Man killed in wild elephant attack in Kerala's Wayanad, locals stage protest
Wayanad (Kerala): A 42-year-old man died after being attacked by a wild elephant that strayed into human settlement near Mananthavady here on Saturday morning, police said.
Aji died at Mananthavady Medical College where he was admitted following the attack that occurred at around 7.30 am today, they said.
CCTV visuals showed the wild elephant fitted with a radio collar damaging the compound wall of a house and attacking the man.
Meanwhile, angered locals staged a flash protest by blocking the Mananthavady-Mysore, Mananthavady-Kozhikode and Thalassery roads.
The vehicles of the local MLA and the District police chief were also blocked by the agitators, who raised 'go back' slogans.
Kerala Forest Minister A K Saseendran termed as 'shocking' the death of the man and said the frequent news of man-animal conflict coming from Wayanad was a matter of concern.
On Friday night a forest wildlife watcher was grievously injured in a tiger attack and he is undergoing treatment, he said.
The Minister said more response teams will be sent to the locality and a decision on whether to drive it back into the forest or capture it and take it to the rehabilitation centre, will be taken soon.
Saseendran said the Chief Minister's office was looking into the concerns of the people of Wayanad, who are suffering from animal attacks and the subsequent crop loss.
Locals alleged that the elephant crossed Kerala border and reached Kuruvadweep locality early in the morning but the forest department failed to announce the same and warn the people from venturing out.
Currently, the district administration has issued prohibitory orders in multiple wards of Mananthavady.
Recently, a jumbo from Karnataka, called 'Thanneer Komban', fitted with a radio collar had ventured into Mananthavady town and roamed the streets for over 16 hours after which it was tranquilised. However, upon being shifted to Karnataka, that elephant had died.
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ED arrests Sandeepa Virk, 'cosmetologist' for alleged money laundering
New Delhi, Aug 13 (PTI): The Enforcement Directorate said on Wednesday it has arrested a woman, who claims to be an actor and a cosmetologist, under the anti-money laundering law in a case of alleged fraud and misrepresentation.
The agency said the purported links of the woman, Sandeepa Virk, with a Reliance Group executive, Angarai Natarajan Sethuraman (President, Corporate Affairs), are also under its scanner. Sethuraman, in a statement, denied any connection with Virk or any transactions related to her.
Virk was taken into custody under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) on Tuesday after searches were conducted against her and her associates in Delhi and Mumbai over the last two days.
A special court sent her to the ED's custody till August 14, the agency said. The woman claims to be the owner of a skin care products selling website named hyboocare.com, which the ED claimed was a "front" for money laundering.
She and her associates are being probed for allegedly exerting undue influence through "misrepresentation" and "defrauding" individuals by soliciting money under false pretences.
According to an Instagram ID of Virk, she is an actor and entrepreneur and the founder of the said website.
The federal agency said in a statement that the woman was also "in touch with" Sethuraman, former director of erstwhile Reliance Capital Limited.
She was communicating with him regarding "illegal liaisoning", the ED claimed, adding that the searches at Sethuraman's residence "confirmed" these allegations.
"Besides, diversion of funds for personal benefit has also been unearthed during the course of the search action," it said.
The ED alleged that public money worth about Rs 18 crore belonging to Reliance Commercial Finance Limited (RCFL) was disbursed to Sethuraman in 2018 by "flouting" prudent lending norms.
The funds were lent under terms that allowed a deferment of the principal amount as well as the interest, with multiple waivers granted and no due diligence conducted, it said.
The ED claimed that besides this, a home loan of Rs 22 crore was provided by Reliance Capital Limited by "violating" the prudential norms. "A large part of these loans are seen to have been eventually siphoned off and remained unpaid," it alleged.
Sethuraman, in a statement, dismissed the allegations as "baseless". He denied any connection with Virk or any transactions related to her.
Detailing about Virk's web portal, the agency said it purportedly sold FDA-approved beauty products. However, the ED said the products listed on the website have been found to be non-existent and the portal lacks a user registration option and is plagued by persistent payment gateway issues.
A scrutiny of the website uncovered minimal social-media engagement, an inactive WhatsApp contact number and an absence of transparent organisational details, all of which reinforce the finding of "non-genuine" commercial activity, the ED claimed.
"These factors, including limited product range, inflated pricing, false claims of FDA approval and technical inconsistencies, indicate that the website serves as a front for laundering funds," it said.
Another social media-hosted bio data of the woman said she is a certified cosmetologist.
The ED said several "incriminating" documents were seized during the searches and the statement of a man named Farrukh Ali, stated to be an associate of Virk, was recorded.
The money-laundering case stems from an FIR lodged by the Punjab Police.
Sethuraman said that the home loan he received from Reliance Capital was granted following due process and was secured by the property offered as collateral.
