Police say that Manjoor Ahmed Sayyed Ahmed (30) alias Manjoor `Gharphodi' known as a burglar, was on the lookout for a bride but people were reluctant to give him their daughters' hand in marriage because of his criminal activities. So, his sister, Sultana, and brother-in-law decided to help him out.

They contacted Iqbal Ahmed and his wife, Taslima, who had a grand-daughter, Amina, aged 13, and offered them the marriage proposal. Despite the opposition from Amina's father, Eklakh Ahmed, the elderely couple sneaked out with the girl to a shrine and got her married to Manjoor Ahmed.

When the girl's father learnt of the incident he lodged a complaint with the police. Amina's grandparents, the groom, his sister and brother-in-law have been arrested.

3 held for kidnapping, rape

NASHIK, OCT 15: A 15-year-old girl residingat the Shivaji Nagar slum colony was kidnapped and raped by an autorickshaw driver and two accomplices on Monday night.

Police say the driver, Shankar Babu Bendre (18), his friends Raju Maleji Mere (18) and Anil Satva Athavale (19) forced the girl into the autorickshaw (MH 15 J 7610) and took her to the CIDCO colony, where she was raped.

When she returned home the next morning, her parents filed a complaint with the Ambad police, who arrested the trio.

They have since been remanded to police custody till October 19.

Varsity asst registrar reinstated

NASHIK, OCT 15: Controversial assistant registrar of the Yeshwantrao Chavan Maharashtra Open University (YCMOU) Dilip Ambilvade, who was suspended in December 1997 on graft charges, has been reinstated by the Bombay High Court.

On December 11, 1997, the university's officiating registrar, Rajendra Vadnere, had filed a police complaint accusing Ambilvade of accpeting bribes while admitting 28 students to the 1997-98 Bachelor of Education course. He waslater released on bail but filed a defamation suit against the university.

Ambilvade subsequently filed a writ petition in the Bombay High Court, which passed an interim order on August 12, 1998, directing the university to consider him for promotion to the post of deputy registrar. However, the university ignored the directive and instead advertised for the post of deputy registrar.

A division bench, comprising Justice Ashok Agarwal and Justice Pratibha Upasani, on October 9, 1998, directed the university to reinstate Ambilvade and promote him as deputy registrar. The court found that the action against Ambilvade was malafide and arbitrary and the allegations against him mirrored those he himself had made against some university officials. An inquiry officer had then found no malpractices.

Ambilvade had been chargesheeted in January 1995 for levelling charges of corruption against some officials. He repeated his allegations on November 29, 1997 and booked under the same charges on December 11,1997.