NEWS
DIGEST, MID-DAY
04 July 2018:19 Shawwal 1439: Vol:10, No:58
INDIA
LG bound by ‘aid & advice’ of elected
Delhi govt; Delhi govt’s decisions will not require concurrence of LG: SC
A 5-judge Bench of the Supreme Court today
unanimously held that the Lieutenant Governor (LG) of Delhi is bound by the
“aid and advice” of the popularly-elected Arvind Kejriwal-led AAP Govt and
both have to work harmoniously with each other. It noted that there is no room
for anarchy or absolutism in a democracy.CJI Dipak Misra, who wrote the opinion
for himself, and Justices AK Sikri and AM Khanwilkar held that except for
issues of public order, police and land, the Lieutenant Governor is bound by
the “aid and advice of the Kejriwal Govt
, which has the public mandate.”“Real authority to take decisions lie in
the elected Govt. This is the meaning of ‘aid and advice.’ Titular head (LG)
has to act in accordance to aid and advice,” Justice DY Chandrachud observed in
his separate opinion. He concluded that there is no independent authority with
the LG to take decisions except in matters under Article 239 or those outside
the purview of National Capital Territory (NCT) Govt.Every “trivial difference
of opinion” between the LG and NCT Govt cannot be referred to President for a
decision. The issues referred should be of substantive or national importance.
In this regard, CJI interpreted the phrase “any matter” in the proviso to
Article 239AA(4) as not “every matter.” Elected representatives would be
reduced to a cipher if ‘any matter’ in Article 239AA (4) was interpreted as
every matter of governance, Justice Chandrachud agreed.CJI wrote that a
reference to the President was only an exception and not the general rule. “In
this context, even in case of differences of opinion, LG and NCT Govt should
act with constitutional morality and trust for each other. LG cannot act
without applying his mind and refer everything to the President.”NCT Govt need
only to inform the LG of its “well-deliberated” decisions. Govt need not obtain
his “concurrence” in every issue of day-to-day governance.Referring to the
prolonged spat between the LG and the Kejriwal Govt on
various issues, from a freeze on appointment of bureaucrats to mohalla clinic
staff to school teachers, CJI said the spirit of collective responsibility in
the Constitution should not be “lost in drama.” “Constitutional discord should
be avoided. There is a need for real discipline and wisdom.”A freeze on Govt decisions by LG negates the very concept of
“collective responsibility.” CJI, however, adhered to the nine-judge Bench
judgment of the Supreme Court in NDMC versus State of Punjab to conclude that Delhi
is not a ‘State.’ The judgment also held that LG is not a Governor but only an
“administrator in a limited sense.”thehindu
Decisions of Delhi govt will not require the
concurrence of L-G:SC
AAP Ki Dilli, says top court, emphasis on
elected govt
AAP's 10-lakh letter strong 'reminder' for PM Modi
to 'grant Delhi full statehood'
Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal wants full statehood and he
plans to intensify his party's campaign with AAP workers reaching every
household in Delhi, along with a letter from Kejriwal. These letters will be
their campaign vehicle to send a clear message to PM Narendra Modi.As per a
report in India Today, Kejriwal blamed Delhi's Lt Governor Anil Baijal for his
lack of ability to deliver in various spheres. Addressing his party supporters,
MLAs and ministers in Delhi, and sharing his 'demand' with a strong voice,
Kejriwal said that if PM Narendra Modi
fulfills his promise and grants Delhi full statehood before the 2019 general
elections, his party will win all seven Lok Sabha seats in the national
capital. And if he fails to do so, Modi would be left with nothing.Moneycontrol
Rejecting report of his return to India; Zakir
Naik says won’t return till he feels ‘safe from unfair prosecution’; Govt
sources say no communication from Malaysia
New Delhi:Dr. Zakir Naik is heading back to
India from Malaysia, sources told NDTV. "He is out of the country tonight.
He will be taking a flight to India today I believe," a Malaysian Govt source
told NDTV in Kuala Lumpur.Naik has called the report "totally baseless and
false". He was quoted as saying: "I have no plans to come to India
till I don't feel safe from unfair prosecution. When I feel that the Govt will
be just and fair, I will surely return to my homeland."His lawyer Dato
Shaharuddin Ali said "as of today", there is no truth in the report
that Zakir Naik was being sent back to India. Neither had he been served any
extradition papers, he added. The home ministry says it has no communication
from Malaysia on Naik's return.Zakir left India in 2016 and has been living in
Putrajaya in Malaysia since. He was also given a permanent residency and
embraced by top Malaysian Govt officials.When NDTV asked why he was
"welcome" there, the source said: "You will have to ask the last
Govt."Indian investigators have been demanding that Malaysia hand him over
as he is wanted by NIA.Malaysia said India had failed to produce a red corner
notice - which acts like an international arrest warrant - against him."In
our conversations with Indian authorities like RAW, we said please give us an
Interpol notice and we will arrest him, but they failed to do so," said an
official.There has been speculation about a change of policy on Naik's stay in
Malaysia after the exit of the Najib Razak Govt
, the legal fight for which is on in court.The Home Minister of Malaysia
was recently quoted as saying that Naik was subject to local laws if he had
committed a crime. However, the police authorities couldn't confirm if his
return was part of negotiations with India.NDTV
Zakir says won’t return to India till he feels
‘safe from unfair prosecution’
No communication from Malaysia regarding
Naik's deportation: Govt sources
Zakir Naik won’t be extradited tonight:
Malaysian Inspector General of Police
UP govt proposes new dress code for madrassa
students to put an end to kurta-pyjama wardrobe, senior minister rejects
colleague’s remarks
Lucknow:Hours after UP Minister of State
Mohsin Raza claimed that the state Govt might “soon propose a new dress code”
for madrassa students, his senior ministerial colleague rejected the statement,
saying that “the Govt has not formed any new policy” in this regard.
Cabinet minister Laxmi Narayan Chaudhary tonight tweeted, “Govt has not formed
any new policy pertaining to the dress code of the madrassas. On this issue,
there is no view of the department.”Chaudhary is the Cabinet Minister for
Minority Welfare, Muslim Waqf and Haj. Earlier in the day, the Minister of
State for Muslim Waqf and Haj, Mohsin Raza, said, “The aim of the UP Govt is to bring madrassas at par with other
educational institutions in every sense.Till now, students in madrassas have
been wearing ‘kurta-payjamas’ but now this dress code will make it more formal…We
might also try to meet the expenses,”said Raza. Raza said the current dressing
style of madrassa students reflects a clear demarcation between them and the
students of other schools which will come to an end now. The state Govt has
already gone ahead with its plans to introduce NCERT books in the madrassas of UP
in a bid to bring their students at par with their counterparts in other
schools and to modernise education in madrassas affiliated to the State
Madrassa Board. “Till now, students in madrassas wear white kurta-pyjama, which
reflects a particular faith.We will very soon propose a new dress code for
them,”minister said.Raza, however, refused to elaborate as to what the new
dress code would be.PTI
Adityanath Govt proposes new dress code for madrassa students,
to put an end to kurta-pyjama wardrobe
Dress code for madrassas: Senior UP minister
rejects colleague's statement on 'new govt policy'
AMU should clarify stand on SC/ST quotas or
could lose funding: National Commission for Scheduled Castes
Aligarh :National Commission for Scheduled
Castes (NCSC) Chairperson Ramshankar Katheria said today AMU should clarify its
stand on reservations for an SC quota or else it may lose central
funding.Katheria said that the commission had written to the varsity asking why
it was not fulfilling its constitutional obligations by providing reservations
to the weaker sections."If the varsity authorities fail to provide the
commission with a suitable answer to the written query asking it to prove that
AMU is a minority institution, within a month of receiving the commission's missive,
the NCSC would direct the UGC to stop all funding of AMU for not fulfilling its
constitutional obligations," Katheria said. Katheria, ex minister of state
in Union HRD ministry, said NCSC had decided to become a party in the ongoing
case in the Supreme Court where the AMU is claiming to be a minority
institution.While the UPA Govt had supported the claims of the AMU in the SC
regarding its status as a minority institution, the present Modi-led Govt has
reversed its stand and has submitted an affidavit rejecting the AMUs claim.PTI
No Muslim quota in AMU, seats reserved for
internal students, says university
Days after UP CM Yogi Adityanath demanded
quota for Dalits in minority-run institutions, AMU clarified that it has never
followed the policy of reserving seats on the basis of religion or caste. In a
press statement, the university clarified that AMU has never followed the
policy of reserving seats for Muslims. “It rather reserves 50 % seats for internal students regardless of their
religion or caste,” the university said.AMU further clarified that the
university is being ‘governed by AMU Act 1981 which has granted minority status
to it and the minority institutions are exempted by the Article 15 (5) from
implementing constitutional reservations’.The case relating to AMU’s minority
status is sub judice in the Supreme Court. indianexpress
AMU is not a minority institution: Chairman of
UP SC/ST Tribe Commission
Asserting that AMU is not a minority
institution, UP Scheduled Caste/Scheduled Tribe Commission today issued a
notice to the University asking it to explain why it does not give reservation
to SC/ST communities. “We have asked (AMU) as to why SC/ST communities have not
been given benefits of reservation. Under what circumstances it has been done,”
said Chairman of UP SC/ST Commission Brij Lal. Brij Lal stated that the top
court and various high court directives had established that AMU is not a
minority institution. “Supreme Court has not yet passed any order in which the
AMU was prevented from providing reservation benefits to SC/STs.In light of HC
and SC directives, it has been established that AMU is not a minority
institution,” he said.indianexpress
Free NCERT books yet to arrive in UP's
madrassas: teachers' body
Lucknow:Confusion prevails in madrassas in UP over
the distribution of free NCERT text books even as the academic session has
begun from April.Every year, over 560 govt-aided madrassas were provided free
books from class first to eight under Sarva Siksha Abhiyan, under a govt
scheme.However, a decision was taken by the state Govt in May
this year that NCERT books would be introduced in madarassas.Madrassa
functionaries complain that even as the academic session is underway, free
NCERT books are yet to arrive."Most of the Basic Shiksha Adhikaris(BSA),who
look after primary education in districts have not got NCERT books for free
distribution.Earlier, books of Basic Shiksha Parishad were given to students.
Now as NCERT books have been introduced, confusion prevails whether basic
education department will provide free books or not," said General
Secretary, Teachers Association Madaris Arabia, Diwan Sahab Zaman. The decision
to introduce NCERT books should have been taken after consulting everyone, but
this was not done, Zaman claimed. If there were consultations, the problems
would not have been arisen, he said. UP cabinet chaired by CM Yogi Adityanath had in May approved the
introduction of NCERT books for the Madrassa Board.When asked, Director, Sarva
Shiksha Abhiyan, Vedpati Mishra said, "No directive has been received in
this regard (free books) from Centre. On June 14 a meeting of project approval
board of the Human Resource Development ministry was held. After getting
minutes of the meeting, it will be finalised whether madrassas will be given
free NCERT books or not."Registrar of the Madrassa Shiksha Board, Rahul
Gupta said, "560 aided madrasas are being provided free books and rest
have to purchase it. I have talked to NCERT officials and written a letter to
them informing tentative number of books needed so that it will be easy to
publish books and ensure their availability."As far as free distribution
of NCERT books to madrassas under Sarv Shiksha Abhiyan is concerned, Basic
Education department knows better, Gupta said.Zaman said he recently sought to
know from the Registrar, Madrassa Board about distribution of books, but did
not get any reply.PTI/outlook
Muslims feel socio-economic pinch across
country: survey report
Hyderabad: The socio-economic condition of
Muslims across India declined between 2014 and 2016 and they have become wary
about their security, reveals an all India survey report. Most Muslims say that
their socio-economic condition has not improved even in the last 10 years. In
fact, their economic growth in UP and Bihar has witnessed a decline. In terms
of monthly per capita expenditure, Muslims are at the lowest rung, that is,
below SCs and STs in urban areas, while they are slightly above STs in rural
India, the survey said.Muslims think that given the present scenario poverty
levels will slide further and religious freedom curtailed as well. On the
brighter side, Muslims believe that their situation in education will improve
by 2025 as well as their political participation. The report, “Vision
2025—Socio-Economic Inequalities, Why does India’s economic growth need an
inclusive agenda”, will be released on July 7 in New Delhi. The report has been
authored by economist Amir Ullah Khan and historian Abdul Azim Akhtar. Noted
economist Amitabh Kundu, who headed the committee that critically evaluated implementation
of Sachar Committee Report, has penned the preface of the report. TOI obtained
a digital copy of the report and spoke with Amir Ullah Khan, who is a
Hyderabadi.The report suggests that people are more worried about lack of
access to credit followed by ghettoization and wide prevalence of discrimination.
“Concern about security is state specific. In some states like UP people are
more worried about their safety…mob lynching is the new phenomenon that is
taking a toll,” Khan said. Muslims in Indian are not a monolithic block. They
are more concerned about the problems they face in the state they live, Khan
said. The main aspiration of Muslims is to have good education. A tiny portion
of them go to Madrassas only for religious education. These are not substitute
to secular education, report said.TOI
1.5 lakh people may lose their citizenship
status in Assam
Guwahati:Around 1.5 lakh people whose names
were in the first part draft of the ongoing exercise of updation of National
Register of Citizens (NRC), now risk earning the tag of illegal immigrant. They
will not be part of the July 30 draft of the NRC following discrepancies
reported in the second round of verification process, authorities said.The
first draft published on midnight of Dec.31, 2017, had 1.9 crore names out of
the 3.29 crore who applied. The Supreme Court on Monday extended the deadline
to publish the second draft to July 30. NRC exercise is being conducted to
identify alleged illegal immigrants in the state.As per the Supreme Court
order, those who will be excluded, include 65,694 cases of family tree
investigations, whose claims were found to be false in the second round of
family tree verification, 48,456 cases of married women who submitted
certificates issued by Gaon panchayats to prove their citizenship and 19,783
persons whose names were erroneously mentioned in the first draft.This has led
to questions on the credibility of the ongoing exercise.“How is it possible
that despite the exercise having been started in 2015, there are still errors,”
asked Aminul Islam, the general secretary of AIUDF.HT
Muslims in Manipur are angry after BJP govt.
razed down structures of dozens of its members in Imphal East
Manipur: Muslim residents of Kshetri Bengoon
in Imphal East district woke up on Monday to the sounds of JCB machines which
were brought by the local authorities to demolish the structures. The whole
demolition drive which ended in few hours rendered 77 Muslim families homeless.
Local residents did protest against the action of the local authorities but
were chased away by the police with batons and tear gas shells which, according
to locals, led to injury to at least 5 persons. “It was just 7:30 in the
morning when police came along with the machines. It was a big surprise for the
people as they didn’t expect Govt to rundown their houses,”Qudus Ahmed, a local
said.“Everything was in chaos. There were more policemen than the locals. Few
residents including women did try resisting the demolition, but were chased
away by the police which led to few injuries as well,” he said.Earlier in April
2018, BJP-led state Govt had issued notification to evict the residents
from Kshetri Bengoon Mamang Ching, Mantripukhri and adjoining areas in Imphal
East district which Govt claimed was a ‘protected’ and ‘forest’ land.
TwoCircles
Muslims are our brothers: Manipur CM
Imphal :CM N. Biren Singh said that Muslims in Manipur
"were born by Manipuri mothers and we are blood relations". Referring
to the 48-hour general strike and other forms of protests against the
demolition of several houses and a school building at Khetri Begoon on Monday,
Biren Singh said that the razing shall continue."There is no communalism
in the present drive. When houses and shops of several elderly women and poor
persons were demolished along the Nambil river, there is no protest even from
the Muslim settlers at Khetri Begoon. "There were 3 houses with 9 family
members at the village who are of dubious nationality," he said.IANS
Communal tension in Bareilly village after
temple idols broken; 3 accused held
Bareilly: Communal tension prevailed in
Raituiya village in the district here when 4 persons allegedly beat a temple
priest and damaged idols there, police said today.DM Virendra Kumar Singh said
that out of the four accused, three were arrested in the night and damaged
idols have been removed and process is on to install the new ones.The incident
took place last night when the priest Anil Pandit was cleaning the temple under
Aonla police station area when four persons Hasnain, Nadeem, Meseem and Firasat
entered there in an inebriated state and beat him badly.They also damaged the
idols, police said.Anil somehow managed to flee and reached the village after
which agitated villagers also indulged in brick batting with the rival faction,
they said.PTI
Gujarat: Youth attacked for wearing Muslim
skull cap
Ahmedabad:Digambar Sonar, a 21-year-old youth
from the Narol area of the city, was allegedly beaten by 4 men who objected to
him posting a display picture on his WhatsApp account wearing a Muslim skull
cap. Police said the 4 men threatened him “for wearing a skull cap despite
being a Hindu”. Sonar was assaulted by the four men — Sachin, Vijay, Kachori
and an unknown man — so severely late on Monday night that he had to be
admitted to LG Hospital in the city.Sonar states in FIR, “I had clicked myself
wearing a skull cap on the festival of Eid on June 16 and posted it as my
display picture on WhatsApp. Sachin, who is a friend and a member of a common
WhatsApp group, saw my display picture and started abusing me for wearing a
skull cap.”TOI
Tamil Nadu announces Haj subsidy, months after
Centre scrapped grant
Tamil Nadu Govt announced an annual subsidy of
Rs 6 crore for Haj pilgrimage from this year, months after it had opposed the
Centre's decision to do away with the monetary aid to the pilgrims. CM K
Palaniswami made the announcement in the state assembly. Noting that the
Central Govt had scrapped the Haj subsidy, he said the
state Govt has been extending grant for the Hindus and
the Christians for their overseas pilgrimage. Now Muslims too would be given a
similar support, he added. "Amma's (late CM Jayalalithaa's) Govt which
follows her footsteps will from this year provide Rs 6 crore subsidy every year
for followers of Islam to undertake the sacred Haj yatra," he said. CM said this year a total of 3,728 people would
undertake Haj pilgrimage under the new subsidy scheme, modalities of which are
yet to be announced. PTI
Recurrent terror attacks common under UPA are
now history: PM Modi
PM Narendra Modi has said that there has been the
significant improvement in the internal security situation in the last 4 years
with "recurrent terror attacks that were common under UPA" now being
history and Maoist violence declining by 20% in the affected areas.In an interview with
'Swarajya' magazine, PM said: "I
would like to salute our brave security forces who are eternally vigilant and are
ensuring peace as well as prosperity for 125 crore Indians."You can
ascertain our security situation from the fact that recurrent terror attacks
that were common under the UPA are now history."IANS
Withdraw minority status for Muslims, stem
their population growth: Togadia
Jaipur: Ex-VHP leader Praveen Togadia demanded
that the minority status for Muslims should be withdrawn and they be made to
adhere to the two-child policy to curb their population growth.The status of
minority (for Muslims) should be withdrawn. A 2-child policy should be there to
control their population," Togadia, who recently formed a new outfit
Antarrashtriya Hindu Parishad said at a press conference."The money
collected from taxpayers should not be spent on them only, it should instead be
utilised for the welfare of all poor and needy people, he added.The
controversial leader said that his outfit will create a vote bank of 20 crore
Hindus in the country to influence politics in a democratic manner. Togadia
lashed out at Modi Govt for failing to tackle vital issues like inflation,
farmer suicides, unemployment and women safety."More than 32000 cases of
rape or attempt to rape took place in the country last year which clearly presents
a picture that women and girls are not secured in the country," he
said.PTI
A year after GST, small businesses report huge
drop in sales, struggle with high costs of compliance
New Delhi:For Rajesh Kapoor, a dealer of power
tools and industrial hardware in Delhi, one year of GST reform has meant a 60%
drop in sales.“In the last one year, we’re only able to sell about 40% of what
we used to before GST came in. B2C (business-to-consumer) end of my business
has taken a drastic hit. When a customer sees he’ll have to pay Rs 18,000 tax
on a purchase worth Rs 1,00,000, he’d prefer to not buy the product from us at
all,” said Kapoor.Kapoor’s business typically sees an annual turnover in the
range of Rs 17-18 lakh. Small businesses like his were exempt from paying
excise under old tax laws. Goods he sold were only taxed at 5% VAT, but now,
under GST, most of the products fall under the 18% slab, and the others are
taxed at 28%.“It’s discouraging customers from buying from us. They’d rather go
to a branded store and shell out more money there, since they’re already used
to paying more for brands,” he said. “When it comes to filing returns too, work
needs to be delegated to a professional now. We can’t do much by ourselves.”HT
Chinese Army delegation in India, issue of
resuming military exercise discussed
New Delhi:A 10-member delegation of Chinese
Army is in India with an aim to increase coordination between the militaries of
the two countries along their disputed boundary, in the first such visit after Doklam
standoff.The visit by the high-level Chinese military delegation led by Lt Gen
Liu Xiaowu, Deputy Commander of Western Theatre Command of Chinese Army, is in
sync with decisions taken at an informal summit between PM Narendra Modi and China’s President Xi
Jinping.The delegation, which will be in India till July 6, has met Vice Chief
of Army Staff Lt General Devraj Anbu during which ways to increase coordination
between the two militaries were discussed, sources said.PTI
Rajasthan Govt
to drop cases against Rajputs
Jaipur: Rajasthan Govt is in a
damage-limitation mode, with assembly elections due by the year-end. In 2 days,
it has taken two major decisions to minimise damage that may be caused by the
Rajputs and the Gujjars, the 2 communities that have traditionally been BJP
supporters but are miffed with the party of late.On Monday, Govt came out with
clarifications regarding OBC and MBC (most backward classes) reservations for
the Gujjars, prompting the pastoral community to withdraw its call to protest
during PM Narendra Modi’s July 7 Jaipur
visit.On Monday itself, the Govt made up its mind to withdraw cases against the
Rajputs.HT
Maharashtra govt to pay Rs 1.21 cr to Mukul
Rohatgi as legal fees in Loya case: RTI reply
Mumbai:Maharashtra Govt has decided to pay up
Rs1.21 crore to senior counsel Mukul A Rohatgi, who represented the state Govt in the
judge BH Loya case hearings before the Supreme Court, an RTI reply has
revealed.The state Govt appointed Rohatgi - ex attorney general of
India - as a special prosecutor in the case, besides ex solicitor general of
India and senior lawyer Harish Salve, said RTI activist Jatin Desai.“In April,
an apex court bench presided over by CJI dismissed a couple of petitions
demanding an inquiry into the circumstances surrounding the death of CBI
special judge Loya,” said Desai. Representing Maharashtra, Rohatgi appeared in
the matter 11 times before the Supreme Court, for which the state Govt approved Rs 11 lakh per hearing as his
professional fees, he added. However, Desai said the information pertaining to
the professional fees paid to Salve has not yet been provided by state Govt under
RTI.“Even information on remuneration approved for Rohatgi was made available
only in first appeal. So now, I plan to file an appeal for Salve,” Desai
said.IANS
Ensure steps to prevent spread of rumours, Govt warns
WhatsApp
Govt has expressed its “deep disapproval”to
instant messaging service company WhatsApp, over “irresponsible and explosive
messages”, warning it to prevent the spread of rumours that have incited
several instance of violence in the country in the last two months.“While the
law and order machinery is taking steps to apprehend the culprits, the abuse of
platform like WhatsApp for repeated circulation of such provocative content are
equally a matter of deep concern,” the ministry of electronics and information
technology said .An official familiar with the matter said on condition of
anonymity the implicit message is that if WhatsApp, which is owned by Facebook,
does not take action, the Govt would be forced to act.HT
Horrified by terrible acts of violence,
WhatsApp tells Govt : Whatsapp to launch new label to tackle rumours
In the
wake of the Govt of India’s missive to take immediate measures
to prevent misuse of its platform, WhatsApp, in its response has said that it
is taking a number of steps to tackle the issue of fake messages on its
platform, including testing a new label that highlights when a message has been
forwarded versus composed by the sender.The company, late on Wednesday, also
announced “unrestricted monetary awards” for research on spread of
misinformation on its platform to address the problem.“Like Govt of India,
we're horrified by these terrible acts of violence and wanted to respond quickly
to the very important issues you have raised. We believe this is a challenge
that requires Govt, civil society and technology companies to work together,”
the company said in its response to Ministry of Electronics and IT.The company
said that it believed that false news, misinformation, and the spread of hoaxes
were issues best tackled collectively: by the Govt , civil society and technology companies
working together.thehindu
Friendship with woman, private car led to
rifleman Aurangzeb’s murder by militants in Kashmir:HT
New Delhi:Love and a violation of several
standard operating procedures (SOPs) led unsuspecting rifleman Aurangzeb to a
brutal death, several officials have confirmed.Aurangzeb, an army jawan posted
in South Kashmir’s Shadimurg, was abducted and killed soon after he left the 44
Rashtriya Rifles camp on June 14.He and his colleagues had hailed a private car
and requested the driver to drop him to Shopian but the car was intercepted by
terrorists, who dragged Aurangzeb out. The rifleman was on his way home, in
Poonch, for Eid but was to meet a local woman before leaving the Valley. “He
had come in contact with a woman and the two were in touch,’’ an official
revealed. Unknown to Aurangzeb, the terrorists had found out that the armyman
was seeing the woman. “They forced the girl to reveal details and discovered
that he would be leaving the army camp and would be seeing her before proceeding
to Poonch,’’ an army official said on condition of anonymity.
Emirates to discontinue ‘Hindu meal’ from
in-flight menu
New Delhi:Dubai-based air carrier Emirates is
discontinuing the ‘Hindu meal’ option from its in-flight menu.The airline, in a
statement, said Hindu passengers will still be able to choose between
vegetarian and non-vegetarian options from a host of meals tailored to local
tastes. Its updated menu now offers
options like Vegetarian Jain Meal, Indian Vegetarian Meal, Kosher meal and
Non-Beef non-vegetarian.Airline’s decision to withdraw the ‘Hindu meal’ option
from the menu was taken following a review of its onboard products and
services.“As part of our continuous review of the products and services
available to customers, Emirates can confirm that it will discontinue the Hindu
meal option. We constantly review our offering, taking into consideration
customer uptake and feedback. This helps us improve service efficiencies,” statement
read.indianexpress
Chant Vedic mantra to get a better crop: Goa
minister backs project for farmers
Panjim:A “vedic” technique which requires a
farmer to sit, meditate and channel “cosmic energy” by chanting “Om rom jum
sah” for at least 20 minutes a day for better yields, got the backing of Goa
Agriculture Minister Vijay Sardesai Tuesday after he inaugurated a pilot
project at a field, close to his residence in Fatorda.The project is named
“Shiv Yog Cosmic Farming” and is designed by Dr Avadhoot Shivanand, a former
chemical engineer turned godman, in Gurgaon through his Shiv Yog Foundation.
Sardesai’s wife, Usha is a follower of this foundation and “shakti” videos have
gone viral among farmers across the state on social media.Launching the
project, Sardesai said: “There is no money involved and, as an agriculture
minister, I will explore every method to increase interest in farming. If you
convince me a rock show or a beauty contest will also help get people excited
about agriculture, I will pull it in the middle of the fields. We need to now look
into methods to get everyone interested in farming.”“My wife Usha is a Shiv
Yogi and she is the one who has been promoting this philosophy. I was sceptical
at first too, but it’s not magic. There are studies backing this
method.”indianexpress
Witness turns hostile, denies police seized
clothes and bullets belonging to Tulsiram in his presence
Mumbai:In the Tulsiram Prajapati alleged fake
encounter case, a panch witness turned hostile, denying the police had seized
any bullets or clothes belonging to Prajapati in his presence on Dec.28,
2006.According to his statement to CBI, he had said that he was at a hospital
at Ambaji in Gujarat — where his nephew was admitted—when accused policemen
approached to make become a panch witness for seizure of Prajapati’s clothes
and bullets used in alleged encounter.indianexpress
Hyderabad : Anger over construction on
graveyard
Charminar: Construction activities at a
graveyard near Noor Khan bazaar in Dabeerpura area has angered the Muslim
community with many blaming officials of the Telangana State Waqf Board for
being negligent. Activists on Monday raised an alarm about the graveyard which
has now turned into a 2-floor residential building with the cellar housing a
stable for cows and buffaloes.Greater Hyderabad Minorities vice-president
Mohammed Ahmed told TOI that the building has been constructed after razing
graves in the area."We did everything possible to stop the illegal
construction on graveyard land which is Waqf property, but no action has been
taken by officials. An FIR was also registered against the Waqf board CEO in
2017, but to no avail," Ahmed said.TOI
WORLD
UN urges Egypt to free Qaradawi's daughter,son-in-law
UN human rights office has urged Egypt to free
the daughter of an Islamic scholar and her husband who have been held without a
formal charge since June 30.Ola al-Qaradawi is the daughter of Yusuf
al-Qaradawi, a leading Islamic scholar, who lives in exile in Qatar."We
understand that Ola al-Qaradawi's health is frail and deteriorating and urge
the authorities to ensure that her right to health and to physical and
psychological integrity is respected,"Liz Throssell, spokesman for UN
human rights office, told journalists in Geneva.Ola al-Qaradawi has been held
in solitary confinement "in one of the worst prisons in Egypt", UN
human rights office said.Her husband, Hosam Khalaf, is being held in similar
conditions in a different prison, according to media reports."We call on
Egypt to release all those arbitrarily detained in the country
unconditionally," the office said.In June, a UN-mandated body issued a
decision determining that Qaradawi and her husband had been arbitrarily
arrested, and called for their immediate release. Qaradawi's prolonged solitary
confinement could also amount to torture, cruel, inhuman or degrading
treatment, the office said.Cairo Govt claims that Ola al-Qaradawi and Hosam
Khalaf were accused of belonging to the banned Muslim Brotherhood, which it
says is a "terrorist" group.The family denies the accusation and last
Sept.brought the case to the UN working group on arbitrary detention. aljazeera
Eypt’s Morsi spends 5th year in prison since
coup
Cairo:Egypt’s first democratically elected
president Mohamed Morsi spends his fifth year behind bars since he was ousted
by the military in a coup in 2013. He was tried in 6 cases; a mass jailbreak,
murder, spying for Qatar, espionage with Palestinian group Hamas and Lebanese
group Hezbollah, insulting the judiciary and terrorism. “Verdicts against Morsi
are politically-motivated,” Alaa Abdulmunsif, head of Salam Organization for
Protection of Human Rights, told Anadolu. “The regime wants to get rid of him,”
he said. In June 2016, an Egyptian court placed Morsi on the country’s official
list of “terrorists” for 3 years. In the same year, the Court of Cassation,
Egypt’s highest appellate court, upheld a 20-year jail term against Morsi on
charges of murder during deadly clashes between supporters and opponents
outside the Ittihadiya presidential palace in 2012. Morsi, along four other
Brotherhood leaders, was also sentenced to death for alleged involvement in a
mass jailbreak in 2011 during a popular uprising that swept former autocrat
Hosni Mubarak from power. However, the Court of Cassation overturned the verdicts
and ordered a retrial in 2016. Saeed Sadek, professor of political sociology at
the American University in Cairo, believes that Morsi’s trials are the result
of “political competition”. "How come those who overthrew him would set
him free” he asked. Sadek ruled out any reconciliation between the Egyptian
regime and the Muslim Brotherhood in the near future. Since Morsi’s overthrow,
Egyptian authorities have launched a relentless crackdown on dissent, killing
hundreds of his supporters and sending thousands behind bars for inciting
violence. Anadolu Agency
Egypt coup: Five years since Sisi took power
Ennahda candidate becomes first female mayor
of Tunis
TUNIS:Souad Ben Abdel-Rahim, the candidate for
Tunisia's Ennahda movement, won the presidency of the Tunis municipality on
Tuesday.The Ennahda candidate beat her rival, Kamalaldin Eidir, the nominee of
the Nidaa Tounes party.Abdel-Rahim clinched 26 votes -- against 22 for Eidir --
in a second round of voting by the city’s municipal council, becoming the
Tunisian capital’s first-ever female mayor.In May 6 local polls, independent
candidates won 2,373 seats on municipal councils countrywide.Ennahda came in second
with 2,139 seats, followed by the liberal Nidaa Tounes party (1,600 seats) and
the leftist Popular Front party (261 seats), according to official
results.According to Tunisia’s official electoral commission, the polls saw a
voter turnout rate of 35.6 percent.The local polls were the first to be held in
Tunisia since a popular uprising in 2011 led to the ouster of autocratic
President Zine al-Abidine Ben Ali after more than two decades in power.Anadolu
Agency
Islamic State says al-Baghdadi’s son killed in
Syria
Beirut: Islamic State group says the son of
its leader has been killed fighting Syrian Govt
forces.The announcement of the
death of the young son of Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi appeared on the group’s social
media accounts late Tuesday. It included a picture of a young boy carrying a
rifle and identified him as Huthaifa al-Badri.The statement, dated this month,
said he was an elite fighter, known as an “inghimasi,” who was killed while
fighting Syrian and Russia troops at a power station in the central Homs
province. It did not specify when he was killed.Syrian Observatory for Human
Rights, a war monitoring group, said the most recent IS operations in the area
were in the first two weeks of June.Al-Baghdadi has been reported killed or
wounded on a number of occasions but is widely believed to still be alive.
Observatory said late Tuesday that one of the group’s last pockets in the
eastern Syrian province of Deir el-Zour came under intense shelling from the
US-led coalition. At least 12 militants are believed to have been killed in
Hajin, the Observatory said.AP
EU calls regime attacks on Daraa violation of
int'l law
ANKARA:The European Union on Wednesday slammed
attacks by the Bashar al-Assad regime and its allies on opposition-held Daraa
province in southwestern Syria."Such attacks are clear violations of
international law and international humanitarian law that also put at risk any
progress in Geneva for the resumption of the political talks under UN
mediation," EU foreign affairs spokeswoman Maja Kocijancic said in a
written statement.Anadolu
PA: Israel's freeze of prisoner family money
'declaration of war'
Palestinian leaders have condemned a "dangerous"
new Israeli law that will withhold hundreds of millions of dollars in funds
from the Palestinian Authority (PA) over welfare payments given to prisoners
and their families.Nabil Abu Rudeineh, spokesperson for PA President Mahmoud
Abbas, said in a statement on Tuesday that the move constituted a
"declaration of war" against the Palestinian people who have fought
for the establishment of an independent Palestinian state. He also said the
move, which surpasses a "red line", was going to be confronted with a
series of Palestinian decisions."All options are open … from the
International Criminal Court to the United Nations Security Council," he
warned.Similarly, Saeb Erekat, secretary-general of the Palestinian Liberation
Organisation committee, said the move amounted to "theft".aljazeera
Israeli forces wound scores of women in Gaza
rally
At least 134 Palestinians have been wounded by
Israeli gunfire as thousands of Palestinian women demonstrated along the
heavily fortified fence with Israel in the besieged Gaza Strip. Ashraf
al-Qudra, spokesperson for Gaza’s healthy ministry, said in a statement on
Tuesday that media representatives covering the event were among those who were
injured at the scene, east of the enclave.The protest was the first mass
women’s demonstration to take place in the strip since popular protests calling
for Palestinians’ right of return began on March 30 in the strip.aljazeera
181 journalists hurt covering Gaza rallies:
Committee
GAZA:At least 181 Palestinian journalists have
been injured since Mar. 30, when Gazans began staging almost-daily rallies along
the Gaza-Israel security fence, the Journalists Support Committee (JSC) said
Wednesday.In a Wednesday statement, the JSC -- a non-profit organization
comprised of Arab writers and journalists -- described the high number of
injuries as “shocking to anyone who advocates for press freedom”.The JSC has
documented the injury of 44 journalists by Israeli army gunfire since Mar. 30,
saying the extent of these injuries varied from “moderate” to “lethal”.Anadolu
agency
Israel fights polygamy among Muslim citizens
Israeli occupation authorities are fight
polygamy among Muslims in Israel by imposing punitive measures including jail
terms against men who take on more than one wife, Arab48 reported .According
the report there are 6,200 polygamous families in Israel, occupied Jerusalem
and the occupied Golan Heights. The rate of polygamy, the Israeli authorities
say, is much higher than it is in Egypt, Jordan and the occupied Palestinian
territories.New data has revealed that 75 % of polygamous husbands had two wives and
normally opted to do so if their first wife was barren.Arab48 reported that
Israel Police investigated 260 cases of suspected polygamy, referring 217 to
the public prosecution which indicted only 12 cases.middleeastmonitor
Somalia’s Al-Shaabab declares war on plastic
bags to protect ‘humans and animals
Somalia’s Al-Qaeda affiliate Al-Shabaab has
placed a ban on the use of plastic bags over harm posed to the environment, the
Independent reported today.Al-Shabaab-run Radio Andalus broadcasted the ban
late on Sunday, claiming that discarded plastic “pose a serious threat to the
wellbeing of humans and animals alike”, Mohammed Abu Abdullah, one of the group’s
leaders based in southern Somalia said.Plastic bags join a long list of banned
items in Al-Shabaab controlled territory in Somalia, including music, cinemas
and smart phones. The group did not mention how the ban will be implemented,
but the group usually use strict public punishments including stoning for those
who do not comply. Abdullah added that logging of rare trees will also be added
to the ban list, in a bid to preserve the environment.While commentators on
social media joked about the groups “eco-friendly” stance as an Al-Qaeda
affiliate, the Independent noted that Al-Qaeda has been “vocal” about
environmental issues in the past. Even Al-Qaeda’s branch in Yemen, Al-Qaeda in
Arabian Peninsula (AQAP), called out former US president Barack Obama in 2016
for not working to counter “climate change” issues.Al-Shabaab’s main political
ambition is to take control and govern Somalia with a strict interpretation of
Islamic law.middleeastmonitor
Malaysia's ex-PM out on bail, denies
corruption charges
Former Malaysian PM Najib Razak has denied corruption charges over
the disappearance of millions of dollars from the 1MBD state investment fund,
as part of a graft probe while he was in office.A day after his arrest, the
Malaysian High Court in Kuala Lumpur on Wednesday charged Najib with abuse of
power and three counts of criminal breach of trust for allegedly depositing 42m
ringgit ($10m) in state funds to his personal bank account between December
2014 and February 2015.Najib, who was granted bail at 1 million ringgit ($250,000)
in cash, vowed to prove his innocence. Aljazeera
FLASH: VIEWS & NEWS
Hatred against minorities is rising globally.
But India offers an exceptional impunity for bigotry:Harsh Mander
‘I am the other’: Have India’s Muslims been
systematically pushed out of the mainstream?Ziya Us Salam’s book ‘Of Saffron
Flags and Skull Caps’
If Mob Violence Has Gone Viral, Politicians
Trading in Fear Must Share the Blame:Monobina Gupta
Assam: How 'Biased' Implementation of NRC
Project Ruining Families, Separating Parents from Children:Newsclick Production
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Anwarulhaq (Released at: 5:48 PM)
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