NEWS
DIGEST, MID-DAY
12 July 2018:27 Shawwal 1439: Vol:10, No:64
INDIA
'Assault on Democracy': Hamid Ansari Rejects
'One Nation, One Election', backs ‘Sharia court’ proposal
New Delhi: Former vice-president Hamid Ansari
has opposed the idea of simultaneous Lok Sabha and Assembly polls, dismissing
the ‘one nation, one election’ theory as an “assault on India’s democracy”.In
an interview to News18, Ansari said, “India is a diverse land. To have the
thought of one big country our size having one election is just an unworkable
idea. You require security to move in multiple phases even during an Assembly
election. So how are you going to provide security across the nation if polls
were to be held simultaneously.”He was
also quite vocal about the ‘first past the post’ system of electoral victories
in India.“The problem is that majority of leaders get elected despite not
securing more than 50% votes. How can they then claim to represent the entire
constituency?” he asked.Ansari’s view comes even as the Law Commissioner is
preparing a report on simultaneous elections after a discussion with political
parties. Ansari also spoke at length about the “environment of insecurity”
among India’s minorities. “We must understand that even after so many years,
Sachar Panel recommendations haven’t been implemented in full. This environment
of creating the ‘other’ hurts our democracy,” he said.On the specific proposal
of seeking reservations for Dalits in minority institutes like AMU, he, who is
an alumnus of the prestigious university, said, “People must look at the law
carefully. It’s mentioned very clearly which is the agency which can manage
funds for any university.” With a number of lynching incidents reported in
recent times, he said that nobody should take law in their own hands. “I think
public reaction says it all. Nobody has the right to take a law in their own
hands. There is a law in this country,” he was quoted as saying by ANI. The
former VP’s comments come on the back of reports of a number of incidents of
lynching in the country in the name of child lifting rumours. Ansari also backed
All India Muslim Personal Law Board’s (AIMPLB) proposal to set up Sharia courts
in each district of the country and said that he said that each community has
the right to practice its own personal law, “People are confusing social
practices with legal system. Our law recognises that each community can have
own rules. Personal law in India covers marriage, divorce, adoption and
inheritance. Each community has a right to practice its own personal law,” he said.news18/ANI/financial
expresss
Hamid Ansari backs Sharia court proposal, says
each community has right to practice own personal law
Hamid Ansari backs Tharoor's 'Hindu Pakistan'
comments
SC To Begin Polygamy, Halala Hearing From July 20
New Delhi: Hearing on Muslim personal law
dealing with Nikah Halala and polygamy is all set start in Supreme Court from
July 20. News18 has learnt that a
petition filed by Farzana through Advocate Vivek Narayan Sharma has been listed
for hearing on July 20. This is one among several other petitions in the top
court demanding to scrap these "Muslim Personal law practices". A
bench comprising CJI Dipak Misra and justices AM Khanwilkar and DY Chandrachud
considered submissions of senior advocate V Shekhar that the petitions be
listed before a 5-judge constitution bench for final adjudication. "We
will look into it,"bench had said.The bench, meanwhile, allowed Additional
Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, appearing for the Centre, to file a response to
the petition on the issue.news18
Viral test busts fake posts about Muslim
Personal Law board "demanding" another partition: indiatoday
New Delhi:In less than a day an image of 3
Muslim men, with one of them holding a microphone in his hand, had more than
7,000 shares and around 800 comments. This, because it carried a provocative
caption that the All India Muslim Personal Law Board has demanded "another
partition" of India. "Hamein sharia adalat nahin diya ja sakta to
mussalmano ke liye alag desh diya jaye," read the message in blue below
the photo of AIMPLB members identified as Maulana Khalilur Rahman Sajjad
Nomani, Maulana Khalid Saifullah Rahmani and Maulana Umrain Mahfooz Rahmani.But
when India Today's Viral Test team investigated Facebook post, the findings
exposed the mischief -- AIMPLB, which advocates for Islamic laws, had made no
such sensationalist demand. Right-wing Facebook users, the Viral Test
discovered, lapped up an old photo of the 3 board members in order to generate
a negative narrative around the Muslim community in the wake of the AIMPLB
announcing plans to expand Sharia courts across the country.Remember, board
secretary Zafaryab Jilani had told India Today on Sunday that the organisation
would meet on July 15 to create more Dar-ul-Qaza, or Sharia courts, in India. Since
1993, a number of Dar-ul-Qaza have been engaged in resolving martial and
religious disputes among Muslims, Jilani explained. They are headed by a qazi,
or an Islamic adjudicator. If the issues are not settled amicably at
Dar-ul-Qaza, stakeholders can take them to regular courts should they wish,
Jilani added.India Today's team reached out to Jilani again, this time to fact
check the Facebook posts about partition demands linked to the AIMPLB. The
board secretary refuted the social media reports as fake news."Indian
Muslims," he said, "have suffered a lot because of the partition (of 1947).
We don't want to live anywhere else other than India. We are committed to the
Indian constitution."india today
Darul Qaza only arbitration centre, not court;
fake news promoters must check facts: AIMPLB
SC observations on Section 377: Homosexuals do
not receive proper healthcare due to inhibitions, says court
The Supreme Court on Thursday observed that
homosexuality was not an aberration but a variation and that once Section 377
is decriminalised, the stigma attached to the community will also go. The
court, which is hearing a clutch of petitions challenging the validity of
Section 377 of IPC that criminalises homosexuality, also reflected on trauma
that the community has to face and the lack of medical facilities as well. A
five-judge bench comprising CJI Dipak Misra, Justices RF Nariman, AM
Khanwilkar, DY Chandrachud and Indu Malhotra, is hearing the matter.The bench,
headed by CJI Dipak Misra, asked lawyer Maneka Guruswamy, who was appearing for
a petitioner, whether there was any law, rule, regulation, bye-law or guideline
that barred or restrained homosexuals from availing any right available to
others.“There are no such provisions,” she said. “Once the criminality (under
section 377) goes, then everything will go (all the bars, social stigma and others),”bench
added.Justice Indu Malhotra observed that members ofLGBTQ community are
discriminated against and, therefore, neither do they seek healthcare nor do
they get proper access to it Malhotra also said that LGBTQ community is forced
to bow down to the family and societal pressure and marry someone of the
opposite sex. Justice D Y Chandrachud referred to section 21A of the Mental
Healthcare Act which says “there shall be no discrimination on any basis
including gender, sex, sexual orientation, religion, culture, caste, social or
political beliefs, class or disability”.“So Parliament itself now recognises
that that sexual orientation cannot be a ground for discrimination,” he
remarked.indianexpress
Govt
urges SC to stick to constitutionality of Section 377
Different faith organisations unite to save
Section 377, which criminalized homosexuality
New Delhi:The Supreme Court is hearing hearing
various pleas seeking scrapping of Section 377, which criminalized homosexual
acts. While, Christian and Muslim organisations are vowing to oppose any move
to legalise homosexual acts. RSS has termed such acts as socially immoral and
against the ethos of Indian culture but however is against criminalization. The
religious groups are unanimous that Indian society disapproved of
homosexuality, no religion can approve it, and the Delhi High Court's 2009
decision de-criminalising homosexual acts was based on "international
trend and western influence".They argue that there is a vast cultural
difference between India and other societies of the world. "Homosexuality
is an abomination as per the Bible. The act of sodomy, as per the Christian
philosophy, faith, belief and sentiments of Christian religion as a whole is a
most contemptuous sinful act," said Manoj V George, lawyer for Apostolic
Churches Alliance set to file a petition opposing the demand to scrap section
377. AIMPLB member Dr. Qasim Rasool Ilyasi, told Mail Today: "We will
become a party in the case and oppose the plea. Homosexuality is unethical and
is against all religious faiths. If it is legalised, it will create problems in
society."Echoing the same sentiments, Maqsood Ul Hasan Qasmi, of Imam
Council of India "After some years we may find some people who want to do
animal sex. Do we think it is their right to choose what they want? Will it be
correct if some people demand to legalise it? SC is hearing petitions filed by
32 individuals, including celebrities, IITians and LGBT activists for scrapping
Section 377 of the penal code.indiatoday
Khaleda Zia's British counsel Lord Carlile
denied entry to India
New Delhi: India on Wednesday night did not
allow entry to British national and lawyer Lord Alexander Carlile, a counsel
for ex Bangladesh PM Khaleda Zia after he landed at Delhi airport on the
grounds that he did not have a valid visa and his intended activity was
;incompatible with the purpose of his visit."Lord Alexander Carlile, a
British national, arrived in New Delhi on July 11 without having obtained the
appropriate Indian visa. His intended activity in India was incompatible with
the purpose of his visit as mentioned in his visa application. It was therefore
decided to deny him entry into India upon arrival," MEA spokesperson said
here on Thursday.Mr Carlile was scheduled to hold a press conference in New
Delhi on Thursday afternoon. Independent observers of Bangladesh affairs
maintain that Carlile is known to have links with Bangladesh
Jamaat-e-Islami.UNI
Iran says remark on Chabahar port misquoted,
tells India it is flexible on oil supply
New Delhi:Iran has said it will continue to be
a reliable energy partner for India and adopt a flexible approach to ensuring
secure oil supplies. At the same time, however, a statement issued by the
Iranian embassy underscored the need for India to expedite its investments and
to push partner companies to accelerate the execution of projects linked to the
development of the strategic Chabahar port.The statement came a a day after
Iran’s charge d’affaires Massoud Rezvanian Rahaghi was quoted as telling a
seminar in New Delhi that India had not fulfilled its promise of making
investments in Chabahar and that New Delhi stands to lose “privileges” if it
cuts imports of Iranian oil due to pressure from the United States.The
statement clarified that Rahaghi had been misquoted and said: “Iran understands
the difficulties of India in dealing with the unstable energy market and it has
done and will do its best to ensure security of oil supply to India through
offering various flexibility measures which facilitates our bilateral trade in
particular Indian export to Iran.”It added: “Iran has always been a reliable
energy partner for India and others, seeking a balanced oil market and rational
prices of oil which ensures the interests of both…consumer and supplier.”HT
Kulbhushan Jadhav case: Pakistan to file
second counter-memorial in ICJ on July 17
Pakistan will file its second counter-memorial
on July 17 in the International Court of Justice (ICJ) on the conviction of
Indian national Kulbhushan Jadhav, who was sentenced to death by a Pakistani
military court in April last year on charges of espionage and terrorism, a media
report said on July 12.On Jan. 23, ICJ gave a timeline to both Pakistan and
India for filing another round of memorials in the case.Pakistan’s memorial
will be in response to pleadings filed by India in the Hague based ICJ on April
17.Top attorney Khawar Qureshi, who pleaded Pakistan’s case at the initial
stage, briefed PM Nasirul Mulk about the case last week, Express Tribune reported. Attorney General for Pakistan
Khalid Javed Khan and other senior officials also attended the
meeting.According to the daily, the counter-memorial has been drafted by Qureshi.
After the submission of the second counter-memorial, ICJ will fix the matter
for hearing, which is likely to take place next year.PTI
Never promoted terror in my 25-yrs of
lecturing on Islam, peace:Zakir Naik:
New Delhi: Zakir Naik, who is currently
staying in Malaysia, said the media was unable to find any "evidence"
against him and resorted to "doctored video clips, out-of-context
quotations and a host of dishonest schemes" to accuse him of terrorism,
hate speech and even money laundering.Hitting out at the "some
sections" of the media, he said they have attacked him for his supposed
‘incitement to terror’, and it would be naive not to assume that this was done
with a broader objective of demonizing Islam and Muslims."Over the last
few years, thousands of ‘news’ articles, YouTube videos and social media posts
have attributed to me appalling statements that I did not make. Often these
lies come in the form of images displaying a message alongside a photograph of
me. To anybody who does not want Islam to be presented as a religion of peace,
this is a quick and dirty way to discredit the faith," Naik said."I
implore anybody who comes across such material to verify it before jumping to
conclusions. Because the simple truth is that any statement ascribed to me that
is against humanity is a fabricated statement. Time and time again, I have
reiterated that a Muslim cannot be a good Muslim unless he is a good human
being."He said in his 25 years of lecturing on "Islam and
peace", he has never promoted terror in the name of Islam or
otherwise.Naik reiterated his assertions that none of his speeches was objected
to by non-Muslims in India until 2012."In fact, not a single lecture out
of the thousands that I have delivered has ever received objections from
non-Muslims in India until in Sept.2012, when a group of religious fanatics
sought to tarnish my image," Naik said.He said his aim has always been to
foster communal peace and harmony, the exact opposite of the accusations hurled
at him.abplive
Rahul Gandhi Meets Muslim Leaders, Addresses
"Soft Hindutva" Concerns
Congress president Rahul Gandhi on Wednesday
met Muslim intellectuals and is believed to have told them that his party would
adopt an inclusive approach for all sections of the society, addressing
concerns that it was adopting a "soft-Hindutva" agenda.Gandhi met the
delegation at his home in Delhi and told them that the Congress had no specific
agenda for any particular religion or section. It would have an "agenda
for all" centred around providing justice, a source told PTI.The
intellectuals told Gandhi that the Muslim community was feeling threatened as
the party was now adopting a "soft-Hindutva" approach to win back
Hindus who had moved towards the BJP in the last elections, PTI reported.Gandhi
assured them that the party would not compromise on its core ideology and would
not allow injustice to anyone. He said that while BJP's thought process was of
division, the thought process of the Congress was of inclusiveness as it had to
take everyone along, the source said.The meeting with Muslim intellectuals was
part of a series of interactions planned by the party ahead of Lok Sabha
elections due next year. Congress chief said the narrative that BJP was
building, including lynchings and beating up of Dalits and Muslims, was to
create a divide among people and divert their attention on emotional issues as
the ruling party and PM Narendra Modi had nothing to show.Among people who
attended the meeting on Wednesday were Historian Irfan Habib and Prof Abusaleh
Shariff, retired IAS officer MS Farooqui, Zafar Mahmood, industrialist Junaid
Rehaman, ex-president of AMUSU ZK Faizan, Supreme Court lawyer Fuzail Ayyubi,
social activist Farah Naqvi, writer Rakshanda Jalil, JNU professors Zoya Hasan
and Gazala Fareedi, ex-planning commission member Syeda Hameed, Harun Ali Khan
and educationist Ilyas Malik. Ex-minister Salman Khursid and Congress minority
committee head Nadeem Javed were also present. According to Mumbai Mirror, a
functionary of All India Muslim Personal Law Board- Maulana Md Fazlur Raheem
Mujaddeedi - also attended the meeting.
Rahul Gandhi was particularly impressed with views articulated by Fuzail Ayyubi
who said that the community, more than anything else, wants
justice."Muslims want vikaas with insaaf. When they go to police stations,
to the courts, from the prosectuion, the only thing they expect is
justice," Ayyubi told Mirror. He cited what has been happening to Muslims
residing in Assam because of the on-going process of compiling of National
Citizens Register in the state.AICC Miniorities Cell Chief Nadeem Javed told
Mirror "Rahulji urged the community to speak up, be more assertive on host
of issues. He asked them to speak up if any wrong is done unto to them. Be it
the special status of the AMU. He assured the Congress will also speak for
them."NDTV/mumbaimirror/PTI
Congress President Rahul meets Muslim
intellectuals
Hindu seer banished from Hyderabad over
‘anti-Muslim comments’
Hyderabad:Telangana police has banished Hindu
seer Swamy Paripoornananda from Hyderabad for six months over alleged
inflammatory comments against Muslims, using the provisions of the Telangana
Prevention of Anti-Social and Hazardous Activities Act, 1930, two days after it
used the same law to banish Dalit activist Kathi Mahesh for a similar period of
time for insulting Lord Ram.The law allows the police to banish people through
so-called externment.Paripoornananda was picked up from his residence at
Hyderabad’s Jubilee Hills, forced into a vehicle and sent to Kakinada in East
Godavari district, where he runs a spiritual centre called Sri Peetham.He was
banished two days after the police put him under house arrest. An “externment
order” issued against him late on Tuesday night said he was being banished for 6
months. Paripoornananda is accused of making inflammatory comments against
Muslims at meetings of his Rashtriya Hindu Sena , which he founded in November
2017.The police had earlier banned Paripoornananda’s 60-km ‘Dharmika Chaitanya
Yatra’ from Hyderabad to Yadadri temple in Bhongir district on
Monday.Paripoornananda had announced the yatra to protest popular Dalit film
critic Kathi Mahesh’s comments against Lord Rama and Sita during a TV debate
last week.HT
Vanzara mastermind of Sohrabuddin encounter,
says slain gangster’s counsel
Mumbai:Ex-Gujarat ATS chief DG Vanzara was on
Wednesday accused in the Bombay high court of being “mastermind” of the “fake
encounters” of alleged gangster Sohrabuddin Shaikh, his wife Kausar Bi and aide
Tulsiram Prajapati.The allegation was made by the counsel for Sohrabuddin’s
brother Rubabuddin Shaikh during hearing of a plea against the discharge of senior
IPS officers Dinesh MN, Rajkumar Pandian and Vanzara in the alleged fake
encounter case.Rubabuddin’s counsel Gautam Tiwari claimed before the bench of
Justice AM Badar that Vanzara orchestrated the fake encounter killings.“He was
heading the Gujarat Anti-Terrorism Squad which abducted and killed Sohrabuddin
and others. Though Vanzara himself wasn’t present at the site of the abduction
or killings, it was under his instructions that his officers executed the plan.
Vanzara was the mastermind...,” advocate Tiwari said.Prajapati, who, as per
CBI, was an eye-witness to the killings of Shaikh and Kausar Bi, had narrated
the whole episode to several prosecution witnesses, the lawyer said.PTI
UP: Being harassed by accused to withdraw
murder case, alleges family of Muslim man who was thrashed to death
Bulandshahr:The family of a Muslim man, who
was killed allegedly by members of the Hindu Yuva Vahini last year, claimed
that the accused were putting pressure on them to withdraw the case of
murder.The family members of Ghulam Ahmad claimed that they had decided to
leave their Soni village due to the harassment by the five accused who were
recently granted bail by a local court recently.He was beaten to death on May 2
last year after a Muslim youth allegedly kidnapped a Hindu girl.The accused had
dragged Ahmad, who was related to the youth, from a mango orchard to a secluded
spot where they beat him to death.His son, Shakil, claimed that the accused,
after returning to the village, were putting pressure on them to withdraw the
case of murder.Shakil's wife, Sitara, claimed that they were being harassed and
so the family of 13 had decided to move out of the village today.SP Rais Akhtar
said that they were aware of the matter and required action would be taken.PTI
Tharoor: India will become Hindu Pakistan if
BJP sweeps 2019
Kochi :Congress leader Shashi Tharoor said that
if BJP goes on to mark a repeat of their current strength in the Lok Sabha in
2019, then it will pave the way for the tearing up of the Indian constitution
and result in the creation of a ‘Hindu Pakistan’. The comments came while he
was addressing a lecture on ‘Threats faced by Indian democracy and secularism’
in the state capital. Tharoor stated that three factors stand in the way of the
BJP to follow through on what their heroes like Veer Savarkar dreamed of with
respect to a new constitution.indianexpress
No sense in ‘Eminence’ status for Jio
Institute:academics
New Delhi:Centre’s decision to grant the
status of institute of eminence to Reliance Foundation’s proposed Jio Institute
— provided it commences academic operations within three years — has not gone
down well with the academic community, with teachers’ associations and veterans
of the field wondering why the step was taken.The Centre has on its part said
this was done under the greenfield — or, yet to come — category, which is
different from the public and private institutions’ categories.Former JNU V-C
and eminent scientist S.K. Sopory said the very idea of a future institution
being seen as institution of eminence did not make sense. “Most surprising is
Jio Institute. It hasn’t even come up, which means there is no way of it
proving itself,” said he, saying that eminence required a reputation an
institution has earned.“They could have supported such institutions in some
other way but ‘eminence’ is not the right terminology for an institution that
has not come up and, thereby, not proved itself. The terminology should have
been different even if they wished to support yet to come institutions in any
way.”thehindu
Not organising Namaz or Quran recitation in
Ayodhya: RSS Clarifies
RSS on Wednesday, summarily rejected news
reports that the Muslim wing of the organisation, Rashtriya Muslim Manch, was
organising a grand Namaz and a recitation of the Quran in Ayodhya.RSS, on its
official Twitter handle, quoted Akhil Bharatiya Prachar Pramukh Arun Kumar,
saying that the news reports were totally "baseless and
untrue".Earlier in the day, Raza Rizvi, the national media convener of the
Rashtriya Muslim Manch, had told News18 that it was going to a be a grand event
to which more than 1,500 Islamic scholars and clerics would be
invited."They will perform ablution with the running water of the Saryu
river in Ayodhya since the running water is pure. They will then offer prayers,
to be followed by the recitation of the Quran to give a message of peace and
brotherhood to the world," he had said.The leader of the Rashtriya Muslim
Manch, Shabana Azmi, had said that it was a misconception that Muslims are not
allowed to practice their religious rituals."The other misconception is
that the RSS is against Muslims. This event is being organised to give a
message that Ayodhya is a place for both Hindus and Muslims," she was
quoted as saying by News18.The Quint
Rift in JDS? Prominent Muslim leader BM Farooq
plans to quit Kumaraswamy's party:indiatoday
Bengaluru:JDS's prominent minority leader BM
Farooq is planing to quit the party. Sources confirmed that Farooq is
contemplating his next move as he is under pressure from his community leaders
to quit for not being inducted into the present Karnataka cabinet.JDS workers
feel that minority community should be given representation in the cabinet. CM
Kumaraswamy, before elections, had promised that a Dalit and a Muslim
representative would be made the deputy CMs. Muslim community leaders feel that
Kumaraswamy has gone back on his word by ignoring the lone standing Muslim
leader in JDS. Meanwhile, he was made an MLC in order to strike a balance.JDS
has a history of minority leaders moving away from the party, erstwhile JDS
leader and former Union Minister CM Ibrahim, Zameer Ahmed, Iqbal Ansari all
quit the party and joined Congress. Sources said that JDS national president
had earlier requested Farooq to refrain from quitting party like other minority
leaders. CM Kumaraswamy reacting to the growing dissent in JDS said, "I
will answer the party workers soon."A faction of JDS workers feel that the
secular credentials of the party will take a hit if a minority member is not
accommodated in the Govt . They pointed out that there is no minority
bureaucrat in CMO and in the recent budget the CM has not allocated any revised
money for the minority department. Sources said that all these reasons have
irked the community members and are mounting pressure on BM Farooq to move away
from the party.indiatoday
J&K: Kupwara Shuts Down After Youth Shot
Dead
Srinagar: Amid a complete shutdown and
e-curfew, a 22-year-old youth, who was shot dead by the Army last evening in
retaliation to a stone-pelting incident, was laid to rest at his ancestral
village in north Kashmir today.According to reports, thousands of people,
shouting ‘freedom’ slogans, participated in the last rites of Khalid Gaffar
Malik who was shot dead by army last evening in Trehgam village of north
Kashmir's Kupwara district.Khalid, whose brother also works in the Indian Army,
was killed after soldiers fired indiscriminately following an incident of
stone-pelting at the Army convoy some distance away from the scene of shooting
last evening.Family members of Khalid, a shopkeeper by profession, and
eyewitnesses told The Citizen that he was not involved in the stone pelting and
was sitting at the shopfront when the Army convoy, which was pelted with
stones, opened fired at him.thecitizen
Centre may hold civic polls in J&K under
Governor’s rule
Srinagar:After the fall J&K Govt in June, Centre is planning to hold urban
local body and panchayat polls with the state still under governor’s rule,
people familiar with the plan said on the condition of anonymity.The elections,
scheduled to be held in January, were deferred after PDP-BJP coalition Govt led by Mehbooba Mufti told the Centre that the
situation was not conducive for the polls.The previous panchayat polls in the
state were held in 2011; urban local body elections have not been held for
eight years.During his visit to Srinagar to review security and governance in
the state, Union home minister Rajnath Singh had hinted as much when he spoke
about strengthening the grassroots institutions. A notification on the polls
may be issued soon after the culmination of the Amarnath yatra, people cited
above said.“It seems the Centre is now serious in holding these elections and
these polls are the first priority over the formation of a new Govt in the state,” a top official privy to the
plan said. “Centre wants to hold these polls under the governor’s rule.”HT
Kejriwal blames Modi govt for I-T raids on
Yogendra Yadav’s family, calls it vendetta politics
Delhi CMArvind Kejriwal blamed PM Narendra
Modi-led BJP Govt for raids by the
Income Tax department at two hospitals run by Yogendra Yadav’s sisters in
Rewari town of Haryana and said the Govt should stop such vendetta politics.“We
strongly condemn victimisation of Yogendra Yadav’s family by Modi govt thro the
use of agencies like IT. Modi govt shud stop such vendetta politics,” Kejriwal
said.indianexpress
Bihar to dilute Prohibition law
Patna :Under fire over alleged misuse of the
Bihar Prohibition and Excise Act, 2016, the state Govt on Tuesday cleared amendments to the law which
will dilute some of its stringent provisions.Sources said that at least 5 provisions
under the law could be watered down, including those related to arrest of
first-time offenders, “arrest of all adults” of a family, and seizure of house/
vehicle where liquor is recovered.The decision was taken at a cabinet meeting
on Tuesday, and the amendments are set to be tabled during the monsoon
session.“The cabinet has given its nod to the proposal for amendments in the
Bihar Prohibition and Excise Act, 2016,” said Principal Secretary Arun Kumar
Singh. He, however, did not give details of the proposed
amendments.indianexpress
War room leak: Retired Captain gets 7 years in
jail
New Delhi:Stating that an offence committed
against national security did not “deserve” lenient punishment, a Special Court
on Wednesday sentenced Captain (Retired) Salem Singh Rathore to seven-year rigorous
imprisonment in connection with the 2006 Navy war room leak case.Pronouncing
the sentence, Special Judge S K Aggarwal said the documents found in Rathore’s
possession belonged to Defence Ministry and had the potential of being
“directly or indirectly useful to the enemy in one way or the
other”.indianexpress
Hyderabad: Once a graveyard, now a garbage
dumpyard
Charminar: Graveyards in Old City, which are
already in a dilapidated condition owing to high-handedness of land grabbers,
are now turning into dump-yards.Daily, garbage carriers are wheeled into the
graveyards, where huge amounts of unsegrated garbage are dumpedeither right
beside the graves located inside or on top of them, or outside, at the boundary
walls of cemeteries.Taqya Allahu Ghani graveyard at Ziaguda, Masjid Abdulla
Khan graveyard at Rahimpura, Masjid Miyan Mishk graveyard at Puranapul and Toli
Masjid graveyard at Karwan are the worst affected. Residents and local
activists say they have explored every avenue to have the garbage dumped by the
civic body and locals cleared. Frustrated with the level of civic apathy,
residents, who have been trying to solve the problem for years, have now
threatened to take their protest to the streets. “Graveyards have turned into
garbage transfer points. At times, the waste is set on fire, releasing toxic
fumes. Many houses are located near these graveyards. It has become impossible
to keep the doors or windows open,” said Rasool Khan, a resident of Ziaguda.TOI
Mukhtar Ansari feels threatened after Bajrangi's
murder
Lucknow: 2 days after gangster Munna Bajrangi
was shot dead in a prison in Baghpat, the family of don-turned-politician
Mukhtar Ansari, who is lodged in a Banda jail for his alleged role in the 2005
murder of BJP legislator Krishnanand Rai, voiced concerns on Wednesday over his
safety. Sources said that owing to the perceived threat to his life, Ansari has
not come out of his cell for the past two days.His brother, former MP Afzal
Ansari, said that several people had apprehensions about Mukhtar’s safety. But
seeing how Mukhtar’s aide Bajrangi was killed days after his wife expressed
fear over his safety, there was no point in approaching the Govt , Afzal
added.“There is every possibility that he may be killed. Several people have
apprehensions. However, if a person in judicial custody is killed in jail, what
isthe Govt doing? They still have not
been able to explain what happened with Bajrangi,” said Afzal.The family had
similarly expressed doubts after a heart attack that Ansari suffered in jail in
January this year, claiming that he had been poisoned. The incident occurred
when Ansari’s wife was visiting him in Banda jail. Both of them had complained
of chest pain while they were reportedly having tea and were rushed to a
hospital.TOI
WORLD
Israel to Russia: Assad’s safe from us, but
Iran must quit Syria
Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu told Russia on
Wednesday that Israel would not seek to topple its ally, Syrian President
Bashar al-Assad, but Moscow should encourage Iranian forces to quit Syria, a
senior Israeli official said.Netanyahu conveyed the message in talks with
Russian President Vladimir Putin, the official said, just hours after Israel
shot down what it described as a Syrian drone that had penetrated its airspace,
underscoring the frontier’s volatility.Israel has been on high alert as Assad’s
forces advance on rebels in the vicinity of the Golan Heights, much of which
Israel captured from Syria in 1967 and annexed in a move not recognised
internationally. Israel worries Assad could let his Iranian and Hezbollah
reinforcements entrench near Israeli lines or that Syrian forces may defy a
1974 Golan demilitarisation.“They (Russia) have an active interest in seeing a
stable Assad regime and we in getting the Iranians out. These can clash or it
can align,” said the Israeli official on condition of anonymity.“We won’t take
action against Assad regime,” the official quoted Netanyahu as telling Putin in
Moscow.Israeli official who requested anonymity said Russia was working to
distance Iranian forces from the Golan and had proposed that they be kept 80 km
away but that this fell short of Israel’s demand for their full exit along with
that of Tehran-sponsored militias.Since turning the tide of Syria’s civil war
by intervening militarily in 2015 on Assad’s behalf, Russia has turned a blind
eye to scores of Israeli air strikes against Iranian and Hezbollah deployments
or arms transfers, while making clear it wanted Assad kept immune.Israel said a
Syrian drone, apparently unarmed and designed for surveillance, entered its
airspace and was downed with a Patriot missile near the Sea of Galilee on
Wednesday. The interception set off sirens on the Golan and nearby Jordanian
border.Israel has signalled openness to eventual ties with Assad, a tacit
acknowledgement that he is re-consolidating power as he routs Syria’s
rebels.Under Assad family rule, Syria held direct negotiations with Israel in US
in 2000 and indirect talks mediated by Turkey in 2008. Netanyahu’s Govt has
made clear it would not now cede the Golan and has been lobbying for US
recognition of Israel’s claim of sovereignty there.MEMO
Israel launches air attacks on three Syrian
military facilities
Israel has attacked Syrian military positions
after an unmanned drone entered its airspace near the occupied Golan Heights on
Thursday.The Israeli military acknowledged in a statement that three Syrian
army positions in Quneitra province were targeted overnight, saying it was in
retaliation for the entering of a Syrian drone into its airspace a few hours
earlier."The IDF holds the Syrian regime accountable for the actions
carried out in its territory and warns it from further action against Israeli
forces," the Israeli army statement said.Syrian state media said the
Israeli air attacks on the southern province inflicted material damage but had
caused no deaths or injuries, adding that the country's air defences had
managed to intercept at least a few missiles.aljazeera
Putin to talk Khamenei top adviser on Syria
A top Iranian official is visiting Moscow as
Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu is set to hold talks with Russian President
Vladimir Putin on Syria conflict.Putin's meeting with Netanyahu on Wednesday in
Moscow will centre on the conflict in Syria and Iran's role in the war-torn
country, according to news reports and the Israeli Govt."This is very
important for the national security of the state of Israel," Netanyahu
told reporters at an airport in Tel Aviv before leaving for Moscow, according
to an official transcript.Israel deeply resents Iran's presence in Syria, where
Tehran has military presence along with Moscow, which intervened in the
eight-year-old conflict in 2015.A top foreign policy adviser of Iran's
Ayatollah Ali Khamenei,Ali Akbar Velayati, is expected to arrive on Wednesday
to deliver an "important message" to Putin from the Supreme Leader,
according to the Iranian Labour News Agency.Al Jazeera has learned that
Velayati will meet Putin on Thursday, and will stay for another day to hold
other meetings with Russian officials.An Iranian foreign office spokesman said
that the visit was in line with Tehran's diplomatic outreach after the US
pulled out of the Iran nuclear deal."After Donald Trump's strategic
mistake to exit the multilateral and international accord,JCPOA, Iran decided
to dispatch a number of its special representatives to other countries,"
Iranian foreign ministry spokesman Bahram Qassemi said, referring to the Iran
nuclear deal. "Velayati's visit to Moscow would also take place in line
with such a policy and he would also travel to China," he said.Moscow has
managed to maintain its relationship with Israel, despite its dominant role in
the complex conflict.aljazeera
N. Korea demanded $1bn from Israel to end Iran
missile sales: defector
North Korea threatened to keep supplying Iran
with missile technology unless Israel handed Pyongyang a billion dollars,
according to a new book by a defected former Korean diplomat. The offer was
made in 1999, according to ex-diplomat Thae Yong-ho - who was involved in the
negotiations and defected to South Korea in 2016 - in extracts of his book seen
by the Wall Street Journal.According to Thae, North Korea's ambassador to
Sweden Son Mu-sin approached his Israeli counterpart Gideon Ben Ami with the
offer in a Stockholm cafe.Thae, who allegedly served as translator at the
meeting, writes that Israel declined to part with the $1bn cash, though it did
offer food aid in its stead a few days later, without success.Instead, North
Korea kept its agreements with Iran and western diplomats have accused the
countries of developing a close relationship on missile technology. American
diplomatic cables leaked by WikiLeaks in 2010 claimed that 19 North Korean
ballistic missiles had been transferred to Iran at the time. The negotiations
followed the deaths of more than 2 million people from famine in North Korea
since 1995. The Wall Street Journal reported that Ben Ami confirmed the 1999
meetings in a televised interview with the Israeli network Kan last week, but
neither he nor Son have confirmed the $1bn demand.middleeasteye
Irish senate backs bill banning trade with
Israeli settlements
Irish Senate gave its support on Wednesday to
a legislation prohibiting the import or sale of goods and services produced in
occupied territories around the world, including Israeli settlements considered
illegal under international law.The proposed law - passed 25 to 20 - to make it
an offence to trade in such goods and services was introduced by an independent
senator and drew support from all Ireland's major political parties except the
governing Fine Gael party.The bill will now go to the lower house of parliament
for a debate and vote. If passed, the bill will have to go through several more
stages of review and amendment before it is signed into a law.Saeb Erekat,
senior leader of the Palestinian Liberation Organistion, called the move by
Ireland's upper house, Senead, "historic" and urge other countries to
do the same."Today the Irish Senate has sent a clear message to the
international community and particularly to the rest of the European Union: the
mere talking about the two-state solution is not enough without taking concrete
measures," Erekat said."Those trading with Israeli settlements are
complicit in the systematic denial of Palestinian right to
self-determination," he added."This bold action by Ireland sends an
important message to Israel that its occupation of the West Bank and its
explicit support for illegal settlements will not continue to go ignored by the
international community," said Barry Trachtenberg, Rubin Presidential
Chair of Jewish history at Wake Forest University in Winston-Salem, North
Carolina.aljazeera
Likud may alter ‘Jewish nation state’ bill
amidst concerns at global fallout
Responding to concerns that the pending
“Jewish nation-state” bill may cause Israel significant damage internationally,
Likud legislators are reportedly preparing to dilute aspects of the
legislation, according to various media reports.According to Haaretz, Attorney
General Avichai Mendelblit “warned PM Benjamin Netanyahu on Tuesday of possible
implications for Israel in the international arena” if the bill is passed “in
its current form”.Meanwhile, Deputy Attorney General Ran Nizri made a similar point
in the Knesset yesterday, stating: “We are doing our job in closed rooms where
we speak to the relevant political officials and there, more is said about the
international implications.”President Reuven Rivlin also warned yesterday that
the legislation in its current form “could harm the Jewish people worldwide and
in Israel, and could even be used as a weapon by our enemies”.middleeastmonitor
Palestinians blast UN relief agency’s
downsizing plans
GAZA CITY:Dozens of Palestinians and employees
of the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) demonstrated
outside the UNRWA’s Gaza headquarters on Thursday to protest planned reductions
to the agency’s services.Established in 1949, UNRWA provides essential services
to Palestinian refugees in the blockaded Gaza Strip, the occupied West Bank,
Jordan, Lebanon and Syria, who have been displaced by Israeli occupation and conflict.
“We are protesting today… to send a message to UNRWA that its plans to dispense
with some employees is unacceptable,” Amal Batch, deputy head of UNRWA's
employees’ union, which helped organize Thursday’s demonstration, told Anadolu
Agency.“UNRWA’s downsizing plans will not solve its ongoing financial crisis,”
she said.Anadolu Agency
Hamas delegation heads to Cairo for talks
A Hamas delegation set out for Cairo from the
blockaded Gaza Strip on Wednesday to hold talks with Egyptian officials.The
delegation is being led by Khalil al-Hayya, Hamas’s deputy leader in
Gaza.According to group spokesman Fawzi Barhoum, delegation members will meet
with Egyptian officials to discuss “bilateral relations and recent developments
in the Palestinian and Arab arenas”.Egypt recently invited leaders of the
Gaza-based resistance group to Cairo to discuss prospects for inter-Palestinian
reconciliation and ongoing tensions along the Gaza-Israel security fence.At least
137 Gazan protesters have been martyred by Israeli army gunfire since Mar. 30,
when Palestinians began holding mass rallies along the security
fence.middleeastmonitor
Amnesty calls for probe of torture claims in
Yemen prisons
An international rights group is calling for
an investigation into alleged disappearances, torture and likely deaths in
prisons run by UAE and allied militias in southern Yemen.Amnesty International
said in a report today that it has documented "systemic enforced
disappearance and torture and other ill-treatment, amounting to war
crimes" in the facilities.The report said "some (detainees are)
feared to have died in custody". Based on more than 70 interviews, the
authors said "cruel and unlawful" practices were being committed in
those prisons. Amnesty called on Emirati Govt to immediately stop the torture, and to
release detainees.aljazeera
Pakistan secular party defiant after its
leader killed in blast
Pakistan's Awami National Party (ANP) has
vowed to fight against armed groups after its senior leader Haroon Bilour was
killed in a suicide attack a day ago in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province.The
attack on Tuesday at an election campaign event organised by the ANP also
killed at least 20 people. Their funerals were held in the KPK provincial
capital Peshawar on Wednesday. Pakistan Taliban claimed responsibility for the
attack.Bilour was a provincial assembly candidate for the July 25 general
elections. His father, Bashir Bilour, also a prominent ANP politician, was
killed by a suicide bomber in 2012."We want peace on our soil and will
stand with our people," said senior party leader Mian
Iftikhar Hussain, who lost his only son in a armed attack eight years ago.ANP's
insistence that Pakistan should have a secular Govt instead of rule by Islamic law has made it a
target for the Pakistan Taliban.aljazeera
Islam takes backseat in Kosovo politics: I’m Albanian.
I’m not Muslim. Religion is not my first identity, says PM Ramush Haradinaj
Pristina: "I’m Albanian. I’m not Muslim.
Religion is not my first identity. The truth is we’ve existed for more than
2,000 years, before even Mohammed or Jesus. We have a memory, we know who we
are, we lived as Christians for very long and we adopted the Muslim religion
through Ottoman administration. We are a Euro-Atlantic nation. When we were in
trouble, the US and NATO [were] with us, so we belong to this club," said PM
Ramush Haradinaj, who still walks with the swagger of a Kosovo Liberation Army
(KLA) hero from its 1998-99 battle for survival against attacking Serb-led
Yugoslav forces.S peaking with Middle East Eye and other news outlets from his
airy office in Pristina, Haradinaj stressed that Kosovars inhabit "another
world" than their Muslim brethren in the nearby Middle East.While more
than 90 percent of the country’s 1.8 million people are Kosovar Albanian and
Muslim, secular institutions are cherished, mosques are less ostentatious than
those in parts of the Middle East, and there is less appetite for Islamic law.
By one analysis, this is more than just a cultural trope. As Kosovars aspire
for membership of NATO and the EU, they may be playing down an Islamic identity
to ease their way into a club of countries with Christian roots. This tiny
Balkan breakaway region of Kosovo, stands out as a rare pocket of the Muslim
world where American leaders of yesteryear are revered.Its capital, Pristina,
lionises the Arkansas statesman Bill Clinton with a 3.5-metre statue, his left
hand outstretched and flashing a smile across a drab, Soviet-era plaza. Odder
still, the beaming bronze stands only 1km from the corner with George Bush
Street.Striped American flags are still seen flapping in the breeze across
Kosovo, 19 years after NATO military operations halted Serbian massacres and
other atrocities there, and 10 years after the mostly Muslim province declared
it was splitting from Belgrade.middleeasteye
US Congress weighs terror label for Muslim
Brotherhood: washington times
https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2018/jul/11/congress-weighs-terror-label-for-muslim-brotherhoo/
The Muslim Brotherhood still poses a
significant global threat and ought to be officially designated a terrorist
group by the Trump administration, a trio of experts told Congress on
Wednesday.The group has long been a polarizing force in the region, with some
saying it represented a path to a more moderate Muslim-centered politics while
others said it served as a front and smiling public face for more radical,
violent movements in the region. Whether the group should be placed on the US
terror list “has been a topic of debate here in Congress in recent years, Rep.
Ron De Santis, the Florida Republican who chairs the House Oversight national
security subcommittee, acknowledged at Wednesday’s hearing.Muslim Brotherhood
critics in Congress hoped to use the hearing to kick off a drive to designate
the group as a terrorist organization, a move initially blocked by the Obama
administration State Department. Several witnesses told the panel there was
ample evidence the Brotherhood deserved the terrorist tag.“Brotherhood
certainly means to be global and it means to be a threat,” said Dr. Hillel
Fradkin, a senior fellow at the Hudson Institute think tank, testified.Rep.
Jody Hice, Georgia Republican, said that the threat of the Brotherhood cannot
be ignored at home and abroad.“Muslim Brotherhood is alive and well, and they
have had a number of splinter groups that have been birthed out of the main
group that are present right here in the United States,” Hice said in an
interview.washingtontimes
Intelligence chiefs of Russia, China, Iran and
Pakistan discuss IS threat
Intelligence chiefs of Russia, China, Iran and
Pakistan gathered in Islamabad on Tuesday to discuss measures against the
threat of aggregation of the Islamic State militants in Afghanistan, Russian
news agency TASS has reported. The official confirmation of the meeting came
from Sergei Ivanov, chief of the Russian Foreign Intelligence Service’s press
bureau. The Director of the Foreign Intelligence Service, Sergei Naryshkin, represented
Russia.“The discussions focused on the dangers arising from a build-up of the
Islamic State on the Afghan territory,” Ivanov said.“The conference reached
understanding of the importance of coordinated steps to prevent the trickling
of IS terrorists from Syria and Iraq to Afghanistan from where they would pose
risks for neighboring countries,” he said.Sources in Delhi told The Indian
Express that India has bilateral engagements with all the relevant agencies in
Russia, China and Iran, especially on intelligence-sharing and
counter-terrorism. While New Delhi and Islamabad have not had bilateral
engagement with each other on counter-terrorism cooperation, sources said they
have cooperated under the rubric of Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) in
the past six months.Interestingly, all four countries which met in Islamabad on
Tuesday are members of SCO, but sources said the meeting was not under the
rubric of SCO.indianexpress
India deeply worried on reports of Islamic
State acquiring chemical weapons
The Hague:India is “deeply worried” about
reports of the so-called ‘Islamic State’ or ISIS acquiring chemical weapons and
has asked the chemical weapons watchdog OPCW to closely monitor this
threat.“India shares the widespread concern over fresh allegations on the use
of chemical weapons coming from different parts of the world,” Ambassador and
Permanent Representative of India to OPCW, Venu Rajamony, said, addressing the
88th session of the Executive Council of the Organization for Prevention of Chemical
Weapons (OPCW) on Tuesday.He said: “We are saddened to learn about the tragic
loss of life of a UK citizen in Amesbury following the exposure to a toxic
chemical. We express our deepest sympathies to all victims of chemical weapon
attacks and their families.”PTI
Israel, Saudi, UAE among world’s top 10 most
powerful countries
Israel, Saudi Arabia, UAE, Iran, Turkey, Qatar
and Egypt have been ranked among the 25 most powerful countries in the world by
the US News and World Report.The annual rankings are based on surveys that ask
participants for their opinions on 80 countries with some 65 indicators in nine
categories, including a strong military, strong international alliances,
economic and political influence, and leadership.Israel ranked highest of all
Middle Eastern countries, in eighth place worldwide, with the report citing its
military might and diplomatic support from US. It was closely followed by Saudi
Arabia in ninth position and the UAE in tenth, surpassing South Korea and
Canada. Iran and Turkey followed, ahead of both India and Australia, with their
economic potential noted.Qatar was also included in the list, three places
ahead of last year, despite being blockaded by its Gulf neighbours since last
summer. Egypt secured the last 25th position, described by the report as “one
of the world’s earliest and greatest civilisations”, which highlighted the
country’s growth in tourism and manufacturing. US, Russia and China topped the
poll, with Germany and UK in fourth and fifth position. Middle Eastern states
ranked lower in terms of the overall “Best Countries” classification, with
Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Qatar occupying positions in the mid-thirties. UAE was
deemed the twenty-third best country in the world, ahead of Israel in thirtieth
place. Tunisia, Jordan and Iran also scored low in the general ranking, with
Algeria in last place of 80 states considered.MEMO
NATO Summit Turns to Afghanistan After Trump's
Spending Demands
Brussels: NATO leaders will try on Thursday to
move beyond US President Donald Trump’s demands for higher defence spending,
and focus on ending the long war in Afghanistan, in the second day of a summit
in Brussels underscored by transatlantic tensions.On a trip that will also take
Trump to Britain and to Helsinki to meet Russia’s Vladimir Putin, the president
spent the first day of the NATO summit lambasting allies for failing to spend
the targeted 2 % of GDP on defence and accused Germany of being a prisoner to
Russian energy.Trump, in a late-night post on Twitter, wrote: “Billions of
additional dollars are being spent by NATO countries since my visit last year,
at my request, but it isn’t nearly enough. US spends too much.”It followed an uncomfortable
first round at the summit where anxious Western allies were subjected to the US
president’s “America first” approach. His comment that Germany was controlled
by Russia earned a rebuke from Berlin.Reuters
Afghanistan: Landslide kills 10 people,
destroys hundreds of houses in Panjshir
At least 10 people have been killed and
hundreds of houses destroyed in a landslide in Panjshir province of
Afghanistan, officials AFP on Thursday. The local administration has deployed
search and rescue teams to locate those reported to be missing.National
Disaster Management Authority Omar Mohammadi said the personnel were giving top
priority to those trapped in the debris in Peshghor village, Thomson Reuters
Foundation reported.scroll.in
FLASH: VIEWS & NEWS
‘For Electoral Gains, AIUDF Betrayed
Bengali-speaking Population’:Tarique Anwar , newsclick
Lynching Of Muslims In India Has Become A
“Badge Of Honour” For Perpetrators: Advocate Indira Jaising to SC
What Lynchings in 19th Century US Can Teach Us
About ‘New India’:Asim Ali
AIMPLB's Sharia courts announcement is an
attempt to subvert rule of law to establish Islamic law:India Monika Arora, SC
lawyer
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