UK police arrest 55 at parliament rally supporting banned Palestine Action Group
Palestine Action was proscribed following an incident in which members broke into a Royal Air Force base and caused damage to aircraft, protesting Britain's continued support for Israel amid the ongoing conflict in Gaza.Under the new legislation, affiliation with the group can carry a prison sentence of up to 14 years. Since the ban came into effect, police have arrested numerous supporters at rallies across the country.Palestine Action has condemned the ban as 'authoritarian' and is challenging the decision in court, with a hearing scheduled at London's High Court on Monday. The group has consistently targeted UK-based defence and logistics companies linked to Israel since the start of the conflict in Gaza.- EndsMust Watch
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Hindustan Times
15 minutes ago
- Hindustan Times
Drugs trafficked through food delivery-style apps in Delhi; ₹100 cr drugs seized
In one of the biggest international drug busts in recent months, Delhi Police have seized narcotics worth ₹100 crore and arrested five foreign nationals linked to a Nigeria-based cartel that used encrypted apps and food delivery-style drop-offs to push drugs to young consumers in south Delhi. The crackdown began last month when constable Hemant of the crime branch, acting on a specific tipoff, intercepted a suspicious courier parcel from a Moti Nagar facility. (HT Photo) The syndicate, which ran on an encrypted call-centre style network, was led by a Nigerian national identified as Callistus alias Kalis. 'Customers placed orders through encrypted WhatsApp calls to international numbers, deliveries were made by Nigerian nationals living in India, and money was laundered through a hawala-like network that bypassed formal banking channels. It was a complete corporate-style structure,' said Mangesh Kashyap, additional commissioner of police (crime branch). The crackdown began last month when constable Hemant of the crime branch, acting on a specific tipoff, intercepted a suspicious courier parcel from a Moti Nagar facility. Hidden inside packages of Indian suits and shoes was nearly 900 grams of MDMA, meant for export. 'This interception opened the lid on a sprawling international drug network stretching across Australia, the UK, Malaysia, Japan, and New Zealand,' said deputy commissioner of police (crime branch) Harsh Indora. Investigations led police to Kameni Philipp, a 44-year-old Cameroonian national believed to be the India operations head. From his possession, police recovered 2.01kg of high-purity Colombian cocaine, tightly packed in waterproofed brick form. 'Philipp, who had earlier been deported from India, returned using a fake Cameroonian passport arranged by his uncle, Callistus. He had taken over local operations from a man identified as Adore, 53, who was later arrested from Chhatarpur,' Indora said. Police said Philipp revealed how the syndicate operated from Nigeria, issuing instructions to on-ground delivery agents via WhatsApp calls. The couriers — including Koulaie Philipp alias Tall Guy and Kelechi Chikwe alias Victor — wore distinctive clothing such as checked shirts and black helmets, and dropped off consignments at pre-determined locations without ever meeting the buyers. Tall Guy was arrested on June 29. Victor, who entered India illegally in 2011, was arrested on July 10. Police said he rose from street-level peddler to area coordinator, maintained detailed ledgers of drug sales, and managed safe houses where narcotics were stored. From his residence in Kishangarh Village in Delhi, police recovered 185 grams of cocaine, ₹91,500 in cash, forged Aadhaar cards, and notebooks tracing drug sales back to 2019. 'The monthly sales from the Vasant Kunj belt alone fetched them over ₹1 crore,' said a senior police officer, part of the investigation. Victor also led police to another peddler — a namesake — who was subsequently arrested. Police said drug proceeds collected in India were converted into Nigerian currency (Naira) and deposited in overseas accounts. In return, the cartel arranged for equivalent payouts in rupees to relatives of Nigerians living in India, after charging a 3–5% commission. In the past six months alone, transactions worth over 85 crore Naira (approximately ₹76 crore) have been linked to this network. 'This was a completely insulated setup,' Indora said. 'Each person only knew the link before and after them — delivery agents didn't know who they were delivering to or receiving from. That way, even if they were caught, they couldn't compromise the chain.' All five accused are currently in judicial custody. Police said further arrests are likely as the investigation progresses.
Indian Express
an hour ago
- Indian Express
Cops bust work-from-home task scam, trace it to Delhi's ‘crypto queen'
With the arrest of five persons, the Delhi Police on Friday said it has busted a cybercrime syndicate that defrauded a woman of over Rs 17.29 lakh through a bogus online work-from-home task scam. The police identified the accused as Krish, Deepa, Gaurav, Manthan and Nidhi Agarwal, who allegedly operated as a crypto-currency handler. An FIR was registered in the matter on July 2 based on a complaint filed by a 29-year-old woman from Burari, who alleged that she was lured into a fraudulent Telegram-based scheme while searching for jobs. The fraudsters allegedly persuaded her to complete fabricated online 'tasks' and make UPI payments with the promise of commissions. Unbeknownst to her, the accused also misused her credentials to take out personal loans worth Rs 8.8 lakh, police said. Through technical surveillance, digital forensics, and financial transaction analysis, the police said they uncovered a complex laundering trail. The defrauded money was funneled through multiple mule bank accounts, converted into cryptocurrency (USDT Tether), and routed via Telegram-based crypto dealer groups, said police. Raids were carried out at multiple locations across Delhi, leading to the arrest of the five accused. During questioning, the key accused, Krish from Ashok Vihar, emerged as the central link between the victims and the crypto buyers, said police. 'Krish managed the flow of defrauded funds. He admitted to collecting UPI IDs and bank account details from his associates and forwarded the same to crypto-currency buyers through a Telegram-based channel. The funds received in these accounts were either withdrawn in cash or converted into USDT (Tether) crypto-currency through Nidhi Agarwal, who was operating locally by using international communication channels,' said DCP (North) Raja Banthia. The police said that Deepa from Kabir Nagar admitted to sourcing and onboarding bank account holders willing to lend their accounts for money transfers. She also facilitated the physical movement of cash and introduced other members into the operation, including Gaurav from Sangam Park, who served as a middleman between account holders and Krish. Gaurav brought in Manthan, a 19-year-old student from Jharoda village in Burari, who allowed his bank account to receive Rs 50,000 in stolen funds in exchange for a small commission, said police. He allegedly also took part in the physical handover of cash for crypto conversion. All three confirmed that cryptocurrency wallet addresses were shared over WhatsApp, and crypto transactions were handled under Krish's coordination, said police. Nidhi, referred to by the group as the 'Crypto Queen', allegedly played a crucial role in laundering money by converting the stolen funds into USDT. The police said that she admitted to purchasing crypto at wholesale rates from unregulated suppliers and reselling it at a profit. She also allegedly operated via WhatsApp and used international numbers provided by local contacts to evade detection. No official license for currency exchange or crypto trade was found in her possession, said police. 'These disclosures have uncovered a broader conspiracy involving foreign Telegram handlers, unlicensed crypto dealers and digital money laundering channels across national and international platforms. The investigation of this case is in progress and efforts are going on to ascertain the role of other associates involved in this racket and to recover the cheated amount,' said the DCP.
Time of India
an hour ago
- Time of India
SC cancels Rs 295 crore land payout order over bizman's fake claim
Noida: The Supreme Court has struck down a Rs 295-crore compensation award to Hyderabad-based businessman Reddy Veeranna, ruling that the payment was secured through fraudulent claims and a deliberate suppression of facts regarding land ownership in Noida. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now A three-judge bench of Justices Surya Kant, Dipankar Datta, and Ujjal Bhuyan set aside both the Allahabad high court's 2021 order and its own 2022 ruling that had granted enhanced compensation to Veeranna for land acquired in Sector 18. "The impugned order of the High Court dated October 28, 2021 passed in WP (Civil) 2272/2019 [Reddy Veeranna v State of Uttar Pradesh & ors] stands set aside, since fraud has vitiated the entire proceedings. As a corollary to the above, the judgment and order dated May 5, 2022 in Reddy Veerana (supra) (which too was obtained by playing fraud) is declared to be a nullity and stands recalled in exercise of our inherent powers," the court said in its order. The case revolves around over five bighas in Chhalera Banger village, jointly purchased in 1997 by Veeranna, Vishnu Vardhan, and T Sudhakar for Rs 1 crore. In 2005, Noida Authority partially acquired this land and later leased it to DLF for Rs 173 crore. The Mall of India now stands there. While the three co-owners initially contested the Authority's acquisition together, Veeranna subsequently began claiming exclusive ownership. He obtained a compromise decree from a trial court in 2006 — using a revoked power of attorney — which became the basis for recording his name as the sole owner in govt records. In 2019, Veeranna approached the high court, seeking enhanced compensation without making his co-owners party to the case. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now The high court awarded him compensation at Rs 1.1 lakh per sqm. The Supreme Court not just upheld the HC order, but also removed a 50% development charge that had been deducted, raising Veeranna's total entitlement to around 360 crore. The payout eventually settled at 295 crore following discussions with the Authority. The apex court had, however, clarified then that it was not deciding on ownership. Vardhan, who claimed he was not informed about these proceedings, approached the SC in 2023, filing multiple petitions to challenge Veeranna's claim. He asserted that Veeranna had repeatedly misled the HC and SC, relying on an invalid decree procured through manipulation and concealment. In its judgment, the apex court found that Veeranna had consistently identified himself as a joint owner with Vishnu and Sudhakar in earlier proceedings, but abruptly changed his stance in 2019. The bench held that he had suppressed critical facts, including Vishnu's pending civil suit challenging the 2006 decree. "We have no hesitation to hold that Veeranna Reddy tailored a situation to suit his convenience by not impleading Vishnu as a party with the sole intention of obtaining an order in respect of not only the quantum of compensation payable for acquisition of the subject land but also a declaration as to his entitlement thereto — all, behind Vishnu's back. An attempt by Reddy to steal a march over Vishnu is clearly discernible which, without reference to anything more, does border on fraud," the court observed. The case has now been remanded in the high court for a fresh hearing of ownership and compensation with all parties present, including Vishnu and Sudhakar. While Veeranna has retained the compensation amount, he has furnished property securities worth Rs 295 crore through his firm Manyata-Pristine. It will remain deposited with the SC. Given the "magnitude of fraud", the SC has requested the high court chief justice to personally hear the case and conclude it preferably by the end of this year.
