Top 5 News of the Hour: Bulandshahr gangrape case, threat to Rajnath in Pak and more

BSP Supremo Mayawati on Monday demanded the resignation of Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav in the wake of the brutal gangrape of a woman and her teenage daughter by bandits on gunpoint on Friday night. Home Minister Rajnath Singh’s plan to visit Pakistan this week to attend a SAARC summit remains unchanged even after a threat by terror group Hizbul Mujahideen. Gen (Retired) VK Singh to travel to Saudi Arabia tomorrow to bring back Indians stranded in food crises. Here are top 5 news of the hour.

1. Bulandshahr gangrape: Akhilesh Yadav should resign on moral grounds, says Mayawati

BSP Supremo Mayawati on Monday demanded the resignation of Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav in the wake of the brutal gangrape of a woman and her teenage daughter by bandits on gunpoint on Friday night. “This incident has exposed that there is no law and order but jungle raj in Uttar Pradesh,” said Mayawati. The Samajwadi Party government has come under intense flak over the incident. “If you can't manage the state, you should resign as the chief minister on moral grounds,” she said.

2. Hizbul Mujahideen Chief Syed Salahuddin warns Pakistan against welcoming Rajnath Singh

Home Minister Rajnath Singh’s plan to visit Pakistan this week to attend a SAARC summit remains unchanged even after a threat by terror group Hizbul Mujahideen. "The host country is responsible for the home minister's security," top sources said. Ahead of Home Minister Rajnath Singh’s visit to Islamabad to attend a SAARC meet, Hizbul Mujahideen chief Syed Salahuddin has warned Pakistan against welcoming him. At a rally in Lahore on Sunday, he accused Rajnath of "deploying soldiers in Kashmir to shed the blood of innocents."

3. Government to evacuate Indian workers from Saudi Arabia

The government is planning to evacuate a large number of Indian workers, who are jobless following widespread layoffs in Saudi Arabia. India is “arranging exit visas for jobless workers,” a senior official source has told a leading national daily. Minister of State for External Affairs Gen (Retired) VK Singh will be traveling to Saudi Arabia soon to “bring back”, the source added.

4. LeT commander Abu Dujana spotted in Pulwama amid Kashmir unrest

Lashkar-e-Taiba commander Abu Dujana was reportedly seen in Jammu and Kashmir’s Pulwama district on Sunday. Abu Dujana attended the protest rally held by separatists in Kareemabad. Despite a curfew in place, thousands reached Karimabad for the gathering at “martyrs’ cemetery” in the village and raised pro-freedom and anti-India slogans. Pulwama is the native village of several militants killed in recent past.

5. One policeman killed, four others injured in Northgate Hotel blast in Kabul

At least one police officer was killed, while four others security agents were injured in heavy gunfight after a truck bomb struck Northgate Hotel in Kabul, earlier this morning. The Afghan media reported that the situation has been neutralised and the operations are now over.  In the wee hours on Monday morning, two suicide bombers blew a truck outside Kabul’s Northgate Hotel, just days after the deadliest attack in the Afghan capital for 15 years.