Court says will issue warrant against Kangana if she fails to appear on Sep 20
Javed Akhtar defamation case
Mumbai(PTI): A Mumbai court on Tuesday allowed actor Kangana Ranaut's plea seeking exemption from personal appearance for the day in a criminal defamation complaint filed by lyricist Javed Akhtar, and said it will issue a warrant against her if she fails to appear on the next date of hearing on September 20.
As the matter came up for hearing, Ranaut's lawyer sought that she be exempted from appearance for the day as she was not keeping well.
The lawyer submitted a medical certificate before the court and said the actor has been traveling for the promotion of her film and has "developed COVID-19 symptoms".
However, Akhtar's lawyer said this is an orchestrated tactic to delay the case proceedings.
The lyricist's lawyer further said Ranaut has refused to appear before the court for one reason or the other since summons were issued to her in February this year.
After hearing the submissions, metropolitan magistrate R R Khan allowed Ranaut to be exempted from appearance for the day. He then posted the matter for hearing on September 20.
The magistrate said if the actor fails to appear on the next hearing, a warrant will be issued against her.
Last Thursday, the Bombay High Court dismissed a plea filed by Ranaut seeking the quashing of proceedings initiated against her by the local court on the criminal defamation complaint filed by Akhtar.
Justice Revati Mohite-Dere had said in the order that there was no procedural illegality or irregularity in the Andheri metropolitan magistrate's order initiating the proceedings.
Akhtar (76) filed a complaint in the magistrate's court in November last year, claiming that Ranaut had made defamatory statements against him in a television interview, which allegedly damaged his reputation.
In his complaint, Akhtar claimed that Ranaut dragged his name during an interview while referring to a 'coterie' existing in Bollywood, following the alleged suicide committed by actor Sushant Singh Rajput in June last year.
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Bengaluru jail introduces biometric tracking system for prisoners
Bengaluru: In a bid to curb misconduct and illegal activities inside Parappana Agrahara Central Prison, prison authorities have introduced a new ‘Prisoners Tracking Movement System’ under which inmates will have to undergo biometric verification while entering every barrack.
According to jail officials, biometric systems have been installed across all major sections of the prison, including barracks, visitor rooms, hospital, canteen, kitchen, library, playground, handicraft units and bakery sections. Staff members have also been deployed at these locations.
Officials said inmates visiting the visitors’ room must now obtain a digital token after biometric verification. Details such as the prisoner’s name, identification number and entry time will be updated in the prison software system. This will help authorities maintain a complete digital record of inmates visiting and returning from meeting rooms.
Similar systems have also been introduced at entry points of the hospital, library and other barracks accessed for work-related purposes. Officials said the system will help identify prisoners involved in suspicious or illegal activities with other inmates and enable authorities to track how much time a prisoner spends at different locations inside the prison.
Authorities stated that AI-powered cameras were already being used inside the prison to monitor inmates as well as prison staff. Along with this, digital tracking of prisoner phone calls and a digital token system for visitor meetings have now been added to strengthen surveillance over inmate movement. Officials said the project has been implemented at a cost of around Rs 2.25 crore.
The prison department has also introduced a canteen usage tracking system to monitor prisoners’ spending patterns. Instead of direct cash payments, inmates can purchase bakery items and snacks using wallets or coupons issued within the prison system.
Officials said the digital system will record details including the buyer’s name, items purchased, quantity, date, time and remaining wallet balance. This will allow prison authorities to maintain complete expenditure records of inmates.
