15 killed as minibus falls into gorge in J-K

New Delhi, Jan 6: A blind student who is pursuing research in Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) was also attacked by the mob that perpetrated violence in the University yesterday.

"I thought that the mob which came yesterday would disperse after raising a few slogans but they indulged in violence. They were targeting ABVP students. They beat me with sticks and rods. When I went to the AIIMS Trauma Centre, I came to know that there are many other injured students there," Surya Prakash, the blind student pursuing research in the University told ANI.

"I talked to my family members. They are really worried about the situation here. I qualified in the National Eligibility Test (NET) last year but I want to study and hence I am continuing research in JNU. How can we do anything in this atmosphere of fear? I am receiving calls from anonymous numbers threatening me not to come in front of the media. They are saying that as I am blind, I would become the face of this case," he added.

Another PhD student, Santosh Bhagat recounted his experience.

"In the evening at around 7 pm, many masked men entered the hostel. They had rods and sticks in their hands. We tried to go out but the attackers had entered the premises by then. I locked my room from inside but the attackers broke the door and entered my room and attacked me. They pushed me from the first floor and I fell down and sustained an injury. Later, I took shelter at one of the Professor's flat. Later, I was taken to the AIIMS Trauma Cantre," Bhagat said.

On Sunday evening, more than 30 students of the university, including JNUSU President Aishe Ghosh, were injured and were taken to the AIIMS Trauma Centre after a masked mob entered the JNU and attacked them and professors with sticks and rods.

The JNU administration and political leaders, cutting across political lines, condemned the attack on students and urged the police to take action against the perpetrators.

Meanwhile, the situation remained tense but peaceful outside JNU on Monday morning as the university guards maintained a strict vigil at the gate, checking I-cards of all those entering the university.

Ahmedabad, Jan 20: Cops in Gandhinagar fell in a catch-22 situation when a state government employee approached them with a complaint that the 26-year-old woman class teacher of his 14-year-old son had gone missing taking his son in tow. The man, who works at Udyog Bhavan in Gandhinagar said the woman had seduced his teenage son, who studies in class VIII and taken him away with her. The boy had gone missing from 4pm on Friday, and the classteacher was also missing.

A police official said the woman teacher had been too intimate with the allegedly missing boy for around a year, and the school authorities had recently rebuked them. “As their relationship was unaccepted, they left their homes on Friday,” he said. It was rare to find a case of a woman teacher eloping with her teenage student, the official added.

An FIR for elopement under Section 363 IPC has been registered with Kalol city police in Gandhinagar district. The complaint stated the teacher is a resident of Darbari chawl in Kalol town.

“When I reached home at around 7pm, I found my son missing. My wife told me he had left home at around 4pm. We searched for him in the neighbourhood and among relatives, but couldn’t trace him,” claims the teenage boy’s father in the FIR. “I went to the teacher’s house but they were not there,” the man stated.

Inspector K K Desai of Kalol city police said the missing duo could not be traced as they were not carrying cellphones.

Tengnoupal, Jan 21: A woman IPS officer has alleged that a rifleman of Assam Rifles physically assaulted and molested her at a check post near Moreh town in Manipur's Tengnoupal district, police said on Tuesday.

Based on a written complaint of the IPS officer, an FIR has been registered against rifleman P K Pandey and a summon has been issued to him to appear before the concerned police station, the police said.

Manipur DGP L M Khaute told reporters on Monday, "We have made contacts with the Assam Rifles authorities. A complaint has been lodged by the officer." In her complaint, the IPS officer said that on reaching Khudengtabi check post on Sunday afternoon one of her escorts, who was not in uniform, told the frisking party of Assam Rifles to register their entry.

Despite showing their identity cards, the rifleman allegedly detained them, she said.

"We offered to search ourselves and the vehicle, but he was not interested", she said.

The rifleman began hitting the official vehicle and "misbehaved, humiliated, harassed and assaulted me and my escort personnel," she alleged.

The IPS officer also alleged that the rifleman molested her and when her escorts tried to intervene, he thrashed them.

She further accused the rifleman of making "sexually coloured" remarks against her, using abusive language and even tried to snatch her phone when she tried to call her senior officers.

The issue was brought under control after the matter was reported to the Brigadier of 26th Assam Rifles and the Major of the D-company of 12th AR, police said.