Indian Sub-continent

ISLAMABAD, Sep 13 (APP): The first humanitarian assistance flight for the flood-affected people of Pakistan arrived at the Jinnah International Airport, Karachi.

The flight was received by Sindh government’s Minister of Social Welfare Sindh Sajid Jokhio, representatives of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the National Disaster Management Authority.

Foreign Office Spokesperson Asim Iftikhar said Pakistan welcomed the relief assistance from Nepal with “warmth and gratitude”.

ISLAMABAD (AP) — Pakistan scrambled to deliver aid to those most in need on Tuesday as the death toll from record-breaking floods in this impoverished Islamic nation rose further, with no respite in sight from the unprecedented monsoon rains.

The rains started early this year — in mid-June — and swept away entire villages, bridges and roads, leaving hundreds of thousands homeless. At one point, a third of the country’s territory was inundated with water.

MUMBAI, Sept 12 (Reuters) - An Indian court on Monday agreed to hear a petition by a group of Hindu women for the right to worship in a mosque they believe was the site of a Hindu temple, rejecting a Muslim plea to throw out the petition.

The Gyanvapi mosque in the northern Hindu holy city of Varanasi has become the latest potential flashpoint between India's majority Hindu community and its Muslim minority, which makes up some 13% of the country's 1.4 billion population.

DHAKA, Bangladesh (AP) — Bangladesh’s prime minister said Monday that the prolonged stay of more than 1 million Rohingya refugees in crowded camps in the country has become a serious security and stability concern.

“Apart from their own miseries, their prolonged presence is causing a serious impact on the economy, environment, security and sociopolitical stability of Bangladesh,” Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina said at the opening ceremony of a three-day meeting of military officials from 24 countries in the Indo-Pacific region.

Ayodhya (UP), Sep 12 (PTI) An estimated cost of Rs 1,800 crore will be incurred to build the Ram temple in Ayodhya, officials of the trust responsible for the construction of the structure has said.

The Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust, formed on the Supreme Court's orders for the construction of the temple, approved its rules and manual after a marathon meeting here on Sunday.

Chitrakoot (UP), Sep 11 (PTI) A youth was arrested for allegedly raping a four-year-old girl in a village in the Mau area here, police said on Sunday.

Senior Sub Inspector, Mau police station, Kamlesh Kumar said the incident took place on Saturday when Akhilesh Pasi (21) lured the girl by offering her biscuits and took her to his house and raped her.

The accused later fled from the spot.

After registering the FIR, the accused was arrested and the girl has been sent for a medical examination.

Gurugram, Sep 11 (PTI) Police on Sunday said they have rescued two girls who were "kidnapped" from Bhondsi area here and arrested three people, including the mother of one of the girls.

The arrested are identified as Rinki Tiwari (35) and her associates Sagar and Vikas alias Suraj.

Pilibhit (UP), Sep 11 (PTI) A Dalit girl was allegedly gang-raped and set on fire by two men here, police said on Saturday.

The 16-year-old girl is undergoing treatment at the district hospital and is in a "serious condition", Superintendent of Police Dinesh Kumar Prabhu said.

Two men have been arrested in connection with the incident, police said, adding the accused first raped the girl and then tried to kill her by setting her afire after pouring diesel on her.

Ahmedabad, Sep 12 (PTI) Aam Aadmi Party leader Isudan Gadhvi has claimed local police raided the party office in Navrangpura area of Ahmedabad as soon as AAP's national convener Arvind Kejriwal landed here, but found nothing.

However, a police official refuted the claim and said when contacted, the AAP office-bearers did not give any details about who conducted the raid and what exactly happened.

Itanagar, Sep 12 (PTI) Arunachal Pradesh Police has rescued four "kidnapped" girls from a lodge in Assam's Guwahati, officials said on Monday.

Personnel of Arunachal Pradesh Police in coordination with Assam Police officers rescued the minors in a joint operation on Sunday and arrested a woman, who has emerged as the prime suspect, they said.

On September 8, the Diyun Police Station in Changlang district had received a complaint about four girls missing from the Manabhum area.