No Bail For Expelled Gujarat IPS Officer Sanjiv Bhatt In 1990 Custodial Death Case
New Delhi:
The Supreme Court has denied bail to ex-IPS officer Sanjiv Bhatt in a custodial death case, but has also directed the hearing against the life sentence handed out be expedited.
Mr Bhatt had earlier been sentenced to life imprisonment in a 1990 custodial death case in Jamnagar in Gujarat, and 20 years in jail in a 1996 case relating to planting drugs to frame a Rajasthan-based lawyer in Palanpur. He is currently lodged in the Rajkot Central Jail.
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Hindustan Times
2 hours ago
- Hindustan Times
Lesson from stampedes: Communication key to crowd control, say experts
This year, stampedes at a major railway station in Delhi, at the Maha Kumbh in Uttar Pradesh, and during a cricket match victory celebration in Karnataka have led to at least 72 deaths and a few hundred injuries so far — a grim statistic which exposes the glaring gaps in crowd regulation rules, official apathy and tokenistic governance. Action taken following these tragic, largely preventable deaths does little to avert such incidents in the future — after the June 4 stampede in Bengaluru, the state leadership, replicating the action of its counterparts in other parts of the country, suspending the city's top cop and other police staff, and ordered a magisterial inquiry. Later, the Karnataka high court also took suo motu notice. In light of these developments, HT spoke with veteran police officers, planners, urban designers, and academics to dissect the anatomy of stampedes and how to prevent them. Prakash Singh, a retired IPS officer who was the state police chief of Assam and Uttar Pradesh and the director-general of the Border Security Force, said the Bengaluru tragedy appears to be a case of overriding political desire overruling reservations from the police. Multiple reports, including by HT, suggest that the police had initially dismissed the idea of a parade due to paucity of time. But as some players from the overseas were scheduled to return home, there was a rush to hold the celebrations on June 4 itself, according to people aware of the matter. 'But this should have never been made part of the consideration. No event can be organised without the clearance from the police,' Singh said. The second issue, he pointed out, was the inconsistent messaging. 'There were multiple versions of when and where the parade will be held.' The most significant lapse, however, was the police's alleged failure to react when the crowd started trickling, Singh said. 'Around 200,000-300,000 people tried to make their way towards the stadium when the capacity was only 36,000. It was a policing failure, given that there are enough surveillance measures that would have indicated swelling of crowds.' Police should have, through existing intelligence and surveillance measures, prevented the crowd from converge from all directions. Another lapse was the inadequate deployment of forces, he added. 'Ideally, civic volunteers, armed battalions, and the fire brigade should have been mobilised. If there was fatigue, police from outside the commissionerate should have been engaged, he said. While Karnataka home minister G Parameshwara has announced that the government will formulate a new SOP for crowd control, these mechanisms are not alien to India, where heavy footfall events such as the Maha Kumbh are held regularly. They have been part of the police manual since colonial times, and even the National Disaster Management Agency (NDMA) has issued guidelines to manage crowds at events. To prevent stampedes, the administration — be it government, private organisers or temple trusts— should actively control the 'hype' through constant messaging, said Monika Vij, a geography professor at Delhi's Miranda House, who has researched extensively on crowd management at religious events. Referring to the Kumbh tragedy in January, where the official death toll was 30, she said, while the authorities made 'excellent arrangements', the hype of a historical event overshadowed everything. Authorities could not effectively communicate with the crowd when the stampede took place, she said. 'There has to be greater control and responsibility over disseminating information.' On the Bengaluru stampede, she said it was the 'lack of clarity over the venue and ticketing' which led to the tragedy. Similar confusion was seen at the February 15 stampede at the New Delhi Railway Station over train departures, Vij said. Another retired IPS officer Nazrul Islam, who was the ADGP in West Bengal, said a crowd, by default, is fuelled by frenzy and not rationality — be it a religious procession or a sports event. 'Visible, prompt policing is important to keep the crowd disciplined. Staggered movement of crowds is essential, and for that, checkpoints are installed in all directions from approaches to the event venue,' he said. KT Ravindran, founder of the Institute of Urban Designers India, said, for any kind of gathering, authorities must ensure that designing standards, such as entry and exit points and emergency exit, are followed. 'At any point in time, the potential to disperse should be higher than the potential to gather.' Ujan Ghosh, the former president of the institute, said the combined action of authorities, including police, along with the architecture, either prevents or causes a stampede. He also questioned if the Bengaluru stadium was the right choice as the venue for the cricket felicitation event. Spaces, such as streets and pavements, are often designed for specific purposes, he said, suggesting that stadiums are usually for ticketed events.
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First Post
2 hours ago
- First Post
Israel says it found body of Gaza chief Mohammed Sinwar in tunnel beneath hospital
The Israeli military has confirmed that the body of senior Hamas leader Mohammed Sinwar was found in a tunnel beneath a hospital in Gaza, weeks after he was killed in an airstrike. Sinwar was the younger brother of Yahya Sinwar. read more A video released by the Israeli army shows Muhammad Sinwar, brother of Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar, travelling in a car through a tunnel near the Erez crossing, close to the Israel-Gaza border, amid the ongoing conflict on December 17, 2023. (Photo: Reuters) The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) confirmed today that the body of senior Hamas leader Mohammed Sinwar has been found in a tunnel beneath the European Hospital in Khan Yunis, Gaza. He was killed in an Israeli airstrike on May 13. Sinwar, 49, was the younger brother of Yahya Sinwar, the mastermind behind the October 7 attack on Israel. Yahya was shot dead by IDF soldiers eight months ago. Both brothers were born—and killed—in the Khan Yunis area. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD Mohammed Sinwar, once nicknamed 'The Shadow' by Israeli intelligence for his ability to evade capture, took part in the 2011 deal that freed Yahya Sinwar in exchange for Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit. He avoided even his father's funeral to stay hidden, but the Shin Bet eventually tracked his movements and targeted him. A joint statement by the IDF and Shin Bet confirmed that Sinwar and Rafah Brigade Commander Mohammad Shabaneh were killed in an underground command center beneath the hospital. Items belonging to them, along with intelligence materials and other bodies, were also recovered. Footage released by the IDF showed a body being dragged from a tunnel under the hospital. Defense Minister Israel Katz praised the operation, calling Sinwar an 'arch-murderer' and warning remaining Hamas leaders that they are next. He specifically named Gaza-based commander Az al-Din al-Haddad and Qatar-based leader Khalil al-Hayya. The May 13 strike also killed Hamas commander Muhammad Shabana and senior figure Mahdi Kuwar. Hamas's October 7 attack killed at least 1,180 people and saw 252 hostages taken. Of the 55 hostages still in Gaza, 32 are believed to be dead.
Indian Express
3 hours ago
- Indian Express
Israel says Hamas Gaza chief Mohammed Sinwar's body recovered
The Israeli military recovered the body of Gaza-based Hamas militant group's de facto chief Mohammed Sinwar in a tunnel beneath the European Hospital in the southern city of Khan Younis, the Israeli Defence Forces (IDF) announced on Sunday. The IDF made the announcement after it conducted a thorough identification of the body via DNA checks, though Hamas is yet to publicly confirm the death of Sinwar. Mohammed Sinwar, 49, was killed by the Israeli military in an air strike on May 13, in which at least 28 Palestinians were killed and dozens of them were injured, a Hamas-run civil defence agency had claimed. Mohammad Sinwar was responsible for the deaths of countless civilians. He was eliminated in an IDF & ISA strike on May 13. His body was found beneath the European hospital in Khan Yunis—more proof of how Sinwar, and Hamas, hide behind their civilians and purposely embed… — Israel Defense Forces (@IDF) June 8, 2025 Sinwar was the brother of Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar who was killed by the Israeli forces in southern Gaza in October last year. Sinwar was killed in a massive Israeli airstrike on the hospital in May, a day after Hamas released Israeli-American soldier Edan Alexander. Sinwar's body was recovered alongside Hamas's Rafah Brigade commander Mohammad Sabaneh's body in southern Gaza, the IDF informed. The military added that other bodies were also located which it was looking to identify. 🎥 Weapons, cash and ammunition: IDF Spokesperson BG Effie Defrin reveals what was found inside the tunnel beneath the European Hospital in Khan Yunis. More proof that Hamas leaders weren't just hiding underground, they were running their terror network from beneath a hospital. — Israel Defense Forces (@IDF) June 8, 2025 In a statement, the IDF said 'Several items belonging to Sinwar and Sabaneh were located, along with additional intelligence findings that were transferred for further investigation,' BBC reported. IDF took a small group of foreign journalists to Khan Younis in Gaza and showed them the tunnel on Sunday. The IDF also put out a video of the small entrance of the tunnel, which was accessible through the freshly dug soil in front of the hospital. IDF spokesperson Brig Gen Effie Defrin confirmed the development and stated that in one of the rooms they found Sinwar's body, which was located in the narrow underground corridor of the tunnel. 'This is another example of the cynical use by Hamas, using civilians as human shields, using civilian infrastructure, hospitals, again and again,' Defrin said.
