New Delhi, August 7
A 44-year-old man allegedly murdered his wife by slitting her throat and then attempted suicide at their home in Tughlakabad, south Delhi this morning.

The man has been identified as Amal Kumar Kar, a quack, who has been arrested. The incident took place as their divorce was being finalised. Neighbours claimed that a property dispute was among the several unresolved issues between him and his wife Deepa (42). The couple had been married for the past 13 years.

A minor female relative of the couple, who had been staying with them, had witnessed the murder.

"The relative told us that she woke up at about 5 am to the shouting of the couple who were arguing. She saw Amal attack Deepa with a vegetable cutter, causing deep injuries on her neck. He then went to the first floor and locked himself in a room," said a neighbour.

The girl then shouted for help and neighbours gathered at the house. One of them called the police. The police knocked at the door of the room, where Amal had locked himself. He opened it and was found in a semi-conscious state. According to the police, he had consumed poison and tried to hang himself, but both the suicide attempts were unsuccessful.

Amal was taken to the All India Institute of Medical Sciences in south Delhi, where he is in an unconscious state. Deepa's body was shifted to the mortuary of the same hospital. A case of murder has been registered at the Govindpuri police station.

Hrishikesh, who is the couple's neighbour and an acquaintance, said that fights between them often took place.

Sources said that Amal and Deepa were also fighting for the ownership of property in West Bengal that they had bought some years ago.

New Delhi, August 7
In view of the modifications in the new law on juveniles, the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) today said that there is need to penalise those in some form who are of 16 years and above in age, and are found guilty of committing heinous crimes.

Even as the party said it would support the Bill in Parliament, it recommended that the protection provided in the existing law for the children between 16 and 18 years of age should not completely be taken away since a minor below 18 may not fully understand the nature and consequences of a particular act or action.

The new legislation, the result of widespread protests in the wake of the horrific December 16, 2012, gangrape and murder of a physiotherapy student in the national Capital, would treat those minors as adults between the age group of 16 and 18 years, who commit heinous crimes such as rape, murder and acid attacks.

It proposes to withdraw the blanket protection available for children up to 18 years of age under the existing law for juveniles, from being charged under criminal law and being tried in a court of law, irrespective of the nature of criminal offence committed by them.

"Whatever has appeared in the media so far makes it look like a reasonable legislation and the AAP will support it in Parliament," the party said while adding that after studying The Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children Amendment) Bill, 2014, which passed by the Union Cabinet on Wednesday, the AAP may suggest some amendments, if required," it said.

New Delhi, August 7
A delegation of Delhi BJP leaders led by party president Satish Upadhyay today met Union Transport Minister Nitin Gadkari and urged him to ensure that all necessary documents were submitted before the Delhi High Court to satisfy about e-rickshaw policy being framed by the Union government and Delhi administration.

This is being done so that court removes the ban imposed on plying of e-rickshaws in Delhi. The government has to submit its report tomorrow, Upadhyay said.

He said that Gadkari assured the delegation that the Union Transport Ministry had done all legal preparations to satisfy the court and he felt that tomorrow the court would take cognizance of the efforts and remove the ban.

The Delhi BJP also held a meeting in context to party's National Council Meeting to be held in Delhi on August 9. Party's senior leaders Ramlal, Nitin Gadkari, Prabhat Jha, Ananth Kumar, Shyam Jaju, Saroj Pandey, Vijay Goel, along with all office-bearers, MPs, MLAs, MCD, leaders attended the meeting.

New Delhi, August 7
The Delhi government has planned a large number of city-wide activities to celebrate the 68th Independence Day including "Information Education Campaign" to raise awareness about civic sense. The government has also decided to meet a target of planting 11 lakh trees to mark the occasion.

Special drives and celebrations, which will be spread across the week, starting August 8, will be organised by departments of the Delhi government with the help of the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation.

The Independence Day celebrations have been planned around two major drives that the government will be initiating a week before August 15.

"The first will be to launch a major city-wide cleanliness and sanitation drive. The municipalities will ensure cleanliness in their areas. This will be the largest cleanliness drive initiated by the government," said a senior government official.

The drive will include cleaning of dhalaos, removal of garbage, silt and malba, removal of obstructions, etc. The municipal corporations will pay attention to repairs of potholes and streetlights. Special attention will be paid to cleaning of schools, their toilets, and hospitals.

The corporations will also run a special "Information Education Campaign" to raise awareness about civic sense and the campaign will be taken forward by students, RWAs and other volunteers.

As part of this campaign, special "prabhat-pheris" will be taken out by school students who will help spread awareness about civic duties and responsibilities.

A specially conceived Gandhigiri campaign will also be run by students who will involve the community in raising awareness about cleanliness and hygiene, good practices, waste disposal, etc. Schools will organize special week-long activities around the theme of "Clean Delhi" and "Green Delhi".

The second drive initiated by the government includes a massive plantation drive all across the city.

"The government has decided to meet a target of planting 11 Lakh trees to mark the occasion of India's 68th Independence Day. Of which, three lakh trees will be planted in the forest area, one lakh will be planted by PWD, one lakh each by corporations and the rest through participation through eco-clubs, RWAs and participation by general public," the official said.

Saplings of herbal and medicinal plants will be made available across the city to help generate awareness about the benefits of these plants as also involve people in this drive.

Issuing a special appeal, the Lieutenant Governor urged people to come out in large numbers and participate with enthusiasm in these special campaings, programmes and celebrations.

New Delhi, August 7
A man was killed and his brother badly injured during an argument over water which led to a violent fight in west Delhi's Rajouri Garden locality on Wednesday night.

The police have arrested two men, Sunny (21) and Ramanand Sagar (21), in connection with the incident. They were caught during the early hours of today. According to the police, the deceased, Pinku Shah, belonged to Bihar and worked as a labourer in Delhi.

According to the police, Pinku's brother, Bhola, reported to the police that when the two of them were cooking food at about 9 pm on Wednesday, Sunny approached them and asked for water. When they refused, he started abusing them. A fight broke out and Ramanand allegedly joined it.

Sagar allegedly took out a dagger and stabbed Bhola. Sunny took the dagger from Sagar and allegedly stabbed Pinku several times on his chest and lower body. "He succumbed to his injuries by the time he was rushed to hospital," Bhola told the police.

Pinku and Bhola were taken to the Deen Dayal Upadhyay Hospital in west Delhi by their neighbours. The hospital authorities reported the matter to the police at about 11.05 pm on Wednesday.

"The hospital authorities reported to the police that Bhola was admitted with a stab injury and Pinku was brought dead," said a police officer.

The police started a search for the two accused. Within four hours of the incident, the accused were caught and booked under the Indian Penal Code sections 302 (murder), 307 (attempt to murder) and Section 34 (criminal act done by several persons in furtherance of common intention).

Sunny works at a jewellery shop at Subhash Nagar in west Delhi and the other accused, Ramanand Sagar, works as a mechanic at a motor-vehicle showroom at Rajouri Garden, according to the police.

New Delhi, August 7
On the National Human Rights Commission's (NHRC) recommendations, the Delhi government has paid Rs 5 lakh as monetary relief to a minor girl (12) who was molested by a police constable on Ridge Road in New Delhi on February 10, 2012.

The constable was arrested and suspended and a case was registered against him under Section 354 IPC at Mandir Marg police station.

The Commission, during the course of enquiry, found that the constable was apprehended by the victim's uncle with the assistance of some labourers. They handed him over to the police station, Mandir Marg. He and the girl were medically examined at the RML Hospital, but the doctor did not observe any external injury on their person.

"The Commission has observed that the constable had prima facie attempted to outrage the modesty of the minor girl for which he was an accused in the FIR on February 11, 2012. He had also been suspended from the service. He abused his position and power as a public servant and violated the human rights of the minor girl for which the State was liable," stated NHRC through a press statement.

As per the Commission's recommendations, Rs 5 lakh paid as relief to victim was put in a fixed deposit in her name and the interest earned on it would be used by her authorized legal guardian for her welfare. The principal, together with any accrued interest, would be at her disposal when she becomes an adult.

New Delhi, August 7
In a bid to spread awareness about ways to keep dengue at bay, Max India Foundation has initiated a monthlong campaign "Dengue Mukt Delhi" (dengue-free Delhi) in Delhi and national capital region (NCR).

The drive with special focus on northeast and west Delhi will educate people about dengue and its symptoms and preventive measures with the help of videos, folk media, pamphlets and cleanliness drive during the month.

With 21 preventive camps the drive targets to cover 10,000 people across urban slum areas in the Capital and puppet shows are going to be organised to disseminate the information.

In the drive, the foundation has collaborated with the municipal corporations whose teams will keep a check and fumigate all the areas of the camps where a team of doctors, medical staff and volunteers of the foundation and its associated hospital will educate people.

New Delhi, August 7
A team of 50 Gandhians called peace promoters from all across the country will be on the go to revive Mahatma Gandhi's heroic spirit.

This team of Gandhians has launched the Gandhi Peace Mission-2015 to commemorate the 70th anniversary of Gandhi's teachings for peace in Kolkata and his pilgrimage to Noakhali, Bangladesh.

Explaining about the mission, Dr N Radhakrishnan, chairman of the Indian Council for Gandhian Studies, said as more and more people of all ages and religions are resorting to violence as a quick solution to end their conflicts, this mission is an attempt to revive the Gandhian spirit of dialogue.

The event will be jointly organised by Himsamukt Bharat Campaign and Citixen's Commission for Dialogue, Justice and Reconciliation, Harijan Sevak Sangh along with Bharat Soka Gakkai (BSG) in partnership with International Gandhi Peace Mission.

The mission has a five-tier action plan from January 26 to Febuary 5, 2015.

A Gandhi peace bus will be flagged off from Sodepur Gandhi Ashram, Kolkata, to Noakhali Gandhi Ashram, Bangladesh. About 50 peace promoters (one each from 25 states and an equal number of foreign peace delegates) will undertake this journey as an effort to revive Gandhi's heroic spirit and show their commitment to peace and dialogue.

During this journey, the participants will also interact with people in villages, remembering Gandhi's work in these areas.

An interaction will be undertaken at Gandhi Ashram, Noakhali, on January 30 with local peace activists, intellectuals and associates of the ashram. A peace conference will also be organised with the intellectuals and peace activists of Dhaka.

On the teams' return to Kolkota a two-day international conference will be organized on the theme: Lessons from Gandhi's Pilgrimage to Noakhali for Peace and his Strivings in Kolkatta through Dialogue, Forgiveness and Reconciliation for Sustainable Peace and Development.

"In an effort to alter this violent dangerous trend and sensitize people about the power of dialogue, they have taken it upon themselves to uphold and revive reconciliation and spread this path as an apt alternative to conflict resolution," said Dr Radhakrishnan.