Salman Khan gets new threat, Rs 5 cr demand; suspect tracked down in Karnataka
Mumbai, Nov 5: Bollywood superstar Salman Khan has received a fresh threat along with a demand of Rs 5 crore from a person claiming to be the brother of jailed gangster Lawrence Bishnoi, police officials said on Tuesday.
A suspect was tracked down at Hubballi in Karnataka and a police team has reached there though no arrest has been made yet, they said.
The threat message, which also asked Khan to apologise apparently over the 1998 blackbuck poaching incident, was received on the WhatsApp helpline of the Mumbai traffic police control room located in Worli late Monday night, an official said.
The message sender claimed he is the brother of Lawrence Bishnoi, he said.
"If Salman Khan wants to stay alive, he should go to our (Bishnoi community) temple and apologise or pay Rs 5 crore. If he does not do so, we will kill him; our gang is still active," the message said.
A case was registered at Worli Police Station, and Khan's security was also beefed up, the official said.
Worli Police tracked the sender of the message to Hubballi. A team was sent to the southern state which zeroed in on a 35-year-old man, a welder by profession, he said.
The man is suspected to have sent the threat message, and the police team was questioning him though he has not been detained or arrested yet, the official added.
Salman Khan has received similar threats earlier. On October 29, a man sent a threat message to the same traffic police helpline, threatening to kill Khan and city NCP leader Zeeshan Siddique if they failed to pay Rs 2 crore.
The sender warned that the two will meet the same fate as former state minister Baba Siddique, Zeeshan's father. Baba Siddique was shot dead by three gunmen in Bandra area of Mumbai on October 12.
On October 30, a resident of Bandra (West), an upscale area where Khan also lives, was arrested in connection with the threat.
Earlier in October, the helpline desk had received a threat message demanding Rs 5 crore from the actor. The police subsequently arrested a man from Jamshedpur in Jharkhand.
City police also arrested a man from Noida in Uttar Pradesh for allegedly issuing a death threat to Khan and Zeeshan Siddique.
Notably, Khan had earlier received death threats from the Lawrence Bishnoi gang. While Bishnoi himself is lodged in Ahmedabad's Sabarmati jail in cases including attempted murder and extortion, suspected members of his gang opened fire outside the actor's Bandra home in April.
Weeks after that, Navi Mumbai Police claimed to have uncovered a plot by the Bishnoi gang to kill Khan while on his way to his farmhouse at Panvel near Mumbai.
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MP HC sets up judicial commission to probe water contamination in Indore
Indore (PTI): The Indore bench of Madhya Pradesh High Court on Tuesday set up a commission of inquiry comprising a former HC judge to probe the issue of water contamination in city's Bhagirathpura, saying the matter requires probe by an independent, credible authority and "urgent judicial scrutiny".
It also directed the commission to submit an interim report after four weeks from the date of commencement of proceedings.
A division bench of Justices Vijay Kumar Shukla and Alok Awasthi constituted the commission while hearing several public interest litigations (PILs) filed simultaneously regarding the deaths of several people in Bhagirathpura due to the consumption of contaminated water.
The HC reserved the order after hearing all the parties during the day, and released it late at night.
The state government on Tuesday told the HC that the deaths of 16 people in Indore's Bhagirathpura area was possibly linked to a month-long outbreak of vomiting and diarrhoea caused by contaminated drinking water.
The government presented an audit report of 23 deaths from the current gastroenteritis epidemic in Bhagirathpura before the bench, suggesting that 16 of these fatalities may have been linked to the outbreak of vomiting and diarrhoea caused by contaminated drinking water.
The report, prepared by a committee of five experts from the city's Government Mahatma Gandhi Memorial Medical College, stated that the deaths of four people in Bhagirathpura were unrelated to the outbreak, while no conclusion could be reached regarding the cause of death of three other people in the area.
During the hearing, the high court sought to know from the state government the scientific basis behind its report.
The division bench also expressed surprise at the state government's use of the term "verbal autopsy" in relation to the report, sarcastically stating that it had heard the term for the first time.
The HC expressed concern over the Bhagirathpura case, stating that the situation was "alarming," and noted that cases of people falling ill due to contaminated drinking water have also been reported in Mhow, near Indore.
In its order, the HC said the serious issue concerning contamination of the drinking water supply in Bhagirathpura area allegedly resulted in widespread health hazards to residents, including children and elderly persons.
According to the petitioners and media reports, death toll is about 30 till today, but the report depicts only 16 without any basis or record, it said.
It is averred that sewage mixing, leakage in the pipeline, and failure of civic authorities to maintain potable water standards have led to the outbreak of water-borne diseases. Photographs, medical reports, and complaints submitted to the authorities prima facie indicate a matter requiring urgent judicial scrutiny, the HC said.
"Considering the gravity of the allegation and affecting the right to life under Article 21 of the Constitution of India and the need for an independent fact-finding exercise, the Court is of the opinion that the matter requires investigation by an independent, credible authority," it said.
"Accordingly, we appoint Justice Sushil Kumar Gupta, former judge of the Madhya Pradesh High Court, a one-man commission of inquiry into the issues relating to water contamination in Bhagirathpura, Indore, and its impact on other areas of the city," the HC added.
As per the order, the commission shall inquire into and submit a report on the cause of contamination -- whether the drinking water supplied to Bhagirathpura was contaminated; and the source and nature of contamination (sewage ingress, industrial discharge, pipeline damage etc).
The panel will also probe the number of actual deaths of affected residents on account of contaminated water; find out the nature of disease reported and adequacy of medical response and preventive measures; suggest immediate steps required to ensure safe drinking water as well as long-term infrastructural and monitoring reforms.
It will also identify and fix responsibility upon the officers and officials found prima facie responsible for the Bhagirathpura water contamination incident, and suggest guidelines for compensation to affected residents, particularly vulnerable sections.
The commission shall have powers of a civil court for the purpose of summoning officials and witnesses; calling up records from the government department, hospitals, laboratories and civic bodies; ordering water quality testing through accredited laboratories; conducting spot inspections.
All state authorities involving district administration, Indore Municipal Corporation, public health engineering department and Madhya Pradesh Pollution Control Board shall extend full co-operation and provide records as sought by the commission, it said.
The state government shall provide office space, staff, and logistical support to the commission, it said.
During the hearing in the day, the state government also presented a status report to the court in this matter.
According to reports, a total of 454 patients were admitted to local hospitals during the vomiting and diarrhea outbreak, of whom 441 have been discharged after treatment, and 11 are currently hospitalised.
According to officials, due to a leak in the municipal drinking water pipeline in Bhagirathpura, sewage from a toilet was also mixed in the water.
