[🇮🇳] India---News & Views

[Saif]

US plane carrying 112 deported Indians reach Amritsar

On Saturday, another US military aircraft carrying 117 illegal Indian immigrants landed in Amristar

www.thedailystar.net

US plane carrying 112 deported Indians reach Amritsar

A US military aircraft carrying illegal Indian immigrants upon its landing at the Shri Guru Ramdas Ji International Airport, in Amritsar, Punjab, on February 5, 2025. File photo: PTI

A US military aircraft carrying 112 Indian illegal immigrants reached the north Indian city of Amritsar last night in the third such flight bringing deportees as part of a crackdown by the Trump administration against undocumented immigrants.

The plane landed at the airport at 10:03pm, said sources.

On Saturday, another US military aircraft carrying 117 illegal Indian immigrants landed in Amristar.

The first batch of Indian deportees reached Amritsar on February 5. Several deportees on that flight claimed their hands and legs were cuffed throughout the journey and they were unshackled only after landing in Amritsar.

This triggered nationwide outrage with opposition parties demanding Prime Minister Narendra Modi to raise the issue with the US during his visit to Washington.

India has conveyed its concerns to the US about the treatment of deportees.​

 

[Saif]

Indian man sentenced to life for rape, murder of Irish tourist

A court in India’s western resort state of Goa sentenced a 31-year-old man to life in prison on Monday for raping and murdering an Irish tourist eight years ago...

www.newagebd.net

Indian man sentenced to life for rape, murder of Irish tourist
Agence France-Presse . Mumbai 18 February, 2025, 00:04

A court in India’s western resort state of Goa sentenced a 31-year-old man to life in prison on Monday for raping and murdering an Irish tourist eight years ago.

The body of 28-year-old Danielle McLaughlin was discovered naked in a field near a beach in the south of the picturesque state in 2017.

Police charged local resident Vikat Bhagat with the murder of McLaughlin, who was from Buncrana in Ireland.

Bhagat was pronounced guilty of the crime on Friday and on Monday the court sentenced him for life.

‘He has been convicted for life and it’s rigorous imprisonment,’ prosecutor Vikram Varma told reporters.

‘As per my understanding, the victim’s family is relieved that there is closure.’

McLaughlin had been celebrating the Indian spring festival of Holi at Goa’s popular Palolem beach when she was attacked, according to police.

Her badly bruised body was found a few kilometres away in Canacona by a farmer.

‘We, as Danielle’s family and friends, are so thankful to everyone involved in our fight for justice,’ a family statement said, according to local media reports.

‘They have treated her like their daughter and have tirelessly fought for her.’

Goa, a former Portuguese colony, lures millions of tourists every year with its nightlife, sandy beaches and laid-back coastal atmosphere.

But its reputation as a tropical paradise has been marred by high-profile crimes involving foreigners.

In 2008, British schoolgirl Scarlett Keeling, 15, was drugged, raped and murdered in Goa in a case that made global headlines.

Chronic backlogs in India’s criminal justice system mean some cases take years to be resolved.

More than 43 million cases were pending before courts across the country in 2022, according to government figures.​

 

[Saif]

India summons UK envoy after Sikh 'separatist' breaches Jaishankar’s security, tears national flag

The UK charge d'affaires was summoned to the Ministry of External Affairs and was served a demarche

www.thedailystar.net

India summons UK envoy after Sikh 'separatist' breaches Jaishankar’s security, tears national flag

File photo of S Jaishankar

India today summoned the British charge d'affaires in New Delhi and lodged a strong protest against a breach in security for External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar in London as an alleged Sikh separatist protester tried to break through a police cordon and tried to stop his motorcade.

The UK charge d'affaires was summoned to the Ministry of External Affairs and was served a demarche, PTI reported quoting people familiar with the matter.

India condemned the incident and said it expects the host government to fully live up to their diplomatic obligations in such a case. It also deplored the "misuse of democratic freedoms" by the "small group of separatist" elements.

Video footage showed that the protester stood in front of the minister's car and tore the Indian flag before he was whisked away.

The videos posted on social media showed a handful of protesters waving flags of a Sikh separatist movement called "Khalistan" and shouting slogans outside think-tank Chatham House in London on Wednesday where Jaishankar was speaking.

Jaishankar is on a six-day trip to the UK and Ireland.

"We deplore the misuse of democratic freedoms by such elements. We expect the host government in such cases to fully live up to their diplomatic obligations," Randhir Jaiswal, spokesperson for the Indian MEA, said in a statement.​

 

[Saif]

Indian fugitive accused in nearly $2b bank fraud arrested in Belgium

Indian fugitive Mehul Choksi, the jeweller accused of being involved in an alleged fraud of nearly $2 billion against Punjab National Bank in 2018, has been arrested in Belgium, a source with India's Enforcement Directorate said. The Indian government had sent a request for Choksi's extradition pr

thefinancialexpress.com.bd

Indian fugitive accused in nearly $2b bank fraud arrested in Belgium
FE ONLINE DESK
Published :
Apr 14, 2025 11:22
Updated :
Apr 14, 2025 11:22

Indian fugitive Mehul Choksi, the jeweller accused of being involved in an alleged fraud of nearly $2 billion against Punjab National Bank in 2018, has been arrested in Belgium, a source with India's Enforcement Directorate said.

The Indian government had sent a request for Choksi's extradition prior to his arrest, but he is likely to challenge it on medical grounds, the source added.

Punjab National Bank, India's second largest state-run lender by assets, had announced in 2018 that it had discovered alleged fraud worth $1.8 billion at a single branch in Mumbai, reports Reuters.

The bank had filed a criminal complaint with India's federal investigative agency against several entities including billionaire jeweller Nirav Modi and Choksi, his uncle and the managing director of Gitanjali Gems, saying they had defrauded PNB.

Last week, a Pakistani-born Canadian businessman accused of helping orchestrate the 2008 attacks in Mumbai landed in New Delhi after the US extradited him in the first such transfer in a terrorism case.​