CBI inquiry into 'corruption' launched at 5 state branches of Red Cross
New Delhi, Mar 13: A CBI inquiry has been launched at the regional branches of the Red Cross Society in four states and a Union Territory over complaints of corruption and financial irregularities.
According to officials, the Union health ministry had received complaints about alleged corruption at the regional branches of the Red Cross Society in Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Assam, Karnataka and the Andaman and Nicobar Islands.
In Tamil Nadu, the ministry officials said serious allegations in the functioning of the state branch were brought to the notice of the governor, after which he requested the national headquarters (NHQ) of the Red Cross Society in Delhi in July 2020 for approval under the Prevention of Corruption Act to enable the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) to investigate the matter.
"The accused chairman and other office-bearers of the Tamil Nadu branch obtained a stay from the high court in Chennai against investigation by the CBI. The stay stands vacated in June 2022. Currently, the chairman has resigned and the matter is with the CBI," the ministry said.
The governor has also dissolved the state managing committee and replaced it with an ad-hoc committee.
In Kerala, a case of misappropriation of funds in 2019 allegedly by the chairman and the vice-chairman led to the NHQ recommending dissolution of the managing committee.
A new managing committee is in place after an interim committee under a high court judge was appointed just after the dissolution of the state committee, a ministry official said.
The general secretary of the Andaman and Nicobar Islands branch was holding on to the position for a long time without proper elections.
Based on a complaint, the matter was referred to the lieutenant governor of the Union Territory.
On the recommendations of the LG and with the chairman's approval, the general secretary has been removed, the officials said.
In Assam, a delay in the election of the state managing committee and a land dispute led the managing body members to visit the northeastern state and apprise the governor of the issues pertaining to the branch.
The high court ordered that elections will have to be held and a new state managing committee is in place now.
In Karnataka, a trust was registered in the name of Red Cross by the former chairman of the state branch.
An FIR has been lodged and now the trust stands dissolved, the officials said.
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7 persons killed as car collides with trailer truck in Gujarat's Sabarkantha
Sabarkantha (Gujarat) (PTI): Seven men were killed and one was grievously injured when a speeding car rammed into a trailer truck on a highway near Himatnagar in Gujarat's Sabarkantha district early Wednesday morning, police said.
Due to the impact of the crash, the car was badly mangled and the bodies were retrieved after hectic efforts, they said. Rescue teams had to use a gas-cutter to remove the car scrap to pull out the bodies, an official said.
The accident occurred on a national highway connecting Udaipur (in Rajasthan) to Ahmedabad (Gujarat) at around 6.30 am, according to police.
"Seven car occupants were killed in the accident," Superintendent of Police Vijay Patel said.
"The car was carrying eight persons to Ahmedabad when it hit the trailer truck from behind while it was going ahead on the national highway," a Himatnagar police official said.
One passenger was grievously injured and rushed to a civil hospital for treatment, he said.
All the deceased were men, hailing from Ahmedabad. Their identities were being confirmed, the official said.
