A 52-year-old man who had been reported missing from his home a few days ago was found dead with bullet injuries at Pathippara near Kodenchery in Kozhikode district on Thursday (May 15). The deceased has been identified as Kattiledath Chandran.

The police have registered a case of unnatural death under Section 194 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita. Preliminary investigation suggests that Chandran may have died by suicide. A country-made gun, reportedly unlicensed, was recovered from the scene. According to the police, Chandran was an accused in two cases filed by the Forest department.

Those in distress or having suicidal tendencies may seek help and counselling support by contacting Thanal, a centre for befriending persons instituted by the Indian Medical Association, Kozhikode. Ph: 04952760000.

A file photo used for representational purpose only.

An alleged fraud under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) scheme has come to light in a village in Uttar Pradesh’s Sambhal, with more than a dozen individuals shown as labourers and wages withdrawn in their names.

“The scam was unearthed in Atarasi village under the Panwasa block of Sambhal district,” officials said. The current village head, Sunita Yadav, is accused of generating job cards in the names of deceased villagers and withdrawing wages by falsely showing ‘work completed’ on paper.

The district administration confirmed that an investigation is under way and recovery has been initiated from the village head. “The case came to my notice around seven months ago. An inquiry was ordered at that time,” Sambhal District Magistrate Rajendra Pensiya told reporters.

“When the misappropriation in any case is below 10%, we proceed with recovery from the concerned official. In this case, a misappropriation of ₹1.05 lakh was found. The recovery is being made from the village head. Other developmental works in the village are also being investigated,” he added. Among those listed as labourers was a principal of an inter college.

Rishipal Singh, principal of Mulayam Singh Yadav Inter College, said, “A job card was made in my name without my knowledge. I have never worked under MGNREGA, yet my name appeared in the records and money was withdrawn. I was even called in for questioning during the inquiry.”

Local resident Sanjeev Kumar said, “My grandfather Jagat Singh passed away in 2020. We had no idea that wages were being withdrawn in his name. We only found out when officials came to the village to investigate. We have heard that job cards were created in the names of nearly a dozen deceased individuals.”

Nirmal Das, the main complainant in the case, alleged that job cards were made even in the name of the village head’s deceased father-in-law and several of her family members. “Money from government funds were withdrawn in the name of bogus labourers. Some of these people don’t even live in the village anymore. Yet their identities were used to siphon off funds,” Mr. Das said.

A Central Government initiative, the MGNREGA provides at least 100 days of guaranteed employment in a year to rural households whose adult members volunteer to do unskilled manual work.

Watch: The new forces shaping subcontinental geopolitics | The Huddle 2025

Former president and prime minister of Sri Lanka Ranil Wickremesinghe has mooted the idea of India taking a lead in ensuring the emergence of South Asia as the “most powerful region”.

Participating in a session titled ‘In the hood: The new forces shaping subcontinental geopolitics’ at the fifth edition of The Hindu Huddle organised by The Hindu Group, in Bengaluru, Mr. Wickremesinghe observed that the South Asian region would account for a population size of 2.7 billion in the total world population of 9.8 billion while its combined economy would be around 43 billion dollars.

T. S. Tirumurti, former permanent representative of India to the United Nations, said India should take a geopolitical role that goes beyond the sub-continent. The sooner we do it, he said, the more important it will be.

The session was hosted by Suhasini Haidar, The Hindu’s Diplomatic Affairs editor.

Read more: Ranil Wickremesinghe moots idea of India taking a lead in ensuring emergence of South Asia as most powerful region