Belthangady: Trapped leopard rescued, released in forest

Bengaluru, Feb 14: Bengaluru Police on Friday said that it has busted a gang engaged in e-commerce fraud over the online marketplace who were involved in 200 of the 316 cheating cases registered last year.

"We registered 316 cases for cheating through online marketplaces last year. We have busted a gang operating from Rajasthan's Bharatpur and arrested 5 people. They are responsible for 200 out of 316 cases. We are questioning the accused," Bhaskar Rao, Commissioner of Police, Bengaluru told reporters here.

Explaining their modus operandi, the Police Commissioner said, "There were fictitious buyers and sellers on the online marketplace. These people used to call up prospective buyers and sellers. The products that were shown were two-wheelers, four-wheelers, electronic items and furniture."

"People used to send their money to these fraudsters using their QR code. The fraudsters were operating from Bharatpur in Rajasthan. A police team of 15 was sent to the place from where they were operating. Rajasthan police gave us full cooperation and we were able to arrest five persons," he added.

Rao said that these fraudsters had an idea about the loopholes in the e-commerce sector and exploited them.
"Some of those arrested were employed in the e-commerce and banking business and they had an idea about the loopholes in this sector," he said.

"We warn the citizens to ensure that they verify the antecedents of the buyers and sellers in this sector before spending money on these platforms," he added.

New Delhi, Feb 29: The arsonists, who were allegedly hired by the pro-CAA politicians in Delhi to unleash violence against Muslims, did not even spare the residence of Border Security Force personnel Mohammed Anees.

While the jawan, who has spent three years guarding the borders along Jammu and Kashmir, had hoped that his job profile mentioned on the nameplate hung outside their two-storey house would discourage the vandals, he was proved wrong. 

The nameplate on house number 76 in Khas Khajuri Gali clearly mentioned it was the property of a security force personnel who protects India’s borders from foreign invasions. Yet, it was burned down on the afternoon of February 25.

First, the ruthless goons set the vehicles parked outside the jawan’s house on fire, then they torched his home. Stones were also pelted at his house amid slogans of “idhar aa Pakistani, tujhe naagarikta dete hai” (Come here Pakistani, get your citizenship). 

Apart from Anees, his father Mohammed Moonis, 55, uncle Mohd Ahmed, 59, and 18-year-old cousin Niha Parveen were in the house. Sensing what was about to go down next, they all escaped from the house, and were helped by paramilitary troops.

Charred remains of the house now stand where the house was till three days ago. In the two lanes of Khajuri Khas near Anees’s house, 35 houses were set on fire. 

The loss suffered by the BSF soldier’s family was perhaps greater as they had kept all their life’s savings inside: two weddings in the family were to take place in the next three months.

Niha Parveen was to get married in April and Anees himself was to get married the following month. “All the things we collected all our life, jewellery – two gold necklaces, silver jewellery, it is all gone,” the family said.

“We used to buy jewellery on instalments… used to give money every month and collected this jewellery,” they said. Rs 3 lakh in cash for the wedding arrangements also got burnt along with other valuables and all their belongings.

Khajuri Khas is a Hindu-majority area, but Anees’s family says no neighbour of theirs was involved in the attack. “People came from outside.” Instead, their Hindu neighbours were asking the rioters to leave. They requested them to leave and helped douse the vehicles on fire.

Bhopal, Mar 10: Senior Congress leader Digvijay Singh on Tuesday parried questions on the exact number of MLAs supporting the party in Madhya Pradesh amid a political crisis triggered by the resignation of Jyotiraditya Scindia and 14 MLAs loyal to him.

Repeating his allegation that the BJP was trying to destabilise the Congress-led government, Singh told reporters that the BJP had arranged three chartered planes for Bengaluru on Monday to fly out some MLAs loyal to Scindia.

"We want to know why Bengaluru is used every time to destabilise governments?" he questioned.

When asked about the number of MLAs supporting the Congress in the current political scenario, Singh only said, "Just wait".

He said an atmosphere of uneasiness has been prevailing in the BJP since the Kamal Nath government started cracking a whip on various mafias.

"We (the state government) are exposing Vyapam scam, e-tendering scam, Madhyam scam. In the honey-trap case, BJP men were found to be involved. This will be exposed," he said.

The political crisis in Madhya Pradesh precipitated with the resignation of Jyotiraditya Scindia over his apparent marginalisation in the state politics. Following Scindia's suit, 14 legislators loyal to him have sent their resignation letters via e-mail to Madhya Pradesh Raj Bhavan.

Scindia was subsequently expelled from the Congress by party president Sonia Gandhi.

Speculation that the Guna royal might join the BJP gained ground after he met Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Delhi this morning.