Karnataka HC orders release of Pralhad Joshi's brother, nephew in cheating case
Bengaluru: The Karnataka High Court has directed the release of Union Minister Pralhad Joshi’s brother and nephew, who were recently arrested in a cheating case for allegedly promising an election ticket in exchange for Rs 2.5 crore.
Justice M Nagaprasanna, presiding over a single-judge bench, issued an interim order staying all proceedings against the accused. Although they were set to remain in police custody until tomorrow, the court ordered their immediate release. The court stated, “The petitioners are said to be in police custody, and custody is till tomorrow. In light of the aforesaid interim order, [they shall] be released forthwith in a manner known to law.”
The arrests followed a complaint from Sunitha Chavan, wife of former JD(S) MLA Devanand Chavan, who alleged that the accused had promised her husband a BJP ticket for the Bijapur Lok Sabha constituency, in exchange for Rs 2.5 crore. According to the complaint, the accused had claimed they could secure the ticket, leveraging the office of the Union Minister. It was further alleged that Rs 25 lakh had already changed hands before the election announcement.
In its interim observations, the court noted that the complaint was filed six months after the alleged incident. The counsel for the petitioners reportedly assured the court that they would return the amount, suggesting it was a financial dispute between the parties. Additionally, the court addressed allegations under the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, observing that the alleged abuses were confined to a private setting and did not qualify as offences under s. 3(1)(r) and (s) of the Act.
The petitioners initially sought the quashing of the case registered under multiple sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023, including charges of wrongful restraint, voluntarily causing hurt, criminal breach of trust, cheating, criminal conspiracy, and various offences under the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act.
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Pakistan reports two more polio cases; Total tally now 52
ISLAMABAD: At least two more cases of poliovirus were reported in Pakistan, taking the number of infections to 52 so far this year, a report said on Friday.
“The Regional Reference Laboratory for Polio Eradication at the National Institute of Health has confirmed the detection of two more wild poliovirus type 1 (WPV1) cases in Pakistan," an official statement said.
The fresh infections — a boy and a girl — were reported from the Dera Ismail Khan district of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa province.
“Genetic sequencing of the samples collected from the children is underway," the statement read. Dera Ismail Khan, one of the seven polio-endemic districts of southern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, has reported five polio cases so far this year.
Of the 52 cases in the country this year, 24 are from Balochistan, 13 from Sindh, 13 from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, and one each from Punjab and Islamabad.
There is no cure for polio. Only multiple doses of the oral polio vaccine and completion of the routine vaccination schedule for all children under the age of five can keep them protected.
