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By:

Quaid Najmi

4 January 2025 at 8:56:24 pm

Man gets death for minor’s rape, murder

Mumbai | Nashik: A Nashik Special Fast Track Court has awarded the death sentence to a 25-year old man who was convicted last week for luring a 4-year-old girl with a chocolate, kidnapping, raping and murdering her, here on Friday. Terming the case as the ‘rarest of rare’ crimes, the Special Judge K. D. Paldewar – who had found Vijay Sanjay Khairnar guilty of kidnap, sexual assault and murdering the child on Sep. 30 but reserved the verdict after the final arguments on Oct. 7 – pronounced the...

Man gets death for minor’s rape, murder

Mumbai | Nashik: A Nashik Special Fast Track Court has awarded the death sentence to a 25-year old man who was convicted last week for luring a 4-year-old girl with a chocolate, kidnapping, raping and murdering her, here on Friday. Terming the case as the ‘rarest of rare’ crimes, the Special Judge K. D. Paldewar – who had found Vijay Sanjay Khairnar guilty of kidnap, sexual assault and murdering the child on Sep. 30 but reserved the verdict after the final arguments on Oct. 7 – pronounced the capital punishment today. He also slapped a fine of Rs 10 lakhs as compensation to the victim’s family, hailing from Dongrale village before a packed courtroom where the villagers, the victim’s family and others were present. Emerging from the courtroom after the verdict, Special Public Prosecutor Ujjwal Nikam told the media that “the Court had considered the gravity of the crime and the circumstantial evidence establishing Khairnar’s involvement” while deciding the sentence. The Court did not take into account the convict’s poverty – he was a daily wager – or illiteracy as grounds for leniency, added the ace criminal lawyer. It was on Nov. 16, 2025 in Dongrale village of Malegaon taluka when Khairnar lured the little girl on the promise of giving her a chocolate and took her to a desolate spot to carry out his devious plans. Betraying the trust of the child who used to call him ‘dada’ (elder brother) due to their acquaintance, Khairnar sexually assaulted her, killed her and abandoned her before decamping from there. A few hours later, the child’s body was found dumped in a nullah and the police were summoned. As details of the gruesome crime tumbled out and spread, it ignited widespread public outrage all over the state. The police swung into action, formed several probe teams and managed to track down Khairnar from his hideout within a few hours. Considering the sensitivity of the crime, the strong emotions plus the mass furore it created, the state government assigned the case to a fast-track court, assigned Nikam as the SPP and the matter was heard speedily. The SPP aggressively led the prosecution, arguing in the court that in view of the gravity of the crime, the circumstances leading to it and other aspects, it warranted the severest punishment – death – for Khairnar, irrespective of his age or financial status. The Dongrale villagers stood in solidarity with the victim’s family and they raised a chorus for quick investigations, an expeditious trial and slapping the death penalty on the convict to serve as a strong deterrent to potential offenders. As per the Indian law, the trial court’s verdict will now go to the Bombay High Court for confirmation. Political leaders from different parties hailed the court verdict and said “justice has finally been done to the victim’s family”.

Maharashtra gasps for ‘gas’

Quaid Najmi
Mar 10
3 min read
Workers load LPG cylinders at a depot following recent price hikes for both domestic and commercial units in Nagpur on Tuesday. | Pic: PTI
Workers load LPG cylinders at a depot following recent price hikes for both domestic and commercial units in Nagpur on Tuesday. | Pic: PTI

 

Mumbai: An abrupt shortage of commercial LPG cylinders gripped many parts of Mumbai and Maharashtra hitting the hospitality sector and raising fears of a larger crisis as the Centre invoked the stringent Essential Services Maintenance Act, 1968, in a warning to potential hoarders.

 

Mumbai and surroundings are feeling the pinch of the commercial LPG (19-kg) cylinders used in restaurants, hotels, caterers, street-food vendors and other players in the food supply chains that feed crores daily.

 

Dealers claim that LPG supplies have been delayed or dropped sharply since last weekend, creating panic even among domestic consumers.

 

Maharashtra LPG dealers association president Deepak Singh admitted “some delays due to supply shortages” of commercial cylinders, but assured that there is no scarcity of domestic cylinders.

 

“We are adhering to the Centre’s guidelines for a 25 days booking period between 2 cylinders (domestic). The issue with commercial cylinders but even those are available though less in numbers. We are following the government’s guidelines by prioritising educational institutions, hospitals, and defence, but others are also getting their supplies,” said Singh in a social media statement.

 

However, the hotels and restaurants bodies said that around 20 pc of eateries, particularly the smaller ones have temporarily shut shop, and around 50 pc may down shutters within the next few days if the LPG supplies don’t normalise.

 

FHRAI Vice-President and HRAWI Western India Spokesperson Pradeep Shetty said that “shortage of commercial LPG has become extremely serious over the past week”, with intermittent disruptions escalating into a near complete halt in supply in several regions since yesterday.

 

The Ministry of Petroleum’s notification (March 5) created confusion among suppliers and distributors, many of whom have stopped supplying commercial LPG cylinders to hotels, restaurants and food service establishments, he pointed out.

 

Shetty said severe shortages are reported from Mumbai, Pune, Aurangabad, Nagpur, and similar disruptions in many other states and if the situation doesn’t improve by Thursday, there could be huge repercussions.

 

“Nearly 50 pc of Mumbai hotels and restaurants may be forced to close down temporarily depending on the LPG stock they currently hold. This will affect international tourists both, who are already here and those who will be visiting the country. Smaller and medium-sized eateries will be the first to be impacted, as they typically operate with limited reserves,” Shetty warned.

 

A housewife from Vasai, Ruma M. Bose today rushed to buy an induction stove and even repaired an old electric picnic stove to keep the domestic fires burning, just in case, though her society has a piped gas supply.

 

Retail dealers in Mumbai reported bookings by anxious domestic consumers after the refill period gap was extended to 25 days, though there are no confirmed instances of any black-marketing of LPG cylinders.

 

Thousands of distributors

Of India’s around 33.20 crore consumers, Maharashtra accounts for some 55-lakhs in domestic, commercial and industrial categories, with thousands of distributors dotting the state.

 

More than 75-80 pc of the hospitality sector depends on commercial LPG, and shortages or disruptions can deal a fatal blow. Mumbai alone has over 50,000 big and small eateries, and as per AHAR, 20 pc have shut shop for now, and upto 50 pc may soon follow suit.

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