In brief

Man held for murdering neighbour
Panchkula:The police on Friday arrested Hira Lal Yadav,a resident of Sector 19,on charges of murdering his neighbour Ram Kumar on the intervening night of December 16 and 17. Ram Kumar’s body was found in Industrial Area,Phase I,Panchkula,on December 17. The face was smashed with a huge stone. Ram Kumar was a daily wager and hailed from Bihar. The accused allegedly suspected that the deceased wanted to have illicit relations with his wife. The accused was produced in the court and remanded to four days’ police custody.

Girl rescued,abductor held
Mohali:A teenaged girl of Jagatpura Colony in Phase XI here was rescued within two hours of her abduction on Friday. One of the abductors has been arrested while his accomplice is still on the run. A colony resident reported to the police that his young daughter had gone to market around 8.30 pm when two youths on a Bajaj Pulsar motorcycle picked her up. As the girl raised an alarm,passersby informed her parents,who complained to the police. The local police launched a hunt for the abductors,who dropped the girl in Industrial Area,Phase IX,under the fear of being caught. While Manpreet Singh alias Mani was arrested,his accomplice Satwinder Singh alias Binda is still at large. The police have booked the abductors.

Two injured as cars collide
Mohali:Two persons sustained serious injuries after their cars crashed near the Phase VII-VIII traffic lightpoint in the wee hours of Friday,the police said. Jarnail Singh and Karan Dhillon were admitted to local private hospitals,where their condition was reported to be critical. According to the police,a Toyota Innova,on government duty,being driven by Jarnail,was on its way from Chandigarh side while Dhillon was driving a Honda City from Phase VII towards Phase VIII. Since the traffic lights were off around 1.30 am,both the vehicles,which were reportedly coming at a high speed,collided with each other. The impact was so fierce that the Honda City went up the railing on the roadside and hung upside down while the Innova was dragged for a distance. The police have begun investigation.

In-laws booked as woman deserted for bringing less dowry
Mohali:A resident of Phase XI,Mandeep Kaur,was allegedly deserted by her in-laws a day after her wedding over dowry demands,the police said on Friday. Mandeep Kaur told the police that she married Gagandeep Singh of Gurgaon on May 1 and on the very next day,her husband and in-laws reportedly began harassing her for bringing less dowry and demanded Rs 5 lakh from her parents. On refusal,she was allegedly thrown out of the house. In another case,Kamalpreet Kaur of Sector 41-C,Chandigarh,has accused her husband Baljinder Singh of Sector 67 here of abandoning her after she gave birth to a baby girl. The police have lodged separate cases under Sections 406 and 498-A of the IPC against the accused. No arrests,however,were confirmed yet.

510 pirated DVDs,VCDs seized from music shop,owner arrested
Kharar:One Mohinder Kumar of Kharar was arrested after 510 pirated DVDs and VCDs were recovered from his music shop during a raid,Crime Investigation Agency (CIA) incharge Sub-Inspector told Newsline. He said on a tip-off,a CIA team,led by ASI Kulbeer Singh,raided the shop and found the cache of pirated material. A case under relevant sections of the Copyright Act,1957,has been lodged.

1984 riot victims get another chance to claim compensation
Mohali:In a significant development,the district administration has given another chance to the next of kin of victims of the 1984 riots to stake their claims for compensation,if they have not yet received the same. Deputy Commissioner Prabhjot Singh Mand has offered holders of red cards issued by the state government to the family of riot victims residing in Punjab to furnish their claims for a grant of Rs 2 lakh before Assistant Commissioner (Grievances) Navjot Kaur till December 31. “Only those who had not yet received any such relief and are permanent residents of Punjab are eligible for the offer,” the DC said. Meanwhile,20 persons were given cheques of Rs 2 lakh each at a special function held here on Friday. District Planning Committee Chairman N K Sharma,in the presence of SDM R P S Walia,handed over the cheques to the beneficiaries.

75 liquor boxes found hidden in tractor carrying sand
Mohali :With the district police intensifying its crusade against liquor smuggling,those involved in the illegal practice have started adopting new means to smuggle illicit liquor from Chandigarh. A new modus operandi was unearthed on Friday when the Crime Investigation Agency (CIA) of the district police found 75 boxes of whisky hidden under a sand-filled tractor trolley. CIA incharge Sub-Inspector Gurcharan Singh told Newsline that on the basis of a tip-off,the CIA staff stopped a tractor-trolley for checking at a checkpost on the Kharar-Banur Road near Bhagomajra village. On getting the sand emptied from the trolley,the cops were surprised to find 75 boxes of different brands of whisky meant for sale in Chandigarh only. The arrested trolley driver Rijwan,a resident of Panipat,told the police that he was smuggling the liquor from Chandigarh to Panipat and had taken the route of the village link road to avoid checks. A case under Sections 61,1 and 14 of the Excise Act has been lodged.