3 killed as ambulance knocks down bikers
Kolkata, June 18: Three people, including a couple, were killed on Monday as a speeding ambulance lost control and knocked down a bike and a bicycle in West Bengal's Birbhum district, police said.
The accident took place in the morning in Birbhum's Labhpur after one of the front tyres of the ambulance burst, police said.
"The speeding ambulance took a sharp right turn after its front right tyre burst and knocked down a bike with two riders near Katoa-Suri road. Sheikh Giyasuddin and his wife Jesmine Bibi both died in the accident," the officer in-charge of Labhpur police station said.
"The ambulance also collided with a bicycle before overturning. The rider of the cycle got severely injured. He later died in the hospital," he said.
Police said the driver of the ambulance also sustained injuries and has been admitted to a hospital.
"No complaints have been registered yet. We are investigating the incident," the officer added.
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Right to vote under threat, must be made fundamental right: Cong's Jairam Ramesh
New Delhi (PTI): Congress leader Jairam Ramesh alleged on Thursday that the right to vote is under threat and the time has come when it should be made a fundamental right for citizens.
Speaking with reporters, Ramesh lashed out at Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Gyanesh Kumar, saying the Election Commission (EC) has never been as compromised as it has been under him.
"The rot started under his predecessor. This man is a player and not a neutral observer," the Congress leader said, slamming Kumar.
Kumar is completely compromised and has become a player in elections, he alleged.
"Home Minister Amit Shah had talked about three Ds -- detect, delete and deport. So we want to know how many non-Indian citizens have been detected, how many have been deleted and how many have been deported," Ramesh said, adding that the right to vote is now under threat.
On opposition parties submitting a fresh notice in the Rajya Sabha, seeking to move a motion for the CEC's removal, the Congress leader said they will continue to make efforts for Kumar's removal as he is "compromised".
Ramesh also batted for the right to vote to be recognised as a fundamental right.
"I believe that the time has come that the right to vote should be made a fundamental right. It is a statutory right, it is not a fundamental right. Fundamental rights are justiciable," he said.
The former Union minister said this was discussed in the Constituent Assembly, but it was eventually decided that it should be made part of the Constitution.
B R Ambedkar and Jagjivan Ram had warned that in the future, governments might try to disenfranchise voters, he added.
"Once and for all, include the right to vote as a fundamental right for Indian citizens," Ramesh asserted.
