Evening NEWS
DIGEST
04 March.2017: 04 Jamadiul Akhir 1438:Vol:8, No:132
Plan to dehyphenate ties:
PM Modi’s visit to Israel may not include Palestine stop
New Delhi;In a significant
move, South Block is “actively considering” to schedule a stand-alone bilateral
visit by PM Narendra Modi’s to Israel and not to Palestine on the same trip,
sources have told The Indian Express. This will be a radical departure from
what has been the convention on the part of top Indian leaders, who have
visited both countries during their visits. In the past, External Affairs
Ministers from both BJP and Congress have visited both Israel and Palestine on
the same trip. This included Jaswant Singh in 2000, SM Krishna in 2012 and
Sushma Swaraj in 2016 – all of them visited both Israel and Palestine. Even
President Pranab Mukherjee, who visited Israel in Oct.2015 – in first
Presidential visit from India since 1992 – also visited both Israel and
Palestine. Modi, sources said, is keen to delink relations with the two
countries. He made this clear in his first months in office, sources privy to
some of these discussions, said. Some officials had even baulked at the
suggestion and advised to the contrary then, sources said. Sources said that
the ground has been prepared by ministerial visits over the last two years, so
that a de-hyphenation is clearer. Minister of State (External Affairs) MJ Akbar
visited Palestine in November last year, along with Jordan, but did not visit
Israel.Similarly, Home Minister Rajnath Singh visited Israel in Nov.2014, but
did not pay a visit to Palestine. Government sources, however, told The Indian
Express that since there have been no Prime Minister-level visits to Israel and
Palestine so far there is no set precedent. Since this is going to be the 25th
year of India’s diplomatic relations with Israel, New Delhi wants to break away
from the past and give a greater visibility to the relationship with Israel
without being defensive about it, officials said.NSA Ajit Doval’s meetings with
Israel PM Benjamin Netanyahu and top Israeli officials, this week, sources
said, was a preparatory meeting to firm up the schedule in the next few months.
Netanyahu is also expected to visit this year and so is Palestinian President
Mahmoud Abbas. As of now, dates for a possible bilateral visit by Modi are
being worked out. But there are two concrete possible windows of
opportunity.Indian Express
Change of policy? PM will
visit Israel, but skip Palestine
PM Modi may give Palestine
a miss during visit to Israel
Israel offers scholarship
to Indian students, professionals
New Delhi: Celebrating 25
years of its multi-faceted relation with India, Israel on Friday offered
scholarship and training to Indian nationals in its academic programmes, said a
release. “Through academic and governmental programmes, Indian students and
professionals are offered unique scholarships and training programmes in
Israel, ranging from Cyber Technology to Agriculture, Education, Women
Empowerment and Startups,”said the Embassy of Israel release.Elaborating on the
programmes, Ambassador of Israel to India Daniel Carmon said: “Higher Education
is one of the up and coming fields of cooperation between India and Israel.
Education is the foundation for every other field India and Israel have
identified as of mutual interest and benefit.”“Programmes such as these bring
together the brilliant minds of India and Israel, create more bridges between
our peoples and provide a golden opportunity to create joint solutions to the
challenges shared by India, Israel and the entire world,” he added. Israel
government is offering partial sponsorship to Indian students for summer
programmes in Cyber Security and full scholarship in Food Safety and Security
at Tel Aviv University.In addition to academic programmes,Israeli Govt via
MASHAV (Israel’s Agency for International Development Cooperation) is offering
a range of courses to Indian professionals in various fields, including Agri
Business, Climate Change and Renewable Energy, among others.IANS
Ex-diplomat, ex-MP Syed
Shahabuddin passes away
Former Indian Foreign
Service (IFS) officer and MP Syed Shahabuddin, who was suffering from prolonged
illness, passed away at a hospital in Noida, adjoining the national capital, on
Saturday morning. He was 82. “Shahabuddin, former President of All India Muslim
Majlise Mushawarat left for heavenly abode this morning at 6.22 a.m.,” said
close associate Navaid Hamid, who is currently heads the organisation. Shahabuddin,
who is survived by his wife and four daughters, was buried at Panjpeeran
cemetry in Nizamuddin with a large number of prominent Muslim figures in
attendance. Born in 1935 in Ranchi, now in Jharkhand, he joined the IFS in 1958
but took premature retirement in the 1970s to delve into politics.As a
diplomat, he lobbied for the creation of Bangladesh and rallied support in
Latin America — where he was posted at that time — for Indian intervention in
the affair. Although considered to be in the good books of the then Prime
Minister Indira Gandhi, he was one of the few diplomats who were openly
anti-Emergency.Within 8 months of relinquishing service, Shahabuddin was
elected to the Lok Sabha in 1979 from Kishanganj in Bihar, a Muslim majority
constituency that sent him to Lok Sabha multiple times but remained neglected
by him as far as area development is considered. Shahabuddin shot to further
prominence during Ramjanmabhoomi movement as he remained at the forefront of
the movement from the Muslims’ side. Condolences poured from every quarter as
the news of his demise spread. Vice President Hamid Ansari, who was also an IFS
officer, condoled his death. In a message, Ansari said: “Syed Shahabuddin was a
man of deep convictions, he pursued issues that were dear to him with great
tenacity and determination.”“I am deeply saddened to learn of the demise of
renowned political leader, scholar, diplomat and former parliamentarian
Shahabuddin,” Ansari said, adding that passing away is a personal loss as
Shahabuddin was his friend.Manipur Governor Najma Heptulla, AIMIM President
Asaduddin Owaisi and other leaders also condoled the death.BJP leader Subramanian
Swamy in a tweet, said: “Sorrow at my dear friend Syed Shahabuddin’s death this
morning. He sacrificed a flourishing IFS career to enter politics. Giant
intellectual”. financialexpress
Babri Masjid crusader Syed
Shahabuddin passes away
Indian Muslim leader Syed
Shahabuddin dies aged 82:Bbc
Indian-origin man Harnish
Patel shot dead in US merely days after Kansas shooting
New York: Days after the
Kansas Bar shooting incident, another Indian-origin businessman, Harnish Patel,
has been shot dead outside his home in South Carolina, media reports said. As
per a media report, Patel, 43, of 262 Craig Manor Road, Lancaster, was found
dead outside his house in Lancaster, shortly after he closed his shop at
11.24pm on Thursday. Patel is survived by his wife and child in elementary
school, who were at home when he was killed. Reportedly, police was informed
about the incident by a woman who heard screaming and gunshots. When the police
arrived, they found Patel dead from apparent gunshot wounds a few feet from his
house, a media report said.Patel’s death comes just two days after the US
President Donald Trump condemned the killing of Srinivas Kuchibhotla, 32, as
“hate and evil”. He was shot dead on Wednesday in a Kansas bar.According to a
report, the police was quoted as saying that the investigators believe that
Patel was confronted by his killer when he got out of the vehicle while he was
on his way back home from the store.As per a tweet, Lancaster Sheriff Barry
Faile said that Harnish Patel was shot twice. The tweet further states that two
shell casings were found outside his home.
5 SIMI volunteers acquitted
after 11-year-wait
Mumbai: Accused of taking
part in terror training in Pakistan, they were picked up in the aftermath of
2006 Mumbai serial blasts. 11 years after 5 Student Islamic Movement of India
(SIMI) volunteers, with alleged links to Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), were arrested
in the aftermath of the 2006 Mumbai serial train blasts, a sessions court
acquitted all five of them.The sessions court ratified a magistrate's order
acquitting all of them - Irfan Ali Anjuman Sayed, Mohd Najeeb Abdul Rashid
Bakali, Firoz Abdul Latif Ghaswala, Mohd Ali Chand Mohd Chipa and Imran Nisar
Ahmed Ansari - and even censured the crime branch (DCB CID Unit XI) for not
taking the case "seriously"."The prosecution failed to prove the
accused facing trial became members of the banned organization SIMI, took part
in the meetings and assisted in its operations, that they involved themselves
in activities like distribution of literature, circulating provocative clips of
communal riots in Godhra, Gujarat and thereby failed to bring accused to the
charge leveled against them," the judge observed."There are a number
of reasonable doubts brought on record in the evidence of all the witnesses and
its benefit goes to accused persons."One of the acquitted persons, Firoz
Ghaswala, was accused of possessing RDX and is alleged to have connections with
Zakir Naik, has been acquitted as well.The ensuing clampdown on SIMI, which was
accused of perpetrating the blasts, saw several combing operations by the
police force leading to many arrests, including the 5 accused. All the accused
were represented by Tehwar Pathan and Ishrat Khan.Mumbai Mirror
Mumbai court upholds
acquittal of 5 ‘SIMI members’
Plea against acquittal of 5
men accused of SIMI rejected
Money trail to Naik’s
schools focus of ED probe
http://indianexpress.com/article/india/money-trail-to-zakir-naiks-schools-focus-of-ed-probe-4553490/
Mumbai: Focus of the money
laundering probe against Zakir Naik is now on the two schools set up by him and
the properties purchased through alleged front companies which purportedly
showed “no business activities”. Enforcement Directorate (ED) has pegged Naik’s
net worth at Rs 3,000 crore. According to sources, between 2003 and 2016, the
Islamic International School (IIS) received Rs 57 crore from Naik’s now
outlawed Islamic Research Foundation (IRF). Of this, IIS made cash withdrawals
of Rs 56 crore, which is shown as money spent towards payment of salaries of
its teachers/ staff, scholarships and rent for the school premises — Rs 4.48
crore was withdrawn as rent in 2010-2016. Indianexpress
Digvijay Refuses to Retract
'Madarssas, RSS Spread Hatred' Statement
Hyderabad: Congress general
secretary Digvijay Singh on Saturday refused to withdraw his statement that
schools run by madrassas and the RSS spread hatred.The Hyderabad Police had
last month registered a case against Singh over his social media post
criticising the Muslim madrassas (seminaries) and the RSS-run Saraswati Sishu
Mandirs.These schools "spread hatred", the Congress leader had
said."Whenever Digvijay Singh attacks the Hindu fundamentalism, the Muslim
clergy loves it, but whenever I say something about the religious fanatics in
the minority community, they have an issue," he told reporters
here."If Telangana police comes to question me... I am not withdrawing my
remarks. I stand by my remarks. The remarks are in the best interests of
everyone. I have right to say that religious fundamentalism is a curse for the
secular fabric of this country," he said.PTI
Rs 2.5K cr waqf scam:
Involvement of underworld, cops & builders shows malaise much deeper: DNA
spl report
Mumbai: 4 months ago, DNA
got a lead that the Vigilance Department of the Enforcement Directorate (ED)
has accessed a phone conversation between a member of a Dubai-based underworld
mafia and its ringleader in Mumbai. The conversation, which happened sometime
in 2014, was about a prime waqf land and how they should grab it with the help
of prominent politicians and top police officials.A 4-page transcript of the
conversation accessed by DNA reveals that the malaise is much deeper than the
alleged Rs 2,500 crore land deal that led to the suspension of the former CEO
of Waqf properties on Friday.ED sources disclosed that it was a “chance”
intercept during their investigation into a hawala case. Congress-led govt was
at the helm in Mumbai.A DNA team conducted an investigation to corroborate the
transcript. The Waqf Board, however, remained tight-lipped on the pretext that
they are carrying their own investigation into many such allegations. In the
transcript, two men -- Yusuf and Asif – discuss getting a NOC for a waqf
property. The conversation is about how much they may have to pay to each
stakeholder -- the builder, senior police official Himanshu Roy, Minorities
Minister and the Guardian Minister of Mumbai suburbs, during the Congress rule
in Maharashtra, Arif Naseem Khan and the Waqf Board. The transcript is yet to
be corroborated. The transcript, however, does warrant a probe into this
deal.DNA
Centre may bring demands
for ‘azaadi’ under sedition law, hints Venkaiah Naidu
Union minister M Venkaiah
Naidu has said the central government was contemplating making the sedition law
more stringent, indicating that calling for azaadi (freedom) would be covered
under it. “If raising azaadi slogans is not treason, then I don’t know what
is,” Naidu said.“Azaadi” was made famous by former Jawaharlal Nehru University
Students’ Union president Kanhaiya Kumar, after his speech at the campus
following his release from jail. He and two other students had been arrested on
sedition charges for allegedly shouting “anti-national” slogans during a
protest at the university, but was given a clean chit in the case on Feb.28. scroll
No rules were bent on
appointment of Geelani’s grandson: SKICC
Srinagar:No rules were bent
for the appointment of separatist leader Syed Ali Shah Geelani’s grandson as
research officer, an autonomous body of J&K’s Tourism department said here
today. Reacting to media reports in a national daily today, the spokesman for
Sher-e-Kashmir International Convention Centre (SKICC) said proper selection
procedure was followed in the appointment.The post for the research officer was
advertised on Oct.3 last year for which 196 applications were received. Out of
these, interview letters were sent out to 35 candidates, he said. The
interviews for the post were held in November last following which
Anees-ul-Islam, grandson of Geelani was selected.Anees had topped the merit
list prepared by the 5-member interview panel, the spokesman said.He said the
SKICC had received the clearance from the state Criminal Investigation
Department late last month, and nothing adverse was found against Anees.“The
selection was done in a transparent manner and anyone can access the files as
well as the notings through an RTI,” the spokesman added.PTI
Alienating Kashmiris will
help Pakistan take advantage of situation: Yashwant Sinha
Alienating Kashmiris
without solving their issues would only lead to Pakistan taking advantage of
the situation, former external affairs minister Yashwant Sinha said here today.“The
road to Islamabad is via Srinagar and not the other way around. It is not to
Srinagar via Islamabad,” Sinha said at a book release function where he was the
chief guest.“I have been involved in the Kashmir issue for the last few months
and I have come to this conclusion that the issues of our people (Kashmiris)
should be settled first in order to tackle the disputes with Pakistan,” he
added.PTI
J&K: Operation called
off in Shopian district as militants manage to flee
Srinagar:The overnight
anti-militancy operation in south Kashmir’s Shopian district was called off on
Saturday as the militants managed to escape from the security forces’ cordon.
Security forces launched a cordon and search operation in Chillipora village of
the district on Friday night following information about the presence of
militants there, a police official said.He said a gunfight broke out between
the two sides as the security forces were closing on the militants’ positions.
The exchange of fire between the two sides ended late Friday night but the
security forces did not lift the cordon with the aim of stopping the militants
from fleeing. “House to house searches were launched at day break on Saturday
but no arrests were made. The militants had apparently managed to escape last
night itself,” the official said. There were no casualties reported in the
encounter.PTI
Army officer booked for
molesting, blackmailing girl in J&K’s Ramban
An Army officer in
J&K’s Ramban district was booked on Friday for allegedly blackmailing a
girl after he molested her, PTI reported. Gulab Singh Parihar allegedly took
photographs of the act, made a video out of them and then sent her messages
from various mobile phones saying he would circulate them, police told the news
agency.The accused also d.emanded that she sent him Rs 5 lakh and more
photographs of her, otherwise he would post naked photos of the child online.
The officer was posted in the Kupawara district. A case has been registered
based on a preliminary inquiry. Scroll
Roy Mathew sting video:
Fresh post-mortem on body of jawan after family raises doubts
Fresh autopsy was on
Saturday ordered on the body of a jawan from Kerala,found dead after a sting
video on the “abuse” of buddy system in the army, after his family insisted on
it, raising doubts over this demise. The fresh post-mortem of Roy Mathew (33),
a native of Karuvelil in Ezhukon in Kollam district, was underway at the Government
Medical College Hospital in Thiruvananthapuram, hours after the body was
brought to the city on Saturday morning by a flight, a senior police official
said.Mathew was found hanging from the ceiling of a room in an abandoned
barrack in Deolali cantonment in Maharashtra’s Nashik on Thursday. Alleging
that there were marks of beating on his feet and blood had clotted in some
parts, his relatives, including wife Finy, refused to accept the body until a
fresh post-mortem was conducted in Kerala.PTI
Agra: UP ATS arrests BSF
constable for trying to sell weapons
Agra:Uttar Pradesh ATS have
arrested a BSF constable from village Murentha in Sikandra area of Agra for
stealing two Beretta automatic carbines with magazines from BSF armoury at his
post Khetanbar Kutti in West Bengal, where he was posted since the past several
months.The Constable Chandrapal stole these carbines when he came home in Agra
on leave and was trying to sell them off, but due to the high price, nobody was
buying them. An FIR was filed in the Dinhata Police Station in West Bengal and
the Frontier IG of BSF Rakesh Agarwal expressed his doubts on Chandrapal to the
UP ATS IG Aseem Arun. Indiatoday
Found my son hanging in
another room: Raza's father
Udham Singh Nagar: A piece
of rope found in the police outpost room where Ziyauddin Raza, 16, was found
hanging on Tuesday was sealed as evidence on Friday.His father told TOI that
the room where Raza was found hanging wasn't the one in which he had left him
an hour earlier."Police threw away his body like he did not have any
family ," Mohd Yamin said.Four police personnel have been booked and
suspended over alleged role in the death of Raza, reportedly taken into custody
for a crime he didn't commit. Timesofindia
Hyderabad Police arrests parents
after their sons sent ‘talaq’ on Whatsapp to their wives: Indian Express report
Hyderabad:Hyderabad Police
arrested the parents of two US-based brothers who sent ‘talaq’ messages on
Whatsapp, for assaulting their daughter-in-laws when they refused to leave
their house. The brothers, Abdul Sohail and Abdul Aqil, also put a display
photo of tripe talaq on their mobile phones to convey the message to their
wives, living in Moghalpura area. Police acted on the complaint lodged by the
brothers’ wives who stated that after they received the talaq messages, the
in-laws threw them out of the house 5 days ago and assaulted them when they
resisted the eviction. Police officials
from Moghalpura Police station in South Zone arrested 60-year-old Mohammed
Hafiz and wife Athiya Begum.Police said that the two brothers Abdul Sohail and
Abdul Aqeel had gone to New York last year after getting jobs in a private
company. While Abdul Sohail had married Heena Fathima in 2012, Abdul Aqil had
married Mehren Noor in 2015. Sohail and Fathima have two children while Aqil
and Noor have one child. However, since last two months, the brothers have been
sending messages to their wives regarding divorce which they ignored.“5 days
ago, my husband messaged ‘talaq’ written three times and another message that
he had divorced me. This is unacceptable. My sister-in-law also received a
similar message from her husband. Then both brothers put triple talaq as their
status and display photo on Whatsapp. We have done nothing wrong to divorce us.
If they want to divorce then it should be done legally and abiding the
formalities. They cannot divorce us like this,’’ Heena Fathima said.The boys’
father, Mohammed Hafiz, said that as his sons divorced them, he could not keep
them in his house anymore and kicked them out along with the children. The
women staged a protest by sitting outside their husbands’ house.When DCP of
South Zone,V Satyanarayana, intervened and asked the in-laws to allow the
daughter-in-law in the house, Mohammed Hafiz flatly refused saying his sons had
already divorced them.
2 Muslim Women In
Hyderabad, Divorced Over WhatsApp, Are Fighting Back: NDTV
Ujjain police book ex-RSS
man Kundan Chandrawat for Rs one crore bounty
Bhopal:Ujjain Police have
registered a case against ex-RSS activist Kundan Chandrawat for announcing a
bounty of Rs one crore on the head of Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan.At
a meet in Ujjain to protest the killings of RSS pracharaks and activists in
Kerala, Chandrawat had said that he would transfer his property worth more than
Rs one crore to anyone who cut off Vijayan’s head. He also promised to offer a
garland of three lakh human skulls to Bharat Mata in revenge. Indianexpress
Dalit writer Krishna
Kirwale found murdered at his home in Kolhapur
Kolhapur:Noted Ambedkarite
thinker Dr Krishna Kirwale was found murdered at his house in western
Maharashtra’s Kolhapur city today. Police said his body was found with multiple
stab wounds at his Rajendranagar residence. Kirwale (62), was the retired head
of the Marathi department of Kolhapur’s Shivaji University. Meanwhile, one
person has been detained in connection with the murder, police said, adding
that an unidentified person hurled stones at the suspect’s house. Among
Kirwale’s major contributions was a ‘Dictionary of Dalit and Gramin (Rural)
Literatures’, a project undertaken under the aegis of the state govt. Among his
other books was a biography of pioneering Dalit litterateur, Baburao
Bagul.Kirwale also lectured widely on issues in Ambedkarite literature in
particular, and Marathi literature in general.Police officers didn’t comment on
possible motive behind the brutal murder.PTI
Dalits in Karnataka village
‘denied’ haircut, allege upper caste discrimination
Manchanabale:Nagaraj, a
Dalit resident of Manchanabale village of Karnataka, has to walk to the nearest
town of Chikkaballapur every time he needs a haircut. The reason though is
hair-raising: the three salons of his village have been shut for more than a
year over an unresolved dispute involving haircuts to Dalits.As many as 600
Dalits of the village accuse upper caste members of the village —with a
population of some 4,000 — of practising caste discrimination and not allowing
them to have a haircut at the local salons. Some of the Dalit youths objected
to the practice but the upper castes reportedly stood their ground, preferring
to shut down the salons.It has stayed that way since August, 2015. Peace
meetings held in between have failed to broker a truce.“Since 2015, various
meetings have been held with even the district deputy commissioner in
attendance, but the established practices return as soon as the officials leave
the village,” complained Prakash, a Dalit youth. Hindustantimes
In peaceful first phase,
82% voting recorded in Manipur
IMPHAL:For the first time,
there were no police or State paramilitary personnel in the polling
stations.Brisk polling with a voter turnout of 82 per cent was recorded till
3pm in the first phase of the Manipur assembly election on Saturday.The second
phase will be held on March 8.
57.03% turnout in Phase-VI
of UP polls
Lucknow: The polling
percentage on these 49 seats was 55.04 in the 2012 state assembly polls.An
estimated 57.03 per cent voters cast their ballots on Saturday in the sixth
phase of the Uttar Pradesh elections covering 49 Assembly seats, including Mau,
where gangster-turned—politician Mukhtar Ansari is in the fray.“The polling was
approximately 57.03 per cent and passed off by and large peacefully,” office of
UP Chief Electoral Officer said here.PTI
Akhilesh dares Modi to list
out work done by him
Bhadohi (UP):Samajwadi
Party president and Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav challenged PM
Narendra Modi to list out the work done by him.“I told you about 10 works done
by my government. Can he (Modi) list 10 works? I am ready to give the
performance report of my five year government. But, he should give the report
of three years of rule at the Centre,” he said at an election rally here.PTI
A tale of two roadshows: PM
Modi, Rahul Gandhi and Akhilesh Yadav descend upon Varanasi
Uttar Pradesh: Curfew
relaxed for 12 hours in Lakhimpur
Lakhimpur (up):Curfew was
relaxed on Saturday for 12 hours in Lakhimpur city where tension had prevailed
following clashes over an objectionable video. “Curfew has been relaxed from 6
AM to 6 PM on Saturday. Banks and offices will be allowed to open. However,
schools and colleges will remain closed,” District Magistrate Akashdeep said.He
said security will remain in place in sensitive areas. There were reports from
some areas of burning of makeshift shops by miscreants. The authorities on
Friday held a peace committee meeting and took out a peace march in which
people from different communities participated in large numbers. Shops and
markets are open and normal movement was witnessed on roads.PTI
DU protests: hundreds march
against ABVP
Delhi:It's a Citizen's
March to begin from Mandi House where students across the city have gathered to
protest. Students of various universities, members of left parties AISA and
SFI, members of DUTA are participants of the march.People across Delhi on
Saturday conduct a protest march against the violence caused by ABVP members at
the Ramjas College a few weeks ago.Earlier, a series of marches were taken out
on Delhi University campus protesting against the violence.It's a Citizen's
March begin from Mandi House where students across the city have gathered to
protest. Students of various universities, members of left parties AISA and
SFI, members of DUTA are participants of the march. the hindu
Kerala priest’s rape of
minor girl: Five nuns among eight booked
Kannur:8 people, including
five nuns, have been booked for their role in hiding facts related to the
alleged rape of a minor girl by a vicar of a church in the district. The
in-charge of the private hospital at Kuthuparamba in the district, where the
16-year-old girl gave birth to a boy on February 17, and two others, besides
the nuns, have been booked under non-bailable sections of POCSO Act and
Juvenile Justice Act, Peravoor Circle Inspector, Sunil Kumar, who is the
investigating officer in the case, said today.PTI
Rajasthan education
minister Devnani now calls Mughal emperor Akbar ‘Aatank kari’
Jaipur: As if removing the
suffix ‘Great’ from Akbar’s name wasn’t enough, Rajasthan education minister
Vasudev Devnani alluded to the Mughal emperor being a terrorist. Devnani made
the reference while responding to the alleged threat he received for changing
the name of Akbar Qila (fort) to Ajmer Qila. Speaking to journalists outside
the state assembly on Friday, Devnani said he was a nationalist and wherever
places were named after terrorists, he makes an effort to change them.“I had
asked the Akbar fort in Ajmer to be renamed to Ajmer fort…because I’m a
nationalist and on that basis wherever there are names of terrorists…whatever
changes are possible in that as per the rules, I requested for that. Besides
that, several issues are raised in Ajmer about which I have a nationalistic
perspective. I feel perhaps that is why I feel somebody wrote that kind of a
letter to me.)When asked about it, the minister said he had used the word
invader, not terrorist. “I never said aatank kari, I used the word aakranta
(invader) and well Akbar had invaded India…that’s why we removed chapters that
called him great“And it is true that I am a nationalist…On July 23rd, last
year, a man on a scooter hit me on the road and ran…I fractured a leg. And now
this letter; I wonder if there is any connection between the two incidents. It
is for the police to decide,” he added.Devnani also reiterated on Friday his
assertion about Maharana Pratap winning the battle of Haldighati. INDIAN
EXPRESS
In new book, another side of Aurangzeb: "he protected more
Hindu temples than he destroyed'
Not something we are used
to reading about the Mughal emperor, but historian Audrey Truschke has a
distinct take on the most hated of Babur’s successors. In her book, “The Life
and Legacy of India’s Most Controversial King,” Truschke unpacks a side of
Aurangzeb largely unknown to Indians. Locating his personality in the time
during which her ruled, she analyses a part of Aurangzeb that is ruthless and
benign at the same time depending upon political necessities. Spoking to
indianexpress.com on the most reviled of Mughal emperors, the writer said,
"Aurangzeb protected more Hindu temples than he destroyed. He employed more
Hindus in his imperial administration than any prior Mughal ruler by a fair
margin (50% more Hindus, proportionally, than Akbar had included, for
instance). Aurangzeb asked Hindu doctors and astrologers for advice throughout
his life, even in his final years. Aurangzeb also destroyed some temples,
reinstitute the jizya tax, and, along with the Marathas, caused mass human
suffering in central and south India. The goal for a historian is to make sense
of all of these aspects of Aurangzeb rather than singling out only one side of
this complicated king." She added, "British colonialists depicted
Indo-Muslim kings overall as undesirable and held up Aurangzeb as uniquely
horrific so that British colonialism might shine by comparison. A good example
of this tactic is Elliot and Dowson’s The history of India, as told by its own
historians, a multivolume work that translated excerpts of premodern Islamic
texts that were selected to display the alleged barbarity of Indo-Muslim kings.
Elliot and Dowson were quite open about their goals in their prefaces. In
volume one’s preface, for example, Elliot proclaimed “the supremacy of the
British [colonial] Govt” over “Muhammadan” kings who display “the vices of a
Caligula or a Commodus.” Dowson’s preface to the second volume says that
readers can expect to see, through the translated excerpts, “Musulman
despotism.” Even today, many people still cite this problematic work of
colonial propaganda with little regard for its pro-British, pro-colonial
agenda." She further added, "British colonialism finds few defenders
in India today, but Hindu nationalists have gobbled up colonial-era depictions
of Mughal history, including Aurangzeb, and spit them out in order to foster
anti-Muslim sentiment. This embrace of colonial ideas is unsurprising given the
history of Hindu nationalism, but it is deeply detrimental to the founding
fathers’ vision of India as a secular state that embraced members of all
religious traditions."
HRD ministry makes Aadhaar
mandatory for students, cooks under midday meal scheme
WORLD
Majority of Muslims in
South Asian nations want a Sharia law: PEW Study
Data provided by PEW, a
US-based research centre suggests that South Asian nations are for the Sharia
law. The law, which is the religious law forming part of Islamic tradition, is
derived from the Quran – the religious text of the Muslims. India, which has
the third largest Muslim population in the world, however, was not taken into
consideration during the survey. In Pakistan, in addition to the support to the
Sharia law, there is also the Blasphemy Law, which has seen the assassination
of several prominent leaders even before their trial is over. The law provides
penalties ranging from fines to death by hanging. In 2011, Salmaan Taseer, the
Punjab governor was murdered by his bodyguard, Mumtaz Qadri, for supporting a
Christian woman, Asia Bibi, who was charged with allegedly desecrating Islam's
holy book, the Quran. Qadri was convicted and sentenced in late 2011, and
hanged in Feb.2016. But he is viewed as a hero by many people who thought
Taseer was a blasphemer. Interestingly, there was no data about India regarding
that law. However, information suggests that India has had a long-standing
debate over the law. Last year, the All-India Muslim Personal Law Board claimed
that women feel more secure under the law, while a Muslim Women’s Group called
Muslim Women’s Quest for Equality demanded a complete ban on sharia courts over
the triple talaq issue, which is still being debated in India.
Iraq says 14,000 people
fled western Mosul in one day
A rapidly increasing flow
of people is pouring out of western Mosul, fleeing fierce battles between Iraqi
security forces and ISIL fighters, as medical workers warned that women and
children have been exposed to toxic gas near the city.Iraq's interior ministry
said on Friday that 14,000 people fled the northern Iraqi city on Thursday
alone, the largest wave of internally displaced people (IDPs) since a US-backed
operation in west Mosul was launched on Feb.19.The total number of IDPs who
fled western Mosul since the start of the military push has reached 46,000, the
ministry said. aljazeera
Jordan hangs 15 convicts at
dawn, most in years
Amman: Jordan hanged 15
death row prisoners at dawn today, its information minister said, in a further
break with the moratorium on executions it had observed between 2006 and 2014.
Ten of those put to death had been convicted of terrorism offences and five of
"heinous" crimes including rape, Mahmud al-Momani told the official
Petra news agency.All were Jordanians and they were hanged in Suaga prison
south of the capital Amman. AFP
US delegation in Israel to
discuss relocation of embassy to Jerusalem
An official American
delegation will visit Israel today to discuss the possibility of moving the US
embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, an Israeli news website reported.The
delegation represents the Subcommittee on National Security of the US House of
Representatives, including the Chairman of the subcommittee Ron DeSantis and
Senator Denni Ross.The delegation is expected to talk about the possibility of
relocating the embassy from both a practical and a political perspective. They
will also be meeting Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and other
Israeli officials with links to the touted Jerusalem embassy move. The
delegation also plan to visit potential sites in Jerusalem and return to the
United States with an “accurate analysis”, according to the Israeli news
website.
middleeastmonitor
Compiled and edited by Anwarulhaq (Released at: 7:58 PM)
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