Latest news with #PratibhaMSingh
Time of India
a day ago
- Time of India
Delhi High Court grants interim bail to convict in POCSO case due to father's death
New Delhi: Delhi High Court granted two weeks' interim bail to a woman convict, sentenced to 25 years of rigorous imprisonment in a POCSO case, on the grounds of her father's death. The vacation bench of Justice Pratibha M Singh heard the plea of the convict, a former security guard at a private hospital in southeast Delhi, who was sentenced under various provisions of the POCSO Act. On June 18, the court noted that she was convicted of aggravated penetrative sexual assault, abetment, and failure to report or record the offence, and was subsequently awarded the sentence. The court also imposed other conditions, such as the convict only visiting her village residence, reporting daily at the police station concerned, keeping her mobile number operational at all times, and surrendering after two weeks.
Time of India
4 days ago
- Time of India
UK dowry death case: Delhi HC refuses relief to accused, calls for full hearing; man declared proclaimed offender
Representative image NEW DELHI: A man accused of murdering his wife in London was denied interim relief by the Delhi high court, where he challenged a lower court order declaring him a proclaimed offender (PO). The high court has listed the matter for hearing on July 15. The case involved alleged cruelty and dowry death of the accused's wife in the UK. He fled the UK and was last seen in Gurugram, according to news agency ANI. Justice Pratibha M Singh, refusing to stay the PO order, said that the issue required proper consideration and was not suitable for a vacation bench. "Deceased stated to have died under mysterious circumstances in the UK. This would require considerations. If the petitioner is arrested, his legal remedies can be availed," she said. The accused had approached the high court claiming that due procedure was not followed before declaring him a PO. His counsel, advocate Varun Deswal, argued that no notice under Section 41A (appearance before the police) was ever issued. The man was declared a PO on May 1. The public prosecutor (PP) opposed the plea and submitted a confidential report from the UK Interpol detailing the circumstances of the case. Justice Singh, after reviewing the report, questioned the urgency of the matter and said, "What is the urgency? This is a PO case." The counsel for the accused argued that the man could be arrested at any time and that his properties were at risk of attachment. In response, the PP said the accused should surrender, go to jail, and then apply for bail. Delhi Police had arrested the accused's parents on March 14. One parent is currently on bail while the other remains in custody. A Look Out Circular had earlier been issued against the petitioner. An FIR in the case was registered on December 3, 2024, at Palam Village Police Station under IPC Sections 498A, 406, and 34, along with Sections 85, 316, and 3(5) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2025. The section related to dowry death was added later by Delhi Police.
Hindustan Times
5 days ago
- Politics
- Hindustan Times
HC seeks timeline for foot overbridge at Rajputana Rifles base
The Delhi high court on Wednesday called for a final plan for the construction of a foot overbridge (FOB) for the Rajputana Rifles, the oldest rifle regiment of the Indian Army located in Delhi Cantonment, and directed the agencies concerned to hold a joint meeting next month in this regard. A division bench of justices Pratibha M Singh and Manmeet Arora was presiding over the case, which was initiated suo motu after the court took cognisance of a report published by HT last month. The report highlighted the ordeal of over 3,000 soldiers of the regiment who were forced to march through a smelly culvert — which overflows during rains — four times a day to head to their parade ground as authorities failed to build an FOB. The bench directed the stakeholders — Public Works Department, Delhi Cantonment Board and the Delhi Traffic Police — to hold a joint meeting in July to brainstorm an immediate solution for the construction of a bridge for the convenience of the soldiers. 'Let a plan be finalised for the construction of the FOB and a report be submitted on the budget, design and timeline of its construction,' the bench said. It added that the cost of the construction shall be borne by PWD, after noting that a plan to construct a bridge was approved several years back, but no action had been taken yet. The bench further took note of a status report submitted by the deputy commissioner of police (New Delhi) of Delhi Traffic Police, which suggested the construction of a Bailey Bridge as a short-term measure. The report stated that such a bridge was constructed by the Indian Army's 'Madras Sappers' during the 2010 Commonwealth Games near the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium. A Bailey bridge is a strong, modular structure, the parts of which can be assembled or moved when needed. To this, the bench ordered that the construction of such a bridge shall also be discussed in the joint meeting, as a temporary measure before an FOB is constructed. The court meanwhile, till the time a final report on the FOB's construction is submitted, directed authorities to ensure that there was no waterlogging at the said culvert so that soldiers could smoothly move towards the parade ground. 'Authorities should regularly monitor the pumping out of water from the culvert,' the bench said. The Delhi Cantonment Board and PWD, in their status reports, stated that the construction of the FOB will take over 300 days. In the meantime, the culvert is being maintained with a pump to prevent waterlogging, and regular cleaning is being carried out, they stated. The court listed the matter for the second week of July. In an earlier hearing, PWD had told the court that it shall remove debris and garbage from the culvert as a short-term measure until an FOB was constructed. The court had directed the cleaning of the area to be undertaken immediately and photographs be placed before the court on the next date of hearing. PWD had further told the court that the construction of the FOB would take time due to the area's topography, vehicular movement and the metro line. The court had also asked the deputy commissioner of police (traffic) to convene a meeting with senior PWD officials to consider planning a traffic signal or a zebra crossing for the convenience of the soldiers. Taking judicial notice of the news report, the court had called the situation 'unacceptable', noting that as per the report, the soldiers were required to pass through the culvert, which was slick with sludge and flooded with waist-deep water, four times a day. The bench noted that a bridge was requested but never built.
Hindustan Times
31-05-2025
- Politics
- Hindustan Times
Delhi: Until FOB built for Rajputana Rifles Regiment, PWD to clean culvert daily
The Public Works Department (PWD) told the Delhi high court on Friday that it will remove debris and garbage from a culvert used daily by more than 3,000 soldiers of the Rajputana Rifles Regiment on their way to the parade ground as a short-term solution until a foot overbridge is constructed. The court took cognizance of a Hindustan Times report highlighting the unsanitary conditions the soldiers were forced to endure and passed an order on Friday directing PWD to ensure the culvert was cleaned so that soldiers could use it until the FOB was built. The bench, comprising justices Pratibha M Singh and Manmeet PS Arora, observed that the existence of debris and stones will be hazardous for soldiers, especially with monsoons expected to arrive in the coming months, which will make the path muddy and more treacherous. 'While the FOB is designed and built, the engineer in-charge has agreed to get the walking path cleaned with some tiling in the culvert after removal of malba and stones, which could be hazardous. Accordingly, let the cleaning in the area be undertaken forthwith and photographs shall be placed before this bench on June 18 along with the status report,' the court said on Friday. The PWD engineer said that in-principle approval for the long-pending FOB has been given by the PWD sub-committee on Wednesday. He admitted that this construction would take time due to the area's topography, vehicular movement and the metro line. On Thursday, PWD officials had conducted a site visit to decide the FOB's location and said that the same was likely to come up between Delhi's metro pillar numbers 64 and 65 of the Delhi Cantonment Board (DCB) and would not require tree felling permission. In the meantime, PWD proposed to make the path used by the soldiers clean by removing the debris on their route through the culvert. Apprehending the accumulation of mud in the culvert during monsoon, the court also directed PWD to clean the area on a daily basis. 'During monsoon, there is a possibility of a lot of mud being collected in the area. After rains, the maintenance of the area shall be undertaken on a daily basis so that no inconvenience is caused to the movement of the soldiers in the culvert,' the court said. The order was passed in a suo motu plea taking cognizance of HT's report, 'A smelly trail from barracks to grounds: Regiment's daily battle in Delhi,' which had shown how 3,000 soldiers of the Rajputana Rifles, the oldest rifle regiment of the Indian Army, located in the Delhi Cantonment, are forced to march through a culvert four times a day– twice before breakfast and twice after dusk. The report highlighted the failure of the Delhi government to construct the FOB at the spot. During the hearing on Friday, PWD also suggested that traffic signals and a zebra crossing be installed for the soldier's convenience. Considering the suggestion, the court directed the deputy commissioner of police, traffic and PWD to convene a meeting on June 3. The order said, 'The concerned DCP shall consider the feasibility of creating zebra crossing and the traffic signal, in a manner so that the vehicular movement is also not obstructed in any manner and for a limited time only. Let a meeting be conducted with the DCP traffic and Bhushan (PWD engineer) with the nodal officer in the DCB on June 3, at 11am. The DCB shall appoint a nodal officer for all these works.' The matter will next be heard on June 18.
