Divya Pahuja murder: Ex-model's body was still in hotel when police first visited it, claim sources
Gurugram, Jan 5: Hours after ex-model Divya Pahuja was shot dead in a Gurugram hotel, police responded to a call and visited the hotel and returned after checking room number 114, while the body was lying in another room, police sources said Friday.
The 27-year-old woman was taken to Hotel City Point on Tuesday by five people and allegedly shot dead inside room number 111, they said.
While Divya's body is yet to be recovered, on Friday, a three-member Special Investigation Team (SIT), which will be led by ACP crime Varun Dahiya, was formed to probe the case, police said. The team will work under the supervision of DCP Crime Vijay Pratap Singh.
According to the sources, the main accused hotel owner Abhijit Singh revealed that Divya was shot dead in the hotel at 5 pm on Tuesday.
He called Anup, to whom the hotel was given on lease, for help but Anup informed the police about the murder at 9 pm, they said.
After getting information, police reached the spot and returned after checking room number 114 while Divya's body was lying in room number 111, the sources said.
Taking advantage of this, Abhijit asked his friends Balraj Gill and Ravi Bandra for help in disposing of the body. In a CCTV footage, Abhijit can be seen fleeing the hotel in a blue BMW car with Divya's body in the boot, they said.
Later, Anup again called the police at 11 pm on which the police took a serious note. After examining the CCTV footage, the murder was revealed but by then the suspects had fled with the body.
The footage shows the suspects, including Abhijit, purportedly dragging her body wrapped in a white sheet through the hotel lobby to the BMW car, police had said.
The BMW car was found abandoned at a bus stand in Punjab's Patiala, however, the former model's body is yet to be recovered, the Gurugram Police said in a statement on Thursday evening.
Till now, Abhijit, Hemraj and Omprakash have been arrested while two others, including Gill, are still at large, police said.
Sandeep Gadoli, a dreaded gangster from Gurugram, was killed in a shootout in Mumbai on February 6, 2016. Later, the Mumbai police said Gadoli had been lured into a trap with the help of his "girlfriend" Divya and killed in a fake encounter.
Virendra Kumar alias Binder Gujjar ran a rival gang and allegedly conspired with Haryana Police officials to eliminate Gadoli. Gujjar was in prison at the time of the encounter, but he hatched the conspiracy with the help of his brother Manoj and roped in Divya as a honey trap.
An FIR was registered against five police personnel, Divya, her mother and others.
The Bombay High Court had granted bail to Divya in June last year, about seven years after she was arrested.
Police are probing the case from three angles blackmail, roles of gangster Gadoli's family, and Gujjar's involvement.
DCP Crime Singh said the revelations made by Abhijit are being verified and he is also being interrogated about Divya.
Abhijit claims that he killed Divya because she was blackmailing him, he said.
"We are also interrogating Hemraj and Om Prakash and trying to connect the entire sequence of events that took place on January 2. Divya's mobile has also been sent to Diatec Lab for testing," the DCP said.
"Our teams are continuing to raid suspect places and hope the body of the deceased will be recovered soon," he said.
Let the Truth be known. If you read VB and like VB, please be a VB Supporter and Help us deliver the Truth to one and all.
Human Rights Watch says Israel's restriction of water supply in Gaza amounts to acts of genocide
New York, Dec 19: Human Rights Watch on Thursday accused Israel of causing the deaths of thousands of Palestinians by systematically restricting and targeting Gaza's water supply in a campaign that amounted to “acts of genocide”.
The rights group was the latest among a growing number of critics to accuse Israel of genocidal acts in its war in Gaza. Israel vehemently denies the allegations, saying its war is directed at Hamas group, not Gaza's civilians.
In Thursday's report, HRW alleged that countless infants, children and adults have died from malnutrition, dehydration and illness as a result of actions by Israeli authorities over more than a year of war to deliberately cut the flow of water and electricity to Gaza, destroy infrastructure and prevent the distribution of critical supplies.
“As a state policy, these acts constitute a widespread or systematic attack directed against a civilian population. Israeli officials are therefore committing the crime against humanity of extermination,” the New York-based group said.
The rights group said that the “pattern of conduct” outlined in its report and statements from Israeli officials “may indicate" genocidal intent, but it did not come down definitively on one side. Under international law, proving intent is key in concluding whether the crime of genocide has been committed.
Israel, founded as a refuge for Jews in the wake of the Nazi Holocaust, strenuously denies such allegations. It says Hamas is responsible for the destruction in Gaza because the group hides and operates in schools, hospitals and residential areas. It says the October 2023 Hamas attack that triggered the war — the deadliest attack on Jews since the Holocaust — amounts to genocide.
“Human Rights Watch is once more spreading its blood libels in order to promote its anti-Israel propaganda,” Israel's Foreign Ministry said. It claimed Israel has worked to facilitate the flow of water and humanitarian aid into Gaza throughout the war.
“Israel will continue to ensure humanitarian aid enters Gaza, in full compliance with international law,” the statement said.
The new report by Human Rights Watch outlined what the organisation described as an extended, methodical campaign by Israeli officials to deprive Palestinians in Gaza of water.
That has drastically reduced the water supply in Gaza, from about 83 litres per person each day before the war began to between two and nine litres in the months since, the human rights group says.
The World Health Organisation says people require 50 to 100 litres per day to meet basic needs and keep sickness in check.
Human Rights Watch said Israeli forces deliberately razed the solar panels that powered four of Gaza's six wastewater treatment plants and destroyed a key reservoir. The group alleged Israel also cut off electricity required to run desalination plants and other infrastructure and restricted fuel for backup generators.
When the International Court of Justice issued orders in January that Israel provide Palestinians with basic services and assistance, officials ignored them, the group alleged.
Human Rights Watch said its findings were based on interviews with more than 60 Palestinians, accounts from utility employees, doctors and other healthcare workers and aid workers, and analysis of satellite images, photos and video.
“Doctors and nurses told Human Rights Watch that they had seen numerous infants, children, and adults die from a combination of malnutrition, dehydration, and disease,” the group said.
In its statement, the Israeli Foreign Ministry said it has continued the operation of four water pipelines as well as water pumping and desalination facilities, and allowed international aid groups to deliver water in tankers.
The Oct 7, 2023, attack by Hamas killed some 1,200 people in Israel, mostly civilians, and took 250 others hostage. Israel's 14-month offensive has killed over 45,000 Palestinians, over half of them women and children, according to local health officials who do not distinguish between civilians and combatants.
The offensive has caused widespread destruction and displaced roughly 90% of Gaza's population, according to UN estimates, plunging the territory into a humanitarian crisis.
The UN and international aid groups say Israel has repeatedly restricted aid shipments into Gaza and done little to provide security inside Gaza to allow deliveries to reach their destinations. They say only a fraction of the amount of aid necessary to sustain life in Gaza is reaching Palestinians. The war has led to a breakdown in law and order, with armed gangs repeatedly stealing truckloads of aid.
HRW's report came two weeks after Amnesty International accused Israel of committing genocide in Gaza. Israel dismissed the allegation as as “entirely false and based on lies.”
Israel has previously refuted charges lodged by South Africa in the International Court of Justice that its forces have carried out inhumane acts in the embattled enclave. Meanwhile, the International Criminal Court is seeking the arrests of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant for allegedly committing war crimes.
