Several BJP leaders, including three ex-MLAs, join JMM ahead of Jharkhand polls
Ranchi (PTI): Several BJP leaders, including three former MLAs, joined the ruling Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM) weeks ahead of the assembly polls in the state.
The former legislators who switched sides on Monday were Lois Marandi, Kunal Sarangi and Lakshman Tudu. The development also comes barely two days after three-term BJP legislator Kedar Hazra and AJSU Party leader Umakant Rajak joined the JMM.
"We joined the JMM today," Sarangi, the BJP's former spokesperson and ex-Baharagora MLA, told PTI.
Lois Marandi, a former BJP legislator, had in 2014 defeated Chief Minister Hemant Soren by a margin of 5,262 votes from Dumka.
Soon after Lois embraced JMM, Jharkhand CM Hemant Soren welcomed her to the party.
"We heartily welcome former BJP Vice President and senior leader respected Lois Marandi Ji to JMM family," Soren posted on X.
In 2019, Soren won the Dumka seat by a margin of 13,188 votes. He, however, vacated the seat and retained the Barhait constituency.
His brother Basant Soren had defeated Marandi by over 6,842 votes in party stronghold Dumka in a bypoll.
Sources said Lois Marandi in a letter to BJP state president Babulal Marandi has drawn his attention to the "neglect" of committed workers like her and rising factionalism in BJP.
She has mentioned how the BJP for the first time won Dumka, considered a JMM bastion, in 2014 since Independence.
Sarangi had in July resigned from the party's primary membership, around a month-and-a-half after stepping down from the post of Jharkhand unit spokesperson.
He sent his resignation letter to BJP Jharkhand unit president Babulal Marandi, citing various organisational and people-oriented issues in East Singhbhum district.
Sarangi had also expressed disappointment with the party leadership's “indifferent approach” despite his efforts to highlight crucial issues.
He had said, "I resigned from the spokesman's post hoping that the party leadership would address the concerns I raised, but nothing has happened yet."
Lakshman Tudu in 2014 had defeated JMM's Ramdas Soren from Ghatshila constituency by a margin of 6,403 votes.
Others who came to JMM-fold include BJP leaders from Seraikela -- Ganesh Mahli, Basco Besra and Bari Murmu.
Three-term BJP legislator Kedar Hazra and AJSU Party leader Umakant Rajak joined the JMM on October 18.
Elections to the 81-member Jharkhand assembly will be held in two phases – November 13 and November 20 – with the counting of votes scheduled for November 23.
Filing of nomination papers for the 43 assembly constituencies going to polls in the first phase began on Monday, with three nominations submitted so far.
In total, 2.60 crore people are eligible to vote in the assembly elections.
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FIR filed after e-commerce platform linked tech firm alleges SMS spoofing fraud
Bengaluru (PTI): An FIR has been registered against unknown people for allegedly sending fraudulent messages in the name of an e-commerce platform with promises of cash rewards, further disrupting its operations, police said on Wednesday.
The offence is said to have taken place between April 23 and April 27, they said.
A representative of city-based technology company Hiveloop Technology Pvt Ltd (HTPL), part of the Udaan group (eB2B platform), has lodged a complaint alleging a large-scale SMS spoofing fraud following which a detailed investigation has been initiated into the matter, a senior police officer said.
According to the FIR, HTPL is a registered entity on the TRAI-mandated DLT platform, which permits only pre-approved SMS templates and whitelisted URLs to be sent through authorised sender IDs.
The issue came to light on April 23, when HTPL received alerts from buyers about fraudulent SMS messages appearing to originate from the company's sender ID "UDAANN". The messages reportedly contained Bitly links and falsely claimed a credit of Rs 10,001, urging recipients to withdraw money, it said.
On April 27, at around 12:49 pm, the DLT platform blacklisted HTPL's SMS templates, citing their alleged use in sending fraudulent messages. Within minutes, the company's sender ID was also blacklisted. Airtel's DLT system subsequently confirmed the action and shared details of the fraudulent messages that were circulated in HTPL's name without its knowledge or consent, the FIR stated.
Following this, the company's messaging operations were affected, and even legitimate communications such as one-time passwords to buyers began failing. Later, the DLT operator suspended HTPL's entire account following complaints raised on TRAI's Chakshu platform, bringing all SMS services of the company to a halt, it further stated.
HTPL has stated that neither it nor its authorised vendors sent the fraudulent messages. The links embedded in the messages reportedly redirected users to an online betting website, the FIR stated.
The company has claimed that the incident has resulted in a complete breakdown of SMS-based services, including buyer authentication, order updates and promotional communication, leading to significant financial losses.
At least 13 victims have been identified so far, with the possibility of more affected users. Victims were allegedly directed to an online betting platform, raising concerns of potential financial fraud, the FIR added.
