Blind lovers in great escape

He pulled off a hat-trick just when it appeared that his hopes had been hit for a six.

Vidhan Paul, visually challenged and twice married, ran away with his girlfriend, six days after his two wives had caught him trying to escape and beaten him up.

Reena Roy, his ladylove who, too, is visually challenged, was lodged at a welfare home from where Vidhan whisked her away. Suspicion has fallen on some inmates thought to have helped her in the getaway.

Vidhan, 28, is married to visually impaired Maimoon and Bina, who is normal, but had been dating Reena over the past few months and couldn’t stay away from her.

Early this month, as the couple were waiting to catch a train at Ambernath station, Maimoon and Bina caught Vidhan and beat him up before handing him over to the railway police. He was released later with a warning, while Reena was packed off to the welfare home. But Vidhan hit back with the great escape days later.

Chillies spice up record run

Popping 35 chillies into his mouth in one minute, Vikas Dahiya, a third-year information technology student at Indraprastha University in the capital, has claimed the title of “Mirchi King” in a chilli-eating contest held recently.

The participants had to eat two bananas and as many chillies as they could in a minute. Harjeet Singh Jaspal swallowed 28 chillies to claim the second position, while Neha Manglani, a third-year student from the Indira Gandhi Institute of Technology, chewed 22 to claim the first prize among women. The contest was organised by iFood.tv, an online community of food lovers.

As a gesture of courtesy, the organisers asked the winners about their bowel movements the next day. Both Dahiya and Singh claimed they had no problems at all. More such contests are being planned.

Stomach this booty

Some never leave a stone unturned to achieve their goal, but Mustafa Jamal took the idea right into his belly.

The 43-year-old was caught with precious stones, worth over Rs 10 lakh, in capsules he claimed he was made to swallow by a Colombo smuggling syndicate.

Many would find it hard to stomach the trouble but Mustafa ran the gauntlet for the sake of money. He had almost accomplished his “mission” when officers of the customs’ air intelligence unit at Chennai airport grew suspicious.

They found something odd in his looks and movements — he looked ill at ease — and in the inconsistent replies he gave to their queries.

The officers put him through a body scan that, to the amazement of the customs team, revealed 28 large capsules in his stomach. Doctors later gave Mustafa, a resident of Tamil Nadu’s Ramanathapuram district, enema (a colon-cleansing medicine) that flushed the capsules out of his system.

What followed stunned the sleuths more — 942 precious stones, from diamonds to sapphire, popped out of the capsules.

Ration heat

Bengal’s ration rage isn’t being replayed in Delhi but the protests in the eastern state have made the authorities sit up.

Last week, the Delhi government cracked down on 100 shops allegedly involved in a string of irregularities. The licences of 16 were cancelled and 85 owners were asked to explain charges of hoarding and erratic sales.

Food and civil supplies minister Haroon Yusuf said the aim was to ensure transparency in the public distribution system.

Delhi: Rajesh Patil brings you his “uni-colour” delights — which means different shades of a single colour — at the Triveni Kala Sangam this Tuesday (October 23). The venue, on Tansen Marg, is a two-minute walk from the Mandi House Metro station. Time: 11am to 7pm.