tirupati l monday l august 26, 2024 l `9.00 l PAGES 20 l late city EDITION Telegram chief executive Durov arrested by French authorities The founder and CEO of the messaging service was detained at Paris-Le Bourget Airport late on Saturday upon his arrival from Azerbaijan Accused of failing to curb misuse of app Lawyer calls it attack on free speech Pavel Durov was arrested over allegations that Telegram has been used for money laundering, drug trafficking and sharing child sexual content, media reports said. He is accused of failing to take steps to curb criminal uses of his messaging service. The warrant was issued at the request of a special unit of the country’s interior ministry in charge of probing crimes against minors | P9 ■ ■ Durov’s lawyer has called his arrest an attack on freedom of speech. Russia, too, has condemned the arrest of the Franco-Russian billionaire Telegram, known for user privacy and strong encryption protocols, was founded by Durov and his brother in 2013. The messaging service has been criticised by the Western governments for its lack of content moderation 900 million monthly active users in Telegram, which has 1 billion overall downloads CHENNAI ■ MADURAI ■ VIJAYAWADA ■ BENGALURU ■ KOCHI ■ HYDERABAD ■ VISAKHAPATNAM ■ COIMBATORE ■ KOZHIKODE ■ THIRUVANANTHAPURAM ■ BELAGAVI ■ BHUBANESWAR ■ SHIVAMOgGA ■ MANGALURU ■ TIRUPATI ■ TIRUCHY ■ TIRUNELVELI ■ SAMBALPUR ■ HUBBALLI ■ DHARMAPURI ■ KOTTAYAM ■ KANNUR ■ VILLUPURAM ■ KOLLAM ■ TADEPALLIGUDEM ■ NAGAPATTINAM ■ THRISSUR ■ KALABURAGI Kerala govt forms SIT to probe film industry E x p r e s s ne w s s e r v i c e @T’Puram Israeli Air Force intercepts a Hezbollah UAV over north Israel on Sunday; close-up of the projectile being blown into pieces | AFP Israel hits Lebanon with 100 jets in ‘self defence’ Hezbollah sends over 300 rockets, says first phase of attack is over A g en c i e s ISRAEL on Sunday launched its biggest air offensive in recent times as it sent over 100 fighter jets into Lebanon to destroy “rocket launchers aimed at Israel”, claiming Hezbollah was about to unleash a largescale attack against it. The Israeli military said its fighter jets had destroyed “thousands” of Hezbollah rocket launchers “aimed toward northern Israel and some were aimed toward central Israel”, far from the border. Meanwhile, Iran-backed Hezbollah rejected Israel’s claims of having thwarted its attack, saying it had fired 320 Katyusha rockets targeting “enemy positions” across the border. This, it said, was the first phase of its retaliation for Israel’s assassination of its commander Fuad Shukr last month. In a televised speech on Sunday, Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah said his group targeted a military intelligence base near Tel Aviv. However, Israeli sources said there were no hits on the base. Hezbollah’s claims The militant group said it targeted 11 bases, barracks and military positions in northern Israel and the Israeli-annexed Golan Heights, and dismissed Israel’s claim to have thwarted its attack. It, however, did not provide evidence for its claims Following the Sunday airstrikes, three deaths were reported in Lebanon. While Hezbollah clarified that it was not planning any further strikes as of now, Israel’s foreign minister said his country did not seek a full-scale war. Both sides claimed they had struck only military targets. The US helped track the barrage of rockets and drones launched by Hezbollah against Israel, but was not involved in strikes in Lebanon or in shooting down incoming projectiles, AFP reported quoting a US defence official. The Hezbollah has traded near-daily cross-border fire with Israeli forces throughout the Gaza war, in a campaign it says in support of Hamas. According to experts, any major escalation in the fighting, which began in parallel with the war in Gaza, risks morphing into a regional conflagration drawing in Hezbollah’s backer Iran and Israel’s main ally the US. The situation remains tense though both sides hinted they have no immediate plans to continue strikes. P9 tdp leader’s kin Doctor from Tirupati shot dead in US Under fire for its inaction on the Justice Hema Committee’s findings, the state government has finally woken up and formed a special police investigation team to probe the allegations of sexual harassment and exploitation in the Malayalam film industry . The seven-member team headed by South Zone IG G Sparjan Kumar has four women IPS officers on board. The other members of the team are Thiruvananthapuram Range DIG S Ajeetha Begum, Crime Branch S P Merin Joseph, Coastal Police AIG G Poonkuzhali, Kerala Police Academy Assistant Di- rector Aishwarya Dongre, AIG Law and Order Ajith V and Crime Branch SP S Madhusoodanan. Crime Branch head ADGP H Venkatesh will monitor the proceedings. The decision to form the special team was taken during a meeting Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijay- an held with senior police officers on Sunday The state govern. ment had so far maintained that it is open to probing the allegations if the survivors are ready to file complaints. Sources said the special team will not register FIRs suo motu, but would rather register cases Director Ranjith, actor Siddique resign Noted Malayalam filmmaker Ranjith, who was accused of misconduct by Bengali actor Sreelekha Mitra, resigned as chairman of the Kerala State Chalachitra Academy, while veteran Ranjith Siddique actor Siddique quit his post as general secretary of the Association of Malayalam Movie Artists after actor Revathy Sampath accused him of assaulting her in 2019 CBI conducts raids over Crime against women irregularities in RG Kar unpardonable sin: Modi S u l a g n a Sen g u p tA @ Kolkata THE CBI’s anti-corruption unit on Sunday conducted searches on the premises of ex-principal of R G Kar Medical College and Hospital Sandip Ghosh, former medical superintendent cum vice-principal Sanjay Vashisth, and 13 others in and around Kolkata in connection with the probe into financial irregularit i e s at t h e s t at e - r u n institute. Officials said the CBI team reached Ghosh’s residence at 6 am but was made to wait for one-and-half hours before they were let in. The sleuths started questioning Ghosh at 8 am and it continued till late night. The CBI’s anticorruption unit also searched the residences and offices of those engaged in supplying materials for the management and care of patients. Sources said the CBI team visited the premises of Dr Debasish Som, Sandip Ghosh’s close aide. He is the head of the department of forensic science at RG Kar. CBI sleuths called the head clerk of the forensic medicine department to know the whereabouts of the alleged organ racket. According to CBI sources, the racket sells body parts sourced from various state-run medical colleges; officials said Dr Sandip Ghosh and his allies have been giving cover to the racket. A senior officer said: “We have got lots of infor mation regarding the illegal racket in the state. We are in search of other doctors who are involved in the scam. Several doctors working in private hospitals are also involved in the scam.” Meanwhile, the lie detection test on Sanjay Roy the main ac, cused in the rape-murder of a trainee doctor at RG Kar hospital, was conducted at Kolkata’s Presidency Jail where he is lodged. Four persons including former principal Sandip Ghosh underwent the polygraph test on Saturday the officials said. , S u d h i r s u r ya w a n s h i @ Mumbai Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday said crimes against women are unpardonable sins and the guilty should not be spared. Modi was speaking at the ‘Lakhpati Didi Sammelan’ in north Maharashtra’s Jalgaon, days after the rape-murder of a trainee doctor in Kolkata’s RG Kar Hospital and the sexual assault of two minor girls in Maharashtra’s Badhlapur, triggered a nationwide uproar. “‘The message should go from top to bottom. This sin is unpardonable. Governments will come and go, but protecting life and women’s dignity is a big responsibility of all of us, both as a society and as a government,” Modi said. Modi said the guilty should not be spared and those helping them should also be dealt with firmly “Those helping . the perpetrators of crimes against women should not be spared. Be it a hospital, school, government or police station, at whatever level negligence occurs, everyone should be held accountable,” he said. Modi said Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, which replaced the Indian Penal Code, will provide greater support to women in achieving justice. “Earlier, there were delays, and we have removed all this in the Bhartiya Nyay Sanhita. If a woman does not want to visit a police station, she can file an e-FIR from her residence, and the police will have to act. There is provision for death penalty and life imprisonment for atrocities against women,” Modi said. With this issue E x p r e s s N e w s Se r v i c e @ Tirupati A screen grab of the video where a man can be seen approaching the female intern from behind and attacking her in the casualty ward of SVIMS in Tirupati | Express Patient attacks female intern at SVIMS; docs demand better security ment to the director and vicechancellor of SVIMS said, Junior doctors and students “During my duty I was attacked , of Sri Padmavathi Medical Col- by a patient. He approached me lege for Women staged a protest from behind, pulled my hair, on Sunday after a female intern and banged my head against was attacked by a patient in the the steel rod of a cot. Despite c a s u a l t y w a r d o f S r i my efforts, I was unable to deVenkateswara Instifend myself or retute of Medical Scistrain him. No secuGuntur GGH ences (SVIMS) in rity personnel were student Tirupati on Saturday present at the time to molested evening. assist me. Had the A third-year The patient, idenpatient been armed student at Guntur tified as Bangarraju with a sharp weapon, Medical College from Bobbili in there could have alleged that she Vizianagaram disbeen serious was touched trict, had come to consequences.” inappropriately by Tirumala with his Stating that the inan unidentified family for a pilgrimcident raises grave person when she age. An epilepsy paconcerns over the tient, Bangarraju was headed to the safety of doctors at dermatology was admitted to the the workplace, she TTD’s Ashwini Hos- outpatient block on requested for approSaturday afternoon priate security measpital after he suffered a seizure. He was ures to be impleshifted to SVIMS on Saturday mented to ensure the safety of morning for further treatment. all staff members, especially in He was being administered in- high-risk areas like the EMD. travenous fluids when he atResponding to the incident, tacked the intern, who was on SVIMS director Dr RV Kumar duty The doctor sustained a mi- assured security for doctors . nor injury Elaborating on the and staff working in the hospi. P4 incident, the doctor in her state- tal. E x p r e s s N e w s Se r v i c e @ Tirupati A 64-year-old doctor from Menakuru village, Naidupeta mandal in Tirupati district was fatally shot in Tuscaloosa, Alabama in the United States on Friday. Dr Ramesh Babu Peramsetty was the brother of TDP leader Peramsetty Ramaiah. It has been learnt that the doctor had recently returned to Alabama after attending a relative’s wedding in Naidupeta on August 15. Dr Ramesh was shot and killed by unidentified assailants when he was on rounds. A pall of gloom descended over Menakuru village after the doctor’s family received the news of his untimely demise. As per reports, Dr Ramesh had completed his medicine from Sri Venkateswara Medical College in Tirupati, where he initially gained recognition as a skilled physician. He moved to Jamaica to study MS and later shifted to the US. He founded the Crimson Care Network and established several hospitals across the US. His work, especially following the outbreak of the Covid19 pandemic, earned him several accolades. A street in Tuscaloosa was also renamed as to Peramsetty Avenue, reports stated. The doctor was married and has four children. He was rooted to his native. He would generously donate to a local school in his hometown. He also funded the construction of a Sai Baba temple in his village. based on complaints they receive from the aggrieved persons. The formation of the SIT, sources added, was to encourage the victims to come forward and file their complaints. “You need a defacto complainant to take the case forward. So, one of the purposes behind the constitution of the probe team is to motivate the victims to officially lodge complaints,” said a source. The source said the SIT will probe instances of sexual harassment mentioned in the Hema Committee report if the survivors file complaints. It will also probe the complaints by members of the film fraternity regarding sexual harassment, said the source. 8 PAGES Special Supplement Express read Naidu rescinds all TDP committees in TG a long night’s wait Ahead of the Army Recruitment Rally from Monday, aspirants queued up outside the Port Stadium in Visakhapatnam on Sunday. The drive will continue till September 5 | G Satyanarayana Hyderabad: TDP supremo & AP Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu on Sunday rescinded all existing committees in the party’s Telangana unit to make way for appointment of new panels | P4 peak of valour 5-yr-old youngest Asian to scale Mt Kilimanjaro H a r p r ee t b a j w a @ Chandigarh At the age of five, most children would not have heard of Mount Kilimanjaro. But for five-year-old Teghbir Singh from Ropar in Punjab, it was a year-old dream that came true when he reached Africa’s tallest peak on August 23. In doing so, he became the youngest person from Asia to scale the mountain located in Tanzania. Teghbir started the trek on August 18 and reached the Uhu- ru peak on August 23, battling fierce snowstorms on the way . He was accompanied by his father Sukhinderdeep Singh, two guides and supporting staff. “I was told to chant Waheguru when I felt tired. It helped me scale the summit,” Teghbir, a first-standard student told this newspaper over the phone. With this feat, he equaled the world record of summiting Mt Kilimanjaro at age five by a Serbia boy Ognjen Živkovi on August 6 last year. Teghbir Singh during his trek to Mount Kilimanjaro | special arrangement “Teghbir started preparing almost a year ago. He was trained by Bikramjit Singh Ghuman to increase cardiovascular health and lung capacity to deal with altitude sickness,” Singh said. Commenting on his son’s journey Singh said, “Every day , he trekked around 8-10 km and temperatures dropped with every ascent he made. He walked and stayed in a low-oxygen altitude in a minus-grade temperature for almost a week”.
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