02
OCT. 2019: 02 Safar 1441: Vol: 12, No: 26
INDIA: J&K ISSUE
Ahead
of J-K local polls, Jammu leaders freed, Kashmir counterparts still under
detention
With J&K Govt announcing Block Development
Council polls, almost all political leaders of Jammu have been freed from house
arrest nearly after 2 months of detention. However, their counterparts in the
Kashmir Valley including NCP’s Omar Abdullah and Farooq Abdullah, PDP’s
Mehbooba Mufti, J&K People’s Conference’s Sajjad Gani Lone still remain
under preventive detention.Almost all leaders from National Conference (NC),
Congress and Jammu and JKNPP in Jammu have been freed from their detention,
reports said. BDC elections will be held on Oct.24.thestatesman
Jamaat-e-Islami
Hind demands release of all political prisoners to hold free and fair elections
in J&K
New Delhi:
Jamaat-e-Islami Hind (JIH) has demanded that all political prisoners of J&K
be released, democratic process and fundamental rights of people, including
freedom of expression, mobile telephony and internet communication, and all
modes of private and public transport,
be restored to ensure free and fair elections. The demand was made in
reaction to state govt’s announcement about holding of block development
council (BDC) elections which is scheduled on Oct.24. Addressing mediapersons
at JIH HQRS here on Tuesday, JIH president Syed Sadatullah Hussaini said that
the govt must fulfill 3 conditions before going ahead with holding of BDC
elections for free and fair elections. “It must release political detainees,
restore democratic process and fundamental rights of the people including
communication modes, and end the climate of fear and terror”, he said.Jamaat
president categorically pointed out that free and fair elections would be
doubtful under the existing circumstances.He also demanded holding of assembly
elections in the state along with BDC polls. In response to a question, he
expressed grave concern over harassment of the common people and all
communication channels like mobile phones and internet connections remaining
shut for the last 2 months and cutting the Kashmiris from the rest of the
world. “What will happen to you if your mobile phone is taken away from you just
for 24 hours?” he asked the journalists. Reiterating his organisation’s stand,
Hussaini said that the process adopted to abrogate Article 370 that provided
the state with special status, was not proper. He said that the Centre must
have taken consent of J&K’s elected assembly before withdrawing Article 370
as per Indian Constitutional law.He said that the govt must utilize services of
economic experts to solve economic crisis, increasing unemployment and
industrial slowdown in the country. Earlier, Jamaat’s vice-president Engineer
Mohammed Saleem said that issue of J&K could be solved neither by use of
force by the Army nor through militancy.
``It can be solved through mutual trust based on justice and honesty’’.“But it
is unfortunate that the govt has not till date taken any concrete step to solve
the issue or improve the situation in Kashmir”, he said. On economic front, the
Jamaat felt that adhoc measures taken by the govt to boost the sagging GDP
would not help. Both Hussaini and Saleem suggested paradigm shift from
interest-based banking to interestless or ethnic banking to boost
production and consumption. They said
that if consumption went up, it would result into spending and boosting
economic activity leading to creation of jobs and ending the current economic
slowdown. But the govt, Saleem said, was
trying to hide the real problems by raising emotional issues.IndiaTomorrow
Jamaat-e-Islami
come out against Centre for ‘hollowing’ Article 370: New Indian Express
Jamaat-e-Islami
demands immediate reversal of Kashmir crackdown: Caravan Daily
JIH
seeks release of J&K political detainees ahead of local polls:IANS
UNSC
President rules out action on Kashmir
UNSC President Jerry
Matthews Matjila rules out any action on Kashmir from the divided body, even
issuing a joint statement.Matjila said, "In the Council, I don''t see that
in the near future there will be joint statement on J&K" recalling
that the divided Security Council could not even agree on a one-paragraph
statement at its August meeting on Kashmir.He was replying to a reporter, who
said at his news conference that there was global inaction on Kashmir and asked
what Matjila would do about it.The permanent representative of South Africa
took over the rotating presidency for this month on Tuesday.Giving an insight
into Security Council meeting held on Aug.16 at the insistence of China, he
said, "The Council was so divided that we could not even issue a paragraph
statement, we could not even issue a paragraph to say we are appealing for both
parties to resolve the issue amicably as per Shimla accord ... (signed) when
they met in Shimla. They agreed that this was the formula they were going to
use."IANS
NSA
Ajit Doval meets Saudi Crown Prince Mohammad Bin Salman, discusses Kashmir
Days after Pakistani PM
Imran Khan visited Saudi Arabia, National Security Advisor Ajit Doval met with
Saudi Crown Prince Mohammad Bin Salman to counter Pakistan's version on
Kashmir.The one-on-one meeting between the two leaders lasted for about two
hours, sources said.Sources also added that while a wide range of bilateral
issues were discussed, the status of J&K was also part of the discussion. Saudi
Crown Prince, on his part, expressed understanding about India's approach and
actions in J&K.Doval also held meetings with his Saudi counterpart Musaad
bin Mohammed Al Aiban. Doval is expected to interact with top leaders of the
UAE today.indiatoday
J&K:
Students forced to study in makeshift rooms due to lack of infrastructure, says
teacher
Ateacher at a primary Govt
school in Pund village of Udhampur district in J&K has alleged that
students are being forced to study outside the school, often in private
makeshift rooms, as the condition of the school is not fit to be taught
in.Meenakshi Sharma, a teacher at a school told ANI, "The school building
has been damaged for the last 9 years. Due to security reasons, the classes are
held at someone's home. We face a lot of problems. Children don't have space or
proper benches to sit on which also hampers their education."In the absence
of proper classrooms, sometimes the students have to stand and take their
lessons."We have informed the authorities several times but no action has
been taken yet. We were always told that an estimate of the repairing work is
being done and repair will be done it but nothing has happened yet," she
said.ANI
J-K:
All schools, colleges to reopen by October 9
Jammu :Days after Home
Minister Amit Shah said that there are no restrictions in the Valley, J&K
administration has decided to reopen all the schools up to higher secondary
level by Thursday.Pointing out that directions in this regard have come from
Divisional Commissioner Kashmir Baseer Ahmad Khan at a meeting, an official
spokesperson said that the officer had directed all the deputy commissioners
and concerned officials to ensure that colleges are also “open by or before
Oct9.” During the meeting, he was informed that medical colleges and dental
colleges in the Valley are already functioning smoothly and that students are
appearing in the exams without any inconvenience. indianexpress
J&K
police admit to ‘arresting’ 144 minors since August 5, but say ‘no illegal
detentions’
J&K Police have
admitted to arresting 144 minors, including children as young as nine and 11,
since August 5, when Union Govt scrapped the state’s special status under
Article 370 of the Constitution. According to data provided by the police, many
children were released on the same day. All children “found in conflict with
law”, the police claimed, were dealt with “in consonance [with] the provisions
of the Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act, 2013”.“If at all
the juvenile in conflict with law has been subject to custody, the same has
been placed in observation home under the orders of respective Juvenile Justice
Board,” police said. They also released a list of 36 minors who had been
received at the superintendent observation home in Harwan, Srinagar, since Aug.
5. Of 36 sent to observation home, 21 were bailed out and 15 were under
inquiry.scroll
J&K:
‘Personal liberty must be balanced against national security,’ says Supreme
Court
The Supreme Court has
said that it was important to balance the personal liberty of individuals with
national security concerns while hearing petitions challenging the restrictions
placed on media and communications since August in J&K, Bar and Bench
reported.Senior advocate Sanjay Hegde, who was arguing for a Kashmiri law
student, said that the situation in the Valley was not normal and it had
experienced a “sustained media and communications blackout” for 57 days.
“Liberty does not mean mere animal existence,” Hegde said. “Right to
communicate with loved ones is included in the right to liberty.”In response,
Justice BR Gavai said: “Personal liberty will have to be balanced against the
requirements of national security.” Gavai and Justices NV Ramana and R Subhash
Reddy were hearing a batch of petitions filed by Anuradha Bhasin, executive
editor of Kashmir Times, activist Tehseen Poonawalla and Foundation of Media
Professionals, on Kashmir matter. A 5-judge Constitution Bench has granted
Centre 4 weeks to file its response to a batch of petitions challenging the
abrogation of J&K’s special status under Article 370 of Constitution. It
will hear the matter next on Nov.14.scroll
‘Better
to maintain silence’: Karan Singh on J&K
Pune :Veteran Congress
leader Karan Singh — son of Maharaja Hari Singh, last ruler of J&K who
signed the Instrument of Accession in 1947 — has said he prefers to stay mum on
the present state of J&K.“I will not say anything on J&K. At this
juncture, it is better to maintain silence,” said Singh, when asked about the
prevailing situation in J&K after scrapping of Article 370.indianexpress
NRC
UN
refugee agency takes up case of potential stateless in India
Geneva:UN refugee agency today
said it was holding talks with India about its citizenship register in the
border state of Assam, amid concerns that many people, the majority of them
Muslims, could join the ranks of the world’s stateless.“We have expressed
concern that this exercise of verification of nationality may result in
statelessness for some of the people,”Filippo Grandi, UN High Commissioner for
Refugees, said.“Govt of India has assured us that there is due process being
put in place for these people to make recourse if their initial response was
negative in terms of nationality,” he said. “We need to see what happens at the
end of this process and whether there will be people still exposed to
statelessness. That’s a concern that we have at the moment.” UNHCR is midway
through a 10-year campaign to reduce statelessness worldwide, estimated by the
agency in 2014 to affect 10 million people. Since then, some people in Kenya
and Thailand, as well as Syrian refugees born in Jordan, have gained
citizenship, Grandi said.Reuters
All
Hindu refugees safe, Citizenship Bill will be brought in, says Amit Shah in
Bengal
Union Home Minister Amit
Shah has said the central Govt will implement the National Register of Citizens
in West Bengal, but added that Citizenship (Amendment) Bill would be passed
first to provide citizenship to all Hindu, Sikh, Jain and Buddhist refugees,
PTI reported. This is his first visit to West Bengal as a Union minister. Shah
made the remarks at an event called NRC-Jagran Abhiyan in Kolkata.Shah also
appeared to assert that the NRC would be implemented in the state. “Didi (West
Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee) is saying she will not let NRC happen in West
Bengal,” Times Now quoted him as saying. “But, I am assuring you that each and
every infiltrator in India will be shown the door.”He accused Mamata of
spreading panic about NRC and alleged that she was lying that the
implementation of NRC would eliminate Hindu refugees from Bangladesh.“People of
Bengal are being misled about the NRC. I assure all Hindu, Buddhist, Sikh, Jain
refugees they won’t have to leave the country, they will get Indian citizenship
and enjoy all the rights of an Indian national.”scroll/HT
Bengal
BJP worried Amit Shah’s NRC pitch will help Mamata win third term as CM
BJP president Amit Shah’s
vow to bring a NRC in West Bengal has left party members in the state,
currently led by Trinamool Congress, worried. BJP registered considerable gains
in West Bengal in 2016 assembly elections and this year’s Lok Sabha polls, and
now has its sights set on unseating 2-term CM Mamata Banerjee from the state in
2021. But the Assam experience, where NRC left out several Hindus, has local
party leaders apprehensive that Shah’s strident pitch for a similar drive in
Bengal may backfire, and push both Hindus and Muslims towards TMC.A BJP MP from
West Bengal told ThePrint that this overdose of NRC in their political campaign
might hamper the BJP’s chances in the coming election. “Law and order,
political violence, unemployment in Bengal are larger issues and we should not
overdo our campaign,”MP said.“It will polarise Matua community and Bengali
Muslims, who have an impact on more than 150 assembly constituencies.” The
Matuas are an important Scheduled Caste community that comprises natives of the
erstwhile East Bengal who moved to India after Partition as well as the 1971
liberation of Bangladesh.theprint
Mamata
, Owaisi slam Amit Shah over his NRC pitch in West Bengal
Union Home Minister Amit
Shah drew massive flak from the opposition on Tuesday after his pitch to
implement NRC in West Bengal.Lashing out at the Home Minister, West Bengal CM
Mamata Banerjee said, "Please don't create rift among people. Bengal is
known to respect leaders of different faiths for ages. None can spoil
that". "Everyone is welcome to our state and enjoy the hospitality of
our people. But please don't profess any divisive politics ... It will not work
in Bengal," she said, without naming Amit Shah. AIMIM chief Asaduddin
Owaisi said, saying, "Home Minister is saying clearly that only
undocumented Muslims will have to fear NRC, while others will get Indian
citizenship @AmitShah I know you are allergic to it, but try reading the
Constitution, FOR ONCE. Religion based citizenship is illegal and will be
struck down."Reiterating that religion based citizenship is unconstitutional
in another tweet, he added, "According to the HM, the only people who must
fear the NRC are Muslims. @AmitShah I know you're allergic to it but read the
Constitution, for once. Religion cannot be the basis of citizenship, it's
unconstitutional & illegal." indiatoday
Month
after NRC final list, Assam groups want 1951 as cut-off date not 1971
Guwahati: Publication of
final list of NRC was expected to end the decades-old issue of illegal
immigrants in Assam, but that didn’t happen.Now several indigenous groups,
student organizations, religious and literary bodies and NGOs want NRC to have
1951 as the cut-off date to detect foreigners instead March 24, 1971.“As in the
rest of the country, we want 1951 as the cut-off date to detect foreigners in
Assam instead of March 24, 1971, which was the date for the NRC process,” said
Abhijeet Sharma president of Assam Public Works (APW), a Guwahati-based
organization, recently.HT
Legal
aid clinic to help NRC-rejects file appeals in foreigners' tribunals
Guwahati: 5 law schools
of the country have jointly launched a legal aid clinic called 'Parichay'
(identity) to help people excluded from NRC appeal before the foreigners'
tribunals (FTs). 5 law schools which have joined hands to open the clinic are
Assam's National Law University and Judicial Academy, West Bengal National
University of Juridical Science, Hyderabad's National Academy of Legal Studies
and Research, Delhi's National Law University and National Law University of
Odisha."Parichay will assist lawyers in drafting appeals,conduct research
on pertinent questions of law, assist in training lawyers and paralegals and
generate documentation on the functioning of FTs," a statement issued by
the legal aid clinic said. According to the statement, law students engaged in
the clinic will work with lawyers to help the excluded people file their
appeals correctly before the foreigners' tribunals. National Academy of Legal
Studies and Research VC Faizan Mustafa added, "After NRC, absence of
effective legal aid would mean that many persons would be rendered stateless
without due process."TOI
Bangladeshis
‘living illegally’ in UP to be identified for deportation
Weeks after UP CM Yogi
Adityanath suggested a NRC-type drive in the State, the police have been asked
to identify Bangladeshis and other foreign nationals “living illegally” in the
State so that they can be deported.The move was important from the point of
“internal security” in the State, DGP O.P. Singh said in a circular issued to
all district police chiefs. Its directions should be taken with “all
seriousness,” he said. "Such verification drives have been done in a
periodic manner in the past as well and the process will continue in future
too," he noted.The circular, dated September 30, begins by stating that
over the years it was found that Bangladeshis were living illegally in some
districts and some of them had even gone “underground.”The police have been
asked to identify locations such as city outskirts, railway stations, bus
stations and “new busties” where “such Bangladeshis and other foreign nationals
take shelter” and carry out their verification under videography. Singh.
however, on Tuesday clarified the drive “has nothing to do with” NRC.
Bangladeshis and foreigners who have been living in the State illegally would
be identified and their documents verified, he told an agency. Those whose
documents were found to be false would be deported. The hindu
NRC
in air, UP bid to identify Bangladeshis
No
NRC talks held with Bangladesh so far, says India’s foreign ministry in RTI
response
Indian Govt has admitted
that it has never discussed with Bangladesh the question of deportation of
those declared foreigners by tribunals after being left out of Assam’s NRC. “Govt
of India has not held any meeting/discussion with Govt of Bangladesh in this
regard,” Ministry of External Affairs said in response to a RTI query filed by
Scroll.in. The response was dated Sept 9.So far, the Govt had been opaque about
its efforts to deport undocumented migrants from Bangladesh. In political
rallies, Home Minister Amit Shah has threatened to implement the NRC across the
country and deport “infiltrators”.But on an official visit to Bangladesh in
August, Foreign Minister S Jaishankar said NRC was India’s “internal
matter”.scroll.in
Hasina-Modi
talks in New Delhi: Dhaka to raise Teesta, NRC and border killings
Bangladesh will raise the
contentious issues of Teesta river water-sharing, Assam’s citizenship exercise
and border killings along with other issues during a high-level meeting between
PM Sheikh Hasina and her counterpart Narendra Modi in New Delhi on Oct.5.A
senior Govt official said more than 15 deals on connectivity, culture,
technical cooperation, trade and investment are in the offing. “14 have so far
been confirmed,” official said.The decades-old land boundary and maritime
issues have been solved, but the equitable share of Teesta river water remains
unresolved.Assam’s citizenship exercise or NRC has also raised concern in
Bangladesh as many fear that those rendered non-citizens of India may be pushed
into Bangladesh. But India maintains that it is their internal issue which in
no way will affect Bangladesh. Replying to a question, foreign minister,
however, said they would raise NRC issue and pending Teesta water sharing deal
during the talks.bdnews24
OTHERS
Ramlalla’s
counsel:Is Wakf Board saying idgah razed to build Babri?
New Delhi :Contesting the
Sunni Central Wakf Board’s claim that a 50-metre wall discovered during
excavations by the Archeological Survey of India (ASI) in Ayodhya was part of
an idgah, the counsel for Ramlalla Virajman, the deity of Ayodhya, on Tuesday
asked whether the Board is saying that an idgah was demolished to make way for
the Babri Masjid. The counsel also said that Muslim side had tried to drag the
case, asking a witness during trial questions such as “where was the labour
room where Ram was born?”“Is it their case that the idgah was demolished to build
Babri Masjid,” senior advocate C S Vaidyanathan, appearing for Ramlalla, told a
bench headed by CJI Ranjan Gogoi.Vaidyanathan submitted that he was asking this
since the Board had not contended anytime earlier that there was any structure
beneath the Babri Masjid, and that it was built on vacant land. In contrast,
Ramlalla’s 1989 suit had said that a temple was demolished to build the mosque,
he said.The submission invited sharp reactions from senior counsel Rajeev
Dhavan, appearing for the Muslim side, who said, “The question of the idgah
could only have arisen after ASI dig.”But Vaidyanathan continued and said
“Muslims changed their stand” when they realised that a wall had been found as
the ASI investigation progressed. He contended that not one witness “had spoken
about an idgah”, and added that it was mentioned first by three archeologists
produced by the Muslim side.Vaidyanathan said idgahs are built in areas away
from local habitation, while the Ramkot area, where the wall was discovered,
was “full of habitation”. The senior counsel said ASI report also mentioned
presence of 28 other walls, some running perpendicular to 50-metre wall. This,
he said, indicated that it may have been walls of rooms or halls, etc.But
Dhavan and senior advocate Meenakshi Arora, also representing the Muslim
parties, objected and said the ASI had not excavated the other walls, and that
these did not join the 50-metre wall.Justice Bobde then asked Dhavan to submit
a drawing which show parts, if any, joined to the wall and those which were
not.Vaidyanathan said it is “unfortunate” that the Muslim side is criticising
ASI. He said ASI’s experts are invited even to Thailand and Cambodia, where
they do a “commendable job”.Arora had sought to compare archeology with the
opinion of handwriting experts. indianexpress
Babri
Masjid case: Hindu parties tell SC opposing side made submissions of a communal
character
Announcement
of Ayodhya Ram temple construction around Diwali:BJP MP
Udaipur:BJP MP Arjunlal Meena
has said that the announcement for the construction of Ram temple in Ayodhya
will be made around the festival of Diwali."This time around, people will
be able to celebrate two Diwalis. The announcement for the construction of Ram
Temple in Ayodhya will be made around Diwali. So people will be able to
celebrate 2 Diwalis," Meena.ANI
Mahatma
Gandhi visited RSS shakha in 1947, applauded RSS workers’ discipline: Bhagwat
Mahatma Gandhi had visited
a RSS shakha during the time of Partition, interacted with swayamsevaks and was
impressed by their discipline and absence of divisive feelings, RSS chief Mohan
Bhagwat said today.Sangh swayamsevaks recall Gandhi and his values as part of
their morning prayer in Shakhas, he said while referring to ‘Ekatmata Stotra’
which is recited in the daily gatherings of its workers.“Gandhiji… visited a
shakha near his place of residence in Delhi during the tragic days of
Partition. He spoke to the swayamsevaks in the shakha. Its report was published
in the Harijan, dated Sept.27, 1947.Gandhiji expressed his joy over discipline
of Sangh swayamsevaks and complete absence of divisive feelings of caste and
creed in them,” Bhagwat said in an article posted on RSS website as the country
celebrated his 150th birth anniversary.Gandhi had also visited a Sangh camp
near Wardha in 1936 and next day RSS founder Dr Hedgewar met him at his Ashram.
The contents of the long question-answer session and discussion are now in
public domain, he said. Emphasising on Gandhi’s Swadeshi vision for the
country, RSS chief said the Mahatma gave a thought process that was based on
giving India its own identity in all spheres of life but people with “slavish
mindset” accepted western set of values as a model.”indianexpress
Palestine,
Turkey and Uzbekistan Issue Commemorative Gandhi Stamps
To commemorate 150th
birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi, Turkey, Palestine and Uzbekistan have
released special stamps.The stamp issued by Uzbekistan’s Govt is part of
“Outstanding personalities” series of its postal department and a similar stamp
was also issued by Turkey. Palestine released a commemorative postage stamp to
honour Gandhi’s “legacy and values”. Palestinian Authority’s minister of
telecommunication and information technology Ishaaq Seder released the stamp in
the presence of representative of India in P.A. Sunil Kumar at a ceremony held
at the ministry in Ramallah on the West Bank. Underlining Gandhi’s principles
of nonviolence, values, wisdom and vision, Seder said:“Palestine’s issuance of
the commemorative stamp comes in honour of Gandhi’s memory, legacy, and values
that guided and shall continue to guide the humanity.” Turkish postal
department, in a press release, said: “Gandhi pioneered the independence of the
Indian subcontinent, dedicated his life to eradicating racism and
discrimination, reducing poverty, making everyone equal and free.”thewire
Palestine
Issues Commemorative Stamp to Honour Mahatma Gandhi on 150th Birth Anniversary
Beijing
cancels Gandhi Jayanti event at public park
Beijing:
150th-anniversary celebrations of Mahatma Gandhi’s birthday on Wednesday was
hurriedly shifted to the Indian embassy premises after China denied permission
for it to be held at a public park a day before the event. Oct. 2 event has
been annually conducted for over a decade at a folk art museum at the Chaoyang
Park, a sprawling and popular public park in Beijing, which has the only
sculpture of Gandhi in China.The tradition was all set to continue until
Tuesday when authorities of the venue Jintai Art Museum informed the embassy
that Beijing Govt had denied them permission to hold the events. No reason was
offered for the abrupt denial.It was learnt that embassy officials had visited
the museum at least twice to prepare for the event.HT
In
one Jharkhand district, 53 booked in cow slaughter cases in 6 years, all
acquitted
Khunti :Bali Munda cannot
forget the 89 days he spent in jail after being “falsely” accused of cow
slaughter. Nor can he forget 21 trips he made from his village to the Khunti
district court or Rs 14,000 he borrowed from relatives to meet legal
expenses.63-year-old was acquitted in Jan.this year for lack of evidence and
now says he is just fortunate to be alive. But in this Jharkhand district,
where police last week arrested 3 men for lynching Kalantus Barla on suspicion
of cow slaughter on Sept.22, Munda is not alone.A scrutiny of district court
records by Indian Express found that at least 53 people booked on charges of
cow slaughter, or intent to slaughter cows under Prevention of Cruelty to
Animals Act, in 16 cases have been acquitted since 2018. While some acquittals
came after courts observed that the alleged cow meat seized was not sent to
FSL, in others, witnesses never appeared before court. In 2 such cases, Bajrang
Dal members were witnesses. Munda was assaulted by cow vigilantes near Jaltanda
Bazaar in Khunti in August 2017 and arrested soon after. 2 years later, Barla
was killed, and 2 others injured, by a mob in Suari village, barely 8 km from
where Munda was attacked.indianexpress
SC
allows Centre’s review against dilution of SC/ST Act, which led to protests, 11
deaths
The Supreme Court has
allowed the Centre’s review petition challenging the dilution of the Scheduled
Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989.The bench said
directions issued were not called for and were not within the parameters of
Article 142 of Constitution. “Court cannot do what cannot be done by the
Legislature,” the three-judge bench of Justices Arun Mishra, MR Shah, and BR
Gavai said. On May 1, the top court had reserved its judgement on the Centre’s
review petition, and said laws in the country should be caste-neutral and
uniform. On Sept.13, the court referred Centre’s plea to a 3-judge bench.In its
verdict on March 20, 2018, the Supreme Court had diluted the law’s provisions
and had said public servants cannot be arrested immediately after a complaint
is filed against them under the law. At least 11 people died and hundreds were
detained during the protests against the Supreme Court order in April 2018.
After this, Centre moved the court to seek a review of this order, and
Parliament passed an amendment bill in August to reverse the verdict.scroll/ Bar
and Bench
Supreme
Court’s order on SC/ST Act exposed ‘bitter life realities’ of Dalits, says
Mayawati
BSP chief Mayawati HAS
said the Supreme Court’s order on the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes
(Prevention of Atrocities) Act had highlighted the “bitter life realities” and
struggles of Dalit community. The former UP CM said it was necessary that
entire nation and the society remained aware of it.“The Supreme Court, while restoring
the provisions of SC/ST Act 1989 in its judgement yesterday [Tuesday], has
verified facts regarding the bitter life realities and struggles of Dalit
society, they specially expose the Dalit love of the ruling BJP and Congress,”
the BSP leader tweeted.scroll
RSS
ideology is not rigid but cannot compromise with ‘Hindu rashtra’ belief:
Bhagwat
RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat has
said the organisation neither had ideologues nor did it believe in any rigid
ideology or doctrine.The leader of the right-wing nationalist outfit, which is
the ideological parent of the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party, said it could
change everything in its ideology apart from its belief that India is a “Hindu
rashtra”.Bhagwat was speaking at the launch of the book The RSS: Roadmaps for
21st Century by Sunil Ambekar in Delhi. Ambekar a senior functionary of the
outfit and the organising secretary of ABVP.scroll/PTI
Gujarat
Govt never helped in providing compensation despite SC order: Bilkis's husband
Ahmedabad: Hours, after
the Supreme Court ordered the Gujarat Govt to give 2002 riots, gang-rape
survivor Bilkis Bano a compensation of Rs 50 lakh within two weeks, her husband
criticised Rupani-led dispensation for "not providing any assistance"
to them all these years. Bano suffered for 17 years, but the Gujarat Govt
refused to help her despite being ordered to do so by the country's top court,
her husband Yakoob Rasool told PTI over phone from Dahod. "The SC on April
13 asked the state Govt to give her compensation within 15 days. It has been
over five months now, but Govt did not contact us even once, let alone follow
the court order," he said.Rasool said his family sent two notices to the
Vijay Rupani-led state Govt, reminding it of the SC order, but it did not even
reply, following which they approached the apex court again."Let us see
what the state Govt does now. It has to comply within 15 days or it will amount
to contempt of court. All we know is that Bilkis suffered a lot in last 17
years, but never gave up the fight," he said.PTI
Ishrat
Jahan’s mother says ‘spirit shattered by impunity’, can no longer be part of
court hearings
CBI court hearing the
Ishrat Jahan fake encounter case on Tuesday took on record a submission made by
Jahan’s mother Shamima Kausar, demanding that the agency secure the conviction
of exGujarat Police officers DG Vanzara and NK Amin. CBI had told the court in
July that the agency will not appeal against the discharge of the two
ex-officers.On May 2, special CBI court dropped proceedings against Vanzara and
Amin after the agency did not get the Gujarat Govt’s sanction to prosecute
them. The state Govt had refused to grant the sanctions, saying the police
officers had done their official duty.In her letter to the investigating CBI
officer in the case, Kausar said the “need for transparency, accountability and
an end to impunity by men in uniform has never been more”. She requested the
investigating officer to place the letter before the CBI court in Ahmedabad on
or before the next hearing on September 21. However, the letter was taken on
record only on Tuesday.scroll
Punjab:
Police arrest one more member of Khalistan Zindabad Force terror module
Punjab Police today
arrested one more accused allegedly involved in a terrorist module of the revived
Khalistan Zindabad Force(KZF), busted on Sept. 22. According to the police, the
accused has been identified as Sajanpreet Singh of Bandala village in Amritsar.
A local court sent him to a five-day police remand today.NIA will carry out the
investigation into cases of drones being used by Pakistan to smuggle arms into
India through bordering areas of Punjab.ANI
Malegaon
blasts case: Mumbai court rejects NIA plea for in camera trial, media
restrictions
A special court in Mumbai
has dismissed NIA’s petition to allow in camera hearings in the Malegaon blasts
case and restrict the media from reporting on the trial. A group of 11
journalists, from several media organisations, had submitted an intervention
against NIA’s plea for media restrictions.An in camera hearing would mean that
only the judge, prosecution, defence lawyers, necessary witnesses and required
court staff would be allowed to attend the proceedings.scroll/ Indian express
Koregaon-Bhima
Case: Entire SC Bench Recuses From Hearing Gautam Navlakha's Plea
New Delhi: The entire
bench of Supreme Court judges, including Justice B.R. Gavai, N.V. Ramana and R.
Subhash Reddy, recused themselves on Tuesday from hearing a plea filed by civil
rights activist Gautam Navlakha.Navlakha is challenging Bombay high court order
that refused to quash an FIR lodged against him in the Koregaon-Bhima violence
case.Justice Gavai’s recusal came a day after Chief Justice of India Ranjan
Gogoi had recused himself from hearing Navlakha’s plea, which came up on
Tuesday.The apex court said his plea would come up for hearing before another
bench tomorrow. Maharashtra Govt had earlier filed a caveat in the matter
seeking to be heard before any orders are passed.thewire/ reported Bar &
Bench
India
loses 5% of corporate revenue as firms shift profits to tax havens, shows
research
A database created by
researchers showed that nearly 40% of the profits earned by multinational
corporations in the world are moved to tax havens every year. In India, 5% of
corporate revenue is lost due to this shifting of profits to tax havens, the
study showed.The research, based on 2015 estimates, showed that multinational
companies shifted over $650 billion in profits to tax havens, which reduced
international corporate tax receipts by nearly 10%.Study, conducted by
researchers from University of California, Berkeley and the University of
Copenhagen, showed how much each country loses in profit and tax revenue to
these tax havens.India loses $9,718 million (approximately Rs 69,000 crore) in
profits to tax havens across the world. Out of the total revenue, 2%, to tune
of $3,440 million, go to tax havens in the European Union, while 3%, or $5,988
million, in profits goes to non-European Union tax havens.scroll
PMC
Bank misled RBI for years, hid loan defaults due to fear of loss in reputation,
admits ex-chief
Ex-Punjab Maharashtra
Co-operative Bank Managing Director Joy Thomas last month admitted to
misleading RBI for the last 6 or 7 years, by concealing and misreporting
default on loans worth Rs 6,500 crore taken by crisis-hit real estate firm
Housing Development and Infrastructure Ltd. Thomas has been suspended from his
post.The Economic Offences Wing of the Mumbai Police filed a first information
report against officials of PMC Bank and realty developer HDIL last month, for
loan default reportedly up to Rs 4,300 crore. A special investigation team has
been set up to conduct an inquiry into the case. The investigators have filed a
case for cheating, criminal breach of trust, forgery, and criminal conspiracy
under the IPCe against the bank’s Chairperson Waryam Singh and Thomas. NDTV
Starved
of business, banks to hold loan fairs across 250 districts from Thursday
The first phase of 'Loan
Mela', an outreach programme for providing credit to retail customers and
MSMEs, will begin from Thursday across 250 districts across the country to meet
demand during the festival period.During the four days beginning Oct.3, loans
will be sanctioned for retail, agriculture, vehicle, home, MSME, education and
personal categories on the spot.All banks, including SBI, PNB, Bank of Baroda
(BoB), and Corporation Bank have geared themselves up to take advantage of
festival season demand.SBI is the lead banker in 48 districts across the
country. Likewise, BoB is the lead banker in 17 out of 250 districts in the
first phase.Simultaneously, it is holding Baroda Kisan Pakhwada during which
most of its branches would focus on promoting farm loans, BoB said in a
statement.That the banks are averse to giving huge corporate loans can be
understood from the fact that NPAs, or the bad loans, amounted to ₹10.3
trillion (11.2 % of advances) in March 2018.Especially hit are the public
sector banks (PSBs) which account for around 86 % of the total bad
loans.nationalheraldindia
Zee
Entertainment says lenders have agreed to give a 6-month extension to repay debt
Subhash Chandra's Zee
Entertainment Enterprises Ltd (ZEEL) on Tuesday said lenders have agreed to
give a six-month extension to repay debt. In an interview to CNBC-TV18, Punit
Goenka, CEO, said, "Zee is working with lenders with all options to
explore and find a solution on the stake sale and the resolution stake sale
that we had proposed of another 10%.""The delay was purely on account
of getting the Oppenheimer deal closed as that itself took us little over the
anticipation. We have a lot of interest in the stock even during before the
September 30th deadline. However, we realised that it may not be possible to
complete the entire stake sale and hence we sought the extension."Further,
Goenka said total amount due to Indian lenders is approximately Rs 5,000 crore.
Speaking about the sale of Zee Infra, he said, “Lot of deals are in pipeline."cnbctv18
Nizam
funds: UK court rules in favour of India over Pakistan
In a major setback for
Pakistan, UK High Court today ruled in favour of India in a decades-old legal
dispute with Islamabad over funds belonging to Nizam of Hyderabad at the time
of Partition in 1947 and deposited in a London bank account.The Nizam’s
descendants, Prince Mukarram Jah —titular eighth Nizam of Hyderabad — and his
younger brother Muffakham Jah, had joined hands with the Indian Govt in the
legal battle against the Pakistan Govt over around 35 million pounds lying with
NatWest Bank plc here.In his judgment handed down at the Royal Courts of
Justice in London, Justice Marcus Smith ruled that the "Nizam VII was
beneficially entitled to the Fund and those claiming in right of Nizam VII —
the Princes and India — are entitled to have the sum paid out to their
order"."Pakistan's contentions of non-justiciability by reason of the
foreign act of state doctrine and non-enforceability on grounds of illegality
both fail," the verdict noted.PTI
Communal
friction in Maharashtra's Amravati after Shiv Sena leader stabbed to death;
curfew imposed
Mumbai: A curfew was
imposed in some areas of Maharashtra's Amravati after a Shiv Sena leader was
stabbed to death on Monday leading to communal tensions between 2 communities
in the area. After the Sena leader was killed, his supporters attacked two
youths in retaliation, who have reportedly scummed to their injuries. Killings
triggered tensions and descended into stone-throwing at some places, prompting
authorities to impose a curfew in Achalpur, Pharwada and Sarmaspura areas.
According to police officials, Shiv Sena leader, Shyama Pehelwan Nandvanshi,
was killed in Paratwada area of the district following which his supporters
came out on roads demanding arrest of three persons. A few days ago, Nandvanshi
had an altercation with a local youth, identified only as Shahrukh, and reports
suggest that locals suspect him to be behind the leader's murder. 2 youths who
were attacked by Nandvanshi's supporters have been identified as Saif Ali and
Abdul Atiq Abdul Rafiq. Times Now
WORLD
Netanyahu's
pre-corruption trial hearings begin
Israeli PM Benjamin
Netanyahu's defence team today began presenting its arguments against a series
of corruption charges that may lead to his indictment, amid a period of
political uncertainty.The pre-trial hearings, which will take place over four
consecutive days, will see Netanyahu's lawyers argue before the country's
Attorney General Avichai Mandelblit that he should not press charges for
alleged bribery, fraud and breach of trust - or to reduce them.Netanyahu, who
has denied any criminal wrongdoing, is currently fighting for political survival
after failing to achieve a clear win in 2 parliamentary elections held in April
and Sept. this year. 69-year-old leader's attempts to form a unity Govt
suffered a setback after his main rival, Benny Gantz, refused to serve in a
cabinet led by a leader who faces indictment.aljazeera
Israeli
unity gov’t talks falter after Netanyahu rival rejects meeting
New
research shows Israel settlements benefit from bilateral relations with EU
New research has shown
that illegal Israeli settlements continue to benefit from bilateral agreements
with EU and its member states.The project from the European Council on Foreign
Relations (ECFR) and its policy fellow Hugh Lovatt – named the “Differentiation
Tracker” – “traces the efforts undertaken by European Govts since the beginning
of the occupation to exclude Israeli settlements” from bilateral
agreements.According to the think-tank, “despite noticeable progress in
advancing differentiation measures at the level of EU relations, member state
practices have often lagged behind.”“As a result,” ECFR states, “there is a
clear risk that European states are directly supporting the maintenance and
growth of Israeli settlements, their residents, and businesses–in contravention
of European policy positions and international law.”middleeastmonitor
UN
High Commissioner ‘failing mandate’ by delaying release of Israel settlement
business database
Global NGOS have urged a
senior UNO to publish a database of companies complicit in illegal Israeli
settlements, charging that continued delay constitutes a failure to fulfil the
office’s mandate.In a joint statement issued,groups including HRW and Amnesty
International expressed “serious concern and disappointment” that UN High Commissioner for Human Rights
failed to release the database during Human Rights Council’s 42nd session.The
establishment of the database was mandated by UNHRC in 2016, with original
intended deadline for the release of data in March 2017.According to
signatories – who also include Palestinian rights group Al-Haq, for Research on
Multinational Corporations, and Global Legal Action Network (GLAN)–“repeated, open-ended,
and unexplained delays have no precedent in the handling of previous mandates
by OHCHR”.NGOs believe that the failure to publish database, “is of deep
concern, particularly in light of consistent reports of political interference
by some states in the implementation of this resolution.”middleeastmonitor
Police
open fire to disperse new protests in Baghdad
Security forces in Iraq
have used live fire and tear gas to disperse demonstrators in renewed anti-Govt
protests in Baghdad, wounding several people. The unrest today came a day after
at least 2 Iraqis were killed and 200 wounded in clashes over unemployment,
corruption and poor public services. The protests mark the first significant
popular challenge to PM Adel Abdul Mahdi, who formed his Govt a year ago. Today,
the iconic Tahrir Square in Baghdad where hundreds of protesters had gathered
the previous day was sealed off by heavily armed soldiers and dozens of riot
policemen, with some demonstrators gathering around the edges. Smaller crowds
took to the streets in al-Shaab in north Baghdad and Zafaraniya in the south,
with riot police attempting to disperse them with tear gas and live rounds
fired in the air. UN today expressed concern over the violence and urged calm,
with Special Representative of Secretary-General for Iraq, Jeanine
Hennis-Plasschaert reaffirming in a statement the right to protest.aljazeera
N.Korea
fires possible submarine-launched ballistic missile
North Korea fired at
least one missile off its east coast on Wednesday, possibly from a submarine,
South Korean military said, a day after announcing it would resume stalled
talks over its nuclear programme with the US. National Security Council in
Seoul expressed "strong concern" over the launch of what it said may
have been a submarine-launched ballistic missile (SLBM), according to a
statement.aljazeera
Trump
impeachment: Pompeo confirms listening in on Ukraine call
US Secretary of State
Mike Pompeo has confirmed he was listening in as President Trump asked Ukraine
to investigate a political opponent.The call - between Mr Trump and President
Volodymyr Zelensky - is at the centre of an impeachment inquiry against Donald
Trump. Pompeo dodged questions about the
call in an interview just days ago. President Trump denies improperly
pressuring Ukraine and has accused opponents of mounting a
"coup".During the conversation, which triggered a whistleblower's
formal complaint, US president asked Mr Zelensky to investigate Democrat rival
Joe Biden and his son Hunter.Pompeo's admission during a news conference in
Italy came after media reported he was party to the conversation as well.
"I was on the phone call," Pompeo said.bbc
Taliban
to visit Pakistan amid stalled US talks
A delegation of Taliban
members, led by one of the group's founders, Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar, will
discuss "important issues" with Pakistani officials in capital,
Islamabad, Taliban spokesman Suhail Shaheen said on Twitter. The Taliban
delegation on Wednesday would inform Pakistan's leadership of the factors that
derailed the talks with the US aimed at striking a deal allowing US and other
foreign troops to withdraw in exchange for Taliban security guarantees, said a
Taliban official, who declined to be identified."Taliban delegation's
visit to Islamabad comes as Zalmay Khalilzad is also in town," Arif Rafiq,
president of Vizier Consulting, a New York-based political risk advisory company,
said."That could signal a potential revival of the US-Taliban dialogue in
the weeks ahead," said Rafiq, adding that it was unlikely Trump has closed
the door to a resumption of talks with Afghan group.Since Trump ended talks
with Taliban, Pakistan's PM Imran Khan and other officials have been urging US
to resume talks on ending nearly 18 years of fighting.aljazeera
English
education system in Pakistan propelled society into classes: PM Imran
PM Imran Khan today said
that English education system has divided society in different classes. Addressing
a ceremony regarding distribution of prizes among students of seminaries, PM
said that Holy Prophet Mohammad (PBUH) has laid utmost emphasis on seeking
knowledge.He said that lack of education has caused fall of Muslims and that
Pakistani children are not conversant with Islamic history. Islam teaches
lesson of being good humans, he added. Imran asserted that Muslims had been
among all top scientists for 700 years. He said Pakistan had been founded on
particular goal therefore, Iqbaliat (philosophy of great poet Allama Iqbal)
must be taught to students.He said reforms are being introduced in the
education system, which will help to uplift the lower strata of the society
with the provision of equal opportunities to progress. Nation’s weak point is
lagging behind in education, he added.PM said that three varying curriculums
are being followed at educational institutions in Pakistan which are leading to
injustices and divisions in the society.He said Pakistan, Malaysia and Turkey
have decided to launch an English language channel to present Muslims’ stance
to the world and project the Muslim history. We have also decided to
collaborate to make films on Muslim history and heroes of Islam, he went on to
say. nation.com.pk
Saudi:
Last session of Salman Ouda’s trial could be Thursday
Abdullah Al-Ouda, son of
the famous Saudi preacher Salman, expects the last session of his father’s
trial to be held tomorrow, Arabi21 reported.On Twitter, Abdullah said that the
Riyadh Court decided to hold a hearing for his father tomorrow, expecting that
it would be the last session.The court cases again Al-Ouda began in July last
year.“My father, Salman Al-Ouda, attended these daily sessions in Thr Riyadh
Court,” he wrote. “It seems that Thursday will be the last one.”“May Allah
release him and all the others,” he added.Previously, Abdullah has revealed
that the Saudi Public Prosecution used 2,000 tweets from his father’s Twitter
account as evidence to prove claims against him.Abdullah also said that the
Saudi authorities had told his father that his “neutral” stance towards the
Saudi crisis with Qatar “is considered treason.”middleeastmonitor
Rouhani’s
brother sentenced to 5 yrs in prison
Iran’s judiciary
sentenced Hossein Fereydoun, brother and adviser of President Hassan Rouhani,
to five years in prison.Fars News Agency quoted judicial spokesman Gholam
Hossein Ismaili as saying: “judiciary has sentenced Rouhani’s brother, Hossein
Fereydoun, to 5 years in prison.”Ismaili said in a press conference that the
Court of Appeal issued the final verdict of five years commuted from seven
years against Fereydoun.He added that the court found him guilty of taking
bribes. Fereydoun, a diplomat who is known to be close to his brother Rouhani,
changed his name at the beginning of his political career.Supporters of
President Rouhani believe that the charges against Fereydoun are politically
motivated and aimed at putting pressure on the head of state.middleeastmonitor
Tunisia
court leaves Prez hopeful Karoui in prison
Tunisia's court of appeal
has rejected a fresh request to release presidential candidate Nabil Karoui,
according to his lawyers.The ruling on Tuesday came less than two weeks before
the second round of voting which will see the media magnate compete with
61-year-old retired law professor Kais Saied on Oct.13."Unfortunately the
indictment chamber... refused the release request," lawyer said, adding
that he planned on meeting Karoui's other lawyers to decide their next
move.aljazeera
Flash: NEWS,views,Articles
Gandhi@150
| Hyderi Manzil, a symbol of Mahatma’s fight against communalism, opens to public
Kashmir
Crisis: Daughters' Of First Families Embark On 'Mission
Justice':Ishfaq-ul-Hassan
Ram
Mandir existed before Babri mosque in Ayodhya: Archaeologist KK Muhammed
'One
of the Greatest…' Jinnah's Condolence for Mahatma Gandhi and a Pakistan Visit
That Was Never to Be:Kalyani Shankar
Mahatma
Gandhi: Turkish contours of India's independence movement:Iftikhar Gilani
Modi
Govt Breaking Detention Laws In Kashmir As Thousands Are Jailed: Betwa Sharma
Babus
vs Babus in Finance Ministry, over 30 officials face action in fifth round of
crackdown
Legal
petition urges ICC investigate MBS over Khashoggi murder
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