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Seven Indian agents working for Chinese cyber criminals nabbed from Jharkhand

Seven Indian agents working for Chinese cyber criminals nabbed from Jharkhand

RANCHI: In a first such achievement, the Cyber Crime Branch of the Crime Investigation Bureau (CID) in Jharkhand has arrested seven people, who were working as agents for Chinese cyber criminals.
According to an official release by the CID dated July 4, the cyber police station received confidential information that a gang of organised cyber criminals was carrying out fraudulent activities in the name of digital arrest and investment from a hotel in Ranchi. Acting on this information, the Cyber Crime Branch conducted a raid at the hotel and arrested seven cyber criminals, the release said.
'12 mobiles, 11 laptops, 14 ATMs, checkbooks as well as more than 60 chats of WhatsApp and Telegram have been recovered from the arrested cyber criminals,' stated the official communique from the CID.
The Cyber Crime Branch of the CID stated that all the arrested individuals were Indian agents working for Chinese cyber criminals. According to the investigation agency, the arrested cyber criminals used to supply mule bank accounts to Chinese syndicates from different parts of the country. Among those arrested is a special agent who was working for Chinese entities such as Moonpay, Dragonpay, Superpay, and Mangopayindia.
"During the search and interrogation, a significant number of digital evidences have also been seized, including WhatsApp and Telegram chats containing large volumes of bank account details linked to the syndicate,' the statement said.
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The SC collegium, in an extraordinary meeting, proposed Varma's immediate transfer to his parent high court in Allahabad, a clear signal the judiciary was distancing itself from potential Varma's actions, or lack thereof, on his return to Delhi on March 15 would later become central to the case against him. He did not visit the burnt storeroom immediately. He filed no police complaint about what he would later claim was a conspiracy to frame him. He accepted his transfer to the Allahabad HC without protest. To his critics, this behaviour suggested guilt. To his defenders, it reflected the shock and confusion of a man blindsided by events beyond his March 22, CJI Khanna constituted a three-member committee including Justices Sheel Nagu (Chief Justice of Punjab and Haryana HC), G.S. Sandhawalia (Chief Justice of Himachal Pradesh HC) and Anu Sivaraman of the Karnataka HC to conduct an 'inhouse inquiry'. Their 64-page report, submitted on May 3, reads like a judicial indictment. 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His claim that the storeroom was accessible to outsiders was contradicted by security personnel who testified that the area was always locked and monitored. His failure to report a conspiracy, if he truly believed one existed, struck the committee as the other side, Justice Varma's objections went beyond mere procedure. The committee, he noted, had already framed its inquiry around three presumptive questions: How does he account for the money in the room? What was its source? Who removed it? These questions, Varma argued, assumed that the money he claimed never belonged to him was his. Also, the committee's fact-finding mandate meant it operated without the safeguards of a proper judicial inquiry, no examination of witnesses on oath, no rules of evidence, no formal procedures to check the testimony's veracity. 1. Panel took stock of 55 witness testimonies, forensic examination of videos/ photos, as well as triangulation of electronic and call records to come to its findingsadvertisement2. Multiple visuals of charred currency retrieved. In one video, a fire officer is heard saying, 'Mahatma Gandhi mein aag lag rahi hai bhai,' referring to the image on the Rs 500 notes3. Varma's private secretary Rajinder Karki led clean-up after the blaze, raising concerns about deliberate tampering. Karki talked to Justice Varma at 1:23 am on March 15, the window when evidence may have been removed4. Varma's daughter Diya initially admitted knowing about the burnt cash on March 15, later attempted to retract statement5. Hard disk of CCTV camera monitoring storeroom is missing. Panel concluded that if footage supported his claims, Varma had ample time to produce it to prove his innocence6. When questioned by the CJI, Justice Varma could not account for the origin/ownership of the cash allegedly found at his premises QUESTIONS OVER THE INVESTIGATIONWhen CJI Khanna, acting on the committee's report, advised Varma to resign within 48 hours, the judge's response was unequivocal. His letter of June 6 rejecting this advice struck notes of both defiance and despair. 'To accept such advice would imply my acquiescence to a process and outcome that I respectfully consider to be fundamentally unjust,' he nothing illustrates the case's irregularities more starkly than what investigators chose not to investigate. Former law minister Kapil Sibal, reviewing the case, identifies gaps that seem less like oversights and more deliberate omissions. No forensic examination determined the fire's cause. Justice Varma's claim of an explosion was dismissed without investigation. 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The amount itself remained a matter of speculation; media reports suggested Rs 15 crore, but no official count was ever IMPEACHMENT PUZZLEAs Parliament prepares for Justice Varma's impeachment, the process itself has become contentious. Under the Judges (Inquiry) Act, 1968, impeachment follows a prescribed route: MPs submit a motion, the speaker or chairman admits it, a three-judge panel investigates, and only if found guilty does Parliament debate and vote. This statutory process includes crucial safeguards, including right to legal representation and evidence taken on minister Rijiju has suggested the government views this case as 'slightly different', hinting they might bypass the statutory inquiry since an inhouse committee has already submitted a report. This approach has alarmed constitutional experts. As Indira Jaising, who participated in India's first (unsuccessful) impeachment proceedings against an SC judge in 1991, warned, conflating the inhouse procedure with statutory requirements 'undermines Justice Varma's right to a fair procedure' and violates the law government's selective urgency becomes more apparent when contrasted with another pending impeachment. Since December 2024, 55 Rajya Sabha MPs have sought action against Justice Shekhar Kumar Yadav of the Allahabad HC for alleged inflammatory communal remarks at a Vishva Hindu Parishad (VHP) event. Six months later, Vice-President and RS chairman Jagdeep Dhankhar claims he's still verifying signatures. Meanwhile, Dhankhar wrote to the CJI asking him not to proceed with an inhouse inquiry against Justice Yadav, yet he now champions swift action against Justice Varma based solely on such an inquiry. 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Some experts say that by accepting an inhouse report as grounds for impeachment, by bypassing statutory safeguards, the government could set precedents that fundamentally alter judicial independence. Today's weapon against allegedly corrupt judges could become tomorrow's tool for removing inconvenient Varma himself represents a puzzling target. Colleagues describe him as brilliant, particularly in tax law. No whispers of impropriety marked his career. His judgments have reflected careful reasoning rather than ideological bias. Meanwhile, the fundamental mysteries remain unresolved. Whose money was burning that night? How did it arrive in a locked storeroom? The fire's cause stays unexplained. The judge mentioned an explosion while fire officers doubted the short-circuit theory. Yet no forensic examination occurred. The missing CCTV footage that might have shown who accessed the storeroom has also gaps matter because they transform what should be a search for truth into an exercise in presumption. The committee's logic that Varma must be guilty because he couldn't prove his innocence, inverts fundamental principles of justice. As Sibal observed, 'Under which principle of criminal law can you find somebody guilty on a presumption?'Justice Yashwant Varma will likely enter history as India's first successfully impeached judge. But his removal may prove a pyrrhic victory for those seeking judicial accountability. Also, more fundamental questions of systemic judicial corruption remain unanswered. The case underscores the urgent need for structural judicial reforms that eliminate the possibility of unaccounted cash lying hidden in a judge's A JUDGE IS IMPEACHED (Photo: Arun Kumar) In India, a judge of the Supreme Court or a high court can be removed through impeachment, which involves a specific process outlined in the Constitution and the Judges (Inquiry) Act, 1968. Here's a breakdown of the process:1) Initiation: A motion for impeachment can be initiated in either the Lok Sabha (at least 100 members must sign) or the Rajya Sabha (at least 50 members must sign). In case of Justice Varma, the motion has already been admitted in Parliament2) Investigation: The presiding officer (speaker of the Lok Sabha or chairman of Rajya Sabha) can refer the motion to a three-member committee for investigation. This committee typically includes the Chief Justice of India or a Supreme Court judge, a High Court Chief Justice, and a distinguished jurist. In case of Justice Varma, the Supreme Court's three-member inquiry committee has already recommended his impeachment. There is no clarity if Parliament will go by this recommendation or form a committee of its own to probe the allegations against Justice Varma3) Parliamentary Approval: If the committee finds the judge guilty, the report is presented to the respective House. For the motion to be successful, it must be passed by a special majority (two-thirds of those present and voting, and a majority of the total membership) in both the Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha. The monsoon session of Parliament is likely to see debate and voting on Justice Varma's impeachment.4) Presidential Order: If both Houses pass the motion with the required majority, it is sent to the President, who then issues an order for the judge's removalSubscribe to India Today Magazine- EndsMust Watch

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