Operation Rampal Cost Taxpayers Rs. 30 Crore: Report

November 28, 2014

Rampal TaxpayersChandigarh, Nov 28: The massive effort to locate and arrest self-styled religious leader Satguru Rampalji Maharaj cost taxpayers nearly Rs. 30 crore, the Punjab and Haryana Court in Chandigarh was told today. Rampal, 63, was charged with sedition earlier this month after a days-long siege of his sprawling compound in Haryana ended in his arrest along with hundreds of hardcore followers.

The police evacuated more than 10,000 followers from the fortified compound of the cult headed by 'Rampal' before entering the fortified ashram where he had remained hidden for several days. He was wanted for ignoring more than 40 court orders to appear to answer charges of murder.

"I am innocent," Rampal, a former engineer, told reporters as he was brought out, handcuffed, from a court in Chandigarh on November 20.

Police used tear gas, water cannon and bulldozers to storm his 12-acre base, breaching resistance from a human chain of supporters outside, and men throwing stones and bottles filled with acid from its roof.

The bodies of five women and one infant were found by officials.

Rampal's arrest was ordered initially over a 2006 murder case, in which he is accused of telling supporters to open fire on villagers, killing one and injuring six.

He heads a sect that worships the 15th-century poet and mystic Kabir, known for a message of tolerance that is followed by people of varied faiths.

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February 29,2020

Kollam, Feb 29: Seven-year-old Devananda, whose body was found in a lake, was laid to rest at Kudavattoor in the Kollam district of Kerala on Friday evening.

She was laid to rest near her father Pradeep Kumar's house in Kudavattoor. Earlier, the body was kept at her mother Dhanya's house in Ilavoor and Vakkanadu school, where she studied in Class 1, for the public to pay respect.

Hundreds of people visited to pay their last respects to the child.

An intense social media campaign was launched to trace the child after she was reported missing on Thursday morning.

According to police, an autopsy conducted in Thiruvananthapuram Medical College led to a preliminary conclusion that the cause of death was drowning. Residues of mud and silt have been found in her respiratory tract.

Signs of any kind of violence inflicted on the child have been ruled out. The body was released to the family after the autopsy.

Chief Minister of Kerala Pinarayi Vijayan and Opposition leader Ramesh Chennithala, BJP state president K Surendran were among many politicians who offered the condolences.

Many celebrities including Mammootty, Dulqar Salman, Kunchako Boban took to Facebook to pay their tribute to Devananda.

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January 15,2020

Mumbai, Jan 15: A relative of Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray was killed and three others injured when their car met with an accident on Mumbai-Nashik highway, police said on Wednesday.

The mishap took place at Sinnar in Nashik on Tuesday night when the CM's sister-in-law Vina Karande and six other relatives were returning from Shirdi in a sports utility vehicle (SUV), Nashik (Rural) Superintendent of Police Aarti Singh said.

The car driver apparently lost control over the wheels, following which the vehicle overturned on a roadside while passing through a narrow bridge, located around 190 km from here, the official said.

They were rushed to a hospital in Nashik where Ajay Karande, husband of Vina Karande, died during treatment, the official said.

The three others were undergoing treatment at the hospital, the police said, adding that their condition was reported to be out of danger.

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News Network
May 1,2020

Sangod, May 1: Claiming that "drinking alcohol will surely remove coronavirus from the throat", Congress MLA from Sangod, Bharat Singh Kundanpur, has in a letter to Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot urged the reopening of liquor stores in the state, which have been closed in the wake of nationwide lockdown.

"When coronavirus can be removed by washing hands with alcohol, then drinking alcohol will surely remove virus from the throat," Kundanpur wrote in his letter dated April 30.

He also alleged that the sale of illegal liquor and bootlegging had become rampant in the state due to the closure of liquor stores during the lockdown.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi had on March 24 announced a 21-day nationwide lockdown as a precautionary measure to contain the spread of COVID-19. The lockdown was later extended till May 3.

As many as 2,617 COVID-19 cases have been reported in Rajasthan, as per the latest update by the state Health Department.

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