Nine dead in Turkey as 5.7 earthquake strikes western Iran
Ankara: Nine people were killed in Turkey in a magnitude 5.7 earthquake that struck western Iran early Sunday morning, Turkish Health Minister Fahrettin Koca said.
The quake centered west of the Iranian city of Khoy and affected villages in the Turkish province of Van.
Turkish Interior Minister Suleyman Soylu told a news conference that three children and four adults were killed in Turkey's Baskule district.
Koca later updated the number of fatalities to nine and wrote on Twitter that 37 people were injured, including nine in a critical but not life-threatening condition.
Emergency teams have been sent to the remote mountainous region.
Iran's official IRNA news agency said the earthquake affected 43 villages in the mountainous Qotour area.
It later added that at least 75 people had been injured, six of whom were hospitalised.
According to the European Mediterranean Seismological Center (EMSC), the quake, which happened at 9:22am local time (0552GMT), had a depth of 5 kilometers (3 miles).
The region has a history of powerful earthquakes.
Last month a quake centered on the eastern Turkish city of Elazig killed more than 40 people.
In 2011, more than 600 were killed when a quake struck north of Van province's capital.
Turkish broadcaster NTV showed images of locals and soldiers digging through the rubble of collapsed buildings as families fearing further tremors sat in snowy streets.
The EMSC reported several further quakes that measured up to magnitude 4.4.
The effects of the quake hit four villages in Van. Seven of the fatalities occurred in Ozpinar village, where Soylu said search and rescue teams had arrived.
He added that the quake caused 1,066 buildings to collapse while the Education Ministry said a number of schools were damaged.
Koca said 25 ambulances, a medical helicopter and 13 emergency teams had been sent to the region.
The Disaster and Emergency Management Directorate (AFAD) said 144 tents for families had been dispatched.
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Calcutta High Court to consider plea against CM Mamata Banerjee's alleged contemptuous remarks
Kolkatta: Senior Advocate Bikash Ranjan Bhattacharya brought a plea before the Calcutta High Court, urging it to take suo moto cognizance of purported remarks attributed to Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee. The plea contends that Banerjee's comments implied bias on the part of High Court judges and suggested that the institution had been compromised.
These remarks surfaced following a recent ruling by the High Court nullifying approximately 24,000 teaching and non-teaching positions implicated in the notorious cash-for-jobs scandal.
Addressing a division bench comprising Chief Justice TS Sivagnanam and Justice Hiranmay Bhattacharya, Bhattacharya stressed on the gravity of the situation, asserting, "This is criminal contempt." He further stressed the need for the Court to intervene, given the Attorney General's reluctance to provide consent for proceeding against the Chief Minister.
The plea underscored the damaging effect of Banerjee's alleged statements on the credibility of the judiciary, stating, "Everyone is laughing at us, this has put us into ridicule." Bhattacharya supported his argument with newspaper clippings from various publications, both regional and English, which highlighted the controversial remarks.
Acknowledging the sensitivity of the matter, the Court has directed for affidavits to be filed and has scheduled a hearing accordingly.
Meanwhile, another plea has been filed challenging the same remarks attributed to the Chief Minister.
