Six AP policemen transferred on allegations of torture, sexual abuse of accused women
Chittoor, June 21: Chittoor district police in Andhra Pradesh have transferred six policemen and registered a case to investigate allegations of torture and sexual harassment levelled against them by five women from Tamil Nadu who were part of a gang of eight people booked for crimes related to property offences, police said on Wednesday. On June 15, police arrested the eight accused but released six of them, including the five women, on humanitarian grounds, as they were involved in only one case earlier, invoking 41 A CrPc (appearance before a police officer). Property offences may include theft, extortion, robbery and dacoity, criminal misappropriation of property, criminal breach of trust, receiving stolen property, cheating, and fraudulent deed and disposition of property.
"The other two, who are repeat offenders, with one of them having 30-odd cases against him, have been arrested in lieu of three grave property offences in the district under Chittoor One Town Puthalapattu police station," Chittoor district Superintendent of Police Y Rishant Reddy told PTI on Wednesday. According to Reddy, the six persons who were let off in the presence of their lawyers did not make any allegations of torture or sexual harassment against the police and their statements were also videographed. Meanwhile, during the time they were apprehended and released by AP police, a case was filed in Tamil Nadu's Krishnagiri district that these women were missing.
To clarify about this missing case, the five women appeared at that women's police station and said that they were let off after being served with 41 A CrPc notice. At the time too, they complained of no torture or sexual abuse, said Reddy.
They also appeared before police and revenue officials in Krishnagiri district on June 16, gave their statements and went back home to Puliandipatti located within the limits of Mathur police station in the district.
However, on June 17, the five women travelled to Krishnagiri district headquarters, admitted themselves in a hospital and alleged that they were tortured and sexually abused, said Reddy.
Basing on these allegations, the Chittoor SP said, a case has been registered and the six accused policemen have been transferred to enable an unbiased probe. A case has been registered under IPC Section 376 (punishment for sexual assault) to investigate the allegations, which will be supervised by an additional SP (ASP) rank officer, he added.
Police have also invoked the SC/ST Atrocities Act as the eight persons belong to the Kuruba tribe. Speaking about one of the two arrested persons, Reddy said he had been absconding from the Tamil Nadu police for the past four years and has nine non-bailable warrants and several property offences cases against him.
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Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu dismisses defence minister in surprise announcement
Jerusalem, Nov 5: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Tuesday dismissed his popular defence minister, Yoav Gallant, in a surprise announcement that came as the country is embroiled in wars on multiple fronts across the region.
Netanyahu and Gallant have repeatedly been at odds over the war in Gaza. But Netanyahu had avoided firing his rival. Netanyahu cited “significant gaps” and a “crisis of trust” between the men in his Tuesday evening announcement.
“In the midst of a war, more than ever, full trust is required between the prime minister and defence minister,” Netanyahu said. “Unfortunately, although in the first months of the campaign there was such trust and there was very fruitful work, during the last months this trust cracked between me and the defence minister.”
In the early days of the war, Israel's leadership presented a unified front as it responded to Hamas' October 7, 2023, attack. But as the war dragged on and spread to Lebanon, key policy differences have emerged. While Netanyahu has called for continued military pressure on Hamas, Gallant had taken a more pragmatic approach, saying that military force has created the necessary conditions for a diplomatic deal that could bring home hostages held by the Hamas group.
Gallant, a former general who has gained public respect with a gruff, no-nonsense personality, said in a statement: “The security of the state of Israel always was, and will always remain, my life's mission."
Gallant has worn a simple, black buttoned shirt throughout the war in a sign of sorrow over the October 7 attack and developed a strong relationship with his US counterpart, Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin.
A previous attempt by Netanyahu to fire Gallant in March 2023 sparked widespread street protests against Netanyahu. He also flirted with the idea of dismissing Gallant over the summer but held off until Tuesday's announcement.
Gallant will be replaced by Foreign Minister Israel Katz, a Netanyahu loyalist and veteran Cabinet minister who was a junior officer in the military. Gideon Saar, a former Netanyahu rival who recently rejoined the government, will take the foreign affairs post.
Netanyahu has a long history of neutralising his rivals. In his statement, he claimed he had made “many attempts” to bridge the gaps with Gallant.
“But they kept getting wider. They also came to the knowledge of the public in an unacceptable way, and worse than that, they came to the knowledge of the enemy - our enemies enjoyed it and derived a lot of benefit from it,” he said.
