Six bodies recovered so far from site of Arunachal accident, many still missing
Itanagar (PTI): Six bodies were retrieved on Friday from the deep gorge in Arunachal Pradesh's Anjaw district, where a mini-truck on which 22 people from Assam were travelling fell, police said.
The operation was initiated by a joint team of the NDRF and Army at the first light of day, Anjaw SP Anurag Dwivedi informed.
"The retrieval process was extremely difficult because of the treacherous terrain. The gorge is very deep," he said.
Eighteen bodies have been spotted at the site, and the search for the remaining three missing would continue after the retrieval of these bodies, he said.
The operation to retrieve the rest of the bodies will resume on Saturday morning, he added.
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All those travelling in the vehicle were labourers from Assam's Tezpur district. The accident happened on the evening of December 8, around 40 km from Hayuliang towards Chaglagam.
On the evening of December 10, one survivor managed to climb out of the gorge and reach a nearby Border Roads Task Force (BRTF) labour camp. The officer commanding the BRTF subsequently alerted the district authorities, officials said.
State Disaster Management Secretary Dani Salu said that, considering the extremely treacherous terrain and unreliable weather, a rescue attempt on the night of December 10 was deemed unsafe.
He said the next day, the Army, BRTF, local police, and district administration launched a full-scale operation to retrieve the bodies.
Salu said the identities of 18 bodies have been established so far.
He said the mini-truck was privately owned, and the labourers were being transported by a private contractor.
"The private contractor has been taken to the police station for questioning," he said.
Mourning the loss of lives in the accident, Chief Minister Pema Khandu lauded the Army, BRO, the NDRF, and the local administration for their swift response to the crisis in such a challenging terrain.
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Young woman from MP who shot to fame during Kumbh found to be minor, case registered against husband
Khargone (MP) (PTI): The National Commission for Scheduled Tribes on Friday confirmed that a young woman from Madhya Pradesh who became famous due to her viral videos during the 2025 Maha Kumbh has been found to be a minor after an inquiry.
Citing the findings of an inquiry panel set up by the commission, local BJP leaders alleged that her interfaith marriage in Kerala last month was a case of "love Jihad", and sought legal action.
While the panel had submitted its report in March, ST commission chairman Antar Singh Arya confirmed its findings to the PTI on Friday.
A case for alleged kidnapping and offences under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act has already been registered against her husband, a Muslim man, at Maheshwar on the basis of the inquiry findings, police said.
The girl gained national fame after her videos while selling garlands and rudraksha at the Maha Kumbh went viral on social media and also earned her a role in a film.
The National Commission for Scheduled Tribes set up an inquiry panel after receiving a complaint on March 17 from Pratham Dubey, a resident of Uttar Pradesh, that she was a minor and was being exploited.
Maheshwar BJP MLA Rajkumar Mev and BJP mandal president Vikram Patel, armed with documents, told reporters on Friday that her marriage in Kerala was a case of "love Jihad" and she should be brought back home.
'Love jihad' is a term used by right-wing groups to allege a conspiracy by Muslim men to lure Hindu women into marriage to convert them to Islam.
Police said an investigation is underway, and further action would be taken accordingly.
The girl, who belongs to the nomadic Pardhi community, got married at a temple in Kerala in March. The interfaith marriage drew angry reactions from rightwing Hindu groups.
Her family members and film director Sanoj Mishra -- who had offered her a film role after she became famous -- too alleged that it was 'love Jihad'.
As per the inquiry conducted by the ST commission, records at the Maheshwar government hospital showed the woman's date of birth as December 30, 2009 which meant she was 16 years and two months old at the time of marriage, said Dubey, the complainant.
On a complaint filed by her father, police registered a case against the girl's husband at Maheshwar police station on March 25 for alleged kidnapping and under the POCSO Act and the SC/ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act.
Police sources said that a separate case was also registered on March 24 under section 137(2) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (taking a minor from lawful custody of guardian without their consent) based on the the commission's findings.
