Monday 26 900 Mn august, 2024 monthly active users in Telegram, which has 1 billion overall downloads epaper.morningstandard.in facebook.com/TheMorningStandard X.com/TheMornStandard Accused of failing to curb misuse of app us prez race kamala’s campaign raises $540 Million Kamala Harris’s campaign has raised “a record amount for any campaign in history” in just over a month, against Trump’s $327 million at the start of August Page 9 A CAPITAL VIEW OF NEWS l New Delhi l J8.00 l PAGES 12 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 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 Lawyer calls it attack on free speech 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 Kerala govt forms SIT to probe film industry E x p r e s s n e 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 fires over 300 rockets, says first phase of attack is over Agencies 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 Mistaking it for toy gun, Class 6 boy carries dead father’s pistol to school u j w a l j a l a l i @ New Delhi A class 6 boy carried his father’s pistol to school, mistaking it for a “toy gun” in the Dwarka area of the city, a police officer said on Sunday . Fortunately the pistol did not , have a magazine, and even the 11-year-old did not attempt to use it in any way . When the school authorities discovered the weapon, they immediately infor med the police. According to Deputy Commissioner of Police (Dwarka) Ankit Singh, a PCR call was received at Najafgarh police station on Saturday , after which the police staff rushed to the spot at Green Valley School, Deepak Vihar in Najafgarh. “At the school, they learnt that a student of Class 6 had got his father’s licensed pistol in his bag. However, it was without a magazine,” the DCP said. The boy’s mother had already been summoned by the school management and was present at the school when the cops arrived. She told the police that the pistol belonged to her late husband who had purchased it and also had the arms license. “Her husband had expired a few months ago, and on Saturday she had kept the pistol , outside to deposit it at the police station, which her son carried in his school bag, mistaking it for a toy gun,” the officer said. When the police quizzed the boy, he revealed that he thought it was a toy . The police checked the pistol’s license, which was found to be correct. No cognizable offence was found to have been committed in the matter. The mother of the student later deposited the pistol in the Maalkhana of Baba Hari Das Nagar the same day . 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 Express read Heavy rains lash south Guj, hundreds evacuated Hundreds of people were shifted to safety in Valsad and Navsari districts as heavy rains lashed south Gujarat on Saturday and Sunday, officials said. Incessant rains in the last 48 hours have inundated low-lying areas, disrupting normal life and traffic movement. As per data from the State Emergency Operation Centre, Vapi taluk in Valsad district got 326 mm rainfall in 24 hours on Sunday, the highest in the state, while Khergam in Navsari got 248 mm since 6 am. Patient slaps doctor tending to his wounds An on-duty doctor at the Dr Hedgewar hospital in east Delhi’s Shahdara was on Sunday slapped by a 50-year-old patient, while his daughter and son misbehaved with the staff, police said. The man, identified as Yaad Rao, was admitted to the hospital with a head injury sustained from falling down in his residence in a heavily intoxicated state. Dr Manoj was stitching up his wound when Rao complained of pain and turned violent. “He got up and slapped the doctor,” the police said. P3 Under fire for its inaction on the Justice Hema Committee’s findings, the Kerala government on Sunday formed a special investigation team to probe 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 Director 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 Vijayan held with senior police offic- ers 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 based on complaints they re- 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. P5 CBI conducts raids over Crime against women irregularities in RG Kar unpardonable sin: Modi S u l a g n a S e n g u ptA @ 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. He 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 at a school in Maharashtra’s Badlapur, 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 Bharatiya Nyaya 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. Jolt to AAP as 5 councillors join saffron camp months ahead of Assembly polls P r a b h at S h u k l a @ New Delhi In a setback for the ruling AAP, five of its municipal councillors defected to the BJP on Sunday months ahead of the 2025 Delhi Assembly elections. The councillors who switched sides are: Ram Chandra from Shahbad Dairy (Ward No. 28, Bawana), Pawan Sehrawat from Ward No. 30 in Bawana, Manju Nirmal from Badarpur (Ward No. 180), Sugandha Bidhuri from Tughlakabad (Ward No. 178), and Mamata Pawan from Harkesh Nagar (Ward No. 177). The defection was formalized at an event in Delhi, where prominent city BJP leaders Ramvir Singh Bidhuri, and Arvinder Singh Lovely welcomed the councillors. Delhi BJP chief Virender The five councillors who joined the BJP on Sunday. | Express House post-defections Sachdeva said these leaders were not happy with the Kejriwal government. “They were inspired by PM Modi’s developmental work. They were fed up with the way AAP is choking development,” Total Aam BJP : 109 Strength Aadmi Party Cong : 9 Ind : 3 250 129 said Sachdeva. On Friday, Mayor Shelly Oberoi directed the municipal secretary to initiate the election process for the civic body’s zonal ward committees and the standing committee. 5-yr-old Punjab boy youngest Asian to scale Mt Kilimanjaro women in city left to their fate Fear of harassment is a constant companion for women as they navigate their careers. This can limit their opportunities, contributing to gender inequality | P4 At the age of five, most children would not have heard of Tanzania’s 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 5,895-metre tall mountain. After a year of preparation, Teghbir started the trek on August 18 and reached the Uhuru 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 and I did that. It helped me scale the summit,” Teghbir, a first-standard student of Shiwalik Public School at Ropar, told this newspaper over the phone. With this Teghbir Singh during his trek to Mount Kilimanjaro | special arrangement Pic of Darshan raises doubts of VIP treatment in B’luru jail e x p r e s s n e w s s e r v i c e @ Bengaluru peak of valour H a r p r e e t b a j w a @ Chandigarh ceive 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. 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 started preparing almost a year ago. He was trained by Bikramjit Singh Ghuman who helped him with the exercises to increase cardiovascular health and lung capacity to deal with altitude sickness,” Singh said. Commenting on his son’s journey to the peak, Singh said, “Every day he trekked around 8-10 kilometers 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”. The push to the summit was undertaken during fierce snowstorms. “It was a very challenging moment for the entire crew,” Singh said. Teghbir had trekked to the Everest Base Camp in April. A photo of Kannada actor Darshan Thoogudeepa — who is lodged at Bengaluru Central Prison at Parappana Agrahara in connection with the kidnap and murder of a fan — holding a cigarette and chatting with other inmates inside the prison, and the visuals of a video call made from the jail, surfaced on Sunday raising doubts , that the prison staff might have extended preferential treatment to the actor. In the photo that is doing the rounds, Darshan is seen sitting with his manager Nagaraj, who is also an accused in the murder case, and rowdy-sheeters Wilson Garden Naga and Kulla Seena, inside the quarantined area of the prison, where highsecurity prisoners are generally lodged. In the photo, which appears to have been clicked from the window of a cell, the actor is seen holding a coffee mug in one hand and a lit cigarette in the other. It is said that a jail inmate, who clicked the photo, had shared it with his wife and it was widely shared later. Meanwhile, a video clip of around 10 seconds has also surfaced, in which a person on a video call gives the mobile phone to Darshan, who speaks to another person on the call. No senior official from the Department of Prisons was available for comment.
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