Tag: Accused

EU firms accused of ‘abhorrent’ export of banned pesticides to Brazil

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Pesticides banned in the EU because of their links to human health risks are being exported and used on farms in Brazil supplying Nestlé, an investigation has revealed.
Europe is home to some of the world’s biggest and most profitable chemical companies, including the Swiss-based Syngenta and the German multinationals BASF and Bayer.
But a number of the pesticides and fungicides they produce have been banned by European health officials after they were linked to cancer, reproductive problems and neurodegenerative diseases.
Despite the ban, millions of pounds worth of the products are still being exported to Brazil, where they are used on farms that supply the international sugar market, according to a new investigation by Lighthouse Reports and Repórter Brasil.
Documents from the Brazilian agriculture ministry obtained through a freedom of information request reveal that a fungicide made by BASF and based on epoxiconazole, a chemical banned in the EU, was sprayed over two sugar plantations that supply Nestlé.
One of the farms using this banned fungicide is part of the giant Brazilian sugar corporation Copersucar, which sold €1bn (£880m) of sugar to Europe in 2020.
In São Paulo state, Usina Atena, a Brazilian sugar plantation, is under investigation after a complaint from a neighbouring resident about the health impacts from the spraying of chemicals on the farm.
Justice ministry officials in São Paulo found the farm had the Syngenta fungicide Priori Xtra. This contains the active substance cyproconazole, which is banned for use in the EU.

They also found the insecticide Regent 800WG, produced by BASF, and Certero, made by Bayer, which include the active ingredients fipronil and triflumuron. Both substances are banned in the EU.
The ECHA has classed epoxiconazole as a suspected carcinogen, and similar concerns were highlighted by the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA).
Sugar at a Copersucar warehouse in Santos, Brazil. The company sold €1bn of sugar to Europe in 2020. Photograph: Patricia Monteiro/Bloomberg/Getty
Marcos Orellana, UN special rapporteur on toxics and human rights, called the continued export of the chemicals by EU-based companies an “abhorrent practice” and urged the EU to implement a ban.
CropLife International, which represents agri-chemical companies including BASF, Bayer and Syngenta, said the active ingredients in the pesticides had “valid use registrations in several OECD countries”.
It said in a statement: “A non-registration or deregistration in the European Union does not automatically mean a product cannot be used in another country. Pesticides are not automatically ‘more hazardous’ or ‘less necessary’ because they are not authorised in Europe.”
Bayer and BASF maintain that all their products are safe for humans and the environment.
Copersucar said it complied with Brazilian and international legislation, exporting its products within safety standards in the regions where it operates.
A spokesperson for Nestlé said all its suppliers must meet Nestlé’s responsible sourcing standard, including in relation to good agricultural practices. “We continue to closely follow regulatory developments everywhere we operate to ensure full compliance for all our products. Nestlé is not involved in campaigning against an export ban on pesticides and active ingredients banned in the EU.”
Officials at DG Sante, the EU body responsible for regulating pesticides, said the export of banned pesticides would be phased out in line with the chemicals strategy for sustainability, although no timetable had been set for implementation.
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( With inputs from : www.theguardian.com )

April 25, 2023
Karnataka: SDPI fields Ismail Shafi Bellare, accused in BJP leader’s murder

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Bengaluru: The move by the Social Democratic Party of India (SDPI) to field Ismail Shafi Bellare, accused in the murder of BJP Yuva Morcha leader Praveen Kumar Nettaru, and Riyaz Farangipet as its candidates in the communally-sensitive Dakshina Kannada district has become a topic of discussion in Karnataka ahead of the May 10 Assembly elections.
Nettaru (32) was hacked to death by bike-borne assailants on the night of July 26 last year at Bellare in Dakshina Kannada district.
SDPI is fielding 19 candidates for the upcoming Assembly elections. Dubbed as a party of minorities, SDPI hopes to win four to five seats and make entry into the Karnataka legislature. According to sources, SDPI is likely to give a tough fight to former minister and senior Congress leader U.T. Khader in the Mangaluru (Ullal) Assembly constituency.

The party emphasizes on ‘agitative politics’.
Talking to IANS, SDPI’s national secretary Riyaz Farangipet said that his party is not just active during elections, but throughout the year it represents the people on one issue or the other across India.
“Despite not being in power, SDPI ensures that the schemes of the government reaches the poor,” he said.
Other political parties which have opened online help centres are charging money for their services, but SDPI is doing it for free, he said.
“We are not power hungry. We want to be part of power. That is why we are focusing only on those constituencies where we can win,” said Farangipet, who is contesting from the Mangaluru (Ullal) Assembly constituency.

Ismail Shafi Bellare, who’s presently lodged in jail in connection with Nettaru’s murder, is contesting from the Puttur Assembly seat. The decision of the SDPI to field a candidate accused of murder has made national headlines. Even Farangipet has faced sedition charges and his movements are being closely watched by the National Investigation Agency (NIA).
According to sources, the SDPI has fielded a formidable candidate in the form of Farangipet to wrest the Mangaluru seat from the Congress. The constituency is considered as a Congress bastion.
Farangipet was accused of hatching a conspiracy to attack Prime Minister Narendra Modi in the Phulwari Sharif area in Bihar on July 12, 2022. A probe reportedly revealed his links with the accused persons. Even the NIA had filed an FIR against Farangipet, who allegededly took part in meetings with the accused persons.
There are also other cases lodged against him in Belthangady, Mangaluru South, Konaje, and Mangaluru North in Dakshina Kannada district. He is facing charges of creating enmity between groups, and obstructing the duty of policemen.
Farangipet had taken out a huge rally to file his nomination for the Mangaluru constituency. Sources said that the SDPI is aggressively campaigning against Congress candidate Khader in the wake of the hijab controversy and the boycott call on Muslim traders.
Khader has won from this constituency three times since 2008 by defeating BJP candidates. In 2018, Khader defeated Santhosh Kumar Rai Boliyaru of the BJP by more than 19,000 votes. The BJP had won this seat three consecutive times between 1994 and 2004.
Khader, known as a progressive leader, is facing stiff competition from the SDPI this time in the Muslim-dominated constituency. It was the only constituency that the Congress won in Dakshina Kannada district in 2018, as all the other seats were swept by the BJP.
Reacting to the sedition charges against him, Farangipet said, “Cases are always lodged against people who take up big agitations. We can see IPS officer Sanjeev Bhat being jailed. Our Prime Ministers and Chief Ministers have gone to jail. I will fight the cases lodged against me in the court.”
When asked about Nettare murder accused Shafi Bellare, he said that his arrest was pre-planned.
Bellare and his brother Iqbal Bellare have been arrested due to the pressure put by the Sangh Parivar, he claimed.
“We will question his arrest in the court,” Farangipet said.
Bellare was chosen as an SDPI candidate at the screening committee meeting before Nettare’s murder, but the announcement was pending, Farangipet claimed, adding that contesting elections from prison is not new in India.
“SDPI has created its own vote bank. If Bellare is elected, he will be the voice of the exploited and downtrodden, otherwise he will continue with his social work,” Farangipet said.
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( With inputs from www.siasat.com )

April 23, 2023
Bengal: Police say prime accused arrested in rape of minor as violent protests rock

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Raiganj: A 20-year-old man was arrested on Saturday in connection with the alleged rape and murder of a teenage girl in West Bengal’s North Dinajpur district that triggered violent protests, police said.
The 17-year-old girl, whose body was found in a canal in Kaliaganj police station area on Friday, knew the man, Superintendent of Police (SP) Md Sana Akhtar said, identifying him as the prime accused.
A case has been filed under IPC section 302 (murder) and relevant sections of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act based on the complaint filed by the girl’s mother, he said.

The preliminary post-mortem report revealed no injury to the body, Akhtar said, adding that a bottle of poison was found near the body.
“We are investigating the case from all angles,” he said.
Violence rocked Kaliaganj, around 18 km from the Bangladesh border, as locals protested against the incident, prompting the police to use tear gas shells and charge batons to bring the situation under control, officials said.
Several shops and e-rickshaws were set on fire by the mob, which demanded the arrest of those behind the incident. Roads were also blocked and stones were hurled at the police, they said.
The RSS-backed ABVP gheraoed the Kaliaganj police station, while BJP state president Sukanta Majumdar sat on a dharna outside the SP office in Raiganj, demanding justice for the victim’s family.

Rapid Action Force (RAF) was deployed to bring the situation under control, police said, adding that a few protestors were also detained.
Three persons were injured in the police action and admitted to the Raiganj Government Medical College and Hospital, officials said.
Majumdar, who visited the victim’s village along with local BJP MP Debasree Chaudhuri, demanded a CBI investigation into the incident.
“We think the real truth will be revealed only if a CBI inquiry is conducted in this case,” he told reporters.
State Minister for Women and Child Development and Social Welfare, Dr Shashi Panja hit out at the BJP leadership, particularly Leader of Opposition Suvendu Adhikari, for identifying the minor in his tweets.
She alleged that the saffron party leaders were trying to instigate the people by misleading them.
“The BJP is trying to play dirty politics. That the Leader of Opposition (LoP) has divulged the identity of the victim girl through his tweets is itself a crime. How can he do that? They are playing dead body politics (sic),” Panja said.
The minister further said the post-mortem report would clear whether the girl was raped and killed or whether she died by suicide by consuming poison.
“At the moment, police are trying to bring the law and order under control. We must think about the mental condition of the family. Culprits will definitely be brought to the book,” Panja said.
The National Commission for Women (NCW) also sent a team to the area, and sought a report from the state police within three days.
The girl went missing on Thursday evening after she left home for going to her tuition classes. Her body was found the next day floating in a canal amid hectic searches by her family and locals.
Protests had started on Friday afternoon but quietened down by the day-end, only to restart on Saturday.
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#Bengal #Police #prime #accused #arrested #rape #minor #violent #protests #rock
( With inputs from www.siasat.com )

April 23, 2023
NIA files chargesheet in 2022 Coimbatore blast, says prime accused ‘inspired’ by ISIS

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New Delhi: The NIA on Thursday filed a chargesheet against six people in connection with the October 2022 Coimbatore car bomb blast, saying the prime accused of the terrorist attack was “inspired by ISIS ideology”.
The case pertains to an explosion that took place on October 23, 2022 at an ancient temple, “Arulmigu Kottai Sangameshwarar Thirukovil”, on Eswaran Kovil Street, Ukkadam in Coimbatore.
A vehicle-borne improvised explosives device (V-IED), driven by Jamesha Mubeen, had blown up in front of the temple. Mubeen was killed in the blast, the National Investigation Agency (NIA) said in a statement.

“Mubeen was inspired by ISIS ideology to carry out this attack. He had also taken ‘bayath’ or oath of allegiance to its self-proclaimed Caliph Abu-al-Hasan al-Hashimi al-Qurashi,” it said.
While the charges against Mubeen were abated as he was killed, the agency charged his alleged associates Mohammed Asarutheen, Mohammed Thalha, Firos, Mohammed Riyas, Navas and Afsar Khan under various sections of the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA), IPC and the Explosives Substances Act.
Mubeen, the NIA said, was “aided and assisted” by the six in arranging logistics.
“Thalha had sourced the Maruti 800 blue colour car bearing registration number TN-01-F-6163 which was used in the explosion of vehicle-borne IED,” it said.
Firos, Riyas and Navas had loaded the explosives, gas cylinders, etc. in the car making it the potent weapon it became, while Asarutheen and Afsar, both cousins of Mubeen, procured, weighed, mixed and packed the chemical constituents used to manufacture the V-IED used in the attack, the statement said.

A pendrive was recovered from Mohammed Asarutheen and it “contained” video recordings of Jamesha Mubeen, where he had identified himself as a member of Daulat-e-Islamia (or Islamic state), the NIA said.
“He had spoken extensively on his intention to commit a suicide terror attack against the ‘kafirs’ (non-believers) and to become a martyr.
“Mubeen was inspired by the bayans (sermons) of Zahran Hashim, a radical Islamic cleric of Sri Lanka, who masterminded the Easter serial suicide bomb attacks in 2019 killing around 260 people. Mubeen wanted to orchestrate a similar kind of attack against the ‘kafirs’ in India,” it said.
The agency said it also recovered handwritten notes from Mubeen’s residence where criticism of the “existing” democratic system, which are not in tandem with Islamic laws, has been mentioned.
There is also a mention of ‘targets’, including government offices, district courts, public gathering places like parks, railway stations and a few other local temples, in these notes, the NIA claimed.
It said the Islamic State of Khorasan Province’s online magazine called ‘Voice of Khorasan’ corroborated this in an article titled, ‘A Message to the Inhabitants in the Land Occupied by Cow and Mice Worshipping Filths’, where the ISKP took responsibility for this attack.
“The article goes on to state that the attack was revenge to uphold the honour of their religion and to establish Allah’s deen and his law upon his land and to terrorize the ‘Kufr’ and its followers with the threat that it was just the beginning,” the NIA said.
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#NIA #files #chargesheet #Coimbatore #blast #prime #accused #inspired #ISIS
( With inputs from www.siasat.com )

April 20, 2023
Atiq-Ashraf case: SIT arrests 3 who trained accused to behave as journos

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Lucknow: The three assailants, who shot dead gangster Atiq Ahmad and his brother Ashraf, were trained to behave like real journalists before they joined a group of media persons at the hospital where the brothers were shot dead.
Three men, who helped the main accused in the murder of gangster Atiq Ahmed and his brother, in pretending to be a reporter have been detained by the Special Investigation Team, the police said on Thursday.
Three men, who work for a local news website, showed the ropes of reporting to Tiwari and helped him buy a camera, the police said.

They have been detained from the railway station in Banda by the Special Investigation Team probing the case.
The killers, Lovelesh Tiwari, Arun Maurya and Sunny Singh, had trailed the arrested gangster as journalists for an entire day before shooting him in front of television cameras and dozens of policemen on April 15, said the police.
Meanwhile, search for Shaista Parveen continued on Thursday also. “Raids were conducted in search of Shaista Parveen, wife of gangster Atiq Ahmed. A search operation was conducted after receiving information about some criminals hiding. The operation lasted for about two hours. A drone camera was also used in the operation. However, the operation did not prove successful today,” senior police officer Samar Bahadur said.
Atiq Ahmed was accused in the murder of BSP MLA Raju Pal in 2005, as well as in the killing of Umesh Pal, a key witness in the BSP leader’s murder, in February this year.

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#AtiqAshraf #case #SIT #arrests #trained #accused #behave #journos
( With inputs from www.siasat.com )

April 20, 2023
Telangana: Accused in PG Medico Suicide Case granted conditional bail

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Hyderabad: The Warangal District Court has granted conditional bail to the accused Dr. Mohammed Saif in the PG Medico Suicide Case wherein a first-year student of post-graduate died by suicide. The accused was granted bail by producing a guarantee of Rs. 10,000 and two sureties.
He is required to appear before the court every Friday afternoon for the next 16 weeks. The bail can be revoked if attempts are made to tamper with the evidence or threats are posed to the trial.
Telangana PG Medico Suicide Case
The case involves the alleged harassment of Dr. D Preethi, a first-year student of the post-graduate (MD) in the department of Anaesthesia by her senior at the Kakatiya Medical College (KMC), Warangal. She died by suicide, and Saif, a second-year post-graduate medical student of KMC, was booked by the police in the Warangal district.

The officials have analyzed the WhatsApp chats which revealed that Saif resorted to targeted harassment of Preethi to insult her.
After investigation, the police booked Saif on charges of instigating Preethi to attempt suicide by subjecting her to constant harassment by posting “insulting comments” about her on the WhatsApp groups managed by some of the PG medical first and second-year students of the KMC.
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#Telangana #Accused #Medico #Suicide #Case #granted #conditional #bail

( With inputs from www.siasat.com )

April 20, 2023
2008 Bengaluru bomb blast prime accused gets breather as SC relaxes bail condition

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Prime accused in the 2008 serial bomb blasts case Abdul Nazir Maudany received a breather from the Supreme Court of India after it relaxed the former’s bail conditions.
Maudany, chairman of the Kerala People’s Democratic Party (PDP), has been allowed to stay in Kerala till July 8. His previous bail condition required him to stay in Bengaluru till the case was over.
The court made the decision on the basis of Maudany’s health status and his ailing parents.

“Looking to the applicant’s own medical condition as well as his ailing parents who are residing in the State of Kerala, as an interim measure, consider it appropriate to order that the applicant be allowed to visit the State of Kerala for a period upto 8th July, 2023 to meet his ailing parents accompanied by the Karnataka Police Escort and return in the same manner,” the bench ordered while listing the next hearing on July 10.
However, the Karnataka Government lawyer opposed the Maudany plea seeking relaxation and said that according to the public prosecutor handling the blast case, the proceedings in the matter will take another two months to conclude.
This is the second time Maudany applied for a relaxation of his bail. His first plea was rejected in September 2021.
In 2008, as many as eight serial bomb blasts took place in Bengaluru, killing three people and injuring over 20.

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( With inputs from www.siasat.com )

April 18, 2023
Atiq murder case accused have no connection with VHP or Bajrang Dal: Alok Kumar

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New Delhi: The Vishva Hindu Parishad (VHP) on Monday said none of the three accused arrested by the Uttar Pradesh Police for killing gangster-politician Atiq Ahmad and his brother Ashraf has any link with it or its youth wing, Bajrang Dal.
Dismissing allegations regarding the Bajrang Dal’s involvement in the killing of Ahmad, a former Samajwadi Party (SP) MP, and Ashraf, VHP working president Alok Kumar said his organisation and the Bajrang Dal work “under the framework of laws and the Constitution”.
“We have enquired properly. None of the three accused has any connection with the Vishva Hindu Parishad or the Bajrang Dal. What is being spread is false,” Kumar said when asked about the allegations.

“Taking law in our own hands has never been our thought. We are confident that the truth will come out during the investigation,” he added.
Ahmad (60) and Ashraf were shot dead at almost point-blank range by three men posing as journalists on Saturday night while police personnel were escorting them to a medical college in Uttar Pradesh’s Prayagraj for a checkup.
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#Atiq #murder #case #accused #connection #VHP #Bajrang #Dal #Alok #Kumar

( With inputs from www.siasat.com )

April 18, 2023
Chinese national accused of blasphemy shifted in a Pakistan Army chopper

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Islamabad: A Chinese national, who has been arrested on charges of blasphemy, was shifted from Upper Kohistan to Abbottabad in a Pakistan Army helicopter on Monday afternoon over safety fears, Komila SHO Naseeruddin said, as per media reports.
The accused, who works at the Dasu hydropower project, was taken into custody by the Komila police on Sunday night after labourers at the site accused him of blasphemy, Dawn reported.
SHO Naseeruddin, while confirming the arrest, said that an FIR had been registered against the Chinese national at the Komila police station.

The complaint invokes Section 295-C (use of derogatory remarks, etc., in respect of the Holy Prophet) of the Pakistan Penal Code. It was registered on the complaint of Gulistan and Yasir – both of whom are heavy vehicle drivers, Dawn reported.
The complaint said that on Sunday night, police official Jehanzeb was informed about a mob trying to break into a Chinese camp near Barseen.
It stated that locals had staged a protest and damaged the camp’s site No. 6.
“After receiving the information, a police party reached the site, took control of the area and safely shifted the accused to the Komila police station,” the police said.
However, the police said that in the early hours of Monday, a large number of people reached Komila and once again blocked the Karakoram Highway. They also raised slogans, Dawn reported.

The protesters opened the Karakoram Highway for traffic after the police assured them of registration of an FIR. Local religious leaders also urged the demonstrators to call off the protest.
Later in the day, Naseeruddin said that the accused was moved to Abbottabad in an army helicopter as the police feared locals could harm him, Dawn reported.
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( With inputs from www.siasat.com )

April 17, 2023
Atiq killing: Accused Arun Maurya was booked in two cases in Panipat, says police

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Chandigarh: Arun Maurya, one of the accused arrested in the killing of gangster-politician Atiq Ahmad and his brother Ashraf, was booked for possession of illegal weapons in Haryana’s Panipat last year, officials said on Monday.
Maurya was booked under the Arms Act in February, 2022 and in another case in May that year, they said, adding that he was also jailed.
The accused had been living intermittently in Haryana’s Panipat and his native village Kadarwadi at Kasganj in Uttar Pradesh, a senior police official said.

“Maurya had two cases registered against him in 2022,” Panipat Superintendent of Police Ajit Singh Shekhawat told PTI over phone.
“One of the cases was registered under provisions of the Arms Act for possession of illegal weapon in February 2022, while the other case was registered in May over some fight,” he said.
Asked about Maurya’s age when he was first booked under the Arms Act in Panipat, the SP replied, “As per our records, he was around 18-years-old.”
He was on bail in both the cases, the officer said.
Shekhawat added that although Maurya’s family belongs to Kasganj, his grandfather had been working in Panipat.

According to Maurya’s uncle, Sunil, the accused had done his matriculation.
Sunil, who lives in Panipat, told reporters that the accused has a 12-year-old brother who is a student.
Sunil said he had gone to their native village recently and learnt that Maurya told his family that he was going to Delhi to attend a friend’s wedding.
On the murder of Atiq and his brother, the accused’s uncle said the family got to know about the incident after the Haryana police reached their house in Panipat to inquire about Maurya.
Ahmad (60) and his brother Ashraf were shot dead at point-blank range by the three men posing as journalists in the middle of a media interaction Saturday night while police personnel were escorting them to a medical college in Prayagraj for a checkup.
The assailants — Lavlesh Tiwari (22) of Banda, Mohit alias Sunny (23) of Hamirpur and Maurya — were arrested soon after the dramatic shootout that took place in full view of camera crews outside the Prayagraj hospital.
According to the FIR, the assailants told police that they killed the brothers to make a name for themselves in the world of crime.
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#Atiq #killing #Accused #Arun #Maurya #booked #cases #Panipat #police
( With inputs from www.siasat.com )

April 17, 2023