Maharashtra: Married woman abducts 3-month-old nephew to settle down with paramour; held
Palghar (PTI): A 38-year-old married woman allegedly abducted her three-month-old nephew in Maharashtra's Palghar district to pose to her paramour that the baby was theirs in a bid to start a new life with him, police said on Tuesday.
The woman had taken the baby to Nalanda in Bihar from where police rescued the infant and arrested the woman on Sunday, they said.
The woman allegedly abducted the son of her sister-in-law from Mandvi in Vasai area of Palghar on February 18 afternoon under the pretext of taking him for an outing and fled, Mandvi police station's inspector Sanjay Hazare said.
After being unable to locate them, the child's family lodged a police complaint, based on which an FIR was registered under section 137(2) (kidnapping) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), he said.
The Mandvi police launched an extensive investigation, using technical surveillance and intelligence inputs, to track the woman. They later came to know she was in Nalanda, Bihar, the official said.
The police from here subsequently went to Nalanda where they sought the assistance from the police's Divisional Intelligence Unit (DIU).
The Mandvi police, in coordination with the Nalanda DIU and local police, raided some houses in a locality at Suryachak village, Mirnagar, near Bihar-Jharkhand border and found the woman with the child in a house, the official said.
The child was rescued and reunited with his family, and the woman was brought back to Mandvi on Sunday, he said.
During interrogation, the woman told the police that she was married and had three children, but wanted to start a new life with her paramour in Bihar, the official said.
The woman had not informed her paramour that she was already married and had children, the police said.
She created an impression of being single and newly pregnant, following which she abducted her sister-in-law's son and pretended to her paramour that the child was theirs, the official said.
She also showed the baby to her paramour over video call to convince him of her story, he said.
The woman's plan was to settle down with her paramour, using the child as proof of their supposed new beginning, the official said.
Further investigation into the case was on, the police said.
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CM Siddaramaiah alleges ‘criminal conspiracy’ in Sringeri recount, vows legal action
Bengaluru (PTI): Alleging a “criminal conspiracy” by BJP candidate D N Jeevaraj in the Sringeri Assembly poll recounting, Karnataka CM Siddaramaiah on Tuesday said the outcome was manipulated after valid postal ballot votes in favour of Congress leader T D Raje Gowda were tampered with during the recounting process.
Following a Karnataka High Court order on an election petition filed by Jeevaraj, challenging Raje Gowda’s election, the reverification and recounting were conducted on Saturday.
After the reverification and recount of postal ballots for the Sringeri Assembly constituency, votes polled in favour of Raje Gowda were reduced by 255, the returning officer said.
A report on the matter has been submitted to the Election Commission of India for further action, the officer added.
Congress leader Raje Gowda had won the 2023 Assembly polls from Sringeri by 201 votes, defeating his nearest rival Jeevaraj.
Addressing a press conference in Bengaluru, Siddaramaiah said the High Court had directed the recounting of postal ballots and that irregularities were noticed during the exercise conducted on May 2.
“This is a clear case of criminal conspiracy,” Siddaramaiah said, alleging that valid votes cast in favour of Raje Gowda were altered after being accepted by counting agents of all parties, including Congress, BJP, and JD(S).
He claimed that during the recounting of postal ballots, 255 votes were initially accepted as valid by all agents but were later tampered with by subordinate officials.
“There is a second mark on the votes polled in favour of Raje Gowda. They had accepted these as valid votes. Subsequently, another mark was made by officials. This is a clear case of criminal conspiracy,” he said.
When asked who was behind the alleged conspiracy, the CM replied, “It was hatched by Jeevaraj and others. It is planned.”
Siddaramaiah further alleged that the returning officer acted improperly by declaring the result despite the presence of an Election Commission observer during the recounting.
“Immediately after the counting, the returning officer announced the result. He should not have done so; this is against the law,” he said.
He pointed out that Raje Gowda had originally won by 201 votes, but after the recounting, the BJP candidate was declared the winner by 52 votes.
“The BJP has committed a criminal act of conspiracy. This is not vote chori but vote dacoity,” he alleged.
The CM said a police complaint had already been filed by Raje Gowda’s election agent, Sudhir Kumar, and emphasised the need for electoral integrity.
“We want transparency and free and fair elections. That is what our Constitution mandates,” he added.
Stating that the government would pursue legal remedies, Siddaramaiah said, “We are preparing an appeal challenging the returning officer’s announcement in a court of law.”
Responding to a separate query on elections in other states, the CM said there appeared to be an anti-incumbency factor in West Bengal, while results in Tamil Nadu were “surprising,” adding that Vijay’s party was emerging as the largest there.
Following the victory of party candidates in Bagalkote and Davanagere South, Siddaramaiah expressed confidence about future electoral prospects in Karnataka.
“Even in 2028, we will win the Assembly elections. We will come back,” the CM said.
Siddaramaiah added that he would order a forensic examination into the alleged tampering of postal ballots.
