Top Stories on 1 May in a capsule

Parents are responsible for child rapes: BJP leader

BJP MLA from Uttar Pradesh Surendra Singh has landed himself in controversy once again. After his recent comment that no one can rape a mother of three children, on the Unnao rape case, he has now commented on crimes against children. “Children up to 15 years of age should be kept under strict vigil. It is the duty of parents to take care of their wards. But they allow their wards to roam around freely. This is the main reason for the social evil,” he said. Children should not be given undue freedom, he said and asked parents not to give mobile phones to them. Known for making contentious comments, he had also recently called West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee “Surpanakha”, the sister of demon king Ravana. His comments come even after Prime Minister Narendra Modi last month directed his party’s lawmakers not to make “irresponsible” statements.

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BJP leader accuses TMC workers of raping pregnant relative

West Bengal BJP leader on Tuesday alleged that a group of Trinamool Congress (TMC) workers raped his 23-year-old relative on Sunday. The victim who is expecting, giving a statement to the police said that the men barged into her house, assaulted her and robbed cash and jewellery before fleeing. Meanwhile, the candidate, who is the victim’s sister-in-law, was in hiding with some other family members after she was allegedly threatened to withdraw her nomination. BJP MP from the state and Union Minister Babul Supriyo was quoted by media agencies that he has highlighted the incident to the Governor. TMC District President Gouri Dutta, dismissing he allegations has called them ‘false and concocted.’

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Man gets divorce and Rs 50,000 relief for false allegations by wife

A businessman from South Mumbai, who was accused of dowry harassment and criminal cases by his wife, was granted divorce by the Bombay High Court after it turned out that he was the victim to assault at the hands of his spouse. According to him, she would hit his cancer-stricken mother regularly and had falsely slapped dowry case on him and molestation case on his brother. Besides granting the man divorce on the grounds of cruelty under the Hindu Marriage Act, the division bench of Justice Kamalkishor Tated and Justice Burgess Colabawalla also asked the man's wife to pay him Rs 50,000. The victim had married the woman in 2006. During the decade-long relationship, the woman harassed his family several times. They used to live in Nariman Point and have a son.

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Bappi Lahiri honoured by London’s World Book of Records 

Ace musician Bappi Lahiri was feted by London's World Bookof Records for his contribution to global music with his immortal song "Jimmy Jimmy aaja aaja". Bappi told the media: "It has been one long journey with innumerable accolades over nearly five decades and over 600 films. But there is something special about 'JimmyJimmy'. It always has followers in every part of the globe. World Bookof Records - Londoncatalogues and verifies a huge number of world records across the world with authentic certification. The song "Jimmy Jimmy Aaja Aaja", originally picturized on Mithun Chakraborty in the 1982 film "Disco Dancer", has been translated in Russian and Chinese and has been a part of the original score of Adam Sandler's "You Don't Mess with the Zohan".
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Kolkata: couple assaulted for hugging in metro

In an unprecedented incident of moral policing, a young couple was forced out of a packed Kolkata Metro Railway coach by fellow middle-aged commuters and thrashed at Dum Dum metro station for hugging inside the coach on Monday night. A Bengali daily stated that the incident sparked after an old man objected to the hugging of a young couple inside the metro coach near Chandni Chowk metro station in central Kolkata and culminated seven stations later in the mob violence in Dum Dum. When the train entered Dum Dum, the 5-6 middle-aged men dragged the couple to the platform and thrashed the boy black and blue. When the girl tried to save him, she was beaten up too by the men. However, police said they could not take any action as the couple had not filed a complaint.
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SC directs HCs to fast-track all POCSO Act cases

The Supreme Court on Tuesday asked high courts across the country to set up committees of judges to monitor and regulate the trial of cases under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act. The apex court's three-judge bench, headed by Chief Justice of India (CJI) Dipak Misra and also comprising Justices AM Khanwilkar and DY Chandrachud passed on the directions after it was told that 1,12,628 cases under POCSO Act were pending before trial courts across the country, with Uttar Pradesh leading the list at 30,883 in a PIL filed by advocate Alakh Alok Srivastava. The court has also directed the Director General of Police of all the states to form a Special Task Force to ensure that strict investigations are conducted on the same and witnesses are produced in the court on the date of their appearance.

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India allows in-flight data and mobile services

The telecom commission on Tuesday approved a proposal for allowing mobile phone calls and internet services in domestic and international flights in India, informed Telecom Secretary Aruna Sundararajan to reporters after a meeting in New Delhi.  "Almost all recommendations by the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India on this have been accepted. We are expediting the process (to start) and within three months it should be ready," she said. The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI), in January, had recommended allowing mobile phone calls and Internet services like Wi-Fi on domestic and international flights in India after an aircraft reaches an altitude of 3,000 meters. The government will not intervene with the pricing mechanisms used by the operators for providing in-flight connectivity.

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All students of 150 schools in UP fail in board exams

Almost 150 schools across Uttar Pradesh have scored zero percent in the Uttar Pradesh Madhyamik Shiksha Parishad (UPMSP), also known as Board of High School and Intermediate Education, examinations. The board had announced results on April 29 on their official website. According to the findings of the UPSEB, no student from 98 schools of these 150 schools cleared the class 1o examination while 52 schools had no students who passed class 12, as reported by a daily. The UP board had earlier marked at least 50 schools across Uttar Pradesh as ‘sensitive’, with no students who could pass examinations. The low scores are a result of the stringent anti-cheating measures put in place by the Board this year, following charges of rampant cheating in the state, officials from the Board informed a renowned daily.

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SC raises concern over change in color of Taj Mahal

The Supreme Court on Tuesday expressed concern over the change in color of the historic monument Taj Mahal after they observed that the monument had become yellowish earlier and was now turning brownish and greenish. The apex court suggested that the Centre take the assistance of experts from India and abroad to first assess the damage and then take steps to restore the historic monument. "We don't know whether you have or perhaps don't have the expertise. Even if you have the expertise, you are not utilizing it. Or perhaps you don't care," a bench comprising Justices M B Lokur and Deepak Gupta said. The top court has been monitoring developments in the area to protect the historic monument. "Perhaps we need some expert organization from outside India unless there is a decision that the Taj has to go," the bench said sarcastically, adding, "you can get experts from India as well as from outside."

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WhatsApp CEO Jan Koum quits Facebook

WhatsApp CEO Jan Koum confirmed that he is breaking ties with his company’s parent, Facebook, on Monday in a post on his Facebook page. The decision came amid a privacy scandal that has caused havoc for the social network for weeks. Koum also plans to resign from Facebook’s board of directors reported the Washington Post. Koum didn't elaborate on his reasons for leaving, other to say it was time to "move on" so he could spend more time "collecting rare air-cooled Porsches, working on my cars and playing ultimate frisbee." In a reply to Koum's Facebook post, Zuckerberg told him he would miss working together. 

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