Delhi News Highlights: Patiala House Court sends co-conspirator Jasir Bilal Wani to 10-day NIA custody in Red Fort Blast case

The Delhi High Court has expressed serious concern over the alleged lapses in the administration of jail premises related to the safety and treatment of inmates.

The high court observations came while dealing with a petition of an inmate, lodged in Mandoli jail here, who alleged that he and other prisoners were being subjected to assault and harassment for extortion of money at the behest of jail officials.

Justice Sanjeev Narula directed that this petition be treated as a complaint by the investigating officer in the court-monitored CBI investigation initiated over similar charges. — PTI

Since its launch in September, 464 people have registered themselves at the Delhi government's organ donation portal, officials said on Wednesday.

Delhi's first organ donation portal -- designed to bring transparency and encourage citizens to pledge their organs -- was launched on September 25, a day after the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare approved the establishment of the State Organ and Tissue Transplant Organisation (SOTTO) under the Transplantation of Human Organs and Tissues Act, 1994. — PTI

A woman was arrested from Ghaziabad for kidnapping a four-month-old boy from outside the Old Delhi railway station here, police said on Wednesday.

During questioning, the accused revealed that she has three daughters and had been wishing for a son, the police said, adding that the infant was found in her possession and safely recovered on Tuesday.

Police said the child's mother, a 27-year-old woman living on the footpath near the bus stand at the railway station, reported on Monday that her son had gone missing. — PTI

The Delhi government is planning to hire interns for a three-month infrastructure audit of its over 1,000 schools, a move aimed at giving undergraduate engineering students and class 12 graduates hands-on field experience, an official said on Wednesday.

Under the initiative, interns will undertake extensive fieldwork across the city's government schools, where they will gain “direct exposure to surveying buildings, documenting infrastructure, assisting engineers, and working with digital assessment tools”, the official said, adding that they will receive a stipend of around Rs 15,000. — PTI

The Supreme Court on Wednesday asked the Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM) to consider directing schools in Delhi-NCR to postpone open air sports competitions planned in November and December to “safer months” keeping in mind air pollution levels.

A bench comprising Chief Justice B R Gavai and Justice K Vinod Chandran said the issue of severe air pollution crisis in Delhi-National Capital Region needed a pro-active approach and the top court should hear the case to monitor the development on a monthly basis. — PTI

District Court premises in the Delhi were evacuated after an bomb threat triggered panic on Tuesday morning.

The email was eventually found to be a hoax after search operations were carried out.

A bomb threat email was received this morning hinting blasts at Patiala House Court, Rohini Court, and Saket Court. Thereafter, the court premises were evaluated by security personnel.

Advocate Tarun Rana, secretary, New Delhi Bar Association, said that an email of a bomb placed in the premises was received in the morning. After a search operation, the email was found to be a hoax, news agency ANI reported.

The Patiala House Court Tuesday sent the co-conspirator and close aide of Umar Nabi, the man who drove the i20 car that exploded near the Red Fort on November 10, claiming 15 lives so far, Kasir Bilal Wani, to NIA custody for 10 days.

He was arrested by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) on Monday. This comes a day after the NIA made its first arrest in the case.

A co-conspirator and close aide of Umar Nabi, the man who drove the i20 car that exploded near the Red Fort on November 10, claiming 15 lives so far, Kasir Bilal Wani was produced in the Patiala House Court on Tuesday.

Wani, a resident of Jammu and Kashmir, was arrested by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) on Monday.

This comes a day after the NIA made its first arrest in the case.

Watch:

The New Delhi Bar Association Tuesday advised its members to cooperate with security staff posted at various entrances of the Patiala House Court after it received bomb threat mails.

In a circular, the Association wrote: "Members are requested not to panic on account of the recent bomb threat and are kindly advised to cooperate with the Security staff posted at various entrances of Patiala House Court. If requested by the Security staff, please allow frisking of your bags or personal belongings, your cooperation will be sincerely appreciated."

Kasir Bilal Wani, arrested by the National Investigative Agency (NIA) on Monday in Delhi Red Fort blast case, was produced in the Patiala House Court on Tuesday.

A resident of Jammu and Kashmir, Wani is an alleged co-conspirator and close aide of Umar Nabi, the man who drove the i20 car that exploded near the Red Fort on November 10, claiming 15 lives so far.

This comes a day after the NIA made its first arrest in the case.

The New Delhi Bar Association Secretary, Advocate Tarun Rana, declared the bomb threats received early Tuesday at the court complexes to be a "hoax."

Further speaking to reporters, Rana said, "As per my information, there were bomb threat emails to District courts complexes in Delhi, today. Immediately the security agencies after receiving the calls and all the concerned officials took a strict view, under strict supervision, and it was found to be a hoax call."

"Right now, there is no element of fear. This [bomb threat] was done to create a dilemma and delusion among the legal fraternity. and the courts are functioning in a smooth manner," Rana told news agency ANI.

Delhi Chief Minister Rekha Gupta Tuesday attended the inauguration of the DTC Azadpur Modern Bus Terminal, news agency PTI reported.

Delhi Chief Minister Rekha Gupta Tuesday attended the inauguration of the newly-built District Social Welfare Office, North West–I & II, at Indra Nagar in Azadpur, news agency PTI reported.

Speaking to reporters, Gupta said, “The new District Social Welfare Office building is now ready and being dedicated to the public. Offices for District North West–I and II will operate from here. Work related to a total of 15 Assembly constituencies will be coordinated from this facility.”

Here are some visuals from outside the Patiala House Court after receiving bomb threat mails:

A call was received by the Delhi Fire Services (DFS) at 9 am regarding the bomb threat mails received by two CRPF schools in Dwarka and Prashant Vihar.

Nothing was found after checks were conducted, according to an official.

Here are the visuals from Dwarka Court in Delhi, one of the three district courts that received bomb threats early Tuesday.

Watch PTI Video:

A bomb squad arrived at Patiala House Court to conduct checks after the court received bomb threat mail on Tuesday, news agency PTI reported.

Watch:

Advocate Anil Basoya, Honorary Secretary of the Saket District Court on Tuesday issued a notice to all the members suspending court work for the next two hours, citing a security issue.

Basoya said that the court proceedings will resume post-lunch, after receiving clearance.

The notice stated, "R/Member, court work is suspended for next 2 hrs due to a security issue. Proceedings resume after lunch once cleared. Stay calm, cooperate & avoid crowding."

The Saket District Court was vacated on Tuesday after it received bomb threat mails.

Watch:

A disturbing video recorded by Red Fort blast accused Umar un Nabi has surfaced, revealing the doctor-turned-terrorist attempting to justify suicide bombing.

In the footage, Umar argues that such acts are misunderstood and should be seen as “martyrdom operations” in Islam.

He claims that a martyrdom mission is when a person willingly accepts they will die at a specific place and time. This video was recorded shortly before the November 10 high-intensity blast near Delhi’s Red Fort.

Three court complexes in Delhi, including the Saket District Court and the Patiala House Court, were vacated on Tuesday after they received bomb threat mails.

Two CRPF schools, one in Dwarka, and another in Prashant Vihar also received the bomb threat emails.

Stay tuned as we share the latest updates!

Locally known as “Maulana’s building”, the structure at Kayastha Mohalla in Madhya Pradesh’s Mhow is the ancestral home of the Siddiqui family, once respected residents who held sway in the small cantonment town near Indore until a couple of decades ago.

The family patriarch, Mohammad Hammad Siddiqui, served as the Qazi in Mhow, a position of religious authority and respect. However, the family has now come under increased scrutiny from law enforcement agencies due to its connection with Al Falah University.

Hammad Siddiqui’s son, Javed Ahmed Siddiqui, is the founder and chairman of Al Falah University. Javed has now been summoned by the Delhi Police Crime Branch in connection with alleged fraud and irregularities flagged by the University Grants Commission (UGC) and National Assessment and Accreditation Council (NAAC).

Read the full story here.

Most MBBS students at Al Falah Medical College in Faridabad’s Dhauj did not have any real interaction with Dr Muzammil Ganai, a junior resident doctor working in the emergency wing of the institute, who was arrested on October 30 after J&K Police linked him to “interstate and transnational terror module”.

"He was a JR doctor in the emergency wing, so never came to teach us. We learnt about him after hearing the news of his arrest,” said a third-year MBBS student at the college.

“Even his alleged associates (Dr Shaheen Ansari and Dr Umar Nabi) were not known to many in the college. We are worried about our job prospects after graduation. Who will want to hire after these arrests,” said the 21-year-old.

Read more about Al Falah and the concerns of students currently studying there.

The air quality index (AQI) in Gurgaon at 7 AM on Tuesday was 411, while in Faridabad, it was way higher at 443.

Meerut recorded the same AQI (443).

The AQI in Ghaziabad, Greater Noida, and Noida were alarmingly high at 554, 558, and 469, respectively.

The air quality in Delhi-NCR refuses to improve, with the air quality index (AQI) remaining well above safe levels on November 18. The AQI at 7 AM on Tuesday read 446 on aqi.in.

This is equivalent to smoking nearly 10 cigarettes a day.

Bawana recorded the highest AQI of 419, followed by Jahangirpuri with an 414, as per the EWS.

Check out the list below of areas recording the highest AQI today:

Bawana - 419

Jahangirpuri - 414

Wazirpur – 410

Vivek Vihar – 396

Narela – 387

Rohini – 384

Anand Vihar – 382

Nehru Nagar – 381

Ashok Vihar – 381

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) is conducting raids at the office of Al-Falah University in Delhi’s Okhla as part of its investigation into a terror module linked to Faridabad and the recent blast near the Red Fort.

“In a coordinated enforcement operation at 5.15 am today, officials executed search actions at over 25 premises connected to the Al-Falah group, in Delhi and NCR. The operation forms part of an ongoing investigation into financial irregularities, use of shell companies, accommodation entities and money laundering,” a source told The Indian Express.

Initial investigation has revealed that there are nine shell companies linked to the group, all are registered at a single address, and they are under examination.

Read more here.

After the explosion outside the Red Fort on November 10, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) is conducting raids at the office of Al-Falah University, its trustees, and related persons/entities in Delhi’s Okhla area since 5 am on Tuesday.

Umar Nabi, who drove the i20 car that exploded near the Red Fort on November 10, was employed as an assistant professor in the general medicine department of the University in Faridabad.

Visuals from outside the Okhla office of Al Falah University:

After the explosion outside the Red Fort on November 10, one more patient succumbed to injuries at the Lok Nayak hospital. The deceased Vinay Pathak (50) was on ventilator at the hospital.

A month after a Delhi University professor was allegedly slapped by Deepika Jha, the Delhi University Students’ Union (DUSU) Joint Secretary and an Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) leader, the varsity has barred her from entering any college campuses in her capacity as a student leader for two months, senior officials told The Indian Express on Sunday.

The decision follows an altercation on October 16 at Dr Bhim Rao Ambedkar College, where Jha allegedly slapped Professor Sujit Kumar, a faculty member and convener of the college’s disciplinary committee, during a meeting inside the Principal’s office.

A senior university official said the panel formed to look into the matter had initially recommended a three‑month suspension. “The administration decided that after two months of suspension, there would be a review of her behaviour,” the official said.

Read more

As Delhi’s air quality index (AQI) continues to hover between the ‘Severe’ and ‘Very Poor’ categories, residents are increasingly turning to quick fixes in the form of wearable air purifiers.

An AQI of 301–400 is classified as ‘very poor’, while 401–500 falls into the ‘severe’ category. According to the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB), prolonged exposure to very poor air may cause respiratory illness, particularly among those with lung and heart disease. At severe levels, even healthy individuals may experience respiratory impacts, while vulnerable groups face serious health risks.

Although not as widely adopted as masks, wearable air purifiers are gradually finding more takers in the Capital. Last year, senior Congress MP Shashi Tharoor, a long-time user of such devices, highlighted their cost-effectiveness and sleek design. Against this backdrop, it is worth examining how this technology works and whether it is truly feasible.

Read more