Protests erupt after Dalit youth held on harassment complaint dies in police custody in UP
Azamgarh (PTI): The death of a 20-year-old Dalit youth under suspicious circumstances while in custody at Tarwa police station here triggered tense protests led by his family and local residents on Monday.
The agitators vandalised a police vehicle and blocked the road in front of the station, prompting authorities to call for heavy police deployment to control the situation.
The youth, identified as Sunny Kumar, son of Harikant, was taken into custody on Sunday over a sexual harassment complaint filed by a minor. A guard found him hanging on the drawstring of his pyjama in the station's bathroom late that night.
According to Senior Superintendent of Police Hemraj Meena, preliminary investigations suggested that the youth committed suicide.
However, Kumar's family as well as Samajwadi Party's Azamgarh MP Dharmendra Yadav alleged that the youth was beaten to death.
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Following the incident, authorities have placed several police stations on high alert.
The Tarwa station house officer, a sub-inspector and a constable have been suspended, and District Magistrate Navneet Singh Chahal has ordered a magisterial inquiry into the matter.
According to police, a minor girl's family had complained against Kumar on March 28, accusing him of making obscene gestures and playing vulgar songs on his mobile phone when she was passing by.
Acting on the complaint, police took Kumar into custody on Sunday.
Late that night, a guard saw his lifeless body through the bathroom window.
As the news spread, Kumar's family and a group of villagers gathered at the station, alleging custodial murder.
The post-mortem was conducted amid tight security. SSP Meena said no injury marks was found on the body, but all aspects of the case is being thoroughly investigated.
Officials said the situation was tense but under control.
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Delhi govt likely to conduct trail for artificial rain in May to combat pollution: Minister
New Delhi, Apr 3 (PTI): The Delhi government is likely to conduct a trial for artificial rain in May as part of its efforts to tackle air pollution, Environment Minister Manjinder Singh Sirsa said on Thursday.
The trial will be carried out in an area in outer Delhi, with the final site selection to be made by the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) and IIT Kanpur, he said.
Sirsa said the plan is part of a broader strategy to tackle pollution using multiple methods.
“This is a war against pollution and we are working on various measures, with artificial rain being one of them. Before implementing it on a large scale, we will try to conduct a trial in May when summer is at its peak,” he added.
He further said, “We have asked for detailed reports to determine whether the chemicals used in cloud seeding could have any harmful effects on human health or the environment."
Based on the findings, we will conduct a small-scale test and analyze water samples. If the trial is successful, we will expand the project across Delhi during periods of severe pollution, the environment minister said.
