January 28: Top news at 3 pm

Developing news

*CBI court convicts interior designer Zahida Pervez and three other accused in RTI activist Shehla Masood's 2011 murder case; awards life sentence. Another accused Irfan, who turned approver in the case, pardoned by CBI court.

Man electrocuted standing in bank queue in Ballia district, UP

A 52-year-old man was electrocuted while standing in a queue to withdraw money from the Sahatwar branch of State Bank of India in Ballia district of Uttar Pradesh, police said today. The victim, Puranmasi, of Dumari village was standing in the queue when he tried to place his bag on a nearby trolley-mounted transformer of the bank, SP RP Singh said. He was electrocuted and died on the spot, police said. The body has been sent for postmortem and a case has been lodged against unidentified persons for negligence, they added.

Fake currency racket unearthed in Delhi

With the arrest of three persons, Delhi Police says it has unearthed a fake currency racket. The three accused, Azad, Manoj and Sunil, have been arrested with ₹18 lakh in the form of counterfeit ₹2,000 notes, said a senior police officer. Azad belongs to Delhi while the other two accused Manoj and Sunil are from Haryana, he added. Further details are awaited.

Abandoned mortar shell found in a park in Delhi

An abandoned mortar shell was found in a park at Kishan Garh, Vasant Kunj (North) in south Delhi on Saturday morning, creating a sensation in the area. Locals spotted the mortar shell lying in a park and informed the police. "A PCR call was received around 8.30 am regarding the finding of the mortar shell in the park Machli Wala, Samadhi Van village, Kishan Garh, in Vasant Kunj (N). The entire area has been cordoned off and evacuated as a precautionary measure," said a senior police officer. The National Security Guard has been requested to send a team for carrying out necessary drill to diffuse the shell, he said, adding that the old and corroded shell has been covered with a "bomb blanket" to avert any accidental blast.

Trump signs order for extreme vetting to prevent terrorism

US President Donald Trump has signed an executive order "Protection of The Nation From Foreign Terrorist Entry Into The United States" that calls for "extreme vetting" of people entering the US from certain Muslim-majority countries, a move he said is aimed at keeping "radical Islamic terrorists" out of America. The order suspends the US Refugee Admissions Programme for 120 days until it is reinstated "only for nationals of countries for whom" members of Trump's Cabinet deem can be properly vetted. The order also prevents all persons from Iraq, Syria, Iran, Sudan, Libya, Somalia or Yemen from entering the country for 30 days.

Bhutan Consulate General Office to be set up in Guwahati

The Assam state government and Bhutan government have decided to share intelligence inputs between them at a meeting here today, as they discussed an entry-exit mechanism to give an impetus to industry and commerce. In the meeting, the Assam state government ratified the proposal of the Bhutan government for setting up of a Consulate General Office in Guwahati and conveyed its decision to the Ministry of External Affairs. The two sides further discussed the existing boundaries that Assam shared with Bhutan and exchanged inputs on missing boundary pillars and vowed to take immediate steps to address the issue, the release added.

Civil society members rally support for activist Bela Bhatia

A group of 40 civil society members today came out in support of activist Bela Bhatia, who was threatened by a mob and given 24 hours to vacate her house in Pandripani village in Bastar district, and demanded Chhattisgarh government ensure her fundamental rights. In a joint statement, the activists including Medha Patkar of Narmada Bachao Andolan, Lok Shakti Abhiyan’s Prafulla Samantara and Aruna Roy of Mazdoor Kisan Shakti Sangathan stated that it was imperative that the district administration upholds rule of law in these areas. "We strongly condemn the brazen act of intimidation directed at Bhatia at her house in the village. Clearly, this attack is aimed at making Bela abandon her human rights work in the area and quit the village," they said in the statement. The activists claimed that many other journalists, lawyers and activists who have dared to highlight the issue of states excesses too have been "forced out" of the area.

With inputs from NH National Bureau.