08
OCT. 2019: 08 Safar 1441: Vol: 12, No: 31
INDIA
As
Rajnath Receives first Rafale Aircraft; Still few lingering questions surrounding
deal: The Wire
New Delhi: Defence
minister Rajnath Singh today received India’s first Rafale jet in an official
handover ceremony in Merignac, a suburb of the south-western French city of
Bordeaux.The raksha mantri and his ministry also made an event of it as the
ceremony coincides with the day Dusshera festival is celebrated in India: after
conducting a traditional ‘Shastra Puja’, Singh will take a sortie in a 2-seater
trainer version of the aircraft. Over the last year, 7.8 billion euro deal
became a source of controversy for Modi Govt, with questions being raised on
the process and procedure that was followed. Opposition parties such as the
Congress also alleged that Anil Ambani’s Reliance Defence had been favoured –
accusations that were fuelled by ex French President Francois Hollande’s
remarks that Anil Ambani’s name was pushed forward by Modi Govt as part of the
overall contract.With the Supreme Court set to issue its verdict the next month
on a batch of petitions seeking review of its Dec.2018 judgement, which had
dismissed pleas asking for a probe into the fighter jet deal, there are still a
few lingering questions surrounding the controversy. One of the procedural
questions surrounding Rafale deal have to do with how quickly the plan changed
to acquire 126 aircraft and have a co-production plan with HAL to buying only
36 jets and roping in Anil Ambani’s company as an offset partner. Other
questions are why was the need for a sovereign guarantee tossed aside? Will the
benchmark pricing controversy ever be addressed?Will errors and flaws in the SC’s
verdict be addressed? The Wire
On
Air Force Day, IAF disproves Pak claim of shooting down Sukhoi fighter
Indian Air Force on its
87th birthday today sprung a surprise on Pakistan in response to its claim of
shooting down a Sukhoi-30MKI in Feb. In the clear skies above Hindon Air Force
Station near Delhi, 3 nimble French-origin Mirage-2000s flanked by 2 larger
Sukhoi-30MKI multirole fighter jets flew in what is known as the
"Avenger" formation as the spectators below cheered for them. he
surprise? One of 2 Sukhoi-30MKIs, whose call sign is "Avenger 1",
that flew on the extreme right of the formation today was the same aircraft
that Pakistan claimed it had shot down in the air battle in Feb.27, a day after
Indian jets dropped Israeli-made bombs in Balakot. IAF has said Pakistan's
"false claim" of shooting down a Sukhoi-30MKI was an attempt to cover
up for the loss of its own aircraft, an American-made F-16, which Wing
Commander Abhinandan Varthaman had shot down before Russian-origin MiG-21 Bison
that he piloted fell to enemy fire. NDTV
'More
of us will speak every day': Over 180 celebrities, activists write fresh letter
to PM Modi
Days after an FIR was
lodged against 49 celebrities who wrote an open letter -- highlighting the
rising cases of lynchings in India -- to PM Narendra Modi, over 180 members of
the cultural community including actor Naseeruddin Shah, cinematographer Anand
Pradhan, historian Romila Thapar and activist Harsh Mander, have said that
"more of us will speak every day." Condemning FIR, the group, in a
fresh letter issued on Monday, asked how writing a letter to PM qualified as
"an act of sedition".Last week, an FIR was filed in Bihar's
Muzaffarpur against personalities, including directors Aparna Sen, Adoor
Gopalakrishnan and writer-columnist Ramchandra Guha for alleged sedition over a
letter they wrote to PM in July, voicing concern over growing incidents of mob
lynching."An FIR has been lodged against 49 of our colleagues in cultural
community, simply because they performed their duty as respected members of
civil society. They wrote an open letter to PM, expressing concern about mob
lynching in our country. "Can this be called an act of sedition? Or is
harassment by misusing the courts a ploy to silence citizens’ voices?" the
letter read. The signatories, which also included writers Ashok Vajpeyi and
Jerry Pinto, academician Ira Bhaskar, poet Jeet Thayil, author Shamsul Islam,
musician TM Krishna and filmmaker Saba Dewan, promised they will continue to
speak up against silencing of "people's voices".outlookindia
FIR
against celebrities: Left bodies in Kerala send 1.5 lakh copies of same
open letter to PM
Members of SFI and DYFI –
student and youth organisations of CPI(M) – in Kerala have sent 1.5 lakh copies
of the open letter that 49 eminent personalities had written to Narendra Modi
in July. They are protesting against FIR filed against the public figures who
had written to the PM about mob attacks and lynchings. They dared Modi to book
them for sending the letter as well. “If they feel 49 signatories are traitors,
please go ahead and book all of us who have sent the same letter,” said DYFI
State Secretary AA Rahim. “We are ready to fill the jails for this cause.”Each
of the 2 organisations will be sending Modi one lakh copies of the letter. SFI
has already sent one lakh copies to the PM by post while DYFI members have
mailed at least 50,000 copies. “We managed to meet the target [of mailing 1
lakh copies] so quickly as all our units [educational institutions] responded
very well in spite of the Puja holidays,” SFI State Secretary KM Sachin Dev.
“Whatever extra copies our members manage to send will be a bonus,” Dev said,
adding that it was a campaign against “the anti-democratic BJP”.scroll/ Telegraph
AHA
writes to JNU VC, expresses concern over review of Romila Thapar’s
contributions
American Historical
Association, world’s largest association of historians, has written to JNU,
saying that it did not see any reason to review Prof Romila Thapar’s status as
Professor Emerita. McNeill cited her impressive record of contributions and
achievements, including being named an AHA Honorary Foreign Member. JNU had
defended its action by claiming that it was a routine one. It had also claimed
that letters had been sent out to others as well to furnish their continuing
work so that the university could decide on whether to withdraw the honorary
post.nationalheraldindia
Lynching
a "western construct", don't use to defame India: RSS Chief
Nagpur: RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat today
described lynching as a "Western construct", saying it shouldn't be
used to defame the country.Speaking at Dusshera event in Nagpur, Bhagwat said
"... it is not that only a certain community targets people. The reverse
also happens". RSS chief then declared that society must act by
"remaining within the limits of Constitution", no matter what the
"difference of opinion be, or howsoever provocative actions might have
taken place". "We hear people of a community beat people from another
community. It is not that only a certain community targets people. Reverse also
happens. There are cases where what has actually happened gets twisted," he
said, adding,"...self-centred forces blame a particular community to stoke
fire between communities". "Branding some incidents of social
violence as 'lynching' are actually meant to defame our country, Hindu society
and create fear among some communities. Lynching is alien to Bharat and
actually has its references elsewhere," he said at an RSS event organised
on the occasion of Dusshera."Lynching itself is a Western construct. It is
not the word from Indian ethos. Its origin is from a story in a separate
religious text. Don't impose such terms on Indians," he claimed.ndtv
Give
it a Bharat Sanskriti-Approved Term: Tharoor, Owaisi Target Bhagwat Over
Lynching Remark
RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat’s
statement describing lynching as a foreign phenomenon has evoked a strong
reaction from opposition leaders.Congress leader Shashi Tharoor came down
heavily on the Sarsanghchalak and said ‘a crime is a crime’ whether you call it
with any ‘bharat culture-approved term’ or not.Congress leader said, “The word
‘lynching’ happens to come from West which means action of a mob attacking an
individual without trials. You can call it with any bharath sanskriti-approved
term, it is still a horrible crime, a crime is a crime.” Asaduddin Owaisi also
hit out at Bhagwat and alleged he was not trying to stop lynching
incidents.“The victims were Indians. Who garlanded convicts? Who draped them in
(tricolour)? We’ve a Godse loving BJP MP. There can’t be a bigger defamation of
India than ideology that killed Gandhi/Tabrez. Bhagwat isn’t saying stop
lynching, he’s saying ‘don’t call it that’,”he tweeted.news18
It’s
a lie to say RSS has nothing to do with lynchings: Maharashtra Congress leader
Congress today criticised
RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat’s claim that lynching was a “western construct” and
should not be mixed with the Indian context to harm the country’s
reputation.“It is as much a lie to say that RSS has nothing to do with
lynchings as it is a lie to say that RSS is a cultural organisation, is
anti-casteist, pro-reservation and respects the Constitution and tricolour,”
Maharashtra Congress spokesperson Sachin Sawant said, PTI reported. “Spreading
falsehood is the ideology of the Sangh Parivar.”scroll.in
CPM
leader Brinda Karat hits out at RSS chief for his statement on lynching
India
Inc knocks on RSS' door: Premji visits Golwalkar's samadhi, Nadar at RSS HQ
Top industrialists have,
in recent past, made a beeline to RSS HQRS in Nagpur with the latest being HCL
co-founder Shiv Nadar, who was RSS’s chief guest at this year's Vijaya Dashami
event, which is also the outfit’s foundation day. Nadar's visit was just one
day after Wipro chairman Azim Premji visited RSS founder KB Hedgewar’s memorial
and paid tribute. Premji visited samadhi of second RSS chief MS Golwalkar as
well. He also met RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat and reportedly discussed various
issues related to the country, society and economy for about half an hour. He
had earlier participated in 'Rashtriya Sewa Sangam', a conclave of NGOs
convened by RSS in 2015. He later said, however, that attending an event does
not mean that he is promoting anyone.Last month, industrialist Rahul Bajaj had
paid homage to the statue of Hedgewar.He, however, did not visit Sangh’s
headquarters, which is nearby. Tata Sons' ex Chairman Ratan Tata, too, visited
the Sangh HQ twice within 5 months. thenewsminute
J&K ISSUE
China
to host Imran Khan, says Kashmir issue should be resolved bilaterally; but not announces
date of Xi's India visit
Beijing:As Pakistan PM
Imran Khan arrived Beijing today for talks with China President Xi Jinping
ahead of his important visit to India, China said that the Kashmir issue should
be resolved between New Delhi and Islamabad, significantly omitting its recent
references to UN and UNSC resolutions.Foreign Ministry spokesman Geng Shuang
during his media briefing today did not make any official announcement about Xi
Jinping's visit to India. However, Chinese officials informally said that an
announcement would be made simultaneously in Beijing and New Delhi on
Wednesday.The foreign ministry has also called for a special media briefing on
Wednesday on "Chinese leader's outbound visit.""India and China
have a tradition of high-level exchanges. Both sides have communication
exchange over high-level Visit. Any new information will be released
soon," Geng Shuang said in response to questions on Xi Jinping's visit to
India. Both India and China are major developing countries of world and major
emerging markets, Geng Shuang said.When asked about Imran Khan's visit to
Beijing ahead of Xi Jinping's trip to India and whether the Kashmir issue will
figure in his talks with the Chinese leaders, Geng Shuang said that China's
stand is that the Kashmir issue should be resolved between India and
Pakistan."And so you are paying attention to the Kashmir issue, right?
China's position on Kashmir issue is clear and consistent", Geng Shuang
said."We call on India and Pakistan to engage in dialogue and consultation
on all issues including the Kashmir issue and consolidate mutual trust. This is
in line with the interest of both countries and common aspiration of the
world," Geng Shuang said.Observers say that it is a significant shift
ahead of Xi Jinping's visit to India for his 2nd informal summit with PM
Narendra Modi.indiatoday
Xi
Jinping’s visit date still not official, China envoy tweets about unleashing Wuhan
positives
Pak’s
Gen Bajwa meets China’s PLA, focuses on J&K ahead of Xi’s India visit
On a visit to China timed
right ahead of President Xi Jinping’s visit to India for an informal summit,
Pakistan Army chief General Javed Bajwa today met top military commanders of
China’s People’s Liberation Army. A statement by Pakistan military’s ISPR said
Bajwa discussed the regional security environment, including the situation in J&K,
and defence cooperation between Pakistan and China. The army chief apprised
Chinese military leadership “about the consequences of the ongoing situation”
in Kashmir if it’s not amicably resolved. This, Pakistan statement said, would
happen only if India respects UN resolutions and ensures the human rights of
Kashmiris. Pakistan military statement said the Chinese military leadership had
supported what it referred to as “Pakistan’s principled stance” on Kashmir
issue and appreciated “sane Pakistani approach in the interest of peace”.HT
Jointly
maintain peace and tranquillity on border before final settlement: Chinese
envoy
New Delhi: India and
China need to maintain peace and tranquillity along their boundary before the
final settlement of the issue, said Chinese envoy to India."Before final
settlement of the boundary question, we need to jointly maintain peace and
tranquillity in the border areas," Chinese envoy to India, Sun Weidong
told ANI.The remarks by China's top envoy are significant as they come just
days ahead of meeting with PM Narendra Modi and Chinese President Xi
Jinping.Recently, ahead of a massive military exercise planned along China
border by India, soldiers of Indian and Chinese armies engaged in a face-off
near the northern bank of Pangong Tso Lake in Ladakh but disengaged after talks
between the two sides there.ANI
Malaysian
PM Mahathir defends Kashmir remarks that angered India
New Delhi: Days after
India asked Malaysian Govt to desist from commenting on the Kashmir issue, PM
Mahathir Mohamad defended his remarks that were critical of India and said he
had told PM Narendra Modi the same thing at their last meeting.Mahathir
defended his comments on Kashmir, which were critical of India, at UN General
Assembly. He also said his remarks were an extension of his conversation with
Modi when the two leaders met on margins of Eastern Economic Summit in Russia
in Sept, according to reports in the Malaysian media. Malaysia, he said, is not
taking sides in the matter. “We must know how to manage this problem... (and)
our criticism does not side with anyone,” Mahathir was quoted as saying by the
media.Mahathir further said: “Just demanding that both parties negotiate and
not use violence. That has always been our policy. Do not use violence and
instead, negotiate, or go for arbitration or go to the court of law.”He added,
“This is what I raised to Modi, when I met him at Vladivostok, and my speech
(at General Assembly) is an extension of our stand, that we do not want to see
violence erupt. Instead, any dispute, conflict among nations must be settled
via negotiation, arbitration or court of law.”HT
US
Congress Committee Urges India to Lift restrictions, Communication Blackout in
Kashmir
The growing chorus in US asking India to lift
the communication blockade in Kashmir received support from a powerful US
Congressional Committee. House Foreign Affairs Committee, in a tweet, urged
India to lift the blackout in Kashmir, saying that it is impacting the lives of
people in the state. “India’s communication blackout in Kashmir is having a
devastating impact on the lives and welfare of everyday Kashmiris. It’s time for
India to lift these restrictions and afford Kashmiris the same rights and
privileges as any other Indian citizen,” the tweet read. It also included a
link to a New York Times article about preventable deaths occurring due to the
blockade.Many US lawmakers have spoken about the need for India to loosen
restrictions in Kashmir. Asia-Pacific and Non-Proliferation Subcommittee of
House Foreign Affairs Committee has scheduled a hearing on human rights in
Kashmir and other parts of South Asia on Oct.22.thewire
India
slams Pakistan for raising Kashmiri women’s rights issues at UN General
Assembly
UN: India has lashed out
at Pakistan for “weaponising” women’s rights issues for self-serving political gains
in J&K, saying it is ironical that a country where violations of women’s
right to life in the name of ‘honour’ go unpunished is making “baseless”
statements about it in India. First Secretary in India’s Permanent Mission to
UN Paulomi Tripathi during UN General Assembly Third Committee session on
‘Advancement of Women’ on Monday did not directly name Pakistan, but was
responding to references made to J&K by Islamabad’s envoy to UN Maleeha
Lodhi, who in her speech at the Committee earlier said the women in J&K
were suffering due to communication blackout in the state. Lodhi had alluded to
a picture of a Kashmiri mother that appeared on the front page of NYT along
with an article about how the mother lost her son, who was bitten by a snake,
as she could not get medical help on time.PTI
J&K
says tourists can return from Oct.10, Mehbooba declines to meet party team
Srinagar :More than 2
months after an advisory directed Amarnath Yatra pilgrims and tourists to leave
the Valley days before Centre scrapped the state’s special status, J&K
Governor Satya Pal Malik lifted the advisory Monday. Following a security
review meeting with his advisors and Chief Secretary, a statement Monday said,
“this will be done with effect from Oct. 10”. 3 days before the Centre moved to
scrap Article 370 and bifurcate J&K, Malik’s administration had cut short
Amarnath Yatra and asked tourists to leave, citing intelligence inputs on
terror threats. Earlier, underscoring that situation in Kashmir is bigger than
party issues, PDP chief Mehbooba Mufti refused to meet a delegation of her
party members. A day after Governor Malik granted PDP permission to meet its
chief, the party Monday deferred the meeting with her until next week.Party
sources, however, said that Mehbooba “is in distress” and had refused to meet
the delegation stating that “the situation in Kashmir is bigger than any party
matter at the moment and that she does not wish to become an international
prop”. She has only met with her family at the tourist hut at Chashmashahi
where she is being detained. A senior PDP leader, who was recently released
after 59 days, said that the party was also not happy with “rhetoric of the Govt
portraying the meeting with top leader as some sort of resumption of political
process which is a lie”. The leader said the Govt “wants to show these meetings
as some sort of a sign of return of normalcy which is not the reality on the
ground”. According to leader, Govt had also put conditions that the party
delegation which was to meet Mehbooba won’t carry mobile phones and would
completely desist from speaking to media afterwards.indianexpress
Silent
on Art.370, NC softening towards Delhi?TOI
Srinagar: The intriguing
silence of National Conference on the nullification of Articles 370 and 35A on
Sunday, when a 15-member delegation of party leaders was allowed to meet their
bosses for first time in 2 months since Farooq Abdullah and his son Omar were
detained, seems to be part of a well thought out strategy, if party insiders
are to be believed. In what could well be an indication of going soft towards
the Centre on the contentious provisions which are now defunct, NC sources said
that party would “rather focus on pressing for restoring statehood to J&K”.
It may be noted that while NC members deliberately chose not to talk about the
withdrawal of special status to J&K after they met the party bosses on
Sunday, they focused on their twin demands for the release of all detained
political leaders, including the Abdullahs, and the “lifting of lockdown” in Kashmir.
A political analyst said on condition of anonymity that the statements by NC
leaders, coupled with the pictures of a beaming Farooq with a victory sign,
flanked by wife Molly and MPs Mohammad Akbar Lone and Masoodi, were a sure sign
of softening of NC’s stand towards Centre.However, while NC focus seems to have
shifted, at least for the time being, to bringing back normalcy in the Valley,
PDP has taken a hard line against the nullification of Articles 370 and 35A.TOI
J&K
not to remain UT forever: Amit Shah
Union home minister Amit
Shah has said J&K will not remain a Union Territory (UT) forever and that
statehood would be restored to it once the security situation improves.HT
Day
65: Normal life remains affected in Kashmir
Normal life remained
severely affected for the 65th consecutive day on Tuesday in the Valley in the
wake of the Centre’s move to revoke J&K’s special status under Article
370.Markets and other business establishments remained closed while most of the
public transport was off the roads across the valley today, officials said.PTI
OTHERS
WhatsApp
and other OTT service providers on TRAI radar for ‘lawful’ interception
New Delhi:Telecom regulator
is working on a set of recommendations for Dept.of Telecommunications (DoT) to
regulate so-called over-the-top (OTT) service providers. Once the
recommendations are accepted by DoT, apps such as WhatsApp may have to register
themselves, and potentially allow “lawful interception” of communication sent
or received through their platforms. The move comes at a time when regulatory
pressure is building up globally on service providers for access to messages
even as they claim these are encrypted and they themselves do not have
access.“Currently, OTTs aren’t subject to lawful interception. This brings the
question of regulatory imbalance between telecom players, which have to adhere
to lawful requests of enforcement agencies for interceptions, and OTTs which
don’t give, saying the communication is end-to-end encrypted. We are finding
out more about the international practices. What is being followed outside, the
same should be provided to the Indian Govt as well,” a senior TRAI official said,
on condition of anonymity. Globally, US Department of Justice has made fresh
arguments for access to encrypted communications.The Supreme Court is,
meanwhile, hearing a transfer petition of a case on traceability of WhatsApp
messages originally filed in the Madras High Court. indianexpress
Kejriwal
‘denied political clearance’ to attend C-40 climate meet in Denmark
Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal
will not be able to attend C-40 Climate Summit in Denmark as the Ministry of
External Affairs refused political clearance to his visit, said official
sources today. Delhi Govt sources said the CM was scheduled to leave for the
summit in Copenhagen, Denmark, at 2 pm today, but could not take the flight as MEA
denied him the political clearance to attend the meeting. AAP’s Rajya Sabha MP
Sanjay Singh termed the Centre’s decision to withhold the clearance
“unfortunate”, saying it would affect India’s image. He also wondered why the
Centre was “so much” angry with AAP Govt.Kejriwal was to lead an 8-member
delegation for the summit, slated to begin on Oct.9 and end on Oct.12.
“Kejriwal was not going on a vacation but to tell the world how Delhi managed
to reduce its air pollution by over 25% through its schemes like odd-even,”
Singh told reporters. MEA, however, gave clearance to West Bengal Minister
Firhad Hakim, claimed sources.PTI
Sanjiv
Bhatt’s plea rejected as he has scant respect for courts: Gujarat HC
Gujarat High Court has
cited that ex IPS officer Sanjiv Bhatt had “scant respect for the courts” and
“scant regard for truth” as reasons for rejecting his application for
suspension of his sentence in the 1990 custodial death case. The order passed
by Justice Bela Trivedi on Sept.25 was made public on the HC website on Monday.
The order noted that with Bhatt convicted for murder under IPC section 302, initial
presumption of innocence in favour of the accused was no longer available. The
court of Justice Trivedi also took into consideration public prosecutor Mitesh
Amin’s reliance on the observations made by Gujarat HC as well as the apex
court against Bhatt in other proceedings.“…it appears that the applicant has
scant respect for the courts and is in the habit of misusing the process of law
and scandalising the court. Some of the observations made by the SC in the
proceedings filed by the applicant substantiates the submissions made by Amin,
more particularly in the case of Sanjiv Rajendra Bhatt vs Union of India… in
which the court had observed… that the petitioner had made a deliberate attempt
to mislead the court… Even this court… had observed that the applicant had
scant regards for the truth…”indianexpress
Elgaar
Parishad case: HC reserves order on bail pleas of activists
Mumbai :Bombay High Court
has reserved its order on the bail application filed by activists Sudha
Bharadwaj, Arun Ferreira and Vernon Gonsalves, in connection with the Elgaar
Parishad case for their alleged links with the banned CPI-Maoist. The activists
were arrested by Pune Police on August 28, 2018.indianexpress
Dantewada:
Police say Maoist killed in encounter, one cop dead too
Dantewada :An alleged
Maoist was killed in an encounter in the Katekalyan area of Dantewada,
Chhattisgarh police said. An assistant constable who was part of the police
team also died, but officers said he did not have bullet injuries and was
suspected to have suffered a heart attack. According to PTI, a DRG jawan
received minor injuries in the face-off. indianexpress
Bihar
Jamaat-e-Islami, SIO provide relief to thousands of flood victims
PATNA: As there were
complaints of lackluster approach from the Govt to flood relief work in Bihar,
Bihar’s religious organizations like Jamaat-e-Islami Hind (JIH) and SIO along
with other NGOs came forward to provide relief works to the flood victims. They
rescued people whose houses were submerged in the flood water and provided them
food and other necessary items. Hundreds of the cadres associated with the JIH
and SIO have been conducting relief works since Sept.25 in Patna, Katihar and
Bhagalpur since the state was witnessing heavy rain.People from 1,400 villages
of 90 blocks in 15 districts in Bihar were left stranded due to flooding. At least
73 people have died and more than 20 lakh people are estimated to be
affected.Bihar SIO’s zonal president Tahoor Ahmed told Caravan Daily that they
have provided relief to around 10,000 people in Patna and Katihar alone.“When
Patna witnessed the fury of flood, the Govt relief works were very slow. People
were extremely worried. Then, SIO and Jamaat decided to carry out relief works.
When we have started relief works, there was no relief from the Govt as well as
any other NGO. It was raining constantly. When the rain abated, others came out
for the relief works,” said Ahmed.Bihar Jamaat’s president Rizwan Islahi said
that Bhagalpur touched the danger level of flood but it has not caught media
attention. So, his organization has carried out massive relief activities in
Bhagalpur too.He said that in Patna, his cadres constantly worked for rescuing
people and providing them urgent reliefs in early 5 days.Caravan Daily
Job
losses and business shutdowns are a reality in India today: Uddhav Thackeray
Shiv Sena chief Uddhav
Thackeray said that job losses and businesses shutting down were a reality
irrespective of whether one accepts that there is an economic slowdown.“Whether
there is economic slowdown or not we will see later but jobs are going, businesses
are shutting down this is clearly visible and let us accept that,” Thackeray
said in the second part of his interview with party mouthpiece Saamana.HT
Telangana
: No certificates for talaq, khula, Muslims in a tizzy
Hyderabad: With Wakf
Boards in Telangana state and AP having stopped issuing certificates of talaq
(divorce) and khula (divorce on wife’s initiative), many Muslims, already
grappling with the anguish of their marriage breaking down, feel more let down.
In TS, Wakf Board authorities have stopped issuing certificates for about two
months now, while people in AP are unable to get certificates since the past
month.Wakf Board officials are being careful as they wait for the Govt to issue
specific orders on the recently passed ‘Muslim Women (Protection of Rights on Marriage)
Act, 2019’.Officials, on condition of anonymity, said they do not want to take
any risk as the matter is very sensitive. In AP, people were asked to move
court or wait till specific orders were received from govt. Incidentally, AP
Wakf Board issues very few certificates; not over 10,000 per year.A certificate
pertaining to nikah, talaq and khula issued by the Wakf Board is considered
valid document to show the marital status of Muslims. These certificates are
utilised to obtain passport, visa, Haj pilgrimage permits, etc.They are also
used in partition suits or marital disputes in courts of law. A talaq or khula
certificate is essential in case a woman desires to remarry. Incidentally,
while Wakf Act makes it clear that the Wakf Board has no connection with
marriage related affairs, TS Wakf Board has a special section to do just
that.In Telangana, about 50,000 nikah (weddings) take place every year. TS Wakf
Board issues over 35,000 marriage and more than 1,500 talaq and khula
certificates per year. Reacting to the news on stoppage of certificates,
Anjuman-e-Qazat, association of qazis, warned Wakf Board not to create
unnecessary controversies. Congress leaders too submitted a memorandum to the
Wakf Board authorities requesting revival of the services to avoid difficulties
to the needy. DECCAN CHRONICLE
Everyone
Must Respect SC Verdict on Ram Temple: UP CM Day After Dropping 'Good News'
Hint
Lucknow: Day after
hinting that a ‘good news’ is expected on the Ram Mandir, UP CM Yogi Aditya
said on Monday that everyone should respect the Supreme Court verdict on Babri
Masjid title dispute case. Speaking to media in Gorakhpur, Adityanath said that
people should impose their faith in the proceedings of the apex court on an
issue that has been pending for so long and is ‘needed for the development of
the nation.’ Without directly referring to Ram temple construction work, UP CM
on Saturday had said that some good news was expected soon..news18
No
possibility of Masjid construction: Tauqeer Raza
Lucknow: Grandson of Aala
Hazrat and Ittehad Millat Council Chief Maulana Tauqeer Raza held a meeting
with Muslim scholars at a flat at Thakur Gunj, Lucknow. Before the meeting,
Maulana Tauqeer Raza said in the current scenario, reconciliation is the only
solution to the Ayodhya dispute.In view of the situation, whether the court
verdict comes in favour or against, Muslim party cannot construct masjid at any
cost. Hence both the parties should solve the issue through reconciliation so
that peace prevails in the country, he said. Inquilab Daily reported. The joint
proposal of clerics and Sunni Central Waqf Board will be submitted before
Oct.18. People outside the flat raised slogans against Maulana Raza. Maulana
said that some people are obstructing the reconciliation. Some sections in each
of the two parties, want one-sided verdict. He blamed VHP and others on one
side and AIMPLB and Jamiat Ulama on the other for not resolving the
matter.siasat
People
should respect SC's decision on Ram Mandir-Babri Masjid case: Mayawati
Mayawati has said
everyone should respect the Supreme Court's verdict on Ram Mandir/Babri Masjid
in Ayodhya, UP and this will be the best for the country. Taking to
micro-blogging site Twitter, Mayawati said,' After day-to-day hearing of the
special bench of the SC on Babri Masjid case, everyone must respect whatever
decision is taken and maintain an atmosphere of communal harmony everywhere in
the country. This will be best in the wider public and country interest.' UNI
Son
suspected to have joined Islamic State, Kerala man declared hostile witness
Mumbai: Father of a
Kerala man who allegedly left the country to join Islamic State was declared a
hostile witness on Monday in a trial against an IRF employee.Kerala man has
been missing from the country since 2016, along with his wife, one-year-old
daughter, brother, cousin and their families. His father had registered a
complaint that IRF employee, Arshi Qureshi, had allegedly influenced his son
and his family to join IS.But on Monday, the father denied registering a
complaint against Qureshi. He denied his earlier statement where he had said he
had often overheard his son talking on the phone about an “Arshi bhai” from
IRF. “After I returned from Umrah in
2016, I learnt that some persons from our village, including my son, have gone
missing…They left India but I do not know where they went,” father said.“It is
not correct to say that I had heard my son talk on the phone around me. I do
not know anything about IRF, nor about Arshi,” he said during his
examination-in-chief by NIA prosecutor.When complainant was shown FIR filed by police,
he admitted that he had signed it, but added he was not aware of its contents
as he had neither read it, nor was it read to him. He said he had heard about
IRF when police called him for questioning and asked him about IRF.indianexpress
Jaipur
hotel denies room to interfaith couple, cites ‘policy, police instructions’
Jaipur :A Muslim man and
Hindu woman have alleged that a hotel in Jaipur stopped them from checking in
on the ground that they hail from different religions.The incident took place
on Saturday when the man, a 31-year-old assistant professor based in Udaipur,
tried to check into one of Oyo’s SilverKey hotels in Jaipur. “I reached Jaipur
on Saturday morning and my friend was supposed to reach later from Delhi,” the
assistant professor said.“I had booked a room for two in the hotel through a
travel app. I reached the hotel somewhere around 8-9 am. The receptionist then
asked me about the other person who was to check in with me and I gave them my
friend’s name, but to my shock I was told that ‘this is a problem. Both of you
are from different religions, we can’t check you in’,” man said.indianexpress
Law
ministry says it's considering Election Commission proposal on collecting
Aadhaar data to clean up electoral rolls
The law ministry is
learnt to be considering an Election Commission proposal to give it statutory
backing to collect Aadhaar number of new applicants and existing voters to
check multiple entries in electoral rolls.In August 2015, a Supreme Court order
on Aadhaar card put brakes on Election Commission's project to link UIDAI
(Aadhaar) number with voters' electoral data to check multiple entries in
electoral rolls.The poll panel was then collecting Aadhaar number as part of
its National Electoral Roll Purification and Authentication Programme
(NERPAP).In a letter to law ministry, the Commission recently proposed that provisions
of the Representation of People Act be amended to allow EC seek Aadhaar numbers
of those applying to be voters and those who are already part of the electoral
rolls.PTI
China
puts curbs on teaching of MBBS in English amid surge of Indian students
Beijing: With a record
number of students from India enrolling to study medicine in China, the
country’s education ministry has authorised only 45 of the local medical
colleges from among over 200 to enrol foreign students to teach MBBS in
English.Chinese universities have witnessed enrolment of a record number of
Indian students to study medicine. China attracts foreign students, specially
from India and other Asian countries, due to its affordable courses.At present
over 23,000 Indian students are studying different courses in Chinese
universities, as against over 28,000 from Pakistan. Considering the growing
interest among Indian students about Chinese medical courses, Indian Embassy
here on Monday said Chinese Govt has
approved 45 medical colleges in the country to teach MBBS course in English to
foreign students. Chinese MOE has also clarified that universities which are
not in the list of the 45 universities should not admit foreign students for
the MBBS programme to be taught in English, a press release issued by Indian
Embassy said. HT
WORLD
Turkey
says Preparations 'complete' for Syria military action but Trump threatens to
'obliterate' economy if they do 'off limits'; Iran opposes it
Preparations for a major
military operation in northeast Syria are complete, Turkey announced on Tuesday
after US pulled back troops and cleared the way for a Turkish attack on
Kurdish-led forces long allied to Washington. But US President Donald Trump
warned he would "obliterate" NATO ally's economy if it took action in
Syria that he considered "off limits" following his decision on
Sunday to pull 50 American special forces troops from the border region.US
withdrawal will leave its Kurdish-led partner - SDF - vulnerable to an
incursion by Turkey's military, which brands them "terrorists"
because of their links to Kurdish fighters who have waged a decades-long
resistance inside Turkey.Turkey's armed forces "will never tolerate the
establishment of a terror corridor on our borders. All preparations for the
operation have been completed", defence ministry said on Twitter early
today."It is essential to establish a safe zone/peace corridor to
contribute to our region's peace and stability, and for Syrians to achieve a
safe life," it said. .Gabriel Kino, a SDF spokesman, said the militia was
ready to take on Turkish forces. Trump's warning on Turkey's economy appeared
aimed at placating critics who accused him of abandoning Syrian Kurds by pulling
out US forces. Lawrence Korb, ex US assistant defence secretary, said US
president's decision was politically motivated with 2020 election approaching.
Meanwhile, Iran's Foreign Affairs Minister Javad Zarif told his Turkish
counterpart, in a phone call that Tehran
is opposed to Turkey's operation in Syria."
US
cuts Turkey’s access to north-east Syria airspace ahead of military campaign
US military has severely
limited Turkey’s access to the airspace over north-east Syria, making the
upcoming Turkish military operation into the area difficult without the benefit
of air cover.US has taken a series of actions since yesterday which would
potentially hinder the operation, with Pentagon spokeswoman Carla Gleason
informing reporters that Combined Air Operations Centre has removed Turkey from
anti-ISIL coalition’s air tasking order, through which it coordinates the
flights of member nations.As well as removing Turkey from US coordination, it
has also halted Turkey’s access to surveillance information, crippling its
ability to accurately conduct aerial cover during its campaign.MEMO
Israel
to build camps as preparation for displacing Arab citizens
Israel’s District
Planning and Building Committee considered a plan on Sunday submitted by Bedouin
Settlement Authority in the Negev which aims to build camps as preparation for
the displacement of 36,000 Arab citizens, Arab48.com has reported. Plan targets
Palestinian-Arab residents within Israel who live in Bedouin villages
“unrecognised” by Israeli occupation Govt. Such villages have often been in
place for hundreds of years before the creation of the Israeli occupation
state. Nevertheless, it is insisting on displacing their residents and
replacing the villages with housing projects for Jewish Israeli settlers. A
letter has been sent to the head of District Planning and Building Committee
asking them not to accept the plan. MEMO
Hamas
calls for PA to stop being dictated by Israel
Hamas called for Palestinian
Authority (PA) to stop being dictated by Israeli occupation.“PA is marketing Israeli
dictations as great victories in areas of cooperation between both sides,”Hamas
spokesman Fawzi Barhoum said. He referred to formation of mutual technical
committees to oversee the process of funnelling tax money from Israel to PA.“Considering
the formation of technical committees to audit tax money as a great victory by Fatah-led
PA is an attempt to promote deceptive achievements,” Barhoum said.“This is a
cover for PA’s failure and defeat against the Israeli occupation aimed to
deceive Palestinian public,” he added.MEMO
Israel's
Gideon Saar challenges lengthy Netanyahu Likud rule
With a simple tweet,
Gideon Saar did what no Israeli politician from the ruling conservative party
has done in more than a decade - openly challenge its chief, PM Benjamin
Netanyahu.The brazen move against the long-serving Israeli leader has solidly
positioned 52-year-old Saar as Likud party's leading candidate to replace
Netanyahu, who is fighting for his survival amid a pending corruption
indictment and post-election political paralysis. Ex aide and Cabinet minister
under Netanyahu, Saar has long been considered a rising star in Likud and one
of lone independent voices in a party that has, in general, blindly followed
its leader.aljazeera
Ghannouchi:Ennahda
won Tunisia’s legislative polls
Head of Tunisian Ennahda
Movement, Rached Ghannouchi, announced that his movement had achieved an
“unquestionable victory” during the country’s legislative elections.During a
press conference held , he vowed that Ennahda would seek formation of a
competent Govt. He added that they would support the Govt of the current PM
Youssef Chahed so that the movement could form a partnership Govt.“This is a
new phase where the people have entrusted us, and we are willing to meet their
expectations and harness all adequate effort,” said Gannouchi.“We will consult
with all our partners involved in the war against corruption and poverty, and
will work to meet the most important goals of the Tunisian revolution,
especially freedom, justice and employment.”middleeastmonitor
Egypt
fires 1,070 teachers for alleged terror links
Egypt has sacked over
1,000 teachers for allegedly being affiliated to a terror organisation,
Education Minister announced in a press conference. Tarek Shawki said that the
teachers were fired for their links to the Muslim Brotherhood and vowed to
investigate teachers “unfit to work” to purge Egyptian schools of “destructive
ideas” and “politically extreme views”, according to the New Arab.Al-Masry
Al-Youm reports that some have been sentenced to death whilst others are
“fugitives” outside Egypt. middleeastmonitor
Saudi
announces further rule changes with one eye on foreign investors
In its latest bid to
attract foreign investors, Saudi Arabia has relaxed rules over the listing of
shares on the kingdom’s main stock exchange, Tadawul.Capital Markets Authority
(CMA) of Saudi announced the changes with the aim of increasing the
attractiveness of the kingdom to companies looking for less investment
stringent regulations.middleeastmonitor
Yemeni
Govt, separatist STC close to deal on Aden
Yemen's Saudi-backed Govt
and southern separatists are close to a deal that would end a power struggle in
the southern port of Aden and see Saudi forces take control of the city
temporarily, four sources familiar with the negotiations said.Saudi Arabia,
leader of an Arab coalition battling Yemen's Houthi movement, has been hosting
indirect talks for a month between the Govt of Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi and
Southern Transitional Council (STC) to end the standoff that had opened a new
front in the multi-faceted war. STC is part of the military alliance that
intervened in Yemen in March 2015 to restore Hadi's Govt after it was removed
from power in the capital, Sanaa, by Houthis. But the separatists, who seek
self-rule in the south, turned on the Govt in August and seized its interim
seat of Aden.aljazeera
US
blacklists 28 Chinese entities over 'brutal' Xinjiang abuses
US plans to blacklist 28
Chinese entities it says are implicated in human rights abuses singling out
Uighurs and other mostly Muslim minorities in Xinjiang region. US "cannot
and will not tolerate the brutal suppression of ethnic minorities within
China", Secretary of Commerce Wilbur Ross said, announcing the move, which
bars the named entities from purchasing US products.The blacklisted firms
included video surveillance company Hikvision, as well as artificial
intelligence companies Megvii Technology and SenseTime, according to an update
to US Federal Register set to be published on Wednesday. Ban comes amid
heightened tensions between US and China, particularly over trade policy and
Beijing's actions in the Xinjiang region.aljazeera
UN,
NGOs accused of bungling effort to educate Rohingya kids
On May 13, a group of
Rohingya refugee education leaders had the rare chance to ask some of the
questions that had been weighing on their minds for more than two years. For first
time, they were meeting representatives from the UN and international NGOs
tasked with providing education to about half a million Rohingya refugee
children living in camps in Cox's Bazar, Bangladesh. Minutes of the meeting show
how community leaders questioned the officials about the slow effort to give
refugees formal education, the absence of a Myanmar curriculum in the camps,
and the lack of consultation with the community. aljazeera
James
Peebles, Michel Mayor and Didier Queloz get Nobel Prize for Physics
Nobel Prize for Physics
has been awarded to James Peebles for theoretical discoveries in physical
cosmology, and Michel Mayor and Didier Queloz for discovering an exoplanet
orbiting a solar-type star.This year’s Nobel Prize in Physics rewards new
understanding of the universe’s structure and history, and the first discovery
of a planet orbiting a solar-type star outside our solar system. The
discoveries have forever changed our conceptions of the world, a statement from
the Nobel Assembly at Sweden's Royal Academy of Sciences said.James Peebles
took on the cosmos, with its billions of galaxies and galaxy clusters. His
theoretical framework, developed over 2 decades, is foundation of our modern
understanding of universe’s history, from Big Bang to the present day.thehindu
Flash:NEWS,views,Articles
Foreigners’
Tribunals almost another arm of BJP govt in Assam: Faizan Mustafa
Stories
of Yawar Ahmed Bhat:Syeda Hameed
What
on Earth Is a Quantum Computer, and Why Should You Care?Ronak Gupta
NRC
Panic Is Already Taking Lives in West Bengal:Gurvinder Singh
Why
the Proposed Citizenship Amendment Runs Foul of Constitutional
Provisions:Anupama Roy
Is
Justice Kureshi being discriminated because of his links to Gandhi or because
he is ‘communal’?:RK Misra
Nawabs
of Malerkotla in Punjab held out lessons in communal harmony since the 15th
Century:Pippa Virdee
India
economy: Companies cut jobs as unions weakened: Anchal Vohra
Kashmir:
9-year-old out to buy bread beaten, locked up
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by Anwarulhaq (Released at: 8:44 PM)
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