ED can attach overseas assets equivalent to fraud value: HC

ED can attach overseas assets equivalent to fraud value: HC 

02.10.2024

Chennai : In a money-laundering case, if proceeds of crime are located outside the country, Enforcement Directorate (ED) has the power to attach the properties equivalent to the value of the fraud within the country, Madras high court has said. “Even the properties purchased prior to the scheduled offence can be attached under Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA),” a division bench of Justices S M Subramaniam and V Sivagnanam said on Tuesday. 

HC passed the order while dismissing a batch of pleas moved by Sterling Futures and Holidays Limited, SN India Pvt Ltd, and Chennai Properties & Investments Ltd. The issue pertains to the fraud committed by the petitioner-companies in obtaining two loans to the tune of $119 million from IDBI Bank.

Woman cons medical seat aspirants of ₹6.4cr

Woman cons medical seat aspirants of ₹6.4cr 

CRIME FILE 

Claimed To Be Trustee Of 2 Colleges & Took Payment | Used Unsuspecting Friend As Go-Between 

Chaithanya.Swamy @timesofindia.com 

Bengaluru : A city-based teacher filed a complaint against a Chennai-based woman, accusing her of cheating medical seat aspirants to the tune of Rs 6.4 crore. Dipti K Simha, a resident of Whitefield, told police that one of her friends introduced her to the accused — Anna Jacob of Kattupakkam in Chennai — in 2022. Anna claimed to be a trustee at St John’s Medical College, Bengaluru, and Christian Medical College, Vellore, Tamil Nadu. After getting to know each other, Anna told Dipti there were a few payment seats available for Bachelor of Medicine, Bachelor of Surgery (MBBS) and Doctor of Medicine (MD) courses at both colleges. Saying she could help aspirants get seats, Anna asked Dipti to recommend those interested. 

Believing her, Dipti informed her friends and colleagues about the seat availability in both colleges. They referred eight aspirants to Dipti and she, in turn, organised a meeting of the parents and aspirants with Anna. Anna met them in star hotels, where they discussed the price of the seats and finali sed a deal. Anna told the aspirants and parents that she would get the seats allotted to them after she received payment. Accordingly, the parents of five aspirants transferred money to Dipti’s bank account, who then transferred it to Anna’s account. The remaining three parents transferred money directly to Anna’s account for their children. In all, they paid around Rs 6.4 crore. 

However, Anna didn’t get seats for any of the students even after the deadline for admissions passed. Whenever questioned by either the aspirants or Dipti, she would give some excuse or the other. Eventually, they enquired with the respective colleges and learned that Anna wasn’t a trustee of either college. Dipti told police that after learning Anna had cheated them, parents of the aspirants were behind her, asking her to get their money back. Dipti enquired about Anna in other places and found that she had allegedly cheated a few other aspirants similarly, including a Hyderabad-based man, and then gone incommunicado.

 A case has been registered under Sections 406 (criminal breach of trust) and 420 (cheating and dishonestly inducing delivery of property) of the Indian Penal Code. Central Crime Branch police are investigating

Driver an employee, says HC, fines Ola ₹5.5L for inaction on abuse plaint

Driver an employee, says HC, fines Ola ₹5.5L for inaction on abuse plaint

Vasantha.Kumar@timesofindia.com 02.10.2024

Bengaluru : In a landmark judgment, Karnataka high court has ruled that under the Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal) Act, 2013 (PoSH Act 2013), a driver-subscriber of a transport aggregator is to be considered as its “employee”. In view of this, the court ordered ride-hailing firm Ola to pay Rs 5 lakh as cost and an additional Rs 50,000 as litigation expenses to a woman petitioner-complainant for failing to act on her complaint. 

Justice MGS Kamal, in his judgment delivered on Sept 30, 2024, rejected Ola’s contention that it is merely an “intermediary” and partially allowed the petition filed by a woman from Bengaluru. Furthermore, the judge directed Ola’s Internal Complaint Committee to conduct an inquiry into the complaint dated Sept 30, 2018, in accordance with the provisions of the PoSH Act, 2013, and submit the report to the district officer within 90 days. 

The court also found the officers in charge of Karnataka State Transport Authority guilty of deliberate inaction and negligence in discharging their statutory obligations, imposing a penalty of Rs 1 lakh, payable to the Karnataka State Legal Services Authority within 30 days. 

‘No jurisdiction’,  Firm, plaint panel claimed they had no jurisdiction to take action against driver 

The case dates back to Aug 23, 2018, when the complainant, a regular user of Ola, booked a taxi through the platform to commute from her residence in Yelahanka to her office in JP Nagar here. During the ride, she noticed the driver staring at her through the rear-view mirror in an uncomfortable manner. Much to her shock and horror, she then saw him watching a pornographic video clip on his phone, even as he was masturbating. Despite her repeated requests to stop the vehicle, the driver refused and insisted on dropping her at her destination. She finally managed to exit the taxi only near her workplace. 

Upon reaching office, the petitioner lodged a complaint against the driver on the Ola platform. However, although Ola executives informed her that the driver concerned had been “blacklisted” and would be sent for counselling and further training, the petitioner was not satisfied with the response and sought further action. Ola attempted to persuade her to close the complaint, but she remained firm in her demand for substantive punitive measures. Ola management and ICC claimed they had no jurisdiction to take any further action against the driver as there was no employer-employee relationship, and the actual perpetrator was an impostor who was not even authorised to drive the vehicle in question. However, the court rejected these arguments

Passengers drenched as rainwater leaks through roof of TNSTC bus

Passengers drenched as rainwater leaks through roof of TNSTC bus

Rainwater leaks inside a TNSTC bus in Madurai on Tuesday.

The Hindu Bureau

MADURAI  02.10.2024 

Passengers onboard a Tamil Nadu State Transport Corporation (TNSTC) bus in Madurai on Tuesday had to cover their heads while travelling from Melur to Sekkipatti as rainwater started leaking inside from several holes on the bus roof.

The TNSTC bus started from Melur bus stand around 6 p.m. and within a few minutes it started raining, said Jeeva, a passenger from Kesampatti. As the rain continued for about 10 minutes, water started leaking from some of the holes on the roof and window corners.

When the rain turned intense, all holes started leaking water. Passengers, who initially stood up from their seats to avoid getting wet, were left with no option other than to cover their heads before getting fully drenched, he added.

While elderly passengers covered their heads with cloth and hands, mothers covered infants with their saree and shawls. The incident was just a precursor to what was yet to comewhen the northeast monsoon started in the middle of October. A similar problem existed in TNSTC buses operated in routes such as Sekkipatti, Sirukudi and Kunnarampatti

“Some repair works to prevent leakage should be carried out before the onset of the northeast monsoon as thousands of people from villages are dependent on government buses,” he said.

Officials hold inquiry at Isha Yoga Center after Madras HC directive

Officials hold inquiry at Isha Yoga Center after Madras HC directive

The petitioner had accused the Foundation of abusing certain persons by brainwashing them into becoming monks.

The Hindu Bureau

COIMBATORE 02.10.2024 

Police personnel and officials of the Social Welfare Department conducted an inquiry at the Isha Yoga Center in Coimbatore on Tuesday, a day after the Madras High Court directed the police to submit a status report on the allegations raised by a petitioner against the Isha Foundation.

District Superintendent of Police K. Karthikeyan, District Social Welfare Officer R. Ambika, and members of the District Child Protection Unit and District Child Welfare Committee visited the Center for inquiry, which began around 10 a.m. and continued till the night.

Justices S.M. Subramaniam and V. Sivagnanam of the High Court ordered the inquiry while hearing a habeas corpus petition filed by S. Kamaraj, a retired professor, whose daughters had joined the Foundation. The two women appeared before the court on Monday.

The petitioner had accused the Foundation of abusing certain persons by brainwashing them into becoming monks, and not even allowing their parents and relatives to meet them. The petitioner had also submitted that a criminal case under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act was registered against a doctor who worked at the institution, on the charge of molesting 12 schoolgirls. His counsel had submitted that several other criminal cases were registered too.

“In view of the serious nature of the allegations raised against the institution, and the manner in which the detenues have spoken before us, we could form an opinion that some more deliberations are required to understand the truth...,” the judges had said in their order on Monday, tasking the Additional Public Prosecutor to submit a report on October 4.

As per the order, an affidavit of the petitioner stated that his elder daughter contacted him over the phone on June 15 this year and informed that his younger daughter would be fasting unto death till the petitioner gave up his litigation against the Center. The court directed the Coimbatore Rural Police to conduct an inquiry and file the status report.

Foundation responds

A statement issued by a spokesperson of the Foundation on Tuesday said, “We do not ask people to get married or take up monkhood...Isha Foundation was founded by Sadhguru [Jaggi Vasudev] to impart yoga and spirituality to people. We believe that adults, individual human beings have the freedom and wisdom to choose their path. We do not ask people to get married or take up monkhood as these are individual choices. The Isha Yoga Center is home to thousands who are not monks, and a few who have taken up brahmacharya or monkhood...”

The statement further pointed out that the monks had presented themselves before the court, and said they were staying at the Center out of their own volition. “Now that the matter is seized by the court, we hope that the truth will prevail and there is an end to the unnecessary controversies...”

It alleged that the petitioner, along with others, tried trespassing into the institution’s premises on the pretext of being a ‘fact-finding committee’ to inquire about the facts surrounding the crematorium being constructed by the Isha Foundation, and then filed a criminal complaint against the people of the Isha Yoga Center. The High Court has granted a stay on the submission of the final report by the police. Apart from this, there is no other criminal case against the foundation, it added.

NEWS TODAY 01.10.2024

 

RG Kar graft probe may extend to other medical institutions in Bengal: SC

RG Kar graft probe may extend to other medical institutions in Bengal: SC

AmitAnand.Choudhary@timesofindia.com 01.10.2024

New Delhi : SC Monday said the ongoing CBI probe into the rape-murder of a doctor and financial irregularities in RG Kar Medical College and Hospital could be expanded to include other medical institutions of West Bengal after it was alleged that there was a well-entrenched gang working in the state. A bench of Chief Justice DY Chandrachud and Justices J B Pardiwala and Manoj Misra said it would not hesitate to expand the ambit of the probe into financial irregularities in other institutions. 

It also asked CBI to share its report with the state govt so that departmental action could be taken against people named for allegedly covering up the murder or indulging in financial irregularities. The bench was hearing a suo motu case related to the rape-murder of a doctor at RG Kar Medical College after which people hit the road in massive protests. 

Prez: Attacks on docs unacceptable Attacks on doctors by patients or their relatives are unacceptable, President Droupadi Murmu said Monday. “None of the doctors wants any harm to patients, but on many occasions, the solutions are not available in science,” she said at the 10th convocation of Atal Bihari Vajpayee Institute of Medical Sciences and RML Hospital. TNN 

‘Corrupt people are holding top positions in hosp’ The court also expressed dissatisfaction over the slow progress by the state govt in installation of CCTVs and construction of toilets and separate resting rooms in govt medical colleges. Senior advocate Rakesh Dwivedi, appearing for the West Bengal govt, assured the court that the state would try to complete the task by Oct 15. Going through the probe report placed before it in a sealed cover, the bench said substantial leads had come up in the investigation. Senior advocates Indira Jaising and Karuna Nundy, appearing for a resident doctors’ association, said many people facing allegations of financial irregularities were still holding positions of power in RG Kar Hospital. 

They said it was necessary that those people be kept under suspension till the probe was over. They said it would be difficult for doctors to work if such people continued to hold office there. Dwivedi assured the court that action would be taken if CBI shared the names of such people. The court also directed solicitor general Tushar Mehta to submit a report on the progress of National Task Force.