Indian Sub-continent

Muzaffarnagar, Dec 25 (PTI) A fast track court here has held a man guilty in a rape case that took place in 2011 and sentenced him to 10 years in prison.

Judge Manoj Kumar Mishra also imposed a fine of Rs 13,000 on the accused, Sanoj Kumar, after holding him guilty under sections 376, 506 and 342 of the IPC on Monday.

New Delhi, Dec 25 (PTI) The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) will soon introduce a new Rs 20 currency note with additional features, according to a document of the central bank.

The central bank has already issued new look currency notes in the denominations of Rs 10, Rs 50, Rs 100, and Rs 500, besides introducing Rs 200 and Rs 2,000 bank notes.

The new look notes are being introduced since November 2016 under Mahatma Gandhi (New) series. These are different in size and design compared to the notes issued previously.

Kota, Dec 25 (PTI) A 40-year-old man has been booked for allegedly raping his 13-year-old daughter twice in two days in Rajasthan's Jhalawar district, police said on Tuesday.

Based on a complaint by the girl, a case was filed against her father at women police station in Jhalawar on Monday under relevant sections of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act for allegedly raping her, sub inspector (SI) and police station in-charge Ramesh Chand Meroth said.

Mumbai, Dec 25 (PTI) At least 12 people were injured when they were attacked by a group of persons during a prayer meet in Maharashtra's Kolhapur district, police said Tuesday.

The victims were attending the Sunday Mass at the residence of Bhimsen Chauhan in Kolhapur's Kowad village, located on the Karnataka border, when the incident happened around noon, a police official said.

A group of 10-15 men armed with swords, iron rods and glass bottles reached the residence on motorcycles and attacked the congregation, he said.

Dharamshala, Dec 25 (PTI) Congress leader and former state minister Sudhir Sharma alleged Tuesday the Himachal Pradesh government took Rs 25 lakhs from cement companies for Prime Minister Narendra Modi's rally to be held here on December 27.

He said 14,000 buses were being arranged to provide free travel to the people to attend the rally that will cost around Rs 2.50 crores to the state exchequer.

The rally in Dharamshala is being organised to celebrate the completion of one year of the BJP government in Himachal.

Sikar, Dec 25 (PTI) Two persons were booked for allegedly raping a minor girl in Rajasthan's Sikar district, police said Tuesday.

The incident had taken place four months ago but the report was lodged against the two accused on Monday, Station House Officer (SHO) Dantaramgarh, Shabbir Khan said.

In her complaint, the girl had alleged that the accused-- Man Singh and Ravi Sharma-- raped her four months ago, he said.

Beed (Maha), Dec 25 (PTI) Three more persons were arrested in connection with the suspected honour killing case of a 25-year-old man in Beed district of Maharashtra, police said Tuesday.

Among them, Balaji Landge and Sanket Wagh, key accused in the case, were nabbed Monday from Amravati district of the state, while the third accused, Gajanan Kshirsagar (30), was nabbed Tuesday from the city, a senior police official said.

Imphal, Dec 25 (PTI) The All Manipur Working Journalists' Union (AMWJU) and Editors' Guild Manipur (EGM) Tuesday condemned the detention of journalist Kishorchandra Wangkhem under the stringent National Security Act (NSA).

In a joint special general body meeting held on Tuesday at the Manipur Press Club, here both AMWJU and EGM condemned the detention of Wangkhem under NSA, said a press release issued by Sukham Nanda, the general secretary of AMWJU.

Puducherry, Dec 25 (PTI) A juvenile was apprehended for allegedly raping and killing a 25-year-old woman at her home in Kuyavarpalayam village here, police said Tuesday.

Senior Superintendent of Police Rahool Alwal said the woman's mother had filed a complaint with police on December 18 that her daughter was found dead in her home with her throat slit.

The victim was alone after her mother and brother had left for work.

Post-mortem examination suggested that the woman was raped and then killed, the police said.

VLADIVOSTOK, December 24. /TASS/. A group of ships from Russia’s Pacific Fleet has concluded its visit to Sri Lanka, the Fleet’s press service said in a statement.

"Today, a group of ships from Russia’s Pacific Fleet, consisting of the Varyag missile cruiser, the Admiral Panteleyev anti-submarine destroyer and the Boris Butoma large sea tanker, has concluded its visit to the Colombo naval base in Sri Lanka where it arrived on December 20," the statement reads.