Manik Saha sworn-in for second term as Tripura CM
Agartala (PTI): Seventy-year-old BJP leader Manik Saha on Wednesday took oath as chief minister of the sensitive border state of Tripura.
Eight more ministers, including Ratan Lal Nath, Pranajit Singha Roy, Santana Chakma, Tinku Roy and Bikash Debbarma were also sworn in by Governor Satyadeo Narain Arya.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Home Minister Amit Shah and BJP president JP Nadda as well as Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma were among the dignitaries present on the occasion.
In all, eight ministers from the BJP and one from its ally IPFT were inducted into the cabinet. Of these, five were new faces, while four ministers who were in the earlier cabinet found a place in the new line-up.
The BJP won 32 seats in the 60-member House in the recent assembly elections in Tripura, while its ally IPFT managed to secure one seat.
Manik Saha had been made chief minister earlier in 2022, replacing Biplab Kumar Deb, in a brand renewal exercise after it was found that his popularity rating was plummeting on account of the poor law and order situation in Tripura's hinterland.
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Centre moves SC for withdrawing CRPF security to Unnao rape survivor, SC seeks her reply
New Delhi, Sep 24: The Supreme Court on Tuesday sought responses from the 2017 Unnao rape survivor and her family members on the Centre's plea seeking withdrawal of CRPF security cover provided to them following the court's order in 2019. Expelled BJP leader Kuldeep Singh Sengar is serving a life term for kidnapping and raping the minor girl in Uttar Pradesh's Unnao area in 2017.
Taking note of the sensational rape case and the threat to lives of the survivor and others, the apex court on August 1, 2019, directed that the rape survivor, her mother, other members of the family and their lawyer be provided CRPF security.
A bench of Justices Bela M Trivedi and Satish Chandra Sharma asked that the application of the Centre to be served on the victim and her family members. The bench also observed that since there is hardly any threat perception, it would like to close the case.
The Centre's counsel said no security cover is needed according to the threat analysis of the victim and her family members.
Advocate Ruchira Goel, appearing for the Uttar Pradesh government, submitted that everything, including the trial, was transferred to Delhi after the incident following the apex court's order.
The bench asked Goel where the victim resides at present. She replied that the woman and her family stay in Delhi.
On May 14, the top court had asked the Centre to file a separate application seeking withdrawal of CRPF security cover provided to the survivor, her family members and their lawyers.
The Centre submitted that the security cover may be provided by either the Delhi or Uttar Pradesh police and the CRPF be permitted to withdraw.
In 2019, the top court transferred all five cases registered in connection with the Unnao rape incident from a Lucknow court to a court in Delhi with the direction to hold trial on daily basis and complete it within 45 days.
The Supreme Court also directed the Uttar Pradesh government to provide Rs 25 lakh as interim compensation to the rape survivor.
The court had added that the CBI will have to complete within seven days the investigation into the accident in which the survivor and her lawyer were critically injured and two of her aunts killed.
Her father was arrested at the behest of Sengar in a case under the Arms Act and died in custody on April 9, 2018.
Sengar has sought the quashing of the trial court's December 2019 judgment that has sentenced him to imprisonment for the remainder of his life. His appeal is pending in the Delhi High Court.
On March 13, 2020, Sengar was sentenced to 10 years of rigorous imprisonment in the case of death of the woman's father in custody. He was also slapped with a fine of Rs 10 lakh. The court had awarded a 10-year jail term to Sengar's brother Atul Singh Sengar and five others in the case.
