New Delhi, October 24
A 10-year-old boy, who had gone missing from outside his house on Sunday, was found dead in New Usmanpur, northeast Delhi, this morning. It seems that the boy was strangled, said a police official.

The body was found half naked due to which the police suspects that the victim may have been killed after being sodomised, the official said. He was living with his father Fakhruddin in New Usmanpur. The body has been sent to Guru Teg Bahadur Hospital for postmortem. The official, however, said that the reason behind the death is yet to be ascertained. The police has also not ruled out the possibility of the victim being sexually assaulted. “We are investigating all the angles and can only confirm if he was sexually assaulted after we receive the post-mortem report,” the official added.

He had left home for playing in a nearby ground on Sunday, but did not return. Worried, Fakhruddin began a search in the locality and contacted his friends, said the official. Fakhruddin decided to approach the police after all his efforts failed till late Sunday.

“A case of kidnapping was registered and investigation was taken up. The body was finally found at a deserted place this morning. It was identified by Fakhruddin,” said the official.

New Delhi, October 24
Delhi Health Minister A.K. Walia today directed the health officials of all the municipal corporations of Delhi and the Delhi Cantonment Board to carry out anti-mosquito

measures in earnest and focus on water tanks placed on the roofs of high-rise buildings and construction sites as the maximum breeding has been reported from these places in the last few days.

At a meeting held yesterday, the minister directed the domestic breeding checkers and field staff that they must reach the top of the buildings, even if it is difficult, and check the mosquito-genic conditions. He also pressed upon administrators, RWAs, owners and caretakers of the high-rise buildings to cooperate with the checkers and help them in performing their task. Besides, builders should take precautions to ensure that breeding does not take place at construction sites.

He said that any lapse on the part of senior officials would be viewed seriously and call for disciplinary action as dengue cases are rising every day.

The hospitals, the minister said, must ensure that their premises don't breed mosquitoes, particularly, the hostel rooms where coolers are fitted in large numbers and often left unattended for long durations.

Walia expressed concern that the figure of dengue cases has reached 720 today. There have been two incidents of death so far. Till today, the maximum cases have been reported from the South Delhi Municipal Corporation area (263) followed by the North Delhi Municipal Corporation (240) and the East Delhi Municipal Corporation (184). The New Delhi Municipal Council has reported 16 cases while Delhi Cantonment four cases.

New Delhi, October 24
Representatives of the All India Backward Students' Forum (AIBSF) at Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) today approached the administration and filed a formal complaint about tearing more than 30 posters, put up by the association a few days ago on campus.

The AIBSF had put up the posters regarding the celebrations of 'Mahishasur' day to be held on October 29. According to the Hindu mythology, Mahishasur is the demon that Maa Durga kills. Over the last couple of years, the Mahishasur day has been become a bone of contention between the right wing groups and the AIBSF. This year, students in large numbers from Lucknow University and Bhim Rao Ambedkar University, Bihar, are expected to drop in on JNU campus to join in the celebrations.

"Our posters have been torn off near markets and in the library inside the campus. These posters had reference to an article published in a reputed magazine that elaborated that "asur" is a caste till date and can still be spotted in Jharkhand. We think that the right wing groups on campus are behind all this. We approached the JNU students' union and the administration today on the issue. We have submitted a formal complaint," said AIBSF president Jitendra Yadav.

On the other hand, a senior member of the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad said, "We had informed the administration about the proposed event to be held on October 29. The rest is up to them now. We have nothing to do with the torn posters. Now we hardly care about what these students do. They can celebrate whatever day they please; we are not going to react this time. It is not worth."

The university saw uproar last year after a section of the ABVP students took the AIBSF head-on for putting up "blasphemous posters on campus that hurt religious sentiments".

The controversial poster in question was picked up from an article, "The Dalit viewpoint of Durga-Mahishasura" in the Forward Press magazine. The AIBSF landed in trouble when the administration slapped a "show cause" notice on its president Jitendra Yadav, questioning his role in circulating an "offensive" poster during Durga Puja on campus. Even after the notice was served, over 200 students gathered to honour Mahishasura by observing "Mahishasura day" on October 24 last year.

New Delhi, October 24
Three cars of two Army officers were stolen from outside their homes in Malviya Nagar, South Delhi, during the wee hours yesterday morning. Both the incidents were caught on CCTV cameras installed at RPS Flats in Sheikh Sarai and the police is trying to identify culprits visible on the footage, said a police official.

Separate cases of theft under Section 379 of the IPC have been lodged at the Malviya Nagar police station.

In the first incident, two cars of Captain Anuj Sharma were stolen. In his statement to the police, Sharma said he had parked his cars, Tata Indigo and Toyota Qualis, outside his home around 10 pm on Monday. “Both the cars were locked in the night, but they were found missing around 7.10 am yesterday,” the official said.

In the second incident, a Maruti Suzuki Swift Dzire was stolen from the same neighbourhood. Lieutenant Colonel (Retd) Jai Singh said that he parked the car in front of his house at 4 pm on Monday. It was found missing around 6.15 am on Tuesday.

Initial investigation revealed that a group of three-four youths was roaming in a car in the neighbourhood on Sunday and Monday. “We have collected CCTV camera footage available from the area and are analysing it. It is suspected that a gang of auto thieves is involved in both the incidents,” the official added.

The official said that it is believed that the gang visible in the footage had done a recce of the area on Sunday. “The footage shows that the gang came back during the wee hours of Tuesday and fled with the vehicles within a span of five minutes,” the official added. They had also tried to steal another vehicle, but had to flee as they failed to open the lock of the vehicle.