Indian-origin cult leader jailed for rape dies in UK prison
India Today
Aravindan Balakrishnan, known to his followers as Comrade Bala, died in jail on Saturday. He had been sentenced to 23 years in jail by a UK court for assault and rape charges.
An Indian-origin man who ran a secretive extremist Maoist cult in London and was sentenced to 23 years in jail by a UK court for a string of sexual assaults six years ago has died in jail.
Aravindan Balakrishnan, known to his followers as Comrade Bala, was sentenced for six counts of indecent assault, four counts of rape and two counts of actual bodily harm back in 2016.
The 81-year-old found guilty of “brutal” violence died in custody at HMP Dartmoor prison in south-west England on Friday, the UK Prison Service said.
ALSO READ | Sitapur hate speech: FIR filed against religious leader after he threatens to 'rape' Muslim women
The cult leader had been convicted following a jury trial in December 2015, where it emerged that he had kept his daughter in captivity for over 30 years of her life.
The daughter described her situation in court as “horrible, dehumanising and degrading”.
Sentencing Balakrishnan in January 2016, the judge said: “You decided to treat her as a project, not a person. You claimed to do it for her to protect her from the outside world, but you created a cruel environment.” Balakrishnan, born in a village of Kerala, lived and grew up in Singapore and Malaysia before moving to the UK in 1963 to study at the London School of Economics.
Pakistan Army chief Asim Munir said Shias who "love Iran so much" should "go to Iran". His remarks triggered a row with prominent Shia clerics of Pakistan accusing Munir of insulting the community and the military establishment of serving America and Israel as a "servant".
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said the US may need to intensify strikes on Iran to end the conflict. This came soon after Trump threatened to hit Iran's energy plants amid soaring oil prices and Strait of Hormuz tensions.
The scooter rider rode into the pedestrian zone, collided with the car, and fell down. The man driving the car, however, did not react with anger and handled the situation with composure.
A minute-long ATC recording lays bare the confusion and urgency before a runway collision in New York. Controllers issued frantic warnings as a plane struck a vehicle, forcing a complete airport shutdown.
Tucker Carlson says he might cry listening to him. Millions call him a prophet. But who exactly is "Professor Jiang" — and what is he not telling you?
In a symbolic act of wartime messaging, Iran placed stickers carrying anti-war remarks by Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez on ballistic missiles bound for Israel as the Middle East conflict enters it fourth week.
The announcement was made a day after North Korea convened the first session of its Supreme People's Assembly. The assembly, the isolated nation's rubber-stamp legislature, formally approves state policy.
Indian Railway staff's swift action turned a medical emergency involving a toddler into relief aboard a train from Bengaluru to Gujarat.
Leon Panetta said Iran war was not an unexpected risk. He pointed out that for years, US security officials have known Iran could disrupt global oil supplies by blocking the Strait of Hormuz. According to him, this was a well-known danger, but one that appears to have been overlooked in the current conflict.
Sri Lanka raised fuel prices by about 25% for the second time in a week as the Gulf conflict disrupts global oil supplies via the Strait of Hormuz.
Iran has warned it is ready to respond. Parliament Speaker Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf warned that if Iran's infrastructure is targeted, then key facilities across the region could be "irreversibly destroyed."
Indian Railway staff's swift action turned a medical emergency involving a toddler into relief aboard a train from Bengaluru to Gujarat.