Pongal marks the start of the lucky Tamil month of Thai and the Sun’s entry into the Capricorn sign of the zodiac. The auspicious time for puja is from 8 AM to 10:30 AM on January 14.

A man in Lucknow hired killers to eliminate his lover’s husband and father, but the hitman killed another man, a cab driver, by mistake. The investigation into the blind murder case led police to the grisly plot. All the three accused have now been arrested. A countrymade firearm, 14 live bullets, three cellphones and a bike used in the killing have been recovered, police have said.

Senior police officer Raveena Tyagi told the media that cops recovered a body in Lucknow’s Madehganj on December 30. The dead was identified as Mohammad Rizwan and a case was registered. “Our surveillance team, Special Operations Group and local police started the probe and three people have been arrested. They are Aftab Ahmed, Yasir and Krishnakant,” she said.

The officer said Aftab Ahmed was the main accused who plotted the killing. “He is in a relationship with a woman. He contacted Yasir and said he wanted the woman’s husband and father dead. Yasir then got Krishnakant into the plan. They reached Madehganj on December 30 night to murder the woman’s father Irfan. Due to mistaken identity or some other reason, they killed Mohammad Rizwan.” 

“We have uncovered this blind murder case successfully and found critical evidence,” the senior officer said.

A land scam in Sambhal’s Chandausi town involving fraudulent sales of 114 plots has been uncovered. Plots were sold using a fake will, primarily to minority community members. Investigations have begun into fraudulent sales, threats, and encroachments, including 50 bighas of Chandreshwar Mahadev Temple land.