Jailed for posting message on Facebook case: Ashraf sends plea to police commissioner
‘Provide me justice; False cases have been lodged against me.’
Mangaluru, Sept 07: Ashraf, who was arrested for allegedly posting a Facebook post, appealed to the city police commissioner on Friday to provide him justice.
"The CCB police arrested me when police filed a suo motto complaint against me over an FB post in which I questioned superstition. False allegations have been leveled against me. I am a postgraduate, and active on social networking sites. I keep on responding to the happenings of the society."
“Over the recent flood in Kerala, some people had posted “the court permission for the entry of menstruating women to Sabarimala temple was the main reason for flood situation in Kerala.” “Then what is the reason of flood situation in Tulu Nadu which is the creation of Parashuram? I had asked”, he said in the plea.
“Based on such a simple post, the Mangaluru North (Bunder) police have booked suo motto case against me under section 153, 505 (2),” Ashraf explained in detail every torture he faced by the Bunder police and CCB police. Ashraf further wrote that he was threatened not to reveal all these things in front of the judge and produced in the court. The court had sent me to the judicial custody for six days. The jail staff has taken over my purse, cash, and items worth Rs. 3,000, "Ashraf said in the appeal.
"After getting released on bail, I had told about this to DYFI and wrote the whole thing and posted on Facebook as well. For that, once again the Bunder police inspector Suresh came to me and threatened that they would present a report in the court to cancel the bail. They have forcibly taken confession letter from me. They also threatened me not to write anything on Facebook hereafter, " he said in the plea.
"In all, I have faced injustice in this entire case. I was preparing to become a lecturer in the future but now became a criminal by this injustice. Now I am mentally disturbed, and my prospects are inadequate. Take action against the guilty," he pleaded.
DYFI demands a comprehensive investigation
The DYFI has given a memorandum to the police commissioner to provide justice to the victim Ashraf and carry out a detailed investigation in the case.
DYFI district secretary Santosh Bajal, Naveen Konchadi, and Asha Bolur were present.
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Indian mobile hospital treats over 2,200 cyclone-hit people as New Delhi ramps up relief efforts in
Colombo (PTI): A mobile hospital set up by India in Sri Lanka has provided medical care to over 2,200 people affected by Cyclone Ditwah, as New Delhi ramped up its assistance to the flood-ravaged island nation with engineering support and delivery of fresh relief consignments, the Indian mission here said on Sunday.
Sri Lanka has been grappling with widespread flooding, landslides and severe infrastructure collapse triggered by the cyclone, leaving several districts isolated and severely straining the country's disaster-response capacity.
At least 627 people have been killed and 190 remain missing as of Sunday noon due to catastrophic floods and landslides caused by extreme weather conditions since November 16.
Sharing a social media post by the Ministry of External Affairs on its X handle, the Indian High Commission said a field hospital set up by India in Mahiyanganaya near Kandy has provided medical care to more than 2,200 people affected by the cyclone since December 5.
The hospital has also performed 67 minor procedures and three surgeries, it said. The field hospital was airlifted to Sri Lanka by an IAF C-17 aircraft along with a 78-member Indian medical team on Tuesday.
In another post, the mission said Indian Army engineers, working with Sri Lanka Army Engineers and the Road Development Authority, in Kilinochchi have begun removing a damaged bridge on the Paranthan–Karachchi–Mullaitivu (A35) road, a key route disrupted by the cyclone.
"This joint effort marks another step toward restoring vital connectivity for affected communities," it said.
India has additionally sent nearly 1,000 tonnes of food items and clothing contributed by the people of Tamil Nadu. Of these, about 300 tonnes reached Colombo on Sunday morning aboard three Indian Naval ships.
High Commissioner Santosh Jha handed over the supplies to Sri Lankan Minister for Trade, Commerce, Food Security and Cooperative Development Wasantha Samarasinghe.
India, on November 28, launched 'Operation Sagar Bandhu', a Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief (HADR) initiative, to aid Sri Lanka in its recovery from the devastation caused by Cyclone Ditwah.
Since the launch of the operation, India has provided about 58 tonnes of relief material, including dry rations, tents, tarpaulins, hygiene kits, essential cloths, water purification kits and about 4.5 tonnes of medicines and surgical equipment, the Indian mission said in a press release on Sunday.
Another 60 tonnes of equipment, including generators, inflatable rescue boats, Outboard Motors, and excavators, have also been brought to Sri Lanka, it said, adding that 185 tonnes of Bailey Bridge units were airlifted to restore critical connectivity along with 44 engineers.
Two columns of the National Disaster Response Force, comprising 80 experts and K9 units with specially trained dogs, assisted with immediate rescue and relief efforts in Sri Lanka.
Besides the field hospital in Mahiyanganaya, medical centres have also been set up in the badly hit Ja-Ela region and in Negombo. INS Vikrant, INS Udaygiri, and INS Sukanya provided immediate rescue and relief assistance to Sri Lanka.
Apart from the two Chetak helicopters deployed from INS Vikrant, two heavy-lift, MI-17 helicopters of the Indian Air Force are actively involved in evacuations and airlifting relief material, the release said.
At the request of the Sri Lankan Disaster Management Centre, a virtual meeting was organised between DMC and the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO)'s National Remote Sensing Centre on Saturday.
Since the onset of the disaster, ISRO has been providing maps to assist DMC in its rescue efforts, the release said.
