Around 1.30 am, a team of police officers from Mira Road arrested Nizamuddin Ansari, the suspect in the murder of his elder brother on Saturday.

According to officials, Nizamuddin was trailed and nabbed through his phone records. "We rushed to the spot after we received a call at 2.30 pm on Saturday and saw Mustafa Ansari's body lying in a pool of blood," said Senior Inspector Avinash Sawant.

Officials told MiD DAY that Mustafa had entered his store in Poonam Building to meet his younger brother around 11.30 am on Saturday.

Anand Gopal, who is one of the eyewitnesses, provided the police with a sketch of Nizamuddin, said API Ravi Adhane.

The police have run a background check and it has been exposed that Nizamuddin was having an illicit relationship.

The police also claim that the motive for the murder could be a love affair. The police are also questioning the family members. 
 

(malathi)

Top model's rakhi brother provides fresh leads in the case; has shared her FB messages with Khar police

It appears that Viveka Babajee's demise may never die out from public memory. In a new twist to the story, a month-and-a-half after the supermodel was found dead in her Khar apartment on June 25, Jonaid Bin Tajuddin Mohammed, whom Viveka called her brother alleges that her boyfriend could somehow be involved in her death, or might know more than he was willing to reveal.

Jonaid Bin Tajuddin Mohammed  has opened a can of worms when he sent a letter to the Khar police last week about the emails and messages that he shared with Babajee about her life, Gautam Vora and work. In his letter, he alleges that Babajee was in depression because of Vora.

Jonaid told MiD DAY that he had met Babajee a year back at an event and became close friends. Jonaid said, she added me as a friend on Facebook. "We developed a brother-sister relationship."

When MiD DAY asked Jonaid about his allegations, he said, "Gautam Vora is the one who committed foul play. First he broke up saying that her family was not accepting him and then tried to patch things up. I have her messages and mails to prove it." Confirming the news of the breakthrough in the case, senior police inspector Mangesh Kote of the Khar Police station, said, "We have received Jonaid's letter. We are looking into the matter, but we cannot comment. He has provided us with details about their conversations on email."

Investigating sources believe that Jonaid's letter will be an important piece of evidence. However, when asked about the delay, they explained that Jonaid was unable to get in touch with Babajee's family resulting in the holdup.

Reacting to the new development in the case, Dale Bhagwagar, acting as the spokesperson for Viveka's family, said, "Jonaid, who considered Viveka his sister, had a few pointers to make about the case. Since these were pertaining to discussions, which he had with Viveka regarding her ex-boyfriend Gautam Vora, and a couple of new facts relating to the case, the family requested him to file the details with Khar Police Station. His office has informed us by email that he has duly filed these details through his lawyer here."

Timeline
In the letter that Jonaid has submitted to the police, he mentions the messages that he shared with Babajee a few months before her demise. MiD DAY provides you with a timeline of the incidents leading up to her demise. On May 27, Vora and Babajee had a fight, as her family did not approve of their relationship. Later on June 3, he sent her a message on Facebook to be friends and rekindled their romance.

On June 17, they had another fight and broke up for the second time. According to Jonaid, Vora kept saying that Babajee did not love him, which disturbed her. Jonaid claims that at this point of time, Babajee was receiving illicit messages and prank calls. 

Jonaid said that on June 18 at 2.30 pm he received a message on Facebook from Babajee. It read, "How can I not be moody Jonaid, I am getting mails with illicit language in it, crank calls and they are trying to ruin my reputation and I have a boyfriend who does not believe me. BULLCRAP I am sick and tired of this."

On June 24, a day before Babajee's demise, Babajee spoke to Jonaid about her work and nothing else. "I know something was troubling her but she did not say anything to me," he said. 
 

(malathi)

Model who accused two senior citizens of rape in February says they want to murder her now; duo refutes charge

 
Six months after she accused two senior citizens of raping her, an aspiring actress has lodged a police complaint that her alleged rapists are threatening to kill her.

The model-cum-actress, Anara Sharma (name changed), had in February accused the two businessmen, Umesh Reshamwala (60) and Sayyed Alim (63), of raping her under the pretext of helping her in her career.

After Sharma lodged a complaint at Oshiwara police station in February, the two were arrested on charges of rape and released on bail three months ago. In her complaint, Sharma had alleged the two accused warned her from going to the police as they claimed to have a CD showing explicit pictures of her.

Death threat
Sharma, who hails from Kanpur, said she had met the duo in Mumbai where she wanted to try her luck at modelling and films. That's when they promised her a role in films, and allegedly exploited her sexually and filmed the act. Subsequently, Sharma shifted to Bangur Nagar in Goregaon (west).

 
"I was living peacefully until a few days ago when the two men landed at my door and threatened to kill me," said Sharma. "They said they would get back at me as I had implicated them falsely."

She claimed the two men often sent their goons to threaten her into taking back her complaint.

"Yesterday, I handed over a letter to the police, seeking security," said Sharma.

Senior Police Inspector of Bangur Nagar police station, Maruti Telang, confirmed having received the letter.

"The matter is being investigated. We may arrest them."

(malathi)

In a freak incident at a Budhwar Peth brothel, a young man died while having sex.

 Brothel death: Manpasant building in Budhwar Peth, where a man died while with a sex worker. 
The man was identified as Sharad Sable (25), a student from Beed. He was visiting his cousin in the city, and was at the brothel in Manpasant building with his friends on Wednesday evening.

Budhwar Peth is the red light district of the city, and Manpasant building houses one of the more sought-after brothels there.

Doctors called in
Two doctors were called in by the manager of the brothel around 5.30 pm. The frantic brothel manager also called Seema Waghmode, who runs an NGO clinic in that area.

Waghmode and the two doctors confirmed to MiD DAY that the man had died while having sex.

Dr Ravindra Sonar from the NGO Kayakalp was the first to reach the brothel to attend to Sable.

"I rushed there, and I saw Sable lying flat on the floor. He was surrounded by friends. I checked him and was unable to get his pulse," said Sonar. "I tried to give him mouth-to-mouth artificial resuscitation and cardiac massage, but couldn't get a pulse even after repeated efforts. We called for an ambulance from a hospital, which arrived within 25 minutes."

Alcohol-fuelled day
He added that the friends who had accompanied Sable to the brothel told him that the deceased had not eaten anything since morning and had consumed a lot of alcohol.

"The brothel room where we found him was on the fourth floor, so he might have got stressed while climbing the stairs. I don't know if he was suffering from any other health complications, but sex workers here said he was a regular," said Sonar.

An accidental death report was filed by the Faraskhana police station.

"Cases of people dying while having sex are not uncommon. Such cases do take place, but are rarely reported," said Sonar.

Senior Police Inspector Venkat Gangalwad of the Faraskhana police station said he had heard of similar deaths in the past, but Sable's was the first such in a year.

"Sable had come to Pune to meet his cousin and then the two decided to visit a brothel," said Gangalwad. "In the past one year, this is the first time such an incident has been reported. But officers working in this area told me two to three incidents like this have happened in the past."

No cause of death yet
Sable's body was claimed by relatives after the post-mortem. The post-mortem report said the cause of death could not be ascertained and that Sable's viscera had been sent 
 

(malathi) 

An Indian taxi driver says police just smiled as they listened to his passengers racially abusing him outside a police station in Australia.

Gurpreet Singh Ashreja, 29, said he drove to Chelsea police station for support after his passengers refused to pay $47 in fares. But he received a loud dressing down and a lecture about use of the 'f-word', The Age reported.

"I have no doubt that I was discriminated against because of my race," Ashreja said.

He took the six passengers to the station on the advice of the cab company, hoping to get the rest of his fare.

Police had been alerted and were waiting for him outside, but one officer allegedly told him it was a civil matter and police only dealt with criminal matters.

He said he was also ridiculed for not wearing the proper taxi uniform, which the fare evaders thought was funny.

Ashreja said one officer then shouted at him about the way he had parked his cab.

The passengers got out of the cab and started shouting: "You f------ Indian bastard, go back to your own country, you c---", he said. The policeman was "watching this and I could see a smile on his face".

Police are investigating the incident.

(malathi)

A folk hero in digital times, JetBlue flight attendant Steven Slater has been thoroughly embraced by the Web. Not only have news stories about his meltdown on a plane from Pittsburgh to New York City been exceptionally popular on the Internet, but he's been feted in all manner of online tribute.

Even JetBlue Airways Corp wryly noted on its blog post yesterday that many people reacted: "Like, the entire Internet." Slater has consistently ranked as one of the most popular topics on Twitter and has birthed a small cottage industry of Facebook pages, with titles such as 'Free Steven Slater' and "I Support Steven Slater."

One group, dubbed the "Steven Slater Legal Defence Fund," is seeking to raise money for the airline veteran. More than 650 people are members of the group, which was founded by Gary Baumgardner, a pilot who pledges transparency in donating all the collections to Slater. He said he had raised more than USD 1,500 as of early yesterday.

Slater, 38, is accused of cursing out a passenger over the intercom after his plane landed Monday at John F Kennedy International Airport, grabbing some beer and exiting on the plane's emergency slide. He was arrested and jailed before being freed on bail. A defence attorney says Slater didn't put anyone in danger.

The website Free Steve Slater has been launched in support of Slater. It introduces itself: "Steve! This page is for you! Get in touch and let us know what you want to do with it!" One of the trends on Twitter has been to imagine T-shirts dedicated to Slater's audacious escape.

Film critic Roger Ebert was among those churning out ideas, including: "Front: 'I may be under arrest...' Back: 'But I got two free beers out of it.'" Actual T-shirts were already for sale online, though with the more simple "Free Steven Slater" printed on them.

On eBay, luggage tags reading "Steve Slater: An American hero" were for sale, as was a painting of Slater holding a prison number, which was going for USD 355 as of last 
 

(malathi)

Media coverage encourages tormentors, who stabbed two helpless youth with screwdrivers, poured hot tea and rubbed chilli powder on their wounds

Even as the media glorification of public brutality is increasing alarmingly, a mob tortured two mental patients, mistaking them for thieves, near the city yesterday.

Shivagangiah (42) and Saravana (40) are mental patients from Sri Satya Sai Ashram near Sunkada Katte off Magadi Road and reportedly strayed from the asylum to Kempanahalli, a village near Bidadi, a 30-minute drive from the city.

 Locals thrash two mentally unstable men terming them as thieves. On seeing media crew, the mob turned even more violent, and started poking them with screwdrivers
 

Theft of vehicle parts in this area has been rampant, and when the duo turned up at 4 am, vehicle owners, mostly truck drivers, mistook Shivagangiah and Saravana for thieves. Onlookers, along with drivers, brutally attacked the duo, after tipping off local TV channels.

TV channel crews promptly arrived at 5 am. By then, the mob had tied the duo before stripping them, and was beating them with iron rods and metal wires.

Encouraged by the cameras around them, the mob turned even more violent, and started poking them with screwdrivers. While a man poured hot tea on them, another rubbed chilly powder on the bruises.

This went on till 8.30 am, when a news channel started airing the visuals as 'breaking news' with headlines screaming 'Vahana Kallarige Bittu Goosa' (nice thrashing for the vehicle thieves).

Disturbed by the brutal images on TV, a civilian group went to the spot with an ambulance to take the mental patients to hospital. However, the mob protested saying they were thieves, and they must be punished.
 
Finally, the police arrived at 9.30 am. Saravana was taken to hospital, while Shivagangiah's family members took him home.

"I am shocked to see the channel reporters busy in sensationalising the matter, rather than protecting the victims," said Manjula, Shivagangiah's wife.
 
"One could easily tell that they were mentally ill, and I can't understand how anyone could think of them as thieves."

"While Saravana just uttered his name repeatedly, when we asked him where he was from, Shivagangiah kept mum," said Chandrashekar, who took the ambulance to the spot.

"However, there was nothing on them to indicate that they were thieves."

In his defence, a TV reporter who covered the incident, said that he was not proud of what he had done, but was only following instructions from his office.

"I know it was brutal. But, I was asked to do it that way and so I could not avoid it," he added.

Taking cognisance of the TV media reports, the Bidadi police registered a case against 12 miscreants.

However, none of them could be arrested as they are now absconding. Since last July, there have been 10 such cases, but this is the first time a case has been registered.

"My main concern is the TV channels which indulge in glorifying such incidents," said H Dharmendra, circle inspector, Bidadi Police Station. "We can only request them not to do so. Beyond that, we are helpless."

Another Incident
people thrashed a bridegroom, who was allegedly marrying for the second time, in Chikkamagalur yesterday, before he was handed over to the police. As usual TV channels were tipped off and the visuals were aired throughout the day and the story said the public rightly punished the cheat.

Inhuman
S R Nayak, chairman, Karnataka State Human Rights Commission, said, "While it is a crime to take law into one's hands, it is a violation of the human rights to air the news that way. However, the media has to be self restraint in this regard, as I believe media should not be regulated for any reason." 
 

(malathi)

Often roughed up by big-bodied Nigerian fraudsters during arrests, Mumbai and Thane police hire 100 bodybuilders for the job

Even the cops don't dare to step into the den of Nigerian thugs. Unable to match the muscle power of these big-bodied Africans, many of who are involved in e-mail scams or drug peddling cases, the police are now turning to local bodybuilders and bouncers for protection.

The Mumbai and Thane police have developed a network of around 100 such well-built men to tackle Nigerian offenders. 

In a recent case on Saturday, the Thane rural police raided nondescript localities in Mira Road and Nalasopara and picked up 15 foreign nationals. This of course with a team of 20 bodybuilders and 20 policemen.

"We have recently arrested 15 Nigerians involved in illegal activities. However, this would not have been possible without the help of the bodybuilders. These hefty and violent ruffians don't hesitate to attack the police," said Nagnath Sampatvad, deputy superintendent of police, Thane.

"It becomes difficult to tackle them without someone who can match their power. In such cases, local bodybuilders and bouncers come to our rescue," he admitted.

Tough luck
Police officials confess that their early attempts to nab Nigerian suspects have failed. "We had several bitter experiences. Many a times, we have reached the spot to catch these goondas red-handed, but have failed. They are strong and many of our officials are no match for them," said a police officer, requesting anonymity.

In fact, the cops now plan the arrests well in advance. In an incident earlier this week, a manager of a coffee shop was assaulted by an African. The police have a tip-off that he is a resident of Moti Nagar in Mira Road, which is popularly known as Nigerianwadi among police circles. However, they have not gone ahead and made the arrest.    

"We have seized the mobile phone of the suspect and have even tracked him down. But now we are looking out for bodybuilders. We will take at least four of them along with us to ensure that the offender does not give us a slip," said Suresh Nalavde, senior police inspector, Versova police station.

Quick buck
But what is in it for these bodybuilders? They often get injured during the operation, but many don't mind bearing the pain, as they feel it's a quick way to make some big bucks. "We get paid Rs 500 per day, so a little bruises here and there do not hurt," said one bodybuilder from Nalasopara, who has helped the local police in a few arrests.

Brian Coria (27), who lives near Nigerianwadi, has been part of the cops' network for almost a year now.

Though he is not a bodybuilder, Coria is well built and a helpful hand for the cops. "Wherever there is a raid, we get a call from the cops. We help in arresting the suspects and taking them to the chowky. Sometimes, we are called to take them to court as well," he said.

"Fighting the Africans is no cakewalk, as they are very aggressive. We often get beaten up, but by helping the police we are serving the society," he added.      
 

(malathi)

Hair stuffed into nylon stockings to make a boom may be the answer to mop up the oil spill off Mumbai's coast

Next time you get a hair cut, you may actually be helping to save the environment.

The state government is considering using the 'hair boom' technique to mop up the oil spill in the Arabian sea.
The technique of using hair stuffed into nylon stockings to form a hair boom is one of the most efficient ways of clearing up oil spills ” something that has been used in the recent Gulf of Mexico oil spill and in the 2006 spill in the Philippines. Human hair is porous, and oil seeps into its outer layer. It is also biodegradable; therefore, it is one of the safest cleaning solutions to an oil spill.

The state government had a meeting yesterday to discuss ways to soak up the gallons of oil floating in the sea and the 'hair remedy' was discussed there.

Environment department secretary Varsha Nair Singh said, "This is the best remedy to soak up the oil and is feasible too. This was discussed at the meeting as one of the ways to bring the situation under control."  An environmental group Matter of Trust, a San Francisco-based nonprofit environmental organisation had collected hair from 30 countries as part of an effort to clean up the massive oil spill triggered by the explosion of the Deepwater Horizon rig in the Gulf of Mexico. "We have provided the details of the organisation to the ministry, so that they can get in touch with them for the hair nylon stocking. It can even be done here, as it is feasible," Singh added.

A D Saraf, water pollution abetment engineer and regional coordination officer of Maharashtra Pollution Control Board said, "We know about the hair mats used in the Mexico oil spill. It is very feasible here too and also not costly."

The San Francisco organisation had called for hair donations to stuff hair booms, which were sent to the Gulf to help clean up beaches and wetlands affected by the massive oil spill. Booms consisting of nylons filled with hair and feathers have been shown to safely and effectively soak up oil in past ocean spills and could be of a great help to Mumbai, if the government acted upon it.

How it started
The hair as an oil absorbent concept was first popularised in 1989 when Phillip McCrory, a Madison, Alabama hairdresser, experimented with human hair as an oil sponge after watching volunteers on TV attempt to clean oil from the fur of sea otters following the Exxon Valdez oil spill. He filled an old pair of nylon stockings with five pounds of hair and used them to soak up a mock oil spill he created in his son's plastic pool.

 After seeing the results the water was clear within minutes. This idea was later expanded on by NASA and has been acknowledged as a means of cleanup technology by the Geophysical Institute at the University of Alaska Fairbanks.

2 lakh, Kg of hair that has been sent to the Gulf Coast
370,000, number of hair salons who sent  hair to mop up the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico 
 

(malathi)

A campaign to boycott autorickshaws and taxis to protest arbitrary fares charged by their drivers virtually failed on Thursday because many commuters said they were dependent on them.

Although Mumbaikars had lent their full support to the campaign launched by three advertising professionals, those who don't own vehicles went for taxis and autos so as to reach their destination.

 
Students participate in Meter Jam campaign in Malad on Thursday.

"The queues for buses were very long and I cannot afford to reach office late. I had to take a rickshaw to work," said communications professional Khantil Shah.

July B, a finance professional, agreed. "I might take a bus in the evening. But I cannot afford to do this in the morning and get delayed."

But with drivers continuing to overcharge, there were heated rows between the drivers and commuters.

Those registered with the organisers of the 'Meter Jam' campaign offered a ride to others.

Many walked short distances or take a bus.

"I generally take an auto as my workplace is only three kilometers away from my residence. Today I left early and took a bus. This is the least I could do to support the campaign," said Arindam Biswas.

Advertising professionals Jaidev Rupani, Rachna Brar and Abhilash Krishnan launched the campaign last week through social networking websites. They asked people to use car pools and also provided information on various bus routes and alternative means of transport to boycott taxis and autos.
 

(malathi)