Hyderabad man duped into working as 'helper' for Russian Army, dies
Hyderabad, Mar 6: A man from Hyderabad, who was among the Indians "duped" by agents on the promise of jobs and taken to Russia and forced to work as a "helper" for the Russian Army, has died.
The Indian Embassy in Moscow on Wednesday confirmed the death of the man, identified as Mohammed Afsan, adding that they are in touch with the family here.
"We have learnt about the tragic death of an Indian national Shri Mohammed Asfan. We are in touch with the family and Russian authorities. Mission will make efforts to send his mortal remains to India," Indian embassy in Moscow said in a post on 'X'.
When contacted, Afsan's brother Imran said the Indian embassy in Moscow informed the family about the 30-year-old's death.
He requested the Central government to help them get back his brother's mortal remains.
AIMIM sources said the party's chief Asaduddin Owaisi had contacted the Indian embassy in Moscow after Afsan's family approached him in this regard recently. An official from the Indian embassy in Moscow confirmed to Owaisi about Afsan's death, they said.
According to Imran, Afsan and two others had reached Russia in November last year as they were promised jobs by the agents. He said the last time the family had spoken to Afsan was on December 31, 2023. Afsan worked in a cloth showroom in Hyderabad earlier, his brother said.
Earlier, Owaisi had said that family members of some Indian youth, including from Telangana, had met him and informed that their kin were duped by agents on the promise of jobs and taken to Russia, but were allegedly sent to the warfront on the Russia-Ukraine border.
Owaisi had requested the Union government, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar to hold talks with the Russian government to bring the youth safely back to India.
We have learnt about the tragic death of an Indian national Shri Mohammed Asfan. We are in touch with the family and Russian authorities. Mission will make efforts to send his mortal remains to India.@MEAIndia
— India in Russia (@IndEmbMoscow) March 6, 2024
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Sanjay Raut demands re-election, alleges irregularities in EVMs during Maharashtra polls
Mumbai, Nov 25: Shiv Sena (UBT) MP Sanjay Raut on Monday demanded a re-election in Maharashtra using ballot papers, claiming there were irregularities with the electronic voting machines (EVMs).
Talking to reporters, Raut alleged several complaints about EVMs malfunctioning and questioned the integrity of the recently held elections.
The BJP-led Mahayuti won 230 out of 288 seats in the assembly elections, while the opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi managed 46 seats, with Shiv Sena (UBT) winning just 20 out of 95 seats it contested.
"We have received nearly 450 complaints regarding EVMs. Despite raising objections repeatedly, no action has been taken on these issues. How can we say these elections were conducted fairly? Hence, I demand that the results be set aside and elections be held again using ballot papers," Raut said.
Citing some instances, he said a candidate in Nashik reportedly received only four votes despite having 65 votes from his family, while in Dombivli, discrepancies were found in EVM tallies, and election officials refused to acknowledge the objections.
The Sena (UBT) leader also questioned the credibility of the landslide victories of some candidates, saying, "What revolutionary work have they done to receive more than 1.5 lakh votes? Even leaders who recently switched parties have become MLAs. This raises suspicions. For the first time, a senior leader like Sharad Pawar has expressed doubts about EVMs, which cannot be ignored."
Asked about the MVA's poor performance in the elections, Raut rejected the idea of blaming a single individual.
"We fought as a united MVA. Even a leader like Sharad Pawar, who commands immense respect in Maharashtra, faced defeat. This shows that we need to analyse the reasons behind the failure. One of the reasons is EVM irregularities and the misuse of the system, unconstitutional practices, and even judicial decisions left unresolved by Justice Chandrachud," he said.
Raut stressed that though internal differences might have existed within the MVA, the failure was collective.
He also accused the Mahayuti of conducting the elections in an unfair manner.
"I cannot call the elections fair given the numerous reports of discrepancies in EVMs, mismatched numbers, and vote irregularities across the state," Raut said.
