A debt-ridden man in Uttar Pradesh has put his “son on sale” to repay the loan he had taken to buy a property. After being allegedly harassed by his moneylender, Rajkumar, a resident of Aligarh, was forced to sit at a city’s bus stand with a plaque hanging around his neck that read “My son is for sale, I want to sell my son.”

He sat at the Roadways bus stand intersection in Aligarh with his son, daughter, and wife for hours before police came and addressed his concerns.

Rajkumar, who runs an e-rickshaw, said he had borrowed money from a loan shark to buy a property. Rajkumar said that in order to withdraw his money, he kept the documents of his property in the bank and got the loan issued. He claimed that the person manipulated him and that he neither got the property nor any money.

He also alleged that the person who lent him money took away his e-rickshaw, his “only” means of supporting his family.

“If someone buys my son for Rs 6 lakh to 8 lakh, then at least I will be able to educate my daughter, marry her, and raise my family,” he said.

He claimed that he had also gone to a police station but didn’t receive any help.

Meanwhile, Samajwadi Party leader Akhilesh Yadav slammed the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and said that “someone should wake up the government”.

“This is the ‘amritkaal’ of BJP when a father is forced to sell his son. Before this picture spreads across the world and tarnishes the image of the state and the country in the entire world, someone should wake up the government,” he said in a tweet in Hindi.

Israeli tanks advanced into the fringes of Gaza City on Monday, witnesses said, as it ramped up its war on Hamas saying it had killed dozens of operatives in hundreds of strikes.

“We have hit more than 600 targets in the past 24 hours,” a military spokesperson told AFP, up from 450 the previous day, with Hamas operatives also reporting “heavy fighting” in northern Gaza.

Tanks entered the Zaytun district on the southern fringes of Gaza City, cutting a key road from the north to the south of the war-torn Palestinian territory, witnesses told AFP on Monday.

“They have cut the Salahedin Road and are firing at any vehicle that tries to go along it,” said one resident who did not give his name.

Israel has on several occasions warned the 1.1 million people living in northern Gaza, including Gaza City, to head south to avoid its military strikes as it pushes ahead with a mission to “destroy” the territory’s Hamas rulers.

Although huge numbers have left in recent weeks, tens of thousands more are believed to be still in the zone.

Since Friday, Israeli forces have stepped up their ground offensive as part of the military response to the October 7 Hamas attacks that officials say killed 1,400 people, mostly civilians, with another 239 people taken hostage.

The health ministry in Hamas-run Gaza says more than 8,000 people, mainly civilians, mostly civilians and more than half of them children, have since been killed in Israeli air and ground strikes.

The Israeli army said troops killed “dozens” of operativs in overnight clashes, saying they had “barricaded themselves inside buildings and tunnels and attempted to attack the troops”.

In one incident, a fighter jet targeted a building “with over 20 Hamas terrorist operatives inside,” while another fighter jet was guided to an anti-tank missile launching post in the area of Al-Azhar University, it said. The university is in the heart of Gaza City.

It also said it hit “weapons depots, dozens of anti-tank missile launching positions, as well as hideouts and staging grounds used by the Hamas terrorist organisation”.

The India Gate C-Hexagon will remain closed from 6.45 am to 9 am on Tuesday to facilitate the ‘Run for Unity,’ being held to commemorate Sadar Vallabhbhai Patel’s birth anniversary, the Delhi Traffic Police said.

The run, held as part of the Rashtriya Ekta Diwas, will be flagged off from Gate Number 1 of Major Dhyan Chand National Stadium.

It is expected to see about 7,700 participants, the advisory issued on Monday said.

Traffic will be diverted at Tilak Marg-Bhagwan Das Road, Purana Quila Road, Mathura Road, Shershah Road, Mathura Road, Subramanian Bharti Marg, Q-Point, and the roundabouts at Mansingh Road, Jaswant Singh Road, KG Marg-Firozshah Road Crossing, and Mandi House, the advisory stated.

Early morning commuters travelling to and from south-north have been asked to take Ring Road – Sarai Kale Khan – IP Flyover – Rajghat,and Lala Lajpat Rai Marg – Mathura Road – W-Point – A-Point.

Those moving from east to west and vice versa can take IP Marg – A-Point – W-Point – Sikandra Road – Mandi House – Firozshah Road roundabout Windsor Place – Ashok Road – Gol Dak Khana – RML -Shankar Road, NH-09 – Ring Road – Bhairon Marg – Mathura Road – SBM – Q-Point – Abdul Kalam Marg.