The Tribune, Chandigarh, India - Chandigarh Stories

COURTS

Woman in flesh trade racket a victim, says court
Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, January 9
Holding that a woman, who is an accused in a flesh trade case registered under the Immoral Trafficking Act, is a victim of society and not an accused, the court of District and Sessions Judge SK Aggarwal today acquitted a woman of all charges while dismissing the state appeal against her acquittal.

The court also lambasted the police for not acting tough on pimps, the owners of brothels as well as hotels who run flesh trade rackets but instead arresting women, who are only victims of far bigger rackets.

The case dates back to 2006 when the UT police arrested a sex worker, who is the wife of an NRI, near Nirmaan Theatre in Sector 32.

The woman was apprehended after a special team was constituted by the UT police, comprising then DSP (South) KIP Singh.

A trap was laid and a decoy customer sent to meet the woman. He struck a deal for Rs 8,000, of which Rs 1,500 was paid in advance to the woman.

The court of Judicial Magistrate had acquitted the woman under various sections of the Immoral Trafficking Act in 2010. The police had filed an appeal in the case, which was rejected today.

“The girl was found on the roadside and if anyone offered money to her like in this case then she cannot be held guilty under sections 4 and 5 of the Immoral Trafficking Act. She is rather a victim and the actual accused are the pimps and owners of a brothel who run the racket,” said the court.

Fast-track courts to be set up

Chandigarh, January 9
Fast-track courts to deal with offences against women will soon be set up in the UT district courts. A day after Chief Justice of India Altamas Kabir asked all the High Courts to set up fast-track courts to deal exclusively with offences against women, the UT district courts is all set to act on his orders.

Sources said there were more than 100 cases of crime against women lingering on in the district courts.

The decision has been taken in the wake of the Delhi gang rape incident. The sources said a formal notification in this regard from the High Court was yet to reach the UT district courts. — TNS

Fiza's property case: Next hearing on February 2

Mohali, January 9
In the case of succession for the Anuradha Bali aka Fiza’s property by her kin, the local court set February 2 as the next date of hearing. Earlier in the last date in December, the court had called objections.

According to sources, nobody has filed objection in thecase so far.Notably, Fiza’s three sisters - Anjali Ramsoondur, Monika Sharma and Aditi Arya - had filed a joint petition in the Mohali court in the last week of October 2012 to claim her entire assets worth around Rs 5 crore.

CRIME

3 cheating cases reported
Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, January 9
A UT police sub-inspector’s wife was duped of Rs 42,000. She gave the amount to another woman for investment. Bhagwant Kaur, UT police sub-inspector’s wife, and a resident of Police Society, Sector 51, alleged that Darvesh Kaur, a resident of the GT Road, Dholewal, Ludhiana, and Raj Kumar Malik, a resident of Janta Nagar, Ludhiana, cheated her of Rs 42,000 by investing her money in Guru India Company.

It was alleged that the accused didn’t deposit the amount in the company.

The accused neither returned the money nor paid any interest on the amount. A case under Sections 420, 120-B of the IPC has been registered.

In another case, a woman, Manju Gupta, a resident of Sector 4, Panchkula, alleged that Vinod Chander, a resident of Sector 35 D, made forged documents of SCO number 2409-2410, Sector 22, Chandigarh in 2008. A case under Sections 420, 467, 468, 471, 506, 120-B of the IPC has been registered.

In another case of cheating, Pardeep Mittal, a resident of Sector 9, Panchkula, alleged that Karamjeet Singh Bhullar, manager of Company Volo City Automotive Pvt Ltd, Plot No. 33, Phase-1, Industrial Area, Chandigarh, stole cash Rs 15,000 and defrauded the company of Rs 14 lakh.

A case under Sections 380, 406 of the IPC has been registered at the Industrial Area Police Station.

Fraudsters befool 80-yr-old woman
Take away 50-gm gold jewellery
Tribune News Service

Mohali, January 9
Two fraudsters, including a woman, befooled an 80-year-old woman, Sant Kaur, on the pretext of solving all her problems and took away 50-gram gold jewellery from her at Sector 68 here today.

Giving details, Surinder Singh, the victim’s son, said his mother was on her way to home after paying obeisance at a local gurdwara at around 11.30 am today when she was targeted by the fraudsters.

In his complaint to the police at Phase 8 Police Station, Surinder alleged that his mother was first approached by a person, who asked her some address. “Then his accomplice, a woman aged around 50, came to my mother saying that the person was a spiritual 'guru' and had solved all her problems. Then, the cheaters managed my mother to sit in a Maruti car and asked her to take off her gold jewellery as the ‘guru’ would give her some ‘mantras’. The jewellery of my mother was kept in a cloth, which they returned after reciting some 'mantras' and directed her to open it after reaching at home,” said Surinder.

When the elderly woman opened the cloth after reaching her home, she found a steel bangle in it. The police is yet to register a case in this connection.

Police registers missing report in assault case
Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, January 9
Tall claims of the UT police about a quick and easy registration of FIRs fell flat when a security guard, who was brutally assaulted and robbed in Hallo Majra last night, was turned back by the police after merely lodging a missing report about a mobile phone.

Even 24 hours after the incident of attack on a pedestrian, the police has failed to take stock of the situation and register a case. While the victim had been beaten up and robbed, the police of the Sector 31 police station merely registered a daily diary report of a missing mobile phone.

Ashok Kumar, a security guard who worked with a private firm, was returning to his residence on foot last night when four miscreants stopped him near the Army camp at Hallo Majra. They snatched his two mobile phones and purse and then beat him up with rods and sticks. A resident of Deep Complex, Ashok Kumar managed to escape from their clutches. He suffered injuries on his head and other parts of body.

“I had a narrow escape. I returned to my residence in Hallo Majra. I was terrified. In the morning I went to the GMCH, Sector 32, and the hospital authorities called the police, which did not pay any heed to my complaint of robbery,” said Ashok Kumar.

“A policeman told me that since I couldn’t identify the accused there was no use registering the case. He lodged a missing report about mobile phones. I kept telling them that I have been beaten up and robbed, but no one listened to me,” he said.

What DDR says

Showing utter police callousness towards the complaint of robbery, the daily diary report about the missing mobile phone lodged in the Sector 31 police station reads the mobile phone ‘accidentally’ fell somewhere and a missing report be lodged. This is totally in contrast to the claims of the complainant who sustained injuries in the attack. The police has been making all sorts of claims of a quick and easy registration of FIRs.

We will register an FIR: SHO

“I was not aware of the case and it is definitely a serious crime, which has not been brought to my knowledge. I will look into it and a case will be registered,” said Inspector Jaspal Singh, SHO, Sector 31 police station.

Nayagaon police station ‘attacked’
Tribune News Service

Mohali, January 9
Around 12 persons attacked the Nayagaon police station to set free their friend who was detained by the police on the charge of preventing a public servant from discharging his duty, here today.

According to sources, Sandeep Sandhu, a local resident, was held at a naka at Nayagaon when he assaulted the policemen on duty.

Sandhu was taken to the Nayagaon police station where a case under section 353, IPC, was registered against him.

Police sources said at around 10.45 pm, about a dozen persons reached the police station and about six or seven of them entered the police station on the pretext of meeting a police official. "Seeing that there were only a few policemen present at the police station, they attacked the staff and tried to free Sandhu. However, the policemen on duty foiled their attempt. In the meantime, more persons reached the police station and started pelting the policemen with stones," said sources.

The drama was on till the filing of the report.

SPORTS

58th national school games
DAY I: No conveyance provided to players
Deepankar Sharda
Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, January 9
The facility of common food mess, left the participants of the 58th National School Games in a mess, as the teams arriving in the City Beautiful for participating in the games for hockey and cricket were seen facing acute problem for their daily diet in the common mess, provided by the UT Education Department.

On the first day of their arrival, the boys' teams staying at the Government Model Senior Secondary School, Sector 22, were asked to walk-down to the Government Model Senior Secondary School, Sector 21, to eat food in the provided common-mess. Interestingly, no conveyance was provided to the players.

"We cannot provide mess facility at all staying venues, so we have made a temporary set up in nearby schools, where the girls' teams are putting up. The boys' teams will have to come there for having food. On the first day, the buses were busy in picking-up the arriving teams and from tomorrow the teams will be provided with a local conveyance," said Rajeev Tandon, assistant education officer.

"The lodging facility is good. But what will our players do if they will be not provided with right diet on the right time. If we are facing problems on the very first day and what will happen next we do not know," said Davinder Singh, manager with Jharkhand team.

A total of six boys' teams are putting up in the Government Model Senior Secondary School, Sector 22, including Punjab, Jammu and Kashmir, Karnataka, Odisha, Mizoram and Jharkhand.

"We are just walking to eat food at the venue that is probably 1 km away. Our girls' team is putting up there and we were asked to join them at a common mess. I hope, this will not continue to be a regular scenario. Otherwise, it will be a problem for us during our match days" said a player of Karnataka team.

Teams make their meal arrangements, contractor cries foul

Many teams were seen bringing their own kitchen leaving the mess contractors in a lurch. Reportedly, the teams including Punjab, Gujarat, Jammu and Kashmir, Kerala have brought in their own kitchen. And the step has left many contractors in lurch.

"We opted for own kitchen, as we know about problems being faced by the players. It is better to have our own food on time whenever we needed," said a manager of Jammu & Kashmir team.

Learning from last year's experience, the Gujarat team opted to provide their players with cash to manage their food on their own. But later, the team agreed to eat food in the provided mess.

"In the last nationals organised here, we faced many problems, so to avoid any incident we have opted to provide the players with cash and have food on their own but in the evening meeting, the officials have promised us good food and now we will have the food in the common mess from tomorrow," said Mahipal Singh Jetha, coach of Rajasthan team.

With many teams opting for their own mess, the local contractors are also facing the flank. "We have been told about a regular footfall of almost 250 players. But on the initial day, two out of six teams have refused to have food in our kitchen. We will wait till tomorrow morning, if we do not receive the expected footfall, we shall close our kitchen as we cannot afford loss in the business," said Ramesh, a private contractor at Sector 21.

No reputed coach for hockey

In a strange step, the department has appointed Dinesh Mongia, (who is not holding any designation) the former International cricketer, as a member of the technical committee for grounds and equipment. Whereas, for hockey, no senior or international player was approached.

Interestingly, there are number of international players available to promote the sports at different level. Notably, the department has ample number of specialised physical education teachers of cricket.

"Dinesh is regularly associated with us, so we have appointed him international cricketer for looking after grounds and other equipments. He is easily approachable," said Tandon.

When asked over the no-appointment of any former international player in hockey, he added, "No international hockey player was approachable or associated with us, so we have not appointed only specialised physical education teachers of hockey," said he.

An official seeking anonymity said, "Every game should be treated in equal manner. The department has adequate number of specialised teachers then why not they have been given the charge to look after the technicalities. If they have appointed a former international player for cricket, they would have approached Rajpal or Sukhbir for their presence in the tournament."