Mohali building collapse: Body of man found, death toll climbs to two
Chandigarh (PTI): The death toll in the Mohali building collapse climbed to two on Sunday with the body of a man recovered from under the rubble, officials said.
The multi-storey building collapsed on Saturday evening in Sohana village of Punjab's Mohali district, with at least five people trapped in its rubble.
One male body was recovered during the ongoing rescue operation, Sub-Divisional Magistrate, Mohali, Damandeep Kaur said, according to an official statement.
The identity of the deceased was being ascertained, the statement said.
Earlier, a 20-year-old woman died in the incident on Saturday evening.The woman hailing from Himachal Pradesh, died after she was pulled out of the debris of the building. She was rescued from the rubble in critical condition and was rushed to a hospital, but she succumbed to her injuries.
The rescue effort continued overnight.
Police have booked two building owners in the incident.
Several excavators have been pressed into service as part of the rescue operation.
National Disaster Response Team (NDRF), Army, state rescue teams have been working since Saturday evening to address the crisis. Medical teams, along with an ambulance, have also been deployed at the site since Saturday evening.
As the operation continued at the site, required equipment and machinery have been made available to the rescuers, in addition to those brought by the NDRF and Army.
Earlier, a resident had said a loud noise was heard when the building collapsed.
Preliminary information suggests the building, which also had a gym, collapsed due to digging in an adjacent plot.
"IndianArmy reacted swiftly for the rescue. In a remarkable display of coordinated efforts, #IndianArmy Columns along with #NDRF and State rescue teams have been relentlessly working to address the crisis.
"Engineer Task Force with debris clearance machine & JCBs are operational at site. Top debris removed & efforts being done to reach the basement," Western Command, Indian Army, said in a post on X.
After the incident on Saturday, all major hospitals in Mohali such as Civil Hospital (attached within Medical College), Fortis, Max and Sohana, were put on alert to cater to the wounded.
Director General of Police Gaurav Yadav, who was at the spot on Saturday, had said a multi-agency rescue effort was underway.
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Lakhimpur Kheri violence case: SC expresses disappointment over non-production of witnesses in trial
New Delhi (PTI): The Supreme Court on Friday expressed disappointment over the non-production of witnesses in the ongoing trial against Ashish Mishra, son of former Union minister Ajay Mishra, and others in the 2021 Lakhimpur Kheri violence case.
A bench of Chief Justice Surya Kant and Justice Joymalya Bagchi said the status report filed before it by the Uttar Pradesh government has not assigned any reason whatsoever for the non-production of witnesses.
It noted that no witnesses have been examined in the trial for the last two months.
"We direct the presiding judge to take lawful measures to secure the presence of witnesses," the bench said.
It asked the trial judge to make an endeavour to conclude the trial in a time-bound manner, and also to file a status report before it.
The trials in two cases related to the incident are going on before a court in Uttar Pradesh.
The bench noted that in the first case, out of 131 witnesses to be examined, 44 have been examined, 15 have been discharged and 72 are still to be produced.
In the second FIR, out of 35 witnesses, 26 have been examined and nine were left, it said.
Senior advocate Siddharth Dave, appearing for Ashish Mishra, said that as per the latest status report filed by Uttar Pradesh, 44 witnesses have been examined so far in the first FIR.
"No witnesses have been examined in the last two months," Dave said.
He argued that the last status report filed by the state in March also said that 44 witnesses had been examined.
"What have you done from March till today?" the bench asked the counsel appearing for Uttar Pradesh.
The state's counsel said that 3-4 witnesses were summoned for the recording of their deposition during the trial.
The bench said at least 7-8 witnesses should be summoned instead of three or four for a day, so that even if some of them do not turn up, the trial court could proceed with the recording of statements of those appearing before it.
The top court also wondered how official witnesses can remain absent during the trial.
"We are disappointed to note that the so-called status report does not assign any reason whatsoever for non-production of witnesses...," the bench said.
Advocate Prashant Bhushan, appearing for the relatives of the farmers who were allegedly mowed down in the incident, said the apex court will have to do something regarding the manner in which the trial was going on.
The bench noted that besides the two FIRs, another FIR was registered in October last year concerning alleged witness intimidation.
It said that, as per the state's status report, the chargesheet was filed against the main accused in that case.
The bench noted that the status report reveals that, as far as Ashish Mishra is concerned, his alleged role in the third case is still being investigated.
The top court directed the investigating officer of the third case to conclude the pending probe and ensure that the appropriate report is filed before the concerned court within four weeks.
The bench posted the next hearing in the Lakhimpur Kheri violence case for July.
On October 3, 2021, eight people, including four farmers, were killed in Tikunia in Lakhimpur Kheri district during a protest by farmers against Deputy Chief Minister Keshav Prasad Maurya's visit to the area.
Four farmers were mowed down by a sports utility vehicle. A driver and two BJP workers were then allegedly lynched by angry farmers. A journalist also died in the violence.
In one of the cases, the trial court in December 2023 framed charges against Mishra and 12 others for alleged murder, criminal conspiracy and under other penal laws in the case of the farmers' deaths, paving the way for the trial.
