'Angry' over girls smoking, 70-year-old man sets cafe on fire in Indore
Indore(PTI): A 70-year-old man set a cafe on fire in Indore apparently he was furious after finding girls smoking there, an official said on Wednesday. The senior citizen targeted the recreation venue on Tuesday night when it was closed, the official said.
The accused was taken into custody after he was identified through CCTV footage, said Additional Deputy Commissioner of Police Rajesh Dandotia.
Without sharing his details, the official said that the accused had retired from the Department of Telecommunications.
"During initial interrogation, the accused said that he did not like girls smoking in this cafe, hence he got angry and set it on fire," he said.
Police officials, however, said that the accused is repeatedly changing his statement. The exact reason for the arson can be determined only after the completion of the investigation, they said.
Though the senior citizen set the cafe, located under the jurisdiction of Lasudia police station, on fire when there was nobody inside, it was completely gutted. The owner suffered a loss of nearly Rs 4 lakh due to the arson, Dandotia said.
Dandotia said that a case has been registered against the accused under Indian Penal Code (IPC) section 436 (mischief by fire or explosive substance with intent to destroy house, etc).
Another police official said that the cafe owner told the investigators that the accused had been roaming around his establishment for the last several days.
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Efforts of party cadres will be rewarded on May 4: DMK chief Stalin
Chennai (PTI): Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M K Stalin on Friday said that the efforts made by his party cadres during the Assembly elections would be rewarded on May 4.
The counting of votes for the Assembly elections held on April 23 will be taken up on May 4.
"We are set to reap the rewards of the hard work put in by our party cadres on the coming fourth (May 4 counting day). There is absolutely no change in this and not even the slightest deviation," Stalin said at a May Day event here.
"There is no need for anyone to assume that I am speaking merely on the basis of exit polls," he added.
Stalin, who is also DMK chief, said that "good news" would come for those eagerly waiting for the election results.
Stating that the DMK governance is based on philosophy and principles, Stalin said, "This will continue."
He recalled the pivotal role of the then Chief Minister C N Annadurai, who first declared May Day as a government holiday, and subsequently, late CM M Karunanidhi, who was instrumental in extending it as a paid holiday across the nation.
"Responding to the request of Kalaingnar (Karunanidhi), the then Prime Minister V P Singh accepted the plea and declared it (May 1) a paid government holiday not merely for Tamil Nadu, but for the entire nation," Stalin said.
