09 June 2019:
05 sHAWAL 1440:Vol: 11, No:218
INDIA
‘Brazen misuse of law’: Editors Guild condemns
arrest of journalists for ‘defamatory content’ on Yogi
New Delhi:The Editors Guild on Sunday
condemned the arrest of a journalist and the editor and the head of a news
channel by the UP govt, calling it a “brazen misuse of law” and an “effort to
intimidate the press and stifle freedom of expression”.An FIR was lodged
against freelance journalist Prashant Kanojia for posting “objectionable”
content against CM Yogi Adityanath. The journalist had allegedly uploaded a
video on Twitter in which a woman is heard making some claims about Adityanath.
Kanojia had posted a comment with the video. Besides Kanojia, Ishita Singh,
head of Nation Live and one of its editors Anuj Shukla were also arrested for
broadcasting the content and allegedly propagating defamatory content.Taking
note of the govt’s actions, the Editors Guild, in a statement, said, “The
police action is high-handed, arbitrary and amounts to an authoritarian misuse
of laws. The Guild sees it as an effort to intimidate the press, and stifle
freedom of expression.” “FIR is based on the journalist sharing on Twitter the
video of a woman claiming a “relationship” with the chief minister of Uttar
Pradesh. The television channel had broadcast a video on the same issue.
Whatever the accuracy of the woman’s claims, to register a case of criminal
defamation against the journalists for sharing it on the social media and
airing it on a television channel is a brazen misuse of law. To give the police
powers to arrest, provisions of Section 66 of IT Act have also been added,” the
statement read. While referring to a recent case in which an FIR has been
registered against the editor of a Kannada daily, the Guild said, “As with a
recent case in Karnataka that the Guild spoke about, FIR in this case is also
not filed by person allegedly affected but suo motu by the police. This is a
condemnable misuse of law and state power.”Meanwhile, terming the arrests as
“illegal and arbitrary”, Congress leader and lawyer Abhishek Manu Singhvi
tweeted, “detention of Kanojia for merely posting a video which fell foul of
actors of State govt is illegal, arbitrary and a grave miscarriage of justice.
Would request the High Court to take suo Motu cognizance of the matter.” indianexpress
Journalists' Bodies Condemn Arrest of 3
Journalists for 'Defaming' Adityanath
In Assam, campaign urging Bengali Muslims not
to list Assamese as mother tongue has sparked protests
In Assam, a social media campaign called
“Chalo Paltai – Mission 2021” is causing a stir.The war cry, “chalo paltai” –
“let us change” – is a call to Bengali speakers who identified Assamese as
their mother tongue in the previous censuses to stop doing so in 2021 census. People
behind the campaign say adopting Assamese had not saved them from being
“branded as illegal migrants” in the state. In recent years, the
Bengali-speaking community of this border state has felt particularly targeted
by the National Register of Citizens. The register, being updated for the first
time since 1951, proposes to sift Indian citizens living in Assam from “illegal
immigrants”.“Our forefathers established Assamese medium schools, all of us
went to those schools, yet our nationality is routinely questioned,” said Abu
Eusuf Mohammad Raihan, who runs a “Chalo Paltai” Facebook page from Middle
Assam’s Nagaon. The effects of the campaign have spilled out of the virtual
world. On May 31, a Guwahati-based Right to Information activist filed a first
information report against a “so-called called intellectual Garga Chatterjee
from West Bengal” who had supported the campaign. Soon afterwards, members of
the Asomiya Yuva Mancha in Lakhimpur burnt effigies of Chatterjee and Bengali
Hindu leaders from Assam. Former Assam chief minister Tarun Gogoi has now smelt
a “conspiracy” in the campaign and exhorted the “Assamese people to be
alert”.scroll.in
NRC is waste paper: Former Assam CM Gogoi
Guwahati:Former Assam Chief Minister Tarun
Gogoi has waded into Sarbananda Sonowal govt’s “mishandling” of ex-serviceman
Mohammed Sanaullah’s case to question the validity of the process to update the
National Register of Citizens. He said NRC has been designed to omit more than
100,000 genuine Indian citizens who settled in Assam up to the midnight of
March 24, 1971, the cut-off date for detecting and deporting illegal migrants
as per Assam Accord of 1983. “NRC is waste paper and has become useless with
lakhs of genuine citizens certain to be excluded from the final draft of the
NRC to be published by July,” Gogoi said, adding that the Supreme Court should
not have given the responsibility of updating the citizens’ register solely to
State NRC Coordinator Prateek Hajela.Referring to Mr Sanaullah’s case, the
former CM said the NRC exercise for detecting illegal foreigners by spending a
fortune has been wasted.“The Assam government has no contribution in the
Gauhati High Court granting bail to Sanaullah. The government has even failed
to take action against the investigating officer who lodged the FIR against
him. People have lost faith in the Foreigners’ Tribunals whose functioning
needs to be probed,” Gogoi said. All Assam Minority Students’ Union (AAMSU)
also criticised Chief Minister Sonowal for failing to stand up for the
ex-serviceman who was sent to the Goalpara detention centre for foreigners on
May 28.thehindu
India requests Pakistan to let PM Modi’s
flight pass through its airspace
New Delhi :India has requested Pakistan to let
PM Narendra Modi’s aircraft fly over its airspace to Bishkek in Kyrgyzstan
where he has to attend the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) summit on
June 13 and June 14, said a senior government official.Pakistan had fully
closed its airspace on Feb.26 after an IAF strike in Balakot. Since then, it
has only opened two routes, both of them pass through southern Pakistan, of the
total 11.“We have requested Pakistan to let the PM’s plane fly over its
airspace through one of the routes that has not been opened as yet. The PM has
to attend the SCO meet on June 13 and June 14,” a senior government official
said.Pakistan had given special permission to India’s then external affairs
minister Sushma Swaraj to fly directly through Pakistani airspace to attend the
SCO Foreign Ministers’ meet in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan, on May 21.Apart from the
two routes through southern Pakistan, the neighbouring country’s airspace remains
closed for commercial airliners.indianexpress
India will help in conservation of Friday
Mosque in Maldives: PM Modi
Male ;Prime Minister Narendra Modi has said that
India will contribute to the conservation of one of the Maldives' oldest and
iconic Friday Mosque, a historic landmark made up of coral stones.Addressing
the Maldivian Parliament, The People's Majlis, Modi said the relations between
India and the Maldives were older than history.He said India will contribute to
the conservation of Maldives' Friday Mosque also known as Hukuru
Miskiy."There is no such mosque elsewhere in the world like this historical
mosque made up of coral," Modi said.He said he was happy that the Maldives
was working towards sustainable development and has become a part of International
Solar Alliance. Maldives President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih thanked the Indian
side for their offer to carry out restoration of the mosque by the
Archaeological Survey of India under an Indian grant.He also appreciated the
recent visit of senior scientists of the Indian Council of Agricultural
Research and their ongoing cooperation with the Maldivian counterparts, a
statement said.Built in 1658, Friday Mosque is one of the oldest and most
ornate mosques in the city of Male in Kaafu Atoll. The mosque was added to the
tentative UNESCO World Heritage cultural list in 2008 as unique examples of
sea-culture architecture.PTI
Easter attacks: NIA shares with Sri Lanka
numbers of five locals linked to IS
New Delhi :In the wake of the Easter Sunday
bombings which killed more than 250 people, India has shared with Sri Lanka
phone numbers of 5 Lankans suspected to be associated with Islamic State (IS).
India has also shared call logs and details of some Indians who were in touch
with the family of two Lankan suicide bombers involved in the attacks.A NIA
team was in Sri Lanka last week in connection with the agency’s probe into two
IS modules in India that are suspected to have had connections in Sri Lanka.
“NIA had found four to five numbers in Sri Lanka which were in touch either
directly or through social media with certain Islamic State suspects in India.
These have been shared with Lankan authorities for further
investigation.Whether these numbers belong to those associated with the Easter
bombings in any way is not known,” said a Home Ministry official.indianexpress
US approves sale of armed drones to India
India is only the third country and the first
non-NATO member country to have been offered the armed version of Guardian unmanned
drones by the US, the acquisition of which has been under discussion for almost
a year now, according to people aware of the negotiations. Technical briefings
have taken place and discussion are now focussed on determining the number of
drones that India would like to purchase, they said. The only other countries
offered the armed drones are the UK and Italy, both NATO partners of the US.HT
Ramdev involved in mega land scam of hundreds
of crores: Congress
New Delhi:Congress has alleged that the
‘crusader’ against corruption ‘Baba’ Ramdev and his right hand man Acharya
Balkrishna are ‘involved in a mega land scam’ running into hundreds of crores
of rupees. They are the promoters of Patanjali group whose fortunes have jumped
by leaps and bounds during the last 5 years of the BJP-led NDA govt.The party
alleged that the deal was done with the “active connivance and blessings” of
Haryana’s BJP government. It strongly demanded the inquiry into the deal and
accountability of politicians and officers involved in the scam which falls
under the Kot Village in district Faridabad of Haryana in the NCR
Region.Revealing the details of the alleged land scam at a press conference
here at the party headquarters, Congress, spokesperson Pawan Khera claimed that
the Patanjali group and Acharya Balkrishna along with some property dealers
have acquired 400 acres of forest land falling in the Aravali Mountain range
and the deal was done through power of attorneys.Khera also alleged that the
deal was done with the blessings of the Haryana government was of BJP. He said
that land has been categorised as ‘Gair mumkin Pahar’ by the state govt and the
Supreme Court which is called ‘Shamlat Zamin’ and it belongs to the Panchayat.
As per the law, there can be no cultivation or any other activity on such
land.Giving details of the land, Khera said that in 2011, the then State Govt had
ordered Panchayat to vest ownership of the ‘commons’ and the issue is pending
in the court of DC Faridabad.It is said that four people representing 321
disputed land owners of these ‘village commons’ presented power of attorneys of
about 400 acres of property. One, Praveen Kumar Sharma submitted copies of 104
PoAs as proof in the court who was acting as authorized representative of a company
called Herbo Ved Gram Pvt.Ltd. Congress leader claimed that as per the
regulatory filings (2016-2017), this company was fully owned by Patanjali
Ayurved Limited and in 2017-2018 ownership of 99% was transferred to Acharya
Balkrishna.“The regulatory filing also shows that this company had purchased
many pieces of land in Kot Village by paying advances to the land owners
against their land. As per 2017-2018 records, this company has earned only Rs60,000
as revenue from its operations, but gave advance of Rs 16.77 crores, including
Rs.15.58 cr, as advance were given for land.”There is another company called
Verve Corporation Pvt. Ltd and in 2016-17, this company was also owned by Patanjali
Ayurved Ltd. and was later taken over by Acharya Balkrishna, he added.“The firm
has 2 Directors – Mrs. Saroj Sharma and Kishna Vir Sharma – sister and
brother-in-law of Shri Parveen Kumar Sharma. Incidentally, Mr. Kishan Veer
Sharma is in the Board of Directors of Sanskar TV and Managing Director of the
Aastha Broadcasting Network Ltd. – both these Broadcasting Companies are a part
of so-called Shri Ramdev empire.” caravandaily
Cong accuses Ramdev of land scam with help of
Khattar govt in Haryana
Gujarat admits to fraud in Smriti Irani’s
disbursement of MPLAD fund
Admitting there was fraud and bungling in
making payments amounting to ₹5.93 crore from the MPLAD funds of Union minister
Smriti Irani to Sharda Majdoor Kamdar Sahkari Mandli, a cooperative society of
BJP members, Gujarat government has informed the Gujarat high court in an
affidavit that it has attached five bank accounts of the organisation
containing nearly ₹86 lakh and initiated proceedings against 3 govt
officials.The state govt’s admission has come in response to a petition filed
in the high court by state Congress head Amit Chavda two years ago. The govt
also said it is trying to recover money from a private agency hired as an
implementing agency for development works.The state govt's affidavit stated it
had served charge-sheet on 3 officers who had "bypassed" procedures
and guidelines established under MPLAD scheme, resulting in "serious
consequences". 3 officers served charge-sheet are Anand district planning
officer CR Birai, deputy executive engineer AD Rathod and deputy accountant
Hina P Patel. Petitioner’s advocate Anand Yagnik alleged that the govt’s action
against the district officials was aimed at whitewashing the role of Irani,Rajya
Sabha member.Irani was elected MP from Gujarat and selected Anand district as
her nodal district for implementation of works under the MPLAD Scheme. nationalheraldindia
Twice in 8 months, Centre blocks Justice AA
Kureshi’s elevation as Chief Justice of High Court
Centre’s Modi govt has ignored the Supreme
Court Collegium’s recommendation on elevating Justice AA Kureshi as the Chief
Justice of Madhya Pradesh High Court. Instead, it has decided to appoint
Justice Ravi Shanker Jha for that post.Chief Justice of the MP High Court,
Justice Sanjay Kumar Seth, is retiring on 9 June and state is now being
governed by Congress.Collegium had recommended Justice Kurishi’s name since he
was the senior-most Judge from Gujarat High Court and at present is
functioning, on transfer, in Bombay High Court. His transfer had caused a huge
controversy in November last year. The Centre had abruptly transferred Justice
Kureshi to the Bombay High Court just when he, as the then next senior most
judge in the Gujarat High Court, was expected to become the Chief Justice of
the Gujarat High Court since the post had fallen vacant because of the
elevation of Justice Subhash Reddy to the Supreme Court. Collegium had said on
13 May, “Having regard to all relevant factors, the Collegium is of the
considered view that Justice A.A Kureshi is suitable in all respects for being
appointed as Chief Justice of the Madhya Pradesh High Court.”However, according
to Indian Express, the Centre on Friday notified that under “the powers
conferred by Article 223 of the Constitution of India, the President is pleased
to appoint Justice Ravi Shanker Jha, seniormost judge of the Madhya Pradesh
High Court, to perform the duties of the office of Chief Justice of that High
Court with effect from 10 June, 2019 consequent upon the retirement of Justice
Sanjay Kumar Seth, Chief Justice, MP High Court.”jantakareporter
JD(U) will not be part of NDA outside Bihar,
says Nitish Kumar at national executive meeting
New Delhi : JD-U Sunday decided not to be a
part of the BJP-led NDA outside Bihar. At its national executive meeting held
at the residence of Bihar CM Nitish Kumar, the party also decided to go it
alone in the upcoming Assembly elections in J&K, Jharkhand, Haryana and
Delhi. However, Nitish Kumar made it clear that JD(U) would fight the 2020
Assembly elections in Bihar in alliance with BJP.“We refused central berths and
had not put forth any names for them. Amit Shahji had called up Nitish (Kumar)
ji multiple times in this regard and our CM said no to him every time,” said
JDU spokesperson KC Tyagi after the meeting.indian express
Home Ministry issues advisory, says Mamata govt
failed to curb post-poll violence
Taking note of the incessant clashes in West
Bengal, the Ministry of Home Affairs on Sunday expressed “deep concerns” over “unabated
violence” even after the Lok Sabha elections, calling it a “failure on part of
the state govt” to ensure law and order.Governor Keshari Nath Tripathi is
scheduled to meet PM Narendra Modi on Monday to discuss the situation in the
state. “Unabated violence over the past weeks appears to be a failure on the
part of the law enforcement machinery of the state to maintain the rule of law
and inspire confidence among people,”Home Ministry advisory said. It was
“strongly advised” to ensure that all necessary measures are taken to maintain
law and order, peace and public tranquillity, the statement said. “It is also
requested to take strict action against officials found delinquent in discharge
of their duty,”advisory added.indianexpress
West Bengal: Tension prevails in Sandeshkhali,
police looking for ‘missing’ persons
Kolkata:Tension prevailed on Sunday in
strife-affected Sandeshkhali in West Bengal’s North 24 Parganas, with the BJP
and Trinamool Congress accusing each other of orchestrating Saturday’s violence
that allegedly claimed at least four lives.A huge contingent of police officers
has been deployed in the village and its surrounding areas under the Nyajat
police station in the district, where the violence broke out in the evening, to
prevent the tension from escalating.While BJP leadership on Sunday claimed that
five of its supporters were killed in the clash, the TMC said that six of its
workers were missing.The bodies of one TMC worker and two BJP supporters have
been identified by family members at a local hospital.As of Sunday morning,
police are carrying out search operations to trace the persons alleged to have
gone missing in what has been deemed as the “worst political violence”
following general election.State BJP general secretary Sayantan Basu Saturday
said 3 of his party workers — Sukanta Mondal Pradip Mondal and Shankar Mondal —
have been shot dead, while state minister Jyotipriyo Mallick maintained that
TMC worker Kayoom Mollah has been killed in the clash.In claims and
counter-claims over the political fallout, both the parties have stated that
several of their workers have gone missing.indianexpress
ED to move Interpol to get Zakir Naik to India
New Delhi: Enforcement Directorate is all set
to send requests for an Interpol Red Notice against Islamic preacher, Zakir
Naik for his extradition from Malaysia. The ED would send the notice after
securing a non-bailable warrant against from a special court in Mumbai. The
move comes in the wake of the court taking cognisance of the chargesheet filed
against Naik and others in connection with a money laundering case. The court
would hear the matter next on June 19, following which an application seeking a
non-bailable warrant would be moved. Zakir Naik After securing the warrant, the
ED would move the Interpol to issue a Red Notice. Naik is currently in Malaysia.
Tribal lecturer held for beef posts on FB out
of jail on bail
Jamshedpur:Tribal drama activist and a
lecturer in Jamshedpur Cooperative College(JCC), Jeetrai Hansda, who was
arrested last month for his Facebook posts in May 2017 supporting beef party in
Chennai, was released from Ghaghidih jail here on Saturday after a local count
granted him bail on Friday.“We released Jeetrai Hansda from Ghaghidih jail this
morning after corrected court order on his regular bail was produced before us.
He had got bail on Friday, but there were some mistakes and wrong entries in his
release order issued by the court. Hence, he could not be released Friday
evening,” Satyendra Chowdhry, Ghaghiidh jail SP, said.FIR against Jeetrai, NSD
graduate, was lodged under IT Act and IPC sections on June 2, 2017, on a
complaint by ABVP after which Graduate College for Women had removed him from
the college.HT
Top Delhi Surgeons Under Police Scanner in
International Kidney Racket
New Delhi:Over a dozen leading private
surgeons, including top urologists of Delhi are under the scanner of Uttar
Pradesh Police in connection with a sensational international kidney transplant
racket, spread across Turkey and the Middle East countries.So far, 13 people,
including CEO of Pushpawati Singhania Research Institute(PSRI) Dr. Deepak
Shukla have been arrested. Two leading doctors of Fortis hospital have been
served notice in the kidney racket. The investigation against another leading
hospital located in central Delhi is underway and more arrests are likely to be
made in the case which has sent ripples across medical fraternity. SSP Kanpur,
Anant Deo said that the Fortis hospital has been served notice in cases
relating to the violation of Transplantation of Human Organs Act.“Besides
Fortis and PSRI, the role of one more hospital of Delhi has come to light where
poor people were being cheated by doctors and hospital administration through
an organized chain of middlemen,” said Anant Deo, a UP cadre IPS officer
supervising the investigation.According to SSP, the police has launched a
massive hunt for one Dr. Ketan Kaushik, a key accused in the case, who brought
patients for kidney transplants from countries like Turkey, UAE and other
places in the Middle East.“The racket is spread far and wide. Different groups
were operating in different regions. As of now, we have busted one of the
groups linked with Delhi-based hospitals,” Deo revealed.SSP said the name of
Dr. Deepak Shukla was revealed by at least 10 accused involved in the case.
Shukla will be confronted with accused already arrested by the police.In fact,
the racket operated like a well-organized crime syndicate.For instance,international
clientele was approached by a different set of people while local kidney donors
were trapped by touts already operating in the human organs transplant
racket.IANS
Tamil Nadu youth arrested for objectionable
pics with Thanjavur sculptures
Tamil Nadu’s Trichy police arrested a
28-year-old youth for posting obscene pictures he had got clicked with
sculptures of women at thousand-year-old Thanjavur Brihadeeswara temple complex.
The youth was arrested on Saturday.Police sources reveal, act of sacrilege came
to light when the accused, Mujibur Rahman posted the objectionable pictures
& selfies on Facebook. Rahman is seen kissing, hugging & touching
–inappropriately some female idols and sculptures at Thanjavur Temple. “Rahman
hails from Othakkadai area of Madurai. Currently, he is residing and working as
a food delivery boy in Trichy. As he wanted to celebrate; he went to the nearby
ancient town of Thanjavur Wednesday. There, he visited King Raja Raja Chola
built Brahideeswara Temple-better known as ‘big temple’.In the temple, he took controversial
pictures with the women sculptures, said Trichy police.In his Facebook, Rahman
also put in a comment suggesting that the sculptures should be covered in
‘shawls’. It might be recalled that Tamil Nadu govt has ordered it’s women
staff to compulsorily wear shawls when wearing ‘Chudidaar’ dresses.HT
Muslim Youth Brutally Attacked by Mob in
Delhi's Jaitpur, Rescued by Hindu Friend's Relatives
New Delhi:Just within 5 days of BJP winning a
landslide mandate in general election and three days of PM Modi’s speech in the
Parliament’s Central Hall urging his leaders to win confidence of Muslims, a
youth in Delhi’s Jaitpur was threatened, abused with communal slurs and beaten
badly by a mob for being a Muslim. However, the hate crime left a streak of
silver lining. He was rescued by the relatives of his Hindu friend who reached
just in time to save him.On May 28, Mohammad Sajid, a residence of Jaitpur
Extension Part 2, who works as a salesman in the same area, was returning home
from the shop with his friend Gaurav. When the 2 youth reached near a Gurudwara
of Jaitpur, they were waylaid by a large group of youths who attacked both
Sajid and Gaurav. While Gaurav, somehow managed to escape, Sajid was caught and
brutally assaulted by the miscreants. After knowing the fact that Sajid is a
Muslim, they violently beaten him. “My friend Gaurav and I were returning to
our home. I was talking with my sister on the phone. When we reached Molad Band
area, two youths called Gaurav from behind and ask him to come to them. We went
near them. They shook hands with us and took our phone. Then they took us to a
near-by lane. When we asked our phones to be returned they took their blades
out and put them on our throats asking us to hand over our belongings to them,”
the victim said.“They kicked on my chest and when I screamed ‘Allah’, one of
them said, “He is a Mullah, a Muslim, kill him. They took Gaurav away from me.
Then one of the attacker came and shouted your friend has ran away,” Sajid
further narrared his ordeal. According to Sajid, the spot was swarming with
attackers joining the mob. “The assailants hired an auto rickshaw and took me
across the Jaitpur area and stopped at a Gurudwara. Around twenty five people
must have gathered there. They were beating me with chains and rods. Some of
the men were waving the swords. They were shouting that he is a beast kill
him,” he said. In order to create panic they tried to hurt the religious
sentiments of Sajid. According to him, one of the attackers said, “Bring the
meat of Pig and force him to eat, cut his beard, pass urine in his mouth”.
Sajid said that they were making my video and made it viral. Sajid’s friend
Gaurav who had escaped the beating informed his family about the incident.
India Tomorrow
Aligarh child’s murder: Wife, brother of key
accused held
Aligarh : Police has arrested the wife and the
brother of Jahed, an accused in the murder of a two-year-old girl in Aligarh,
for their alleged involvement in the crime.The arrests come days after Zahed
and another accused were held after the decomposed body of the girl was found
in a garbage dump near Zahed’s home.“Zahed’s wife and his brother Mehdi Hasan
were arrested on Saturday and have been sent to jail. Their role had come up
during the investigation. We have also recovered the piece of clothing in which
the girl’s body was wrapped. It belongs to Zahed’s wife, who has admitted to
it. Prima facie, it appears that they will be probed under IPC Section 120B(conspiracy),”
said a senior police officer. Zahed and another accused allegedly abducted the
girl from outside her home on May 30, and disposed her body in a garbage dump
after killing her — allegedly over a monetary dispute Zahed had with the girl’s
grandfather. The body was found three days later, by which time it had
decomposed and animals had damaged it,said police.According to Zahed’s
neighbours, a scuffle had erupted between Zahed, Mehdi and the family members
of the victim after her body was found, following which Mehdi went
missing.indianexpress
20-day-old baby mercilessly killed in Gujarat
In a shocking development, 2 goons mercilessly
killed a 20-day-old baby in Ahmedabad on Thursday night. According to PTI,
police have arrested 2 men, identified as Satish Pattni and Hitesh Marwadi, for
the gruesome murder of the baby in the Meghaninagar area of Ahmedabad.Local
police inspector PG Sarvaiya was quoted as saying that a group of goons armed
with sticks stormed the victim’s family on Thursday night and began to
mercilessly thrash three women in the family. The motive, according to the
officer, was believed to be ‘some old grudge or previous enmity.’“They even hit
baby girl Khushbu (Laxmi’s daughter) on the head, causing her death,” Sarvaiya
added.While the 20-day-old baby died, her mother Laxmi and aunt sustained
severe injuries. DCP Niraj Badgujar said that efforts were on to arrest the
remaining three goons.Both Satish Pattni and Hitesh Marwadi are known criminals
and have several criminal cases filed against them.jantakareporter
After Bilkis: 100-plus hearings since Dec
2010, waiting to tell her story
42-year-old hasn’t heard of the Supreme Court
order directing the Gujarat government to provide compensation, and a
government job and accommodation, to Bilkis Bano. The last she heard was about
the Mumbai High Court verdict upholding life to the accused in the Bilkis
case.Sitting in a two-room apartment in a colony built for the riots-affected
Muslims, in Panchmahal district, the 42-year-old says she has spent the past 17
years seeing her case drag on in court, and waiting to be called to tell her
story. The only one remaining of her family of eight is her son, now 19, who
survived the March 1, 2002, attack with her.“I still can’t sleep at night,” she
says. “I have spent nights and days crying. My son is my only hope, but I am
dead inside. My life has not moved from that point.”The family had fled to the
fields that day, to escape a mob of around 200 armed with weapons and petrol
that attacked their village. “We spent a day and night without any food or
water.Early next day, we came out. My husband owned a small tempo and 38 of us
got on, hoping to make our way to Kalol. But midway, near Ambika Society in
Panchmahal, we found more armed men and the road blocked with sacks of sand.
Our tempo overturned, and they shouted, “(Kill, cut these Muslims’.”As the men
were burnt alive, including her husband, and his father and brother, 42-year-old
says one part of her hoped to be killed too.“I could not imagine living with
those visuals of my family members being killed.”indian express
WORLD
Palestine considers ICC complaint against US
Ambassador Friedman
Palestinian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and
Expatriates is considering filing a complaint against US Ambassador to Israel,
David Friedman, at the International Criminal Court (ICC) over his recent
comments on the long-awaited US peace plan.Friedman, a staunch supporter of
Israeli settlements, said Israel has the right to annex at least
"some" of the occupied West Bank in an interview published by the New
York Times on Saturday."Under certain circumstances, I think Israel has
the right to retain some, but unlikely all, of the West Bank," he said.In
a press statement, the ministry condemned Friedman's remarks, describing him as
"a threat to regional peace and security" and his words as "an
extension of the policy of the US administration, which is fully biased towards
the occupation and its expansionist colonial policies"."What
reasoning could justify Friedman's logic that Israel has the right to annex
parts of the West Bank? International law prohibits the annexation of a land by
force, as well as a reality imposed by occupying powers," the ministry
said in a statement.Friedman's remarks elicited a strong reaction from
Palestinian politicians.Publication of the plan looks set to be delayed after
the Israeli parliament called a snap general election for September, the second
this year. The US proposal is regarded as too sensitive to release during the
campaign.aljazeera
Germany says to continue support for UNRWA
Germany will continue to support UN refugee
agency UNRWA, German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas said.“We see support for UNRWA
as very important and we will continue it,” Maas told a press conference in
Amman following talks with his Jordanian counterpart Ayman al-Safadi. Maas said
his talks with the Jordanian minister tackled the situation in Middle East
region and current regional tensions.He said their discussions also dwelt on
the Palestinian-Israeli conflict. “The two-state formula is the only solution”
to the decades-long conflict, Maas said.The top diplomat said Berlin will
provide Amman with a $100-million loan.MEMO
Hundreds of settlers storm Aqsa complex
Hundreds of Jewish settlers on Sunday forced
their way into East Jerusalem’s flashpoint Al-Aqsa Mosque complex, according to
Jerusalem’s Religious Endowments Authority.“Israeli police shut the compound’s
Al-Mugharbah Gate after allowing 334 settlers through it into the site,” the
Jordan-run authority tasked with overseeing the city’s Muslim and Christian
holy sites, said in a statement.Last week, a settler tour inside the flashpoint
site during the final day of the fasting month of Ramadan triggered clashes
between Israeli police and Palestinian worshippers.For Muslims, the Al-Aqsa
represents world’s third holiest site. MEMO
Palestinian Prisoners Affairs Commission:
‘Crimes against our captives take an unprecedented, dangerous detour’
Major General Qadri Abu Bakr, chairman of the
Prisoners Affairs Commission, has condemned the repeated crimes committed by
Israel against Palestinian captives, which he says have taken “a very dangerous
and unprecedented detour” designed to quash their patriotism and humanity, as
well as complicate their daily lives in prison.Abu Bakr said in a statement
yesterday that Israel is mobilising all its capacities to create new realities
in prisons and detention centres. He stressed that Israel uses all available
opportunities to take revenge on prisoners and their families, so much so that
it has become a competition between Israeli politicians and military
officers.He added: “There are daily incursions into prisons and detention
centres, and a large number of detainees are transferred from one prison to
another.”Abu Bakr argued that Israel does not want Palestinian captives to have
stable conditions in prison, pointing to the instruction issued by Ashkelon
prison last week not to allow prisoners to celebrate Eid El-Fitr as evidence
that Israel is racist.middleeastmonitor
Sudan police fire tear gas as civil
disobedience campaign starts
Sudanese police have fired tear gas at
protesters taking part in a "civil disobedience" campaign, called in
the wake of a deadly crackdown on demonstrators, that began on
Sunday.Protesters gathered tyres, tree trunks and rocks to build new roadblocks
in Khartoum's northern Bahari district, an unnamed witness told AFP, but riot
police swiftly moved in and fired tear gas to disperse the crowd."Almost
all internal roads of Bahari have roadblocks. Protesters are even stopping
residents from going to work," said the witness.The latest bid by
demonstrators to close off streets in the capital comes nearly a week after a
deadly raid on a sit-in outside the army headquarters that killed dozens.The
bloody crackdown last Monday prompted Sudanese Professionals Association (SPA),
which first launched protests against longtime ruler Omar al-Bashir in Dec, to
announce the campaign."The civil disobedience movement will begin Sunday
and end only when a civilian government announces itself in power on state
television," the SPA said earlier.aljazeera
New US sanctions show offer of talks with Iran
not genuine: Foreign Ministry
Additional sanctions imposed on Iran by the
United States show that Washington’s offer of talks is not genuine, Iranian
Foreign Ministry spokesman Abbas Mousavi said on Saturday, reported Reuters.US
sanctioned Iran’s largest petrochemical holding group on Friday for indirectly
supporting the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), a step it said aimed
to dry up revenues to the elite Iranian military force but that analysts called
largely symbolic.US President Donald Trump said earlier this month that he would
be willing to talk to the Islamic Republic.“It was only necessary to wait one
week until the claim of the president of America about talks with Iran were
proven to be hollow,” Mousavi said in a statement, adding:The American policy
of maximum pressure is a defeated policy.Tensions have risen between Iran and
the United States in recent weeks after Washington sent more military forces to
the Middle East, including an aircraft carrier, B-52 bombers and Patriot
missiles, in a show of force against what US officials call Iranian threats to
US troops and interests in the region.middleeastmonitor
Lankan Prez warns against emergence of a
'Muslim Prabhakaran'
Colombo: Warning against the emergence of a
"Muslim Prabhakaran", Sri Lankan President Maithripala Sirisena has
called for unity among all communities in the country which saw the worst
attack on Easter Sunday. Acknowledging that the country has now been divided,
Sirisena, who spoke in Mullaitivu, a former bastion of the Liberation Tigers of
Tamil Eelam (LTTE), said on Saturday that religious leaders and politicians in
the country were divided today. The President urged the public "not to
leave room for a Muslim Prabhakaran to be born," Colombo Gazette reported.Velupillai
Prabhakaran was the founder and leader of LTTE that sought to create an
independent Tamil state in the north and east of Sri Lanka. The civil war in
Sri Lanka that has claimed the lives of tens of thousands of people ended with
the killing of Prabhakaran by Sri Lankan army in 2009. "If we divide and
fall apart the whole country will stand to lose. Another war will break
out," he warned. PTI
Flash: views & NEWS
Communal spin to crime incidents keeping fake
news industry busy:Ratna
Across the aisle: Will Mr Modi win sabka
vishwas? P Chidambaram
Begging during festivals: India’s inability to
address poverty and homelessness
Out of my mind: A Hindi Rashtra? An unwise
idea: Meghnad Desai
Though Singh may be No. 2 in Cabinet, Shah
ranks next only to PM Modi in real terms: Coomi Kapoor
NK Singh on Muslims in a changing, polarised
Bhopal: Resilience in difficult times
Former CEC Nasim Zaidi: EC must not just be
neutral, it must also be ‘seen’ as neutral
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Anwarulhaq (Released at: 7:45 PM)
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