1. Bhima Koregaon Riots ‘Pre-Planned’: Report
A fact-finding report by a nine-member team has concluded that the Bhima Koregaon violence on January 1 this year was “preplanned”. Blaming the police for inaction, the report also points to a conspiracy, stating that over a period of 15 years, Milind Ekbote and Sambhaji Bhide, both leaders of Hindutva outfits, had helped create an atmosphere that ultimately led to the riots.
The report was submitted to the inspector general of police, Kolhapur range — who appointed the panel led by Pune Deputy Mayor Dr Siddharth Dhende — on January 20.
Source: Mumbai Mirror
2. HDFC Bank Vice-President Death: Postmortem Examination Indicates ‘Throat Slit From Behind’
HDFC Bank vice-president Siddharth Sanghvi, whose body was found in Kalyan early Monday, sustained at least 13 stab injuries.
An identification card in his chest pocket, buckle on the belt and his shoe, helped the 39-year-old bank executive’s father and brother identify him when they accompanied a team of policemen to a marshy land in Kalyan, where his body lay in a decomposed condition.
Source: Indian Express
3. Sohrabuddin, Kauser Bi, Prajapati ‘Encounters’: HC Exonerates 6 Cops
Less than a year after the trial in the 2005-06 alleged triple murder case of Sohrabuddin Sheikh, his wife Kauser Bi and aide Tulsiram Prajapati began before the special CBI court, the Bombay High Court upheld on Monday the discharge granted to former Gujarat ATS chief DG Vanzara and four other officers from the Rajasthan and Gujarat police.
Justice AM Badar also discharged Vipul Aggarwal, the sole Gujarat IPS officer who was still facing trial in the case.
Source: Mumbai Mirror
4. Mumbra Bypass Reopens: BJP Minister, NCP MLA Inaugurate Road Twice in 12 Hrs
After being shut for over two months, the Mumbra bypass finally opened to public on Monday. However, in a bid to take credit for the completion of the repair work of the bypass, political parties staged not one but two inauguration ceremonies.
While the traffic department along with PWD officials, who worked on the bridge, invited the Guardian Minister, Eknath Shinde, to inaugurate the bypass, NCP MLA Jitendra Awhad from Mumbra-Kalwa region organised a ceremony late on Sunday night.
Source: Indian Express
5. Tutor, 55, Held for Sexually Assaulting 11-Year-Old Girl
The Vinoba Bhave Nagar Police have arrested a 55-year-old tuition teacher for allegedly sexually assaultingan 11-year old girl on Monday. The accused lives in Kurla.
According to the police, the minor studied at his tuition classes, and in her statement alleged that recently, when she had gone to his house, the accused asked her about fees. The victim said she replied that her parents would pay the fees soon, and the accused said nothing further about it that day.
Source: Mumbai Mirror
6. Scientists Call Bluff at Vedic Plane Theory Talk
When a bunch of scientists from a reputed city institute received WhatsApp messages about an event claiming that India’s prowess in aeronautics is credited to events in Hindu scriptures, they decided to call the organisers’ bluff by applying a scientific lens. However, in a dramatic turn of events, they got thrown out. It wasn’t just the ‘blind-faith’ audience that stunned the experts, it was the theories being propagated by scientists themselves. They found it shocking when they heard that mercury and donkey’s urine fuelled the planes in ancient times.
What’s worse, the speakers of the event – titled ‘Viman Shastra’ and organised by a group called ‘Bharatam Reawakening’ – were scientists themselves. While Dr Prahlada Ramarao is former vice chancellor of Defence Institute of Advanced Technology (DIAT) and former chief controller of DRDO, Kavya Vaddadi is an aeronautical engineer.
Source: Mumbai Mirror
7. Smoother Ride on WE Highway During Evening Rush Hour
To deal with the nightmarish traffic on Western Express Highway during evening peak hours, traffic police has decided to ban all commercial vehicles from Kalanagar to Dahisar between 5 pm and 9 pm. Currently it takes around two and a half hours to travel the stretch. The ongoing Metro construction has also added to the traffic chaos on the 27-km arterial road.
The notification was issued on Monday and the ban will be implemented from today on the north-bound stretch from Kalanagar to Dahisar on an experimental basis for the next 15 days. The situation will then be reviewed after which a decision to implement it on the south-bound lane will be taken. The traffic department hopes that the ban will reduce the travel time from two-and-a-half to two hours.
Source: Mumbai Mirror
(At The Quint, we are answerable only to our audience. Play an active role in shaping our journalism by becoming a member. Because the truth is worth it.)