New Delhi, November 8
Eighteen girls were rushed to Maharishi Valmiki Hospital in Narela with complaints of stomach ache and other signs of food poisoning after consuming Mid-Day Meal at a government school in outer Delhi today.

While 14 were discharged after preliminary medication and remaining four were admitted to the ICU of paediatric department. "The condition of one of the four girls is still said to be critical," sources from the hospital said.

The incident was reported from a North Delhi Municipal Corporation girls' school at Auchandi village near Bawana. The girls are aged below 12 years and students of Class I to VII.

According to sources, the students fell ill soon after eating the meal (rice and pulse) served by NGO Stree Shakti. The meal was scheduled to be served to around 175 girls. "It was consumed by around 70 children when 18 complained of stomach ache and began vomiting," they noted.

Further, they said that three teachers also fell ill, but they did not seek treatment.

The matter came to light after a call was made to the police control room around 11.30 am, said the police.

Medical Superintendent of Maharishi Valmiki Hospital Kirti Bhushan said that the students were given injections and drip. "Their condition is stable and we have kept them under observation," he said.

Following the complaints, a sample of the meal has been sent to Shree Ram Testing Laboratories and the hospital authorities at their end are also conducting tests to ascertain the cause.

Meanwhile, the North Delhi Municipal Corporation has also ordered a high-level inquiry into the incident.

The police are yet to file a case and anything towards this direction is likely only after the test results come or the school authorities file a complaint.

New Delhi, November 8
Devotees gathered on the banks of Yamuna in the capital to offer prayers to the Sun on the Chhath Puja.

Devotees observing the four-day festival flocked to the ghats along the Yamuna from early afternoon. Married women observing over 38-hour fast stood in knee-deep water and prayed for the well-being and prosperity of their families.

The revenue department deployed 15 boats, about 20 divers and several civil defence personnel on the ghats. Arrangements were also made for deployment of Centralised Accident and Trauma Service ambulances and fire tenders and a large number of volunteers on each ghat.

New Delhi, November 8
Three months after Rs 37 lakh was robbed from a cash van that was replenishing an ATM with money in north-east Delhi, the Delhi Police claimed to have arrested the mastermind of the heist.

The Special Cell of the Delhi Police apprehended 37-year-old Haroon Pasha from near Anand Vihar Railway Station on Wednesday for his alleged involvement in the robbery. His two alleged associates, Mohammad Azim and Mohammad Nazim, were earlier apprehended with Rs 11.38 lakh of the booty.

"Harun is involved in 16 cases of attempt to murder, robbery, extortion, Arms Act, theft and snatching in Delhi and Uttar Pradesh," said Deputy Commissioner of Police (Special Cell) Sanjeev Kumar Yadav. A reward of Rs 50,000 was declared on his arrest. He was also booked under the Uttar Pradesh Gangsters and Anti-Social Activities (Prevention) Act.

According to Yadav, Haroon's gang would allegedly steel cars and motorcycles and use them to commit robberies on the highways. "Whenever they were arrested, they gave fictitious identities and fake addresses so that the investigating agencies do not become aware of their previous involvement," Yadav added.

About the cash van robbery, Haroon allegedly told the police that he and his gang had prior information about the arrival of the vehicle from Karkardooma to Mansarovar Park on August 2. As planned, Nazim allegedly brought a Maruti WagonR car, while Haroon brought three country-made pistols. Azim replaced the original number plate of the car with the fake one and started following a cash-carrying van from near the Karkardooma Court on August 2.

After reaching the ATM booth in Mansarovar Park, Haroon allegedly hit the gunman of the cash van with the butt of a pistol and snatched his double barrel gun. Azim overpowered the driver, while another associate named Mashroor looted the cash, according to Yadav.

After committing the crime, the accused went towards Loni, Ghaziabad and disposed the snatched gun and distributed the money amongst themselves. Haroon kept twice the share of other, because he was the mastermind and the most-experienced person of the gang, said Yadav.

New Delhi, November 8
Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) MP Dhananjay Singh, who was arrested with his wife, Jagriti, for allegedly torturing and murdering a 35-year-old maid, admitted to the Delhi Police that after his wife informed him about the death, he immediately rushed to Delhi from Jaunpur, as he had feared that she would harm their three-year-old son.

Jagriti (28) had allegedly tortured two more servants, including a 17-year-old boy, at her home in 175, South Avenue in Delhi. Another maid, Meena, while giving her statement on the case to a Delhi court said that Jagriti would allegedly beat her while accusing her of being in an illicit relationship with Dhananjay. She has denied the allegations and asserts that it was Jagriti's manner of justifying her regular beating.

The police had arrested Dhananjay and Jagriti on Tuesday. She was charged for the murder of her maid, Rakhi, and for attempting to murder the 17-year-old boy, who is the complainant in the case. The MP was arrested for causing the disappearance of evidence, which is a digital video recorder of the CCTV cameras that were installed at Jagriti's house. He was also charged for not informing the police about the murder immediately.

Rakhi succumbed to her gruesome injuries on the early hours of Monday. Jagriti had informed Dhananjay about the maid's death over the phone on the same morning.

According to sources in the police department, Dhanajay, who was in Jaunpur, expressed his discontent over the situation and refused to return to Delhi. He told Jagriti that since she had committed the crime, so she should deal with it.

The sources added that Jagriti showed her violent streak during the telephonic conversation, prompting Dhanajay to rush to Delhi while keeping in view his son's safety. Dhananjay has told the police that he feared that his wife would harm their son.

The couple's son is presently staying in another house in South Avenue and is being cared for by the MP's private security officers. The MP stayed separately from his wife in this house.

Jagriti, who is under police custody, had asked police officers if she could meet her son. "We have no problems in letting a mother meet her son," said a senior police officer.

She had reportedly objected to her husband's contact with some UP-based mafia, who would visit their house in Delhi. There was also a quarrel between the couple over her violent streak. As Dhananjay objected to Jagriti's political ambitions, their relationship strained and he approached a family court to file for divorce.

Meanwhile, Meena is still admitted at Ram Manohar Lohia Hospital in Delhi for the injuries she had sustained allegedly at the hands of Jagriti.

Meanwhile, Rakhi's 20-year-old son, Saijan, had arrived at Delhi from Kolkata yesterday. He was at the Chanakyapuri police station, when he told police officers that he wanted to go out to eat. "He went out, but he never came back," said a police officer.

A team of the Delhi Police has been sent to Rakhi's house in Kolkata to find the boy.

New Delhi, November 8
Following a memorandum from a teacher from PG Government College of Chandigarh, Vice-Chancellor of Jawaharlal Nehru University Prof Sudhir K. Sopory today shared that opening a Punjabi department at JNU is in the pipeline and is a part of the 12 Five Year Plan.

Prof Sapori said, "Opening Punjabi department is in 12th plan and priority will be given to Punjabi department. It is first time somebody has come to the university and submitted the memorandum to start Punjabi department."

The request was submitted by Panditrao Dharennavar, Assistant Professor of PG Government College of Chandigarh. The fact that Panditrao is non-Punjabi but working for Punjabi language shows the unity and integrity of the nation, said the VC.

While apprising of the university's plans on the issue, the VC also appreciated the translation work done by Panditrao. The VC said his uncle S.N. Dar also translated Heer Ranja into English.

Panditrao, who hails from Karnataka and has learned Punjabi, has translated Sri Jap Ji Saheb, Sri Sukhmani Saheb, and Zafaranama into Kannada. He is also known for his translation work of the 12th century Vachan Sahit into Punjabi. He has written 11 books in Punjabi.

New Delhi, November 8
A 35-year-old man was found hanging in a hotel room in the Nabi Karim area of central Delhi today. The deceased has been identified as Sukhdev Singh, who belongs to Shahid Bhagat Singh Nagar district, Punjab.

According to the police, he had checked into the hotel last evening. He reportedly told the hotel authorities that he would need the room only for a day since he would be boarding a flight to Dubai this evening.

The hotel authorities told the police that they became suspicious when Sukhdev did not respond to the repeated room service calls this afternoon. They then informed the police, who broke open the door of the room about 2.30 pm.

"He was found hanging by a rope tied to the ceiling fan," a police officer said. He was identified on the basis on his identity cards. He was taken to Lok Nayak Hospital, where the doctors declared him dead.

His family has been informed. The body will be handed over to the family after the post-mortem. The exact reason of Sukhdev taking the extreme action can only be ascertained by his family.

"Since the door was locked and he was the only occupant of the room, we have ruled out foul play at the moment. We are now trying to get to the bottom of what triggered his decision to kill himself," the officer said.

The initial investigation has revealed that Sukhdev was to take a flight to Dubai on Friday to search for a job.