Latest news with #exploitation
The Hindu
8 hours ago
- Politics
- The Hindu
CPI(M) opposes installation of smart prepaid meters by Adani Transmission Step Seven in A.P.
CPI(M) State secretariat member Ch. Babu Rao and State committee member D. Kasinath on Sunday strongly opposed the installation of smart prepaid meters for LT1 domestic electricity connections in Andhra Pradesh. The CPI(M) leaders said that the AP Central DISCOM (CPDCL) has already given the go-ahead to Adani Transmission Step Seven Limited to start installing the devices in selected subdivisions in AMRUT cities. Mr. Rao at a press conference here released a copy of the letter written by CPDCL Chief General Manager (Projects) K. Linga Murthy to Adani Transmission Step Seven Limited regarding the installation of the smart meters under the Revised Distribution Sector Scheme (RDSS). Mr. Rao termed it a 'gift' by the NDA government to the people on the occasion of completion of its first year in power and that the plan was to install the equipment in 4.10 million homes across the State in a phased manner. He said the stage has been set for exploitation of the people, and noted that by paving the way for installation of smart meters, the TDP, which had vehemently opposed the scheme in the past, has now betrayed the public by giving the installation a green signal. In the CPDCL jurisdiction, 10,28,000 homes in major cities and towns of Krishna, Guntur and Prakasam districts have been targeted. The CPI(M) leader said that the YSR Congress Party government had signed agreements for the installation of smart meters under pressure from the Centre and now the coalition government is following suit, adding that, 'the BJP, TDP and JSP were all complicit in the matter'. The installation of smart meters entailed a huge burden of nearly ₹25,000 crore on the public, and each device is costing ₹13,000. The NDA government has already imposed four types of adjustment charges, which resulted in a burden of approximately ₹15,485 crore on the people in the last nine months, Mr. Rao said adding that 'the smart meter plan included the collection of monthly rental charges ranging from ₹100 to ₹200 from each consumer for approximately seven-and-half-years.
News24
2 days ago
- General
- News24
Olorato Mongale murder: One man cleared, released from police custody
Fezile Ngubane, who was previously linked to the murder of Olorato Mongale, has been cleared by police. Police said Ngubane's father voluntarily brought him to the KwaMashu police station on Friday. A preliminary report revealed that Ngubane, who resides in the same neighbourhood as the late suspect Philangenkosi Makhanya, was unknowingly exploited. One of the men previously wanted in connection with Olorato Mongale's murder has been released from police custody, without any charges being filed, police said on Saturday. National police spokesperson Brigadier Athlenda Mathe said Fezile Ngubane's father voluntarily brought him to the KwaMashu police station on Friday when he learnt that his son had been linked to the ongoing murder investigation. However, Mathe said that, after thorough interviews and an initial investigation conducted by a multidisciplinary team, Ngubane was officially cleared of wrongdoing. Mathe said Ngubane, who apparently works as a car washer and resides in the same neighbourhood as the late suspect Philangenkosi Makhanya, was unknowingly exploited. 'Makhanya allegedly identified Ngubane as a soft target and took his ID smart card and used it to Rica SIM cards that Makhanya would use to commit his long list of kidnapping and robbery crimes targeted at young women. 'At times, it's alleged that he would use Ngubane's bank card to buy at various clothing stores,' Mathe said. Mathe said Ngubane's identity card was among the 27 ID smart cards found in Makhanya's possession. 'The SAPS has also released the parents of one of the two suspects in the case after their statements were taken down,' she said. Mathe said police had recorded 20 cases where women had come forward to identify the suspects as those who had kidnapped and robbed them. Police previously identified Ngubane, Makhanya, 28, Bongani Mthimkhulu, 34, as suspects sought in connection with the killing of 30-year-old Mongale. Mongale's badly beaten body was discovered on 34 Cambridge Road, outside a car workshop in Lombardy West on Sunday. She was last seen on Sunday afternoon, climbing into a white Polo Volkswagen with cloned number plates, outside her complex in Atholl, Johannesburg. Mongale was under the impression that she was going on a date with a man she had met in Bloemfontein while visiting family. The man called himself 'John'. Makhanya was killed during a shootout with KwaZulu-Natal police after he was located at an apartment in Amanzimtoti, south of Durban, in the early hours of Friday morning. Makhanya was found in possession of 28 identity cards, a safe, and 'not less than' 20 cellphones. News24 previously reported that KwaZulu-Natal's police commissioner, Lieutenant-General Nhlanhla Mkhwanazi, said that Makhanya had allegedly confessed to the murder and wanted to take his own life before he was gunned down. Mkhwanazi said that, according to the owner of the apartment, Makhanya confessed to him what he did in Johannesburg, and that he wanted to take his own life. 'There is a person who deals with hiring vehicles and is renting out an apartment here. The suspect has previously rented a car from him. The guy says, upon seeing his [Makhanya's] face on social media, he decided that he was not going to give him the vehicle. 'He stayed with him the whole day trying to convince him to hand himself over to the police, which he refused,' he told reporters at the scene. Meanwhile, Mthimkhulu remains at large. 'The search for Bongani Mthimkhulu continues, and police once again call on Mthimkhulu to hand himself over at his nearest police station,' Mathe said.
CTV News
2 days ago
- General
- CTV News
Regina man facing multiple child pornography charges
A 24-year-old Regina man is facing multiple child pornography related charges after police seized several electronic devices from a home in the city on Tuesday. According to the Saskatchewan Child Exploitation Unit (ICE), an online investigation was launched in February relating to child exploitation. As a result of the investigation 24-year-old Sandeep Kumar was charged with possession of child pornography, making available child pornography and accessing child pornography. Kumar made his first court appearance on Wednesday and was released on numerous conditions. His next court appearance is scheduled for June 11 at Regina provincial court, the ICE Unit said.
Free Malaysia Today
3 days ago
- General
- Free Malaysia Today
Woman charged in Johor with trafficking, exploiting kids
At the Johor Bahru sessions court today, Haliza Palok was charged under Section 14 of the Anti-Trafficking in Persons and Anti-Smuggling of Migrants Act 2007 with trafficking in children. (Facebook pic) PETALING JAYA : A woman was charged in the Johor Bahru sessions court today with trafficking and exploiting a boy and a teenage girl in December last year. Haliza Palok, 55, pleaded not guilty after the charges were read to her before judge Thalha Bachok @ Embok Mok, Harian Metro reported. Haliza is accused under Section 5(1)(c) of the Children and Young Persons (Employment) Act 1966 of trafficking a boy, aged between 10 and 12 years old, and a teenage girl between 13 and 15 years old, by exploiting them for illegal activities. Haliza was also charged under Section 14 of the Anti-Trafficking in Persons and Anti-Smuggling of Migrants Act 2007 with trafficking in children, having allegedly committed the offence at Jalan Kargo 2, Senai Airport City, Senai, Johor, at 6.54pm on Dec 19, 2024. For the first charge, she faces up to a year's imprisonment, a RM5,000 fine or both, if convicted. On the second charge, she faces up to 30 years in jail and whipping, if found guilty. The prosecution was led by immigration department deputy public prosecutor Tan Yen Thung, while lawyer Amarpreet Singh represented the accused. The court allowed bail of RM17,000 for both charges with two sureties, and ordered Haliza to report to the Johor immigration department once a month, surrender her passport to the court and refrain from tampering with the prosecution witnesses. It set Aug 27 for further mention of the case and discovery of documents.
NDTV
4 days ago
- Politics
- NDTV
"Agree With Shashi Tharoor...": Pawan Khera's Veiled Attack On Colleague
New Delhi: In a clear sign that Shashi Tharoor's ties with the Congress may be at a crossroads, senior party leader Pawan Khera has responded to the Thiruvananthapuram MP's "critics and trolls" post with a passage from his book 'The Paradoxical Prime Minister: Narendra Modi and His India'. Mr Khera has posted a photograph of a highlighted passage. Here, Mr Tharoor has accused the Narendra Modi government of "repeatedly using the army in its political propaganda". "The shameless exploitation of the 2016 surgical strikes' along the Line of Control with Pakistan, and of a military raid in hot pursuit of rebels in Myanmar, as party election tool-something the Congress had never done despite having authorized several such strikes earlier-marked particularly disgraceful dilution of the principle that national Security issues require both discretion and non-partisanship," he has written. I agree with that Dr @ShashiTharoor who wrote about surgical strikes in his book in 2018 - 'The Paradoxical Prime Minister'. #ReadingNow — Pawan Khera 🇮🇳 (@Pawankhera) May 29, 2025 In the accompanying post, Mr Khera said, "I agree with what Dr Shashi Tharoor writes about surgical strikes in his book 'The Paradoxical Prime Minister'." Following Mr Tharoor's remarks in Panama, in which he praised the Narendra Modi government's response to terrorism, Mr Khera has been posting on X about how surgical strikes were carried out during the UPA era too and tagging Mr Tharoor on these posts. Mr Khera is among the key figures in the Congress high command. So, the message to Mr Tharoor is clear: the party is not happy with him. Making this clear, Congress's communications chief Jairam Ramesh responded to one of the posts by Mr Khera with a poetic swipe at Mr Tharoor. "Oh what a tangled web we weave, When first we practice to deceive..., he said. Mr Tharoor has led an Indian delegation to the US and four other countries as part of the Centre's global outreach in the wake of the Pahalgam terror attack and Operation Sindoor. After events in the US and Panama, the delegation is now headed to Bogota. Taking note of his party colleagues' jibes, the four-time MP put out a post on X. "After a long and successful day in Panama, I have to wind up at midnightvhere with departure for Bogota, Colombia in six hours, so I don't really have time for this - but anyway: For those zealots fulminating about my supposed ignorance of Indian valour across the LoC: in tge past (sic). "I was clearly and explicitly speaking only about reprisals for terrorist attacks and not about previous wars; & my remarks were preceded by a reference to the several attacks that have taken place in recent years alone, during which previous Indian responses were both restrained and constrained by our responsible respect for the LoC and the IB. But as usual, critics and trolls are welcome to distort my views and words as they see fit. I genuinely have better things to do. Goodnight," he said. After a long and successful day in Panama, i have to wind up at midnightvhere with departure for Bogota, Colombia in six hours, so I don't really have time for this — but anyway: For those zealots fulminating about my supposed ignorance of Indian valour across the LoC: in tge… — Shashi Tharoor (@ShashiTharoor) May 29, 2025 Yesterday, while addressing a gathering in Panama City, Mr Tharoor said terrorists targeting India have realised in recent years that they will have to pay. "What has changed in recent years is that the terrorists have also realised they will have a price to pay. On that, let there be no doubt. When, for the first time, India breached the Line of Control between India and Pakistan to conduct a surgical strike on a terror base, a launchpad - the Uri strike in September 2015. That was already something we had not done before." "Even during the Kargil War, we had not crossed the Line of Control; in Uri, we did, and then came the attack in Pulwama in January 2019. This time, we crossed not only the Line of Control but also the international border, and we struck the terrorist headquarters in Balakot. This time, we have gone beyond both of those. We have not only gone beyond the Line of Control and the international border. We have struck at the Punjabi heartland of Pakistan by hitting terror bases, training centres, terror headquarters in nine places," he said. The remarks drew a jibe from Congress leader Udit Raj. "Congress MP Shashi Tharoor is the super spokesperson of the BJP. He doing Modi ji's chamchagiri (flattery) more than BJP leaders. Does he (Shashi Tharoor) even know what the earlier governments used to do? ... They (the Central government) are taking credit for the Indian Armed Forces. Shashi Tharoor has become the spokesperson for the publicity stunts of the BJP," Mr Raj said. Shortly after, senior Congress leaders Pawan Khera and Jairam Ramesh joined the offensive against Mr Tharoor, making it clear that the Congress high command has taken note. Shashi Tharoor has had a chequered journey in the Congress, with several run-ins with the leadership. A former Union minister, he was removed as the party's spokesperson in 2014 after he praised Prime Minister Modi in an article. In 2022, he was part of a rebellion by 23 senior party leaders that called for key organisational changes. Many of these leaders have since left Congress. Later that year, Mr Tharoor contested against Mallikarjun Kharge for the party president's post. While Mr Kharge, who had the tacit support of the Gandhi family, won comfortably, Mr Tharoor got over 1,000 votes, an impressive feat for anyone taking on a "Gandhi-approved" candidate. Following the Pahalgam terror attack and Operation Sindoor, he spoke to several national and international platforms. While his remarks made headlines and even his critics praised him for his articulation of the Indian position, the Congress leadership is not happy. The Congress, which assured full support to the Centre in its action against those behind the Pahalgam terror attack, has now changed tack and asked the government to come clean on what led to the ceasefire and questioned what role the US played in it. Earlier, the high command sent a message to Mr Tharoor at a meeting of top leaders. "We are a democratic party and people keep expressing their opinion, but this time, Tharoor has crossed the Lakshman Rekha," a party source said. The sources said the leadership sent a "clear message" that leaders must focus on amplifying the party's stand instead of expressing individual opinions. Mr Tharoor has said he has made the remarks in a personal capacity and that he is not a party spokesperson. Against this backdrop, the government selected Mr Tharoor to lead one of the seven Indian delegations travelling abroad as part of the outreach. The Congress said it had not suggested Mr Tharoor's name. The former diplomat said the party is entitled to have an opinion of his abilities and that he will fulfill the responsibility assigned to him.
