Lawyers of rebel Cong MLAs meet U'khand Speaker

Dehradun, Mar 27: Suspense continued over the fate of the nine rebel Congress MLAs ahead of the trial of strength in Uttarakhand Assembly as lawyers of these legislators today met Speaker Govind Singh Kunjwal in a last ditch attempt to prevent action against them.

About half-a-dozen lawyers met Kunjwal in his chamber in the state Assembly seeking personal hearing and more evidence in support of the charges levelled against the MLAs in the disqualification notice served to them by the Speaker just a day after trouble erupted in the state assembly on March 18.

It was their second meeting with the Speaker in two days. They had met him yesterday seeking personal hearing in the matter, a request turned down by the Speaker.
According to sources, replies to show cause notices issued to the MLAs are being examined and consultations are being held with legal experts on the issue.

Citing security reasons, the entry of mediapersons is not being allowed in the premises.
Chief Minister Harish Rawat and the Speaker held a prolonged meeting which went late into the night at the latter's residence.

However, sources in the CMO said notification disqualifying the rebel MLAs is yet to be issued.

Disqualification of the rebel MLAs, which is being considered almost a certainty in political circles here, will deprive them of the right to vote against Harish Rawat government which is slated to go for a floor test tomorrow in the state assembly.

It will reduce the effective strength of the House from 70 to 61 and the simple majority figure from 36 to 31 which is likely to make Chief Minister Rawat's task easier.

Rawat is left with 27 Congress MLAs after nine revolted against him.
He also has the support of the six-member PDF which take the tally to 33, two more than the simple majority mark in the House.

BJP, on the other hand, has 28 MLAs of its own and nine of Congress who if disqualified will be of no use to it at the time of voting in the state assembly.

However, it claims at least five more MLAs on the other side are only waiting to cross over to its side.

BJP sources said state BJP MLAs, who were travelling to various places like Delhi, Gurgaon and Jaipur, are expected to reach Dehradun by tonight.

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Rajdhani Express Derails, 7 elephants killed after collision in Assam

News Network

December 20,2025

At least seven elephants were killed and one calf injured after a herd collided with the Sairang-New Delhi Rajdhani Express in Assam's Hojai on Saturday morning, leading to disruption of rail services.

The Sairang-New Delhi Rajdhani Express struck a herd of elephants, resulting in the derailment of the locomotive and five coaches. No passenger casualties or injuries were reported, officials said.

The New Delhi-bound train met with the accident around 2.17 am, PTI reported. The Sairang-New Delhi Rajdhani Express connects Mizoram's Sairang (near Aizawl) to Anand Vihar Terminal (Delhi).

Railway has issued helpline numbers at the Guwahati Railway Station:-

•   0361-2731621
•   0361-2731622
•   0361-2731623

The accident site is located about 126 km from Guwahati. Following the incident, accident relief trains and railway officials rushed to the spot to initiate rescue operations.

Train Services Disrupted

Sources said that due to the derailment and elephant body parts scattered on the tracks, train services to Upper Assam and other parts of the Northeast were affected.

Passengers from the affected coaches were temporarily accommodated in vacant berths available in other coaches of the train. Once the train reaches Guwahati, additional coaches will be attached to accommodate all passengers, after which the train will resume its onward journey.

The incident occurred at a location that is not a designated elephant corridor. The loco pilot, upon spotting the herd on the tracks, applied emergency brakes. Despite this, the elephants dashed into the train, leading to the collision and derailment.

Last month, an elephant was killed after being hit by a train in Dhupguri in West Bengal's Jalpaiguri district. The incident took place on November 30.

The adult elephant was killed on the spot, and a calf was discovered lying injured beside the tracks.

Over 70 Elephants Killed In Train Collisions Over Last 5 Years

At least 79 elephants have died in train collisions across the country in the last five years, the Environment Ministry had informed Parliament in August.

In a written reply in the Lok Sabha, Minister of State for Environment Kirti Vardhan Singh had said the figure is based on reports from state governments and Union Territory administrations for the period 2020-21 to 2024-25.

He said that the ministry does not maintain consolidated data on the deaths of other wild animals on railway tracks, including in designated elephant corridors.

Singh confirmed that three elephants, including a mother and her calf, were killed on July 18 this year after being hit by a speeding express train on the Kharagpur-Tatanagar section in West Bengal's Paschim Midnapore district. The incident took place near Banstala between Jhargram and Banstala stations.

The minister said several measures have been taken jointly by the Environment Ministry and the Railways to prevent such accidents.

These include imposing speed restrictions in elephant habitats, pilot projects such as seismic sensor-based detection of elephants near tracks and construction of underpasses, ramps and fencing at vulnerable points.

The Wildlife Institute of India, in consultation with the ministry and other stakeholders, has also issued guidelines titled 'Eco-friendly Measures to Mitigate Impacts of Linear Infrastructure' to help agencies design railways and other projects in ways that reduce human-animal conflicts.

Singh added that capacity-building workshops were conducted for railway officials at the Wildlife Institute of India in 2023 and 2024 to raise awareness on elephant conservation and protection.

A detailed report titled 'Suggested Measures to Mitigate Elephant & Other Wildlife Train Collisions on Vulnerable Railway Stretches in India' had also been prepared after surveys across 127 railway stretches covering 3,452 km.

Of these, 77 stretches spanning 1,965 km in 14 states were prioritised for mitigation, with site-specific interventions suggested.

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