Supertech Money Laundering Investigation Leads Probe Team To DLF Doorstep

The Enforcement Directorate has searched the premises of realty major DLF in Gurugram as part of a money laundering investigation against real estate firm Supertech and its promoters.

The central agency has recovered some documents during the action that was carried out over the past few days, sources told news agency PTI.

The action is linked to the Enforcement Directorate (ED) investigation against Supertech, the sources said.

In a statement, DLF said a team of officials from the Enforcement Directorate visited their premises seeking information with respect to the investigation being conducted in the matter of Supertech.

"The officials sought details of transactions relevant to the said investigation. The company extended full cooperation by providing them all relevant documents in this regard. We would like to re-iterate that the said transactions were conducted in the ordinary course of business," DLF said.

"The company has always conducted its businesses in total compliance of the laws of the land and follows the highest standards of compliance and governance," DLF said.

The ED had arrested Supertech promoter RK or Ram Kishor Arora in this case in June.

It had then alleged that Mr Arora was the main controlling person of the group who decided to "divert" crores of funds of investors and homebuyers to various shell companies.

The money laundering case, filed under the criminal sections of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), stems from as many as 26 FIRs registered by the police departments of Delhi, Haryana and Uttar Pradesh against Supertech Limited and its group companies on allegations of cheating 670 homebuyers for an amount of Rs 164 crore.

The ED had said "huge amounts of money running into hundreds of crores were siphoned off through Supertech Group and they failed to adhere to their agreed obligations to provide the possession of flats to customers on time".

It claimed that Supertech Group "siphoned off Rs 440 crore received from customers and homebuyers for purchasing land in Gurugram in 2013-14 at highly inflated prices while their already promised projects in Noida were not completed".

A new project was launched on this newly acquired land and further advance was collected from hundreds of homebuyers and loans were taken from banks/NBFCs which also became NPA and were declared "fraud" by banks, it alleged.

Supertech Ltd, which was formed in 1988, has so far delivered around 80,000 apartments, mainly in the Delhi-NCR market. The company is currently developing around 25 projects across National Capital Region (NCR). It is yet to give possession to more than 20,000 customers.

The company has been in crisis since last year.

In August 2022, Supertech suffered a big setback when its nearly 100-metre-tall twin towers -- Apex and Ceyane -- located on Noida Expressway were demolished as per a Supreme Court order that found their construction within Emerald Court premises in violation of norms.

More than 3,700 kgs of explosives were used to demolish the two towers.

Mr Arora had then said that the company incurred a loss of about Rs 500 crore, including construction and interest costs, because of the demolition of its twin towers in Noida.

The company suffered another blow last year when the Delhi bench of the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) in March had ordered to initiate the insolvency proceedings against Supertech Ltd over a petition filed by the Union Bank of India for non-payment of dues of around Rs 432 crore.

However, this was challenged by Mr Arora before the NCLAT.

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3 Kuki MLAs Removed From Chairmanship Of Manipur Assembly Committees

Three MLAs in Manipur from the Kuki-Zo community have been removed from the chairmanship of committees of the state assembly. An assembly bulletin said the Speaker has appointed Mayanglambam Rameshwor chairman of the Committee on Public Undertakings, replacing the previous chairman.

Mayanglambam is the National People's Party (NPP) MLA from Kakching assembly constituency. The post was previously held by LM Khaute, who represents the Churachandpur seat.

A separate bulletin said Mao constituency's Naga People's Front (NPF) MLA Losii Dikho was appointed chairman of the Committee on Government Assurances. The post was earlier held by Saitu constituency's independent MLA Haokholet Kipgen.

Lamlai BJP MLA K Ibomcha was appointed chairman of the Assembly Library Committee in place of Vungzagin Valte, the BJP MLA from Thanlon constituency in Churachandpur district.

Valte was injured after being assaulted when ethnic violence started in Manipur between the Meiteis and Kuki tribes.

The bulletins concerning the appointments were issued on Wednesday.

The notifications did not cite any reason for the replacements, but as per Rule 198 (2) of the assembly, "if the chairman is for any reason is unable to act, the Speaker may appoint another chairman in his place".

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Iran Hangs 17-Year-Old Killing A Man In Brawl: Right Groups

Iran has executed a 17-year-old convicted of murder, two rights groups said on Saturday, expressing outrage that the Islamic Republic continues to hang people for crimes committed as minors.

Hamidreza Azari was executed on Friday in prison in the eastern town of Sabzevar in Razavi Khorasan province, the Norway-based Hengaw and Iran Human Rights (IHR) groups said in separate statements.

Persian-language satellite TV channel Iran International also reported the execution, saying Azari was the only child in his family and despite his age had already a few years ago started working as a scrap worker.

Citing documents they had seen, both Hengaw and IHR said he was 16 years old at the time of the crime and 17 when executed. He had reportedly been sentenced to death for killing a man in a brawl in May.

The rights groups said the execution marked another violation by Iran of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, which defines a child as any person under the age of 18.

"Iran is one of the few countries that sentences child convicts to death and executes more juveniles than all other countries," IHR said, adding that according to its data at least 68 minors have been executed in Iran since 2010.

IHR director Mahmood-Amiry Moghaddam added: "In Iran, if someone wants to get a driver's licence, they must be 18 years old, but 15 years old is enough to be executed."

IHR said Iran's latest penal code explicitly defined 15 as the age of criminal responsibility for boys.

The group said Iranian media had reported the execution of a person named as Hamidreza A. but falsely gave his age as 18 in a "deliberate attempt to evade accountability for violating international laws".

Iran on Thursday also executed a man in his early 20s who was the eighth person to be hanged in a case related to months of nationwide protests that erupted in September 2022.

The protests were sparked by the death in custody of Mahsa Amini, a 22-year-old Iranian Kurd, after her arrest in Tehran for an alleged breach of the Islamic republic's strict dress code for women.

Campaigners say Iran is on a spree of executions unprecedented in recent years, seeking to intimidate the public in the wake of the protests.

According to IHR, at least 684 people have been executed this year in Iran, mainly on drugs-related and murder charges.

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रोहित शर्मा का चहेता हुआ रिंकू सिंह का फैन, कहा- मैच फिनिश करना सीखना है

तिलक वर्मा ने रिंकू सिंह से एक सीजन पहले आईपीएल में अपनी छाप छोड़ दी थी लेकिन हैदराबाद का यह युवा खिलाड़ी राष्ट्रीय टीम के अपने साथी से टी20 के करीबी मैचों को ‘फिनिश’ (मैच का सकारात्मक अंत) करने कि कला सीखना चाहता है.

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When They Feel They Are Stumbling...: Sachin Pilot Attacks BJP

Expressing confidence in Congress winning the assembly polls in Rajasthan, party leader Sachin Pilot on Friday said that people have made up their minds and the party will return to power in the polling to be held on Saturday.

"Leaders must speak on development issues in rallies, what is the planning for the future, what is the report card now. If the public issues are given priority, then a good narrative will be created in the elections. Congress' campaign was very positive. Though BJP tried to personalize it, to stir up emotional issues, I think their campaign did not catch the public eye," Mr Pilot told ANI.

"People have made up their mind and voting tomorrow will be in favour of Congress," he added.

Asked about Prime Minister Narendra Modi's remark about alleged victimisation with him in the Congress, Mr Pilot said when BJP feels that they are losing, they start saying such things to divert from issues.

"Eight crore people live in Rajasthan. When the government is formed, there is the support of everyone - be it the farmers, youth, forward or the backward. Efforts should be made to bring everyone together. I think caste politics or religious politics is not a healthy sign for a democracy. We should set an example for the next generation... But whenever the BJP feels that they are stumbling and they are not going to get a majority and they will lose, they say things like this to create distractions. But people understand everything...I am satisfied that we will get good results on December 3," he said.

PM Modi, in his election rallies in the state earlier this week, alleged that Sachin Pilot was being victimised because his father Rajesh Pilot had challenged the Gandhi family once in the 1990s.

He also accused the Congress "royal family" of depriving "Gurjar son" Pilot of the chief minister's post.

Mr Pilot said "caste politics and religious politics" can be a threat to democracy.

He also called upon people to exercise their franchise on the voting day in large numbers.

"The most important thing is that the vote percentage should be good. Leader, policy, and leadership--one should vote considering these in mind," he said.

Voting will be held on November 25 in 199 of 200 assembly constituencies in the state. Over 5.2 crore people are eligible to vote in the polls.

The election to the Karanpur constituency has been adjourned due to the death of a Congress candidate.

In 2018, the Congress won 99 seats, and BJP got 73.

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BJP Candidate Puts Poster To Welcome Eknath Shinde, Sanjay Raut Reacts

A poster put up by a BJP candidate in Rajasthan assembly elections to welcome Maharashtra CM Eknath Shinde for the poll campaign has led to a slanging match between the two Shiv Sena factions, led by Shinde and Uddhav Thackeray.

On Friday, Sena (UBT) leader Sanjay Raut objected to Shinde being touted on the poster as Hinduhridaysamrat (emperor of Hindu hearts), a title used to describe Shiv Sena founder Bal Thackeray.

"What great deed has Shinde done to earn this title," Mr Raut said while speaking to reporters.

The poster was put up by workers of Balmukundacharya, a BJP candidate from Hawa Mahal assembly constituency to welcome Mr Shinde during the latter's recent poll campaign visit to Rajasthan.

"A new trend has started to term those who betrayed ideology for the greed of power," Mr Raut said, in an apparent reference to Mr Shinde and his group of 40 MLAs ditching Uddhav Thackeray last year to join the state government in Maharashtra.

The Shinde group termed Mr Raut's remarks as being the result of frustration. "Shinde is frustrated, that is why he is making such comments," Sena spokesperson Arun Sawant said.

"Why were leaders in the Thackeray group silent when Bal Thackeray was referred to without the title during the Maha Vikas Aghadi government led by Uddhav Thackeray," he said.

Responding to the controversy over Mr Shinde being labelled Hinduhridaysamrat, state BJP minister Sudhir Mungantiwar said, "One should understand that somebody else puts up such banners. Will Shinde himself put up his own banner? Workers are enthusiastic about leaders. It is natural for workers to have feelings for Mr Shinde, who they feel is going by the path followed by Bal Thackeray."

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Follow Orders If You Want To Do Business In India: Delhi High Court To Domain Name Registrars

The Delhi High Court on Friday cautioned domain name registrars (DNRs) against non-compliance of judicial orders and said if they want to do business in India, then they should follow its directions on taking action against those indulging in illegal activities online, or run the risk of being "blocked" by MEITY.

A bench headed by Acting Chief Justice Manmohan said DNRs cannot "become instrument of syndicating scams" and called upon them to "remain vigilant" in the face of misuse of known trademarks to register websites to carry out illegal and fraudulent activities.

"If you have to do business in India, we will lay guidelines and you have to comply. We will lay down a mechanism.. These (DNRs) people have to comply. We can't allow millions to be cheated. Some serious matter is going on here," said the bench, also comprising Justice Mini Pushkarna.

The court observed that there was a huge magnitude of business in the country for DNRs who cannot be allowed to become "scam units".

"We can't change the international system but if you operate in India,we will ask you to follow certain (norms).. We will tell MEITY (Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology) to block the DNR if you don't comply," it said.

The court's observations came while dealing with a case initiated by it on its own in relation to the issue of misuse of trademark of several entities through fraudulent websites and the role of DNRs in such situations.

The court said that filing of repeated cases by aggrieved parties, whose trademarks are illegally used by offenders for registering their websites, has to stop and the DNRs should look into preventing registration of such offending domains in the first instance.

The court made GoDaddy and the Ministry of Home Affairs parties to the proceedings and listed the matter for further hearing on January 9.

"You are a major player. You know when fraud is taking place," the court told GoDadday's counsel, adding that the entity should "think about" the concerns raised by it during the hearing in the "right perspective".

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2 Cousins Playing Hide-And-Seek Get Trapped In Freezer In Rajasthan, Die

Two girls died due to suffocation after they got trapped in an abandoned ice cream freezer while playing in their house in Rajsamand district of Rajasthan, police said on Friday.

The incident occurred on Thursday afternoon in the Khamnor area when the girls, who are cousins, were playing hide-and-seek in the house and hid in an unused freezer, SHO Bhawani Shankar said.

The duo -- Payal (10) and Ritika (11)-- got trapped when the freezer's door got closed from outside, Shankar said.

When their family members realised that the girls were missing for a long time, they started looking for the duo and found them dead inside the freezer, he added.

The bodies were handed over to the family members after post-mortem on Friday, the SHO said.

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Don't Push "Pandemic Panic Button": Scientists On China Pneumonia Outbreak

Leading scientists urged caution over fears of another pandemic on Thursday after the World Health Organization requested more information from China on a rise of respiratory illnesses and pneumonia clusters among children.

"We have to be careful," said Marion Koopmans, a Dutch virologist who advised the WHO on COVID-19. "We really need more information, particularly diagnostic information."

Concerns were first sparked internationally by an alert published on Tuesday by the monitoring service ProMED, part of the International Society for Infectious Diseases. It called for more information about "undiagnosed pneumonia - China (Beijing, Liaoning)".

The standard wording of the alert echoed the first-ever notice about what would become COVID-19, sent on Dec. 30 2019: "Undiagnosed pneumonia - China (Hubei)."

Scientists said the similarity of the two alerts had stirred as yet unfounded worries the surge may be caused by another emerging pathogen that could spark a pandemic.

They said based on the information so far, it was more likely to be a rise in other common respiratory infections like flu, as was seen in many parts of the world after COVID lockdowns were lifted. It could also signal a resurgence of COVID itself.

The WHO always requests information from countries when undiagnosed or unknown diseases are reported, which happens fairly regularly. However, it does not always put out a press release about doing so, as it did on Wednesday.

Brian McCloskey, a public health expert who also advised WHO on the pandemic, said: "What we are seeing is WHO's International Health Regulations system in action", referring to the rules governing how countries work with WHO on potential outbreaks.

"I am not going to push the pandemic panic button on the basis of what we know so far, but I will be very keen to see the response to WHO from China and see the WHO's assessment following that," he said.

Both the WHO and China have faced questions over transparency during the early days of COVID. WHO has also since criticised China for withholding data about infections and deaths when it lifted its "zero-COVID" measures, as well as about the origins of the pandemic.

China has 24 hours to respond to the WHO under the regulations.

But some said it was unclear if the illnesses reported were actually undiagnosed. The story which sparked the ProMED alert came from FTV News in Taiwan on Tuesday. In China itself, there has been a lot of recent coverage of a rise in respiratory illnesses, including among children.

The authorities there have attributed it to the lifting of COVID-19 restrictions and the circulation of viruses like influenza as well as mycoplasma pneumoniae, a common bacterial infection that typically affects younger children.

"There is a plausible hypothesis that this could be what we have seen in other parts of the world when restrictions were lifted," said Koopmans, reflecting the views of all of the scientists Reuters contacted.

Virologist Tom Peacock from Imperial College London, who has closely tracked the emergence of new coronavirus variants, said there were good tools available to "pretty rapidly" pick up emerging influenza or coronaviruses, so it seemed unlikely that this had happened under the radar.

"(I) suspect it may end up being something more mundane or a combination of things - say COVID, flu, RSV - but hopefully we'll know more soon," he said.

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INDvAUS: ऑस्ट्रेलिया ने भारतीय बॉलर्स की बुरी गत की, जैसे वर्ल्ड कप फाइनल...

India vs Australia 1st T20I: भारत और ऑस्ट्रेलिया के बीच 23 नवंबर को टी20 मैच खेला गया. भारत ने टॉस जीतकर पहले फील्डिंग का फैसला चुना. लेकिन कप्तान सूर्यकुमार यादव का यह फैसला भारतीय गेंदबाजों से ज्यादा ऑस्ट्रेलिया के बैटर्स को रास आया, जिसने 200 रन से बड़ा स्कोर खड़ा कर दिया.

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41-Bed Hospital Prepared Treat Workers After Being Rescued From Uttarakhand Tunnel

A 41-bed hospital was readied on Wednesday at the Community Health Centre in Chinyalisaur in this district for the care of 41 trapped labourers after they are evacuated from the Silkyara tunnel.

Rescue efforts at the tunnel gained momentum on Wednesday with the American auger machine resuming drilling through the accumulated rubble at the collapsed site inside the tunnel and penetrating up to 45 metres by the afternoon to prepare an escape passage for the trapped labourers.

Around 12 metres more have to be dug through the rubble to lay two more 800 mm diametre steel pipes of 6 metre length each for the stranded workers to crawl through.

All the hospitals in the district as well as AIIMS, Rishikesh have been kept on high alert.

Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami has arrived at the Matli helipad on way to an on-the-spot inspection of the rescue operations.

Officials said a team of 15 doctors has been deployed.

A makeshift hospital consisting of eight beds has also been set up at the site for the immediate medical care of the trapped workers if required.

Several ambulances and a helicopter have been kept on standby, they said. 

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Court Grants Time To Opposition To Reply To Plea Against Use Of INDIA Acronym

The Delhi High Court on Wednesday granted time to several opposition parties to respond to a petition to restrain them from using the acronym INDIA (Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance).

A bench headed by Acting Chief Justice Manmohan also granted time to the Centre to file its reply to the public interest litigation which alleged that by using INDIA acronym, the parties were taking "undue advantage in the name of our country".

"We need a week-ten days more time to put in our reply," Additional Solicitor General Chetan Sharma submitted on behalf of the central government.

Senior advocate Abhishek Manu Singhvi, who represented nine political parties including Congress, Trinamool Congress, DMK and others, said there were "preliminary objections" against the petition and the Supreme Court has already dealt with the issue.

On the last hearing, he had said the petition was not maintainable.

The bench, also comprising Justice Mini Pushkarna, listed the matter for hearing on January 4.

Petitioner Girish Bharadwaj had approached the high court earlier and sought interim order staying the use of acronym INDIA by 26 political parties and to also prohibit the use of the national flag with the acronym INDIA by the respondent political alliance.

The political parties which have been arrayed as respondents are Congress, Trinamool Congress, DMK, Aam Aadmi Party, Janata Dal (United), Rashtriya Janata Dal, Jharkhand Mukti Morcha, Nationalist Congress Party (Sharad Pawar), Shiv Sena (UBT), Samajwadi Party, Rashtriya Lok Dal, Apna Dal (Kamerawadi).

Besides, the other political parties are Jammu and Kashmir National Conference, Peoples Democratic Party, Communist Party of India (Marxist), Communist Party of India, Marumalarchi Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam, Konganadu Makkal Desia Katchi (KMDK), Viduthalai Chiruthaigal Katchi and Indian Union Muslim League.

Revolutionary Socialist Party, Communist Party of India (Marxist-Leninist) Liberation, All India Forward Bloc, Kerala Congress (Joseph), Kerala Congress (Mani) and Manithaneya Makkal Katchi (MMK) have also been arrayed as respondent parties.

The petition, through advocate Vaibhav Singh, stated that these parties have said that they will contest the 2024 Lok Sabha elections together against the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) and referred to the statements of West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and Congress leader Rahul Gandhi.

"... By dragging the name of our nation, Mr. (Rahul) Gandhi very cunningly presented the name of their alliance as the name of our nation and tried to show that the NDA/ BJP and Hon'ble Prime Minister Mr. (Narendra) Modi is in conflict with our own nation, that is, INDIA and this attempt of Mr. Gandhi had created confusion in the mind of common people that the upcoming general election of 2024 will be a fight between political parties or between alliance and our country.

"That by creating this confusion the respondent political parties want to take undue advantage in the name of our country," the plea has said.

It has said that the petitioner gave a representation to the ECI but no action was taken after which he approached the high court with the petition.

In response to the petition, Election Commission, represented by lawyer Sidhant Kumar, has told the high court that it has no legal authority to regulate "political alliances" as they are not recognised as "regulated entities" under the Representation of the People Act or the Constitution.

The court had issued notice on the plea in August.

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16 Foreigners Charged By Poland For Allegedly Spying For Russia

Poland said Wednesday it had charged 16 foreign individuals with spying for Russia, for allegedly preparing acts of sabotage and gathering information on military equipment deliveries to Ukraine.

The charges against the spy ring, which was dismantled in March, were announced by the office of the intelligence service coordinator Mariusz Kaminski.

"Charges have been filed against 16 foreigners accused of conducting espionage activities on behalf of Russian intelligence services on Polish territory and participating in an organised criminal group," it said in a statement.

"Their assigned tasks included identifying military facilities and critical infrastructure, monitoring and documenting trains transporting military and humanitarian aid to Ukraine and preparing for train derailments," it added.

The office said all of the accused had confessed to committing the acts, which also included engaging in propaganda with the goal of turning Polish sentiment against neighbouring Ukraine.

Justice Minister Zbigniew Ziobro said on X, formerly Twitter, that each of the accused faces up to 10 years in prison.

Poland has been one of the major donors of military equipment to Ukraine and served as a transport hub for arms coming from its Western allies.

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सूर्यकुमार बोले- फाइनल की हार को भुलाने में लगेगा समय, मैं अभी भी यंग, लेकिन..

India vs Australia T20I Series: भारत और ऑस्ट्रेलिया के बीच 5 मैचों की टी20 सीरीज कल यानी 23 नवंबर से शुरू हो रही है. इससे पहले कप्तान सूर्यकुमार यादव ने टीम की प्लानिंग और युवा खिलाड़ियों को लेकर खास बात कही है.

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Bihar Releases Official Notification For Increasing Quota From 50 To 65%

The Nitish Kumar government on Tuesday issued gazette notifications for raising the quota for deprived castes from 50 to 65 per cent in state government jobs and educational institutions, after receiving assent from Governor Rajendra Vishwanath Arlekar.

According to sources the Governor had sent both the bills - The Bihar Reservation of Vacancies in Posts and Services Amendment Bill and the Bihar Reservation (Admission In Educational Institutions) Amendment Bill, 2023 - to the state government after giving his formal assent, paving the way for implementation of the new quota percentage in state government jobs and educational institutions.

The Bihar Reservation of Vacancies in Posts and Services Amendment Bill and the Bihar Reservation (Admission In Educational Institutions) Amendment Bill, 2023 were recently cleared by the state legislature during the winter session days after the government tabled the detailed analysis of the state's landmark caste survey report in the assembly.

Both the bills sought a hike in the quota for Scheduled Castes (SC) from 16 to 20 per cent, Scheduled Tribes (STs) from 1 to 2 per cent, extremely backward castes (EBCs) from 18 to 25 per cent and other backward classes (OBCs) from 15 to 18 per cent to elevate the total quantum of caste-based reservations from 50 to 65 per cent.

The total quantum of reservation in jobs and educational institutions will now stand at 75 per cent in the state, after taking into account the 10 per cent already existing quota for economically weaker sections (EWS).

Mr Arlekar's assent came just days after Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar expressed hope that the Raj Bhavan would return both bills after the formal assent of the Governor.

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