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NEWS
DIGEST, MID-DAY
25 April 2018:08 Shaban 1439:Vol:10, No:07
INDIA
Asaram found guilty of raping teenager,
awarded life term
Jodhpur:A Jodhpur court today awarded life
sentence to self-styled godman Asaram after holding him guilty of raping a
teenage girl in his ashram 5 years ago, the second case of a powerful spiritual
leader being convicted of a sexual offence in less than a year after Dera Sacha
Sauda head Gurmeet Ram Rahim last Aug.Special judge Madhusudan Sharma's
verdict, which comes as the debate over sexual violence, particularly the rape
of minors, intensifies across the country, was read out in Jodhpur Central Jail
where 77-year-old Asaram has been kept for over 4 years. Special court for
SC/ST cases convicted two other accused, Shilpi and Sharad, and acquitted two,
Prakash and Shiva."The court has awarded life imprisonment to Asaram while
the two other convicts have been each sentenced to 20 years in jail," a
senior police official said.Arguments for the quantum of sentencing were
earlier held inside the heavily fortified jail premises, where the trial court
delivered its verdict in accordance with the directions of the Rajasthan HC.Asaram,
who started from a hut on banks of the Sabarmati, created a Rs 10,000 crore
empire with 400 ashrams in India and other parts of the world in 4 decades.PTI
Top cop who led probe in Asaram rape case
received 2,000 threat letters, phone calls
Senior police officer Ajay Pal Lamba received
more than 2,000 threatening letters and hundreds of phone calls while he was
overseeing the investigation in the rape case against self-styled godman
Asaram.A special court in Rajasthan’s Jodhpur on Wednesday convicted Asaram of
raping a minor girl at his Jodhpur ashram in 2013. Asaram faces at least 10
years in jail; under the charges, he could be sentenced to life imprisonment.
The quantum of sentence is yet to be pronounced.HT
3 witnesses killed, several attacked and
threatened for speaking against Asaram
Asaram conviction: We lived in constant
terror, satisfied with verdict, says victim’s father
New Delhi:The father of the 16-year-old girl
from UP’s Shahjahanpur, who was raped by self-styled ‘godman’ Asaram five years
ago, said justice has been served and that he was satisfied with the verdict. A
special court in Jodhpur on Wednesday convicted Asaram, 77, in the 2013 rape
case and sentenced him to life imprisonment .
After more than 7 months in jail, Dr Kafeel
Khan gets bail from Allahabad High Court
Lucknow: After spending more than seven months
in jail, Dr Kafeel Khan, prime accused in the death of dozens of children at
the BRD Medical College in Gorakhpur last year, was granted bail by the
Allahabad High Court on Wednesday. The single bench of Justice Yashwant Verma
while granting bail said since the chargesheet has already been filed in the
case there was no need of custody. Dr Khan’s family had applied for bail on six
different occasions in the past seven months. Gorakhpur Police have already
dropped charges of corruption and private practice against Kafeel, who is one
of the nine accused in the BRD Medical College case that left many dead
allegedly due to oxygen shortage in the children’s ward. Addressing a press
conference in Delhi last week, Dr Shabista Khan, the wife of Dr Kafeel Khan,
alleged that the prison authorities were not giving proper medical care to her
husband. Citing her husband’s ailing health, Dr Shabista urged the government
to consider his deteriorating condition as an emergency and grant him bail on
medical grounds.news18
With $69 billion, India world’s top recipient
of foreign remittances – 54% of them from 5 Muslim countries
New Delhi:With $69 billion in foreign remittances,
India was the world’s biggest recipient of remittances in 2017, says a World
Bank report released on Monday. The country has witnessed a surge in critical
foreign remittances after a slowdown for two consecutive years. Around 54% of
India’s remittances — $37 billion — have come from 5 Muslim nations alone. Remittances
to low- and middle-income countries rebounded to a record level in 2017 after
two consecutive years of decline, says the World Bank’s latest Migration and
Development Brief. Bank estimates that officially recorded remittances to low-
and middle-income countries reached $466 billion in 2017, an increase of 8.5% over $429 billion in 2016. Global remittances,
which include flows to high-income countries, grew 7% to $613 billion in 2017,
from $573 billion in 2016.“The rebound in remittances, when valued in US
dollars, was helped by higher oil prices and a strengthening of the euro and
ruble,” the World Bank said in a press release on Monday.“Remittance inflows
improved in all regions and the top remittance recipients were India with $69
billion, followed by China ($64 billion), the Philippines ($33 billion), Mexico
($31 billion), Nigeria ($22 billion), and Egypt ($20 billion).”According to the
World Bank, remittances to South Asia grew a moderate 5.8 % to $117 billion in 2017. Remittances to many
countries appear to be picking up after the slowdown in 2016. Remittances to
India picked up sharply by 9.9 % to $69
billion in 2017, reversing the previous year’s sharp decline. Flows to Pakistan
and Bangladesh were both largely flat in 2017, while Sri Lanka saw a small
decline (-0.9 % ). In 2018, remittances to the region will likely grow modestly
by 2.5 % to $120 billion.India got $69
billion ($68,968 million to be specific) from its workforce scattered in over
100 countries – the bulk has come from 10 countries. Around 54% of $69 billion
have come from five Muslim countries. Out of $68,968 million, $37042 million
have come together from United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Qatar and
Oman.With $13,823 million in remittances from Indian expatriates, UAE was No. 1
sending country for India, followed by US from where India got $11715 million.
UAE is home to over 33 lakh migrants from India.CaravanDaily
HC recalls earlier order opposing minority
status of Jamia
New Delhi: Delhi High Court has recalled its
order taking on record an affidavit of the NDA Govt saying Jamia Millia Islamia was not a minority
institution, and striking off the response of the erstwhile UPA Govt supporting its minority status. The high court
recalled its 13 March order saying it had "erroneously" not noted
that there were other parties in the matter who could have been affected by the
proceedings.It allowed the plea of the university V-C, its registrar and the
teachers' association that the present Govt has not established any ground for replacement
of the existing affidavit of 29 August, 2011. They said that neither were they
served a copy of the Centre's recent application to take on record the fresh
affidavit, nor were they heard before the disposal of the plea. A bench of
Acting Chief Justice Gita Mittal and Justice C Hari Shankar said there was
merit in the submission and added: "we have erroneously not noted that
there were other respondents, who could have been affected by the outcome of
the proceedings". The court said it was trite that all the affected
parties were required to be heard before passing an order and recalled its 13
March order. On 13 March, the court had accepted the prayer made by the
Centre's counsel and permitted them to file a fresh counter affidavit which was
submitted on 5 March. It had also said that the 2011 affidavit supporting the
minority status, shall stand struck off from the record. Reversing the previous
Govt 's stand, the Centre had filed the revised affidavit in the high court
opposing the order of National Commission for Minority Educational Institutions
(NCMEI) declaring Jamia as a religious minority institution.HRD ministry, under
then minister Kapil Sibal of the UPA-II Govt, had on 29 August, 2011, submitted
an affidavit in the court stating that the Govt respects the declaration made
by NCMEI. The fresh affidavit, filed by the BJP-led Govt last month, cited the
Supreme Court's decision in the Azeez Basha Vs Union of India case of 1968 to
justify the change in stand. It stated that the first affidavit did not take note
of the Azeez Basha case, in which the apex court had said that a university
incorporated under an Act of Parliament cannot claim the status of a minority
institution.PTI
Delhi High Court recalls order admitting
Centre’s affidavit opposing Jamia Millia’s minority status
Call full court to discuss Supreme Court future:
Justices Gogoi, Lokur write to CJI Dipak Misra
Two days after seven Opposition parties gave
notice for impeachment of CJI Dipak Misra, two senior judges of the Supreme
Court, Justices Ranjan Gogoi and Madan Lokur, wrote to CJI that he call a “full
court” to discuss “institutional issues” and “future” of the apex
court.Opposition notice for impeachment was rejected Monday morning by Vice
President and Rajya Sabha Chairman M Venkaiah Naidu. Justice Gogoi is expected
to succeed CJI Misra who demits office in Oct.In a brief two-sentence letter
delivered to CJI Misra Sunday, Justices Gogoi and Lokur, who are members of the
Collegium, demanded that he call a “full court” on the judicial side to discuss
“institutional issues” and the “future” of the court.CJI has not yet responded
to their letter. Sources said that when the issue of a full court was raised by
some judges during the customary morning meeting of all Supreme Court judges
over tea on Monday, CJI Misra was non-committal on the matter.A full court
meeting of the SC, involving all judges, is usually convened by CJI when a
matter of public importance relating to the judiciary comes up.This letter
follows 2 other letters by senior members of the Collegium, both written in the
past few weeks, which asked the CJI to involve all judges in protecting the
judiciary from undue interference by govt.indianexpress
Supreme Court justices write letter to CJI
Dipak Misra, warn of 'institutional issues' regarding future of court
RTI asks when Rs 15 lakh promised by PM Modi
during campaign will be transferred to bank account; PMO says query doesn't
come under 'information'
New Delhi: A query on when the Rs 15 lakh
promised by PM Narendra Modi during his
2014 election campaign would be transferred to people's bank accounts, does not
come under the definition of 'information' under RTI Act and so cannot be
answered, PMO has told Central Information Commission.RTI applicant Mohan Kumar
Sharma filed a plea on Nov.26, 2016 --nearly 18 days after demonetisation of Rs
1,000 and Rs 500 was announced by the PM -- seeking to know the date of deposit of Rs
15 lakh in the account of each citizen as promised by Modi, besides other
queries.During the hearing, Sharma told CIC R K Mathur that complete
information had not been provided to him by PMO and RBI.'The respondent no.1
(PMO) stated. they have informed the appellant that information sought by him
on point nos.1 and 4 (regarding date of deposit of Rs 15 lakh in the account of
each citizen as promised by PM Narendra Modi; how print media houses came to
know before the announcement of PM Narendra Modi about demonetisation, etc.) of
RTI application does not fall under the definition of 'information' as per
Section 2(f) of RTI Act,' Mathur noted.According to the section 2 (f) of RTI
Act, "information" means any material in any form, including records,
documents, memos, e-mails, opinions, advices, press releases, circulars,
orders, logbooks, contracts, reports, papers, samples, models, data material
held in any electronic form and information related to any private body which
can be accessed by a public authority under any other law for the time being in
force.PTI
AADHAAR Seeding Fiasco: How To Geo-Locate By
Caste and Religion In AP With One Click
A public online dashboard on a website
maintained by the AP government allows anyone with an internet connection to
use "religion" or "caste" as a search criterion to identify
the homes of 5,166,698 families in 13 districts in AP. The vulnerability was
first spotted by Srinivas Kodali, a security researcher.HuffPost India is not
revealing the website to protect the privacy of those listed in its database.On
using the dashboard, HuffPost India found the precise latitude and longitude of
homes inhabited by Muslim families, Dalit families, Hindu homes and even
Zorastrian families. When HuffPost India checked back on the database, the
number of families enrolled had increased, suggesting the database continually
updated and the privacy implications are growing every hour. HuffPost India is
not publishing the exact numbers, as this is sensitive information. The
dashboard uses Aadhaar numbers as a unique identifier to compile detailed
information about beneficiaries of a widely-promoted government subsidy
programme.huffingtonpost
Another Aadhaar vulnerability exposed? Andhra
Pradesh families can be geo-located with one click
'Casting couch everywhere, Parliament not
immune', says Congress party's Renuka Chowdhary
New Delhi: Congress leader Renuka Chowdhary
today said the hallowed halls of Parliament aren't immune to the casting couch
mentality.Her comment came in response to statements earlier in the day by a
Hindi film choreographer, Saroj Khan, who said the casting couch mentality is
rampant in her industry."It is not just in the film industry. It (casting
couch) happens everywhere and it is the bitter truth. Don't imagine that
Parliament is immune or other work places are immune to it. It is time that
India stood up and said, 'Me Too'", said the Congress's Chowdhary.'Me Too'
is a movement to end sexual assault. It spread rapidly on social media starting
last Oct, after US actor Alyssa Milano encouraged women to tweet about their
experiences with sexual harassment and assault - as in, 'Me Too' -- to
"give people a sense of the magnitude of the problem".Earlier today,
Hindi film choreographer Khan also spoke of the casting couch. She had a take
on it that was a lot different from Chowdhary's. She acknowledged that the
mentality has existed in Bollywood for decades now, "but at least it
provides a livelihood."TOI
UP: Dalit convert to Islam beaten, shaved by
right-wing activists
Meerut: Pawan Kumar, 34, a welder by
profession, converted to Islam 20 days ago. He grew a beard and started wearing
a skullcap as well. On Monday night, right-wing groups got to hear of this and
descended on his home at Vishwakarma locality of Shamli. They beat him up,
threw his skullcap away and got him shaved. A video of the assault has been
uploaded and widely shared online.The activists also alleged that a local
madrassa had coerced Kumar to convert to Islam. Kumar denied the allegations
and said, “I read a lot about Islam on the internet and one day decided to
embrace the religion. No one forced me or lured me into this. I want to remain
a Muslim but these rightwing activists beat me up and shaved off my
beard.”Kumar has 4 married sisters. His parents are dead and he lives alone. A
few days ago he was seen on the streets with a new look and the news spread
rapidly.Vivek Premi, regional head of students of Bajrang Dal said, “Locals
informed our activists in Vishwakarma colony about this sudden change. However,
after counselling he understood that he had made a mistake and agreed to return
to Hinduism. We conducted a shuddhikaran ceremony late on Monday night.”Police
on the other hand kept a safe distance from the entire episode. Parvez Ahmad,
station officer at Shamli police station said, “We have heard about the
incident but no one approached us with a complaint.” TOI
UP Sunni Central Waqf Board Tribunal case:
Allahabad HC issues notice to Yogi Govt.
Lucknow: Allahabad High Court has issued a
notice to Yogi Govt in UP Sunni Central
Waqf Board Tribunal case and has asked tough questions. Besides, it has also
sought clarification from Sunni Waqf board regarding the nomination of
Mutawalli. This order was issued while hearing a case filed by Mohammed Shafi
Khan Secretary Haji Syed Qasim Husain Hashmi shrine.A 2-member bench of Justice
Vikram Nath and Justice Sunil Kumar has put the next hearing on May 15 and
asked the parties to appear before the court with complete details.The lawyer
of the petitioner, senior advocate Syed Farman Naqvi argued that Rehan Ali
Khan, whom Sunni Waqf Board has made Mutawalli, has serious charges against
him. Besides while appointing him Awqaf Act has been violated. On the other
side advocate, Naqvi also challenged the decision of state Govt in which yogi Govt shrunk the Waqf tribunal from 3-member to
2-member in 2017. siasat
AMU alumnus' pic with Hizb operatives seen on
social media:TOI
Lucknow: Another photograph of former AMU PhD
scholar Mannan Wani has surfaced on social media. Security agencies tracking
scores of Kashmiri youths who have strayed from mainstream and joined
militancy, stumbled upon Wani's photograph and shared it with UP Police few
days back.Fears of law enforcement agencies came true as the photo shows Wani
posing with two other terror suspects, including Hizb-ul Mujahideen's most
wanted operative Saifullah, and one Hafiz Aadil. Saifullah, who hails from
Pulwama district, was also a PhD scholar.The photo shows Wani, Saifullah and
Aadil posing with AK series rifles and sword in a hideout in Kashmir valley or
across the border. The photograph landed at the desk of top officials at DGP
headquarters last week and was passed on to anti-terrorist squad of UP police
on Monday. "We have received a dossier on Wani and his activities and are
trying to find out if he is in touch with youths in Aligarh. We are taking help
of Aligarh police and have deputed cyber experts to find out from where the
photograph was uploaded," said inspector general of UP ATS Asim Arun.TOI
'Sacrifice Squad' Will Hit the Streets if
Ayodhya Verdict Does Not Go Our Way: BJP's Vinay Katiyar
Lucknow: Ex-Rajya Sabha MP, senior BJP leader
Vinay Katiyar has said that if the decision regarding Ram Mandir does not come
in their favour then a ‘Balidani Dasta (Sacrifice Squad)’ will be formed. The
leader, famous for his controversial statements, said that the ‘Balidani Dasta’
will not be engaging in any work till the judgment is given by the apex court.
Katiyar said, “If Ram Mandir is not constructed, then Balidani Dasta will do
the needful and help in construction of the Temple. However, Balidani Dasta
will not come into play till the time Supreme Court gives its decision. The
process, though, has been started.” Katiyar also added that Iqbal Ansari, a
party in Babri case, has little knowledge about the entire issue.News18
Nationalists claiming MNC hand in vaccines
actually hurting Indian firms: WHO top officer
New Delhi:As allegations of “MNC vaccine
lobby” and “vested interests” pushing their agenda in India refuse to die down,
WHO Deputy DG Dr Soumya Swaminathan has said that “nationalist” organisations
that claim immunisation helps MNCs are not aware that they are hurting Indian
companies the most, as globally 60 % of
all vaccines are made in India.According to her, questioning the technical
process for inclusion of new vaccines in India’s Universal Immunisation
Programme (UIP) is to question the integrity of 3 secretaries to the Govt of
India. As director-general of Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) and
secretary in the Department of Health Research, Swaminathan herself was, until
October last year, one of those three top officials in the Govt . The committee
is tasked with deciding which vaccines every child in India will have the right
to be given free of cost at Govt health
centres.“The voices against vaccines are based mostly on hype, not on facts.
Some nationalistic bodies claim that the immunisation programme helps MNCs – it
is just not true,” Dr Swaminathan said from Geneva. “They do not know that they
actually hurt Indian companies the most. Even the HPV vaccine that they are so
upset about will soon have an Indian manufacturer. Serum Institute of India is
already conducting phase-III trials. There are other companies,
too.”indianexpress
4 militants, 4 security men killed in J&K
forest shootout
Srinagar: 4 JeM militants and two security
personnel were killed on Tuesday in an gunfight in a forested area in Jammu and
Kashmir’s Pulwama district, officials said.Four militants, all of the
Jaish-e-Mohammed, were killed, said state police chief S.P. Vaid. The army also
announced that four militants had been killed.Police sources said the security
personnel killed included an Indian Army soldier and a state policeman.IANS
Day after encounter, life comes to grinding
halt in some areas in J&K
Normal life came to a grinding halt on
Wednesday in some areas in south Kashmir district of Pulwama, where four
militants, including two foreigners, were killed in an encounter with security
forces on Tuesday.Even though there was no strike call given by any separatist
organization, shops and business establishments were closed and traffic was off
the roads in Tral and adjoining areas against the killing of the militants. An
Army soldier and a policeman were also killed in the encounter in Laam Forest
in Tral.Meanwhile, clashes erupted in Aripora between security forces and
protestors, who took to streets and tried to take out a protest rally against
the killing of the militants.UNI
Kathua gangrape-murder case: Minor accused
denied bail, court says crime grave, not ‘juvenile’
Jammu:Observing that the crime attributed to
him prima facie appears grave and heinous, and not a “juvenile” offence, a
local court in Kathua on Tuesday denied bail to the juvenile, who is among
eight people arrested by police on charges of abduction, rape and murder of an
eight-year-old girl in the district earlier this year.In his order, CJM
Amarjeet Singh Langeh noted that the applicant is a juvenile, and his bail
application thus needs to be considered in light of Section 13 of Juvenile
Justice Act, which has an overriding effect.However, he pointed out, the law
carves out an exception, recommending denial of bail to a juvenile in two
scenarios: when his release would conceivably bring him into association with
any known criminal or expose him to moral, physical, or psychological danger;
and, second, when bail will have consequences of defeating the ends of
justice.indianexpress
How Unregistered Weapons Were Procured for
Fake Encounters, Surrender Dramas:Imphal Free Press
Imphal: Naib Subedar Ramesh Chand Sharma of
30th Assam Rifles has revealed how weapons were procured clandestinely by the
military and paramilitary to get promotions, how many officers took advantage,
in the name of counter insurgency operations, to stage various alleged
encounters and surrender dramas as well as planting weapons where it suited
them.In an interview with Imphal Free Press, Ramesh implicated many officers of
the security forces for gathering weapons from unauthorised sources. Ramesh,
number JC 3000449 of 30th Assam Rifles, was stationed at ‘B company’ at
Khurkhul Spinning Mills in 2013. On Feb.3 that year, a call came from the
second in command of B company, namely Mahavir Singh, that a junior
commissioned officer was (JCO) be sent to Mantripukhri headquarters.As per the
directive, Ramesh went to Mantripukhri Assam Rifles headquarters in a
bulletproof vehicle (MNO6-T/0773) along with three security personnel which
included the driver. At around 6.30 am, they met Col Ved Pal Yadav, (Sena
Medal) who belonged to 1st Naga Group and was the commandant of 30th AR,
Adjutant Major P.M. Tekhrwade belonging to the 290 Artillery, Subedar Major
K.D. Bhotia, Subedar Ganga Singh, Naib Subedar Jaibir Singh, BHM Danesh Sharma,
CHM Ramananda. The said personnel were standing by the road near the CO office
located at Mantripukhri, Ramesh said.thewire
Ex IG Darapuri flays Yogi Govt on fake
encounter raj in UP
Lucknow:S R Darapuri, ex-IGP of UP, is known
as a socially-conscious and sensitive social activist providing support to
social justice movements in India. He speaks to Caravan Daily about the spate
of fake encounters and worsening law and order situation in the BJP-ruled UP.
He discusses the prevalent criminal justice system in the state, truth of
Police encounters and corruption under Yogi Govt. Darapuri said, "The
criminal justice system being practiced by the present BJP Govt is a clear
transgression of the existing laws. They had promised of making the state
crime-free and criminal free if they are voted to power. To achieve this goal Govt
has adopted some very wrong
tactics.There is a rise in the number of fake cases which are being registered
on the basis of concocted stories designed to implicate people who are not
allies of BJP. Interestingly, we see a number of people with serious criminal
charges are being set free, while those with minor charges are being punished.
Contrary to the claims made by the UP’s BJP Govt , the number of crimes
committed against women or atrocities against Dalits have been on the
rise."Caravan Daily
Gadchiroli: Naxal body count now 37, police
laid an ambush, and waited
Boria:An ambush, heavy weapon fire and
pinpointed information gave Maharashtra Police the edge in encounters over the
last two days in Gadchiroli, in which 37 Maoists were killed and no police
casualty was reported.The bodies of 15 more rebels were recovered Tuesday from
the Indravati river into which, police said, the Maoists jumped to escape.While
31 Maoists were killed in a firefight Sunday in a police ambush in Kasnasur
region, 6 more were gunned down in another encounter in Aheri tehsil Monday
night.Among the 15 bodies recovered Tuesday and flown to Gadchiroli in a
helicopter, eight were women. Police ambush on Sunday was along a 2-km stretch
of land where the river crosses into Chhattisgarh, which police said the
Maoists had chosen to set up camp. But before they could settle in, security
forces had swooped in with heavy weapons and lobbed several grenades, which
sources said killed many Maoists in one stroke.indianexpress
Mecca Masjid blast case: ‘Is it difficult to
prove that Aseemanand and I were in jail at the same time?’
Hyderabad:“If Aseemanand and I were not in
Chanchalguda Jail at the same time then how did he know my name which he
mentioned in his confession statement? How did he know that I was arrested
earlier on suspicion of being involved in the Mecca Masjid blast case?” asked
Shaik Abdul Kaleem, to whom Aseemanand allegedly confessed his involvement in
the Mecca Masjid blast case. Kaleem was earlier arrested as a suspect in the
case in 2007 and acquitted by court in 2008. The prosecution had submitted
Aseemanand’s confession before a magistrate in New Delhi and before Kaleem as
the main evidence against him in the chargesheet, and the entire case hinged on
these 2 points.In the judgment delivered by NIA court on April 16, Judge K
Ravinder Reddy who acquitted all accused in case, including Swami Aseemanand,
observed the prosecution failed to prove that Kaleem and another youth, Maqbool
Bin Ali,were in Chanchalguda Jail when Aseemanand was lodged there.Kaleem, 29,
wondered why the CBI and the prosecution lawyer did not seek jail records to
prove that they were together. “Is it so difficult to prove that 2 persons sent
to judicial custody to Chanchalguda Jail, where entries are made, records are
maintained and prisoners are given numbers, were there at the same time or not?
(Accused) Lokesh Sharma and Devender Gupta were already there and then
Aseemanand came. Sharma and Gupta were taken elsewhere and only Aseemanand was
there in the barracks. We were together for a few days and that is a fact. That
is what I told the court. I told this in Ajmer court as well as the Panchakula
court where the prosecution made me a witness,’’ Kaleem says.indianexpress
10 get life sentence for lynching in Jharkhand
Ranchi:A fast-track court in Jharkhand’s
Bokaro district on Tuesday awarded life imprisonment to 10 persons convicted of
lynching a person in April last year after suspecting him of being a child
lifter.The court of additional session judge at Tenughat, Ghulam Haider, had
held the 10 persons guilty under Section 302 (murder) of the IPC, among other
offences, on April 18.On April 4, 2017 a mob chased victim, Shamsuddin Ansari,
suspecting him of kidnapping children, at Narra village under Chandrapura
police station area of Bokaro district when he had come to his in-laws house.
The mob thrashed Ansari brutally, following which he succumbed to his injury.
The sister in-law of the victim Naimul Biwi had lodged an FIR against accused in
the case. Convicts who were slapped with life term include Kishor Dasoundhi,
Sagar Turi, Suraj Kumar Burnwal, Manoj Turi, Sonu Turi, Chhotia Koiry, Ram
Kumar Koiry, Jitendra Thakur, Jitendra Rajak,and Chandan Dasoundhi.HT
BJP loses in most of cow-lynching areas in Jharkhand
civic polls
Ranchi: In the recent civic polls in
Jharkhand, the ruling BJP won most of the seats but its performance was poor in
the areas where lynching or violence was conducted by gangs of cow vigilantes
in the recent past.The saffron party won 10 out of 10 seats of mayors and
deputy mayors in 5 municipal corporations in as many cities. But out of 26
seats of Chairman and Vice Chairman in 13 Nagar Panchayats (semi-urban areas),
BJP could win only 15 seats. Its performance was worse in towns where elections
for Nagar Parishads were held. Out of 32 seats of Chairman and Vice Chairman in
16 Nagar Parishads, BJP could win only 11 seats.The civic polls were held on
16th April and results were announced on 20th April.Some of the Nagar Parishad
and Nagar Panchayat areas where BJP performed poorly included those areas where
brutal gangs of gau rakshaks, with support of Hindu-right groups, had carried
out violence in the name of cow or beef. Some people were even lynched by the
mob.caravandaily
Drop the term Dalit, stick to SC/ST, RSS tells
its workers
New Delhi: RSS wants its volunteers to avoid
using the word Dalit, which it considers a colonial appendage with derogatory
connotations, senior functionaries from the group said.A senior RSS official,
speaking on condition of anonymity, said the RSS brass now wants its volunteers
and those associated with its many affiliates to opt for the “constitutionally
approved terms Scheduled Castes (SC) and Scheduled Tribes (ST)” instead. Alok
Kumar, the international working president of RSS offshoot VHP, said the Sangh
feels the terms SC and ST are more appropriate as it has constitutional
sanction.“SC/ST is a term that has no castigation and is not derogatory,” he
said. Last week, the ministry of social justice and empowerment wrote to all
states and Govt departments, in the wake of a Madhya Pradesh high court
verdict, to refrain from using the nomenclature ‘Dalit’ for members of SC/ST
communities.HT
MANUU’s Residential Coaching Academy allocates
only 16% of Budget for hiring as UGC delays extension
Hyderabad: MANUU, Residential Coaching Academy
established by the UGC in 2009 seems to have run into rough weather, with the
grants aid to the residential academies yet to be approved.The MANUU Civil
Service Examination-Residential Coaching Academy (CSE-RCA) had submitted a
detailed budget proposal of Rs 1.33
crore to the UGC for providing coaching to the civil services aspirants during
2018-2019 session out of which only Rs 21 lakh has been allocated for hiring
resource persons and the rest for paying salaries of permanent staff and other
activities. Usually, the approvals are given by March 31st every year, but till
this report was filed, MANNU had not received the approval.In a conversation
with TCN, Professor Amirullah Khan, Director MANUU RCA said that the UGC was
still looking into the matter. “Actually, people are speculating that we may
close the academy as March 31 has passed and we haven’t yet received the
extension,” Professor Khan said. TCN
Pak extends visa of Indian woman who married,
embraced Islam during her visit
Lahore: Pakistan has extended for 6 more
months the visa of an Indian woman, who had embraced Islam after marrying a
local man during her visit to Pakistan to attend the Baisakhi festival,
according to a media report .Kiran Bala, who after converting to Islam has
taken the name Amna Bibi, had applied for a Pakistani citizenship and extension
to her visa.Bala, who hailed from Punjab's Hoshiarpur district, had arrived in
Lahore by a special train on April 12 to attend Baisakhi festival
celebrations.During her visit, she embraced Islam and married a resident of
Hingerwal, Lahore, on April 16 at a ceremony held at an Islamic seminary
here.PTI
Shatrughan Sinha attacks BJP again: ‘Not
rebelling against party, showing mirror to those in power’
Pune:Actor and BJP leader Shatrughan Sinha
attacked BJP-led Govt at the Centre over
its policies and “failed promises” at an event in Pune on Tuesday. BJP MP said
he was not rebelling against his party but was “showing a mirror to those
holding the reins of power”. Sinha also warned that while change was
“inevitable”, the “arrogance and ego” of those in power could only result in
“ruin”.“Change is inevitable as no one is permanent. The arrogance and ego will
not help, but they will take those in power towards ruin. The wave of change is
in full swing,” said Sinha at the ‘Discussion of Development after 2014’, an
event organised by Vasantdada Seva Sanstha, a social organisation. Senior
Congress leader and former CM Prithviraj
Chavan was also present at the event.The disgruntled BJP leader said “honesty
and transparency should go together”, and demanded to know “where is the
transparency in the Govt ”. Without naming PM
Narendra Modi and BJP chief Amit Shah, Sinha said, “It is very
unfortunate that it is a one man show and two-man army”.“Where are the tall
promises made during the elections? There are efforts to divert focus… by
raising issues of Hindu-Muslim communities. The country is united despite so
many religions and castes… don’t instigate anyone,” cautioned Sinha.
India tops list of websites blocked, its telcos
filter the most
New Delhi:Indian internet service providers
(ISPs) have installed the highest number of Internet filtering systems and
blocked the maximum number of web pages, an investigation covering 10 countries
by University of Toronto-based Citizen Lab, along with the Canadian
Broadcasting Corporation (CBC) and Indian Express in India, has found.Covering
10 countries where technologies marketed by Canadian company Netsweeper “appear
to be filtering content for national-level, consumer-facing ISPs”, Citizen Lab
spotted 42 of these installations by 12 ISPs in India — Pakistan came second
with 20 installations. These findings will be published in a report to be
released Wednesday. The highest number of blocked unique URLs in these
countries — 1,158 out of 2,464 — was also found in India. This only accounts
for representative samples of censorship coinciding with the testing period
between August 2017 and April 2018, and is probably a fraction of the censored
content.Other than those dealing in porn or piracy, websites and web pages
found blocked at different points during the testing period in India include
those belonging to domestic and foreign NGOs, UN organisations, human rights
groups, health forums, feminist groups and political activists. Indianexpress
WORLD
Syria regime kills 20 civilians in Yarmouk
refugee camp
Around 20 civilians have been killed in
week-long regime airstrikes on Syria’s Yarmouk refugee camp, according to local
sources today.Several people were injured in the attacks, sources said on
condition of anonymity due to security concerns. According to the sources,
regime forces were trying to advance from the southern side of the camp, which
accommodates some 2500 families, amid heavy bombardment. The attacks come after
the regime and ISIL failed to reach a deal on evacuating the terrorist group’s
militants from the Yarmouk camp and its vicinity.MEMO
Yarmouk camp: From a 'war on stomachs' to
'annihilation'
There's only one thought that comes to Rami
al-Sayed's mind when asked to describe an ongoing Syrian Govt offensive against
an ISIL pocket south of the capital, Damascus. "Doomsday," says 35-year-old.
"It's like Judgement Day."Al-Sayed is a former resident of Hajar
al-Aswad, one of the neighbourhoods of the besieged Palestinian refugee camp of
Yarmouk which is currently under attack by forces loyal to Syrian President Bashar
al-Assad and Russian fighter jets. Activists say at least 15 civilians have
been killed and more than 100 wounded since the fierce push to retake Hajar
al-Aswad, Tadamun and Beit Sahem - which make up a considerable chunk of
Yarmouk - began on April 19.Before the Syrian war started in 2011, the camp was
home to Syria's largest Palestinian refugee population.The six-day operation by
Syrian Govt forces and their allies to
drive out ISIL fighters has now turned the camp into a "ghost town",
al-Sayed, who is currently based in the nearby rebel-held town of Yalda, told
Al Jazeera on Monday."No clinics, no doctors, no supplies - it's pretty
much empty," he added."People are not able to leave to purchase
things they need. If they leave, they have to walk miles before seeing another
person in the street; it is that uncommon to see people outside." UNRWA
estimates that over the past few days some 5,000 Palestinians from Yarmouk have
been displaced to Yalda.According to activists, more than 580 air raids struck
Hajar al-Aswad and Tadamun since Thursday evening, the majority of which
targeted "civilian basements".Residents of the besieged camp have
called on Palestinian leaders, including PLO - Palestinian political parties -
to help bring relief to the people of Yarmouk.Among those forced to leave was
Majd al-Masry.aljazeera
UN WFP: Syria regime refused humanitarian aid
for 200,000 civilians: middleeastmonitor
UN World Food Programme (WFP) said the Syrian
regime has prevented supplies from entering eastern Ghouta meaning that some
200,000 civilians who stayed after the regime retook it from rebels went
without much needed humanitarian support. “Eastern Ghouta is no longer under
siege, but we still have not received passes to enter the region” Jakob Kern,
WFP Syria Country Director said at a press conference at UN Office in Geneva.He
called on the Syrian regime to allow the WFP teams to enter the area to deliver
urgent aid to the population.
Saudi arrests nearly 1 million people in 4
days
Saudi authorities said they had arrested
994,000 people between 18 April to 22 April, Saudi Okaz newspaper reported. According
to the paper, 14,467 people were stopped by the security agencies and border
security forces regarding issues related violations of residency and labour
regulations and attempted infiltration across the border into the kingdom.The
paper said 58 % of those arrested were
Yemenis, 39% were Ethiopians and 3% from
other nationalities. The paper added that the Saudi security forces have
arrested 640 people while trying to exfiltrate from the kingdom.MEMO
Kuwait: Not resolving GCC crisis is
destructive to region
Kuwait's deputy foreign minister said Gulf Cooperation
Council (GCC) member-states were determined to resolve the ongoing crisis in
the Gulf because not doing so would be destructive to the region, the official
KUNA reported on Tuesday.Deputy Foreign Minister Khaled al-Jarallah who met Qatar's
foreign minister, Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani, on Tuesday
discussed the "means of solving the crisis."Aljazeera
Egypt: Former top auditor sentenced to 5 years
in prison
https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2018/04/egypt-top-auditor-sentenced-years-prison-180424131906163.html
An Egyptian military court has sentenced
Hisham Genena, the country's former top auditor, to five years in prison for
"spreading news that harms the armed forces."Genena, a top campaign
aide to former presidential hopeful Sami Anan, was arrested on Feb.13 after
allegedly threatening in an interview to release "documents and
evidence" of corruption in the army's higher ranks if Anan was harmed in
detention.Anan, a retired army general, had been detained in January, just
three days after announcing his short-lived presidential bid. The trial on
Wednesday was contested by Genena's lawyers who argued the case did not fall
under the military court's jurisdiction. According to local media, Anan's son
accused Genena of slander and was looking to take legal measures against the
former chief auditor.A journalist who interviewed Genena, Moataz Wadnan, was
also detained on February 23.aljazeera
Egypt denies imprisoned Aboul Fotouh suffered
heart attack
Egyptian authorities have denied claims that
political leader, Abdel Moneim Aboul Fotouh has suffered two heart attacks
during the past days that almost killed him.An Egyptian security source said
that “Aboul Fotouh enjoys good health, and his family visits him in accordance
with security regulations.” The source said that the claim that Fotouh suffered
a heart attack was designed to spread terrorist lies and convey a false image
about his health status in the media.middleeastmonitor
Malaysia releases photo of suspect in
Palestinian's killing
Malaysian police have released a photo of one
of the two suspects in the killing of a Palestinian engineer, and say the duo
could still be in the country.Gaza's ruling Hamas group has accused Israel of
being behind Saturday's shooting of Fadi al-Batsh, an important member of
Hamas. Israel has neither confirmed nor denied involvement.Malaysian police
earlier released computer-generated images of the two suspects, believed to be
from Europe or the Middle East.A Kawasaki motorcycle was found abandoned near a
lake about nine minutes from the scene, from which police were able to trace a
photo of one of the suspects, IGP Mohamad Fuzi Harun told reporters.The new
photo shows a light-skinned man with dark, wavy hair and a prominent
goatee.aljazeera
US HC reviews Trump’s power to block Muslim
immigrants
President Donald Trump’s effort to ban
immigrants from several Muslim-majority countries heads to the Supreme Court
today, which will decide if his argument asserting national security interests
was tainted by religious bias.The case, known as Trump v. Hawaii, will address the
president’s broad powers to set immigration policy, which the administration
says permit Trump’s travel ban, one of his hallmark policies since taking
office in Jan.2017.Legal experts say the court is usually loathe to rule on
executive powers.But the travel ban’s focus on Muslim countries has left Trump
the target of allegations that it violates constitutional religious
protections, which led lower courts, including the federal court in Hawaii, to
rule it illegal.PTI
Iran threatens to quit NPT if US scraps nuke
deal
Tehran:A senior Iranian security official said
on Tuesday that his country would consider withdrawing from the nuclear
Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) if the US scraps the 2015 nuclear deal, Tehran
Times reported.“According to the NPT, the (contracting) countries can easily
withdraw from the treaty if they realize that it does not benefit them and this
is a possible option for the Islamic Republic of Iran,” said Ali Shamkhani,
secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council.IANS
Afghan Taliban announce fresh offensive in
apparent snub to peace efforts
Kabul: Taliban launched their annual spring
offensive on Wednesday, in an apparent rejection of calls for the militants to
take up the Afghan Govt ’s offer of peace talks.Operation Al Khandaq -- named
after a famous seventh century battle in Medina in which Muslim fighters
defeated “infidel” invaders -- will target US forces and “their intelligence
agents” as well as their “internal supporters”,a Taliban statement said.The
Taliban said the offensive was partly a response to US President Donald Trump’s
new strategy for Afghanistan announced last August, which gave US forces more
leeway to go after insurgents. Annual spring offensive traditionally marks the
start of the so-called fighting season, though this winter the Taliban
continued to battle Afghan and US forces. The group also launched a series of
devastating attacks in the Afghan capital Kabul, killing and wounding hundreds
of civilians.Al Khandaq will mainly focus on “crushing, killing and capturing
American invaders and their supporters”, the Taliban said.It added the presence
of American bases “sabotages all chances of peace” and were key to “prolonging
the ongoing war”, which began with US-led intervention in 2001 that overthrew
Taliban regime. Western and Afghan experts said Taliban announcement was an
apparent rejection of the offer and heralded more intense fighting in the
drawn-out war.AFP
FLASH:
VIEWS & NEWS
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education and Dalit movement:Biswajeet Banerjee
Remembering ex Chief Justice of Delhi High
Court Rajinder Sachar : Manzar Imam
Kathua rape puts Sidhra, one of few remaining
Muslim settlements in Jammu, at focal point of communal rift: Sameer Yasir
Is a military coup possible in Iran?Saeid
Golkar
British paper’s claim: Raghuram Rajan is
contender for Bank of England’s governor’s job
Compiled and edited by
Anwarulhaq (Released at: 3:39 PM)
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