Nityanand Rai, Member of Parliament and the head of Bharatiya Janata Partys Bihar unit, has set off a huge political controversy with a comment in the course of his campaign for the party in the Araria Lok Sabha bypoll. A case has been registered in Araria against the Ujiyarpur MP for a provocative speech during the byelection campaign on March 9. In his address at Narpatganj, Rai had said that if RJD candidate from the seat, Sarfaraz Alam, wins, Araria would become a den of the ISI. Sunil Singh, head of Narpatganj police station told The Indian Express that they have registered a case against Rai for making a provocative speech during a public gathering in Narpatganj on the last day of election campaign. Apart from violation of the elections Code of Conduct, Rai has been booked under IPC Section 153A which is promoting enmity between groups. The case was filed on a complaint by Nishant Kumar, Narpatganj Circle Officer. Kumar also submitted a video of the objectionable portion of Rais speech. In the video, Rai can be heard saying, Gau ke hatyaron ke saath dene walon ko ek bhi vote ka adhikar nahin hai (If RJD candidate Sarfaraz wins,…
Month: August 2017
Delhi HC judge recuses herself from hearing Karti Chidambaram’s bail plea
Justice Indermeet Kaur of the Delhi High Court today recused herself from hearing the bail plea of Karti Chidambaram, arrested by the CBI in the INX Media corruption case. Justice Kaur, who did not give any reason for her recusal, said she would refer the matter to the Acting Chief Justice for assigning the bail plea to another bench for today itself. The bail plea was yesterday mentioned before a bench of Acting Chief Justice Gita Mittal and Justice C Hari Shankar and was listed for hearing today. Kartis parents P Chidambaram and Nalini Chidambaram, both senior advocates, were present in the courtroom. Karti, the arrested son of former Union minister P Chidambaram, had moved the high court seeking bail, hours after a court here sent him to judicial custody till March 24. A special court had yesterday sent Karti to judicial custody in the INX Media corruption case and dismissed his plea that he be put in a separate cell in Tihar Jail in view of a threat perception. The court had also dismissed his appeal for an urgent hearing on his bail plea and the threat perception due to the fact that his father, as a Union minister…
No-confidence motion not taken up; Lok Sabha washed out for 10th day
The Lok Sabha today could not take up notices for no-confidence motion against the NDA government moved by Andhra Pradesh parties, with Speaker Sumitra Mahajan saying there was no order in the House and adjourned the proceedings for the day amid vociferous protests over various issues. In the nearly four-year rule of the BJP-led NDA alliance, this is the first time that no-confidence motion notices have been moved against the government. The notices were moved by YSR Congress and TDP, who have been demanding special status for Andhra Pradesh, an issue on which the latter today quit the ruling alliance. The no-confidence notices were moved by YSR Congress member Y V Subba Reddy and TDPs Thota Narasimham. The Lower House proceedings were washed out for the 10th consecutive day following incessant protests and sloganeering by various parties, including TDP, YSR Congress, AIADMK and RJD over multiple issues, including special status for Andhra Pradesh and banking scam. Congress members were also seen standing at their seats. Soon after papers and reports were laid during the Zero Hour, Mahajan said she has received a notice for no-confidence motion. I am duty-bound to bring it. provided the House is in order, she said…
UP Rajya Sabha polls: Contest certain despite withdrawal of 2 BJP nominees
A day after the ruling BJP lost the bypolls to high-profile Gorakhpur and Phulpur Lok Sabha seats in Uttar Pradesh, its two candidates today withdrew from the race for the Rajya Sabha elections, leaving 11 aspriants in the fray for 10 seats. BJP candidates Vidyasagar Sonkar and Salil Vishnoi have withdrawn their candidature, returning officer Poonam Saxena said. Today was the last date for withdrawal and voting will take place on March 23. A candidate needs 37 first preference votes for a straight win. Arithmetically, the BJP can easily win eight out of the 10 seats. The BJP and its allies have 324 seats in the 403-member Assembly after the death of its Noorpur MLA in a road accident recently. The party will be left with 28 surplus votes after ensuring the victory of eight candidates. With 19 MLAs, the BSP is short of 18 first preference votes, and with Naresh Agarwals son Nitin, who is still an SP MLA, likely to cross-vote for the BJP, the task will become difficult for Mayawatis candidate Bhimrao Ambedkar. After the new found bonhomie with the SP, Mayawati is banking on the 10 surplus votes of Akhilesh Yadavs party, besides seven votes of…
MNS chief Raj Thackeray calls for ‘Modi-mukt Bharat’
Launching a scathing attack on the BJP-led NDA government, Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) chief Raj Thackeray today called for opposition unity and a Modi-mukt Bharat by 2019. All opposition parties should come together to get rid of the BJP-led NDA government to ensure Modi-mukt Bharat, he said, reminding the audience of BJPs Congress-mukt Bharat slogan. India got its first Independence in 1947, second in 1977 (after the post-Emergency elections), and 2019 can bring a third Independence if India becomes `Modi-mukt, the MNS chief said. If the Modi government was ousted and an inquiry is ordered into demonetisation, it (the note-ban) may turn out to be the biggest scam ever since 1947, he said. Quoting a report of ISRO, Thackeray said, A large scale desertification of Maharashtra is going on due to depletion of groundwater. After Rajasthan, our state has reported the second highest rate of desertification in country. Saying this, he went on to question Chief Minister Devendra Fadnaviss claim of digging of 56,000 wells in the state. He was in favour of building a Ram temple in Ayodhya, but it should not be used as an election issue, he said. The Babri Masjid demolition case is in the Supreme…
Amit Shah declines to reveal nature of discussions with Wadiyar royal family
BJP President Amit Shah today declined to reveal the nature of discussions he had with the As far as my meeting with the royal family members is concerned, I only want to say that it was a courtesy visit. However, what transpired between us, I cannot reveal it, he told reporters here. Shah, who is touring the old Mysuru region, met the royal family at their private palace here yesterday, triggering speculation about their supporting the BJP. During the closed door meeting with the scion of royal family or the present titular Maharaja- Yaduveer Krishnadatta Chamaraja Wadiyar and Rajamata Pramoda Devi Wadiyar, Shah reportedly discussed various issues, including politics, the sources said. Had a wonderful meeting with Maharaja Yaduveer Amid speculation in the media, Yaduveer, the 27th King of the Wadiyar dynasty, had recently ruled out his political entry. I have told several times that Im not interested in There is no chance at all about me joining any Im not interested in politics. Through social work we The previous scion, Srikantadatta Narasimharaja Srikantadatta mostly remained with the Congress, but also had a short stint with the BJP.
Rajesh Ranjan, senior IPS officer, appointed DG CISF
Senior IPS officer Rajesh Ranjan was today appointed as Director General of Central Industrial Security Force (CISF). Ranjan, a 1984 batch Indian Police Service (IPS) officer of Bihar cadre, is at present Special Director General, Border Security Force (BSF). He has been appointed as the chief of the CISF till November 30, 2020, i.e. the date of his superannuation, an order issued by the Personnel Ministry said. The post was lying vacant after incumbent O P Singh took over as Director General of the Uttar Pradesh Police in January this year. The CISF is tasked with providing security to various government installations including the countrys airports.
Salman Khan jailed! From being hunting trophies to protected species, the lure of blackbucks
Their hunting was portrayed in the miniature paintings of the Mughal era and they were the targets of royal families for centuries for sport, but today the now-endangered blackbuck felled a superstar. Highlighting the vulnerability of this animal species, Gauri Maulekhi, Trustee, People For Animals (PFA) says blackbucks, known for their soft coat and characteristic twisted horns, are very nervous by nature and sometimes just die of cardiac arrest only in the face of a perceived danger. The Wildlife Protection Act, 1972 turned out to be a blessing for blackbucks, chinkaras, tigers and elephants and so many other animal species, a large number of whom were killed by the colonial-rulers and various maharajas as they went on their shikars (hunting sport), she told PTI. The People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA), among other animal right groups, yesterday welcomed the conviction of Bollywood star Salman Khan in the 1998 blackbuck killing case, saying his sentencing will definitely act as a deterrent for other potential offenders. Blackbucks are protected animals under the Schedule I of the Wildlife Act since 1972. Tiger, leopard, elephant, pangolin, monitor lizards, pythons fall in the same category, Maulekhi said. Scientifically called, Antilope cervicapra, it is…
CJI Dipak Misra impeachment: Former Supreme Court judges call it ‘sad day’, hope ‘such situation never comes’
In an unprecedented move, Opposition parties in India have moved to impeach the Chief Justice of India (CJI) Deepak Misra accusing him of corruption, misusing his authority and failing to protect the independence of the judiciary. However, this sudden move hasnt gone down well with the former CJIs. According to a report by The Indian Express, Former Supreme Court judge Justice K T Thomas said that the allegations against CJI Dipak Misra arent fit to be called as the same. Justice KT Thomas said that of all the allegations levelled against him, only the allotment of cases relates to his performance as CJI. He added that the other charges against the CJI relate to the period before he became CJI. Former CJI K G Balakrishnan also pointed out that charges of misbehaviour were not enough to seek removal of a judge, but it has to be He added that he is deeply pained by the by the developments and termed it as disturbing. Justice R M Lodha termed it as a sad day and hoped that such a situation never comes again Justice Lodha said that it is very difficult to call the move politically motivated but pointed out that…
Why is Manohar Parrikar’s health status a secret, asks Goa Congress
Goa Congress President Shantaram Naik on Wednesday slammed the BJP and the ruling alliance for keeping Chief Minister Manohar Parrikars health status a secret, saying that even senior BJP leaders close to Parrikar have not been informed about his medical condition. Naik said that in absence of Parrikar, who is undergoing treatment for advanced pancreatic cancer in a US hospital, there was no functional government in the state and the administration had gone haywire. The status of his health has been kept a secret from his close party people. Till today there is no official statement about the Chief Ministers health. It is a very bad practice, Naik said. He said that the people of Goa deserved to know about the medical status of their Chief Minister. Who is there to take responsibility for the mess we are in? The Chief Minister is not here. There is virtually no government in Goa and administration is missing at all levels, Naik said. Parrikar was moved to the US facility in March, a few weeks after he was first hospitalised in Lilavati Hospital in Mumbai on February 15 when he experienced stomach pain. While there has been no medical bulletin by the…
Justice J Chelameswar refuses to list PIL on ‘master of roster’ issue
Expressing anguish over affairs in the Supreme Court, its seniormost judge Justice J Chelameswar on Thursday refused to hear a petition questioning the Chief Justice of India I am going to retire in few days and I cannot hear your PIL on allocation of cases. Please understand my difficulty, His order was reversed the next day by a bench led by Chief Justice Dipak Misra. Senior lawyer and former law minister Shanti Bhushan had filed a PIL in the Supreme Court last week through his lawyer son Prashant Bhushan challenging the CJI Prashant went to the CJI Dipak Misras court and mentioned the matter for urgent listing to which the CJI replied, He said, There is nothing I can do much in this. I am sorry, you please understand my difficulty, He said the country will understand everything and will follow its own course.
Narendra Modi’s mantra to BJP for winning Karnataka elections: Establish grassroots connect, demolish Congress lies
Prime Minister Narendra Modi today launched a scathing attack on the Congress party for spreading rumours of a hung assembly in Karnataka to divert people from the core issue of development. Speaking to 224 BJP candidates, MLAs and leaders of the BJP via the Nrendra Modi app, Modi told workers to establish connect with people and inform them about the good work done by the Bharatiya Janata Party government at the Centre for Karnataka. Responding to questions from members of the states BJP unit, Modi stressed that they should go all-out to expose the lies of the Congress party. He said that Congress leaders know very well that the party will not return to power, which is why they are spreading lies. They are spreading lies of a hung assembly, The PM, who is yet to kick start his campaign in the state, made an appeal to the people of Karnataka to elect a majority government. He asked workers to focus not only on how to win the Vidhan Sabha, but also to reach out to people in the boondocks of the state and win at booth level. He said that directly interacting with people for 15 minutes will definitely…
Remember AAP’s ‘free Wi-Fi’ promise for Delhi? Here’s the status
AAP governments ambitious project to provide free Wi-Fi services to Delhi residents continues to remain stuck as its Public Works Department has expressed inability to implement the scheme, citing a lack of expertise. Earlier this month, the project-in-charge wrote to the PWD engineer-in-chief in this connection. A government official said that the Information Technology department of the Delhi government should execute the project as it has the expertise required to implement it. In the 2018-19 Budget, Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia allocated Rs 100 crore to provide free Wi-Fi facility and handed over the project to the PWD from the IT department. We have conveyed to the higher authorities in the PWD that IT department should execute this project as we lack expertise in this field, an official of the PWD said. Providing free Wi-Fi across the national capital was one of the key poll promises of the Aam Aadmi Party. However, more than three years after it came to power, the AAP is yet to realise the promise. In February this year, Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal said the government was working on three-four models for providing free Wi-Fi and would soon take a decision.
Mahagathbandhan for 2019 Lok Sabha polls? Sharad Yadav says, working for a grand, anti-BJP alliance
Exuding confidence of forming a grand alliance against communal BJP before 2019 general elections, former JD(U) MP Sharad Yadav says a fight for social justice alone can stop the communalism being spread by the BJP. The biggest fight in the country is for social justice. Only this can stop the communalism being spread by the BJP. I am touring the entire country and meeting people. I hope a grand alliance will come up against the BJP by 2019, he told PTI. Yadav, who was once the NDA convenor said, I am working to unite parties against the BJP as its ideology is communal. When I was the NDA convenor, it was under leadership of Atal Bihari Vajpayee and Lal Krishna Advani and it had a national agenda, which has changed now. This agenda has turned divisive now. The present government at the Centre is dividing people in the name of religion, he said in an interview here. Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath is only taking round of temples and making unconstitutional statements, he said. Asked about his role in the alliance proposed by him, Yadav said, Let it materialise first. My objective is to unite opposition. I have been…
Caught on camera: Madhya Pradesh policeman reaches Collectorate Treasury office in inebriated condition – Watch
In a height of indiscipline a policeman today reached the Collectorate Treasury office in Madhya Pradeshs Tikamgarh in an inebriated condition. He was later suspended form the post. Recently, an assistant sub-inspector of Madhya Pradesh police was transferred after a video was circulated on social media showing him getting a foot massage from a man at a police post. The incident was reported from Paryatan Police Chowki in Orchha, a town in Bundelkhand region of the state, officials said. Soon after the video went viral, ASI Leeladhar Tiwari was transferred by Orchha to Chhatarpur after an order was issued by Superintendent of Police (SP) Kumar Prateek, Orchha Police Station in charge Rajesh Sahu had said. Tiwari was seen getting a foot massage in the video, from a person who was believed to be a complainant at the police post. However, Sahu had said it was not clear when the alleged video was shot or the person allegedly giving the massage. Tiwari was attached to the tourist police post in Orchha and now he has been relieved and sent to his original posting in Chhatarpur district, he was quoted as saying by PTI. In November last year, four cops from Deepankheda…
Ayodhya Case: SC dismisses all third party interventions, revives Subramanian Swami’s writ petition
Supreme Court on Wednesday dismissed all third party intervention applications in Ayodhya land dispute case. The intervention applications in the case included those of Subramanian Swamy, Aparna Sen, Shyam Benegal, and Teesta Setalvad. The top court also rejected the plea of BJP leader Subramanian Swamy seeking to intervene in the ongoing matter. However, the court ordered revival of Swamys disposed writ petition in which he had sought enforcement of his Fundamental Right to worship at the Ram temple on the disputed site in Ayodhya. I had filed a writ petition saying that I have a fundamental right to worship and this is a superior right than property right, Swamy said. Chief Justice Dipak Misra-led special bench accepted the contention that only original parties to the dispute be allowed to advance arguments in the case. The bench, also comprising of Justices Ashok Bhushan and S A Najeeb, said any intervention applications of unrelated persons, seeking implement as parties, will be rejected. After the decision, the three main parties in the matter – the Sunni Waqf Board, the Nirmohi Akhara and Ram Lalla – will have the right to register any further cases. In other important remarks, the apex court said that…
Third Front: Telangana CM K Chandrasekhar Rao to meet Mamata Banerjee tomorrow
Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrashekhar Rao is likely to meet his West Bengal counterpart Mamata Banerjee here tomorrow amid efforts to form a formidable non-BJP front of opposition parties ahead of the crucial 2019 Parliamentary poll. Rao, who is also Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS) president, is likely to meet Banerjee in her office here tomorrow, official sources said here today. The meeting assumes political significance as Rao recently floated the idea of forming a Third front against BJP and the Congress for 2019 general election. Banerjee, who is also Trinamool Congress (TMC) chief, is playing an instrumental role in bringing together opposition parties against the BJP-led NDA to throw them out of power in the coming national poll. The TRS chief had recently floated the idea to form a Rao claimed that Mamata Banerjee had called him and backed his proposal.
Progress made but economic inequality remains, says Nobel Laureate Paul Krugman on India
Nobel Laureate Paul Krugman on Saturday said India has made rapid progress on the economic front but economic inequality in the country remains an issue. India has become a much better place to do business than it was earlier, though the bureaucratic obstacles have not gone away completely but reduced enormously. India achieved as much economic progress in the (last) 30 years as the Great Britain did in 150 years. It is a very rapid space of transformation..why does there still seem to be visible poverty in India? One problem is high degree of economic inequality, Krugman said at the News 18 Rising India Summit, adding that India has made enormous strides in economic progress but the wealth has not been evenly distributed. On rising income of middle-class in emerging markets globally, he said: People, when (they) mostly talk about the story, understandably focus on China, but India is part of the story as well. .India is still poor, but not in the same level at all. Indian GDP per capita is about 12 per cent of the US level now, which sounds low but that is up from 4 per cent not that long ago. Terming Indias economic growth…
PM Modi praises Bihar CM Nitish Kumar, vows to fulfil Mahatma Gandhi’s sanitation dream to rally of some 20,000 ‘Swachhagrahis’
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday lavished praise on Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar and also pledged to fulfil the sanitation dream of Mahatma Gandhi. Bapu ke sapne ko pura karke rahenge, Modi told a rally of some 20,000 Swachhagrahis (cleanliness ambassadors) to mark the Champaran Satyagrahas centenary celebrations here. Modi began his address in Bhojpuri language and recalled his old association with Champaran, a place made popular by Mahatma Gandhi. Modi said the sanitation and cleanliness drive of his government was a peoples movement and it was the largest such campaign in any country. The Prime Minister praised Nitish Kumar for working to turn Bihar open defacation free and for building a large number of toilets in a short time. Modi also lauded government officials, including IAS officers, for doing excellent work on the sanitation front. Earlier, Modi was received by Bihar Governor Satyapal Malik, Nitish Kumar, Union Minister Ram Vilas Paswan and several BJP leaders. According to police officials, Modi reached Patna in an Indian Air Force aircraft and reached Motihari by helicopter. He also laid the foundation stone for four sewerage projects. The theme of the centenary celebrations is Satyagrah se Swachhagrah. Mahatma Gandhi launched the Champaran…
‘Backstabbed’, says Navjot Singh Sidhu after Amarinder government demands his conviction in Supreme Court
Reacting strongly after his own government recommended that he be convicted in the three-decade-old case, Punjab minister Navjot Singh Sidhu said that he has been backstabbed. Sidhu made his statement to CNN News 18. On Thursday, Punjab government sought the conviction of Sidhu in a 30-year-old case of road rage, a development which startled many. The Punjab government counsel told the Supreme Court yesterday that the statement given by Sidhu denying his involvement in 1988 road rage case was false. Sidhu, who was last year appointed as a minister in the state government, had moved the Supreme court challenging Punjab and Haryana High Courts order that sentenced him and co-accused Rupinder Singh Sandhu to three years in jail. During the hearing on March 22, the cricketer-turned-politician was charged with culpable homicide not amounting to murder. Sidhu had submitted that he is innocent. Punjab government lawyer, advocate Sanram Singh Saron, said in court that there is not a single evidence which suggests that the cause of death was cardiac arrest and not brain hemorrhage as concluded by the trial court. He further said that the trial court verdict was rightly set aside by the High Court. Accused A1 (Navjot Singh Sidhu)…
Congress-Alliance in Maharashtra still eluding; parties enter 2019 poll mode solo
With an eye on the upcoming Lok Sabha and assembly elections in Maharashtra, the Congress and the NCP have started working on strengthening their organizational setups separately and launched mass outreach programmes to take on the BJP-led state government. However, though the parties have launched various programmes in their respective capacities, they have yet to formalize any alliance to contest the elections. The Congress is holding organizational meetings to take stock of the prevailing political situation while the Sharad Pawar-led NCP has been undertaking Hallabol (attack) yatras in various regions of the state since the last few months to expose the ruling BJP. In 2014 polls, both the parties, which had jointly ruled the state for 15 years, had contested separately against the BJP and the Shiv Sena. However, both of them fared badly during the Narendra Modi wave that time. Senior Congress leader and former chief minister Prithviraj Chavan admitted that the NCP has taken a lead over the Congress in projecting itself as an aggressive opposition party by attacking the Devendra Fadnavis-led government and maintaining the momentum. A section of the state Congress unit is unhappy with incumbent president Ashok Chavan, a former chief minister, as they feel…
Choosing what political monuments to raze and what to leave to benign neglect is a tightrope democratic govts must walk
Statue-felling is, without a shred of doubt, a political act. The actors may or may not be affiliates of any specific political outfit, but the act does have political and ideological underpinnings. For instance, hundreds of Iraqis together felled Saddam Hussains statue after he was deposed, while millions of their fellow-countrymen cheered. Such acts may be spontaneous expressions, charged by the euphoria of feeling liberated from an oppressive regime or could even be democratically ushered in. For instance, students of Oriel College at the Oxford University wanted the statue of British imperialist and slave trader Cecil Rhodes taken down, though Rhodes had been a generous benefactor of the college. (The Rhodes Must Fall movement didnt succeed, with the college administration deciding to keep his statue.) Memphis, Texas, though removed statues of the Confederate heroes after its city council voted to do so, given the Confederacy is historically linked to slavery in the United States. The short point is that statues, memorials, monuments are inextricably tied to politics and ideology. And so is razing or vandalising them. The recent felling of Lenins statue in Tripura, as well as subsequent vandalising of Gandhi, Ambedkar, Periyar and Syama Prasad Mukherjee statues in other…
Delhi Chief Secretary assault witness VK Jain resigns as Arvind Kejriwal’s adviser after police questioning
Amidst the ongoing stand-off with the bureaucracy, the Aam Aadmi Party government in Delhi suffered another set back with V K Jain, the adviser to Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, resigning from his post. The resignation comes days after he was questioned by the Delhi police in connection with the alleged assault of the Delhi Chief Secretary Anshu Prakash. However, Jain has cited personal reasons behind the move. As per a report by the PTI, he refrained from coming to the CMO ever since the questioning citing medical reasons. Now, with his resignation, he has further fueled speculations. As per reports, Additional Public Prosecutor Atul Srivastava, during the hearing of the case, told a Delhi court that Jain, in his statement, admitted that he saw Prakash being assaulted after exiting the washroom. Srivastava added that Jain saw two MLAs surrounding the Chief Secretary and were assaulting him and that is when his spectacles fell off. This was contrary to Jains earlier statement in which he said that he had no idea of the assault as he had gone to the washroom at the time of the incident. Notably, Anshu Prakash was allegedly assaulted by AAP MLAs during a meeting at…
Government to utilise water from rivers flowing to Pakistan: Nitin Gadkari
The central government has decided to solve the water problems in Punjab, Haryana and Rajasthan by utilising water from rivers flowing into Pakistan, Union Water Resources Minister Nitin Gadkari said here today. Gadkari made these remarks in his inaugural address at an event organised by the Confederation of Indian Industry here, according to a release issued by the organisers. Citing the case of the Godavari, where 3000 tmc of water is This water can then be carried till the tail end of Tamil Nadu, almost 1,300 km by pipeline. Once this project is completed, Tamil Nadu will get almost 450 TMC of water, he said. Gadkari, who also holds the portfolios of road, transport and highways and shipping, said the government is very keen on developing Karwar port in Karnataka and is willing to spend Rs 3,000 crore for the projects if the state government is in agreement. Touching upon waterways as a cheaper logistical option,he said government is encouraging seaplanes and called on HAL to form a Joint Venture with the government to manufacture them. According to him, around 10,000 seaplanes would be required in the next two years. Gadkari also emphasised the urgent need to reduce pollution and…
Sushma Swaraj confirms 39 Indians killed in Mosul; VK Singh says bodies to be brought back within 10 days
It may take up to 10 days to bring back the bodies of all 39 Indians killed in Iraq as there will be legal processes involved, Minister of State for External Affairs V K Singh said today. His comments came soon after External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj told Parliament that the 39 Indians abducted by Islamic State terror outfit in Mosul in Iraq were dead and their bodies have been recovered. There will be legal processes. We are waiting for information from there (Iraq). It may take 8-10 days (to bring back the bodies), Singh told reporters outside Parliament. Singh, who had visited Iraq several times to find out the details of the Indians abducted in 2014, also took a pot shot at opposition parties for targeting Swaraj on the issue. The external affairs minister had said that they (the Indians) will not be declared dead without proof and she kept her words. Opposition takes things in a different way. You have seen it in Lok Sabha, he said. Singh said the government tried everything possible to verify the details relating to the Indians. Sushmaji had made a statement in Parliament that the day the government gets concrete proof of…
Caught on Camera: Journalist who reported on nexus between sand mafia, police crushed to death by truck in MP
An investigative journalist in Madhya Pradeshs Bhind district was mowed down by a truck earlier this morning. The scribe, who has been identified as Sandeep Sharma, was employed with a national news channel and was probing an alleged nexus between police and sand mafia. In a CCTV footage tweeted by news agency ANI, Sandeep can be seen riding his bike when a truck from behind changes its direction to crush him. The scribe was immediately rushed to a nearby hospital but he succumed to his injuries. According to news reports, Sandeep had been reporting on illegal sand mining and had earlier complained to the police about a threat to his life and even sought police protection.However, his request had gone unheard. #WATCH:Chilling CCTV footage of moment when Journalist Sandeep Sharma was run over by a truck in Bhind. He had been reporting on the sand mafia and had earlier complained to Police about threat to his life. #MadhyaPradesh pic.twitter.com\/LZxNuTLyap He had accused a Sub-Divisional Police Officer (SDOP) of shielding mafias involved in illegal sand mining. Meanwhile, reacting to the death of Sandeep, Congress MP Jyotiraditya Scindia demanded a CBI inquiry into the incident and accused the Shivraj Singh Chauhan government…
Supreme Court decision on SC/ST Act appropriate, says UP minister Om Prakash Rajbhar
Uttar Pradesh cabinet minister and Suheldev Bharatiya Samaj Party chief Om Prakash Rajbhar today supported the Supreme Courts recent ruling on the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, arguing that innocent people were harassed. The decision of the Supreme Court is absolutely appropriate, as the SC\/ST Act is widely misused similar to the Dowry Prohibition Act. Innocent people are harassed in the garb of this Act. A case should be registered only after probe by a magistrate-level officer, Rajbhar told reporters here. The president of the SBSP, an ally of the Bharatiya Janata Party-led UP government, added that the guilty should not be spared, but innocent person should not be unnecessarily harassed. Violent protests erupted today during a nationwide bandh called by Dalit outfits against the dilution of the stringent provisions of the SC\/ST Act, leaving one dead and disrupting normal life in many states. On March 20, the Supreme Court ruled that a public servant can only be arrested under the SC\/ST Act after approval of the appointing authority. A non-public servant can be arrested after approval by a senior superintendent of police.
Kathua incident: Charge sheet filed in case had discrepancies, says citizens’ group
A citizens group which conducted an individual probe into the Kathua rape incident today claimed that the charge sheet filed by the Jammu and Kashmir Police in the case had discrepancies and the investigation was botched-up. The group of intellectuals and academicians (GIA) will hand over a fact finding report in the case to Union Minister Jitendra Singh tomorrow. We met more than 25 people including the victims family, the accused family members, the influential people from the Bakarwal community and others, GIAs convener Monika Arora said. She said that there are discrepancies in the charge sheet filed by the Jammu and Kashmir Police crime branch and the entire investigation was botched-up. We demand a free and fair investigation of this case from the CBI, Arora said. An eight-year-old girl from the Bakarwal community was allegedly abducted, drugged, gang-raped, tortured and killed in January. According to the charge sheets filed by the crime branch, the abduction, rape and killing of the girl was part of a carefully planned strategy to remove the nomadic community from the area. A separate charge sheet was filed for the juvenile, who is accused in this case.
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Clinical KKR crush Daredevils by 71 runs after Russell carnage Andre Russells 12-ball 41 headlined Kolkata Knight Riders clinical performance as they recorded a crushing 71-run victory over Delhi Daredevils to return to winning ways in the Indian Premier League (IPL) here tonight. The result meant Daredevils skipper Gautam Gambhirs homecoming ended on a sour note. Russells whirlwind 41, 36 of them coming in sixes, ensured KKR overcame a slow start to post a challenging 200 for nine after they were put in by Gambhir. Judge acquits Mecca blast accused, quits hours later A special anti-terror court has acquitted Hindutva preacher Swami Aseemanand and four others in the 11-year-old Mecca Masjid blast case and shortly afterwards the judge resigned, in a stunning move dubbed as intriguing by a political party. K Ravinder Reddy, the special judge for NIA cases, tendered his resignation, citing personal reasons barely hours after pronouncing the judgement in which he held that the prosecution failed to prove even a single allegation against the five accused. Army man goes missing in Shopian, believed to have joined Hizbul Mujahideen: Police An army man, who has been missing since Saturday, is believed to have joined terror group Hizbul Mujahideen,…
Meat scandal in Kolkata hits restaurant sales after 20,000 kg carcass meat seized; inter-state racket suspected
The Kolkata meat scandal appears to have taken a major toll on the appetite of non-vegetarians for restaurant and outside food in the city of joy. And you cant blame the consumers for this sudden shift in preference. According to reports, the seizure of 20,000 kg of rotten meat – suspected to be of carcasses and sourced from dumping grounds – by the state government last week from a cold-storage in Rajabazar area of the state capital is the reason behind this dip in appetite. For, reports claim that this huge chunk of seized meat was meant for supplying to restaurants, eateries and departmental stores in areas of West Bengal as well as neighbouring Bihar, Jharkhand and Odisha. Police officials have even claimed that meat may have been supplied to international markets such as Nepal and Bangladesh. Arrests and subsequent revelations So far, the state police have arrested 10 people, including a leader of a political outfit, in connection with the case. Several teams have been deployed in greater Kolkata and outside West Bengal to trace the culprits involved in the business of selling meat of dead animals. We are conducting raids to get hold of the culprits involved in…