Man arrested for bigamy, cheating women

Times News Network

Mumbai: A serial groom was brought to book after his third wife learnt about his previous marriages during their honeymoon and informed the police. Nitin Joshi alias Vidyadhar Phatak (38) was recently arrested by the MHB colony police in Borivli on charges of cheating and bigamy. Police suspect that Phatak, who is employed with a cellphone service provider, splurged his wives’ money.

They are probing if he has cheated other women too.

According to the police, Phatak met the complainant, Kalpana Parab on a matrimonial site on the internet. Kalpana (38) works for a private insurance company. Phatak introduced himself as Nitin Joshi to her and after a two-month courtship, they decided to tie the knot.

“The couple got married on December 13. Phatak also borrowed Rs 70,000 from Kalpana’s parents, saying he had to pay a deposit on a room he had rented for the two,’’ said an official. The couple went to Mahabaleshwar for their honeymoon.

Meanwhile, Phatak’s second wife, Vidula, who lives in Nala Sopara, was trying to contact him. She called up his office and was given a landline number in Ghatkopar. “When Vidula called the number, she was told it was the residence of Phatak’s in-laws. She told them Phatak was already married to her and had left home on work,’’ the officials said. Kalpana’s family immediately called her back from Mahabaleshwar.

On returning, Kalpana was shocked to learn that Phatak had also been married to another woman, Anagha, before Vidula. Anagha lived in Nagpur and had a 9-yearold son from Phatak.

“Vidula was a widow and had two children from her deceased husband when Phatak met her. When Phatak was planning to marry Kalpana, he told Vidula he had to go to Nagpur to settle some financial matters,’’ the official said.

The police found documents on Phatak which identify him as Nitin Joshi. “Phatak has confessed to having been married in the past but hiding this fact from Kalpana. His modus operandi was to befriend vulnerable women, usually those savings, and marry them with an intent of cheating them,” said senior PI N Sambatwad.

Kingfisher Airlines hit by Rs 17 cr fraud through credit cards

Mateen Hafeez I TNN

Mumbai: Kingfisher airlines on Wednesday complained to the Economic Offences Wing (EOW) of the city crime branch of an online ticket booking fraud through credit cards saying the airline was duped to the tune of Rs 17 crore. The EOW suspect a nationwide organised racket behind the fraud.

This is the first time an airline has lodged a fraud complaint. In most cases, the bank whose credit cards are used lodges a complaint.

The airline handed over an application to the top cops of the EOW who asked the banking unit to probe the matter. Documents submitted by the airline say that they were charged back Rs 17 crore from the banks. According to sources, usually when the amount involved in the fraud case is not very high, subsidiary banks charge back the amount to big banks. However, in this case ICICI Bank has charged the amount back to Kingfisher.

"The accused book tickets online using credit card numbers mostly obtained from some restaurant, petrol pump or shopping mall employee,’’ an officer said. They then sell the tickets at a discount. A middle man, a commission agent and many others are also involved. We suspect the involvement of an organised syndicate in the matter.’’ EOW sources said that online tickets for Kingfisher were booked from various parts of the country including Mumbai, Chennai, Kolkata, Bangalore, New Delhi etc.

Officials of the airline met the police in the crime branch near Crawford Market on Wednesday and were asked to furnish documents of all the transactions and credit card numbers. “The transactions in this case took place between July 2005 and November 2006,’’ said a police officer. The police have also asked the airline to produce the exact amount of fraud in the Mumbai jurisdiction. A formal FIR is yet to be registered, sources said.

FlickrPhoto: Marine Drive, Mumbai

India-Mumbai, originally uploaded by Chergui.

Mumbai pubs face police action for violating norms

Debasish Panigrahi, Hindustan Times
Mumbai, December 19, 2006

At least three popular pubs and six 'infamous' dance bars (now orchestra bars) in the western suburbs are going to face the police axe very soon.

These are amongst the 16 popular night hangouts between Bandra and Andheri which have come under the police scanner for violating the 1.30 am closure deadline on repeated occasions in the last three months. In fact, police in the region has recommend stern action, including suspension and even permanent cancellation of their licenses.

Additional commissioner of police (west region), Bipin Bihari, who initiated a special drive almost three months ago to pin down the violators, told HT on Tuesday that the establishments which came under the scanner included at least three reputed pubs, six former dance bars while the rest were orchestra bars.

The bars and pubs were mostly concentrated in Bandra-Juhu-Andheri belt. "The Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP) in these zones (VIII, IX and X) were instructed to step up their night rounds to track down the violators," Bihari added.

Bihari said that he had sent a conduct report of these joints and recommended 'stern' to 'very stern' actions against them to the Headquarters branch of the Mumbai police, which is the licensing authority for them. "While for some recommendation has been made for permanent cancellation of the license, in case of others a temporary suspension has been called for as a warning course," he added.

It may be recalled that early on Sunday morning, DCP Zone IX, VK Choube had raided Poison, a popular pub at Bandra as it was found conducting business even at a late hour of 2.50 am, much beyond the deadline. One of the co-owners of the pub, Dillip Vasavrao Joshi had been arrested afterwards. This was the second time that Poison had faced police action for violation of closure deadline in the past three months.

Interestingly, one of the 16 red listed night joints (Laxmi Punjab at Sakinaka) had been found violating the deadline four times in a row.

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Man accused of kidnapping daughter

Wife accuses husband of taking their daughter back with him to the US

Express News Service

Mumbai, December 19: In a complaint registered at the Matunga police station on December 18, Rahul Khimasia (32)—a resident of the United States—-has been accused of kidnapping his daughter Nishka (7).

According to police officials, Rahul and his wife Jital (28) are in the process of getting a divorce and both of them wanted Nishka’s custody. “After a fight with Rahul, about six months ago, Jital returned to India with Nishka. But on Monday, when Nishka did not return from school, Jital suspected Rahul of kidnapping her,” said Matunga senior police inspector, AB Deshpande.

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Jital, a resident of Wadala, said Rahul came to India last week and added that she feels he has taken Nishka back with him to the US. However, the police are investigating into her allegations. “We had differences and that is why we are getting divorced. Rahul always wanted Nishka to stay with him,” said Jital.

After returning to India, Nishka was admitted to Amulakh Amichand, a school in Wadala in Std II. When contacted, teachers at the school refused to comment on the issue but confirmed that Nishka was present on Monday.

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Life begins at 30, with a ring from call centres

Ketan Tanna, Times News Network
20 Dec, 2006

Mumbai: The BPO and call centre industry is providing an ideal opportunity to mid career professionals who are looking for an alternate career. Over a period of time, the monopoly of youths and swashbuckling teenagers has been partially broken with more middle-aged individuals being employed by the call centres, Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) and Knowledge Process Outsourcing (KPO) units in India. On an average, with few exceptions, roughly around 5-10 per cent or in some cases even 15 per cent of the total workforce in these units now consists of those who are between 30-50 years.

In one instance, a mother and daughter were working together for a period of time in Mumbai based Transworks. The CEO of Transworks, Atul Kunwar, says that the mother followed the daughter and both worked together. Out of the current 4200 employees, 200 are above 30 in Transwork.

In another Mumbai-based BPO Intelenet Global Services, of 11,000 employees, 20 per cent of the total workforce is above 30 years of age. In Bangalore- based Wipro of the 17,000 employees, 16 per cent are above 30 years and 1 per cent above 40. Mumbai-based Epicentre has nearly 10 % of its workforce who are above 30 years of age. In Efunds, which is a KPO, of the 3,800 employees, those who are between 30-40 years of age constitute 23 per cent of the workforce while those who are above 40 years constitute 2-3 per cent of the workforce.

In keeping with their growing numbers, the senior employees are now being offered jobs cutting across the entire spectrum of the outsourcing business. From floor duties to voice calls to managerial positions, they are doing it all. Night shifts and the pressures are accepted as a part of the job profile and age is no longer a limiting criterion for not hiring older citizens. Various human resources managers and the CEOs have realised that they could be useful, if their talents are channelised properly.

Manuel D'Souza, vice-president, Intelenet Global Services, says the industry perception and the staffing pattern have changed in the last three years. His company, for example, has been hiring persons above 30 from the insurance and banking sectors, retired persons or persons who have taken VRS and even housewives. "We are open to hiring anyone who has a set of skills that our company can utilise. We match the skills with our requirements and thereafter offer them training. Some join the floor duties, some are given voice-call duty and so on," says D'Souza.

It is the same industry that rejected such older people (above 30s) not so long ago. So what changed? As business expanded and demand for employees increased, the industry felt an acute shortage of youngsters or persons in their 20s who did not think twice before job-hopping. The rate of attrition in some of the BPOs reached an alarming level. It was then that the industry woke up to the fact that there was a huge workforce, not necessarily younger and in their 20s, but 30-plus and still mentally and physically able to meet their requirements.

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8-month-old survives two heart attacks!

Santosh Andhale, Times News Network

Infant suffers the attacks after he accidentally put live electric wire into his mouth; doctors at JJ Hospital are trying to ensure he does not suffer any long-term damage to the brain

Someone above must be watching over eight-month-old Imanur Malik. The infant suffered cardiac arrest and a heart attack after putting a live wire in his mouth but appears hale and hearty like any other child of his age.

However, doctors in Sir JJ Hospital’s paediatric department who are treating Imanur are a worried lot. They fear the incident may have damaged Imanur’s brain. This is the first case of its kind but doctors are trying their best to ensure that Imanur grows up like any other child.

Imanur’s family lives in Maharashtra Chawl, Bandra (west). On December 7, he was playing at home when he is believed to have accidentally put a live wire in his mouth. On noticing that the baby was unusually quiet, his mother suspected something was amiss and took him to the Bandra Urban Health Centre (BUHC), which is operated by JJ Hospital.

Doctors diagnosed that Imanur had suffered cardiac arrest — an abrupt end of normal circulation of blood — and had been in that condition for about an hour.

They tried to revive him with assisted ventilation, chest compression and a dose of adrenaline. It was only after another half-an-hour that they noticed Imanur responding to the treatment. However, his heart beat was erratic.

He was rushed for further treatment to JJ Hospital where doctors realised that the child had suffered heart failure (heart had stopped pumping blood). He was experiencing convulsions (seizures) and was also suffering from hypoxia — a condition in which the brain does not receive sufficient quantities of oxygen.

Doctors somehow managed to save the child but are concerned for his future because hypoxia could result in his brain not developing as well as his peers.

“Thanks to the quick response by our staff led by Dr Shailesh Patil at BUHC and Ganesh Jewlikar at JJ, we managed to give the best possible treatment and save the child. But we fear that the incident may have had an adverse impact on his brain, the result of which will show up only when he is older,” said Dr Ashok Rathod, HoD, paediatric department, JJ Hospital.

Imanur’s parents believe it is nothing short of a miracle.

“Prompt action by the doctors saved our child,” said Imanur’s mother Nasira Begum Malik adding, “We don’t know about his mental condition yet and doctors are not in a position to say what the future holds for him. But I believe in God. When he ensured the survival of my child, he will save him from mental problem too.”

Picture: Deepak Salvi