'Shocking affairs': SC slams MP govt over illegal sand miners digging up Chambal bridge pillars
_vb_25.jpeg)
New Delhi (PTI): The Supreme Court on Monday termed the killing of a forest guard in Madhya Pradesh and the digging of the foundation of pillars of Chambal bridge connecting the state to Rajasthan by illegal sand miners as "shocking affairs" and "failure" of the state government.
A bench of Justices Vikram Nath and Sandeep Mehta, which pulled up the Madhya Pradesh government, said either the state government has failed to curb the illegal mining on the Chambal river or it is being done in connivance with state authorities.
"They are digging up the bridge and if the bridge falls, who will be responsible? The photographs are self-explanatory.
"Forest officials are run over by sand mafias and the foundation of a bridge is dug. This is an absolutely shocking state of affairs. Either the state government has failed to control the illegal sand mining or it is in connivance," the bench observed.
"It is happening under your nose. The amicus pointed out that you do not have weapons. Why, at all, does the state government exist?
"These excavators and bulldozers are very secular, they do not see the caste of the person they are killing... it is an absolutely sad state of affairs, the state governments have totally failed or rather they are in connivance. It's absolutely shocking that the foundations of a bridge can be dug up and the state has its eyes closed," the bench told Additional Solicitor General S V Raju appearing for the Madhya Pradesh government.
The top court was hearing a suo motu case titled 'In Re: Illegal sand mining in the National Chambal Sanctuary and threat to endangered aquatic wildlife'.
Senior advocate Nikhil Goel, who is assisting the court as an amicus curiae in the matter, pointed out that it is an important bridge having 32 pillars and it connects Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan but sand mafias are digging the foundation of these pillars.
He said that Odisha, Assam and Maharashtra have come out with a notification empowering forest officials to open fire at sand mafias and similarly Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh have written to the Central Empowered Committee (CEC) seeking nod for powers to open fire at these illegal sand miners.
Observing that earlier an IPS officer was also killed by illegal sand mafias, Justice Mehta asked the state authorities to explore the possibility of installing high-resolution CCTV cameras to monitor illegal mining.
The bench further suggested that a GPS system can be installed in heavy earth-moving machines in the area to keep a track of their movement.
The bench asked for a status report of the investigation done so far on the killing of a forest guard who was run over by a tractor-trolley allegedly run by sand miners and feasibility report of CCTV cameras.
On April 9, the top court agreed to hear a week later an application seeking an independent investigation into the killing of a forest guard in Madhya Pradesh after being run over by a tractor-trolley allegedly run by sand miners.
The National Chambal Sanctuary, also called the National Chambal Gharial Wildlife Sanctuary, is a 5,400-sq km tri-state protected area. Besides the endangered gharial (long-snouted crocodile), it is home to the red-crowned roof turtle and the endangered Ganges river Dolphin.
Located on the Chambal river near the tripoint of Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh, the sanctuary was first declared a protected area in Madhya Pradesh in 1978 and now constitutes a long and narrow eco-reserve co-administered by the three states.
A 35-year-old forest guard was killed after a tractor-trolley allegedly run by illegal sand miners ran over him in Madhya Pradesh's Morena district on Wednesday morning, police had said.
The incident took place on National Highway-552 near Ranpur village, about 20 km from the district headquarters, when forest personnel tried to stop a sand-laden tractor-trolley, the police had said.
It had said that forest guard Harkesh Gurjar, a part of the patrol team, attempted to stop the vehicle but its driver ran him over, killing him on the spot.
While hearing the suo motu matter on April 2, the apex court slammed the Rajasthan government for "facilitating" illegal sand mining, and stayed its notification de-notifying 732 hectares of the National Chambal Sanctuary, saying it will not allow de-notification of any reserve land for protected species.
Terming "mining mafia" as "dacoits", the apex court had said a number of government officials, including sub-divisional magistrates and policemen, were killed in Rajasthan by the mining mafia.
While hearing the matter on March 20, the apex court had taken serious note of the destruction of habitats of aquatic animals due to rampant illegal sand mining in the National Chambal Sanctuary.
On March 13, the top court took suo motu cognisance based on certain news reports pertaining to rampant illegal mining from the sand banks of the Chambal river.
Let the Truth be known. If you read VB and like VB, please be a VB Supporter and Help us deliver the Truth to one and all.
Mystery man posing as AC mechanic to rob residents held in Delhi; linked to viral armed attacks
New Delhi (PTI): A 55-year-old man who allegedly posed as an AC and RO mechanic to rob residents in northwest Delhi's Keshav Puram and Pitampura areas has been arrested, police said on Wednesday.
The accused, identified as Ajay Bagga alias Vijay Bagga, was apprehended following an extensive manhunt involving CCTV analysis, technical surveillance and local enquiries, they said.
According to police, Bagga used to roam through residential colonies posing as a mechanic and ring doorbells to identify potential targets.
"The moment a resident opened the door, he would forcibly enter the house, launch a sudden attack and rob the occupants," a police officer said.
The accused had sent locals into panic after CCTV footage of him roaming in residential areas holding a plastic blue bag and hiding a 'gandasa' (machete) surfaced online, triggering a police hunt.
"A special team was formed to nab the accused after multiple incidents with a similar modus operandi were reported," Deputy Commissioner of Police (Northwest) Akanksha Yadav said in a statement.
She further said that using technical surveillance, CCTV footage analysis and human intelligence inputs, police tracked down and arrested Bagga near Gurudwara Nanak Pyau in Model Town.
Police said Bagga has been linked to two separate FIRs registered at Maurya Enclave and Keshav Puram police stations.
"In the first case, the complainant Sahil Kukreja alleged that Bagga, who was known to him for the past eight to nine years, came to his residence in Pitampura on April 21 on the pretext of meeting his father," the officer said.
After entering the house and asking for water, the accused allegedly attacked Kukreja with a large knife, locally referred to as a "chapad", injuring his left forearm.
The accused then allegedly confined the complainant, demanded money and fled with around Rs 4 lakh in cash and gold jewellery from the house.
In the second incident, in Keshav Puram, Bagga allegedly entered the residence of a woman posing as an RO mechanic on May 8. The complainant told police that the accused threatened her with an iron 'gandasa' after entering the house.
However, the woman resisted and raised an alarm, forcing Bagga to flee after throwing the weapon in a nearby park, police said. The weapon was later recovered and seized by the police team.
"During an investigation, police teams scanned footage from several CCTV cameras, conducted searches at over 50 hotels and interrogated multiple suspects before zeroing in on Bagga. On interrogation, the accused confessed to his involvement in the two incidents," Yadav said.
Police are further investigating Bagga to ascertain his possible involvement in other similar robbery and house trespass cases reported in the city and to identify whether he had any accomplices.
