20 JAN. 2020 FLASH NEWS
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*anti-citizenship act stir*
New Caution To Government: NRC Fear Will Stalk Hindus Too
New Delhi: Much of the resistance to CAA and its prequel, NRC, has
advocated that it is Muslims who will be marginalised and forced to prove they
belong in India.Ahead of the Supreme Court's review, NRC is now being deemed
both discriminatory and dangerous by even long-term supporters of BJP and its
government. Publicly, they are stating that NRC must be vetoed because it will
allow a power surge through those who have the authority to review whatever
evidence you offer of your citizenship; bribes will have free play; and it is
not just minorities but the majority of Hindus who will find themselves
cornered - pay up or be declared "doubtful".Mohandas Pai, a
well-known BJP sympathiser - rightly or wrongly often called a BJP troll -
tweeted: "All will suffer in the hands of corrupt lower level officials,
who will demand large bribes, who can threaten you, disqualify you: with a
broken Justice system the pain is not worth it".This new approach by
analysts on the likely harassment of India's majority community is making large
numbers of Hindus worried. Popular author Chetan Bhagat writes in TOI:
"The sarkari babu will enjoy this extra power boost. Oh, and there will
still be a rate. It's just that the stricter the criteria are, the higher the
rate will be ... If you don't pay the rate, is it that hard for the babu to
reject your genuine birth certificate (good luck proving its authenticity in
court for the next 20 years)".The message these different analyses agree
on: that Hindu majority will face serious and widespread harassment too.India's
Nobel Prize winner Abhijit Bannerjee strongly points out that so much power
given to officials is dangerous: "I'd be petrified by that thought and
even if I were - you know just the fact that somebody will come and say 'Look,
I'm in charge of making this list I could put doubtful next to your name... or
I could not. And maybe you could pay me ten thousand rupees' ", he said in
a recent interview.ndtv
*"NRC Secular, But A Secular Harassment For All": Chetan
Bhagat To NDTV*
New Delhi: There will be abuse the moment NRC is executed, author Chetan Bhagat told NDTV
today, elaborating on an article he wrote for TOI in which he argued it
"would cause secular harassment to all" and "must be
shelved". Bhagat also pointed to the image problem faced by BJP, a party
seen by many as practicing "identity-based politics" and one that
"causes a lot of anxiety, especially in minority community", as more
reasons to reconsider NRC."I'm not saying the fear is rational... the fear
is real. BJP has always tried to polarise... that's what people think,"
Bhagat said, noting that if the NRC had been floated by another government,
"if there was trust", it may have been better received."All
kinds of documents will be missing... there will be huge anxiety. Even if you
have papers, bureaucrats could reject them. Then what will you do? Go to
court?" he asked, pointing out that the government would also struggle to
deal with the crores who might be excluded.NDTV
* ‘Can’t do terror politics just because we have numbers’: BJP’s Chandra
Bose on CAA*
New Delhi: West Bengal BJP vice-president and Netaji Subhas Chandra
Bose’s grandnephew Chandra Kumar Bose has said that a law should not be thrust
on the citizens in a democratic country. He was speaking about the CAA passed
by Parliament.“Our job is to explain to people that we are right and they are
wrong. You cannot be abusive. Just because we have numbers today we cannot do terror
politics. Let us go to people explaining benefits of CAA,” Bose said on Sunday,
according to ANI.“Once a bill has been passed as an act, it is binding on the
state governments, that is the legal position but in a democratic country you
cannot thrust any act on the citizens of our country,” he added.Bose also said
that he has suggested some modifications to the bill which will puncture the
entire Opposition campaign. “We need to specifically state that it is meant for
persecuted minorities, we should not mention any religion. Our approach should
be different,” he said.HT
*Impossible for Hindu minorities to show proof of religious persecution:
Assam Minister Biswa Sarma*
Guwahati: Amid anti-CAA protest in Assam, state Finance Minister Himanta
Biswa Sarma said that it is impossible for the person to go back to Bangladesh
and collect a copy of police report to show the proof of religious
persecution.“If a person has to prove it then he has to go to Bangladesh and
collect a copy of the police report. Why would the police station in Bangladesh
give that proof? So, said that it is not possible to prove the concept of
religious persecution under the CAA,” Sarma, who is also a BJP leader, told
media on being asked about his recent statement on CAA over religious
persecution. ANI
*50 lakh Muslim infiltrators will be chased out of India if needed:
Bengal chief BJP Dilip Ghosh*
Kolkata:Raking up another controversy, BJP West Bengal chief Dilip Ghosh
on Sunday said that 50 lakh Muslim infiltrators will be identified and
"chased out of the country" if needed.This comes as the Bengal BJP
chief was attacking West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Bannerjee on the issue of
appeasement.He said, "50 lakh Muslim infiltrators will be identified, if
needed they will be chased out of the country. Firstly their names will be
removed from voters' list then Didi [Mamata] can't appease anyone."This
comes after Dilip Ghosh stoked a controversy a few days ago when he said that
people damaging public property should be "shot like dogs".India
Today
*Modi pursuing Jinnah’s dream, wants to deport Muslims to Pakistan or
Bangladesh: Adhir Chowdhury*
Burdwan :Congress MP Adhir Chowdhury today said Prime Minister Narendra
Modi is trying to accomplish the dreams of Mohammed Ali Jinnah and that’s why
he is aiming to deport the entire population of Indian Muslims to Pakistan or
Bangladesh through CAA and NRC.He was addressing a ‘No CAA, No NRC’ meeting
organised by his party in front of Burdwan town’s iconic Curzon Gate. “Indian
Muslims had refused to respond to Jinnah’s vehement provocations for their bulk
migration to Pakistan; rather our Muslims insisted that India alone was their
country.thestatesman
*After Hasina, Former Afghanistan President Hamid Karzai Makes Negative
Comment On New Citizenship Law*
NEW DELHI:After Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina Wajed questioned
the contentions CAA passed by the Narendra Modi government, former Afghanistan
president Hamid Karzai made negative comment about the law on Sunday.Karzai,
who was here to attend the Raisina Dialogue, told The Hindu newspaper in an
interview that “all Afghans have suffered over the years of conflict,
irrespective of religion”.He categorically stated that “Afghanistan has no
persecuted minorities”.Karzai said in the interview, “(CAA) was India’s
decision, and they may have had reasons for it and the law brought to
Parliament. We don’t have persecuted minorities in Afghanistan…the whole
country is persecuted. We have been in war and conflict for a long time. All
religions in Afghanistan: Muslims and Hindus and Sikhs, which are our three
main religions, have suffered”.India Tomorrow
*Bengaluru: Over 100 makesift houses razed in Bellandur, cops claim
residents ‘illegal Bangladeshis’*
Many families were pushed to the streets in Bengaluru on Sunday after
the city police along with the municipal corporation demolished their makeshift
houses. The police claimed that the tenants of these were illegal Bangladeshi
migrants” and that they had sent an eviction notice to the owner of these
houses earlier. Activists, however. said those residing in the area hailed from
various parts of Karnataka, northern and north-eastern parts of the country and
worked as domestic helps, construction workers and security guards
here.Condemning the drive by Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) and the
police, advocate and activist Vinay Sreenivasa said, “More than 200 makeshift
houses were demolished by the police in Kariyammana Agrahara on Sunday. Men who
came in plain clothes to conduct the demolition drive said they were
Marathahalli police providing protection to BBMP officials. However, there were
no BBMP officials present near the site.”“When we asked the reason behind the
move, they said they are getting it done because the people here are illegal
Bangladeshis. They stopped the demolition only when we asked them to produce
the order directing them to do so. If the people staying in these makeshift
houses are Bangladeshis, they need to identify them first and then take action.
Why do they have to demolish all the houses,” he added.Both BBMP and police
refused to comment on the drive.“People living in these sheds are from this
country only, there are people from North Karnataka, North India, and North
East India. All the people have their documents, but since we were issued a
notice by the police, we evicted them,” Chethan Babu said.Meanwhile, residents
of the area alleged that they were forced to leave their houses without any
information. “We are Indians, we have documents. Police arrived without any
prior notice and demolished our houses here. Many people living here are from
Assam, West Bengal, Bihar, and North Karnataka,” one Kumar Das
said.indianexpress
*Muslim community being cornered via legal route: DU professor Deshpande*
HYDERABAD: An attempt to corner
the Muslim community was underway through a legal route, said Satish Deshpande,
a sociology professor from University of Delhi, while delivering the ninth SR
Sankaran Memorial Lecture on ‘Casteism and Communalism organised by CDS, on
Sunday. "Today’s communal agenda is to overthrow the existing reality —
equality of all religions. Our Constitution doesn’t recognise the difference
between religions. The communal agenda is to 'correct' personal law, so that
due recognition will be given to the Hindus, that is the communal agenda,"
he said.The professor further said that an attempt to create a unifying
national project of othering Muslims was on its way, and all other sections of
the society are invited to participate in it.newindianexpress
*Back in UP, Bhim Army chief Chandrashekhar takes on state govt over CAA
‘killings’*
Meerut:Bhim Army chief Chandrashekhar Azad on Sunday met with the family
members of five people who were killed during a protest against CAA and NRC in
Uttar Pradesh’s Meerut . Since the leader was denied permission to visit their
houses, he met them at a public place.Azad alleged the family members narrated
horrific tales of police atrocities during the interaction and accused UP police
of opening fire on people during the protest.“Cops had killed people during
protest against the CAA and stern action should be taken against the guilty
policemen,” he said. Azad also said the Bhim Army has moved the high court over
the matter, which would hear it on January 23.HT
FIR against 'unidentified' for controversial hoarding, calling 'Get rid
of CAA, NRC by returning to Hinduism' in UP
Varanasi: An FIR has been lodged against unidentified persons for a
controversial hoarding near Varanasi railway station. The hoarding near the
Englishiya Line crossing read, "Hindu dharma mein ghar vapasi karo... CAA,
NRC se chhutkara pao (Get rid of CAA, NRC by returning to
Hinduism)".Inspector Ashutosh Ojha said that the FIR under section 295 A
and 505 of IPC has been lodged."Investigation has been launched in the
case and those involved in putting up the hoarding would be identified
soon," he added.According to sources, a lesser known outfit, Hindu Samaj
Party, had placed the hoarding on the busy road.The outfit's state Vice
President Roshan Pandey,had made a video viral on social media with his message
in which he claimed to have put up the hoarding in response to the protest
being staged at Shaheen Bagh, New Delhi.The hoarding, which also has
photographs of some Muslim women wearing saffron pagdi, was removed by the
police late Saturday evening.It came up at a time when Chief Minister Yogi
Adityanath, Union Minister Smriti Irani and other leaders were in Varanasi to
address a rally in support of the CAA at Sampurnanand Sanskrit
University.Pandey, along with his supporters, had also tried to stage a sit-in
at Lanka to give a call for marching to Shaheen Bagh in Delhi but was prevented
by the police.IANS
Slaps, Hair Pulling - In Madhya Pradesh, Officials vs Pro-CAA Protesters
Rajgarh: Violence broke out at a pro-citizenship law rally in Madhya
Pradesh's Rajgarh district on Sunday after officials and local police clashed
with CAA supporters determined to carry out a march despite imposition of
prohibitory orders. District Collector Nidhi Nivedita slapped a BJP worker
after protesters assaulted two Deputy Collectors, Priya Verma and Shruti
Agrwal, and a few police officers. At least three people were injured as cops
resorted to a lathi-charge to control the situation."Permission was denied
to hold a rally... still around 50 to 100 persons, violating Section 144, took
out the march. When they were stopped by police and administration, those
present started misbehaving... pulled one of our women officers by her hair and
kicked her, besides trying to pull clothes of both women officers," Ms
Nivedita said.ndtv
Hundreds March With Candles Against CAA From Jamia To Shaheen Bagh
New Delhi: Hundreds, including women and children, on Sunday evening
took out a massive anti-CAA march from the gates of Jamia Millia Islamia to
Shaheen Bagh as the chorus to demand repealing of the amended Citizenship Act
grew louder in Delhi.The march was high on symbolism with some locals dressed
up as Mahatma Gandhi and Babasaheb Bhimrao Ambedkar. Three men assumed the
identity of martyred revolutionaries Bhagat Singh, Rajguru and Sukhdev, one of
them in prison clothes and tied in chains.The protesters, chanting
"Azadi" and "CAA-NCR Par Halla Bol", and other slogans also
paraded a mock "detention camp" portrayed with a cell on wheels
inside which sat little children of multiple faiths and chanted slogans.ndtv
Pune: BJP MP Girish Bapat's son files complaint against anti-CAA
protestors near Sambhaji Garden
BJP MP Girish Bapat’s son Gaurav Bapat has filed a complaint against the
participants in the protest organised in solidarity with Shaheen Bagh protestors
on JM road on Saturday night.He has objected to the permission for the protest
through the night and has stated that he will start protesting if no action is
taken by cops. While the organisers have said that they had permissions in
place, they will decide what to do only after the cops talk to them. Meanwhile,
the cops have stated that they are seeking legal opinion on the issue.An
anti-CAA and anti-NRC protest was organised in Pune in solidarity with Shaheen
Bagh protestors at JM road. The protest started at 6 pm and continued through
the night as the protestors sat sloganeering and singing songs as well as
making rangolis. Over 100 citizens had participated in the protest which
occupied the footpath outside the Sambhaji Garden.Bapat has lodged the complaint
against the protest in Deccan police station. He has stated that the slogans
were anti-national and that they have breached the Supreme Court order of not
gathering and raising volume past midnight.Pune Mirror
Bihar Police arrests 13 minors from Aurangabad during CAA protests,
passes them off as 'adults' in FIR
Bihar police have arrested 13 minors and identified them as
"adults" over anti-Citizenship Amenment Act protests on 21 December
2019 in town of Aurangabad turned violent. All arrested are Muslim
youths.Firstpost had earlier reported that Bihar Police had altered the age of
two minor boys and passed them off as adults in FIR. The next hearing is on 28
January when the Juvenile Justice Board will decide on their age.Lawyer for the
minors Meraj Khan said after the board's decision he would move for their bail
plea. Most of the minors are aged between 14 and 17, Khan said and added that
while one is 13, another one is as young as 12. 12 minors have been lodged in
adult prison for the past one month with hardened criminals, Khan said. Only
one was sent to a juvenile home after he sustained serious injuries in both his
hands during police lathicharge. "It is a straightforward case. We have their
birth certificates, documents and we have presented them before the Juvenile
Justice Board on 16 January. On 28, the board will declare them
juveniles."When contacted, Aurangabad SP Dipak Baranwal said that the case
is an "old one now" and he "does not remember the details".
On 21 December, town of Aurangabad had observed a protest at Ramesh Chowk,
where most of the gatherings and speeches are usually held. RJD and its allies
had called for a bandh to rally against CAA and NRC. But the peaceful protests
turned violent near the end.The police in Aurangabad had arrested 46 people the
same day, and named more than 80 in its FIR. Among those picked up by the
police were four of Mohammad Enamul Rab's relatives, who were taken from their
homes, which included his younger brother Saddam, his uncle Mukhtar,
brother-in-law Rizwan, and another brother Imran.One of Rab’s brothers, Saddam,
is 12, as is recorded in his school certificate, which Firstpost
examined.firstpost
50% jump in people held for illegally entering Bangladesh
New Delhi:The number of people caught while trying to cross over to
Bangladesh from India increased by over 50% with a total of 2,971 people
arrested by BSF in 2018 as compared to 1,800 in 2017, according to latest data
from NCRB. A large number of those who were caught trying to illegally emigrate
were women and children. NCRB “Crime in India 2018” report says that out of
2,971 people arrested in 2018 while making an “outward movement” to Bangladesh,
1,532 were men, 749 women and 690 children. This corresponding numbers was
1,477, 268 and 55 in 2017.On the other hand, “inward movement” from Bangladesh
came down marginally to 1,118 in 2018 in comparison to 1,180 in 2017. NCRB data
does not explain the motives of those arrested by BSF, which manages the
international borders in West Bengal, Assam, Tripura, Mizoram and Assam.HT
After CAA, Kerala govt now decides to not implement NPR, will inform
Census body
Kochi:Kerala government headed by CM Pinarayi Vijayan has decided not to
implement the proposed NPR. This comes after the Kerala government moved
Supreme Court against CAA recently and also passed a resolution against the
law. On Monday, Kerala cabinet decided to not implement NPR in the state. The
government said the Census Registrar General will be informed about the
decision and that Census will be done as per norms.Kerala General
Administration Department had last week directed all officials to ensure that
NPR is not mentioned while sending communications on Census 2021. The note to
the district collectors was sent following social media speculations over the
implementation of NPR in Kerala. Pinarayi Vijayan on Sunday lashed out at the
Centre over the controversial CAA, NRC and NPR and said the state would not
implement the 'whims and fancies' of the RSS, but would uphold the values of
the Constitution.indiatoday
All Congress-ruled states set to pass resolution against citizenship law
Ahmedabad: BJP’s claim that Indian Muslims won’t be affected by CAA a
jumla, says Jamia student Asif Iqbal Tanha
Ahmedabad :BJP’s statement that Indian Muslims have no danger from CAA
is like a poll “jumla” (rhetoric) which is very similar to Prime Minister
Narendra Modi’s promise made before the general elections that citizens would
get Rs 15 lakh in their bank accounts, Jamia Millia Islamia student Asif Iqbal
Tanha said here on Sunday.The interaction with the mediapersons on police
clampdown at Delhi’s Jamia Millia in December was organised by Gujarat Alliance
Against CAA, NPR & NRC, a group formed by various civil rights activists of
Gujarat. Tanha was accompanied by another student of the university, Ayesha
Renna, who has become the face of the agitation against the new citizenship law
at Jamia after a video showing her stopping police from attacking fellow
protesters went viral on the social media last month.“Has the Central
government been able to satisfy the people of the country? Have the people
received Rs 15 lakh in their bank accounts? It is a jumla by the government to
say that Indian Muslims have no danger from CAA. It is a lie.”Lauding people of
Gujarat for holding anti-CAA and anti-NRC protests, Renna said that it is like
striking at the heart of Modi and Shah.Local leaders such as Mujahid Nafees,
head of the Minority Coordination Committee, also criticised the CAA and NRC,
calling them against the ethos of India’s constitution.
Leave Country If You Can’t Accept Vande Mataram, Says BJP Minister;
Twiiter Calls Him ‘Communal Cow’
Union Minister of State for MSME Pratap Chandra Sarangi attacked the
Congress for spreading misinformation about the CAA, saying that those who do not accept India's freedom,
unity, and Vande Mataram, have no right to stay in the country."Those who
set the country on fire are not patriots. Those who do not accept India's
freedom, unity, Vande Mataram, have no right to stay in the country," said
Sarangi in a press conference in Surat.However, Sarangi's comments did not go
down well with the people on Twitter, who called him communal for the loose
statement.indiatimes
*ISI agent held in Varanasi: After falling in love in Karachi, Class 8
Rashid agreed to pass on 'sensitive info' including photos of anti-CAA/NRC
protests' to Pakistan*
New Delhi: On Sunday, Uttar Pradesh ATS arrested Mohd Rashid, an alleged
ISI agent, who was working in Varanasi and was passing on information to his
handlers in Pakistan since March 2019.In the month of July 2019, military
intelligence agencies received inputs regarding a youth from Varanasi passing
on critical information to Pakistani Intelligence agencies over WhatsApp. The
agency worked on this input through months of discreet surveillance and
analysis with the support of other central agencies.Rashid (23) was staying
with his maternal grandfather and uncle in Chandauli, in Varanasi district as
his parents Mohd and Shehzadi Begum got divorced and remarried. With education
till Class 8, he had worked at a tailoring unit and medicine store in Varanasi.
Later he started fixing flex signboards for a living. Rashid has relatives in
Karachi and had visited them twice in 2017 and 2018-19 to attend some marriage
functions. He used to stay with his aunt Hasina, her husband Shagir Ahmed and
their son Shajeb in Orangi Town in Karachi. He reportedly fell in love with one
of his cousin during his Karachi visit. He was also tasked to send information
on sensitive places and protests and rallies in India. They promised him money
and assured to help him marry his cousin in Karachi. He also sent videos and
photos of recent protests at BHU and anti-CAA/NRC protests in Lucknow on being
asked by his Pakistani handlers. indiatoday
*OTHERS*
*SC declines stay on electoral bonds scheme, asks Modi govt and EC to
respond in 2 weeks*
New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Monday sought response of the Centre and
the Election Commission on a plea seeking stay on the electoral bond scheme
meant for funding political parties.The top court, however, refused to grant an
interim stay on the electoral bond scheme.A bench comprising Chief Justice S A
Bobde and justices B R Gavai and Surya Kant asked Centre and the Election
Commission to file their responses within two weeks to the interim application
filed by NGO ‘Association for Democratic Reforms’ for staying the scheme.Lawyer
Prashant Bhushan, appearing for the NGO, alleged that the scheme is a means for
channelising unaccounted black money in favour of the ruing party.Bhushan also
referred to a document of RBI while seeking stay of the scheme.“We will see
that. We are listing it after two weeks, the bench said.PTI
Supreme Court seeks Centre’s response on plea challenging NIA Act
NEW DELHI:The Supreme Court on Monday asked the government’s response on
a petition challenging the National Investigation Agency (Amendment) Act of
2019, saying the law concentrated police powers in one centralised agency which
would act on the “whims and fancies” of the Central government.A Bench led by
Justice Rohinton F. Nariman issued notice to the government on a writ petition
filed by Umar M., secretary of the Solidarity Youth Movement based at Kozhikode
in Kerala.thehindu
India's richest 1% hold 4-times more wealth than poorest 70%: Oxfam study
Davos:India's richest 1 per cent hold more than four-times the wealth
held by 953 million people who make up for the bottom 70 per cent of the
country's population, while the total wealth of all Indian billionaires is more
than the full-year budget, a new study said on Monday.Releasing the study 'Time
to Care' in Davos ahead of the 50th Annual Meeting of World Economic Forum
(WEF), rights group Oxfam also said the world's 2,153 billionaires have more
wealth than 4.6 billion people who make up 60 per cent of the planet's
population.The report flagged that global inequality is shockingly entrenched
and vast and the number of billionaires has doubled in the last decade, despite
their combined wealth having declined in the last year."The gap between
rich and poor can't be resolved without deliberate inequality-busting policies,
and too few governments are committed to these," said Oxfam India CEO
Amitabh Behar, who is here to represent the Oxfam confederation this year.The
issues of income and gender inequality are expected to figure prominently in
discussions at the five-day summit of WEF, starting Monday. WEF's annual Global
Risks Report has also warned that the downward pressure on the global economy
from macroeconomic fragilities and financial inequality continued to intensify
in 2019.Concern about inequality underlies recent social unrest in almost every
continent, although it may be sparked by different tipping points such as
corruption, constitutional breaches, or the rise in prices for basic goods and
services, as per the WEF report.Regarding India, Oxfam said the combined total
wealth of 63 Indian billionaires is higher than the total Union Budget of India
for the fiscal year 2018-19 which was at Rs 24,42,200 crore.indiatoday
63 Indian Billionaires Have More Money Than Union Budget For 2018-19:
Oxfam
Inflation will push Indian bond yields higher: Aditya Birla fund
Mumbai: Even as RBI takes a page out of US Federal Reserve’s playbook to
push down borrowing costs, yields in the nation are headed higher as price
pressures are unlikely to abate soon, according to Aditya Birla Sun Life AMC
Ltd.Inflation is expected to remain elevated over the next 6-12 months, said
Maneesh Dangi, who oversees $23 billion of debt assets. That view is at odds
with most economists who say last month’s spike in consumer prices will start
to cool once new harvests come in.An increase in inflation and fears of a wider
fiscal deficit led to yields jumping in early December, prompting the RBI to
resort to a Fed-style Operation Twist to cheapen long-term borrowings. Yields
have eased since the first tranche was announced, but data last week showing a
spurt in inflation to more than a five-year high has put the authority’s
accomodative stance at risk.theprint
Malaysian PM Mahathir rules out trade action over Indian palm oil
boycott, again criticises India’s citizenship law
Malaysia will not take retaliatory trade action against India over its
boycott of palm oil purchases amid a political row between the two countries,
Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad said on Monday.India, the world’s largest
edible oil buyer, this month effectively halted imports from its largest
supplier and the world’s second-biggest producer in response to comments from
Mahathir attacking India’s domestic policies.“We are too small to take
retaliatory action,” Mahathir told reporters in Langkawi, a resort island off
the western coast of Malaysia. “We have to find ways and means to overcome
that,” he added.94-year-old premier of Muslim-majority Malaysia has criticised
New Delhi’s new religion-based citizenship law and also accused India of
invading the disputed region of Kashmir.Mahathir again criticised India’s
citizenship law on Monday, saying he believed it was “grossly unfair”.Reuters
No meeting planned on palm oil with India in Davos:Malaysian minister
KUALA LUMPUR: International Trade and Industry Minister Darell Leiking
today said no meeting has been scheduled between him and his Indian counterpart
during the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, this week amid the palm
oil spat between the two countries.However, he said, “along the way, we may
bump into each other and a hello always leads to something good”.Leiking said
he had not established any contact with Indian officials in Davos or received
any invitation for a discussion with them.“The only invitation to Davos is
through Malaysian government. There are no plans to meet anyone in particular but
we may bump into them,” he said.freemalaysiatoday
Piyush Goyal not to meet Malaysian counterpart in Davos amid palm oil
row
India moves to seek closer military ties with Sri Lanka:aljazeera
Sri Lanka and India have pledged to strengthen military ties and widen
maritime links with neighbours after security talks, the president's office
said on Sunday, as New Delhi moves to counter Chinese influence in the
region.China, a longtime regional rival of India, has been widening its
footprint in the region, including building ports and expressways and upgrading
airports in Sri Lanka and the Maldives.India's National Security Advisor Ajit
Doval met on Saturday with recently elected Sri Lanka President Gotabaya
Rajapaksa and discussed setting up a maritime research coordination centre,
Rajapaksa's office said in a statement.It did not give details of the proposed
centre but said other nations in the region should be included as observers.It
said the two countries also discussed closer military and coastguard
cooperation."Sri Lanka-India military ties go back a long way so it's
nothing new, but what is important is clearly a greater incentive for these
ties because of the China factor," said Jabin Thomas Jacob, Associate
Professor at Shiv Nadar University in Noida, India.The meeting followed
Gotabaya's visit to New Delhi last November for talks with Prime Minister
Narendra Modi, who offered $450m in aid to Sri Lanka after his landslide
victory in the presidential election.aljazeera
SC issues notice to UP govt over PIL against name change of Allahabad to
Prayagraj
New Delhi: Supreme Court has issued a notice to the Uttar Pradesh
government after hearing a plea filed by a petitioner challenging the validity
of Allahabad's name being changed to Prayagraj.The petitioner has said that the
state government cannot change the names of railway stations, central universities
and other institutes as they are controlled by the central government.Uttar
Pradesh government changed the name of the historic city of Allahabad to
Prayagraj in a move which BJP justified was to correct the wrongs made by
Mughal emperor Akbar 500 years ago.The move came under heavy criticism from the
Opposition, scholars and historians who said the government is tampering with
history.indiatoday
Dalit-only schools on table:150 Ambedkar Navodaya Vidyalayas set up in
Dalit dominated districts
New Delhi:Modi government is considering a chain of exclusive
residential schools for Dalit children to try and thwart criticism of its
record on social justice, but some activists have drawn a parallel with
America’s former racial segregation policy.The proposal before the social justice
and empowerment ministry is to start 150 Ambedkar Navodaya Vidyalayas on the
pattern of the countrywide Jawahar Navodaya Vidyalayas, which teach talented
children from poor families.Like the Jawahar Vidyalayas, Ambedkar Vidyalayas
will conduct classes from VI to XII and hold entrance tests, but all their
pupils will be from the Scheduled Castes. These schools will be set up in
districts with high Dalit populations.Ashok Bharati, president of the All India
Ambedkar Mahasabha, a Dalit rights advocacy group, rejected the idea of
exclusive schools for Dalits, saying it would perpetuate inequality.He cited
the erstwhile “Equal but Separate” doctrine in America that allowed, among
other things, separate schools with equal facilities for African American and White
children. He said this policy was legally challenged on the ground that it
perpetuated racial discrimination.“By setting up exclusive schools for Dalits,
government would be perpetuating the caste system. There are already so many
misconceptions among people about the reservations for the deprived sections in
education,” Bharati said.telegraphindia
Gandhi wanted to spend 15 August, 1947 in Pakistan:M J Akbar's Book
NEW DELHI: Mahatma Gandhi wanted to spend August 15, 1947, the first day
of freedom, in breakaway Pakistan rather than in India, says a new book by
former Union minister M J Akbar.This was, however, neither tokenism nor a
gesture of support for a country carved out of multifaith India in the name of
one religion, Islam, the author writes in "Gandhi's Hinduism: The Struggle
Against Jinnah's Islam"."It was a promise of defiance. Gandhi simply
did not believe in the partition of India, and the creation of new, 'unnatural'
borders by an arbitrary scalpel in a fit of what he described as momentary
madness," he says.The book analyses both the ideology and the personality
of those who shaped the fate of the region, and spells out the blunders, lapses
and conscious chicanery that permeated the politics of seven explosive years
between 1940 and 1947.Gandhi, a devout Hindu, believed faith could nurture the
civilisational harmony of India, a land where every religion had flourished, it
says.TOI
30 years in exile, Kashmiri pandits demand one place for their
settlement in Kashmir
JAMMU:Despite the social media having been deluged by displaced Kashmiri
pandits’ video clippings vowing to “return and die” in the Valley, the
community on Sunday appeared to be plagued by self doubts over the prospects of
their return.They demanded that Prime Minister Narendra Modi should settle the
community living as “refugees in their own country” for the past 30 years at
one place in the Valley.In the backdrop of Vidhu Vinod Chopra’s film Shikara on
exodus of Kashmiri pandits, to be released in February, several Kashmiri
pandits have taken to social media to express their love and willingness to
return to their homeland in the Valley to “live and die” there.“Haji Sahib, we
will come back. We will live and die in Kashmir. Our ashes will be immersed in
river Vitasta in Kashmir,” is one such video clipping among many similar ones
doing the rounds on social media.PTI
Why was Kaseem not held for 14 years: HC to Telangana govt.
HYDERABAD :Observing that the case of arrested associate professor of
Osmania University Chinthakindi Kaseem ‘acquired unique colour’, the Telangana
High Court on Sunday directed the Advocate General to explain why the police
failed to act against the professor in cases registered against him in 2012 and
2019.A Bench of Chief Justice Raghvendra Singh Chauhan and Justice A. Abhishek
Reddy passed the direction, after hearing contentions of the counsels of the
government and the professor for over two hours at CJ’s residence here at
Banjara Hills. Following the Bench’s order in the Mr. Kaseem’s habeas corpus
petition which was heard the previous day, the Mulugu Police of Siddipet
Commissionerate brought him to the CJ’s residence amidst tight security.After
recording the arrested professor’s statement and contentions of both the sides,
the Bench noted that it was ‘rather surprising that police had never moved
against Mr. Kaseem for past 14 years despite accusing him of involvement in
five criminal cases’. thehindu
*WORLD*
No more arms: World powers pledge to halt Libya weapon transfers
Berlin: Several foreign powers signed a landmark agreement to limit
external interference in the war in Libya and to push the country's warring
factions towards a peaceful end to the fighting.Speaking to journalists after a
much-anticipated summit in Berlin, German Chancellor Angela Merkel and UN
Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said Sunday's agreement advances a political
process and rules out a military solution to the conflict, which escalated.
"We reached an agreement on a comprehensive plan to support a ceasefire in
Libya," said Merkel, acknowledging the road to peace in Libya would be
long and arduous."We all agree that we should respect the arms embargo and
that the arms embargo should be controlled more strongly than it has been in
the past," added the German leader, though she confirmed potential
sanctions for violators were not discussed.Sunday's deal marks a new stage in
diplomatic attempts towards ending the country's most recent bout of fighting,
which began when renegade military commander Khalifa Haftar's eastern-based
forces began an assault on the capital, Tripoli last April, leading to more
than nine months of fighting in which more than 2,000 people have been killed,
according to UN.aljazeera
*'One missile targeted the mosque': Over 100 Yemeni soldiers killed in
attack on camp*
Over 100 Yemeni soldiers have been killed in missile and drone attacks
blamed on Houthi rebels, on a mosque in a military camp in the central province
of Marib, medical and military sources said on Sunday."We strongly condemn
the terrorist attack on a mosque by the Houthi militias... which left more than
100 dead and dozens injured," Yemeni foreign ministry said on Twitter.An
army spokesman said that the dead included soldiers and civilians, and that the
Houthis would face a "ruthless" retaliation to the strike.Missiles
struck the mosque at the al-Nasr camp, located about 170km east of the capital
Sanaa, during evening prayers.Medical source at a Marib city hospital, where
the casualties were transported, told AFP that at least 83 soldiers were killed
and 148 injured in the strike.Islah party (Muslim Brotherhood) controls most of
Marib so there is little opposition to Hadi and his forces in the
province.Qahtan, a pro-Hadi soldier in Marib, told Middle East Eye that Marib
had become the stronghold for pro-Hadi forces as it was safe for them and they
did not face any opposition.“I was a soldier in Aden and then in Shabwa and we
used to face opposition not only from UAE-backed forces but also from residents
who support UAE," he said.“We withdrew to Marib where people supported
Hadi and his government but it seems that now there is another kind of danger
in Marib,” referencing attack on Saturday.Mohammed Taher, a fighter in Marib
said, “pro-Hadi forces have two enemies nowadays, Houthis and UAE-backed forces
and it is difficult to face them both.”Middle East Eye
Compiled and edited by Anwarulhaq
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