The Kashmir Pulse

KULGAM — A conductor of a truck from Kulgam died while its driver was injured due to electrocution in Ahmedabad area of Gujarat on Friday, officials said.

An official told the news agency KNO that the driver and conductor were loading a truck when they came in contact with a live wire in Ahmedabad.

He said that the conductor died on the spot while the driver suffered critical injuries, who was admitted to a hospital.

The deceased has been identified as Mudasir Ahmad Parray son of Abdul Qayoom Parray, and the injured as Muneeb Hamid Parray son of Abdul Hamid Parray.

SRINAGAR — In a major setback to former Congress president Rahul Gandhi, Gujarat High Court on Friday dismissed his plea seeking a stay on conviction in a case related to the Modi surname. The dismissal of the plea by the high court would mean that the Congress leader will continue to remain disqualified from the Lok Sabha.

According to reports from the news agency KNS, Rahul Gandhi had moved the Gujarat High Court after Surat Court denied to grant a stay on conviction in the Modi surname case.

The high court, however, dismissed the Congress leader’s request to stay his conviction in the case. The court order has come as a major blow to Rahul Gandhi as he will continue to remain disqualified from the Lok Sabha.

The court stated that he is seeking a stay on conviction on absolutely non-existent grounds. It stated that staying on conviction is not a rule.

As many as 10 cases are pending against Rahul Gandhi. A complaint has been filed against (Gandhi) by the grandson of Veer Savarkar in Pune Court after Gandhi used terms against Veer Savarkar at Cambridge.

It also said that refusal to stay conviction would not in any way result in injustice to the applicant. “There are no reasonable grounds to stay conviction. The conviction is just, proper and legal,” the court said.

SRINAGAR — Jammu and Kashmir Police on Wednesday handed over conman Kiran Bhai Patel to Gujarat Police after a local court has ordered authorities of Central Jail Srinagar to handover ‘conman’ Kiran Bhai Patel to the police team of the Ahmedabad city Crime Branch for the investigation in a case of ‘fraud’ on Wednesday, official sources said.

In an order by Chief Judicial Magistrate Srinagar, Raja Tasleem, as per the Srinagar-based news agency KDC, reads that “the accused Kiranbhai @ Bansi son of Jagdishibhai Patel aged 48, residing at A-17, Prestige Bunglow, Nr. Jiviba School, Ghodasar, Ahmedabad City Gujarat was produced through video conferencing. After hearing and from the perusal of all material available on the CD file, I am of the opinion the submissions made by the Ld AAP and Inspector of Police Mr M.M Solanki carries much weight and at the same time seem to be just proper and appealing.”

"Therefore, the application is allowed hence the custody of the accused namely Kiranbhai @ Bansi son of Jagdishibhai Patel aged 48, residing at A-17, Prestige Bunglow, Nr. Jiviba School, Ghodasar, Ahmedabad City Gujarat is changing from FIR No. 19/2023 of Police Station Nishat to FIR No. 1119011230073/2023 of DCB Police Station Ahmedabad city, Gujarat," reads the order.

Kiran Patel was handed over to a five-member police team of Gujarat Police after completing medico-legal formalities.

The application was presented by Inspector of Police M.M Solanki, of Crime Branch, Ahmedabad Gujarat.

Official sources said that the police team has left for Ahmedabad by road and further process of investigation will start in a graft case registered by Ahmedabad Crime Branch.

Kiran Patel was under judicial custody in Jammu & Kashmir, where he was under investigation for allegedly posing as an Additional Director (Strategy & Campaigns) of Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) and thus enjoying perks. The Gujarat Police had applied for a transfer warrant, which subsequently was granted by a local court in Srinagar.

Malini Patel, the wife of the ‘conman’ Kiran Patel who was arrested by the Jammu and Kashmir Police for fraud and impersonation, was taken into custody by the Gujarat Police in connection with a cheating case registered against the couple by a former Gujarat minister’s brother Jagdish Chavda, police had said.

Malini Patel was arrested from Bharuch district’s Jambusar town in connection with a first information report (FIR) registered against the couple on March 22 after Kiran Patel’s arrest from a luxury Srinagar hotel. The FIR was registered under sections 406 (criminal breach of trust), 420 (cheating and dishonestly inducing delivery of property), 170 (impersonating a public servant) and 120-B (criminal conspiracy) of the Indian Penal Code, the Ahmedabad Crime Branch said.

As investigating agencies turned the spotlight on the Patel family, Jagdish Chavda approached the police to seek the registration of a case against them. Kiran Patel allegedly told him too that he worked at the PMO and that he was also co-owner of a popular cafe in Ahmedabad and was into renovating buildings, police said.

In February last year, the couple allegedly convinced Chavda to spend on renovating his sprawling bungalow in the Shilaj area that he was trying to sell. While the renovation work was on, Jagdish Chavda alleged that the couple moved into his bungalow, complete with his nameplate at the entrance, and had even organized a house-warming ceremony.

Chavda alleged in his complaint to the police that when he confronted the couple, they vacated the place and promised to return the ₹35 lakhs that he had paid for the renovation. However, in August last year, Chavda alleged that he got a notice from an Ahmedabad court for a civil suit filed by the Patels, claiming ownership of the property.

Chavda is the brother of Jawahar Chavda, who exited the Congress to join the BJP and was a minister in a previous government when Vijay Rupani was chief minister.

During questioning, Malini Patel allegedly told the police that her husband and brother-in-law Manish Patel earlier operated a travel agency in Ahmedabad which ran into losses. Police said she underlined that she wasn’t aware of what her husband does for a living and that they carried out some renovation work in Chavda’s bungalow and also invited some guests for ‘Vastu Puja’ when the owner was away, the police statement said.

It added that Kiran Patel, wife Malini and their two daughters travelled to Jammu and Kashmir on a holiday in October last year and February this year and stayed at the five-star hotel from where he was arrested on March 2.

Apart from the bungalow case, Malini Patel is also named as an accused along with her husband and brother-in-law in a fraud case in which a resident of Naroda, Rahul Parmar, alleged that they convinced him to become a part of their business of renting cars to the Vadtal Swaminarayan temple.

According to the FIR registered in 2019, Parmar alleged that he and his friends gave the Patels 16 cars worth ₹1 crore in 2017 but did not get back the vehicles or his share of the profits.

Kiran Patel has been booked in four other cases of fraud including an FIR lodged against him by a group of farmers on August 27, 2019, at Bayad Police Station, the police statement said.

The imposter had taken the J&K administration and security structure for a ride by securing a Z-plus security cover, a bulletproof Mahindra Scorpio SUV, official accommodation at a five-star hotel, and a lot more.

A court in Srinagar has also ordered “preliminary enquiry” into an application by Danish Hassan Dar, a resident of Rambagh Srinagar, alleging defrauding of Rs 18 lakh by three persons including Kiran Bhai Patel.

Pertinently, on March 29, the government ordered an inquiry into the various aspects related to the visits of Kiran Patel and has asked the Divisional Commissioner Kashmir to submit a detailed report within a week.

SRINAGAR — A court here on Thursday dismissed the bail plea of a man from Gujarat, Kiran Patel, who conned the security establishment in Jammu and Kashmir into believing him to be a PMO official and got the requisite perks prior to his arrest earlier this month.

Having reserved the order on Monday after hearing the arguments of the Counsel representing Patel and the Additional Public Prosecutor, the court of Chief Judicial Magistrate (CJM) Srinagar Raja Mohammad Tasleem found the bail plea “devoid of any merit”.

“I am of the considered opinion that arguments advanced by APP are just, proper and appealing and carries much weight and on the other hand, I respectfully disagree with the submission put forth by Counsel for the applicant (Patel) because in case at this stage discretion of bail is exercised in favour of the accused, it shall definitely destroy the very fabric of the investigation,” the court said as per the order. “Resultantly, in my considered opinion, the instant application is devoid of any merit which deserves to be rejected, hence rejected.”

Kiran Patel, the alleged imposter hailing from Gujarat, posed as an Additional Director (Strategy and Campaigns) in the Prime Minister's Office and enjoyed many perks, including a bulletproof car and security cover besides other hospitality. Kiran Patel was on his third visit to the Kashmir Valley when he was nabbed by security officials from a five-star hotel in Nishat area of Srinagar on March 2.

Police have ruled out any intelligence failure in the entire episode but blamed field officers for “lapse” with a further avowal of action against those involved. “There has been a proper FIR in this case. See, when Srinagar Police got information on March 2, a team headed by a senior IPS officer arrested him red-handed. Fake visiting cards were recovered,” ADGP Kashmir Vijay Kumar (IPS) said recently.

“Rigorous interrogation was done. He remained under police custody for 14 days. He is presently in judicial remand. He is in jail completely,” he had said, adding, “We are professionally carrying out the investigation. We are taking help from Gujarat Police and nobody will be spared”.

Asked about “clear cut” guidelines by MHA that no security should be given to anyone on verbal instructions, he had said, “The SOP is there from the beginning. Instructions come from time to time. Police should not provide security to anyone on verbal instructions. We don't. The mistake which has happened is being looked into and action will be taken against the officer who has given instructions.”

Asked if it was an intelligence failure, the ADGP had responded in negative, saying “We cannot call it intelligence failure. There has been negligence at the field officer level and action will be taken.”

SRINAGAR — A court here on Monday reserved orders on the bail plea of a man from Gujarat, Kiran Patel, who conned the security establishment in Jammu and Kashmir into believing him to be a PMO official and got the requisite perks prior to his arrest earlier this month.

The prosecution opposed the bail plea, saying that the investigation in the case is still in its infancy. On the other hand, the counsel representing the accused argued that the liberty of a person was sacrosanct and that there are no “serious” offenses against him.

After hearing the submissions of the counsels, the court of Chief Judicial Magistrate (CJM) Srinagar Raja Mohammad Tasleem reserved the order to be pronounced on Thursday (March 23), according to the news agency GNS.

Kiran Patel, the imposter hailing from Gujarat, posed as an Additional Director (Strategy and Campaigns) in the Prime Minister's Office and enjoyed many perks, including a bulletproof car and security cover besides other hospitality. Kiran Patel was on his third visit to the Kashmir Valley when he was nabbed by security officials from a five-star hotel in Nishat area of Srinagar on March 2.

Police have ruled out any intelligence failure in the entire episode but blamed field officers for “lapse” with a further avowal of action against those involved. “There has been a proper FIR in this case. See, when Srinagar Police got information on March 2, a team headed by a senior IPS officer arrested him red-handed. Fake visiting cards were recovered,” ADGP Kashmir Vijay Kumar (IPS) has said.

“Rigorous interrogation was done. He remained under police custody for 14 days. He is presently in judicial remand. He is in jail completely,” he had said, adding, “We are professionally carrying out the investigation. We are taking help from Gujarat Police and nobody will be spared.”

Asked about “clear cut” guidelines by MHA that no security should be given to anyone on verbal instructions, he had said, “The SOP is there from the beginning. Instructions come from time to time. Police should not provide security to anyone on verbal instructions. We don't. The mistake which has happened is being looked into and action will be taken against the officer who has given instructions.”

Asked if it was an intelligence failure, the ADGP responded in negative, saying “We cannot call it intelligence failure. There has been negligence at the field officer level and action will be taken.”

SRINAGAR — Reacting over the arrest of Gujarat ‘conman’, Additional Director General of Police, Vijay Kumar on Sunday said that there was no intelligence failure but only ‘negligence’ on part of the field level.

“As soon as we received information about his presence, we raided the hotel and arrested him. There was a sustained interrogation and whosoever will be involved in this connection won’t be spared,” he said, adding that they are also taking the help of Gujarat Police.

Kiran Bhai Patel from Gujarat who enjoyed security, a hotel stay, and who visited different places, met top officials while masquerading as a top official from Prime Minister’s Office is currently in judicial custody.

ADGP was talking to reporters on the sidelines of a sports function here in Srinagar. In response to a question, Vijay Kumar said that they are focusing on social crime and taking action swiftly against criminals.

“Crime has not increased but the reporting about criminal activities has increased. Earlier, such incidents were going unnoticed and unreported which is not the case today,” he said, adding that it is good that people are trusting the police and report crime incidents without any delay.

SRINAGAR — The alleged conman from Gujarat Kiran Bhai Patel has claimed that police didn’t provide him Z-security but that was meant for two other persons, both hailing from Gujarat, who were accompanying him.

The Counsel for the accused, Advocate Rehan Gowhar told the news agency KNT that all the allegations leveled against his client are baseless and untrue. Quoting his client, Advocate Rehan Gowhar said that police set both the accomplices of his client free and the Z-security was actually for them.

Kiran Bhai Patel, an alleged conman from Gujarat, has been arrested by Jammu Kashmir Police for posing as Additional Director of the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO).

The accused is in judicial custody for 15 days and the matter is before the Chief Judicial Magistrate Srinagar Raja Tasleem Arif. The Counsel for the accused said that they will apply for bail at the next hearing.

“Granting bail is the discretionary power of the court but we are claiming bail as a matter of right,” he said, adding that the offenses for which his client has been arrested are not serious and grave in nature.

SRINAGAR — In a high profile case, Jammu and Kashmir Police arrested a man from Gujarat who was allegedly by forged means posing as Additional Director (Strategy & Campaigns) Prime Minister's Office, New Delhi, in summer capital Srinagar.

Reliable sources told the Srinagar-based news agency KDC that top officers of Jammu and Kashmir Police after getting specific information regarding a man, identified as Kiran Patel son of Jagdesh Patel, posing as Additional Director (Strategy & Campaigns) PMO, New Delhi, swiftly acted and arrested the man in summer capital Srinagar.

Accordingly, an FIR No. 19 of 2023 was registered by Srinagar Police in Police Station Nishat, which reads, “On 02-03-2023, a reliable information received by Police Station Nishat has revealed that a fraudster namely Kiran Bhai Patel son of Jagdesh Bhai Patel, resident of Gujarat, has by virtue of criminal intention indulged in activities within the jurisdiction of this police station and other parts of Kashmir valley and by employing a high degree of forged means. Kiran Bhai has impersonated himself as a senior government official of India.”

The said individual, by resorting to cheating, forgery and impersonation has duped gullible people and also intentionally induced people to do and also omit to do activities, under a well-knit plan for securing monetary as well as material benefits.

The imposter had taken the J&K administration and security structure for a ride by securing Z-plus security cover, a bulletproof Mahindra Scorpio SUV, official accommodation at a five-star hotel, and a lot more.

Sources say Amit Hitesh Pandiya and Jay Sitapara from Gujarat, and Trilok Singh from Rajasthan were also staying with Patel in the Srinagar hotel and impersonating as an official team from the Prime Minister's Office.

As per reports, Patel was able to get security from the Jammu and Kashmir Police by forged means and was staying at Hotel Lalit in Room No. 1107. The ‘fraudster’, as per reports, had visited multiple places in Kashmir including Doodpatri in central Kashmir’s Budgam district. At Doodpathri, the ‘fraudster’ was accompanied by an SDM rank officer (Tehsildar) and an official from the Tourism department.

The conman, as per reports, had called an SHO of central Kashmir’s Budgam district at a hotel here regarding some photos that were clicked by SHO during his visit.

The conman visited Nishat Garden in Srinagar, where he was accompanied by the BJP media in-charge Kashmir. The conman had visited Baramulla, Shopian and Pulwama also.

If sources are to be believed, Kiran Patel, who himself posed as a senior official of the Government of India, also met at least three Deputy Commissioners during his visit to the valley. A Deputy Commissioner rank officer is believed to have met him at Hotel Lalit.

Conman posing as 'Additional Director PMO' sent to judicial custody

A local court in Srinagar on Friday sent the arrested man from Gujarat to judicial custody after police remand ended, officials said.

They told the news agency KDC that a conman identified as Kiran Patel, a resident of Gujarat, was produced in Srinagar court today via video conference as the police remand ended on Friday. The court sent him for judicial custody.

Jammu and Kashmir Police has formed a three-member team headed by SP East Srinagar to investigate the case against the alleged impersonator from Gujarat.

Alleging a political conspiracy, advocate Rehan Gowhar, Patel's lawyer, said that two more people accompanying him were set free by the police.

"My client told me that he was accompanied by two more people from Gujarat. Police have also recorded his statement before the magistrate under section 164. Both were set free by the police," he said.

The "PMO team" has been visiting Kashmir since October last year. Hours before Patel was arrested on March 2 following a tip-off by Jammu and Kashmir CID, the imposter, Kiran Bhai Patel, also held a series of meetings with officials and even visited forward areas near the Line of Control. He shared several videos and pictures of his 'official visits' in Kashmir surrounded by paramilitary guards, the last of which was on March 2 on Twitter.

The conman's first visit to the valley was on October 27 last year. He came with his family. In subsequent visits, the other members of the "PMO team" joined him.

A senior officer said that it's a major concern that an IAS introduced a conman as a PMO official, and the security wing of the police and other officials obliged with official protocol and Z-plus security cover for such a long time.

A team of Gujarat Police has also joined investigations and questioned Patel, sources said.

The Police, in a statement, said that on March 2, 2023, the CID wing of J&K Police gave information about the arrival of an impersonator in Kashmir.

"SSP Srinagar immediately sent a team led by SP East to Lalit Hotel. The particulars of this person were found as Kiran Bhai Patel son of Juddesh Bhai Patel, resident of Ahmedabad Gujarat, who was impersonating himself as Additional Director (Strategy and campaigns) PMO, New Delhi. As his replies were found suspicious, he was taken to Police Station Nishat wherein he admitted his crime," the statement said.

10 fake visiting cards and two mobiles were seized from him. "A team of SP East Srinagar, SDPO Nehru Park, SHO Nishat are leading the investigation," the spokesperson said.

The statement said that many relevant persons have been examined in this case. "Case is at the initial stage of the investigation. Further details of this case will be shared later on," the police said.

The statement also said that there are three cases registered against the 'fraudster' in different Police stations in Gujarat: Raopura Police Station, Baroda, Case No. I/0064/2019, Case Date: 7/8/2019 IPC 114, 294(KH), 406, 420, 5072; Naroda Police Station, Ahmedabad, Case No. I/0066/2017, Case Date: 24/02/2017 IPC 120B, 406, 420 and Bayad Police Station, Aravali, Case No. I/0047/2019, Case Date: 22/08/2019 IPC 120B, 406, 420.

SRINAGAR — In a significant achievement, Jammu and Kashmir has won top awards in the implementation of Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana-Urban (PMAY-Urban) during the three-day “India Urban Housing Conclave 2022” (IUHC 2022) organized by the Union Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs in Rajkot, Gujarat. The conclave was inaugurated by Prime Minister, Narendra Modi on October 19, 2022.

J&K has won two awards including ‘Overall best performing Union Territory and best performing UT for implementation of Affordable Rental Housing Complexes (ARHCs)’.

Principal Secretary, H&UDD, Dheeraj Gupta received the award on behalf of the UT Government.

The J&K team, which was led by Dheeraj Gupta, was comprised of S A Keen, Managing Director, J&K Housing Board, and other officials of PMAY (Urban) Mission.

The conclave included an exhibition of departmental stalls, highlighting the achievements and best practices adopted across the states and UTs in the implementation of the Mission.

PMAY-U is a flagship Mission of the Government of India being implemented by the Union Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs (MoHUA) which addresses urban housing shortage among the EWS/LIG and MIG categories including the slum dwellers by ensuring a pucca house to all eligible urban households by the year 2022 when Nation completes 75 years of Independence.

Pertinently, J&K has achieved 100 percent saturation in the implementation of the PMAY Mission. About 44,701 beneficiaries have been identified and approved under the BLC component, out of which, 44630 dwelling units have been grounded and will be completed within the prescribed time schedule.

The UT government has for the first time introduced a new initiative wherein an interest-free loan/subsidy is being provided for an amount of Rs two lakh per beneficiary for the construction of a dwelling unit under the BLC component. Besides, 336 houses are being reconstructed under Affordable Rental Housing Complexes (ARHCs) at Sunjwan, Jammu while 968 flats are being constructed at Bhalwal and lower Roopnagar Jammu under the Affordable Housing in Partnership (AHP) component.

Also, a Demonstration Housing Project (DHP) under the Technology Sub-Mission (TSM) of the Mission has been taken up at Bhalwal, Jammu. The technology to be used for DHP is EPS Core Panels. After completion, J&K Housing Board will not only gainfully utilize the structure but will also showcase it as the latest proven alternate/green technology solution suitable to the geo-climatic and hazardous conditions of the Jammu region.

The Government of Jammu & Kashmir is committed to ensuring that there is no urban houseless in the Union Territory by March 2023.