India's triple treat: Toor, Jyothi, Harmilan bag gold at Asian Indoor Athletics Championships
Tehran, Feb 17: Ace shot putter Tajinderpal Singh Toor and hurdler Jyothi Yarraji rewrote their national records, while long distance sensation Harmilan Bains sizzled on the track as India grabbed three gold medals on the opening day of the Asian Indoor Athletics Championships here on Saturday.
Two-time Asian Games gold medallist Toor hurled the shot put at a distance of 19.72 metres in his second attempt for a new national indoor record.
Kazakhstan's Ivanov Ivan (19.08m) and Iran's Mehdi Saberi (18.74m) took the silver and bronze medals respectively.
Earlier, Jyothi Yarraji marginally bettered her own national record by clocking 8.12s in the women's 60m hurdles to win the gold.
The 2022 Asian Games silver medallist in the 100m hurdles had the previous best timing of 8:13s at the same event last year which had earned her a runner-up finish.
The 24-year-old athlete topped her heat with a timing of 8:22s and in the final she did better to finish ahead of Japan's Asuka Tereda (8.21s).
Lui Lai Yiu of Hong Kong (8:26s) took the third place on the podium.
Jyothi is the reigning Asian Outdoor champion in the 100m hurdles, having won the title in Bangkok last year.
She had returned with a silver in the 100m hurdles from Hangzhou Asian Games after initially being disqualified.
Asian Games silver medallist Harmilan Bains blazed the track with a timing of 4:29.55 seconds to bag India's first gold of the day in the women's 1500m.
Harmilan exhibited sheer dominance, finishing over five seconds ahead of her nearest competitor, Kyrgyzstan's Kalil Kyzy Ainuska, who clinched the silver medal with a time of 4:35.29.
The third position was claimed by Kazakhstan's Bolatbekkyzy Aiana, crossing the finish line in 4:37.20.
She finished more than five seconds ahead of Kyrgyzstan's Kalil Kyzy Ainuska who bagged the silver with a timing of 4:35.29. Kazakhstan's Bolatbekkyzy Aiana came third clocking 4:37.20.
Shaili Singh and Nayana James also competed in the women's long jump final in the morning session, but failed to get podium positions, registering distances of 6.27m and 6.23m for fifth and sixth place finishes respectively.
Shiqi Xiong (6.55m) and Tan Mengyi (6.50m) of China had the gold-silver, while Hong Kong's Yue Nga Yan (6.35m) bagged the bronze.
Toor was the only Indian athlete to finish on top of the podium at last year's meet in Astana where the country had won a total of eight medals including six silver and one bronze.
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.
KCOCA invoked against two accused in land dispute murder case
Udupi (Karnataka) (PTI): Karnataka Police have invoked provisions of the stringent KCOCA against two people in connection with a series of violent crimes, including murder, arising out of a prolonged land dispute in this district, officials said on Monday.
According to police, section 3 of the KCOCA was invoked after an assessment revealed the accused persons' - gangster Kali Yogish and alleged land shark Yogish Acharya- alleged involvement in multiple serious offences over a sustained period.
Accused Yogish has been arrested and remanded to judicial custody by a special KCOCA court in Mysuru, while gangster Kali, who is absconding, is believed to be residing abroad.
The case dates back to December 2022, when Kaup police registered an assault case against the accused duo and their associates for allegedly attacking a person identified as Chandrashekhar and others following a dispute over land ownership.
ALSO READ: Kannada TV actress dies by suicide in Bengaluru
The conflict escalated in March 2023 with the murder of a person identified as Sharath Shetty. Police said Shetty was allegedly killed for refusing to support Yogish and for assisting Chandrashekar in the land dispute.
A murder case was registered at Kaup police station, with Chandrashekar cited as a key witness in both cases.
Police further stated that on October 20, 2025, Chandrashekar received a threat at around 8.15 pm, warning him against deposing in court. He was allegedly asked to resolve a financial dispute with Yogish Acharya and threatened with death if he failed to comply.
Based on his complaint, a case was registered under the relevant sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita.
The investigation was supervised by Assistant Superintendent of Police, Karkala subdivision, Harsha Priyamvada.
Accused Yogish Acharya was initially arrested on October 24, 2025, and later released on bail. He was subsequently re-arrested after the invocation of KCOCA and remanded to judicial custody, police said.
