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Kochi, Feb 11 (IANS) The Kerala High Court on Wednesday refused to close the habeas corpus petition filed in connection with the disappearance and death of Suraj Lama, an Indian citizen deported from Kuwait.

A division bench of Justice Devan Ramachandran and Justice M.B. Snehalatha directed the Special Investigation Team (SIT) to continue its probe.

The court said the entire sequence of events, from Lama’s arrival in India to the recovery of his body, must be examined and properly documented.

Lama was deported from Kuwait and sent to Kochi under official orders.

The court noted that he appeared vulnerable and may have had cognitive or other impairments. Despite this, he was cleared by immigration and airport authorities and allowed to leave the airport without assistance.

After a missing complaint was filed, police took him into protective custody and admitted him to Kalamassery Medical College Hospital.

He was later discharged as doctors reportedly found no apparent medical issues.

Subsequently, a body was recovered from Kalamassery.

A forensic report confirmed it was Lama.

The Government Pleader informed the court that an interim post-mortem report dated December 1, 2025, stated that the cause of death could not be determined due to advanced decomposition.

The court observed that the case remains “wide open” as the cause of death is still unknown.

It said the petition cannot be closed merely because the body has been identified.

The bench directed the investigating officer to produce the missing case file and the post-mortem report.

It also asked the SIT, led by the City Police Commissioner or an officer of equivalent rank, to continue the investigation.

The court noted allegations of lapses at multiple stages, including immigration clearance, police handling, and medical care.

It also recorded the petitioner’s claim that the possibility of murder cannot be ruled out.

“We are not investigating the murder. We are investigating the sequence until the body was found,” the court clarified.

The matter has been posted for hearing after three weeks.

–IANS

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Bhopal/Ujjain, April 9 (IANS) A tense rescue operation is underway in Jhalariya village of Badnagar, Ujjain district, after a three-year-old child fell into a borewell and became trapped at a depth of nearly 60 feet.​

The incident occurred when the child, identified as Bhagirath, who had arrived in the area with his family three days earlier to graze sheep, accidentally slipped into the uncovered borewell.​

Upon receiving information, the administration immediately mobilised resources. The child, Bhagirath (3), is the son of Praveen Dewasi, a resident of Guranala (District Pali, Rajasthan). ​

The family had been camping in the area for the past three days to graze their sheep. While playing, the child accidentally fell into an open borehole on Paldoona Road.​

A camera has been lowered into the borehole to maintain continuous surveillance of the child, and efforts are underway to establish contact with him. Local villagers are also extending their cooperation in the rescue operation.​

Senior officials, including the Sub-Divisional Magistrate, Sub-Divisional Officer of Police, and Station House Officer, reached the site, accompanied by police and rescue teams. Collector Roshan Kumar Singh and Superintendent of Police Pradeep Sharma also rushed to the location to oversee the operation.​

Specialised rescue teams are working continuously, deploying equipment to ensure the child’s safe retrieval. A parallel pit is being dug alongside the borewell to reach the child without causing further risk.​

The incident has shaken the entire village, with large crowds gathering at the site. Villagers are offering prayers and extending support to the rescue teams. Authorities have inserted a camera into the borehole to monitor the child’s condition and attempt communication.​

While the child’s exact health status has not yet been officially confirmed, officials remain hopeful and are taking every precaution to ensure safety. Collector Singh stated that the rescue is being conducted with utmost care, given the depth and confined space of the borewell. ​

He emphasised that specialised equipment is being used to minimise risks during the operation.​

The administration has assured that all possible measures are being taken to save the child.

The incident highlights ongoing concerns about open borewells in rural areas, which continue to pose dangers to children. ​

Despite repeated advisories, uncovered borewells remain a hazard in several regions. The current operation in Jhalariya underscores the urgent need for stricter enforcement of safety measures to prevent such tragedies.​

As the rescue progresses rapidly, the entire community waits anxiously for positive news. The administration’s swift response and the coordinated efforts of police, rescue teams, and villagers reflect the collective determination to save young Bhagirath.​

–IANS

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New Delhi, April 13 (IANS) West Bengal Chief Minister and Trinamool Congress Chairperson Mamata Banerjee alleged on Sunday that the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) was contemplating covert means for usurping power as the state goes to Assembly elections in two phases later this month.

Significantly, she chose to air the assertion in her rallies across Bankura, Purba and Paschim Bardhaman districts, where she also claimed that the BJP is planning “a third Partition of Bengal”. Such allegations of a possible “division” have been raised earlier, too, even during the 2024 Lok Sabha election. These charges mostly come from political opponents, seeing the BJP’s results in the North and the western parts of the state. Almost half of the 12 seats that the BJP won in West Bengal in 2024 were from these areas.

Bankura district is situated in the western part of West Bengal. Further West, and southwest, touching the borders of Bihar, Jharkhand, and Odisha are Paschim Bardhaman, Purulia, Jhargram, and Purba and Paschim Medinipur. Many parts of these districts lie in the “Rarh Bengal” region, which was narrated as one “planned part”, apart from allegedly dividing the state into North and South.

The BJP had won several of the Lok Sabha seats in the region in the 2019 Parliamentary election, also scoring well in many of the Assembly segments in the 2021 Assembly polls. However, the Trinamool wrested some of the Lok Sabha seats in 2024.

Now, Mamata has revived the “partition” charge. Stirring the Bengali Asmita, she further stated that parts of the state may also be merged with Bihar or Odisha, “where Bengalis would be targeted”.

Bankura Lok Sabha constituency has six Assembly segments in Bankura district, while one comes in Purulia. In 2019, the BJP wrested the seat from the Trinamool by a margin of over 1.74 lakh votes. But it lost the seat to the ruling party in 2024 by less than 33,000 votes. In the 2021 Assembly election, the BJP won four of the seven segments here, while in the 2024 Parliamentary poll, it could lead in only one – that of Bankura Vidhan Sabha seat.

The Parliamentary constituency of Bardhaman-Durgapur is spread across both the Purba and Paschim Burdwan districts, where in 2019, BJP’s S. S. Ahluwalia defeated the sitting Trinamool MP in a close contest. In the subsequent Lok Sabha polls of 2024, however, Trinamool’s cricketer-candidate Kirti Azad won the seat with a convincing margin. Among the seven Assembly seats within this Lok Sabha constituency, the Trinamool held its lead in all but one seat. The BJP had managed a win in the Durgapur Paschim segment in 2021, where it retained its lead in 2024.

Asansol Lok Sabha constituency, where all the seven Assembly segments are in Paschim Bardhaman district, went to Babul Supriyo – then with the BJP – both in 2014 and 2019. He subsequently defected to the Trinamool Congress. In 2024, cine star Shatrughan Sinha won the seat for the state’s ruling party. But the BJP managed to keep its lead in two of the seven Assembly segments in 2014, where it had won the 2021 state poll. It also managed to retain the Purulia Lok Sabha seat in the 2024 poll, but lost its margin of victory significantly. Among the seven Assembly seats here, while the BJP had secured four in the 2021 Vidhan Sabha poll, the lead fell to three in the 2024 Parliamentary election. The BJP also lost the Jhargram Lok Sabha seat, after winning in 2019. The Trinamool swept the seven Vidhan Sabha segments in 2021, maintaining the lead in the Parliamentary poll as well.

The result was almost similar in the Medinipur Parliamentary constituency, where six of the seven Assembly segments are in Paschim Medinipur district and one in Purba Medinipur. However, among the seven Assembly seats here, while the BJP could win only one in 2021, it managed to lead in two during the Parliamentary poll.

Kanthi Lok Sabha constituency has all its seven Assembly segments in Purba Medinipur, where Soumendu Adhikari of the BJP won in 2024. While in 2021, the BJP won four of the seven Assembly segments, in the 2024 Parliamentary poll, it extended the lead to six seats.

Assembly elections will be held in West Bengal on April 23 and 29, and results are scheduled for May 4.

–IANS

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