25122024-LT-01.qxd 24-12-2024 22:45 Page 1 c m y b Ludhiana tribune SECURITY BEEFED UP AT POLICE STATIONS AFTER ATTACKS ARYAN CUP HOCKEY TOURNAMENT BEGINS FOR THE SLICE OF HAPPINESS After series of attacks on police stations across the state, Ludhiana police have taken security measures. P2 Kila Raipur, Heeran and Attiana began their campaign with victories in the Aryan Cup Hockey Tournament. P2 Bakery shops in Ludhiana have come up with a range of mouth-watering plum cakes. P4 » » FORECAST MAINLY CLEAR SKY MAX 19°C | MIN 7°C YESTERDAY MAX 20°C | MIN 6°C SUNSET WEDNESDAY 5.31 PM SUNRISE THURSDAY 7:22 AM » WEDNESDAY | 25 DECEMBER 2024 | LUDHIANA No alliance possible with Cong: BJP high command CIVIC BODY POLL Manav Mander Tribune News Service Ludhiana, December 24 A day after local units of both Congress and Bharatiya Janata Party indicated an alliance to form the House in Ludhiana Municipal Corporation, the state BJP chief has shown a red flag to the district unit, putting at rest all speculations. Now once again Aam Aadmi Party is left as the only contender to form the House and install a Mayor from the party. With one more councillor from the Shiromani Akali Dal today joining AAP the party , now has 43 councillors in its kitty and is short of five more to prove majority in the House and get the Mayor from their party elected. Chatarveer Singh Kamal Arora, a SAD winning candidate from ward No. 20, today joined the AAP . Vijay Rupani, Punjab incharge of the BJP issued a , formal letter to the district unit and asked them not to go ahead with an alliance with the Congress. BJP district president Rajneesh Dhiman said that as stated earlier the alliance was possible only after they got nod from the party high command. “The Punjab BJP chief has outrightly said no to this alliance and as said earlier we will not go beyond the decision taken by the party high command, so we have put an end to the talks in this regard. The only reason why we had initially decided to go ahead with this alliance was for the sake of development of the city. Now, the BJP and Congress alliance in Ludhiana to form the MC House is not possible,” he maintained. Later, BJP MP from Ludhiana Ravneet Singh Bittu took to X and posted, “There is no question of an alliance between the BJP and Congress in the Ludhiana Municipal Corporation. Our goal is a Congress-free India and supporting it goes against our principles. These specula- Festivity in air tions should be put to rest as no such alliance is possible,” said Bittu. District Congress chief Sanjay Talwar said that the leaders and workers of the local BJP unit understood the ground reality and the reason why it was necessary not to let AAP form the House, but their senior leaders have failed to do the same. “It is very unfortunate that this alliance could not happen. The main motive behind this alliance was the development of the city. We will never support AAP and will sit in the opposition and prove a strong one, keeping an eye on every step taken by them in the House,” said Talwar. Miscreant defrauds firm of ~86 lakh Kalvari Church near the CMC Hospital bedecked with colourful lights on the eve of Christmas in Ludhiana. PHOTO: ASHWANI DHIMAN Ludhiana, December 24 A Ludhiana-based textile company was defrauded of ~86 lakh by a cyber scamster, who whileposing as the company’s director, tricked the accountant into transferring the money into a bank account. According to the complaint, the scamster contacted the accountant, Amit Salariya, through WhatsApp, claiming to be the director, Shrenik Jain. He had set up a WhatsApp profile with Jain’s photo, making Amit believe he was talking to his boss. He instructed Amit to transfer ~86 lakh to a bank account with regard to a new project. Amit, unaware of the scam, transferred the money. Later, the frauded came to light. The police have filed a case. — TNS Rise in crime bothered police, residents Nikhil Bhardwaj Tribune News Service Ludhiana, December 24 The year turned out to be a happening year for Ludhiana Police Commissionerate with the police engaging criminals and gangsters, even shooting them in exchange of fire. Although it solved several major crimes cases, the only thing that is bothering the city residents is the rising crime, especially snatchings and thefts, and unsolved cases. Some cops also brought disrepute to city police by indulging in corruption. The highs The Ludhiana police proactively took on the criminals this year. Four incidents of exchange of fire took place in which cops caught criminals. On December 1, Gulab Singh was arrested after exchange of fire on Chandigarh road. On November 8, the police arrested Amit Kumar of Tibba road wanted in a robbery and snatching case following an encounter at Jassian Road. Similarly, on September 12, the Ludhiana police arrested a drug peddler, his brother and father at Mehmoodpura village. On June 22, two persons wanted in a case of attempt-to-murder were arrested after firing in Ram Enclave of the Chuharpur area. Both suspects suffered bullet injuries on their legs. On August 17, Vardhman Group CMD SP Oswal after receiving 25-30 fraudulent calls Traffic jam on a busy road in Ludhiana. fell into the trap and started transferring money to the callers’ accounts. He paid Rs 7 crore to the callers in five instalments. On September 17, the police cracked the case with the arrest two and recovered Rs 5.25 crore. Cracking a whip against drug smugglers the police in several instances have frozen their assets worth over Rs 42 crore and properties, 30 in Ludhiana district and 11 in other districts, have been attached. The police have also taken an initiative asking the heads of all police stations and crime wings to keep tab over repeated offenders. DCP Shubham Aggarwal who monitors the system, said during the recent arrests of snatchers, robbers and even drug peddlers, it was noticed that most of them were repeated offenders. To deter them from repeating crime, a daily data of criminals out on bail is shared with police station heads and incharges of crime wings. The Ludhiana police also resumed the e-challaning system after almost six years. The online challaning system has been made operational at several traffic signals in the city and challans are already being sent online. The lows Traffic in old city areas has been a mess for years. Wrong parking and encroachment by shopkeepers and roadside vendors is the main reason for daily traffic snarls in old city areas. Traffic police and MC has also carried out several campaigns in the past to ensure that traffic remains smooth in these areas, but the impact was seen for a few days only. Ludhiana has been shaken by a series of gruesome murder cases in January and April, leaving residents on edge and police investigators stumped. Despite the passage of time, the identities of the perpetrators and the motives behind the killings remain a mystery. In January, the body of a woman was found at Baghe Kalan village. In another shocking case, a passerby found a body chopped into pieces near Sherpur Chowk rail tracks wrapped in plastic bags. A third case involved the murder of 90-yearold Jamaldin, who was found dead with burns in his residential quarter on the premises of Ludhiana jail. Despite registering cases, the police have made little progress. Snatching incidents are on the rise in city areas. Apart from the other residents, factory workers have become the prime target of the snatchers. In some of the incidents, women have suffered injuries while trying to save their valuables. Although police has been catching them, still the menace is on the rise. In another case the VB arrested Nirdosh Kaur, ACP women , cell, Ludhiana, and her reader Beant Singh while taking Rs 30,000 in bribe. Around 100 people allegedly barged into a police station, vandalised it and also thrashed an ASI after a heated argument in July. c m y b Coach held for ‘sexually harassing’ girl student Controversy erupts over Kejriwal’s morphed videos Tribune News Service Tribune News Service Ludhiana, December 24 A karate coach has been booked for allegedly luring a BA student girl with the promise of getting her selected and then taking her to a room to sexually harass her. The student somehow managed to save herself. After informing the police, a case has been registered against the coach, Charanjeet Kashyap, and the police have arrested him. In the complaint given to the police, the student said that she was a BA-II year student. She had recently started taking karate classes in her semester. The student alleged that her coach often looked at her with wrong intentions. Many times he tried to do something inappropriate and she used to oppose him. The student said that the coach called her to the college on the pretext of selecting her on December 12. When she reached there with her friend, the coach sent her friend out and took her to a room in the college where the accused allegedly misbehaved with her and tried to sexually exploit her. Ludhiana, December 24 A controversy has erupted on social media after morphed videos of Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) national convener Arvind Kejriwal’s old speech on Bhim Rao Ambedkar went viral. The Ludhiana police yesterday filed multiple FIRs against a Delhibased lawyer and entrepreneur, Vibhor Anand, and several unidentified individuals. The six FIRs lodged at various police stations in Ludhiana allege that the accused morphed Kejriwal’s videos to offend the SC/ST community and damage his reputation. AAP leaders and supporters filed complaints, stating that the morphed videos were shared on social media platforms, hurting sentiments and tarnishing Kejriwal’s image. The police booked the accused under various sections, including forgery, intentional insult and public mischief under the SC/ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act. The investigation is going on, with the police are examining the morphed videos and identifying those responsible. According to the complaints, these videos were created to misrepresent Kejriwal’s views on Ambedkar and the SC/ST community. The AAP has condemned the act, stating that it is a deliberate attempt to defame Kejriwal and the party. The police are taking the matter seriously and are working to track down the accused. They are also investigating whether the morphed videos were part of a larger conspiracy to damage Kejriwal’s reputation. 4 get 20-yr jail for smuggling heroin Legal Correspondent Ludhiana, December 24 The court of Additional Sessions Judge Harbans Singh Lekhi sentenced four persons Gurnam Singh of Tarn Taran, Daljit Singh, alias Jeeta, of Ferozepur, Sarwan Singh of Tarn Taran and Jaswant Kumar of Amritsar to 20 years of rigorous imprisonment each in a 4 kg heroin smuggling case. The court also imposed a fine of ?2 lakh on each convict. According to the prosecution, the case dates back to July 11, 2017, when the police from Meharban police station, Ludhiana, registered an FIR. Around 7 pm in the evening, the police had set up a naka when they spotted a car with Haryana registration number approaching them. On seeing the police, the driver attempted to reverse the car, arousing suspicion. The police quickly surrounded the vehicle and on searching it seized four kg heroin. During interrogation, it was revealed that they were part of an inter-state heroin smuggling ring and were transporting the consignment to other states through Haryana. The police registered a case against the accused under the NDPS Act and later filed a chargesheet in court. During the trial, the prosecution presented evidence and witnesses. After hearing the arguments from both sides and examining all evidence thoroughly, the court found the accused guilty. It noted that drug trafficking posed a grave threat to society and emphasised the need for strict punishment to deter such crimes.