environmental clearance for mine lease area irrespective of its size.

The move gave a new impetus to the ongoing debate on how to strike a balance between economic needs of the infrastructure sector and environmental concerns. Such debate has again brought into light the demand for necessary changes in BIS regulations so that substitutes of sand can be used in construction.

The m-Sand is the widely accepted substitute to sand in many countries. It is produced by grinding stone gravel and boulders. Besides m-Sand, builders in Hong Kong use powdered glass as a substitute for sand. On the other hand, Singapore uses copper slag (a by-product of copper production) whereas US uses all these alternatives including furnace slag.

Environmentalists across the globe are in favour of such locally viable alternatives by pointing out how the sand depletion from river beds is bad for ecology and safety of settlements along the rivers.

Source: http://tinyurl.com/n2gsrv9

Call 9731666725, get rid of 'train-trouble'

BANGALORE: Facing trouble in a running train? Help is just a call or SMS away -- the women's helpline 9731666725 works 24/7. Just mention the train name, number, bogie number and nature of the complaint.

The helpline, which began operating early this year, is dedicated to South Western Railway in Karnataka. But very few commuters are aware of the number, and railway authorities are doing their best to spread the message to all passengers of the state.

Divisional railway manager (DRM), South Western Railway, Anil Kumar Agarwal said they've displayed the helpline number across railway stations in Karnataka. "It was launched nearly six months ago. We've received more than 100 calls on eve-teasing and other harassment. We act as soon as we receive the complaint. The Railway Protection Force attends to the problem at the next station," he said.

SP SN Sidramappa said police equipped with rifles are sent into some bogies, particularly at night. "The police personnel visit all the bogies. A police chowki manned by two policemen is active outside Bangalore City railway station. Very soon, we'll start similar counters in other railway stations," he said.

A second line

Railway authorities also introduced a helpline for Southern Railway commuters -- 090031617110. Those using a landline can dial 044-90031617110.

"The security control of Southern Railway, located in Chennai, will receive the call and act accordingly. Most often, women call us with complaints of eve-teasing and physical harassment in running trains," a security personnel said.

When youth pushed out gutsy girl

On July 25, 2012, a 19-year-old girl was seriously injured when she was pushed out of a running train by four men, after she resisted their attempts to molest her. The horror unfolded in the Yeshwantpur-Mysore Express. She was pushed out when the train reached Maddur, and fell 25 feet below on the dry bed of the river Shimsha. She was hospitalized for several weeks.

Crimes on board — South Western Railway*

Robberies

2011 - 31

2012 - 47

2013 - 35

Dacoities

2011 - 05

2012 - 03

2013 - 01

Thefts

2011 - 500

2012 - 480

2013 - 350

(* Till July)

(Source: Southern Railways)

Source: http://tinyurl.com/n4whlv8

Cops rescue trader, arrest kidnapper

The police arrested a man in connection with the kidnapping of a businessman who was called to Haryana on the pretext of selling a gold brick but was abducted by the accused and his accomplices who demanded `6 lakhs in ransom for his release.
The victim’s family members approached the police after which an FIR was lodged at the Vikaspuri police station. The police found that the victim first dropped his cousin sister at Gurgaon and then went to Sohna, Haryana, to meet an unknown person.
ACP (west) V. Renganathan said that Vikaspuri SHO and Uttam Nagar SHO rescued the victim from the clutches of the accused. “The team arrested one Mohammed Aslam, the main conspirator, while his accomplices are absconding,” said ACP Renganathan.
He further said that the victim got a call from the accused Aslam, who introduced himself as a farmer, saying that he found a gold brick while digging his farmland with a JCB machine. He said he wanted to sell it at a throw away price. The victim fell into the trap and went Haryana to buy the brick.
“The accused called him in Mewat region. The victim met three persons who kidnapped and blindfolded him and then took him to an isolated place. The team arrested Aslam from Rajasthan district following a tip-off. The accused said that they used to cheat people by selling them fake gold bricks. Later, they started kidnapping victims for ransom,” said the ACP.

Source: http://tinyurl.com/mr7mgph

Cops up the ante against traffic violators

ALLAHABAD: After implementing the helmet and seat belt rule strictly for both men and women drivers, the traffic police claimed to have issued challans to more than 81 errant women drivers in the past 48 hours.

Traffic police teams comprising men and women constables carried out vehicle checking drive at Pani ki Tanki crossing, Mayo hall crossing and UPPSC crossing on Wednesday and challaned 37 errant women drivers. Police said 44 women drivers were issued challans on Tuesday.

Traffic inspector Indra Pal Singh told TOI that in the past 48 hours, more than 300 errant drivers were issued challans.

He added that a similar exercise would be launched in the days to come. The TI further added that strict warning has been issued for two-wheeler riders to wear helmet while driving while car drivers were asked to wear the seat belt.

Officials said that despite the fact that women drivers drive more carefully as compared to their male counterparts, traffic rules and regulations are same for both gender.

The vehicle checking drive was intensified to also check cases of rash driving and police teams were deputed at 16 important crossings and intersections to nab defaulters.

Source: http://tinyurl.com/ljkfkkl

Dalits told to keep distance from temple

ANAND: Dalits in Bamroli village of Anand's Petlad taluka have been banned from entering the village temple to goddess Khodiyar.

The decision was taken by the village panchayat after a dalit woman, Meena Shenva, requested the village priest to allow her into the temple to offer prayers on Vad Savitri on June 26. After being turned away, Shenva approached 50 of her village dalit community members from and raised the issue with them.

 A few days later, the village panchayat also resolved that dalits not be allowed to enter the temple and that offer prayers through a small opening on a wall 100 metres away from the main temple entrance. This shocked Shenva. The temple priest insisted that this was a tradition at temple. After few days the police registered an FIR against the temple priest Rajnikant Kiritbhai and the panchayat at the Mahelva police station. Meena now fears that she will be pressurized to withdraw the case.

Deputy superintendent of police, Anand, Rajendra Asari, told TOI: "It's true. We had arrested the accused but they are out on bail. Meanwhile district authorities too have been informed of the incident and asked to follow up. The case is now in court and sub-judice. I will not be able to comment any further."

"The wall, which is 100 metres away from the temple, had a small indent in which dalits were supposed to make their offerings to the goddess. We hope Meena's efforts will give voice to the problems of dalits who live in surrounding areas of Bamroli and want to pray at the temple," says Meena's brother, Amrut Shenva.

Amrut Shenva, who lives in nearby Simrada village added, "I hope the police action bears fruit. We also fear for Meena who took this bold step. There will be lot of pressure on her to withdraw the case."

Source: http://tinyurl.com/kpun4cm

Crime branch, cops nab two highway robbers arrested in Dehat

KANPUR: Two highway robbers were arrested in Kanpur Dehat on Saturday. The crime branch and the police arrested two men, who used to target consignment-laden trucks on highways.

Superintendent of police Kripa Shanker Singh said that the two robbers were identified as Idris alias Guddu of Shahjahanpur district and Dinesh, a resident of Bhaura village of Rura area of Kanpur Dehat district. The other members of the gang identified as Lalla alias Ganga Yadav of Pukhrayan, BP Yadav of Chotey Ka Purwa in Musanagar, Irfan, Appu and Sultan of Gurgaon in Haryana and Rasheed of Shahjahanpur district are yet to be arrested.

"Teams have been constituted to zero-in on the other members of the gang. The accused used to operate on National highway-2 and National highway-24 between Kanpur Dehat district, Auraiyya and Etawah," a police official said.

They had committed loot on June 22 in Hardoi district and robbed a truck loaded with 150 sacks of sugar from Hawaspur area of Mangalpur in Kanpur Dehat. The truck was on its way to Orai from Hardoi. The robbers threw truck driver Indra Narain Mishra and his son near Hawaspur village and escaped with the consignment. Firearms, cartridges, sharp-edged weapons and an SUV were recovered from the arrested persons.

Singh said that the looted truck has been recovered from Sikandara area of the district. The accused told the police that they were involved in several cases of loot.

Source: http://tinyurl.com/nzmgbsz

Golden trail: Dubai to Chennai via Delhi

CHENNAI: Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) sleuths on the trail of 16kg gold boarded the Delhi-Chennai Rajdhani Express when it neared the outskirts of the city and followed the smugglers all the way to city before seizing the contraband and arresting four people, including two Sri Lankans, on Friday.

Based on a tip-off that two people were transporting gold bars from Delhi by Rajdhani, investigators intercepted the train when it reached Gummidipoondi railway station and boarded it. They identified the smugglers and tailed them to a house at Kodambakkam where they delivered the consignment.

The two carriers were arrested when they were leaving the house while the two Sri Lankan nationals were arrested after the house was raided and the contraband was seized. It is suspected that the duo, who came by the train, might have brought the gold from Dubai as instructed by the two Sri Lankans, said an official.

The DRI officials had seized 25 kg of gold from Chennai and Delhi the other day.

A senior DRI official said the operation began with the arrest of two passengers at the New Delhi's IGI airport soon after they arrived from Singapore. "They were carrying gold bars weighing 9kg. There we got the tip-off of another team smuggling gold from Delhi to Chennai via train," said the official.

During questioning, they disclosed the involvement of two others in Chennai. The arrested have been remanded in judicial custody for 14 days on Saturday. The owner of the house in Kodambakkam is absconding.

This is the second major seizure since March when DRI caught a senior diplomat from the UAE for allegedly smuggling 37kg gold jewellery, estimated to be worth about Rs 10 crore, at the IGI airport.

Source: http://tinyurl.com/mzk4oks

240 women freed from dance bars in Bangalore

BANGALORE: Close on the heels of police notifying guidelines on bars and restaurants employing women, the Central Crime Branch (CCB) on Saturday night rescued 240 women from seven joints running dance bars illegally in Majestic-Gandhinagar area.

During raids on Hotel Rajadhani, Hotel Aishwarya , Hotel Sky Heaven, Hotel Sakhi, Hotel Kajal, Port of Pavilion and Blue Heaven, police said they found women gyrating on dance floors and customers misbehaving with them. Police sources said the women were skimpily clad and customers were showering them with currency notes. The joints did not have authorization to play music on the public address system. The raids began past 10pm and ended by midnight . About 300 customers were also picked up and taken to jurisdictional Upparpet police station, and later released.

A senior police officer said dance bars are illegal. He said the rescued women were sent back to their homes after police collected their details, including permanent addresses. They will involve NGOs now to inform the girls' guardians, and check if they can be rehabilitated . Besides recovering music equipment, police also seized Rs 35 ,000 in cash during the raids. Of the rescued women, 50 were from Punjab, 47 from Maharashtra, 32 from West Bengal, 28 from Delhi, 25 each from Karnataka and Uttar Pradesh, nine from Bihar , seven from Andhra Pradesh , four from Rajasthan and one each from Nepal, Madhya Pradesh and Gujarat . Twenty men were picked up for running these seven joints.

Source: http://tinyurl.com/p25yluk

3 years on, no officer from State Police inducted into Indian Police Service - Kashmir

Srinagar, Aug 4: With induction of State Police Service (SPS) officers into the Indian Police Services (IPS) remaining suspended for the past three years, the number of vacancies in the promotion quota of the service has gone up to 21.  In January 2016, the number of vacancies would rise to 43 as 22 more officers are retiring in 2013, 2014 and 2015.
Authoritative sources told Greater Kashmir that authorized cadre strength of IPS for Jammu and Kashmir is around 147.
While 80 posts are meant for direct recruits, the remaining 67 posts are to be filled by induction from SPS.
“At present, there are 65 direct recruit officers in IPS leaving 15 vacancies in the category. And there is a dearth of 21 SPS officers as only 46 officers are in position in the quota,” they said.
But during next three months, the percentage of SPS officers would further come down as seven more officers would end their innings by then. On August 31, Sheikh Mehmood (SSP- Police Control Room) and Raghubir Singh (SSP Reasi) would retire.
Next month, three officers- Rouf-ul- Hassan (IGP Armed / IRP Kashmir), Farooq Khan (Director Sheri- Kashmir Police Academy Udhampur) , Abdul Hamid( DIG –IRP Kashmir)- would attain superannuation. In November, Israr Ahmad Khan (SSP Samba) and Manmohan Singh (SSP Traffic City Jammu) would retire.
In 2014 and 2015, seven and eight inducted local officers would retire. That implies, 43 vacancies in the quota by 2015 ending.
Officials told Greater Kashmir that delay in induction hampers the promotional prospects of local officers particularly Kashmir Police Service (KPS) officers.
Going by the date of birth of in- service  inducted officers and year of their IPS allotment, there would be minuscule presence of local officers at top positions between 2022- 2025.
No SPS officer would be at hierarchy –ADGP and IGP-   after Muhammad Sulaiman Salaria (Commissioner Civil Military Liaison Home Department) and Afaadul Mujataba(Deputy Inspector General of Police,   Central Kashmir Range)  would  respectively retire in 2020 and 2021.
According to officials, the last induction took place in 2010. Then 12 officers were inducted into the service.
Ghulam Hassan Bhat ,Kifayat Haider,Mansoor Ahmad Untoo, Mansoor Ahmad Sheikh,  Prabhat Singh ,Raghubir Singh, Rattan Chand Mannotra ,Deepak Kumar Slathia , Amjad Parvez Mirza,Rafeeq- ul- Hassan,Virender Sharma and Vijay Kumar were  appointed to the IPS through Ministry of Home  notifications  nos. I- 14011/6/2010-IPS-I dated 18/03/2011 and I-14013/25/2011-IPS-I dated 05/09/2011.
In 2011, according to officials, the State Home Department submitted a proposal for induction against the nine vacancies of 2010 to the Union Public Service Commission but that got stuck due to queries raised by the latter.
“The proposal was returned by the Union Public Service Commission with some observations which too were replied by the Home Department,” they said.
Since then no induction has been effected.
On Monday, the State Home Department informed a panel of the Upper House that they have started exercise for revising “promotions at DySPs level and SPs level which will be followed by notification of seniority list of Deputy Superintendents of Police and Superintendents of Police.
“After notification of the seniority list of SPs, a proposal of State Police Service officers shall be submitted to the UPSC for convening selection committee meeting,” the Home Department submitted.
When contacted Principal Secretary Home, Suresh Kumar said, they couldn’t cause induction due to non- fixation of the seniority list. “Besides there is also litigation over seniority list,” he said.

Source: http://tinyurl.com/khs9h58

Maharashtra jails get hi-tech security equipment

MUMBAI: A week after the attack on gangster Abu Salem in Taloja prison, Maharashtra's nine central jails have been equipped with electronic security equipment.
"The proposal for electronically equipping jails had been with the government for a year. But only cellphone jammers had been installed, that too on trial basis. It is the attack on Salem that prompted the latest development," said a prison source. The equipment include cellphone detectors and jammers, doorframe and handheld metal detectors, walkie-talkies, bag scanners, and CCTV cameras.

There is also a move to give jail guards better weapons. At present they use outdated .410 rifles, but soon they will be given self-loading rifles (SLRs). "Jail guards with SLRs will be posted at the main gates and outside anda cells. More than 50 constables and officers are being trained in Thane on handling SLRs. This will be the first time that jail staff will have a weapon similar to that used by the state police," the source said.
Speaking more about cellphone jammers, he said that among the jails where it was tried was Arthur Road. "A powerful jammer was installed there. But residents of nearby buildings complained that their phones were getting jammed, following which mobile operators asked jail authorities to remove the jammer. We hope such issues are properly resolved this time round."

Source: http://to.ly/mfMz

Ishrat Jahan: A suicide bomber or a student caught in crossfire?

The CBI's chargesheet on 19-year-old Mumbai student Ishrat Jahan's killing has revived political sparring over the alleged fake encounter by Gujarat cops on chief minister Narendra Modi's watch.

On June 15, 2004, Ishrat was gunned down along with three others at a deserted stretch of road just outside Ahmedabad. The cops involved in the encounter said she was part of a terror plot to kill Modi.

The CBI has now alleged that Ishrat was abducted and killed in cold blood. It has charged seven policemen with murder.

A second year science student at Mumbai's Guru Nanak Khalsa college, Ishrat was the second of seven siblings and - by her mother's account - her father's favourite.

Chasing dreams of a better life, the family moved into the Muslim-dominated area of Mumbra in Mumbai when Ishrat was just five.  Shamim, a construction worker, saw daughter Ishrat as the one who would make the family proud one day.

But his death forced 17-year-old Ishrat to take up tuitions and embroidery work to support the family.

Desperate for a job, Ishrat worked as a secretary to Javed Sheikh or Pranesh Pillai, who was killed in the same encounter.

According to Ishrat's family, Javed often took her out of town for work.  The last time Ishrat spoke to her mother was from Nashik, where she had reportedly gone to meet Javed. Three days later, she was lying dead on a road in a striped orange salwar kurta, gunned down with three others.

The CBI says Javed and Ishrat were picked up at a checkpost, kept illegally at a farmhouse, sedated and then shot dead in a joint operation by the Gujarat police and the state intelligence bureau.

Almost a decade since her killing, Ishrat's family continues to fight against the terrorist tag that has haunted them every day of their lives.

Source: http://to.ly/mfKZ

Ishrat killing a fake encounter, says CBI

"The encounter was a joint operation between Gujarat police and Subsidiary Intelligence Bureau (SIB) in the State.”

The Central Bureau of Investigation’s first charge sheet in the nine-year-old Ishrat Jahan encounter case filed on Wednesday stated that the unlawful killing was a joint operation of the Gujarat police and the Intelligence Bureau and named seven State police officials as the accused.

The agency, which submitted its charge sheet at a crowded court room in the Special CBI court here, has not fixed charges against four IB officials allegedly involved in the conspiracy, saying it needed more time for investigation.

But the names of the IB officials — Special Director Rajinder Kumar, Assistant Director (Ahmedabad) M. K. Sinha, Deputy Superintendent of Police Rajeev Wankhede and P Mittal — figure in the charge sheet as those who allegedly facilitated the killing by generating fake intelligence inputs as well as by being present at the crime scene.

Gujarat police officers involved in the staged encounter and the joint police commissioner heading the crime branch then, P. P. Pandey, have for the record stated that it was the IB alert that a Lashkar-e-Taiba module was out to assassinate Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi that triggered the shooting.

The chargesheet states that the college girl Ishrat and three others were abducted and then killed in a staged encounter by officers and men of the Ahmedabad Crime branch.

As the team of CBI counsel arrived at 5 pm in the court of Additional Chief Judicial Magistrate H. S. Khutwad in the presence of hordes of journalists waiting since morning, it told the judge that the charge sheet was quite bulky and could not be brought to the court room but would be verified in the records room.

The CBI counsel read out the operative part from a summary and completed the verification process after over an hour. The Gujarat police officials chargesheeted are Additional Director General of Police P. P. Pandey, Deputy Inspector General of Police D. G. Vanzara and Superintendents of Police N. K. Amin, G. L. Singhal, J. G. Parmar and Tarun Barot. Besides them, the name of a commando Anaju Chaudhary also figures in the document.

The cops have been charged with murder, criminal conspiracy, kidnapping, illegal confinement and destruction of evidence. Sections of the Arms Act have also been imposed on them. The CBI has found no charges against nine cops whose statements it had recorded under Section 169 of the Criminal Procedure Code.

A CBI counsel told The Hindu that there would be a supplementary chargesheet against the IB officials and others, though he refrained from saying if any politicians had been named. He said there was no time frame to file the second document.

Contrary to media speculation, the first chargesheet neither refers to then Minister of State for Home Amit Shah, who is now the BJP general secretary in charge of Uttar Pradesh, nor the Gujarat Chief Minister.

The chargesheet has not been released to the media but, according to sources, says that when the victims were in illegal confinement, D. G. Vanzara, P. P. Pandey, Rajinder Kumar and N. K. Amin had grilled them.

Later Pandey, Vanzara and Rajinder Kumar planned the plot at Vanzara's bungalow.

In April 2004, Jeeshan Jowher and Amjad Ali were picked up while Javed alias Pranesh Pillai and Ishrat Jahan were picked up in June.

It says, among many other things, that following instructions from D. G. Vanzara, police officer G. L. Singhal picked up a bag full of weapons and handed it to over constable Nizammuddin, who passed it on to Tarun Barot.

The charge sheet says the weapons were later planted on the victims. Later Singhal was called to the ATS office in Shahibaug where Vanzara and Pandey were present. Vanzara was in possession of a draft FIR about the shootout.

(copy has been corrected for a factual error.)

CBI chargesheet Live: Ishrat not a terrorist, wasn’t targeting Modi?

9.30 am: CBI chargesheet to clear Ishrat Jahan, will not name Modi

According to reports in the media, the chargesheet to be filed by CBI today in the Ishrat Jahan fake encounter case names neither Modi nor his aide Amit Shah in its list of suspects. It also declares that 19-year-old Ishrat Jahan was not a terrorist but three others who were killed with her had terror links and were using her as a cover to further their goals.

According to a report on The Times of India, the CBI chargesheet says that the three men killed along with Ishrat were in touch with Muzammil, a Lashkar-e-Taiba handler. While they were possibly planning a terror attack on Ahmedabad, Gujarat chief minister Narendra Modi was not their target.

The chargesheet also reportedly mentions that the wounds from which they died confirm the occurrence of a fake encounter. All of them including Ishrat were shot in the stomach, indicating the fact that they were not running away or being chased by the police when they were shot.

CNN IBN reports:

The eight Gujarat police officers involved in the encounter will be charged with murder. Two of the police officers are already in jail.
The officers include Gujarat ATS DIG DG Vanzara, DCP NK Amin and Ahmedabad Crime Branch officers GL Singhal, Tarun Barot, JG Parmar, Bharat Patel and Anaju Chaudhary. The CBI has reportedly claimed that there is insufficient evidence against Modi and Shah to name them in the case.

The investigating agency, reportedly has evidence  however, that IB joint director Rajinder Kumar was involved in the case.

The encounter took place in the Kotarpur fireworks factory and a brawl between the crime branch officials preceded the killings. Apparently, one officer and a commando refused to participate and shoot the victims. Following this, two other officers snatched their weapons and shot Ishrat and the men in her company.

Background: What to look for in the CBI chargesheet:
For everyone concerned—the families of the deceased; the police officers who will now be charged with their murder; intelligence services facing potentially the greatest scandal since independence; politicians aware that the fallout could shape their fortunes in 2014—the stakes are huge.
Exhale.

First, this is a first charge-sheet; it’s unlikely to address questions of the background and possible terrorist activities of the accused or the possible conspiracy behind their execution.

Then, beware the early sound bites: it’ll take a while for journalists and lawyers to wade through what the CBI has said. CBI charge sheets tend to cite dozens of witnesses, and often contain thousands of pages of supporting documents. In keeping with the government’s commitment to transparency and efficiency, the CBI (and National Investigations Agency) doesn’t provide copies of its charge-sheets, even though they’re public documents. This means that journalists have to pester sources, or find some court tout they can pay Rs 100 to for a copy.

Finally, remember that evidence in a criminal case is almost always very complex. We know one thing for a fact: the CBI failed to file charges against the eight Gujarat Police officers it is now expected to allege carried out murder within then legally-mandated 90 days from their arrest. This entitled them to walk on bail.  There’s all sorts of potential reasons for the delay—perhaps the CBI was waiting on expert reports, or having trouble corroborating what a witness said—but the delay suggests the evidence is highly complex, and open to interpretation.

Source: http://to.ly/mdSw

Model citizen prevents ATM robbery

HYDERABAD: After loading cash in an SBI ATM at SanghiNagar on Saturday night, cash-handling staff left the key in the lock. However, luckily no cash was stolen as a vigilant customer alerted police in time.

On Saturday at around 7.30pm, a customer, who went to the SBI ATM at SanghiNagar, noticed that the key of the ATM was left in the machine's lock. He immediately alerted the police.

"We rushed to the ATM centre immediately and brought the key to the police station. As per our preliminary investigation, cash loader Naveen Goud forgot the key there by mistake, but luckily no cash was stolen. We will handover the key to senior staff of the bank on Monday," Hayathnagar inspector G Srinivas Kumar said.

Source: http://to.ly/maVE

Ishrat encounter probe opens window to Haren case

AHMEDABAD: The CBI's charge-sheet in the Ishrat Jahan fake encounter case to be filed next week may contain a hidden political bombshell for chief minister Narendra Modi.  -->

It is likely to explain that an important accused in the encounter case has given leads to the March 2003 murder of Haren Pandya, who was Modi's bitter political enemy. Pandya was gunned down at Law Garden in Ahmedabad in what the CBI had described as a reprisal attack in the wake of 2002 anti-Muslim pogrom.

Sources said the CBI would leave the matter to its headquarters to take a call on reopening the Pandya case, stating that this was beyond its brief.

The Gujarat high court had acquitted all the 12 accused in the Pandya case and the matter is now pending before the Supreme Court. The case is much more sensitive for Modi than the encounter cases as this involves a former minister of state for home who he had politically targeted.

Pandya's father, Vithhalbhai Pandya, had first raised questions over the investigations in his son's murder. He maintained it was a political murder till his death a couple of years back. Now Pandya's widow, Jagruti, is pressing hard for a fresh probe.

After the acquittal of the 12 accused in mid-2011, the CBI had moved a special leave petition before the Supreme Court to challenge the HC judgment. The apex court had slammed the CBI for sloppy investigation.

Who is singing?

There is speculation that the witness being quoted by CBI for the leads it has got in the Pandya murder case is a senior IPS officer, who has spent six years in jail in the Sohrabuddin encounter case. He had remained steadfast as he enjoyed special privileges in Sabarmati jail in Ahmedabad. But the recent shifting to Taloja jail, after the case got transferred to Mumbai, has broken his resistance.

 Source: http://to.ly/m6YV

Ishrat Jahan case: IB man to be arrested soon?

AHMEDABAD: The Prime Minister's Office has cleared the decks for the arrest of a senior Intelligence Bureau officer in a case which had brought the intelligence set-up in direct confrontation with CBI. IB special director Rajinder Kumar is likely to be arrested weeks after a chargesheet is filed in early July by CBI in the Ishrat Jahan encounter case. Kumar is due to retire on July 31 and CBI is under pressure to arrest him only after his retirement.

Kumar will be charged with conspiracy, abduction and multiple murders. In fact, the draft chargesheet describes Kumar as the mastermind of this operation and seeks his early arrest for custodial interrogation - something IB does not want to happen while Kumar is still in service.

Altogether four persons branded as Lashkar-e-Taiba terrorists by IB were killed in a fake encounter which took place on the outskirts of Ahmedabad on June 15, 2005. A college student from Mumbra near Mumbai, was a surprise package in a gang which was allegedly out to kill Narendra Modi, in what is now seen as a bogus story scripted by Kumar. Apparently, Kumar knew Modi very well from his days in Chandigarh in he late 90s and used to address him as 'Modibhai'.

The IB had thrown a fit when Kumar was first summoned for interrogation earlier this month. The matter had reached the PMO and the National Security Adviser was asked to intervene. The evidence against Kumar was, however, quite overwhelming and IB had to finally give in because CBI furnished details of Kumar's involvement in multiple dubious encounters

Source: http://to.ly/m1iA