The Evening Wrap: Jharkhand MLAs cash seizure | Bengal CID teams ‘detained’ in Delhi, Guwahati

The Criminal Investigation Department (CID) of West Bengal has claimed that two of its teams in New Delhi and Guwahati were prevented by the local police at the two locations from carrying out investigation in connection with the cash seizure from three Jharkhand MLAs. A senior officer of the probe agency alleged its officers were detained by Delhi Police on August 3 when they were conducting a raid at a property belonging to an accused, a “close associate” of the three arrested legislators, in the national capital. Three Congress MLAs from Jharkhand — Irfan Ansari, Rajesh Kachchap and Naman Bixal Kongari — were arrested by West Bengal Police after over ₹49 lakh in cash was seized from a car in which they were travelling. “On Wednesday morning, a team of West Bengal CID officers was restrained by Delhi Police from carrying out a search operation at a property of an accused person closely associated with one of the MLAs, despite having a court warrant,” the officer told PTI. Four CID officers — an inspector, an ASI and two SIs — were detained and restrained from conducting searches at the accused’s residence under South Campus Police Station area in New Delhi in spite of having a court warrant, he said. The Delhi Police, which functions under the Central government, later said it had provided all assistance to the CID team before it found certain “legal discrepancies” in the execution of the search warrant. “... Legal opinion was sought which revealed that the warrant is not executable. Hence, the same was conveyed to WB Police,” Deputy Commissioner of Police (Southwest) Manoj C. was quoted as saying in a statement. The West Bengal government has sent a team of three senior officers to the national capital to resolve the matter, an official of the State’s Home Department said. On the “detention” of the police personnel in Assam, the CID officer said talks are under way with authorities in the BJP-ruled northeastern State. Meanwhile, a senior officer of Guwahati Police told PTI that it had extended full cooperation to its counterparts from the neighbouring State in the investigation. “The rumour that we have detained them is completely wrong. In fact, they are moved around in the city in the vehicle provided by us,” he said. The Congress, which is a part of the JMM-led government in Jharkhand, has alleged that the BJP was trying to topple the Hemant Soren government by offering ₹10 crore each and a ministerial berth to the MLAs. The party has also named Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma in the alleged conspiracy. The BJP, however, rejected the allegations, claiming that the Congress was trying to hide its own corruption. Allahabad High Court rejects journalist Kappan’s bail plea The Lucknow bench of Allahabad High Court on Thursday rejected the bail application of journalist Siddique Kappan who was booked under Unlawful Activities Prevention Act in Hathras conspiracy case. A single bench of Justice Krishan Pahal passed the rejection order on Thursday. Prior to this, the bench had reserved its order on August 2 after conclusion of arguments by the counsels of the accused and the state. A Mathura court had rejected Kappan’s bail plea after which he had approached the HC. Kappan, a reporter for Malayalam news portal Azhimukham and secretary of the Delhi unit of Kerala Union of Working Journalists (KUWJ), was arrested along with three others in Uttar Pradesh in October 2020 while on his way to Hathras to report on the gang-rape and murder of a 19-year-old Dalit woman. The police had claimed that the accused were trying to disturb the law and order in Hathras. They had also alleged that the accused had links with the Popular Front of India (PFI). The woman had died at a Delhi hospital a fortnight after her alleged rape by four men from her village on September 14, 2020. She was cremated in the middle of the night in her village. Her family members claimed that the cremation, which took place well past midnight, was without their consent and that they were not allowed to bring home the body one last time. Kappan and others were charged under Sections 17 and 18 of Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA), Section 124A (sedition), Section 153A (promoting enmity between different groups on ground of religion) and Section 295A (deliberate and malicious acts intended to outrage religious feelings) of Indian Penal Code and Sections 65, 72 and 75 of the Information Technology Act. Not afraid of Narendra Modi, will not be intimidated: Rahul Gandhi on action in National Herald case A day after the Enforcement Directorate (ED) sealed ‘Young Indian’, a not-for-profit company that owns Associated Journal Limited-controlled National Herald newspaper, former Congress chief Rahul Gandhi said the Narendra Modi Government is trying to intimidate but he isn’t scared. Speaking to reporters outside the Parliament on August 4, Gandhi dared the government to do whatever it can but he won’t back down. “This is an attempt at intimidation. They think that they will silence us by putting a little bit of pressure. We will continue to fight against the anti-democratic acts of [Prime Minister] Narendra Modi and [Home Minister] Amit Shah. No matter what they do,” Gandhi told reporters. “We will not be intimated and we are not scared of Narendra Modi. Let them do what they want to do. It won’t make any difference. My work is to protect the nation, its democratic values and maintain its harmony. I will continue to do so. They can do what they want,” he added. The issue of ED’s action was raised in both the Houses of Parliament in the morning after a strategy meet of the Congress Parliamentary Party (CPP) meeting presided by Leader of the Opposition in the Rajya Sabha Mallikarjun Kharge. In the Rajya Sabha, Kharge lost his cool in the House when he was interrupted just when he started speaking. “This morning at 11:15 a.m., Leader of the House, Piyush Goyal, did not allow the Leader of the Opposition in the Rajya Sabha, Mallikarjun Kharge, to have his say. This is the Modi brand of ‘democracy’ at work!” tweeted Congress Chief Whip Jairam Ramesh. After a brief adjournment, when the Rajya Sabha met at 12 noon, Kharge said despite the House being in session, he has received a summon from ED to appear before the agency at 12.30 p.m. He added that houses of Congress chief Sonia Gandhi and former chief Rahul Gandhi had been gheraoed by officials. “They are doing this to scare us, we won’t be cowed down by threats,” he said. Leader of House and Union Minister Piyush Goyal said the government doesn’t interfere in functioning of agencies and “it must be happening in their tenure [Congress) not ours”. By 12:20 p.m., Kharge left to attend the summons of the ED. In the Lok Sabha, Congress Chief Whip Kodikunnil Suresh had given an adjournment motion notice to discuss the sealing of ‘Young Indian’ but Speaker Om Birla said he would allow them to raise the matter after Question Hour. Birla also warned the Opposition MPs from coming into the Well of the House as constant sloganeering was going on. He adjourned the House until 2 p.m. after running the Question Hour for 30 minutes. While the Lower House functioned only for a few minutes in the post lunch session, during which government papers were laid on the table of the House, the Rajya Sabha took up discussion on a bill pertaining to Family Courts. CJI Ramana names Justice U.U. Lalit as successor Chief Justice of India N.V. Ramana on Thursday recommended to the government the name of Justice Uday Umesh Lalit as his successor and the 49th Chief Justice of India. Chief Justice Ramana personally handed over a copy of his letter of recommendation dated August 3 to Justice Lalit when they met for tea in the Supreme Court in the morning before court. Chief Justice Ramana had at 9.30 p.m. Wednesday, August 3, 2022, received a communication from Law Minister Kiren Rijiju seeking his recommendation for appointment of the next top judge. Sources said Chief Justice Ramana recommended Justice Lalit’s name in a matter of minutes after receiving Rijiju’s letter. Chief Justice Ramana is retiring on August 26, 2022. Justice Lalit is the senior most judge in the Supreme Court now. The ‘Memorandum of Procedure of Appointment of Supreme Court Judges’ says “appointment to the office of the Chief Justice of India should be of the senior most Judge of the Supreme Court considered fit to hold the office”. The process, according to the Memorandum, begins with the Union Law Minister seeking the recommendation of the outgoing CJI about the next appointment. The Minister has to seek the CJI’s recommendation “at the appropriate time”. The Memorandum does not elaborate or specify a timeline. The Memorandum says that “after receipt of the recommendation of the Chief Justice of India, the Union Minister of Law, Justice and Company Affairs will put up the recommendation to the Prime Minister who will advise the President in the matter of appointment”. This is expected to happen shortly. Justice Lalit, if appointed, would have a tenure of hardly three months. He retires on November 8, 2022. Taliban ‘not aware’ Ayman al-Zawahiri was in Kabul The Taliban have said the government had no information about al-Qaeda leader Ayman al-Zawahiri “entering and living” in capital city Kabul and warned the United States to never repeat an attack on Afghan soil. The United States killed Zawahiri with a missile fired from a drone while he stood on a balcony at his Kabul hideout on Sunday, U.S. officials said, in the biggest blow to the militants since U.S. Navy SEALS shot dead Osama bin Laden more than a decade ago. “The government and the leadership wasn’t aware of what is being claimed, nor any trace there,” Suhail Shaheen, the designated Taliban representative to the United Nations, who is based in Doha, said in a statement. “Investigation is underway now to find out about the veracity of the claim,” he said, adding that the results of the investigation would be shared publicly. Taliban leaders have remained largely tight-lipped about the Sunday drone strike and have not confirmed the presence or death of Zawahiri in Kabul. Referring to the drone strike, the Taliban said “if such incidents are repeated again and if the territory of Afghanistan is violated then responsibility for any consequences will be on United States.” Top Taliban leaders have been holding lengthy discussions about how to respond to the U.S. drone strike, three sources in the group said. How the Taliban react could have significant repercussions as the group seeks international legitimacy and access to billions of dollars in frozen funds, following their defeat of a U.S.-backed government a year ago. Zawahiri, an Egyptian doctor, was closely involved in the September 11, 2001, attacks on the United States and was one of the world’s most wanted men. His death in Kabul raises questions about whether he received sanctuary from the Taliban, who had assured the United States as part of a 2020 agreement on the withdrawal of U.S.-led forces that they would not harbour other militant groups. Shaheen said the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan —the name the Taliban use for the country and their government—was committed to the agreement, signed in the Qatari capital, Doha. U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said the Taliban had “grossly violated” the agreement by hosting and sheltering Zawahiri. In Brief The incessant rains that have ravaged various parts of Kerala has prompted the National Testing Agency (NTA) to postpone the Common University Entrance Test – Undergraduate (CUET-UG) 2022 examination in the State. In a public notice issued during the early hours of August 4, the agency stated: “Due to heavy rain in many districts of Kerala in past few days, it has been brought to the notice of NTA that it may not be possible for a large number of candidates to reach the Examination Centre for CUET (UG) – 2022 within stipulated time as the movement will be very difficult and there may be disruption of power.” Evening Wrap will return tomorrow [logo] The Evening Wrap 04 AUGUST 2022 [The Hindu logo] Welcome to the Evening Wrap newsletter, your guide to the day’s biggest stories with concise analysis from The Hindu. [[Arrow]Open in browser]( [[Mail icon]More newsletters]( Jharkhand MLAs cash seizure | West Bengal CID teams ‘detained’ in Delhi, Guwahati The Criminal Investigation Department (CID) of West Bengal has [claimed that two of its teams in New Delhi and Guwahati were prevented by the local police at the two locations]( from carrying out investigation in connection with the cash seizure from three Jharkhand MLAs. A senior officer of the probe agency alleged its officers were detained by Delhi Police on August 3 when they were conducting a raid at a property belonging to an accused, a “close associate” of the three arrested legislators, in the national capital. Three Congress MLAs from Jharkhand — Irfan Ansari, Rajesh Kachchap and Naman Bixal Kongari — were arrested by West Bengal Police after over ₹49 lakh in cash was seized from a car in which they were travelling. “On Wednesday morning, a team of West Bengal CID officers was restrained by Delhi Police from carrying out a search operation at a property of an accused person closely associated with one of the MLAs, despite having a court warrant,” the officer told PTI. Four CID officers — an inspector, an ASI and two SIs — were detained and restrained from conducting searches at the accused’s residence under South Campus Police Station area in New Delhi in spite of having a court warrant, he said. The Delhi Police, which functions under the Central government, later said it had provided all assistance to the CID team before it found certain “legal discrepancies” in the execution of the search warrant. “... Legal opinion was sought which revealed that the warrant is not executable. Hence, the same was conveyed to WB Police,” Deputy Commissioner of Police (Southwest) Manoj C. was quoted as saying in a statement. The West Bengal government has sent a team of three senior officers to the national capital to resolve the matter, an official of the State’s Home Department said. On the “detention” of the police personnel in Assam, the CID officer said talks are under way with authorities in the BJP-ruled northeastern State. Meanwhile, a senior officer of Guwahati Police told PTI that it had extended full cooperation to its counterparts from the neighbouring State in the investigation. “The rumour that we have detained them is completely wrong. In fact, they are moved around in the city in the vehicle provided by us,” he said. The Congress, which is a part of the JMM-led government in Jharkhand, has alleged that the BJP was trying to topple the Hemant Soren government by offering ₹10 crore each and a ministerial berth to the MLAs. The party has also named Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma in the alleged conspiracy. The BJP, however, rejected the allegations, claiming that the Congress was trying to hide its own corruption. Allahabad High Court rejects journalist Kappan’s bail plea The Lucknow bench of Allahabad High Court on Thursday [rejected the bail application of journalist Siddique Kappan]( who was booked under Unlawful Activities Prevention Act in Hathras conspiracy case. A single bench of Justice Krishan Pahal passed the rejection order on Thursday. Prior to this, the bench had reserved its order on August 2 after conclusion of arguments by the counsels of the accused and the state. A Mathura court had rejected Kappan’s bail plea after which he had approached the HC. Kappan, a reporter for Malayalam news portal Azhimukham and secretary of the Delhi unit of Kerala Union of Working Journalists (KUWJ), was arrested along with three others in Uttar Pradesh in October 2020 while on his way to Hathras to report on the gang-rape and murder of a 19-year-old Dalit woman. The police had claimed that the accused were trying to disturb the law and order in Hathras. They had also alleged that the accused had links with the Popular Front of India (PFI). The woman had died at a Delhi hospital a fortnight after her alleged rape by four men from her village on September 14, 2020. She was cremated in the middle of the night in her village. Her family members claimed that the cremation, which took place well past midnight, was without their consent and that they were not allowed to bring home the body one last time. Kappan and others were charged under Sections 17 and 18 of Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA), Section 124A (sedition), Section 153A (promoting enmity between different groups on ground of religion) and Section 295A (deliberate and malicious acts intended to outrage religious feelings) of Indian Penal Code and Sections 65, 72 and 75 of the Information Technology Act. Not afraid of Narendra Modi, will not be intimidated: Rahul Gandhi on action in National Herald case A day after the Enforcement Directorate (ED) sealed ‘Young Indian’, a not-for-profit company that owns Associated Journal Limited-controlled National Herald newspaper, former Congress chief Rahul Gandhi said the Narendra Modi Government is trying to intimidate but he isn’t scared. Speaking to reporters outside the Parliament on August 4, Gandhi dared the government to do whatever it can but he won’t back down. “This is an attempt at intimidation. They think that they will silence us by putting a little bit of pressure. We will continue to fight against the anti-democratic acts of [Prime Minister] Narendra Modi and [Home Minister] Amit Shah. No matter what they do,” Gandhi told reporters. “We will not be intimated and we are not scared of Narendra Modi. Let them do what they want to do. It won’t make any difference. My work is to protect the nation, its democratic values and maintain its harmony. I will continue to do so. They can do what they want,” he added. The issue of ED’s action was raised in both the Houses of Parliament in the morning after a strategy meet of the Congress Parliamentary Party (CPP) meeting presided by Leader of the Opposition in the Rajya Sabha Mallikarjun Kharge. In the Rajya Sabha, Kharge lost his cool in the House when he was interrupted just when he started speaking. “This morning at 11:15 a.m., Leader of the House, Piyush Goyal, did not allow the Leader of the Opposition in the Rajya Sabha, Mallikarjun Kharge, to have his say. This is the Modi brand of ‘democracy’ at work!” tweeted Congress Chief Whip Jairam Ramesh. After a brief adjournment, when the Rajya Sabha met at 12 noon, Kharge said despite the House being in session, he has received a summon from ED to appear before the agency at 12.30 p.m. He added that houses of Congress chief Sonia Gandhi and former chief Rahul Gandhi had been gheraoed by officials. “They are doing this to scare us, we won’t be cowed down by threats,” he said. Leader of House and Union Minister Piyush Goyal said the government doesn’t interfere in functioning of agencies and “it must be happening in their tenure [Congress) not ours”. By 12:20 p.m., Kharge left to attend the summons of the ED. In the Lok Sabha, Congress Chief Whip Kodikunnil Suresh had given an adjournment motion notice to discuss the sealing of ‘Young Indian’ but Speaker Om Birla said he would allow them to raise the matter after Question Hour. Birla also warned the Opposition MPs from coming into the Well of the House as constant sloganeering was going on. He adjourned the House until 2 p.m. after running the Question Hour for 30 minutes. While the Lower House functioned only for a few minutes in the post lunch session, during which government papers were laid on the table of the House, the Rajya Sabha took up discussion on a bill pertaining to Family Courts. CJI Ramana names Justice U.U. Lalit as successor Chief Justice of India N.V. Ramana on Thursday [recommended to the government the name of Justice Uday Umesh Lalit as his successor]( and the 49th Chief Justice of India. Chief Justice Ramana personally handed over a copy of his letter of recommendation dated August 3 to Justice Lalit when they met for tea in the Supreme Court in the morning before court. [Chief Justice of India N.V. Ramana and Justice U.U. Lalit. Photo: Special Arrangement] Chief Justice Ramana had at 9.30 p.m. Wednesday, August 3, 2022, received a communication from Law Minister Kiren Rijiju seeking his recommendation for appointment of the next top judge. Sources said Chief Justice Ramana recommended Justice Lalit’s name in a matter of minutes after receiving Rijiju’s letter. Chief Justice Ramana is retiring on August 26, 2022. Justice Lalit is the senior most judge in the Supreme Court now. The ‘Memorandum of Procedure of Appointment of Supreme Court Judges’ says “appointment to the office of the Chief Justice of India should be of the senior most Judge of the Supreme Court considered fit to hold the office”. The process, according to the Memorandum, begins with the Union Law Minister seeking the recommendation of the outgoing CJI about the next appointment. The Minister has to seek the CJI’s recommendation “at the appropriate time”. The Memorandum does not elaborate or specify a timeline. The Memorandum says that “after receipt of the recommendation of the Chief Justice of India, the Union Minister of Law, Justice and Company Affairs will put up the recommendation to the Prime Minister who will advise the President in the matter of appointment”. This is expected to happen shortly. Justice Lalit, if appointed, would have a tenure of hardly three months. He retires on November 8, 2022. Taliban ‘not aware’ Ayman al-Zawahiri was in Kabul The [Taliban have said]( the government had no information about al-Qaeda leader Ayman al-Zawahiri “entering and living” in capital city Kabul and warned the United States to never repeat an attack on Afghan soil. The United States killed Zawahiri with a missile fired from a drone while he stood on a balcony at his Kabul hideout on Sunday, U.S. officials said, in the biggest blow to the militants since U.S. Navy SEALS shot dead Osama bin Laden more than a decade ago. “The government and the leadership wasn’t aware of what is being claimed, nor any trace there,” Suhail Shaheen, the designated Taliban representative to the United Nations, who is based in Doha, said in a statement. “Investigation is underway now to find out about the veracity of the claim,” he said, adding that the results of the investigation would be shared publicly. Taliban leaders have remained largely tight-lipped about the Sunday drone strike and have not confirmed the presence or death of Zawahiri in Kabul. Referring to the drone strike, the Taliban said “if such incidents are repeated again and if the territory of Afghanistan is violated then responsibility for any consequences will be on United States.” Top Taliban leaders have been holding lengthy discussions about how to respond to the U.S. drone strike, three sources in the group said. How the Taliban react could have significant repercussions as the group seeks international legitimacy and access to billions of dollars in frozen funds, following their defeat of a U.S.-backed government a year ago. Zawahiri, an Egyptian doctor, was closely involved in the September 11, 2001, attacks on the United States and was one of the world’s most wanted men. His death in Kabul raises questions about whether he received sanctuary from the Taliban, who had assured the United States as part of a 2020 agreement on the withdrawal of U.S.-led forces that they would not harbour other militant groups. Shaheen said the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan —the name the Taliban use for the country and their government—was committed to the agreement, signed in the Qatari capital, Doha. U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said the Taliban had “grossly violated” the agreement by hosting and sheltering Zawahiri. In Brief [Water gushes out from the Peringalkuthu dam after it was opened following heavy monsoon rains in Thrissur district on August 4, 2022. ] The [incessant rains that have ravaged various parts of Kerala]( has [prompted the National Testing Agency (NTA) to postpone the Common University Entrance Test – Undergraduate (CUET-UG) 2022]( examination in the State. In a public notice issued during the early hours of August 4, the agency stated: “Due to heavy rain in many districts of Kerala in past few days, it has been brought to the notice of NTA that it may not be possible for a large number of candidates to reach the Examination Centre for CUET (UG) – 2022 within stipulated time as the movement will be very difficult and there may be disruption of power.” Evening Wrap will return tomorrow  Today’s Top Picks [[China fires missiles into waters off Taiwan in ‘unprecedented’ drills] China fires missiles into waters off Taiwan in ‘unprecedented’ drills]( [[Sanjay Raut’s ED custody extended till August 8, wife summoned] Sanjay Raut’s ED custody extended till August 8, wife summoned]( [[Second survey shows Liz Truss ahead of Rishi Sunak in U.K. PM race] Second survey shows Liz Truss ahead of Rishi Sunak in U.K. PM race]( [[National Herald case | ED searches Young Indian office] National Herald case | ED searches Young Indian office]( Copyright @ 2022, THG PUBLISHING PVT LTD. 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