Delhi News Highlights: Delhi Police to question AAP minister who resigned after religious conversion row

Days after the NCPCR (National Commission for Protection of Child Rights) asked the Election Commission (EC) to initiate necessary action and an inquiry into a complaint against the Congress and Rahul Gandhi for allegedly “misusing children as political tools” in the party’s Bharat Jodo Yatra, a delegation of senior Congress leaders Monday met the election commissioners and asked them to reject the plea by the apex child rights body.

Tragedy struck a family living in Central Delhi’s Farash Khana when a building collapsed, killing a four-year-old girl who was walking past with her father on Sunday evening. The incident also left two senior citizens dead and injured 10 others. The building, containing shops and residences, had collapsed amid heavy rain.

The Supreme Court on Monday issued notice on a plea by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) seeking transfer of the trial in the gold smuggling case in which senior IAS officer M Sivasankar — who was formerly principal secretary to Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan — is one of the accused, to a designated court in Karnataka.

Delhi has recorded 121.7 mm of rainfall in October so far, the second highest in the month since 2007, according to India Meteorological Department data.

The city recorded 25.3 mm rainfall on Saturday, 74.3 mm on Sunday and 21.8 mm on Monday. The rainfall so far this month is around four times the normal rainfall of 28 mm and three times the precipitation recorded (41.6 mm) in August, which is the wettest month of the monsoon season.

The national capital received a record 122.5 mm of rainfall in October last year. The city did not receive any rain in October 2020, 2018 and 2017 and logged 47.3 mm of rainfall in October 2019.

The ongoing rainfall is the second prolonged spell within three weeks. (PTI)

Several purported videos of the 'Virat Hindu Sabha' organised by VHP and other outfits on Sunday have come to the fore including one in which BJP MLA from Loni in Ghaziabad Nand Kishor Gurjar said that he will not desist from killing "jihadis" if they murder any Hindus.

There were some reports that suggested that Gurjar at the event talked about his alleged involvement in the February 2020 north-east Delhi riots. The MLA, however, denied that he entered Delhi during the riots. "What have I to do with riots in Delhi? I did not go there. I said at the event that I was ready with 25,000 people at Loni so no riots took place here even as riots happened in Delhi," Gurjar told PTI.

The Sunday event, organised against the killing of a Hindu youth Manish from Sundar Nagari in north-east Delhi earlier this month, has sparked controversy for alleged hate speeches by participants. (PTI)

Delhi reported 67 fresh Covid-19 cases in the last 24 hours, according to a government health bulletin issued on Monday.

The test positivity rate (TPR) rose from 1.52% on Sunday to 3.10% on Monday, as the total number of tests conducted declined from 5,191 on Sunday to 2,160 on Monday. 

62 Covid-19 patients recovered in the last 24 hours and no related deaths were recorded.

The Delhi Police on Tuesday will question AAP's Rajendra Pal Gautam who resigned as Social Justice Minister on Sunday.

"We received a complaint against Gautam. We will call him tomorrow and question him about the event where he gave a speech. No case has been registered. We are only calling him to question him about the event and check videos and documents." said a senior police officer.

Gautam resigned as Delhi's cabinet minister on Sunday after a video emerged of him at an event where 10,000 people converted to Buddhism. The former minister will be questioned about his presence in the event and details will be sought from him regarding what actually happened there, officers said.

The University of Delhi announced on Monday evening that the registration deadline for admissions has been extended by two more days, till 4.59 pm on October 12. During this time, candidates can continue to fill preferences on the DU admission portal. Key dates are as follows:

Adani group is in talks to buy the cement businesses of debt-laden Jaypee Group for about Rs 5,000 crore as the conglomerate helmed by the richest Asian consolidates its presence in a sector it entered a few weeks back.

A 16-year-old boy sustained injuries in a blast in east Delhi's Ashok Nagar on Monday.

Police said the accident occurred when the boy was filling a liquid substance into a pipe to make a firecracker, following which the pipe exploded and the boy got injured.

Priyanka Kashyap, DCP (East), said, “Inquiry revealed that the boy was putting the unknown substance inside a hollow pipe. It was meant to be used as a cracker and to scare animals. The spot was inspected by the crime team and bomb disposal squad. Further verification is under way and appropriate action will be taken”

Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal Monday approved resignation of Social Welfare Minister Rajendra Pal Gautam.

The related file has been forwarded to L-G Vinai Kumar Saxena and sent to President for the final approval.

Gautam resigned as Delhi cabinet minister days after a video emerged of him at an event where 10,000 people converted to Buddhism. 

The first list of undergraduate seats allocated through Delhi University's new admission system will be released on October 18, the university said on Monday.

The deadline for Delhi University admission registrations will be extended by two more days, DU registrar Vikas Gupta said on Monday.

Gupta added that the extension has been granted keeping in view the requests from candidates who said the "incessant rains" in the city made completing their registrations difficult.

The National Investigation Agency (NIA) Monday informed the Delhi High Court that a copy of the FIR and arrest memo was supplied to a man who was arrested by the agency over his alleged association with the Popular Front of India (PFI).

A single judge bench of Justice Anoop Kumar Mendiratta was hearing a plea by one Mohammad Yusuf who alleged that he was arrested by the agency from his home in Chennai on September 22 in connection with an FIR lodged against him under various provisions of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act and the Indian Penal Code over alleged involvement in terrorist activities. Malavika Prasad writes

The Delhi Metro announced Monday that it will extend the timing of the last trains on all lines to facilitate spectators who want to watch the one day match between India and South Africa at Feroz Shah Kotla on Tuesday.

The Delhi High Court on Monday allowed Satyendar Jain’s plea challenging benami proceedings undertaken by the Income Tax department under the amended Benami law. 

The Supreme Court in August had held that authorities cannot initiate any criminal action or any proceedings for transactions entered into prior to the enforcement of the new benami law. The petition was allowed in light of the said decision of the apex court.

Delhi reported as many as 321 cases of dengue last week, a reduction of 91 since last week when 412 cases were reported, according to officials of the MCD Monday. Municipal Corporation of Delhi officials said while the number of dengue cases has gone down, it cannot be said they have reached a peak.

The Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena faction Monday approached the Delhi High Court seeking to quash the Election Commission of India's (ECI) order for freezing the party name and election symbol.

In view of the upcoming bypoll in Maharashtra, the poll regulatory body has frozen the Shiv Sena’s 'bow and arrow' symbol and barrred both Thackeray's faction of the party and Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde-led faction from using it. The EC has asked the two groups to suggest by Monday three different name choices of the party and as many free symbols for allocation to their respective groups. Read more

In new videos from the Virat Hindu Sabha organised by the Vishwa Hindu Parishad’s local unit and other Hindu organisations on Sunday, BJP MLA from Loni, Nand Kishor Gurjar, appears to acknowledge he was involved in the 2020 Northeast Delhi riots. When contacted, though, he claimed he was speaking about violence in Loni, Ghaziabad. (Read more)

Delhi police on Monday registered an FIR agains the organisers of the VHP's Virat Hindu Sabda event under IPC section 188 for not taking permission from the police.

DCP (Shahdara) R. Sathiyasundaram confirmed that the Police have registered an FIR and will take action against the organisers. (ENS)

ADDRESSING A ‘Virat Hindu Sabha‘ organised by the Vishwa Hindu Parishad’s local unit and other Hindu organisations in the capital on Sunday, BJP MP from West Delhi, Parvesh Verma, called for the “total boycott” of “these people”. He did not, however, name any community.

“We never used to walk here during lunch hour but now, my three colleagues and I come every day as the stretch has become more aesthetic with colourful benches, artefacts, walkways and greenery,” said Shirin, who works at India Habitat Centre. She was referring to a 500-metre stretch on Lodhi Road which is being redeveloped as part of the Delhi government’s streetscaping project.

Registrations and preference listing for admissions to Delhi University’s undergraduate courses close Monday and the preferences listed by candidates will get locked at 5 pm.

A Class 5 student died during treatment after he was allegedly beaten by a teacher at a private school in Greater Noida last week, said the police Monday. The 12-year-old boy was allegedly beaten by the teacher after he failed a test. Several other students were reportedly struck on their hands a few times.

Cloudy skies and rainfall will persist in Delhi Monday after a rainy weekend for the national capital, according to the India Meteorological Department (IMD). Light rainfall is on the forecast for the day and the intensity is likely to reduce, said the weather department.

Samajwadi Party founder Mulayam Singh Yadav passed away on Monday. The veteran politician died after spending several days in the ICU of Medanta hospital in Gurugram, where his condition was critical.

Earlier, Yadav was administered with life-saving drugs, the hospital had said in a health bulletin on Friday. (Read more)

The CBI has made one more arrest in connection with Delhi Excise policy scam case in which Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia is also an accused, officials said Monday. Abhishek Boinpally who was allegedly lobbying for certain liquor businessmen based in Southern India was called for questioning on Sunday, they said.

The CBI found him to be evading certain key questions following which he was taken into custody late last night, they said. Officials said he was allegedly involved in the "cartelization" for "Southern lobby." It is the second arrest in the excise scam case after businessman and AAP leader Vijay Nair, they said. The case pertains to alleged corruption in granting liquor licenses in the National Capital. (PTI)

On account of incessant rainfall, schools is Noida and Ghaziabad will remain closed on October 10, according to a Uttar Pradesh government notification. 

A 4-year-old girl died in the house collapse in Lahori gate area. DCP (Central) Shweta Chauhan said 8 people have been admitted to the hospital. Rescue operation continues.

A sustained spell of rain on Sunday brought a significant improvement in air quality in the capital, yielding the second "good" air day of the year, according to Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) data.

The 24-hour average air quality index in the city was 48 at 4 pm. It was 56 on Saturday and 55 on Friday.

The neighbouring cities of Ghaziabad (14), Gurugram (32) and Greater Noida (23) also recorded 'good' air quality.

Noida recorded a 24-hour average AQI of 55 at 4pm, which falls in the "satisfactory" category.

Before this, Delhi had recorded a 24-hour average AQI of 47 on September 16.

An AQI between zero and 50 is considered 'good', 51 and 100 'satisfactory', 101 and 200 'moderate', 201 and 300 'poor', 301 and 400 'very poor', and 401 and 500 'severe'.

The national capital has recorded 128 days of bad air quality (AQI is poor, very poor or severe) this year so far, the highest since 2017, when it saw 130 such days during the corresponding period.

Delhi received 74 mm of rainfall in 24 hours ending 8.30 am, the second highest rainfall since 2007, according to the India Meteorological data.

The Palam observatory recorded 64.9 mm rainfall. The Lodhi Road, Ridge, and Ayanagar weather stations received 87.2 mm, 60.1 mm, and 85.2 mm rainfall respectively.

The difference between minimum temperature (20.8 degrees Celsius) on Friday and maximum temperature (23.4 degrees Celsius) on Saturday was 2.6 degrees Celsius -- the lowest since 1969, an IMD official said. (PTI)

A house collapsed in the Lahori Gate area on Sunday evening. Fire officials said 5 persons have been rescued and sent to the hospital.

A search operation is going on to look for others. 

Atul Garg, DFS Chief said, 'A call was received around 7.30 pm about the house collapse. We sent 5 fire tenders to the spot. It is suspected that 3-4 people are still trapped under the debris.'

"Six dead bodies have been recovered. All the children are aged between 8 and 13 years. The bodies have been sent to the civil hospital," Gurgaon DC Nishant Kumar Yadav said.

"Initial information was that six children have drowned. Six bodies have been recovered. We will still make announcements in the local area to find if any more children are missing. SDRF team is here and an NDRF team has also been called," he added.

"Prima facie, it has been found that in this 5-7 acre area, there are several pits and due to rain, water had collected in the pits. The children had gone there to take a bath... this is a tragic incident. The Chief Minister has announced compensation for the families of the deceased. Legal action will be taken if anyone's negligence is found," Yadav said.

A security guard and a food delivery agent were detained by police after they allegedly got into a scuffle at the gates of residential society Gardenia Glory in Noida’s Sector 46 over the latter’s entry.

Footage of the event on social media shows the two quarrelling as bystanders attempt to separate them, but the fight escalates, and the duo are seen hitting each other with sticks, resulting in one falling unconscious. Read more

DMRC said that there is a delay in services from Botanical Garden to Jasola Vihar Shaheen Bagh on the magenta line of the Metro.

Six children are suspected to have drowned in a pond in Bajghera area in Gurgaon. One dead body has been recovered, and a search operation is on to locate the others. 

Deepak Saharan, DCP West, Gurgaon, said, "Prima facie, it seems that around 3 pm, six children had gone to take a bath in a temporary pond near sector 111 in the jurisdiction of Bajghera police station. The clothes of six children have been found near the pond. One dead body of a child has been recovered. A search operation to locate the other missing children has been launched. We are trying to contact their parents."

Reacting to Rajendra Pal Gautam's resignation today, BJP MP Manoj Tiwari said, "The fact that Gautam is not being punished, proves that Arvind Kejriwal is the mastermind. Gautam is a mere pawn."

He added that the entire country has understood that Kejriwal does not care about hurt sentiments of Hindus.

Punjab Congress president Amrinder Singh Raja Warring said, "BJP proposes, AAP disposes. So the Aam Aadmi Party has caved in under the pressure of its mother party, the BJP, and sacked its minister Rajendra Pal Gautam in Delhi. Do you need any more proof of AAP being BJP's B team?"

Delhi Congress President Anil Chaudhary said that if Rajendra Pal Gautam has resigned then why are Manish Sisodia and Satyendar Jain, who are involved in corruption, not resigning. "There are serious allegations of corruption against them," he said. "We want Sisodia and Jain to also be removed."

BJP Delhi president Adesh Gupta termed Rajendra Pal Gautam's resignation as a "victory of Hindus", as well as a "victory of the issues raised by BJP". "Kejriwal visits temples in Gujarat but the hidden agenda is to spread hatred," he said.

Gupta added, "Only resigning is not enough, he (Gautam) should also apologise along with Kejriwal."

Senior BJP leader and MLA Vijender Gupta said resignation of Rajendra Pal Gautam is just an eyewash, because till now the words against Hindu deities have neither been withdrawn nor has CM and AAP chief Arvind Kejriwal apologised.

Reacting to the resignation, BJP MP Manoj Tiwari said the mind and plan belonged to Arvind Kejriwal, but the tongue was of Rajendra Pal Gautam. Now that the plan had failed and the pawn had resigned, the mastermind should too, he said.

A meeting of different Hindu groups in North East Delhi’s Dilshad Garden on Sunday is under the police scanner over alleged hate speeches made there, officers said.

In attendance at the ‘Virat Hindu Sabha’ was BJP MP from West Delhi Parvesh Verma. In a purported video from Sunday’s event, Verma can be heard saying, “Wherever you see them, if you want to set them straight there is only one solution — total boycott. Do you agree? Raise your hands if you agree. Say with me: We will boycott them. We will not buy anything from their shops, we will not employ them. Just do this, this is the solution.” Read more

Delhi cabinet minister Rajendra Pal Gautam resigned on Sunday amid a raging row over his presence at a “religious conversion” event.

A day before, with Delhi CM and AAP chief Arvind Kejriwal in Gujarat to campaign for the upcoming Assembly elections, banners terming him “anti-Hindu” and showing him wearing a skull cap had come up in several cities in the state. The banners, along with Kejriwal’s pictures, carried lines like “I consider Hindu religion as madness”, and “anti-Hindu Kejriwal go back”.

While BJP denied a role in the posters, its leaders had been gunning for the AAP over a video of Gautam attending an event at New Delhi’s Ambedkar Bhavan where around 10,000 Hindus embraced Buddhism on October 5.

Gautam can be seen on stage as attendees take an oath that they would not pray to Hindu deities like Vishnu, Shiva, Brahma, Rama, Krishna, Gauri and Ganpati.

The vows, however, have nothing to do with Gautam or the AAP, and certainly nothing with skullcaps. They are part of the 22-point pledge made by Dr BR Ambedkar when he renounced Hinduism and converted to Buddhism in 1956. Since then, such events have regularly been organised, where people, mainly from oppressed castes, recite the 22 vows and embrace Buddhism. Yashee explains

'Today I have been freed from many shackles, and been born again. Now I will continue to fight for rights and atrocities on the society more firmly without any restrictions,' said AAP leader and former Delhi cabinet minister Rajendra Pal Gautam as he announced his resignation on Twitter.

AAP minister Rajendra Pal Gautam, who resigned as Delhi cabinet minister today, after facing demands of resignation by the BJP following an event where 10,000 people ‘converted’ to Buddhism, is known to maintain a low profile as compared to his cabinet colleagues.

But this isn’t the first time he is in the eye of a storm – in 2022, Gautam was divested of the Woman and Child Development portfolio amid widespread protests by anganwadi workers in the capital.

Gautam joined the Aam Aadmi Party in 2014 and fought assembly elections from Seemapuri constituency in 2015. He won from the seat again in the next assembly polls, and currently heads the Delhi government’s departments of Social Welfare, SC/ST Welfare, Registrar of Cooperatives and Gurudwara Elections. Gayathri Mani writes

Rajendra Pal Gautam has resigned as Delhi cabinet minister. This comes days after a video emerged of him at an event where 10,000 people converted to Buddhism. Taking BR Ambedkar’s 22 vows, the crowd had said how they would not pray to Hindu gods and goddesses. The event had come under fire from the BJP, which said Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal and his party “hated” Hindus. Gautam had at the time said he had a right to practice his religion, as guaranteed under the Constitution. The BJP had demanded Gautam’s resignation after the video emerged. Both the Aam Aadmi Party and the Delhi government had not reacted to the event or the BJP’s demands.

Two labourers died while six others were injured after they allegedly fell from a scaffolding at a construction site in Terminal 1 of Indira Gandhi International (IGI) Airport in Delhi recently. The police said they received information about the incident Thursday.

The deceased were identified as Vikash, 30, and Manoj, 19. The injured were admitted to Safdarjung hospital and later discharged. Read more here

Starting next week, over 300 establishments ranging from hotels, restaurants, eateries to online delivery services of food, medicines, logistics and other essential commodities, transport and travel services, apart from KPOs and BPOs will be able to operate and carry on with their business on a 24 × 7 basis in the National Capital, officials from the Office of the L-G said.

Dr BR Ambedkar University, Delhi began the online application process for postgraduate admissions for both CUET and non CUET applicants. The last day to apply for AUD is October 27 and candidates can apply on the official website – aud.ac.in.

The temperature in Delhi dropped to 23.4 degrees Celsius Saturday, which was 10 degrees below normal for this time of the year. This drastic drop in temperatures was credited to the incessant rain in the national capital since Friday night.

Registrations for Common University Entrance Test-based admissions to postgraduate programmes in Dr B R Ambedkar University Delhi (AUD) are now open.

Delhi and the National Capital Region (NCR) are expected to witness rain Sunday as well, with several parts of the area receiving showers through Saturday night and early morning.

With Eid-e-Milad-un-Nabi and Maharishi Valmiki Jayanti celebrations on Sunday, the Delhi Traffic Police issued an advisory for commuters about the traffic arrangements in the city.

The prices of CNG and PNG have been hiked in Delhi and NCR, effective today. The hike in CNG is by Rs 3, taking the price to Rs 78.61 per kg in Delhi. The same now costs Rs 81.17 per kg in Noida, Greater Noida and Ghaziabad and Rs 86.94 per kg in Gurgaon.

The autorickshaw unions in the city have been demanding a fare hike for several months now and a cabinet decision is awaited in the matter. Know more here

A group of five-seven armed assailants broke into a mobile accessories shop in Karol Bagh and looted Rs 1.5 crore at gunpoint, said police Saturday. Police said the incident took place on Friday night and that the accused are yet to be identified and arrested.

•  Eight leopards caught on camera, 2-4 striped hyenas — and the relationship that plays out between the two.

Incessant rainfall throughout the day on Saturday brought the maximum temperature down sharply in Delhi and resulted in waterlogging in some parts of the city. The maximum temperature at the Safdarjung weather station settled at 23.4 degrees Celsius, 10 degrees below the normal for this time of the year. The normal maximum temperature for this time of the year is 33.8 degrees Celsius.