Police drop sedition charge against Sanjay Raut over 'objectionable' article against PM Modi
Mumbai, Dec 19: The Maharashtra police have dropped the charge of sedition from the case registered against Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Sanjay Raut for writing an alleged objectionable article against Prime Minister Narendra Modi in his party mouthpiece 'Saamana', an official said on Tuesday.
Raut is the executive editor of 'Saamana'.
The charge of sedition against Raut was dropped after the police sought legal opinion and held consultations, the official said.
The police in Yavatmal district had registered the case against the Sena (UBT) Rajya Sabha member on December 11 for his alleged remarks against PM Modi in his weekly column 'Rokh Thok' in 'Saamana'.
The first information report (FIR) against Raut was registered at the Umarkhed police station in Yavatmal under sections 124 (A) (sedition), 153 (A) (promoting enmity between different groups on grounds of religion, race, place of birth, residence, language, etc) and 505 (2) (statements creating or promoting enmity, hatred or ill-will between classes) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC).
The case was filed based on a complaint lodged by Bharatiya Janata Party's Yavatmal district coordinator, the police said.
"After seeking legal opinion in the case, the police decided to drop the sedition charge from the case," the police official said.
"The Supreme Court has earlier passed rulings in this regard and after consulting a public prosecutor, the police took this decision of dropping the sedition charge," he added.
Probe into the case is underway, the official said.
The law on sedition, which provides for a maximum jail term of life for creating "disaffection towards the government", was brought into the penal code in 1890, a full 57 years before Independence and almost 30 years after the IPC came into being.
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Bihar: Over 150 children fall ill after consuming 'mid-day meal' in Saharsa
Saharsa (PTI): More than 150 children were taken ill after allegedly consuming food that was part of the mid-day meal in a school in Bihar’s Saharsa district, a senior official said on Thursday.
The incident occurred at a middle school in Baluaha village of the district.
The official said that 115 children were undergoing treatment at the Sadar Hospital, while around 50 students were admitted to Mahishi Public Health Centre.
“We received information that several children fell ill after consuming the mid-day meal in Baluaha. The children were initially treated at the primary health centre, but later, many were referred to the Sadar Hospital,” Saharsa District Magistrate Deepesh Kumar told reporters.
“According to doctors, the health condition of the children has improved, but they will be kept under observation for some time. There is no need to panic. Some kids are having mild fever. They are being treated accordingly,” Kumar said.
Meanwhile, family members of some children claimed that a snake was found in the container in which cooked pulses was stored at the school.
Of the 545 students present in the school, 200 had already eaten their meals by the time the snake was spotted, and later complained of stomach ache and vomiting, they said.
Regarding the claims, the DM said food samples have been collected from the school.
“We will be able to comment on this only after the results of the tested samples arrive,” he said.
