Mangaluru: Modi welcome banner puts citizens in danger

Dubai, May 30: Taking advantage of Vande Bharat Mission, a notorious NRI conman has fled to India through a repatriation flight after duping several businessmen in United Arab Emirates and stealing goods worth nearly six million dirhams.

Yogesh Ashok Yariava, 36, owner of the fraudulent Royal Luck Foodstuff Trading and prime suspect in the audacious scam took a flight to Hyderabad from Abu Dhabi on May 11 with around 170 repatriates.

His mandatory two-week quarantine period would have ended on May 25, but for his 40 odd victims a protracted battle for justice has just begun.

Last Wednesday many of them trooped down to the Indian Consulate office in Dubai in the hope of getting an audience with Consul General Vipul. The following day they went to Bur Dubai police station clutching dud bank cheques.

In a replay of the familiar trading scam, conmen representing Royal Luck Foodstuff approached unsuspecting traders and made bulk purchases against post-dated cheques.

They bought anything they could get their hands on: Facemasks, hand sanisters and medical gloves worth nearly half a million dirhams from Skydent Medical Equipment, Raheeq Laboratories and GSA Star; rice and nuts (Dh393,000) from Al Baraka Foods; tuna, pistachios and saffron (Dh300,725) from Yes Buy General Trading; French fries and mozzarella cheese (Dh229,000) from Mehdu General Trading; frozen Indian beef (Dh207,000) from Al Ahbab General Trading and halwa and tahina (Dh52812) from Emirates Sesame Factory. It’s a long list and it keeps getting longer as more victims come forward.

When their post-dated cheques started bouncing, the traders rushed to Royal Luck’s Opal Tower office in Business Bay. But it was too late. They had shut down and all their 18 staffers had disappeared. Visits to their warehouses also drew a blank.

“Calls made to the company’s sweet-talking purchase managers who visited us days earlier carrying fancy business cards remained unanswered,” said Chandrasekaran Ganesan of Ajman-based Skydent Medical Equipment which supplied protective face masks worth Dh175,875.

Another business owner, Anand Asar said he visited Royal Luck’s office after his cheque of Dh79,552 returned marked insufficient funds. “The security guard at the building told us their staff was last seen on May 17,” said Asar who has since lodged a police complaint.

“I am devastated. I don’t know how I will recover my losses,” said another trader.

Victims reckon the ill-gotten goods have been sold to third parties at dirt cheap prices.

“They have got millions of dirhams worth of goods against worthless pieces of paper. The scammers would rack up huge profits even if they sell our stuff for one tenth their price,” said another trader who pegged his losses at Dh200,000.

The scam comes close on the heels a Dh4 million fruit loot in which 810 tonnes of fruits shipped by Indian exporters to OPC Foodstuff Trading in Deira, Dubai were similarly stolen last month.

Legal adviser Salam Pappinisseri from Sharjah based United Advocates that represents five firms which have collectively lost over Dh550,000 said they are weighing legal action against the prime suspect Yogesh Ashok Variava in both India and the UAE.

“Yogesh, originally from Mumbai, absconded from the UAE with large amounts of money on an emergency evacuation flight. It’s strange that the fraudster got a seat in the flight which was meant to bring stranded Indian citizens who had registered with the Indian embassy and consulate requesting repatriation on urgent grounds,” said Pappinisseri.

Bengaluru, Mar 5: Amulya Leona, the 19-year-old woman who captured a nation’s attention by shouting full-throated slogans, allegedly in support of Pakistan, at a rally in Bengaluru, has reportedly held her composure under grilling by the Special Investigating Team (SIT).

The woman was arrested after her speech to an audience of protesters against the Citizenship Amendment Act on February 19, and was slapped with sedition charges.

Sources in the police said Amulya Leona seemed to be absolutely normal during interrogation by senior cops, unlike most other persons in such circumstances.

Not once throughout the grilling nor in judicial custody did she break down.

Amulya is said to have defended herself on charges that she shouted pro-Pakistan slogans. She made it clear that by speaking out at the rally at Freedom House, she did not mean to support the enemy country and that she was not against India.

Lower-rung officers said Amulya Leona seemed to be considerably influenced by the late firebrand activist Gowri Lankesh, who was shot dead in 2017.

In fact, the policewomen to whose charge she was entrusted right after she was arrested are said to have heaved a sigh of relief when she handed over to custody of prison staff.

An urban legend going around in lower-rung police circles is that Amulya Leona attended the funeral of Gowri Lankesh and fainted near where the late activist was buried. “It’s impossible for a 19-year-old to show such grit. We have seen hardcore criminals breaking down in custody. Forget about breaking down, Amulya Leona is becoming stronger,” they explain.

Kollam, Mar 27: A young IAS officer in Kerala has been booked by police after he left the state violating instructions to remain under home quarantine following his recent return from honeymoon abroad, officials said on Friday.

A First Information Report has been registered against Kollam sub-collector Anupam Mishra, who hails from Uttar Pradesh, based on a report from the Health department about the violation, Kollam Superintendent of Police T Narayanan said.

Describing the action of the officer as a “serious matter”, District Collector B. Abdul Nasser said Mishra had returned to Kerala on March 19 from his Malaysia-Singapore trip and was advised to remain under quarantine, as per the protocol for overseas returnees in the backdrop of coronavirus outbreak.

On his return to Kerala from the foreign trip, Mishra had undergone medical examination and did not show symptoms. His personal staff, including gunman, have also been kept under observation.

However, the officer had left for his brother’s place in Bengaluru without informing anyone, Nasser said.

When the Collector got in touch with him, Mishra informed him that he was in Bengaluru.

“He was on leave after his marriage and took permission to travel to Malaysia and Singapore. On his return I advised him to remain under home quarantine. Seems like he left to be with his family at Bengaluru,” Nasser told PTI.

However, police said Mishra’s mobile tower location shows Kanpur in Uttar Pradesh.

Authorities came to know on Thursday that Mishra, who had been staying alone in his quarters at Kollam, was not there after health department staff, who regularly visit people in quarantine, found the lights in his house switched off, police sources said.

“The officer has gone without prior permission or leave. He did not have any symptoms of the virus. Without informing us, he left. It is a serious matter, the collector said adding Mishra has been asked to provide his current address and travel details to Bengaluru.”

When an officer leaves his jurisdiction, he is supposed to inform the government, which Mishra did not do. He has also not taken prior permission for leaving the state, the later told reporters.

Coronavirus: Conflicts on hold for now as players face a common enemy
 China bars foreign visitors as imported COVID-19 cases rise
The state government has sought an explanation from the officer in this regard.

A case has been registered against him under various sections of the Indian Penal Code including 188 (disobedience to order duly promulgated by public servant), 269 (Negligent Act likely to spread infection of disease dangerous to life) and 271 (disobedience to quarantine rule), police said.

Kollam, is the only district in the state, which has not reported any positive case of COVID-19 so far. A total of 176 positive cases have been reported in the state so far.