The Evening Wrap: Campaigning for final phase of Lok Sabha polls ends

The high-pitched campaigning for the seventh and final phase of Lok Sabha elections in 57 seats in seven states and the Union territory of Chandigarh on June 1 ended on May 30 evening. Polling is scheduled in all 13 seats of Punjab and four of Himachal Pradesh, 13 constituencies in Uttar Pradesh, nine in West Bengal, eight in Bihar, six in Odisha and three seats in Jharkhand besides Chandigarh. Prime Minister Narendra Modi is seeking a third consecutive term from Varanasi. Voting is already over in 486 seats in 28 States and Union Territories. The turnout in the first six phases was 66.14%, 66.71%, 65.68%, 69.16%, 62.2% and 63.36% respectively. Counting of votes will be taken up on June 4. The campaigning saw BJP leaders led by Modi accusing the Congress and the INDIA alliance of being corrupt, anti-Hindu and engaging in loot, appeasement and dynastic politics. The Opposition parties have been claiming that the BJP is anti-farmer, anti-youth and will change and scrap the Constitution if they win the elections. At a rally in Odisha, Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge also claimed that BJP leaders were trying to project Modi as the “eleventh avatar” of Lord Vishnu but the people of the country will not accept. On May 30, former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh accused Modi of lowering the dignity of public discourse and the gravity of the office of the prime minister by giving “hateful speeches” during the poll campaign. In an appeal to voters of Punjab, Dr. Singh asserted that only the Congress can ensure growth-oriented progressive future where democracy and Constitution will be safeguarded. He also hit out at the BJP government for imposing the “ill-conceived” Agnipath scheme on the armed forces. Modi has had 206 public outreach programmes, including rallies and roadshows, since the Election Commission announced the Lok Sabha election schedule on March 16. In Punjab, where the ruling AAP and its INDIA bloc partner Congress are fighting separately in a multi-cornered contest, the high-decibel campaign saw the participation of senior BJP leaders from Modi to Union ministers Amit Shah, Rajnath Singh and Nirmala Sitharaman to BJP chief J P Nadda and chief ministers of BJP-ruled states. For the Congress, Kharge and party leaders Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra led the campaign. Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, out on interim bail in the excise policy case, also led an aggressive campaign for his party candidates along with Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann. On the final day, Modi, while addressing a rally at Hoshiarpur in Punjab, attacked the Congress for “ranting” about the Constitution when it was the one that “strangled” it during the Emergency and not care about it when Sikhs were killed in the 1984 riots. At the rally in favour of his party’s Hoshiarpur candidate Anita Som Parkash and Anandpur Sahib nominee Subhash Sharma, the prime minister also touched upon the issues of reservation, corruption and the Ram Temple. Hitting out at the Opposition for questioning the Agnipath scheme, he accused the INDIA bloc of making the Army a “weapon of politics” and said there cannot be a “bigger sin than this”. In Uttar Pradesh, while the BJP claimed that the INDIA bloc will bring in Muslim reservation and put a ‘Babri lock’ in the Ayodhya temple in their speeches, the Opposition urged the people vote to save the Constitution. In West Bengal, Modi took out a rally in Kolkata on Tuesday in support of candidate for Kolkata Uttar seat Tapas Roy. TMC supremo and Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee also held rallies for party candidates almost in each of the nine Lok Sabha constituencies. On May 30, Banerjee walked a rally of 12 km from the southern part of the city’s Jadavpur area to Gopalnagar. Party leader Abhishek Banerjee also participated in two rallies on the final day of campaigning. The BJP while campaigning alleged the Mamata government was involved in many scams related to coal and cattle smuggling, and irregularities in school recruitment among other issues. It also alleged how the state government was not implementing the welfare schemes of the Centre and depriving the common people of their benefits. The TMC, however, kept on reiterating that the Centre was not releasing funds to the state. 16 Armymen, including 3 Lieutenant Colonels, booked after raiding police station in Kashmir’s Kupwara Sixteen Army personnel, including three Lieutenant Colonels, were named in a First Information Report (FIR) for allegedly barging into a police station, and beating up and kidnapping policemen in north Kashmir’s Kupwara on Wednesday night. The incident was also caught on a camera inside the police station. Several Armymen were seen entering the police station, dragging and thrashing policemen in the video, which is now viral. The incident took place around 9:40 p.m. at the Kupwara Police Station following a police raid of a house of a local territorial Army man in a case during the day. “A huge number of armed and uniformed personnel of 160 Territorial Army led by Lieutenant Colonel Ankit Sood, Lieutenant Colonel Rajiv Chauhan and Lieutenant Colonel Nikhil unauthorisedly entered the premises of the Police Station Kupwara,” the FIR said. It said the Armymen collectively and without any provocation in the form of an unlawful assembly, severely attacked the staff and officers present at Police Station Kupwara with rifle butts, kicks, and sticks. “Immediately, information was conveyed to senior police officers upon which they rushed and came to this police station to rescue the police personnel being attacked over there. Upon seeing the arrival of the police units and senior police officers, the alleged personnel and officers of 160 Territorial Army led by the Lieutenant Colonels brandished their weapons, snatched the mobile phones of the injured police personnel and Station House Officer, Kupwara, Inspector Mohmmad Ishaq,” the FIR said. According to the FIR, the Army men also abducted Head Constable Ghulam Rasool as they fled from the spot. Official sources said that the territorial Army man earlier taken into custody by the police was also extracted from the station and taken away. A case has been registered under Section 186 (voluntarily obstructs any public servant in the discharge of his public functions), 332 (voluntarily causes hurt to a public servant), 307 (attempt to murder), 342 (wrongfully confines any person), 147 (rioting), 149 (unlawful assembly), 392 (robbery), 397 (robbery or dacoity, where the offender uses any deadly weapon), 365 (kidnapping and abduction) of the Indian Penal Code and Section 25 (misusing or carrying arms in contravention of law) of the Arms Act. The J&K Police said an investigation in the case was being carried out by a deputy superintendent of police, Kupwara. Authorities aim to uncover the full extent of the crime and bring the accused individuals to justice, officials said. The Army has not commented on the FIR. However, a Srinagar-based defence spokesperson on Wednesday said the reports of altercation between police and Army personnel “were mis-founded and incorrect”. “Minor differences between the police personnel and a territorial Army unit on an operational matter have been amicably resolved,” the spokesperson said. The Territorial Army is a military reserve force composed of part-time volunteers who provide support services to the Indian Army. PM Narendra Modi begins his meditation at Vivekananda Rock Memorial After offering special prayers at Sri Bhagavathi Amman Temple on the seashore in Kanniyakumari district, Prime Minister Narendra Modi started his 45-hour-long meditation at the Vivekananda Rock Memorial on May 30 evening. Modi, who arrived in Kanniyakumari from Thiruvananthapuram airport by helicopter shortly after 5 p.m., drove to the shrine from the Tamil Nadu Guest House helipad to offer prayers as Swami Vivekananda too reportedly offered prayers before starting the meditation on the rock. After being received with ‘shawl’ and ‘prasadam’, he was also presented with a portrait of Sri Bhagavathi Amman. Carrying Modi, a recently refurbished ferry named ‘Vivekananda’ left for the rock memorial at 6.10 p.m. with four speedboats of Coastal Security Group accompanying it. He entered the meditation hall at 6.28 p.m. to start his marathon meditation. The Prime Minister will be there in the meditation hall of the memorial till June 1 evening. Former Gujarat Public Service Commission member S.R. Patani, who had come from Vadodara for this event, said Swami Vivekananda had enlightened vision of ‘Bharat Mata’ after his dharshan at Sri Bhagawathi Amman Temple and ‘dhyan’ on the rock. “Similarly, Mr. Modi, who is an ardent follower of Swami Vivekananda, would come out with a lot of ideas for the new and developed India after his meditation,” said Dr. Patani. Sankara Nethralaya gets an influx of people from Bangladesh with fake documentation Sankara Nethralaya, the not-for-profit charitable eye hospital headquartered in Chennai, is facing a unique concern relating to patients from Bangladesh: a significant number of them are arriving at the hospital with fake documentation regarding appointments with doctors there, only to be disappointed. Speaking to The Hindu, a representative of the organisation said, “To facilitate the issuance of Indian visa for patients from Bangladesh, some travel agents are regularly issuing fake letters by changing the original PDF forms of Sankara Nethralaya.” The representative added that doctors at the hospital were seeing at least 100 patients a day from Bangladesh and the country alone accounted for 60% of all patients who are foreign nationals. In the case of some countries from where a sizeable number of patients visit Sankara Nethralaya, such as Oman and Mauritius, the hospital has made direct arrangements with the respective countries’ Health Ministries to ensure that genuine appointments are granted and visas are facilitated accordingly. The Bangladesh Ministry of Health and Family Welfare apparently does not yet offer such a service to its citizens who travel to India for medical purposes. Nevertheless, bearing in mind the volume of patients coming from Bangladesh, Sankara Nethralaya has set up a separate email address for patients from there to directly reach out to the hospital and request appointments. The Hindu was able to observe, on site, the case of a patient from Bangladesh who, despite having visited Sankara Nethralaya earlier and thus having a genuine registration number with the hospital, reached the hospital one month before an allotted appointment based on a visa granted using a fake letter and registration number. As it turned out, there was, however, no appointment available to the patient on the day, as the doctor in question was on long leave. The Hindu also obtained a photograph of a fake document issued to a patient from Bangladesh. Woman drugged, raped by e-rickshaw driver in Delhi, accused held A 25-year-old woman was allegedly drugged, raped and robbed by an e-rickshaw driver in New Delhi, police said on Thursday. The police have arrested Mohammad Umer (24) in the case from north Delhi’s Kotwali area. “On May 26, a PCR call was received at Kotali police station regarding a robbery. A team was sent to the spot. A woman was found in an injured condition and was bleeding profusely. Her three-year-old son was sitting beside her,” Deputy Commissioner of Police (north) Manoj Kumar Meena said. The woman, a resident of Bihar, was rushed to a hospital and her medical examination was conducted, he said. According to police, the woman with her 3-year-old son was travelling to Punjab from Bihar to meet her husband. On May 26, she deboarded the New Delhi Railway Station train and went to the Sadar market. While returning to the station via e-rickshaw, the driver allegedly offered her a drink, after which she lost consciousness, the DCP said. “According to her statement, the rickshaw puller took her to some isolated area where he raped her. When she objected to the act and tried to raise the alarm, the rickshaw puller hit her on the head with a brick,” Meena said. “She fell unconscious again, and on regaining consciousness, she found that her mobile phone and ₹3,000 cash were missing,” he said. “We formed a team and began investigating the matter. They examined footage from about 500 CCTV cameras and zeroed in on a battery rickshaw,” he added. A hunt was launched to identify and arrest the accused. Around 150 rickshaw owners were examined. On May 29, Umer was arrested. The police recovered the woman’s mobile phone and the rickshaw used in the crime, Meena said. Umer was previously involved in a robbery case, he said. Police said that an FIR under sections 376 (rape), 308 (attempt to commit culpable homicide), 328 (causing hurt by means of poison, etc., with intent to commit and offence), and 379 (theft) of the Indian Penal Code. Further investigation is underway, he added. Poll roundup: The INDIA bloc will get a “decisive mandate” in the Lok Sabha polls and may take even less than 48 hours to decide on its prime ministerial pick, Congress leader Jairam Ramesh said on Thursday, asserting that it stands to reason that the party which gets the maximum seats in the alliance will be a “natural claimant” for its leadership. In an interview with PTI on the last day of campaigning for the seven-phase Lok Sabha polls, the Congress general secretary exuded confidence that the Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (INDIA) will get seats “well above” the 272-mark needed for a majority in the Lower House. Ramesh also said that when the INDIA ‘janbandhan’ parties get the people’s mandate, then some NDA parties may join the coalition and the Congress high command will have to decide whether to include them in the alliance or not. BJP leader Suvendu Adhikari on Thursday urged women in troubled Sandeshkhali region, as well as other areas of Basirhat Lok Sabha constituency, to blow conch shells as a signal if they come across any suspicious activities before the June 1 polls. Speaking at a campaign rally in support of BJP candidate Rekha Patra, Adhikari voiced concerns about potential visits by “TMC-controlled state police” and others to intimidate residents into voting for the ruling party. He advised residents to blow conch shells if they observe unfamiliar people entering their neighborhoods late at night and cautioned against accepting money from organisations linked to the TMC. “If you (residents) see any suspicious movement at night, if you notice police personnel accompanied by strangers but not central force personnel entering your locality, blow conch shells if the situation warrants,” he said. In Brief:Monsoon sets in over Kerala and northeast earlier than forecast The Southwest monsoon set in over Kerala on May 30, a day ahead of its forecast onset. The India Meteorological Department had earlier said that the monsoon would set in by May 31. Monsoon in Kerala usually sets in around 1st June, progressing northwards in surges, and covers the entire country around 15th July. All the criteria required for the declaration of the monsoon were met in the morning. 21 killed, more than 40 hurt as bus skids into a gorge in Jammu’s Akhnoor At least 21 passengers were killed and around 47 others injured after a bus rolled down a deep gorge in Jammu’s Akhnoor area on Thursday afternoon. The J&K Police said the bodies of 21 deceased passengers had been shifted to the Sub District Hospital (SDH), Akhnoor. “Seven injured were admitted to the SDH, Akhnoor and 40 others were admitted to the Government Medical College (GMC), Jammu. A rescue operation is underway,” the police said. The accident took place near Chungi Morh on the Jammu-Poonch highway. The vehicle, which rolled down into the gorge and covered a distance of around 200 meters, was badly damaged. “The bus, carrying passengers from Hathras, Uttar Pradesh, met with an accident near Tanda, Akhnoor, in Jammu,” an official said. The vehicle was headed for the Shiv Khori yatra in Reasi district. Indian peacekeeper Radhika Sen conferred U.N. military gender advocate of the year award for 2023 Major Radhika Sen, an Indian peacekeeper deployed in Congo under the United Nations (U.N.) Stabilisation Mission in the Democratic Republic of Congo (MONUSCO), was awarded the UN Military Gender Advocate of the Year Award for 2023 for her work supporting conflict-affected communities. The award was presented to her by UN Secretary-General António Guterres at a ceremony on Thursday, as May 30 is observed as the ‘International day of UN peacekeepers’. Major Sen served in eastern DRC from March 2023 to April 2024 as the Commander of the engagement platoon for the Indian rapid deployment battalion in which she led a team of 20 women soldiers and 10 male soldiers. Evening Wrap will return tomorrow. [logo] The Evening Wrap 30 May 2024 [The Hindu logo] Welcome to the Evening Wrap newsletter, your guide to the day’s biggest stories with concise analysis from The Hindu. [View in browser]( [More newsletters]( High-pitch campaigning for final phase of Lok Sabha polls ends The high-pitched [campaigning for the seventh and final phase of Lok Sabha elections]( in 57 seats in seven states and the Union territory of Chandigarh on June 1 ended on May 30 evening. Polling is scheduled in all 13 seats of Punjab and four of Himachal Pradesh, 13 constituencies in Uttar Pradesh, nine in West Bengal, eight in Bihar, six in Odisha and three seats in Jharkhand besides Chandigarh. Prime Minister Narendra Modi is seeking a third consecutive term from Varanasi. Voting is already over in 486 seats in 28 States and Union Territories. The turnout in the first six phases was 66.14%, 66.71%, 65.68%, 69.16%, 62.2% and 63.36% respectively. Counting of votes will be taken up on June 4. The campaigning saw BJP leaders led by Modi accusing the Congress and the INDIA alliance of being corrupt, anti-Hindu and engaging in loot, appeasement and dynastic politics. The Opposition parties have been claiming that the BJP is anti-farmer, anti-youth and will change and scrap the Constitution if they win the elections. At a rally in Odisha, Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge also claimed that BJP leaders were trying to project Modi as the “eleventh avatar” of Lord Vishnu but the people of the country will not accept. On May 30, former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh accused Modi of lowering the dignity of public discourse and the gravity of the office of the prime minister by giving “hateful speeches” during the poll campaign. In an appeal to voters of Punjab, Dr. Singh asserted that only the Congress can ensure growth-oriented progressive future where democracy and Constitution will be safeguarded. He also hit out at the BJP government for imposing the “ill-conceived” Agnipath scheme on the armed forces. Modi has had 206 public outreach programmes, including rallies and roadshows, since the Election Commission announced the Lok Sabha election schedule on March 16. In Punjab, where the ruling AAP and its INDIA bloc partner Congress are fighting separately in a multi-cornered contest, the high-decibel campaign saw the participation of senior BJP leaders from Modi to Union ministers Amit Shah, Rajnath Singh and Nirmala Sitharaman to BJP chief J P Nadda and chief ministers of BJP-ruled states. For the Congress, Kharge and party leaders Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra led the campaign. Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, out on interim bail in the excise policy case, also led an aggressive campaign for his party candidates along with Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann. On the final day, Modi, while addressing a rally at Hoshiarpur in Punjab, attacked the Congress for “ranting” about the Constitution when it was the one that “strangled” it during the Emergency and not care about it when Sikhs were killed in the 1984 riots. At the rally in favour of his party’s Hoshiarpur candidate Anita Som Parkash and Anandpur Sahib nominee Subhash Sharma, the prime minister also touched upon the issues of reservation, corruption and the Ram Temple. Hitting out at the Opposition for questioning the Agnipath scheme, he accused the INDIA bloc of making the Army a “weapon of politics” and said there cannot be a “bigger sin than this”. In Uttar Pradesh, while the BJP claimed that the INDIA bloc will bring in Muslim reservation and put a ‘Babri lock’ in the Ayodhya temple in their speeches, the Opposition urged the people vote to save the Constitution. In West Bengal, Modi took out a rally in Kolkata on Tuesday in support of candidate for Kolkata Uttar seat Tapas Roy. TMC supremo and Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee also held rallies for party candidates almost in each of the nine Lok Sabha constituencies. On May 30, Banerjee walked a rally of 12 km from the southern part of the city’s Jadavpur area to Gopalnagar. Party leader Abhishek Banerjee also participated in two rallies on the final day of campaigning. The BJP while campaigning alleged the Mamata government was involved in many scams related to coal and cattle smuggling, and irregularities in school recruitment among other issues. It also alleged how the state government was not implementing the welfare schemes of the Centre and depriving the common people of their benefits. The TMC, however, kept on reiterating that the Centre was not releasing funds to the state. 16 Armymen, including 3 Lieutenant Colonels, booked after raiding police station in Kashmir’s Kupwara [Sixteen Army personnel, including three Lieutenant Colonels, were named in a First Information Report]( (FIR) for allegedly barging into a police station, and beating up and kidnapping policemen in north Kashmir’s Kupwara on Wednesday night. The incident was also caught on a camera inside the police station. Several Armymen were seen entering the police station, dragging and thrashing policemen in the video, which is now viral. The incident took place around 9:40 p.m. at the Kupwara Police Station following a police raid of a house of a local territorial Army man in a case during the day. “A huge number of armed and uniformed personnel of 160 Territorial Army led by Lieutenant Colonel Ankit Sood, Lieutenant Colonel Rajiv Chauhan and Lieutenant Colonel Nikhil unauthorisedly entered the premises of the Police Station Kupwara,” the FIR said. It said the Armymen collectively and without any provocation in the form of an unlawful assembly, severely attacked the staff and officers present at Police Station Kupwara with rifle butts, kicks, and sticks. “Immediately, information was conveyed to senior police officers upon which they rushed and came to this police station to rescue the police personnel being attacked over there. Upon seeing the arrival of the police units and senior police officers, the alleged personnel and officers of 160 Territorial Army led by the Lieutenant Colonels brandished their weapons, snatched the mobile phones of the injured police personnel and Station House Officer, Kupwara, Inspector Mohmmad Ishaq,” the FIR said. According to the FIR, the Army men also abducted Head Constable Ghulam Rasool as they fled from the spot. Official sources said that the territorial Army man earlier taken into custody by the police was also extracted from the station and taken away. A case has been registered under Section 186 (voluntarily obstructs any public servant in the discharge of his public functions), 332 (voluntarily causes hurt to a public servant), 307 (attempt to murder), 342 (wrongfully confines any person), 147 (rioting), 149 (unlawful assembly), 392 (robbery), 397 (robbery or dacoity, where the offender uses any deadly weapon), 365 (kidnapping and abduction) of the Indian Penal Code and Section 25 (misusing or carrying arms in contravention of law) of the Arms Act. The J&K Police said an investigation in the case was being carried out by a deputy superintendent of police, Kupwara. Authorities aim to uncover the full extent of the crime and bring the accused individuals to justice, officials said. The Army has not commented on the FIR. However, a Srinagar-based defence spokesperson on Wednesday said the reports of altercation between police and Army personnel “were mis-founded and incorrect”. “Minor differences between the police personnel and a territorial Army unit on an operational matter have been amicably resolved,” the spokesperson said. The Territorial Army is a military reserve force composed of part-time volunteers who provide support services to the Indian Army. PM Narendra Modi begins his meditation at Vivekananda Rock Memorial After offering special prayers at Sri Bhagavathi Amman Temple on the seashore in Kanniyakumari district, Prime Minister [Narendra Modi started his 45-hour-long meditation]( at the Vivekananda Rock Memorial on May 30 evening. Modi, who arrived in Kanniyakumari from Thiruvananthapuram airport by helicopter shortly after 5 p.m., drove to the shrine from the Tamil Nadu Guest House helipad to offer prayers as Swami Vivekananda too reportedly offered prayers before starting the meditation on the rock. After being received with ‘shawl’ and ‘prasadam’, he was also presented with a portrait of Sri Bhagavathi Amman. Carrying Modi, a recently refurbished ferry named ‘Vivekananda’ left for the rock memorial at 6.10 p.m. with four speedboats of Coastal Security Group accompanying it. He entered the meditation hall at 6.28 p.m. to start his marathon meditation. The Prime Minister will be there in the meditation hall of the memorial till June 1 evening. Former Gujarat Public Service Commission member S.R. Patani, who had come from Vadodara for this event, said Swami Vivekananda had enlightened vision of ‘Bharat Mata’ after his dharshan at Sri Bhagawathi Amman Temple and ‘dhyan’ on the rock. “Similarly, Mr. Modi, who is an ardent follower of Swami Vivekananda, would come out with a lot of ideas for the new and developed India after his meditation,” said Dr. Patani. Sankara Nethralaya gets an influx of people from Bangladesh with fake documentation Sankara Nethralaya, the not-for-profit charitable eye hospital headquartered in Chennai, is [facing a unique concern relating to patients from Bangladesh]( a significant number of them are arriving at the hospital with fake documentation regarding appointments with doctors there, only to be disappointed. Speaking to The Hindu, a representative of the organisation said, “To facilitate the issuance of Indian visa for patients from Bangladesh, some travel agents are regularly issuing fake letters by changing the original PDF forms of Sankara Nethralaya.” The representative added that doctors at the hospital were seeing at least 100 patients a day from Bangladesh and the country alone accounted for 60% of all patients who are foreign nationals. In the case of some countries from where a sizeable number of patients visit Sankara Nethralaya, such as Oman and Mauritius, the hospital has made direct arrangements with the respective countries’ Health Ministries to ensure that genuine appointments are granted and visas are facilitated accordingly. The Bangladesh Ministry of Health and Family Welfare apparently does not yet offer such a service to its citizens who travel to India for medical purposes. Nevertheless, bearing in mind the volume of patients coming from Bangladesh, Sankara Nethralaya has set up a separate email address for patients from there to directly reach out to the hospital and request appointments. The Hindu was able to observe, on site, the case of a patient from Bangladesh who, despite having visited Sankara Nethralaya earlier and thus having a genuine registration number with the hospital, reached the hospital one month before an allotted appointment based on a visa granted using a fake letter and registration number. As it turned out, there was, however, no appointment available to the patient on the day, as the doctor in question was on long leave. The Hindu also obtained a photograph of a fake document issued to a patient from Bangladesh. Woman drugged, raped by e-rickshaw driver in Delhi, accused held A [25-year-old woman was allegedly drugged, raped and robbed by an e-rickshaw driver]( in New Delhi, police said on Thursday. The police have arrested Mohammad Umer (24) in the case from north Delhi’s Kotwali area. “On May 26, a PCR call was received at Kotali police station regarding a robbery. A team was sent to the spot. A woman was found in an injured condition and was bleeding profusely. Her three-year-old son was sitting beside her,” Deputy Commissioner of Police (north) Manoj Kumar Meena said. The woman, a resident of Bihar, was rushed to a hospital and her medical examination was conducted, he said. According to police, the woman with her 3-year-old son was travelling to Punjab from Bihar to meet her husband. On May 26, she deboarded the New Delhi Railway Station train and went to the Sadar market. While returning to the station via e-rickshaw, the driver allegedly offered her a drink, after which she lost consciousness, the DCP said. “According to her statement, the rickshaw puller took her to some isolated area where he raped her. When she objected to the act and tried to raise the alarm, the rickshaw puller hit her on the head with a brick,” Meena said. “She fell unconscious again, and on regaining consciousness, she found that her mobile phone and ₹3,000 cash were missing,” he said. “We formed a team and began investigating the matter. They examined footage from about 500 CCTV cameras and zeroed in on a battery rickshaw,” he added. A hunt was launched to identify and arrest the accused. Around 150 rickshaw owners were examined. On May 29, Umer was arrested. The police recovered the woman’s mobile phone and the rickshaw used in the crime, Meena said. Umer was previously involved in a robbery case, he said. Police said that an FIR under sections 376 (rape), 308 (attempt to commit culpable homicide), 328 (causing hurt by means of poison, etc., with intent to commit and offence), and 379 (theft) of the Indian Penal Code. Further investigation is underway, he added. Poll roundup: - The [INDIA bloc will get a “decisive mandate” in the Lok Sabha polls]( and may take even less than 48 hours to decide on its prime ministerial pick, Congress leader Jairam Ramesh said on Thursday, asserting that it stands to reason that the party which gets the maximum seats in the alliance will be a “natural claimant” for its leadership. In an interview with PTI on the last day of campaigning for the seven-phase Lok Sabha polls, the Congress general secretary exuded confidence that the Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (INDIA) will get seats “well above” the 272-mark needed for a majority in the Lower House. Ramesh also said that when the INDIA ‘janbandhan’ parties get the people’s mandate, then some NDA parties may join the coalition and the Congress high command will have to decide whether to include them in the alliance or not. - BJP leader [Suvendu Adhikari on Thursday urged women in troubled Sandeshkhali region]( as well as other areas of Basirhat Lok Sabha constituency, to blow conch shells as a signal if they come across any suspicious activities before the June 1 polls. Speaking at a campaign rally in support of BJP candidate Rekha Patra, Adhikari voiced concerns about potential visits by “TMC-controlled state police” and others to intimidate residents into voting for the ruling party. He advised residents to blow conch shells if they observe unfamiliar people entering their neighborhoods late at night and cautioned against accepting money from organisations linked to the TMC. “If you (residents) see any suspicious movement at night, if you notice police personnel accompanied by strangers but not central force personnel entering your locality, blow conch shells if the situation warrants,” he said. In Brief: Monsoon sets in over Kerala and northeast earlier than forecast The [Southwest monsoon set in over Kerala on May 30]( a day ahead of its forecast onset. The India Meteorological Department had earlier said that the monsoon would set in by May 31. Monsoon in Kerala usually sets in around 1st June, progressing northwards in surges, and covers the entire country around 15th July. All the criteria required for the declaration of the monsoon were met in the morning. 21 killed, more than 40 hurt as bus skids into a gorge in Jammu’s Akhnoor [At least 21 passengers were killed and around 47 others injured]( after a bus rolled down a deep gorge in Jammu’s Akhnoor area on Thursday afternoon. The J&K Police said the bodies of 21 deceased passengers had been shifted to the Sub District Hospital (SDH), Akhnoor. “Seven injured were admitted to the SDH, Akhnoor and 40 others were admitted to the Government Medical College (GMC), Jammu. A rescue operation is underway,” the police said. The accident took place near Chungi Morh on the Jammu-Poonch highway. The vehicle, which rolled down into the gorge and covered a distance of around 200 meters, was badly damaged. “The bus, carrying passengers from Hathras, Uttar Pradesh, met with an accident near Tanda, Akhnoor, in Jammu,” an official said. The vehicle was headed for the Shiv Khori yatra in Reasi district. Indian peacekeeper Radhika Sen conferred U.N. military gender advocate of the year award for 2023 Major Radhika Sen, an Indian peacekeeper deployed in Congo under the United Nations (U.N.) Stabilisation Mission in the Democratic Republic of Congo (MONUSCO), was [awarded the UN Military Gender Advocate of the Year Award for 2023]( for her work supporting conflict-affected communities. The award was presented to her by UN Secretary-General António Guterres at a ceremony on Thursday, as May 30 is observed as the ‘International day of UN peacekeepers’. Major Sen served in eastern DRC from March 2023 to April 2024 as the Commander of the engagement platoon for the Indian rapid deployment battalion in which she led a team of 20 women soldiers and 10 male soldiers. Evening Wrap will return tomorrow. 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