Govt orders probe into deaths of three inmates at Kerala rehabilitation centre within a week; locals says residents were tortured at facility

Kottayam: Three inmates at a nearby private rehabilitation centre died in a week, sparking protests, following which the Kerala government has ordered an inquiry.

Health minister KK Shailaja sought a report from health officials in Kottayam district on Saturday after locals alleged foul play.

District Collector PK Sudheer Babu ordered a magisterial probe into the deaths at the Puthujeevan Trust Rehabilitation Centre in Payippad Panchayat following protests by local residents and politicians. Additional district magistrate Anil Oommen will probe the case, he said.

Locals alleged that three inmates of the centre run by the trust, headed by a retired policeman, had died in the past one week. The locals also alleged that the inmates were tortured at the facility.

According to the Centre, it has been offering services for the mentally challenged, destitutes and abandoned elderly people for over three decades.

Local people demanded a thorough probe into the cause of the deaths. According to officials, six other inmates have been admitted to various hospitals in Thiruvalla.

After an initial investigation, the district medical officer said the deaths were not due to any epidemic. As per the Health minister's directive, a panel of doctors have been constituted to study the cause of the deaths of the three people, including a woman, he said.

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Section 144 imposed in Shaheen Bagh; police deployed in large number even as Hindu Sena calls off protest

Security presence has been increased and Section 144 imposed in the Shaheen Bagh area on Sunday even though the Hindu Sena had yesterday called off a protest calling for clearing the blocked road.

People have been advised not to assemble, even as Section 144 of the Criminal Procedure Code (CrPC) has been imposed in the area. "People are informed that Section 144 of CrPC has been imposed here and it is requested that permission for any gathering is not allowed. Violation of this may invite legal proceedings," the Delhi Police directive stated, as reported by ANI.

Twelve companies, including two of female forces, have been deployed in Shaheen Bagh, 100 men each from four police districts have also been deployed along with the local police, the official said. "The proposed protest call was cancelled with timely intervention. But as a precautionary measure, we have made heavy police deployment here," Deputy Commissioner of Police (Southeast) RP Meena told PTI.

"We have personnel from the Central Reserve Police Force and the Delhi Police. We want peace to prevail in the area," Srivastava told ANI. The senior police officer said the aim is to maintain law and order and prevent any untoward incident from occurring.

The police deployment has come after a fringe right-wing group, Hindu Sena, gave a call to clear the Shaheen Bagh road on 1 March. However on Saturday, with the intervention of police, they called off their proposed protest against the anti-CAA agitation in Shaheen Bagh.

The Hindu Sena said in a statement police pressured them to call off their protest on Sunday against the Shaheen Bagh agitation.

Shaheen Bagh, near Jamia Millia Islamia, has been a protest venue for a section of people opposed to the Citizenship Amendment Act and the National Register of Citizens since 15 December last year.

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Curfew lifted in parts of Shillong day after KSU and non-tribals clashed during anti-CAA rally

Shillong: The night curfew imposed in the Meghalaya capital after violent clashes was lifted at 8 am on Sunday, barring in areas under the jurisdiction of Lumdiengjri and Sadar police stations and Cantonment Beat House, where indefinite curfew continued to remain in effect, officials said.

Representational image. Reuters

The curfew was imposed since 9 pm Saturday, following the death of two persons in separate attacks in Ichamati area in East Khasi Hills district on Friday and at Shillong's Iewduh market on Saturday, they said.

The situation is tense following the two deaths, especially of a Khasi Students' Union (KSU) activist in a clash between members of the students' body and non-tribals during a rally in Ichamati area, which is close to the Indo-Bangladesh border.

East Khasi Hills district authorities said the curfew was extended in areas under the jurisdiction of Lumdiengjri and Sadar police stations Cantonment Beat House over fears there might be a serious breakdown of law and order in those places.

"There is a likelihood of a serious breakdown of peace and tranquillity which may lead to loss of life and property... I do promulgate curfew in these areas from 8 am on March 1 until further orders," District Magistrate Matsiewdor W Nongbri said in an order.

Mobile internet and messaging services have been temporarily suspended in six districts of the Khasi and Jaintia Hills region to curtail rumours that could deteriorate law and order, officials said.

Clashes broke out between KSU members and non-tribals during a rally organised against the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) and demanding implementation of the Inner Line Permit (ILP), at Ichamati on Friday, district Superintendent of Police Claudia Lyngwa said.

Eight persons have been arrested in this case and a magisterial inquiry has been instituted to probe into the incident, she said.

One person was stabbed to death at the Iewduh market under Cantonment Beat House on Saturday when unidentified persons went on an attacking spree that left seven others seriously injured, the SP said, adding that no one has been arrested so far in this connection.

After the clashes, curfew was imposed at noon in the two police station areas in Shillong while night curfew was imposed in the entire city.

Three companies of central forces have been deployed in the sensitive areas of the district, including in the affected areas of the city, officials said.

Governor Tathagata Roy and chief minister Conrad K Sangma have appealed the citizens to maintain peace. Both had taken to social media to issue their appeals even as mobile internet services were suspended in the six districts.

Sangma reviewed the law and order situation in the state and appealed for peace.

"I appeal to all our citizens and people of the state to ensure that peace returns and urge upon different organisations to refrain from any violent activity. A magisterial inquiry has been set up. We have ensured that enough manpower is put in place in the affected areas," he had said.

He announced an ex gratia of Rs 2 lakh for the family of the man killed in Friday's clash.

Meanwhile, a police officer told PTI that the state police, which has set up helpline number 1800 345 3846 for stranded tourists, has successfully escorted at least 16 tourists out of the hill town to Guwahati after receiving frantic calls for help from them.

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JNUSU defies registrar's warning, says JNU will remain open and give shelter to Delhi riot victims

New Delhi: Warned by the JNU registrar against providing shelter to the Delhi violence victims on the varsity campus, the JNUSU remained defiant on Saturday, saying humanity supercedes "administrative threats".

File image of the JNU campus. Official website of JNU

The Jawaharlal Nehru University Students' Union (JNUSU) also said the varsity will always remain open for sheltering the "victims of state oppression".

In a notice issued on Friday, JNU Registrar Pramod Kumar had warned of disciplinary action against students found involved in efforts to provide shelter to the victims of the violence, which claimed at least 42 lives and left over 200 injured.

"JNU was open for shelter in 1984, it shall remain open for shelter today. It shall always remain open for sheltering the victims of state oppression," the JNUSU said in a tweet.

"The JNU administration has threatened us with disciplinary action if we provide shelter to those who have lost everything in the Delhi Genocide 2020. Nevertheless, we reiterate, JNU is a safe shelter for the victims of this pogrom. Humanity supercedes administrative threats," it said.

Meanwhile, JNU Vice Chancellor M Jagadesh Kumar said the students can collect items from the JNU community to distribute them among the affected people and the varsity administration will support them.

"We all want peace and harmony in Delhi. People need to be provided help," he said.

"Some students of JNU gave a call that JNU is open for sheltering outsiders. It is the same students who (had) said that outsiders were responsible for the incidents that happened in the campus last month," he added, referring to the attack on JNU students by an armed mob on 5 January.

Kumar said the safety and security of the students is the utmost priority of the university administration.

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Photos Of The Day For February 2020

Did you miss a Photo Of The Day last month? View all of February’s selections in the gallery below.

Want to get your images in the running for a Photo of the Day feature? Photo of the Day is chosen from various OP galleries, including Assignments, Galleries and the Contests. Assignments have weekly winners that are featured on the OP website homepage, Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. To get your photos in the running, all you have to do is submit them.

[See image gallery at www.outdoorphotographer.com]

 

 

The post Photos Of The Day For February 2020 appeared first on Outdoor Photographer.

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Delhi Police registers 167 FIRs in connection with violence in northeast districts; 885 people held

New Delhi: The Delhi Police has registered 167 FIRs and arrested or detained 885 people in connection with the northeast Delhi violence, a senior officer said on Saturday.

Thirty-six of the cases were registered under the Arms Act, they said. The police have lodged 13 cases for provocative social media posts on various sites such as Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.

Several social media accounts and web links involved in circulation of unlawful, offensive content have been suspended through the platforms concerned, the senior police officer said.

Advisories on social and print media have been issued to sensitise people about responsible usage of online platforms. People have also been advised to maintain restraint while using social media platforms, police said.

The death toll in the communal violence has gone up to 42. More than 250 people have been injured in the clashes.

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Students, activists, Indian diaspora protest against CAA, Delhi riots in London; demand Amit Shah’s resignation

London: A large group of students, human rights activists and diaspora group representatives gathered outside the Indian High Commission on Saturday for an “emergency protest” against the Citizenship (Amendment) Act and the associated violence in Delhi.

The India Society at the School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS), South Asian Students Against Fascism and South Asia Solidarity Group were among the groups behind the protest.

The London protest was called alongside similar demonstrations in around 17 cities across Europe, including Paris, Berlin, Brussels and Geneva, with the central message of: “We stand in solidarity with the victims of communal violence in Delhi”. “If the world does not take note and react urgently, the consequences will be disastrous,” SOAS India Society said in a statement.

The protesters chanted slogans and demanded the resignation of Home Minister Amit Shah, for alleged “gross failure” to maintain peace, and the arrest of BJP politicians accused of instigating violence in Delhi.  They also called on the UK government to issue a “strong condemnation” of the Narendra Modi government for the violence on the streets of the Indian capital.

The protestors also sought to highlight the many “heartening instances” of Hindus, Dalits and Sikhs protecting their Muslim neighbours, and Sikh gurdwaras opening their doors for victims fleeing violence in Delhi.

Over the past week, parts of the Indian capital have witnessed sectarian violence in reaction to CAA, an act passed by the Indian Parliament last December to grant citizenship rights to persecuted minorities from neighbouring countries. Critics fear the act, and a proposed National Register of Citizens (NRC), would discriminate against the country's Muslims.

The government has sought to allay fears by stressing that no Indian Muslim would be impacted by the act and Home Minister Amit Shah has blamed the Opposition for stirring up the violence by spreading misinformation.

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