London(PTI): An Indian-origin politician from the UK's Opposition Labour Party, Councillor Mohinder K Midha, has been elected mayor of Ealing Council in west London, becoming the first female mayor of a local London council belonging to the Dalit community.

Midha was elected for the next year's term of 2022-23 at a council meeting on Tuesday.

We are so proud that Cllr Mohinder Midha has been elected Mayor of Ealing for the next year, the Labour Party in Ealing said in a statement.

The election is being celebrated by the British Dalit community as a proud moment.

The first ever Dalit woman mayor in the UK. A proud moment for us, said Santosh Dass, chair of the Federation of Ambedkarite and Buddhist Organisation (FABO) UK, an umbrella group representing Dalit rights in the country.

Midha, who was re-elected as a Labour councillor for the Dormers Wells ward in the Ealing Council in the May 5 local elections in London, had been serving as the Deputy Mayor for the council previously.

Tackling the cost of living. Recovering from the pandemic. Fighting violent crime and antisocial behaviour. Fixing social care. Re-growing, re-wilding and recycling. Delivering more genuinely affordable homes, reads the local Labour Party manifesto she campaigned on. 

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New Delhi (PTI): Delhi Police has busted an LPG cylinder hoarding and black marketing racket in the Bawana area, an officer said on Friday.

A 50-year-old man, identified as Anil, has been arrested and 75 cylinders seized, he said.

The accused was apprehended following a tip-off about the illegal storage and transportation of LPG cylinders in the industrial area.

Acting on the input, a police team laid a picket near District Park in Bawana on Thursday evening. Around 4 pm, a pickup truck was intercepted and checked, leading to the recovery of 27 LPG cylinders, including both domestic and commercial units.

"When questioned, the accused failed to produce any valid documents, including a licence, permit, stock register or proof of ownership for the cylinders," the officer said.

During interrogation, Anil revealed that more cylinders were stored at nearby premises. Based on his disclosure, police raided two rooms and an iron shed near a factory in the area.

"A total of 48 additional cylinders were recovered, taking the overall seizure to 75. The cylinders were stored without safety measures or legal authorisation, posing a serious risk," the officer said.

Disruptions in maritime supply routes through the Strait of Hormuz amid the ongoing US-Israel and Iran conflict have caused an LPG crisis in India.