Evening NEWS
DIGEST
19
Sept. 2017: 27 Zilhajja 1438:Vol:8, No:281
Suu Kyi condemns
'all human rights violations', says ready to begin verification process for
Rohingya refugees
Aung San Suu Kyi
said she "feels deeply" for the suffering of "all people"
caught up in conflict-torn Rakhine state in her first comments on the crisis
since the latest violence began last month. "We are concerned to hear the
number of Muslims fleeing areas to Bangladesh," she said in a televised
address on Tuesday, adding that Myanmar condemns any "human rights
violations" that may have exacerbated the crisis. Suu Kyi also said she was
"concerned" over Muslims and others who have fled to neighbouring
Bangladesh.On Monday, leaders from the UK, US, France, Canada and Australia had
urged Aung San Suu Kyi to push for an end to violence against the Rohingya.In
her address, Suu Kyi said "it is not the intention of the Myanmar Govt to apportion blame or to abnegate
responsibility", adding that Myanmar does not fear "international
scrutiny" over the Rohingya crisis.She invited outside observers to visit
Rakhine and see the problems in person." Security forces have been
instructed to adhere strictly to the code of conduct in carrying out security
operations, to exercise all due restraint and to take full measures to avoid
collateral damages and the harming of innocent civilians," she said."
Human rights violations and all other acts that impair stability and harmony
and undermine the rule of law will be addressed with strict norms of
justice," she said.Suu Kyi said that her country stood ready "at any
time" to verify the status of the Rohingya who have fled violence in the
last month to aid the return of those eligible for resettlement."We are
prepared to start the verification process at any time," she said
referring to those who have fled in the unprecedented exodus to Bangladesh,
without guaranteeing a return for all of the refugees. Al Jazeera's Scott
Heidler, who attended the speech at Naypyidaw, said Suu Kyi "expressed
good faith" in vowing to repatriate citizens of Myanmar from
Bangladesh.But he added that "the majority of the Rohingya are not treated
as citizens in Myanmar and lack the proper documentation to begin with".
Suu Kyi says
Myanmar ready to begin verification process for Rohingya refugees who wish to
return
Suu Kyi 'burying
head in sand' over Rohingya:refugees
http://www.aljazeera.com/news/2017/09/suu-kyi-burying-head-sand-rohingya-crisis-170919092338988.html
Rohingya refugees
who fled violence in Myanmar have dismissed leader Aung San Suu Kyi's stated
concern over their plight, as activists accused her Govt of "burying their heads in the sand"
over violence tearing through Rakhine state.In a sprawling and squalid camp on
the Bangladesh-Myanmar border, Rohingya refugees on Tuesday rejected Suu Kyi's
claim that many members of their minority group were safe in Myanmar and said
her vow to repatriate displaced Rohingya carried no weight."Suu Kyi is a
traitor. We can't rely on her words," said Sultan Ahmed, who arrived in
Cox's Bazar in Bangladesh along with hundreds of thousands of refugees two
weeks ago.80-year-old told Al Jazeera that he did not believe the de facto
leader would act on her words because "everything is run and decided by
the army".Suu Kyi "is only a name there. Nobody cares about her,"
he said. She broke her silence on Tuesday, condemning "all human rights
violations" in Rakhine State, and vowing to take action against those who
commit abuses.However, she failed to comment on the military offensive that
sent more than 420,000 Rohingya pouring across the border into Bangladesh, an
operation the UN has branded as "ethnic cleansing".Abdul Hafiz, a
Rohingya man in Kutupalong, was angered by Suu Kyi's implication that Rohingya
were themselves responsible for their plight.Hafiz told AP, "They have
kept people in confinement. Let the world media know from them whether we are
tortured or living in joy." Shah Ahmed, a 60-year-old refugee who fled
Maungdaw in northern Rakhine State 2 weeks ago, said he also no longer trusted
Suu Kyi.Human rights groups were sceptical too, criticising Suu Kyi for failing
to condemn the army's alleged abuses, as well as her claim that army operations
had ceased on Sept.5."While it was positive to hear Suu Kyi condemn human
rights violations in Rakhine state, she is still silent about role of the
security forces," Amnesty said .Phil Robertson of HRW, referring to Suu
Kyi's assertion that military operations had ended, asked: "If that is
true, then who is burning all the villages we've seen in the past two
weeks?"Ronan Lee, a Rohingya researcher at Deakin University, said Suu
Kyi's speech was "deeply concerning from a humanitarian point of
view". It was likely to provide the military with "genuine solace and
certainty that she will not call on them to stop what they are doing," he
told Al Jazeera from Melbourne.
How Rohingya
Muslims being wiped off Myanmar’s map
Rohingya crisis: UN
to investigate reports of ethnic cleansing of Muslims by Burmese military
UN has announced it
will investigate reports of mass killings, torture, sexual violence, and the
burning of Rohingya villages in Burma.The chairman of the fact-finding mission,
Marzuki Darusman asked the UNHRC for a further 6 months to investigate the
violence – taking it up to Sept.2018.He said the team "will go where the
evidence leads us" but warned that he still needs a clear signal from the
Burmese govt that they will be allowed into the country. He also called for Burmese
govt to release its own investigation in the violence in Rakhine state which
was completed in August.But the Burmese ambassador to the UN, Htin Lynn, said
the investigation was "not a helpful course of action" and said Burma
was taking proportionate security measures against terrorists to restore peace.
Darusman also said Rohingya people had faced "major atrocities" and
had been the subject of “dehumanizing propaganda”. He said: "There are
reports of landmines being planted on the border with Bangladesh that are
maiming and killing those trying to escape the violence, including children. “There
are also reports of dehumanizing propaganda that akin the Rohingya to
pests." Independent/ Anadolu agency
UN investigators
demand 'full, unfettered' access to Myanmar
UN warns of 'major
atrocities' in Myanmar crisis
421,000 Rohingya
entered Bangladesh since Aug. 25
Geneva;About
421,000 Rohingya Muslims have crossed from Myanmar to Bangladesh since Aug. 25,
UN said on Tuesday. "Many of the new arrivals, who walked for days through
jungle in intense heat and monsoon rains, are already sick and malnourished by
the time they reach the teeming settlements of Cox's Bazar, Bangladesh,"
Joel Millman, spokesman for the UN’s International Agency for Migration (IOM)
told a news conference at the UN in Geneva on Tuesday. Anadolu agency
UN General
Assembly: UN chief urges Myanmar to halt military campaign against Rohingya
UN
Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Tuesday urged Myanmar to halt its
military campaign against Rohingya Muslims, just hours after Aung San Suu Kyi
failed to quell an international outcry in a much-anticipated address. Addressing
the opening of the UN General Assembly, Guterres said he "took note"
of Aung San Suu Kyi's pledge to abide by the recommendations of a report by ex-UN
chief Kofi Annan that has advocated citizenship for Rohingyas."But let me
be clear," Guterres said. "The authorities in Myanmar must end the
military operations,and allow unhindered humanitarian access."
Rohingya: UK
condemned for continuing Burmese army training amid reports of 'ethnic
cleansing'
Rohingya crisis:
India stresses on restoring normalcy in Myanmar, says situation must be handled
with restraint
Geneva: India has
stressed on restoration of normalcy in Myanmar's Rakhine state where violence
has triggered an outflow of hundreds of thousands of Rohingya refugees to
neighbouring Bangladesh and called for the situation to be handled with
restraint."It is imperative that violence is ended and normalcy in the
state is restored expeditiously through a solution based on respect for peace,
communal harmony, justice, dignity and democratic values," Rajiv Chander,
India's permanent representative to UN in Geneva, said."We urge that the
situation in Rakhine state be handled with restraint, focusing on the welfare
of the civilian population," he said. He was speaking at an interactive
dialogue with the fact-finding mission on Myanmar at the 36th session of the UNHRC.IANS
Solution to
Rohingya crisis is socio-economic and infrastructure development: Indian envoy
tells UN
Security beefed up
to check entry of Rohingya Muslims along Indo-Myanmar border
Aizawal:Security
has been beefed up and patrolling by the Assam Rifles intensified along the
Mizoram-Arakan border in the state’s
Lawngtlai district, in view of the possibility of Rohingya Muslim militants and
refugees attempting to enter the state.A senior home department official said
today that several meetings were held by Mizoram police, paramilitary forces
and intelligence agencies of both central and state Govt s to review the
security situation along the Myanmar border. “Not a single Rohingya Muslim has
so far entered Mizoram,” he added.PTI
India welcomes Suu
Kyi’s ‘encouraging’ statement on Rohingyas
Yangon: India has
welcomed as encouraging and positive Myanmar State Counsellor Aung San Suu
Kyi’s address on the situation in the country’s Rakhine state where violence
has triggered an outflow of hundreds of thousands of Rohingya refugees to neighbouring
Bangladesh.“It was an encouraging address and contained a very positive
message,” India’s Ambassador to Myanmar Vikram Misri told the media after Suu
Kyi’s state of the union address on the issue.IANS
New images show 214
Rakhine villages destroyed
Nearly 214 villages
in Myanmar’s Rakhine state have been completely destroyed, satellite images
released by an international rights body revealed on Tuesday. Anadolu
Pak should take
away Rohingyas if Masood Azhar is so fond of them: Union Minister Giriraj
Union Minister
Giriraj Singh, known for his controversial remarks, said on Tuesday that
Pakistan should “take away” Rohingyas as Masood Azhar “is fond of
them”.Referring to Pakistan-sponsored terrorism in Kashmir and the continuing
infiltration attempts from across the border, Singh said that India does not
have the capacity to bear more “infiltrators”, therefore the Rohingya Muslims
will have to leave.The minister reiterated the Govt ’s stand that Rohingyas are
illegal migrants who pose a threat to India’s internal security.PTI
Rohingya a
‘security threat’: ‘We love India, why would we join forces against country?’
New Delhi;“We’d
rather kill ourselves here than go back to Myanmar or Bangladesh… At least
there are graveyards here for us, unlike back there,” said a despondent
25-year-old Sohail Khan. On Monday, seated on a broken plastic chair outside a
tiny shop in Delhi’s Kanchan Kunj, where close to 50 Rohingya families have
been living since 2012, Khan said he has barely eaten in the last few days.
“Khauf hai, khaana kahan se khaayein?” he said.At Kanchan Kunj, semi-clad
children — covered in dust and giant mosquito bites — run around, as their
parents ponder about their impending future. “Look at these children, do they
look like terrorists? We love India… it’s only when we came here that we
realised what peace is, what living is, what laughing is. Why will we join
forces against India?” said Jaffar (27), who works as an office boy in a
company in Okhla.“We have UNHRC refugee cards… In the last two weeks, though,
some people in the colony lost their jobs. Some employers said it’s because
they are from Myanmar and will be thrown out. Are we not human?” asked Mohammad
Salimullah (34. indianexpress
Sushma meets PM
Hasina, no discussion on Rohingyas
Fate of jailed
Rohingyas in Northeast hangs in the balance, infiltration fears mount
Centre takes U-turn
on citizenship to Chakma-Hajong refugees?
New Delhi: Days
after saying that the Centre would honour the 2015 Supreme Court order on
granting citizenship to the Chakma-Hajongs, Buddhists and Hindus from undivided
Pakistan, Union Minister of State for Home Kiren Rijiju said on Sept.19 that Supreme
Court order was not implementable.In an about turn, Rijiju said the two
persecuted communities who came from Chittagong (now Bangladesh) were settled
in Arunachal Pradesh between 1964-69 by the then Congress Govt and any citizenship to them will disturb the
“demography” of the tribal State.Rijiju said that the media had misrepresented
his comments on the Chakma-Hajongs and that the Centre would appeal in the
Supreme Court against its earlier 2015 direction to grant citizenship to
them.“Arunachal enjoys special status as per Constitution. As a Member of
Parliament from Arunachal, I have to stand by my people,” Rijiju said. thehindu
SC order on
citizenship to Chakmas and Hajongs not implementable: Kiren Rijiju
INDIA: OTHERS
NIA Court grants
bail to 2 more accused - Chaturvedi, Dwivedi in Malegaon bomb blast after
Sadhvi, Purohit
Mumbai: A special
NIA court here today granted bail to 2 accused in the 2008 Malegaon bomb blast
case. Sudhakar Chaturvedi and Sudhakar Dwivedi alias Shankaracharya, facing
conspiracy charges, were granted bail by NIA Court judge SD Tekale.Both are
accused of attending conspiracy meetings, where the terror attack was planned,
along with others. 2 key accused in the case, Sadhvi Pragya Singh Thakur and Lt
Col Prasad Shrikant Purohit, were granted bail earlier.Bombay High Court
granted bail to Thakur earlier this year, while Purohit was given the relief by
the Supreme Court last month. 12 people, including Thakur and Purohit, were
arrested in connection with the blast. All the accused were booked under the
stringent MCOCA UAPA, besides under various sections of the IPC.PTI
Malegaon blast: 2
accused granted bail, after Lt Col Purohit given interim relief by SC
Mumbai multiple
blasts: SC dismisses Nachan's plea
New Delhi: The
Supreme Court on Tuesday dismissed the plea of a man seeking to set off the
remainder of his 10-year jail term in the case of multiple blasts in Mumbai
between Dec.2002 and March 2003 in which 13 people were killed. Saquib Abdul
Hamid Nachan was awarded 10-year jail term in the case lodged under the POTA by
a special court in Mumbai. Before being convicted, he had spent over seven
years in jail during the adjudication of the case.A special POTA court in
Mumbai had convicted 10 persons, including Nachan, in connection with the case.
3 convicts were awarded life term by the court.After being released on bail in
POTA case in March 2011, Nachan was re-arrested on Aug.4, 2012 in connection
with a separate case lodged under MCOCA. In Oct.last year, he was also released
on bail in the MCOCA case, in which the trial is still pending. On April 6 last
year, Nachan was convicted by a special court in the POTA case and subsequently
awarded the decade long jail term.He had approached the HC claiming that the
trial in the POTA case was going on when he was an undertrial prisoner in the
MCOCA case. He had said that the period of detention undergone by him in MCOCA
case should be set off against the jail term given to him in the POTA case. The
high court had dismissed his plea saying the period undergone by him in MCOCA
case cannot be set off against the sentence imposed in the POTA case.PTI
Kerala: 10 months
after son was killed ‘for conversion’, father embraces Islam
Almost 10 months
after Anil Kumar, alias Faisal, 30, was hacked to death in Kerala’s Malappuram
district, allegedly by RSS activists after he converted to Islam, his father
Krishnan Nair has become a Muslim. Nair was the last in the family to embrace
Islam, the police said. The family comes from Kodinji village in Malappuram
district.Soon after Faisal was killed on Nove.19, 2016, his mother Meenakshi
had publicly dared the Sangh Parivar by converting to Islam. 2 months ago,
Faisal’s two sisters, one brother-in-law and their 5 children also converted.
Police sources said Nair, an upper-caste Hindu, converted into Islam two weeks
ago at Maunathul Islam Sabha in Ponnani in the district. Along with his wife,
daughters and grandchildren, Nair is said to be now undergoing a course for
newly converts at Markazul Hidya in Manjeri, Malappuram. To read this story in
Malayalam, click here.“Except one of Faizal’s brothers-in-law, Vinod, who is
one of the accused in his murder, all others in the family have converted to
Islam. The Muslim community considered Faisal as a martyr and ensured all
support for his family members. This worked as a trigger for their
conversions,’’ a police official said.Faisal, who worked as a driver in Riyadh,
had converted to Islam in 2015 in the Saudi Arabian capital. In August 2016,
his wife Priya (now Jesni) and three minor children also converted, which had
allegedly enraged Sangh Parivar members in the region. Following Faisal’s
killing, 12 RSS and BJP workers were arrested, among them the victim’s
brother-in-law. After their interrogation, the police had said that the killers
feared Faisal would have triggered more conversions in the family. indianexpress
Shameful to demand
that I should be returned: Ladakh woman Shifah who married a Muslim
New Delhi: A
Buddhist woman whose marriage to a Muslim man stoked communal tension in J&K’s
Ladakh wrote in an article for the Indian Express on Tuesday that she
‘abhorred’ the politics being played on her personal decision.Shifah, formerly
called Stanzin Saldon, said in the article she had decided to become a Muslim
as an outcome of her “spiritual quest” and not because she “disliked her
religion”. She added that she converted long before she met her husband Syed
Murtaza Aga.Shifah, 30, converted to Islam in 2015 and married Aga, an
engineer, last year.Earlier this month, the region’s apex religious body Ladakh
Buddhist Association (LBA) had threatened communal unrest unless Shifah was
“brought back”.LBA wrote to CM, asking for an annulment of Shifah and Mustaza’s
marriage.“It is shameful to demand that I should be returned, because nobody
has taken me or stolen me. I am here and I have made my choices out of my free
will,” Shifah said, adding that the portrayal of women as a “mere baby-making
machine to save the community” was another reason she questioned her life
choices.HT
It saddens me that
my marriage, spiritual choice are misused to stoke fear, hatred: Stanzin Saldon
now Shifah
Will give Hadiya
case findings to SC: Women Commission
Kerala State
Women’s Commission on Monday said it would only reveal to the Supreme Court whether
Hadiya, a 26-year-old Hindu woman who converted to Islam and subsequently
married a Muslim youth, faced severe human rights violations, including
forcible detention, at her parent’s home.The commission had opened an inquiry
into the allegation that Ms. Hadiya’s parents flagrantly violated her
fundamental rights after the High Court had placed her in their custody after
annulling her marriage. The complainants, including 1,000 members of the Girls
Islamic Organisation, alleged that none was allowed to meet her and that Ms.
Hadiya was constantly under police watch. The SC was seized of the matter in
August when Ms. Hadiya’s husband approached it to revoke the lower court’s decision.The
SC reserved its judgement and ordered the NIA to probe whether the marriage was
part of a “Love Jihad” conspiracy to convert women from other faith to
Islam.The Commission said it was unwilling to comment on the status of the
sensitive inquiry or the nature of its findings. It would submit its deductions
in the Supreme Court if ordered.thehindu
UN reforms should
include expansion of permanent or non-permanent members: India
New York:India has
extended its support to US President Donald Trump’s efforts to reform the UN,
saying it should include the expansion of the world body’s permanent and
non-permanent members to keep pace with the changed times. Trump, during a
discussion on UN reform on Monday, insisted that he had always seen the “great
potential” of the organisation but warned that “bureaucracy” was stopping it
from realising its potential.Trump, once a harsh critic of the UN, called for
reforms in the body -- a view India has been expressing for a long time.“We
have said that the world body should be reformed to keep pace with the changed
times including the expansion of its permanent or non-permanent members,”
External affairs ministry spokesperson Raveesh Kumar told reporters at a news
conference here. hindustantimes
Pak again brings up
Kashmir at UN forum, India hits back calling it 'face of international terror'
New Delhi: In
Geneva, at the UNHRC session that ended yesterday, Pakistan said:
"...human needs, desires and the right to self-determination" are
"being abused" in Kashmir". It then talked of "10,000
persons ... detained and tortured" in the state, according to a UNHRC
statement on its proceedings. India then exercised its 'right of reply', to
savage Pakistan and to talk of how it is once again misusing an international
platform. India also said that PoK "is run by a 'deep state' and has
become an epicentre of terrorism" where as Kashmiris in J&K have time
and again reaffirmed their destiny through India's democratic processes. timesofindia
Eye on Pakistan,
India wants probe into North Korea’s nuclear proliferation linkages
Year after surgical
strikes: Surge in death count of both soldiers, militants
New Delhi:In nearly
a year since the Army’s Special Forces carried out “surgical strikes” on terror
launch pads inside PoK, there has been an increase in the casualties suffered
by the Army, the number of militants killed, and a sharp spurt in the number of
ceasefire violations. According to Govt data 110 militants were killed by the
Army between Jan.and Sept.last year (the surgical strikes took place on the
morning of Sept.29, 2016).Since the surgical strikes, 178 militants have been
killed, both in the Kashmir Valley and on the LoC — 31 between Oct.and Dec.last
year, and the rest this year.Indian Express
DSP lynching case:
JKLF chief moves SHRC over false implication of JK youths
Srinagar; JKLF
chief Yasin Malik has petitioned State Human Rights Commission (SHRC) to look
into “false implication” of many Kashmiri youths by the police in the DSP
Mohammed Ayub Pandith lynching case. It is for the first time the separatist
leader has approached a state office.Malik visited the office of SHRC on Monday
and met its chairman Justice(rtd)Bilal Nazki. He presented two petitions before
the chairman and asked him to take serious cognisance of the matter, a JKLF
spokesman said on Tuesday. In the first petition, JKLF chief raised the issue
of “dozens of young boys being falsely implicated by police in the killing of
Pandit,” he said. Malik told the commission that 15 incarcerated boys met him
at the Central Jail, Srinagar, where he was lodged recently and narrated their
ordeal to him, the spokesman said. Pandith was stripped and lynched by a mob
outside the historic Jamia Masjid in Srinagar’s Nowhatta area on July 22,
triggering outrage across Kashmir and drawing all-round condemnation. Malik
called for a “fresh and unbiased inquiry” into the case. “Use your good offices
for saving the lives and careers of these boys so that no injustice is done to
them,” he told the commission.In the other petition, the separatist leader
cited the case of ailing Syeda Asiya Andrabi and Fahmida Sofi who are
languishing in a Jammu jail from a long time, the spokesman said.Malik asked SHRC
to “take note of these gross human rights violations and ensure that the
inmates are treated fairly”.PTI
Demand for
explanation and release of Kashmiri photojournalist arrested by NIA grows
louder
NIA arrests 2 for
providing support to infiltrators in J&K
New Delhi: NIA arrested
two persons for allegedly providing logistical and material support to
terrorists infiltrating from Pakistan into Kashmir for carrying out subversive
activities, officials said here today.Zahoor Ahmed Peer and Nazir Ahmed Peer,
both residents of Wahama, Kupwara, in North Kashmir, were arrested from Jammu
in connection with a case registered by the NIA in July last year, an NIA
spokesperson said. NIA will seek their transit remand and bring them to Delhi
for further questioning, he added.In July last year, police in J&K arrested
a Pakistani national, Bahadur Ali, from Handwara in North Kashmir and recovered
a large quantity of incriminating material, including arms and ammunition, from
him. The case was later handed over to the NIA.PTI
Fake news killing
people, yet govt not taking it seriously
New Delhi:
"Recently we have seen many crimes due to rumours based on morphed image
and fake videos in various states where people have been killed. So now fake
news is killing people. It is a big issue that has not been taken seriously as
it should have been," said senior journalist Pratik Sinha, who is
co-founder of altnews.in, a website dedicated to exposing fake news.He was
speaking at program entitled "Fake News:Kya Hai Is Jhooth Ka Sach?"organized
by StudioAdda initiative here on Monday.He gave several example of fake news
including the recent one tweeted by Congress leader Digvijaya Singh about NDTV
executive editor Ravish Kumar's remarks against PM Narendra Modi. "Fake news has become
prevalent in a divisive, polarised society based on religious identity. The
main factors behind circulation fake stuff is illiteracy of people in urban and
rural both areas and their way of using social media," said Sinha.His
altnews.in has ripped through several fake news stories in recent time. While
lamenting that the Govt is not doing
enough to curb the menace of fake news, he said:"We have been consistently
exposing fake news and videos that were viral at large level. Multiple
organizations along with mainstream media must come together. Till there is no
public pressure, no Govt will do
anything. We need to tell people and make them aware," Sinha said. Gurmehar
Kaur, Delhi University student who hit national and international headlines as
she stood up against culture of violence by right-wing Hindu youth groups, was
also a victim of fake news during the infamous Ramjas College incident.While
speaking at the topic, Gurmehar said: When Ramjas violent incident happened, a
fake video was circulated on social media that I am in a car and drinking
(alcohol) and dancing. That video was purposely made."Other eminent
persons present at the Constitution Club event included Apoorva from, Studio
Adda; Anupam Pandey from Outlook Magazine and Martand Jha from The
Hindu.IndiaTomorrow
No place for
minorities in BJP, says expelled Muslim leader from Assam
Guwahati: From
being a prominent Muslim face of the BJP in Assam to getting expelled from the
party for flouting its line on the issue of Rohingya Muslims - Benazir Arfan
has seen it all in the past seven days.The state executive member of the
saffron party’s ‘mazdoor morcha’ or workers’ wing was expelled from the BJP on
Monday, five days after she uploaded a post on social media voicing support for
Rohingyas.“I was suspended from the party on Thursday and expelled four days
later. The action was taken without giving me a hearing and the decision was
conveyed through WhatsApp,” Arfan told thesaid.“I replied to the notice but a
disciplinary action committee of the party expelled me indefinitely without
giving me a hearing. No party leader called me or sought my views,” she said.“Party
is also doing lip service in the name of being there for minorities. They are
not serious about our issues and no genuine leader from the community is
allowed to rise,” Arfan added.HT
Mayawati drops a
bombshell; claims BJP hatched plot to assassinate her during Saharanpur riots
BSP chief Mayawati
alleged that BJP had plotted her assassination during the Saharanpur riots that
took place in April this year.Addressing a rally and workers’ convention in
Meerut, the former UP CM claimed that the BJP had hatched the
conspiracy to assassinate her after she resigned from her position in the Rajya
Sabha, following the Saharanpur riots.She further alleged that the BJP had
engineered the riots to divert the people’s attention from the issue of
tampering of EVMs during the state assembly polls, which saw the BJP win a
record 325 seats.“The violence in Shabbirpur was escalated, thanks to BJP and
its supporters just to divert the attention from the EVM tampering allegation,”
she alleged.She further claimed that the BJP had hatched a plan after they
found out that she would be visiting the riot-hit area. dnaindia
CBI arrests BJD MLA
Prabhat Biswal in Rs 500-crore Odisha chit fund scam
Bhubaneswar:Ruling
BJD MLA Prabhat Biswal was arrested by CBI on Tuesday in connection with an
allegedly dubious land deal with the kingpin of a Rs 500-crore chit fund scam
in Odisha, investigating officials said.The arrest of Biswal, a close
confidante of CM Naveen Patnaik, could
potentially give fresh ammunition to BJP which is trying to topple the BJD in
the 2019 assembly polls.Officials said Biswal was arrested from his Cuttack
residence early Tuesday morning over the land deal with Seashore Group chief
Prashant Dash, accused of swindling more than Rs 500 crore from people through
a pyramid scheme. hindustantimes
Police looking for
BJP leader’s kin who opened fire with air gun during communal riot in MP
Bhopal: Police in
Shajapur town in Madhya Pradesh are looking for the relative of a BJP leader
who shot two persons with an air gun during communal violence that erupted on
Saturday.Police are searching for Mahendra Kushwah, brother-in-law of Mona
Vikram Kushwah, a BJP municipal corporator from Ward 14 (Kachhiwada) of
Shajapur town. Mahendra Kushwah has been booked for attempt to murder under
Section 307 of the IPC as pellets fired by him from the airgun injured two
persons on Saturday. Of the two injured persons, one was hospitalised in
Indore, according to Shajapur district police superintendent Shailendra
Chouhan. Police clarified that it was not police firing that caused injuries to
the two persons on Saturday. In a
hurriedly convened press briefing in Bhopal Sunday, inspector-general (law and
order) Makarand Deuskar said police did not fire even a single round on
Saturday. "Our investigations have revealed that a man named Mahendra
Kushwah open fire with his air gun. Pellets from the gun injured 2
persons," Deuskar said.newindianexpress
No single incident
of riot recorded in UP since March:CM
New Delhi:There has
not been a single incident of riot in the state, claimed UP CM Yogi
Adityanath as he completes six months in office. “After March 2017, there
hasn’t been a single incident of riot. Prior to that, we had seen cases of
riots taking place in the state,” Adityanath was quoted as saying by ANI.Taking
a jibe at the previous dispensation, CM Adityanath claimed that his Govt has removed jungle raj (law of the jungle)
from the state. “It was priority to rid UP of jungle raj. Happy that hard work
by ministers has instilled sense of confidence in people,” the CM said. indianexpress
Intolerance,
unemployment key issues facing India:Rahul
Washington;
Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi has said that intolerance and unemployment
are the key issues that pose a serious challenge to India’s national security
and development. Gandhi, who is in the US on a two-week-long tour, held a a
series of meetings, including a roundtable with eminent Indian /South Asia
experts hosted by the Center for American Progress (CAP), a Democratic-leaning
think tank. Prominent among the attendees were CAP head Neera Tandon, the
former US Ambassador to India, Richard Verma, and Hillary Clinton’s top
campaign advisor John Podesta.PTI
Ex-Congress leader Vaghela
announces third front in Gujarat: indianexpress
Just a couple of
months ahead of the Gujarat assembly elections, veteran political leader Shankersinh
Vaghela —who quit the Congress party in July this year — launched a new
“political front” on Tuesday and presented a political alternative which
according to him was “anti-Congress and anti-BJP.”On Tuesday, announcing the
formation a third political alternative in the state, Vaghela said, “This is
not a party, but a political front like the UPA and NDA… This is not BJP’s “B”
team. This is not match-fixing. While the Congress has no chance (of forming Govt),
BJP is facing anti-incumbency. The issues we will be fighting for are all those
against the (BJP) Govt .
Hindutva is a
travesty of Hinduism: Nayantara Sahgal
New Delhi: Author
Nayantara Sahgal today said that the Hindutva being practised today is a
travesty of Hinduism.In conversation with writer Githa Hariharan in a Facebook
Live video on the 'The Making and Unmaking of India', Sahgal said the
"transformation of the nation is happening right now in front of our
eyes"."What is projected today as Hindutva is a travesty of Hinduism.
Hindutva is a distortion of Hinduism, and that is what we are being shrunk into
from this huge and rich inclusive idea of India," she said.PTI
“We are shrinking
into a Hindu monoculture: Sehgal
Dawood’s brother
Iqbal arrested in extortion case
Mumbai:Thane police
on Monday arrested Iqbal Kaskar, India’s most wanted criminal Dawood Ibrahim’s
brother, in connection with an extortion case.Thane Anti-Extortion Cell, led by
encounter specialist Pradeep Sharma, took Kaskar in for questioning from his
Mumbai residence in the evening. He was later arrested.“Kaskar called a builder
from Thane around four months ago and tried to extort money from him. The builder
lodged a complaint with the police a few days ago. When we traced the number,
we confirmed it was Kaskar’s,” a police officer from the anti-extortion cell
said.“We have questioned Kaskar about the call.We have detained him as a prime
suspect in the case,” officer added.Kaskar, who was deported from UAE in 2003,
is said to be operating his brother’s real estate business in the city, the
police said. hindustantimes
Iqbal was watching
KBC, eating biryani, when arrested
Economic slowdown
is real, not just technical: SBI Research
Mumbai: Noting that
the economy has been on a downslide since Sept. 2016, SBI Research on Tuesday
said the slowdown is real and not technical and called for more public spending
to arrest the slide.“We certainly believe that we are in a slowdown mode since
Sept.2016 and a slowdown that has been prolonged to Q1 of this fiscal year is
technically not short-term in nature or even transient,”SBI Research said in a
report. Continuing slowdown has “raised the spectre of whether slowdown is
temporary or not” but stopped short of answering the question.The note comes
days after BJP president Amit Shah attributed the slowdown — GDP growth slid
for the sixth quarter in a row to hit a three-year low at 5.7% in the June
quarter — to “technical reasons” without elaborating on the same. Shah had said
growth had gone up to 7.1% after falling to 4.7% in FY14 when UPA was in power.PTI
Inflation is down
by 700 bp since 2013, policy rates have declined by 200bp; and you are still
wondering why GDP growth is slow?Surjit S Bhalla
WORLD
Palestinian PM to
visit Gaza for reconciliation talks
Palestinian PM Rami Hamdallah is planning to visit Gaza for
talks after Hamas agreed to steps towards resolving a decade-long split with
its West Bank-based rival Fatah. Nabil Shaath, a senior adviser to Palestinian
President Mahmoud Abbas, told journalists in the West Bank city of Ramallah
that Hamdallah would meet Hamas officials in Gaza City and assert the govt's
control over ministries as a first step towards implementing a larger
agreement."We await the first steps on the ground. We want to see Mr
Hamdallah received by Hamas, the door to all the ministries open," he
said. "That really could happen in the next 24 hours."Hamdallah has
not visited Gaza since 2015, and a previous attempt at a unity Govt fell apart that year, with the two sides
exchanging blame.The head of the Arab League on Monday hailed the steps taken
by Hamas and called for full reconciliation.In a statement, Hamas called on
Abbas to "take urgent steps to cancel all his punitive decisions and
measures against our people in the Strip". aljazeera
Hamas calls on
Abbas to stop punishing Gaza
Hamas Spokesman
Fawzi Barhoum called on Palestinian Authority (PA) President Mahmoud Abbas to
revoke measures taken against the Gaza Strip after his movement dissolved the
administrative committee, Quds Press reported.Abbas should “immediately” allow
the Govt of Rami Hamdallah to bear its
responsibilities in the Gaza Strip “without any procrastination”, Barhoum
stressed.In April, Abbas began imposing a number of measures on the besieged
Gaza Strip included reduction PA payments for the electricity supplied by
Israel to the enclave, reduction of medicine shipments and medical referrals,
slashing salaries of Gaza’s civil servants and forcing thousands of them in to
early retirement. middleeastmonitor
Palestinians decry
church patriarch's role in land deal
Occupied East
Jerusalem - Greek Orthodox Church has been plunged into a renewed crisis in the
Holy Land as its leaders are accused of selling off land to extremist Jewish
settlers in prime locations in Jerusalem's Old City.Hundreds of Palestinians
rallied in the city this month to call for the removal of Patriarch Theophilos
III, claiming that he had colluded with a settler organisation.The settler
group, Ateret Cohanim, has been working for decades to evict Palestinians from
their homes and shops in the Old City, including around important holy sites
such as the al-Aqsa Mosque compound. The land deal, initiated back in 2004,
brought down Theophilos's predecessor, Irineos, more than a decade ago after he
sold an option for a 198-year lease on three strategically located properties
in the Old City to front companies representing Ateret Cohanim. Secret tape
recordings of Ateret Cohanim officials have in the past raised concerns that
Israel is strong-arming each new Greek Orthodox Patriarch into selling land by refusing
to agree to recognise his appointment until he cooperates with the settler
group. aljazeera
Israel to seal off
West Bank, Gaza Strip
Israel will today
close off the occupied West Bank and besieged Gaza Strip for five days to Saturday
to mark the Jewish new year.During this holiday, Israeli occupation forces
prevent Palestinians from entering Israel and Jerusalem. This stops them access
their jobs and Al-Aqsa Mosque.Quds Press reported an Israeli military official
saying that the situation in the West Bank and Jerusalem is “still sensitive”
from a security perspective. middleeastmonitor
Israeli settlers’
groups calls for increasing raids of Al-Aqsa
Israeli Jewish
settlers’ groups called for increasing raids of Al-Aqsa Mosque during the
Jewish holidays which start on Thursday, Quds Press reported yesterday.Israeli
occupation authorities, Quds Press said, readied themselves to protect Israeli
Jewish settlers who wish to raid Al-Aqsa Mosque.There are a number of Jewish
holidays from the end of September through to Oct. and in previous years this
has led to hundreds of settlers storming the Muslim holy site to perform
prayers or tour the area while Muslim worshippers have had their access limited
to been banned from entry at times. middleeastmonitor
Imam Abdulrahman
al-Sudais slammed for claiming Trump
'steering world to peace'
The imam of the
grand mosque of Mecca has claimed Donald Trump, the US and Saudi Arabia are
"steering the world to peace", in comments during a visit to New York
that sparked an outcry on social media. Abdulrahman al-Sudais said in a TV
interview with Saudi channel Al Ekhbariya that Saudi Arabia and the US are the
"poles of influence in the world". They are "steering the world
and humanity to the ports of security, peace and prosperity," he added,
claiming that the two countries should unite to "combat terrorism"
and to "realise security and international peace". Meet, on
'Civilisational communication between the US and the Islamic World', was held
by Muslim World League over two days and attracted representatives of Islamic
institutions globally.Imam' comments attracted criticism, with hashtag
#SudaisDeclarationDoesNotRepresentMe circulating in Arabic. Many users
criticised Sudais' remarks and his praising of the US. middleeasteye
Qatar discusses
greater cooperation with Iran, Pakistan
Qatar’s PM,
Abdullah Bin Nasser Al Thani, discussed boosting cooperation between Doha and
Iran and Pakistan with the ambassadors of both countries, the Qatar News Agency
(QNA) reported.Mohammed Javad Asayish and Shahzad Ahmad met with the Qatari
official to discuss areas of common interest including enhancing trilateral
cooperation.On 26 August, Qatar decided to return its ambassador to Iran 18
months after he quitted the country following angry demonstrations were held at
Saudi’s missions in Iran after the Kingdom executed Shia Muslim cleric Nimr
Al-Nimr. middleeastmonitor
Somalia backs
Saudi-UAE bloc blockade on Qatar
Somalia’s southern
autonomous region has sided with Saudi Arabia and the UAE’s bloc against Qatar,
news site Garowe said.President Sharif Hassan’s office of Southwest State said
a neutral position previously taken by the Federal Govt of Somalia on the Qatar-Gulf rift did not
match the considerations of the federal member states and people. middleeastmonitor
Chinese-Russian
naval drills begin off North Korea
China and Russia
have started joint naval drills in the waters near the Russia-North Korea
border, local media reported.The exercises, which began on Monday off Russia's
southeastern port of Vladivostok, are the second part of China and Russia's
'Joint Sea-2017' programme that started in June. The drills, which include
submarine rescue and anti-submarine exercises, are not directly linked to
increasing tensions over North Korea, China's state-owned Xinhua news agency
reported. aljazeera
Polls suggest jump
in German far-right party's support
Germany's
right-wing populist Alternative for Germany (AfD) party ramped up attacks
against immigration and Islam as its poll ratings jumped in the final stretch
of election campaigning. The Muslim religion "does not belong in
Germany", said a leading AfD candidate Alexander Gauland, who argued its
"political doctrine is not compatible with a free country".
"Islamist rhetoric and violence and terror have roots in the Quran and in
the teachings of Islam," he told reporters on Monday. Among other
proposals, AfD wants a ban on minarets and public calls to prayer from mosques,
a ban on headscarves for teachers and students, and for imams to lead prayers
only in German.The latest polls show the AfD securing 10-12 % of the vote, up
from 8-10 percent.The first far-right party set to enter Germany's parliament
for more than a half a century has been saying it will press for Chancellor
Angela Merkel to be "severely punished" for opening the door to
refugees and migrants. aljazeera
UNHCR: Nearly 2
million Yemenis internally displaced
UNHCR said in a
report posted ReliefWeb that the number of internally displaced people in Yemen
had reached nearly 2 million due to the ongoing conflict in the country.It said
84 % of the nearly 1,980,510 people have been internally displaced for over a
year.The report also said 946,044 internally displaced people had returned to
their homes and 280,623 refugees and asylum seekers, mainly from Somalia and
Ethiopia, are in the country.Additionally, the report said the “UNHCR remains
deeply concerned by the significant impact the escalating hostilities are
having on the protection of civilians and on the increase of newly displaced
persons”. middleeastmonitor
US to send more
than 3,000 Ztroops to Afghanistan
US will deploy more
than 3,000 additional troops to Afghanistan, Defense Secretary James Mattis
said Monday.Mattis told reporters at the Pentagon most of the new forces are
already on their way to Afghanistan or have orders to deploy."Frankly I
haven't signed the last of the orders right now. As we look at specific, small
elements that are going," he said during an impromptu news conference.
U.S. currently has about 11,000 troops in Afghanistan.Anadolu agency
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Anwarulhaq (Released at: 8:03 PM)
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