Gandhi's statue vandalised in US, Indian embassy registers complaint
Washington: Unknown miscreants have vandalised a statue of Mahatma Gandhi outside the Indian embassy in the US with graffiti and spray painting, prompting the mission officials to register a complaint with the local law enforcement agencies.
The incident is reported to have taken place on the intervening night of June 2 and 3 in Washington DC.
The Indian embassy has informed the State Department and registered a complaint with local law enforcement agencies, which are now conducting an investigation into the incident.
On Wednesday, a team of officials from Metropolitan Police in consultation with the Diplomatic Security Service and National Park Police visited the site and are conducting inquiries.
Efforts are on to clean up the site at the earliest.
Vandalism of the statue of the apostle of peace comes during the week of nationwide protests against the custodial killing of African-American George Floyd in Minneapolis on May 25.
Several of these protests have turned violent which many times has resulted in damage of some of the most prestigious and sacred American monuments.
In Washington DC, protestors this week burnt a historic church and damaged some of the prime properties and historic places like the national monument and Lincoln Memorial.
One of the few statues of a foreign leader on a federal land in Washington DC, the statue of Mahatma Gandhi was dedicated by the then Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee, in the presence of the then US president Bill Clinton on September 16, 2000 during his state visit to the US.
In October 1998, the US Congress had authorised the government of India to establish and maintain a memorial to honour Mahatma Gandhi on Federal land in the District of Columbia."
According to the Indian Embassy website, the sculpture of Mahatma Gandhi is cast in bronze as a statue to a height of 8 feet 8 inches. It shows Gandhi in stride, as a leader and man of action evoking memories of his 1930 protest march against salt-tax, and the many padyatras (long marches) he undertook throughout the length and breadth of the Indian sub-continent.
The statue, the design of which was created by Gautam Pal, is a gift from the Indian Council for Cultural Relations (ICCR). The pedestal for the statue of Mahatma Gandhi is a block of new Imperial Red also known as Ruby Red a block originally weighing 25 tonnes reduced to a size of 9'x7'x3'4". It now weighs 16 tonnes.
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UP: Govt hospital staff booked for sexually assaulting woman in pretext of ultrasound test
Gorakhpur (PTI): A hospital employee was booked for allegedly sexually assaulting a woman in the pretext of an ultrasound test here in the district women's hospital, police said on Saturday.
According to the complaint, the woman, a resident of the Gulriha area, visited the district women's hospital on Thursday morning for an ultrasound test.
She was directed to a room, where Abhimanyu Gupta was conducting ultrasounds. When her turn came, the accused allegedly stared at her and told her to remove all her clothes, claiming it was necessary for the test and that a massage would also be required, she said.
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The woman alleged that once she complied, the accused began making obscene advances and tried to force himself on her. When she screamed, he allegedly gagged her, abused her and threatened to kill her before pushing her out of the room.
She said her complaints within the hospital went unheard, forcing her to approach the police.
Taking cognisance of the complaint, the hospital administration constituted a three-member inquiry committee, officials said.
Senior consultant (paediatrics) Dr Jay Kumar said, "The woman has levelled serious allegations against a staff member. Senior officials have been informed, and a departmental inquiry is underway. Strict action will be taken if the charges are proved."
Kotwali Station House Officer Chatrapal Singh said a case has been registered, and efforts are on to nab the accused.
