Reports claiming Qatar has withdrawn its mediation for ceasefire are inaccurate: Qatar
Doha: Dr. Majed bin Mohammed Al Ansari, spokesperson for Qatar’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, clarified that media reports suggesting Qatar’s withdrawal from mediation efforts between Hamas and Israel are inaccurate. He stated that Qatar notified both parties ten days ago, during recent mediation efforts, that it would pause its mediation if an agreement could not be reached in that round. Qatar will resume efforts once both sides demonstrate a genuine willingness to end the ongoing conflict and address the severe humanitarian crisis affecting civilians in Gaza. Qatar remains committed to taking an active role to bring an end to the violence and facilitate the return of hostages and prisoners when conditions allow.
Dr. Al Ansari emphasised that “Qatar will not allow its mediation efforts to be exploited,” pointing out that there has been manipulation, particularly after the collapse of the initial ceasefire and hostage exchange involving women and children. Qatar observed that some parties retreated from previously agreed commitments and used prolonged negotiations to justify ongoing hostilities for narrow political gains.
He reiterated Qatar’s unwavering support for the Palestinian cause, highlighting Qatar’s commitment to a sovereign Palestinian state along the 1967 borders, with East Jerusalem as its capital. Addressing recent media speculation, he clarified that reports regarding a Hamas office in Doha are incorrect. He stated that the office functions as a communication channel between relevant parties, which has previously helped facilitate ceasefires and contributed to the release of hostages and detainees in past negotiations.
Dr. Al Ansari urged the public to rely on information from official sources to avoid misinformation.
Let the Truth be known. If you read VB and like VB, please be a VB Supporter and Help us deliver the Truth to one and all.
BharatPe fraud case: Delhi HC quashes lookout circular against Ashneer Grover, wife
New Delhi, Nov 12: The Delhi High Court has ordered cancellation of a lookout circular (LOC) issued against Ashneer Grover, the former MD of payment app BharatPe, and his wife Madhuri Jain Grover, noting that the FIR lodged against them over allegations of cheating and forgery has already been quashed.
Justice Sanjeev Narula passed the order on Monday after the court was informed that another bench of the high court quashed the FIR on the same day.
The FIR was quashed by Justice Chandra Dhari Singh after considering a plea moved by the Grovers stating that they have arrived at a settlement with the fintech company.
In his order, Justice Narula said, "Although the copy of the order (quashing the FIR) is not available as of now, the aforenoted fact is not disputed by the counsel for the parties.
"In light of the fact that the underlying FIR has been quashed, the LOC issued by respondent No. 3 (Bureau of Immigration), in the opinion of the court, will not survive."
The LOC was issued by the Bureau of Immigration at the instance of Delhi Police's Economic Offences Wing (EOW) in view of the investigation against the Grovers in the cheating and forgery FIR.
The court was hearing a plea moved by Grover and his wife Madhuri Jain Grover seeking quashing of the LOC issued against them in connection with the investigation into the cheating and forgery case.
"Accordingly, the present petitions are disposed of with a direction to the respondents to cancel the LOC against the petitioners in their records," the court noted.
Earlier, the Grovers claimed that they were informed about the LOC for the first time when they were detained at the Indira Gandhi International Airport here on November 16, 2023, while they were scheduled to travel to the US.
After being detained, they were informed that the LOC was operational from November 6, 2023.
In May last year, the EOW filed an FIR against Grover, his wife Madhuri, and others under eight sections of the Indian Penal Code, including 406 (criminal breach of trust), 420 (cheating and dishonesty), 467 and 468 (forgery), and 471 (using forged documents as genuine) for an alleged Rs 81 crore fraud after a complaint was lodged by BhartPe, the fintech unicorn.
In its complaint, BharatPe alleged that Grover and his family caused damages to the tune of Rs 81.3 crore through illegitimate payments to bogus human resource consultants, inflated and undue payments through pass-through vendors connected to the accused, sham transactions in input tax credit and payment of penalty to GST authorities, illegal payment to travel agencies, forged invoices by Madhuri, and destruction of evidence.
Madhuri was the head of controls at BharatPe before she was fired in 2022 after a forensic audit revealed several irregularities.
Subsequently, Grover resigned as the chief executive officer of the fintech firm in March 2022.
