Hindutva outfit leader, 19 others acquitted in 2014 murder case of IT professional
Pune (PTI): A court in Pune in Maharashtra on Friday acquitted 20 people, including the leader of a right-wing Hindutva outfit, in the 2014 murder case of a youth named Mohsin Shaikh.
Information Technology professional Shaikh (28) was attacked and killed on June 2, 2014 in Hadapsar area by a mob incensed by morphed pictures of deities, and 20 persons, including Hindu Rashtra Sena leader Dhananjay Desai, were arrested.
Additional Sessions Judge SB Salunke acquitted 20 persons, including Desai, for want of evidence, the HRS leader's lawyer Milind Pawar said.
The defence successfully argued Desai was in jail in connection with another case when the murder took place, Pawar said.
He said Desai had no role in the killing or the riots that took place soon after.
The witnesses in the case narrated the entire incident but they failed to identify all the accused arrested in the case, Pawar added.
Desai was held some days after the murder and was released on bail in January, 2019.
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.
Indian AI startups should work towards global leadership: PM Modi
New Delhi (PTI): Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday said the world's trust in India is its biggest strength and emphasised the need to ensure that Indian Artificial Intelligence (AI) models are ethical, unbiased, transparent, and based on data privacy principles.
He also said that the startups should work towards global leadership from this country, and noted that India can promote affordable AI, inclusive AI, and frugal innovation globally.
Chairing a roundtable with Indian AI start-ups ahead of the India AI Impact Summit 2026, Modi suggested that Indian AI models should be distinct and should promote local and indigenous content and regional languages, an official statement said.
The prime minister said startups and artificial intelligence entrepreneurs are the co-architects of the country's future.
As many as 12 Indian AI start-ups that have qualified for the 'AI for ALL: Global Impact Challenge' summit to be held next month attended the roundtable and presented their ideas and work.
During the meeting, Modi highlighted the importance of artificial intelligence in bringing about transformation in society.
He noted that India will host the India AI Impact summit next month, through which the country will play a major role in the technology sector.
The prime minister highlighted that India is making efforts to bring about a transformation by leveraging AI.
He emphasised that startups and AI entrepreneurs are the co-architects of India's future and said the country has immense capacity for both innovation and large-scale implementation.
India should present a unique AI model to the world that reflects the spirit of 'Made in India, Made for the World', Modi said.
These start-ups are working in a diverse set of areas, including Indian language foundation models, multilingual LLMs, speech-to-text, text-to-audio and text-to-video; 3D content using generative AI for e-commerce, marketing, and personalised content creation; engineering simulations, material research and advanced analytics for data-driven decision-making across industries; healthcare diagnostics and medical research, among others.
The AI start-ups commended India's strong commitment to advancing the artificial intelligence ecosystem in the country. They highlighted the rapid growth and vast future potential of the AI sector, observing that the centre of gravity of artificial intelligence innovation and deployment is beginning to shift towards India.
The leaders said India now offers a robust and enabling environment for AI development, firmly placing the country on the global AI map.
The meeting was attended by CEOs, heads and representatives of Indian AI start-ups, including Avataar, BharatGen, Fractal, Gan, Genloop, Gnani, Intellihealth, Sarvam, Shodh AI, Soket AI, Tech Mahindra and Zenteiq.
Union Minister for Electronics and Information Technology Ashwini Vaishnaw and Minister of State Jitin Prasada were also present in the meeting.
A PMO press release reads, "PM chairs Roundtable with Indian AI Start-Ups. 12 Indian AI Start-ups, who have qualified for the AI for ALL: Global Impact Challenge in the India AI Impact Summit 2026, present their ideas and work." pic.twitter.com/RvjNly04hl
— Press Trust of India (@PTI_News) January 8, 2026
_vb_74.jpeg)
