Indian-origin woman, Indian national stabbed to death in separate incidents in UK
London, Jun 14: An Indian-origin woman and an Indian woman from Hyderabad were stabbed to death in separate incidents in Britain, police said on Wednesday.
Grace O'Malley Kumar, 19, was reportedly with fellow University of Nottingham student cricketer friend - Barnaby Webber, also 19 - when the as-yet-unnamed attacker is said to have fatally stabbed the duo in the early hours of Tuesday on the streets of Nottingham, central England.
Nottinghamshire Police said the 31-year-old suspect, who remains in custody, then went on to stab a man in his 60s to death and also attempted to run over three people - still in hospital - with a van stolen from that man.
"I know the whole house will want to thank the emergency services for their ongoing response to the shocking incident in Nottingham yesterday. Our thoughts are with those injured and with the families of those who lost their lives," said British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak at the start of the House of Commons session on Wednesday.
Home Secretary Suella Braverman later made a statement to update Parliament on the "horrific events" and confirmed that it is not being treated as a terrorist attack at this stage.
"I can tell the House that the police are working flat out to establish the full facts and provide support to everyone affected. They are currently keeping an open mind as to the motives behind these attacks but I can confirm Nottinghamshire police are being assisted in their inquiries by counter-terror police. Though, this does not mean that it is currently being treated as a terrorist attack," said Braverman.
Tracing some of the details, the minister said a knife was used in the attacks, two of the victims were students at Nottingham University and the third victim a local school caretaker Ian Coates in his 60s was the owner of the van that police believe the suspect stole and was used to run down three pedestrians who remain in hospital.
"We are keeping an open mind' and are working alongside Counter Terrorism Policing to establish the facts as we would normally do in these types of circumstances," Kate Meynell, Chief Constable of Nottinghamshire Police, said in a statement.
"A dedicated team of detectives is investigating the circumstances surrounding these incidents and will continue to gather evidence over the coming days," she said.
Grace Kumar is the daughter of a London-based doctor of Indian origin, Dr Sanjoy Kumar. He is being dubbed a "hero" doctor who saved the lives of some teenage stab victims in his local surgery back in 2009.
Tributes have been pouring in for Grace, who played for the England under-18s hockey team and was also a cricketer.
"We are all deeply saddened by the news of the tragic death of Grace Kumar in Nottingham on Tuesday," England Hockey, the sport's governing body, said in its tribute.
In a separate incident, a 27-year-old Indian woman from Hyderabad was stabbed to death on Tuesday at a residential property in Neeld Crescent, Wembley in north London.
Scotland Yard on Wednesday said that two men have been arrested in connection with the murder of Tejaswini Kontham from Hyderabad in India.
"An investigation was launched after police were called at 09:59hrs on Tuesday, 13 June to reports of a stabbing at a residential property in Neeld Crescent, Wembley. Officers attended along with the London Ambulance Service and found Tejaswini and another woman, aged 28, suffering from knife injuries," the Metropolitan Police said in a statement.
"Despite the efforts of emergency services, Tejaswini sadly died at the scene," it said.
Her family has been informed, it said.
The results of a post-mortem examination scheduled at Northwick Park mortuary in London are expected to confirm the cause of death, which occurred on at a flat in Wembley area of London on Tuesday.
"We came to know about the incident today morning. We don't know when it happened. We got the information that she is serious and in hospital," Tejaswini's father told a news channel in India on Wednesday.
She had gone to London three years ago and had completed her MS course there, he said.
She came to Hyderabad in August last year and returned to London the next month. She was supposed to fly down here in May this year, he said.
"We were planning to conduct her marriage. She said she will return after the alliance is finalised. She had resigned from her temporary job and said she will come back after working for another month," he said.
The victim's uncle requested the government to make necessary arrangements to bring her body from the UK to Hyderabad.
The Metropolitan Police had earlier released an image of Brazilian national Keven Antonio Lourenco De Morais to seek the public's help in tracing the suspect behind the attack on Tuesday morning.
The 23-year-old has now been arrested from Harrow, near the crime scene.
A second woman, aged 28 and also unnamed, was taken to hospital with stab injuries that were later assessed as not life-threatening.
Two other people, a 24-year-old man and a 23-year-old woman, were arrested at the scene on suspicion of murder. While the man remains in custody, the woman has been released without further action, the police said.
"This has been a fast-moving investigation and I would like to thank the public for sharing our appeal for information about this man. He is now in custody," said Detective Chief Inspector Linda Bradley, from the Met's Specialist Crime Command.
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Ordinance issued to increase number of Supreme Court judges from 34 to 38
New Delhi (PTI): The government has promulgated an ordinance to increase the strength of the Supreme Court from the present 34 judges to 38, including the Chief Justice of India.
The law ministry notified the ordinance on Saturday, which amended the Supreme Court (Number of Judges) Act, 1956, to increase the sanctioned strength of the top court.
So far, the sanctioned strength of the top court was 34, including the Chief Justice of India (CJI). Now, the number of judges has been increased by four, taking the sanctioned strength to 38.
The top court will now have 37 judges, other than the CJI.
With the apex court having two vacancies at present, and the ordinance coming into force immediately, the Supreme Court Collegium will now have to recommend six names for appointment as judges in the top court.
A bill will be brought in the Monsoon Session of Parliament to convert the ordinance – an executive order – into a law passed by Parliament.
The Union Cabinet had cleared a draft bill on May 5 to increase the number of apex court judges.
The strength of the Supreme Court was last increased from 30 to 33 (excluding the CJI) in 2019.
The Supreme Court (Number of Judges) Act, as originally enacted in 1956, put the maximum number of judges (excluding the CJI) at 10.
This number was increased to 13 by the Supreme Court (Number of Judges), Amendment Act, 1960, and to 17 by another amendment to the law.
The Supreme Court (Number of Judges) Amendment Act, 1986, augmented the strength of judges from 17 to 25, excluding the CJI.
A fresh amendment in 2009 further increased the strength from 25 to 30.
Article 124(3) of the Constitution lists the qualifications required to become a Supreme Court judge.
An Indian citizen who has either served as a high court judge for at least five years, or as an advocate for 10 years, or is a distinguished jurist, can be appointed to the top court.
The strength of the Supreme Court is increased based on the recommendations of the CJI, who writes to the Union law minister. After consulting the finance ministry, the Department of Justice under the law ministry moves the Cabinet with a draft bill.
