NEW DELHI, Jan 6: A chargesheet has been filed under the provisions of the anti-money laundering law against Himachal Pradesh-based Manav Bharti University and its promoters in a case linked to alleged sale of fake degrees, the Enforcement Directorate said on Friday.
A special court in Shimla that tries cases booked under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) took cognisance of the prosecution complaint (chargesheet) on January 4, the federal agency said in a statement.
A total of 16 entities have been named in the chargesheet that includes the Solan-based Manav Bharti University, promoter Raj Kumar Rana and others, it said.
“The accused Raj Kumar Rana with the help of other co-accused sold fake degrees in lieu of money in the name of Manav Bharti University, Solan,” the agency alleged.
“Funds obtained from this illegal activity were used by Rana to acquire various movable and immovable assets across various states in his own name and in the name of family members and entities,” it said.
The money laundering case stems from three Himachal Police FIRs filed against the accused “in the matter of fake degree scam of Manav Bharti University, Solan”, it said.
The agency earlier had attached assets worth ₹194 crore in this case. (Agencies)
ED Files Money Laundering Chargesheet Against Himachal-Based Manav Bharti University
17 estranged Ghulam Nabi Azad loyalists return to Congress fold
Srinagar, Jan 06: At least 17 leaders, who had resigned from the basic membership of the Congress and had joined former chief minister Ghulam Nabi Azad led party, Friday rejoined the party in New Delhi.
The leaders had resigned to support former chief minister Ghulam Nabi Azad, who later formed his own party—Democratic Azad Party, which has now been renamed as Democratic Progressive Azad Party.
News agency KNO reported a press conference held at New Delhi saying the former deputy chief minister Tara Chand and former minister Peerzada Mohammad Sayeed were among the 17 leaders, who rejoined Congress today.
The leaders include Tara Chand, Peerzada Muhammad Sayeed, Balwan Singh, Advocate Muzaffar Paray, Advocate Mohinder Bhardwaj, Bhushan Dogra, Virodh Sharma, Narendra Sharma, Naresh Sharma, Amresh Mangotra, Subhash Baghat, Santosh Manhas, Badrinath Sharma, Varun Mangotra, Anuradha Sharma and Vijay Sargotra.
MP Rajya Sabha and AICC General Secretary (Organization), K C Venugopal said the leaders have joined the party again.
He said these leaders and people from across the country including Jammu & Kashmir have also extended their support to the Bharat Jodo Yatra.
He said that former Congress leaders have also observed that they should also extend their support to their own party and thus decided to join back.
Tara Chand while talking to reporters during the presser said that it is time for secular forces to join hands to defeat the ill designs on the ground.
“The secular minded people should join hands to protect the country,” he said.
Not hiding coronavirus infections or death figures, claims China
Washington, Jan 6: China has denied allegations that it is hiding Covid infection or death figures, saying the severe illness and death in the country compares favourably with other nations, the media reported on Friday.
According to South China Morning Post, Beijing’s embassy in Washington, DC, countered allegations after several countries, including the World Health Organisation (WHO), criticised China for withholding actual Covid figures, requesting the country to come clean on the infection surge and hospitalisations.
“China has always shared its information and data responsibly with the international community,” Liu Pengyu, spokesman for Beijing’s Washington embassy, said in a news briefing.
Chinese scientists are “now working with WHO to have further discussions about the data,” he said, adding that in the last month, “we have two exchanges with the WHO”.
Last week, Mike Ryan, the WHO’s emergencies director said that the current figures being published from China under-represented the numbers of hospital admissions, ICU admissions and “particularly in terms of death”.
The WHO had said that the curbs on travellers from China by various countries is “understandable” in the absence of comprehensive information from the ground.
“In the absence of comprehensive information from #China, it is understandable that countries around the world are acting in ways that they believe may protect their populations,” WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus had said in a tweet.
China’s National Health Commission (NHC) has stopped publishing daily Covid-19 case data, handing over the charge to the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), as nations, including India, ask the country to share actual Covid data on an urgent basis.
However, it will still take days for the CDC to activate the epidemic monitor reporting system and allow the organisation to collect and report infection data effectively.
Plane crashes into temple in Madhya Pradesh’s Rewa during training, pilot dies
Madhya Pradesh, Jan 6: One pilot died and another was injured after the plane they were flying in crashed into a temple in Rewa of Madhya Pradesh in the early hours of Friday, police said.
The mishap took place early this morning and the flight was a training flight, Rewa SP Navneet Bhasin said.
The aircraft of a private company was taxiing from Chorhata Airstrip, when it crashed after colliding with the dome of a temple in Dumri Village of Rewa district.
“The plane collided with a temple during training, one pilot has died, and the other is injured and is being treated at Sanjay Gandhi Medical College,” Navneet Bhasin, SP, Rewa said.
A team of police personnel reached the spot. Prima facie, bad weather and fog condition prevailing in the area are being attributed as the reason for the crash.
Further information is awaited. (Agencies)
India Records 188 New Covid Cases In 24 Hours
Coronavirus Highlights: India Records 188 New Covid Cases In 24 Hours
COVID-19 LIVE: Three Covid-related deaths were reconciled by Kerala.
New Delhi: India on Thursday reported 188 new Covid cases while the active cases declined to 2,554, according to Union health ministry.
There has been a decrease of 16 cases in the active Covid caseload in a span of 24 hours.
The total tally of Covid cases has been recorded at 4,46,79,319 and the death count stands at 5,30,710, with three deaths reconciled by Kerala, the data stated.
The daily positivity has been recorded at 0.10 per cent while the weekly positivity has been pegged at 0.12 per cent, the ministry said.
Deserting Azad, senior leaders to return to Congress today
Jammu, Jan 6: In a major setback to former state chief minister Ghulam Nabi Azad, over half a dozen senior leaders who had joined Azad could be returning to the Congress on Friday.
Sources close to these leaders, including former deputy chief minister Tara Chand and former minister Peerzada Muhammad Syed said over half a dozen former senior Congress leaders, who had joined Azad’s Democratic Azad Party (DAP), would return to the Congress on Friday.
“Those scheduled to return to the Congress include over half a dozen senior leaders and their ‘Ghar wapsi’ will take place at the party headquarters in New Delhi.
“J&K Congress president, Vikar Rasool Wani will be present during the Ghar wapsi ceremony”, sources said.
Azad had formed his own party, the Democratic Azad Party (DAP) and announced his decision to take part in the forthcoming Assembly elections in J&K.
Unless he is able to hold his flock intact, Azad’s dream to provide an alternative to the people of J&K could become a damp squib.
Rain, snowfall likely in J&K during next 48 hours: MeT
Srinagar, Jan 6: The weather was cold and dry in J&K during the last 24 hours as the MeT office said on Friday that rain and snow is likely to occur in the next 48 hours.
“Rain and snow is likely to occur in J&K during the next 48 hours,” an official of the MeT department said.
Dense fog affected normal life in Jammu city today.
Srinagar had minus 5.5, Pahalgam minus 8.6 and Gulmarg minus 5 degrees Celsius as the minimum temperature today.
In Ladakh region, Kargil had minus 18.1 and Leh minus 14.6 as the minimum temperature.
Jammu had 3.7, Katra 4.6, Batote 3.6, Banihal 5.4 and Bhaderwah 0.6 as the minimum temperature.
Uttarakhand CM Pushkar Singh Dhami to lead Joshimath rescue and rehabilitation operations
Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami on Friday said that in the wake of the land subsidence at Joshimath in Chamoli district, he would hold a high-level meeting in Dehradun this evening.
“I will hold a high-level meeting with top officials in Dehradun this evening regarding landslides in Joshimath and cracks in houses,” Uttarakhand CM said while talking to ANI. Apart from the officials of the Disaster Management, Irrigation, Home Department, Commissioner Garhwal Mandal and District Magistrate Chamoli will also participate in the meeting.
Dhami further said that he would visit Joshimath on Saturday and take stock of the situation.
“A team from BJP has also been sent there,” he added.
Notably, the BJP state unit has also formed a 14-member committee, under the coordination of the party’s state general secretary Aditya Kothari to assess the land subsidence incident and the damages being reported.
Joshimath, in the Chamoli district of Uttarakhand, is seeing severe landslides. Currently, all of the wards in the area have been affected by landslides.
Cracks have reportedly developed in as many as 561 houses in Joshimath as a result of continued land subsidence in the town, stated the District Disaster Management Department.
Following the appearance of cracks in the houses, a total of 66 families are reported to have migrated from Joshimath as of now.
Residents of Joshimath, a sacred town in Uttarakhand, have become alarmed after noticing fissures in the town’s houses and roadways and have been evacuated and shifted to night shelters of the municipality by the administration.
The affected people, their families, and children are currently living in night shelters, officials said.
The locals said that the people affected by the landslide, have been assured by the government that they will get pre-fabricated houses. However, they are worried about when the houses will be allotted to them.
The Uttarakhand government has formed a team of scientists to find out the reason behind the occurrence of land subsidence in Joshimath and the resultant damage reported to the houses.
The team will be visiting the spot and investigate the reason behind the land subsidence, said an official statement from the government.
According to an official statement, engineers from the Geological Survey of India, Wadia Institute, and IIT Roorkee have been included in the team formed on the instructions of Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami.
Cracks have reportedly developed in as many as 561 houses in Joshimath as a result of continued land subsidence in the town, stated the District Disaster Management Department.
Following the appearance of cracks in the houses, a total of 66 families are reported to have migrated from Joshimath as of now.
“Now the process of increasing cracks in Singhdhar and Marwadi has started. Badrinath NH near Singhdhar Jain locality and JP Company Gate in Marwadi, near the forest department check post, is continuously cracking. This crack is increasing every hour which is worrying,” said Joshimath Municipal Chairman Shailendra Pawar
Lt Gen Upendra Dwivedi reviews preparedness & arrangements for first batch of Agniveers
Lt Gen Upendra Dwivedi GOC-in-C Northern Command visited the state of the Art Agniveer training facility located at Jammu and Kashmir Light Infantry Regimental Centre, Dansal (District Jammu) to review the preparedness and arrangements for the first batch of Agniveers.
Recently the Ministry of Defence in a path breaking initiative under the Agniveer Yojana Signed MoUs with various stakeholders like NIOS, IGNOU and Director General of Training under MoS DE for facilitating continued education of serving Agniveers and providing appropriate skill certificates.
During the visit, Army Commander was briefed on the readiness of the Centre for Training including the newly created state of the art training infrastructure like Outdoor Musketry Training Facility, Training laboratories for Military Equipment etc. The youth of Jammu and Kashmir have shown considerable amount of interest in Agniveer recruitments . The selected Agniveers will undergo 10 weeks of Basic Military Training followed up by 21 weeks of Advance Military Training at this Regimental Centre.
Search operation continues to nab 3 men for escaping checkpoint in Rajouri
Jammu: The search operation to track down three suspected persons, who jumped a police checkpoint and escaped to a forest area in Jammu and Kashmir’s Rajouri district, continued on Thursday, officials said.
“We are searching the three persons who escaped into forest belt after jumping the checkpoint of police,” Additional Director General of Police (ADGP) Mukesh Singh said.
However, he clarified that there were no weapons or bags with them.
“Terror angle is unlikely in this case,” he added.
Security forces are on high alert in Rajouri after six people were killed in two terrorist attacks in Dhangri village of the district.
“A motorcycle with three riders broke a police naka at Thalka near Nowshera. However, policemen, with the help of locals, chased the two-wheeler and intercepted it at some distance,” a senior police officer said on Wednesday night.
However, the three persons, who were riding on the motorcycle, left the vehicle in the middle of road and escaped, he said. Searches have been launched to trace them, the officer said.