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The Hindu
4 minutes ago
- The Hindu
SC man murder in Tirunelveli: activists demand law to prevent ‘honour' killing
Twenty-seven-year-old Kavin Selvaganesh, a Scheduled Caste (SC) man who was brutally murdered on Sunday (July 27, 2025) in a suspected case of 'honour' killing, was a brilliant student, his teachers told The Hindu. Kavin had been in a relationship with a woman since their school days, and recently, he expressed interest in marrying her. On Sunday, however, he was allegedly assaulted and killed by the woman's brother, Surjith, 23, at KTC Nagar in Tirunelveli, according to the police. The police have registered a case of murder and invoked sections under the Scheduled Caste/Scheduled Tribe Prevention of Atrocities Act, among others, against the accused. Speaking to The Hindu over the phone, Kavin's mother Tamilselvi, a teacher at a panchayat union school in Thoothukudi, said that her husband was a farm worker, and besides Kavin, they have a 25-year-old son named Praveen. After completing their engineering courses, both of them were placed in top tech firms in Chennai. 'A brilliant student' Teachers who taught Kavin at school describe him as a 'brilliant boy' who would often help other students with their lessons, especially in mathematics and science. 'We were shocked to hear about the way he died,' the teachers said. A. Kathir of Evidence, an NGO from Madurai, said the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) should take efforts to establish an exclusive law to prevent 'honour' killing. In Tamil Nadu, he said, 65 'honour' killings had been reported since 2017, while the government maintained that between 2015 and 2021, there were only three such crimes. 'We have documented each case,' he said. On average, one to two deaths, including suicides, were being reported every day in Tamil Nadu, where youngsters died due to threats from families over disagreements regarding their choice of partner. 'An exclusive Act would discourage violators from committing such crimes,' he added. In the case of Kavin, the parents of the accused were working as Sub-Inspectors in the Police department. Hence, the case should be transferred to the CBI, he demanded, and urged that the government give protection to the victim's family.
Time of India
16 hours ago
- Time of India
BMC plans hawker-free zones across all wards
Mumbai: A year after submitting a list of 20 hawker-free zones to Bombay HC, BMC is now planning to replicate the model across all civic wards. At a recent meeting, municipal commissioner Bhushan Gagrani directed ward officials to coordinate with local police and identify specific stretches that can be strictly monitored and kept free of illegal hawkers. These areas will be jointly supervised by civic and police staff to ensure consistent enforcement and pedestrian safety. A BMC official said, "Complaints about hawkers occupying footpaths and narrowing walking space have been increasing, especially in high traffic areas. We have been asked to address this through targeted enforcement. The commissioner has also instructed that additional manpower and machinery be provided to wards on demand. Consistent enforcement will send a strong message to hawkers and discourage them from returning. " In May, a dozen housing societies from Thakur village in Kandivli East had approached Mumbai North MP and minister Piyush Goyal, seeking his urgent intervention to address growing encroachment by illegal hawkers in their locality. They said hawkers had taken over roads and footpaths, and claimed that no action had been taken despite repeated complaints and peaceful protests. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Treatment That Might Help You Against Back Pain! Back Pain Treatment | Search Ads Undo You Can Also Check: Mumbai AQI | Weather in Mumbai | Bank Holidays in Mumbai | Public Holidays in Mumbai In a similar move, traders' body Dadar Vyapari Sangh alleged in a letter to BMC and police chiefs in Feb that the menace of illegal hawkers in Dadar had reached alarming levels. It said it had to discontinue a valet parking initiative it had launched due to lack of official support. Citizen activist Nikhil Desai said effective action is possible if BMC and police work in coordination. "Dadar TT, which is on the list of proposed hawker-free zones, continues to be overrun by hundreds of hawkers at any given time. The only sustainable solution is to relocate them to designated hawking zones." He also recalled how in March a ward officer who took action against illegal flower vendors outside Matunga station was abruptly transferred after facing political pressure. Rajkumar Sharma, president of the Chembur-based advanced locality management and networking action committee, felt authorities keep passing the buck. "Ideally, BMC officials should act against such encroachments before residents are made to take matters in their own hands and go to court."
The Hindu
21 hours ago
- The Hindu
MHA refuses to share data on CAA beneficiaries
More than a year after the Citizenship (Amendment) Act, 2019 became effective, the Union Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) has refused to share data on the total number of beneficiaries under the Act. A Bharatiya Janata Party MP from West Bengal told The Hindu that fewer than 100 people in his constituency had received citizenship under the CAA even though the number of intended beneficiaries, mostly belonging to the Matua sect, were around 1 lakh. There are around 2.8 crore people from the Matua and Namasudra communities who stand to benefit from the CAA in the State. The CAA Rules were notified on March 11, 2024 to give citizenship to undocumented members of Hindu, Sikh, Parsi, Jain, Buddhist and Christian communities from Pakistan, Afghanistan and Bangladesh under the Act that was passed in 2019. Ranaghat MP Jagannath Sarkar told The Hindu that the requirement to submit any one document, which will help trace an applicant's roots to Bangladesh, should be dropped and the cut-off date for applying under CAA should be amended too. The existing cut-off date is December 31, 2014. 'Most people do not have any of the documents sought by the MHA to fulfil citizenship criteria. These people came to India to escape persecution, with barely any belongings. How will they provide documents?' Mr. Sarkar said. Following reports from West Bengal, Schedule 1A of the CAA Rules was tweaked on July 8, 2024, and the list of nine documents to prove that the applicant is a national of Afghanistan or Bangladesh or Pakistan was expanded to include any document issued by the State or the Centre or quasi-judicial authority in India identifying or representing the applicant or their parents or grandparents or great-grandparents as a national of these three countries . Anticipating non-cooperation in Opposition-ruled States, the CAA Rules entrusted Central government officials posted in States, including officials of Directorate of Census, Postal Department, Railways, National Informatics Centre (NIC) and Intelligence Bureau, to process the applications. On April 2, Minister of State for Home Nityanand Rai said in the Rajya Sabha that 'thousands were granted citizenship', while responding to Trinamool Congress member Sushmita Dev's remarks that merely 350 people were granted citizenship under the CAA. The Minister did not specify the number. The Act was mostly expected to benefit people in West Bengal and Assam as those who had arrived from Pakistan had entered legally and possessed one of the documents required to acquire citizenship. In West Bengal, most intended beneficiaries already have voter cards and other identity documents. One of the criteria to avail citizenship under the CAA is that the applicant has to declare that he or she is a foreigner. The Pakistani applicants from the six non-Muslim communities would have been eligible under the Citizenship Act, 1955 also after living in India continuously for 12 years. According to Hindu Singh, president, Seemant Lok Sangathan, a group that advocates for the rights of Pakistani minority migrants in India, of the around 8,500 people who applied under the CAA in Rajasthan, 7,250 were granted citizenship in the past one year. On March 10, Assam's Parliamentary Affairs Minister Chandra Mohan Patowary informed the Assembly that two applicants in Assam were granted citizenship under CAA. In Gujarat, at least 373 people had got citizenship via the CAA. While discussing the legislation in Rajya Sabha on December 11, 2019, Union Home Minister Amit Shah said that 'lakhs and crores' of people would benefit from the law. However, Director, Intelligence Bureau had deposed before a parliamentary committee in 2018 that around 31,000 people would be the immediate beneficiaries. The MHA has refused to share information on how many people have either applied or had been granted citizenship. The Hindu filed a Right to Information Act (RTI) application in June 2024 and in September 2024, the MHA refused to provide the information. An appeal was also filed with the Central Information Commission (CIC), which hears appeals from applicants who have issues with RTI responses from public authorities of the Union government. The CIC's Chief Commissioner Heeralal Samariya heard The Hindu's case on July 9. The RTI was limited to applications received on the portal, which is run by the Home Ministry as the entire process is online. The Home Ministry's representative, Ram Dayal Meena, did not specifically dispute any of The Hindu's arguments during the hearing, and when asked by the CIC if he wanted to speak, declined to make any oral submissions. A written response reiterated the MHA's earlier refusals, which simply stated that the information was 'not being maintained as desired by you'. 'Upon perusal of records and examining the facts of the case at hand, it is noted that the Appellant's queries had been appropriately answered by the concerned PIO,' Mr. Samariya wrote in his order. 'The reply is self- explanatory and information as permissible under the provisions of the RTI Act has been duly supplied to the Appellant.' The decision was arrived at the same day, and was uploaded at a later date.
