Author: LokMarg

The Mumbai Police on Saturday invoked the Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act (MCOCA) against all the accused arrested in connection with the firing incident outside superstar Salman Khan’s Bandra residence.

Mumbai Crime Branch officials said that the police have identified gangster Lawrence Bishnoi as the leader of the gang and have added sections of MCOCA in the FIR.

“All accused have been booked under Sections 3(1)(2), 3(1)(3), and 3(1)(4) of MCOCA,” they said.

Mumbai Crime Police have arrested both the shooters, identified as Sagar Pal and Vicky Gupta. Two arms suppliers, identified as Sonu Subhash Chander and Anuj Thapan, were also arrested by the police on Friday. Meanwhile, a lookout notice has been issued against Anmol Bishnoi, the younger brother of jailed gangster Lawrence Bishnoi, in connection with the case.

On April 14, two men came on a motorcycle, fired four rounds outside the Galaxy Apartments, where the actor resides, around 5 am, and fled.

Earlier, the Mumbai Police registered a case against four people in the firing case, naming the Bishnoi brothers as key accused. The sections under IPC 506(2) (threatening), 115 (abetment), and 201 (tampering with evidence) have been added to the case.

Mumbai Crime Branch officials said that gangster Lawrence Bishnoi and his brother Anmol Bishnoi have been declared wanted accused in connection with the case. Anmol Bishnoi claimed responsibility for the firing outside Salman’s residence in a Facebook post following the attack.

The accused, Vicky Gupta and Sagar Pal, were grilled by officials of the National Investigation Agency (NIA) for several hours on Friday. They were brought to Mumbai on Thursday under transit remand secured by the Crime Branch.

On Thursday, the Esplanade Court extended the police custody of both the accused arrested in connection with the firing incident until April 29. They were produced before the metropolitan magistrate’s court here after their previous remand ended on Thursday and were remanded in custody of the Mumbai Police Crime Branch.

Earlier, the Crime Branch said that it recovered strong evidence against gangster Lawrence Bishnoi and his brother Anmol Bishnoi, identifying them as the key conspirators and ‘most wanted’ in the case.

According to the Mumbai Crime Branch, before the firing occurred, the shooters had reached Salman’s residence four times. They had also staked out Salman’s farmhouse, the Crime Branch informed, adding that since the actor hadn’t visited his farmhouse over several days, they planned to execute the firing outside his plush Galaxy Apartments residence in Bandra.

The Crime Branch recovered a broken mobile phone from the accused at the time of their arrest, adding that they were in possession of more than one phone. The Crime Branch said that they were looking into the other phones as well. They also mentioned the recovery of the second pistol, along with four magazines and 17 rounds from the Tapi River of Surat.

The sleuths stated earlier that they fished out the pistol from the river on April 22 and also found the footprint of one of the arrested shooters, Vicky Gupta, while he was making a getaway from Mumbai to Gujarat’s Bhuj. The Crime Branch said the shooters disposed of the firearm in the Tapi River near Surat while making their escape.

The police said they were searching for more mobile handsets that they may have disposed of in the river, adding that they moved money to the bank several times.

The involvement of the Bishnoi brothers was corroborated by statements made on social media, where Anmol Bishnoi purportedly claimed responsibility for the attack in a Facebook post.

Mumbai Crime Branch officials have intensified their efforts to apprehend the wanted individuals and gather further evidence in connection to the case. (ANI)

Kajol is among the most adorable actors in Bollywood. She keeps treating her fans with her stunning pictures.

Recently, she shared a glimpse of her workout routine and asked the fans to guess if the picture is from before or after the session.

Taking to her Instagram handle, she posted a picture in which she can be seen wearing an all-black while lying down comfortably on a pilates machine. She completed her look with trendy sunglasses.

Giving a quirky caption to the picture, she wrote, Since everyone wants to know what my workouts look like …here is a pic..Ab batao yeh workout ke pehle tha ya baad mein”

Jackie Shroff reacted to the post and dropped a laughing emoji.

Fans also commented on the post. One of them wrote, “You have ability to CHILL during the workouts”

While another mentioned answering her question, “Before”

Recently, Kajol took to Instagram and dropped stunning pictures in a black saree along with a quirky caption.

She looked ethereal in a black net saree with embellishment over it. She carried a handwoven clutch in her hand.

Sharing the photos, she wrote, “Life is short. Let my pallu be long!”

As soon as the post was shared, fans chimed in the comment section.

One of the users wrote, “Beautiful”.

Another user commented, “OMG beautiful”.

Kajol is known for ‘Baazigar’, ‘Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge’, ‘Kuch Kuch Hota Hai’, ‘Gupt: The Hidden Truth’, ‘Dushman’, ‘Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham…’, ‘Fanaa’, ‘My Name Is Khan’, ‘Salaam Venky’, among others.

She is all set to come up with ‘Do Patti’. Recently, the makers unveiled the teaser of the film. In the teaser, Kajol plays a police officer. This is also the first time Kajol has played the role of a cop.

The teaser begins with Kajol as a cop riding a bike, while Kriti Sanon’s character is also shown as a glamorous one.

‘Do Patti’ also marks Kriti and Kajol’s second collaboration after ‘Dilwale’.(ANI)

Filmmaker Karan Johar is all set to be honoured at the third annual Gold House Gala in May.

This year’s event promises to be a star-studded affair, with luminaries such as Steven Yeun, Lucy Liu, Bang Si-Hyuk, and the iconic Hello Kitty also set to receive accolades alongside Karan.

The update was shared on the official Instagram handle of the Gold House Gala.

This year marks the third annual Gold Gala where top Asian Pacific and multicultural leaders will convene to celebrate the 2024 A100 List, as per Variety.

Gold House will announce the A100 honorees on May. 1. The list highlights the 100 most impactful Asian Pacific changemakers in culture and society over the past year.

This year’s theme, A Gold New World, imagines a tomorrow for all, built by all. Luxury brand fashion designer Prabal Gurung will help bring this vision to life as the first-ever Gold Gala Creative Director.

The event will take place at the historic Music Center in downtown Los Angeles on May 11. (ANI)

Actor Ranbir Kapoor has been trending online since Saturday morning. Hours after his look from the sets of ‘Ramayana’ leaked, he made a captivating appearance at the Kalina airport in Mumbai.

Decked up in black kurta and pyjama, Ranbir looked dapper as he greeted the paps with a huge smile. He was in a hurry but he managed to pose for the shutterbugs who were stationed outside the airport. He even waved at the paps.

Meanwhile, Ranbir and Sai Pallavi have started shooting for Nitesh Tiwari’s ‘Ramayana’, which also stars Lara Dutta. However, an official announcement regarding the film is still awaited. Ranbir will be seen essaying the role of Lord Ram in the film.

Recently, a few photos of Ranbir with his archery instructor were shared on social media by Ranbir’s fans,hinting that actor is taking archery lessons.

Ranbir was last seen on screen in Sandeep Reddy Vanga’s ‘Animal’, receiving wholesome praise for his performance as Ranvijay Singh. He will play Aziz in the sequel to Animal, called ‘Animal Park’, which is yet to go on floors.

In the coming months, Ranbir will also be seen in Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s ‘Love & War’. The film also stars his wife Alia Bhatt and actor Vicky Kaushal in the lead roles. (ANI)

The Indian Army has recently given its ‘no objection’ if a soldier accused of spying is dealt with under the Official Secrets Act (OSA).

This case pertains to the transmission of secret information relating to the Indian Army to Pakistan by accused persons with the connivance of a soldier through the Pakistan High Commission.

A Special judge at Tis Hazari Court noted that a ‘no objection certificate’ has been placed on record by the concerned officer of the Indian Army.

“Army Captain has placed on record the “no objection certificate” issued by Major General GOC, Headquarter, Armed Forces Special Operation Division that they have no objection if this court deals Naik / Clerk (SD) Paramjit Kumar under Indian Official Secret Act, 1923,” the court noted in the order of April 24.

During the hearing, on the court inquiry, Captain informed the court that after registration of the present case and after coming to know of the facts of the present case and the said documents being secret, confidential and classified documents which have been leaked in the present matter and to ensure the safety in future, the corrective actions have been taken by the Defence Forces so that the said documents which have come on record in the present chargesheet could not be misused against the security of the state in future.*

The court had asked the officer that as the classified documents which are available in the present chargesheet are part of a public document, whether the defence forces have ensured that the said classified documents could not be misused by any miscreant against the sovereignty of the country as well as against the security of the state in future.

Now the matter has been listed for arguements on charge in July.

Earlier, the Court had requested the top officials of the Indian Army to depute a Commanding officer to appear in court.

The court had noted that, as per a report from the Military Intelligence of the Indian Army, all the documents recovered from the other accused, Habib Ur Rehman, are confidential secrets.

The court had said that, as per the chargesheet, the accused Paramjeet Kumar, is a Naik of the military base unit at Agra Cantt., Uttar Pradesh and is a military personnel and governed under the Military Law and to ensure a fair trial as per law.

“A letter of request is sent to the Commanding Officer of the unit HQ AFSOD, Agra Cantt., Uttar Pradesh, as well as their Head Office and their Vigilance Branch, as well as Integrated Defence Staff at Sena Bhawan, New Delhi with a request to depute a commanding officer in the present matter to appear in person on the next date of hearing,” a special judge at Tis Hazari Court ordered in December 2023.

The court had observed, “There are allegations against accused Paramjeet Kumar, a military official, that he has transmitted classified and confidential documents relating to Indian Army and the same is detrimental to the National security and sovereignty of the country alleged to be provided to accused Habibur Rehman, who in turn would provide it to the official of Pakistan High Commission.”

Before passing the order, the special judge had noted the oral submissions of Investigation Officer (IO) ACP Pankaj Arora, who stated that there are allegations that the documents recovered from accused Habib Ur Rehman were of military secrets of the Indian Army and on interrogation, accused Habib Ur Rehman disclosed that the same were transmitted to him through accused Paramjeet Kumar, a military official of Indian Army under the commanding unit of HQ AFSOD, Agra Cantt., Uttar Pradesh.

IO had further stated that accused Habib Ur Rehman further disclosed that he used to supply these military secrets to an official of the Pakistan High Commission in lieu of money either paid directly or through accused Mohsin Khan at the behest of the said official of the Pakistan High Commission.

It was further stated by the IO that the alleged role of the accused, Paramjeet Kumar, while being posted as a military clerk was receiving official documents in an official capacity.

He prepared duplicate keys of the office as well as the office almirah and he used to open the said locks and click the photographs of classified and confidential military documents and then transmit them through phone and other electronic modes as well as physically to the accused Habib Ur Rehman as well as sometimes directly to the official of Pakistan High Commission and he was in constant touch with the said official of Pakistan High Commission, the IO had added.

The court had also noted that the IO has received a report from the Military Intelligence of the Indian Army that all the documents recovered from accused Habib Ur Rehman are confidential secrets and classified documents of the Indian Army and any unauthorized disclosure of the contents of the said documents could be expected to cause damage to national security, could be prejudicial to the national interest or would embarrass the government of India in its functioning.

Delhi police had registered a case under sections of the Official Secret Act, Criminal Conspiracy, Criminal Breach of Trust, etc. in the year 2021.

A chargesheet has already been filed and the case is at the stage of framing charges. Three people have been charge-sheeted by the Delhi police. (ANI)

Fans and well-wishers of popular television actor Gurucharan Singh, known for his role as Sodhi in the series ‘Taarak Mehta Ka Ooltah Chashmah,’ are concerned with his mysterious disappearance over the past few days.

Singh, who is believed to have been visiting his parents in Delhi, was expected to return to Mumbai but has not been heard from since April 22.

Rohit Meena, DCP South West Delhi, told ANI, “Gurucharan’s family registered a complaint that he has been missing since April 22. He was supposed to go to Mumbai, but he didn’t. We have registered a case under Section 365 of the IPC. We have put together a team to probe the matter and our technical team is also working on the case. We are in the process of going over the CCTV footage where he is seen walking by himself.”

The actor’s father, deeply distressed, filed a complaint with the Delhi Police, detailing his son’s sudden disappearance since his departure for Mumbai.

Despite efforts, Singh, aged 50, has neither reached Mumbai, where he works for a living, nor returned home. His phone remains unreachable, exacerbating the worries of his family.

Assuring a prompt and time-bound inquiry, a Delhi Police officer said, “We are looking into the matter and a probe was instituted since we received a complaint.”

Asserting that his son wasn’t in a state of mental distress, Gurucharan’s father said couldn’t explain his disappearance.

Gurucharan, who became a household name with his comic turns in ‘Taarak Mehta Ka Ooltah Chashmah,’ bid adieu to the show a few years ago. (ANI)

Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal filed his response to the Directorate of Enforcement’s (ED) affidavit in the Supreme Court on Saturday and said that there exists “no proof or material” demonstrating that the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) received funds or advanced kickbacks from the South group, let alone utilising them in the Goa election campaign.

“Not a single Rupee was traced back to the AAP, and the allegations put forth in this regard are devoid of any tangible evidence, rendering them vague and baseless without any corroboration,” Kejriwal said in response to the ED affidavit.

“No proof of even any cash payment was given. There exists no proof or material demonstrating that the AAP received funds or advanced kickbacks from the South group, let alone utilised them in the Goa election campaign. Not a single Rupee was traced back to the AAP, and the allegations put forth in this regard are devoid of any tangible evidence, rendering them vague, baseless without any corroboration,” the affidavit stated.

Recently, ED had filed an affidavit in the Supreme Court opposing Delhi Chief Kejriwal’s plea against his arrest. Filing his rejoinder on ED’s affidavit, Kejriwal said that the central agency is abusing its power of arrest in the middle of the general election.

He said that the mode, manner and timing of his arrest just before the schedule of the Lok Sabha elections had been announced and the Model Code of Conduct had come into play, speaks volumes about the “arbitrariness” of the ED.

“This timeline establishes the fact that Kejriwal has been arrested intentionally with a malafide intent without any necessity to arrest,” stated the rejoinder of the Chief Minister.

The present case is a “classic case” of how the ruling party-led central government has misused the central agency- ED and its wide powers under PMLA to crush its biggest political opponent -Aam Aadmi Party and its leaders, it added.

Kejriwal in his response further said that there is a glaring absence of material indicating his involvement in any criminal activity relating to the predicate offence whether it be concealment, possession, acquisition, or utilisation of proceeds of crime to attract the vice of Section 3 PMLA.

ED illegally ‘picked up’ a sitting Chief Minister and the National Convenor of one of the six national Opposition parties in India on March 21, 2024, that is, five days after the general elections were called and the Model Code of Conduct was put in place, affidavit further stated.

Kejriwal said that the AAP is in direct opposition to the ruling political party at the Centre in the ongoing general elections and voting has already commenced as of April 19.

The affidavit further said that during an election cycle when political activity is at its highest, Kejriwal’s illegal arrest has caused grave prejudice to his political party and will give the ruling party at the Centre an unjust upper hand in the ongoing elections.

“A level playing field–which is a pre-requisite for ‘free and fair elections’- has clearly been compromised with the illegal arrest of the Petitioner,” the affidavit read.

He said he has always cooperated with the investigation, and the apex court has held in various judgements that non-cooperation does not mean that the person be arrested.

The affidavit of the Chief Minister further said that ED attributed the alleged “large-scale destruction of evidence” as a ground to arrest Kejriwal, however, it said, “there is not even a single averment alleging the destruction of evidence of any kind by Kejriwal and hence the said ground is devoid of any merit.”

“Moreover, the respondent (ED), being devoid of any cogent reason, is now raising frivolous and fictitious grounds for justifying the illegal arrest of the Petitioner (Kejriwal),” stated the rejoined.

Kejriwal had approached the top court challenging his arrest by ED and his subsequent remand in the excise policy case. The apex court had earlier asked the central agency to file its response to Kejriwal’s plea.

Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader Kejriwal had challenged a Delhi High Court judgement that dismissed his plea against arrest by the ED and his subsequent remand in the excise policy case.

Kejriwal, while filing an appeal in the apex court, contended that his arrest after the announcement of the general elections was “motivated by extraneous considerations.”.

On April 9, the High Court dismissed his plea for release from jail and rejected his argument of political vendetta amid the looming Lok Sabha elections.

The High Court had said that Kejriwal’s absence from nine ED summons over six months undermined any claims of special privilege as Chief Minister, suggesting his arrest was an inevitable consequence of his non-cooperation.

Kejriwal was arrested by the ED on March 21 in connection with a money laundering probe relating to alleged irregularities in the now-cancelled Delhi excise policy 2021-22. (ANI)

In a major boost for firepower of its fighter aircraft fleet, the Indian Air Force has inducted the Rampage long-range supersonic air-to-ground missiles which can hit targets at around 250 Km.

The missile known as the High-Speed Low Drag-Mark 2 missile in the Indian Air Force was reportedly used in a big way by the Israeli Air Force during its recent attacks on Iranian targets.

The Indian Air Force has inducted the Rampage in its Russian-origin aircraft fleet including the Su-30 MKI and MiG-29 fighters along with the Jaguar fighter jets, defence sources told ANI.

The Indian Navy has also inducted the missile in its fleet for the MiG-29K naval fighter jets, they said.

The stand-off weapon will give Indian fighter pilots the option of engaging and taking out targets like communication centres or radar stations, the sources said.

The procurement was part of the emergency powers given by the Defence Ministry to the armed forces to equip themselves with critical weapons and equipment after the standoff with China started in 2020.

The missiles have a longer range than the Spice-2000s used in the Balakot air strikes in 2019.

The Indian Air Force has gone in for multiple weapon systems including the long-range systems from both aboard and Indian vendors.

Indian Air Force recently tested the ROCKS or the Crystal Maze-2 missile in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands territory.

The air-launched ballistic missile had hit its target successfully in the trials done around a fortnight ago.

Induction of the Rampage and integration with the Russian Su-30 has given a big boost to the Russian aircraft fleet which can now fire multiple long-range air-to-ground missiles including the over 400 Km strike range BrahMos supersonic missiles.

The Indian Air Force is now also mulling if the Rampage can be produced under the Make in India programme and be inducted in large numbers. (ANI)

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has fielded Ujjwal Nikam, who was a special public prosecutor in the Mumbai 26/11 terror attack, from Mumbai North Central in the Lok Sabha elections.

Nikam, a senior public prosecutor, has appeared for the government in several high-profile cases, including the 26/11 Mumbai attack case.

Ujjwal Nikam will be contesting the polls against Congress’s Varsha Gaikwad.

The BJP decided to drop sitting MP Poonam Mahajan, the two-time party MP from the Mumbai North Central seat.

In 2014, she secured victory from the Mumbai North Central seat, triumphing over incumbent MP Priya Dutt, daughter of the late actor and Congress leader Sunil Dutt. Poonam repeated this success in 2019 too.

The State, with its 48 Lok Sabha seats, is the second-largest contributor to the Lower House of Parliament after Uttar Pradesh.

In the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, the BJP won 23 out of 25 contested seats, while the undivided Shiv Sena secured 18 out of 23 seats.

The undivided NCP, part of the opposition alliance, contested 19 seats and won four. Following the split in the Shiva Sena 2022, Eknath Shinde faction aligned with the BJP.

Mumbai North-Central will go to poll on May 20. (ANI)

The Rouse Avenue Court on Saturday granted bail to Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) MLA Amanatullah Khan in connection with the Enforcement Directorate’s recent complaint filed against him for alleged non-attendance of the summons in Delhi Waqf Board money laundering case.

Amanatullah Khan appeared before the court following summons issued to him by the court. The Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate (ACMM), Divya Malhotra, noted his presence, granting him bail on a personal bond of Rs 15,000 and one surety of like amount.

ED recently had moved a complaint against him for not appearing before the agency and not joining the probe in the case related to the alleged irregularities in appointment in Delhi Waqf Board and leasing of its properties.

ED’s complaint was moved under section 174 of the IPC, 1860, read with section 63 (4) of PMLA, 2002 for non-attendance in compliance of Section 50, PMLA, 2002.

Special public prosecutor (SPP) Simon Benjamin appeared for the Enforcement Directorate in the matter.

The federal probe agency has alleged that Amanatullah Kham has elevated his role from witness to accused by filing an anticipatory bail plea and running away from the investigation. ED’s lawyer further stated that they were never able to conclude the probe against him because he was not presenting himself before the agency.

All the other people are the aides of this particular person. His role is much larger than that of the other accused persons who have already been arrested and charge-sheeted, Advocate Simon Benjamin added.

The Rouse Avenue court on March 1 dismissed the anticipatory bail plea of AAP MLA Amanat Ullah Khan. This case is related to the purchase of a property worth Rs 36 crore in the Okhla area at the alleged behest of Amanat Ullah Khan, who is also the sitting MLA from that area.

A charge sheet has already been filed against four accused persons and one firm. It has been alleged that Rs 100 crore Waqf Properties were given on lease illegally. It is also alleged that 32 contractual employees were appointed in the Delhi Waqf Board during the chairmanship of Amanat Ullah Khan, who flouted the rules. (ANI)