The Supreme Court today stayed the Bombay High Court judgment ordering departmental action against Maharashtra policemen involved in a probe against a lawyer who was accused of illegally possessing call detail records (CDRs) of actor Nawazuddin Siddiquis wife. A bench comprising Chief Justice Dipak Misra and Justice A M Khanwilkar, however, issued notice to lawyer Rizwan Siddiqui and asked him to file his reply in the matter within four weeks. Senior advocate Mukul Rohatgi and advocate Nishant Katneshwar appeared for the state government and sought stay of the Bombay High Court order of March 21 in which it had held that in arresting Rizwan Siddiqui, the Thane Police had acted in a highhanded manner and had failed to follow due process of law. Advocate C A Sundaram appeared for Rizwan Siddiqui. The High Court had directed the Thane Police to release from their custody advocate Rizwan Siddiqui, who was arrested on March 16 for allegedly having ordered the illegal procurement of the CDR of actor Nawazuddin Siddiquis wife. The HC had also directed the senior-most officials of the Thane Police and the state Home department to inquire into the actions of the Thane Police and if deemed fit, initiate appropriate…
Category: juxcgct
Thought government schools are drab? This Alwar school’s transformation has turned it into a tourist spot! PICS inside
If you happen to visit a particular government school in Alwar, Rajasthan, then you might be mistaken that you are on a railway platform. However, this government school in the city, which is adjacent to the railway station, has done a phenomenal job to re-paint their school to resemble a railway station! Replete with a train, an engine and a platform, the school has been painted in a Railway Theme and reason may be hiding in its name. Government Senior Secondary School, Railway Station definitely takes its name very seriously. While speaking to ANI, principal Purushottam Gupta said that they wanted the number of students coming to their school to increase and the transformation was necessary as many students would otherwise have moved to a private institution. The trend was seen due to lack of facilities in government schools. What is interesting about the entire renovation is that the principals office has been painted as a railway engine while the classrooms look like passenger compartments. The veranda of the school has also been transformed to look like a railway platform as well. However, the man behind the idea to repaint the school as a railway platform is junior engineer Rajesh…
Assam Budget 2018-19: FM Himanta Biswa Sarma to present state’s first e-Budget today; here’s where to catch up
Himanta Biswa Sarma, the Finance Minister of Assam, will present the states first e-Budget, instead of the conventional paper-based one at the Legislative Assembly in Guwahati on Monday. For the first time in Assam, the budget will be presented in the electronic format, enabling access for all to the e-budget on a computer or mobile phone. Sarma yesterday said that the government of Assam will present the first e-Budget in the Assembly and each legislator will be provided with a tablet (computer) with details of the Budget. This is not the first time that any state budget will be presented in an electronic format. Earlier, it was Andhra Pradesh, which became the first state to introduce e-budget. However, access to the e-budget documents was only limited to the legislators, who got the budget documents on tablets. It was not available in the public domain. Assam is set to change that. Doing away with the traditional printed booklet form practice, the proceedings of the Assam budget presentation will also go live on Twitter and Facebook, the Finance Minister said. As per a report by the Times of India, Assam MLAs will also get the documents on a tablet, while the media…
NGT notice to Yogi Adityanath government on encroachment in Agra park
Aggrieved by the alleged encroachment on a park, a housing society in Agra has moved the National Green Tribunal, prompting the green panel to seek responses from the state government and the local authorities. A bench headed by acting NGT Chairperson Justice Jawad Rahim issued notices to the Uttar Pradesh government, Agra Development Authority, Agra Municipal Corporation, District Magistrate and others while seeking their replies in two weeks. The tribunals order came on the plea filed by the Jawahar Nagar Co-operative Society seeking removal of the encroachments and restoration of the park measuring 3,165 square yards. The petition, filed through advocates Gautam Singh and Snehil Sonam, alleged that the park was neither being maintained, nor properly regulated by the municipal body. It said that a suit was also filed against the encroachment and a local court had passed an injunction order and directed status-quo to be maintained till further orders. The applicant being tired by inaction of local authorities wrote an e-mail and reported the matter to the PMO and also sent a copy to the Chief Minister respectively informing them about the encroachment made by the land mafia, the plea said. The housing society also contended that some private…
CBSE paper leak: Supreme Court dismisses all PILs, says matter should be decided by authorities
The Supreme Court of India today dismissed all PILs filed in the CBSE paper leak case. The top court said that it sees no merit in the petitions and its for the authorities to look into the matter. The petitions were filed challenging CBSEs decision to conduct re-examination of Class 12 economics paper after alleged leak. The Class 12th Economic paper was conducted on March 26 and towards the ned of the month, the board after the leak news surfaced decided that it will re-conduct the Economics paper on April 25, 2018. The apex court today dismissed a total of five petitions that challenged the boards decision to re-conduct the Class 12th paper. It said that it is the discretion of the Central Board of Secondary Education to conduct the re-examination and cant be challenged in the court. The plea was dismissed by a bench of two judges including Justices S A Bobde and L Nageswara Rao. While talking to the students who had filed the petition, two judges asked them to appear in the examination if it is conducted. Several petitions were filed before the apex court after the CBSE said on March 28 that the Class 10 maths…
In caustic attack on Modi govt, Shiv Sena says Dalit violence a sign of weak and selfish leadership
In a caustic attack on the Centre, the Shiv Sena today said the violence during a nationwide bandh by Dalits to protest the softening of provisions of the SC\/ST Act is a reflection of a weak and selfish leadership. It also raked up the multi-crore Punjab National Bank scam, saying that while diamond jeweller Nirav Modi looted the nation, the present government was breaking the country. It said coming out on the streets against an order of the apex court was akin to going against the ideology of Dr B R Ambedkar – the architect of the Indian Constitution. Incidents of violence happen when the leadership is weak and selfish, the Sena said in a hard-hitting editorial in party mouthpiece Saamana. The country had once been divided in the name of religion. If it is once again being broken apart in the name of caste, where is Prime Minister Narendra Modi and what is he doing? it asked. At least 11 people died and several others were injured in the Bharat bandh called on Monday by Dalit outfits to protest the softening of certain provisions of the SC\/ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act. On BJPs allegation that the Congress was fuelling…
Unnao rape case: Police arrest Kuldeep Singh Sengar’s brother after victim’s father dies in custody; Adityanath speaks up
Unnao rape case: Uttar Pradesh Police has arrested Atul Singh Sengar, the brother of BJP MLA Kuldeep Singh Sengar, against whom a woman has leveled rape charges. The arrest came a day after the mysterious death of victims father in police custody. Atul was arrested by a crime branch team on the directions of the state police chief, a police spokesperson told PTI. The police have formed a Special Investigation Team (SIT) to probe all allegations related to Unnao matter. Speaking to media, Anand Kumar, ADG Law and Order, said that investigation is being done and action will definitely be taken. The woman, 18, had protested outside Chief Minister Yogi Adityanaths residence and alleged that she was raped by BJP MLA Kuldeep Singh Sengar and his brothers. Her father, Pappu Singh, around 50, died the next day in police custody. The reason of the death hasnt been ascertained yet. The police FIR mentioned that four accused – Sonu, Baua, Vinit and Shailu – had beaten up Pappu on April 4. The accused was arrested a day later on April 5 under the Arms Act after he was allegedly beaten up by Anil Singh, the MLAs brother. The UP Police has…
Narendra Modi’s Mann Ki Baat: Know about the common citizens PM talked about and why
Prime Minister Narendra Modi today talked about how many people of the country have done wonder through sheer hard work and determination to achieve their dreams that led to the development of the society as a whole. Modi also mentioned names of some extraordinary individuals. During his 42nd Mann Ki Baat speech, the prime minister also appreciated those who in their letter on MyGov website or Narendra Modi App shared how they were working hard to develop Sanskrit as a language and how one should keep aside water for birds and animals during upcoming summer. Here are some of the people PM Narendra Modi mentioned in his address: Ghanshyam Kumar: PM praised him for his concerns for depleting water levels. Shriman Ghanshyam Kumar ji of Village Baraakar, District Nalanda, Bihar The concerns you have raised on the depleting ground water levels is indeed of great importance, he said Sakal Shastri: Taking his name during the speech, the prime minister praised his views on Ayushman Bharat and his suggestion to keep aside water for birds and animals during summer time. Shriman Sakal Shastriji, you mentioned You have urged one and all to retain and keep aside some water for birds animals,…
What is passive euthanasia and Living Will?
In a landmark judgment, the Supreme Court on Friday recognised living will made by terminally-ill patients for passive euthanasia. Upholding an individuals right to die with dignity, the five-judge bench headed by Chief Justice of India (CJI) Dipak Misra ruled that euthanasia and advance living will be permissible from now on. However, it also laid down guidelines on who can execute the will and how the approval for the same will be granted. The bench also included justices A K Sikri, A M Khanwilkar, D Y Chandrachud and Ashok Bhushan. Dipak Misra, while reading out the judgement, said that even though there were four separate opinions of the bench, all the judges agreed that a living will should be permitted. The bench agreed that a person cannot be allowed to suffer even when he or she doesnt wish to live. What is Passive Euthanasia? It is a situation where a person who is terminally-ill wishes to withdraw from the medical treatment deliberately. Article 21 provides that no person shall be deprived of his life or personal liberty except according to procedure established by law. Notably, this isnt the first time when the top court has given a nod to passive…
INX Media case: CBI gets Peter Mukerjea’s custody for 5 days, may bring him face to face with Karti Chidambaram
The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) today got Peter Mukerjeas custody for five days in the INX Media case. The probe agency in its affidavit stated that it needed the former media barons custody to bring him face to face with Karti Chidambaram. Last week, Karti Chidambaram was released on bail from Tihar Jail. The CBI court on Saturday had granted him anticipatory bail and asked the Enforcement Directorate not to arrest Karti before the next hearing. The agency stated that after bringing Karti and Indrani Mukerjea together for a probe at a Mumbai jail, it now needed to bring the two as well as Peter Mukherjea face to face. During the confrontation, Indrani claimed she had paid a bribe to Karti through his company for FIPB clearance. Karti was earlier arrested on February 28 by the CBI after he returned from the United Kingdom. The Delhi High Court on Friday while accepting his bail plea asked him to furnish a surety of Rs 10 lakh and imposed conditions including that he would have to take the CBIs prior permission in case he is required to leave the country. During the hearing, his lawyers told the court that the passport…
Operation Blue Star: UK claims release of secret 1980s files could prejudice relations with India
Operation Blue Star: The UK authorities today said the release of classified documents dating back to the period of Operation Blue Star in 1984 could prejudice international relations with India due to the political sensitivity of the subject. As a hearing seeking the declassification of files that are believed to contain information on Britains involvement in the Indian military operation at Golden Temple in Amritsar concluded in London today, the counsel for the Cabinet Office said India attaches particular sensitivity to the issue of Sikh separatism, which is perceived as a threat to the very existence of the Indian state. Just the passage of time does not diminish the significance of this case, The UK authorities have also linked the classified information in the documents with wider national security concerns and claimed that extracting any portions of it to make public would cross the Cabinet Office The UK Information Commissioner As part of her closing submissions, UK-based freelance journalist Phil Miller The documents may well allay concerns and help reassure the Sikh community. So there could be good news in no bad news, The judge at the First Tier Tribunal hearing, Murray Shanks, reserved judgment in the case, which is…
At Express Adda today: Oncologist-author Siddhartha Mukherjee says gene editing, artificial Intelligence are new frontiers of medicine
On writing as a form of thinking Some people think to write, I write to think. It is a mechanism for me to lay down on a page and organise, by laying down on the page, some ideas about what we are and where we are going. Perhaps, the illuminating thing that virtually all physician writers have discovered is that medicine allows you to do this in a way that no profession does, and no other calling does On genetic reading and writing and Artificial Intelligence Over the last four or five years we have acquired technologies to change and interrogate the human genome with the kind of facilities that we didn There are two things coming out of this. One thing is that we were struggling in medicine, biology and sciences to explain the nature of human variation. We knew there were powerful genetic components to this, but we didn But, we seem to have now crossed on to a new arena of limits. I call this the process of reading. It is simultaneously exhilarating but very dangerous. Writing takes a deeper step into the exhilarating abyss of human biology. Writing means we also have the capacity to begin…
Rajya Sabha Election Result: Amid high drama, BJP emerges as big winner in UP, crushes SP-BSP’s newfound bonhomie
BJP won 12 of the remaining 25 seats at stake in crucial Rajya Sabha biennial polls in seven states today amid high drama in Uttar Pradesh where it clinched an extra ninth seat overcoming the newfound bonhomie between former arch rivals SP and BSP. For the 59 Rajya Sabha seats to be filled, 33 candidates from 10 states were declared elected unopposed on March 15 with the BJP accounting for 16 of them. Finance Minister Arun Jaitley and BJP leader GVL Narsimha Rao, SPs Jaya Bachchan (all from Uttar Pradesh), Congress leader Abhishek Manu Singhvi, who was backed by ruling Trinamool Congress in West Bengal, and BJPs Rajeev Chandrasekhar (from Karnataka) were among the prominent winners. Backed by ruling CPI(M)-led LDF, M P Veerendra Kumar, the President of the Kerala unit of Janata Dal (U) Sharad Yadav faction, was elected from Kerala defeating his Congress rival, in a bypoll after he resigned from Rajya Sabha as a mark of protest following JD(U) leader and Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar joining hands with BJP-led NDA. Prime Minister Narendra Modi greeted the winners in the Rajya Sabha polls. Congratulations to all those elected to the Rajya Sabha from various states and best…
Aircel-Maxis case: Delhi court extends interim protection from arrest to Karti Chidambaram
A Delhi court today granted Karti Chidambaram interim protection from arrest till May 2 in two cases filed by the CBI and ED in the Aircel-Maxis matter arising out of the 2G spectrum cases. Special Judge O P Saini granted relief to the son of senior Congress leader P Chidambaram after the counsel for the Enforcement Directorate (ED) sought time to argue on Kartis application seeking anticipatory bail. The submission was supported by the CBI counsel who requested the court to put up the matter for next date. The court had on March 24 granted interim relief to Karti till today after considering that both the investigative agencies had sought time to file their responses on his anticipatory bail plea. Karti had filed a plea seeking protection from arrest in the Aircel-Maxis matter, in which the CBI and the ED lodged cases in 2011 and 2012, respectively. The matter pertains to grant of Foreign Investment Promotion Board (FIPB) clearance to firm M\/S Global Communication Holding Services Ltd for investment in Aircel. In September, 2015, the CBI had filed its status report regarding a probe into the FIPB approvals in the case. The agency had in June, 2016 also issued notice…
Mumbai terror attack case shocker! Pakistan removes chief prosecutor for ‘not taking government line’
Pakistans Interior Ministry has abruptly removed the chief prosecutor from the Mumbai terror attack case for not taking the government line, an official said today, in a major setback to Indias efforts to bring the perpetrators to justice. Ten Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) terrorists had sailed into Mumbai from Karachi and carried out coordinated attacks, killing 166 people and injuring over 300 in November 2008. The Interior Ministry has removed Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) Special Prosecutor Chaudhry Azhar, who had been representing as chief of prosecution in the Mumbai attack case since 2009, from the high-profile case, an official of the FIA privy to the development told PTI. Azhar has been told that his services in the Mumbai attack case are no more required, he said. Azhar has only been separated from the Mumbai attack case. However, he will continue to representing the state in other cases like Benazir assassination, he said. Azhar developed differences with the government over the manner the case was being pursued, the official said. The government has its own special consideration in this case and Azhar perhaps is not taking the government line. He was keen to follow the high profile case by book, the official tried…
Govt panel set up by the Centre suggests slew of reforms to benefit farmers
An expert panel set up by the Centre to boost farmers income today suggested entrusting the regulation of spot exchanges for commodity trading with a single watchdog like Sebi, removing restriction on farmers to sell their produce through recognised APMC mandies and other reforms. The committee, headed by Niti Aayog member Ramesh Chand, also said the government should refrain from imposing sudden ban on derivative trading of agri commodities. States should change their Agriculture Produce Marketing Committee (APMC) Act on the lines of new model law suggested by the Union Agriculture ministry, the panel said, adding that there should not be any market fee on products sold outside the APMC mandie facilities. It also emphasised the need to promote cooperatives and farmer producer organisations so that farmers can get better prices through collective bargaining power. The committee is of a strong view that a number of fundamental reforms are required to be introduced in the spot markets as well as the derivatives markets for commodities to enable them to serve better various stakeholders, like producers, consumers and other market participants, the panel said in its report. Farmers should be provided multiple modes for selling of farm produce and restrictions on…
Kerala shocker: Former Radio Jockey Rasikan Rajesh hacked to death at his studio in Thiruvananthapuram
A former radio jockey from Kerala was allegedly hacked to death at his studio in Thiruvananthapurams Madavoor on the intervening night of Monday and Tuesday. Thirty-six-year-old former RJ Rajesh alias Rasikan Rajesh was a mimicry artist as well as a folk singer. One other person was injured in the incident. The police have started its investigation but are yet to identify the assailants. According to the details provided by the police, the incident reportedly took place around 2 am at the sound recording studio – Metro Studio – owned by Rajesh at Madavoor under Pallickal police station limits. They are still not clear about the motive behind this attack. The police have registered a case of murder and suspect that a gang is involved in the crime. Rajesh had reportedly returned from a stage programme along with his friend Khuttan and the duo was loading their equipment back into the studio when they were attacked by the assailants who came in a red Maruti Swift car and had sharp weapons. Locals alerted the police after the heard the noises. Both the victims were rushed to the hospital. Rajesh died of his injuries at the hospital at Parippally while Kuttan is…
Names of 39 Indians confirmed dead in Iraq – FULL LIST
Of the 39 Indians whose killings in Iraq were confirmed by External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj here on Tuesday, 27 were from Punjab, four from Himachal Pradesh, six from Bihar and two from West Bengal. According to the External Affairs Ministry, those from Punjab were Dharminder Kumar, Harish Kumar, Harsimranjeet Singh, Kanwaljit Singh, Malkit Singh, Ranjit Singh, Sonu, Sandeep Kumar, Manjinder Singh, Gurcharan Singh, Balwant Rai, Roop Lal, Devinder Singh, Kulwinder Singh, Jatinder Singh, Nishan Singh, Gurdeep Singh, Kamaljit Singh, Gobinder Singh, Pritpal Sharma, Sukhwinder Singh, Jasvir Singh, Parvinder Kumar, Balvir Chand, Surjeet Mainka, Nand Lal and Rakesh Kumar. Those from Himachal Pradesh were Aman Kumar, Sandeep Singh Rana, Inderjeet and Hem Raj. While Samar Tikadar and Khokhan Sikder hailed from West Bengal, Santosh Kumar Singh, Bidya Bhushan Tiwari, Adalat Singh, Sunil Kumar Kushwaha, Dharamendra Kumar and Raju Kumar Yadav were from Bihar. Except for Raju Kumar Yadav, the bodies of all others have been identified through DNA samples. Sushma Swaraj told the media here that Yadavs body was only 70 per cent identified and that could be because the DNA sample sent was from some other member of his family as his parents were not alive. All these Indian…
Horrific! Delhi youth attacked by 12 men was stabbed more than fifty times; here’s what happened
A group of bikers assaulted a man with iron rods and stabbed him more than fifty times on Thursday, reported the Indian Express. The horrific incident was reported from south Delhi Ashish, who is reported to be in his late 20s is currently recuperating at a local hospital in Delhi where the doctors have declared his condition to be serious. Following the complaint registered by the family members of the victim at a local police station, the police, meanwhile, have initiated the investigations into the case. The victim was on his way back home after he was running some errands during the day and later visited the local gym. As per the report, he was chased down a street close to his house by 12 men on their bikes. The assault took place around 4 pm on Thursday and it was all captured on the camera. The police said that the footage that was captured showed Ashish, in a black shirt, being stopped by two men. After that within minutes, ten more bikes zipped in and surrounded Ashish. For the next ten minutes, Ashish was reportedly assaulted with rods and then stabbed multiple times. Meanwhile, the passers-by did not intervene…
Congress President Rahul Gandhi is technologically illiterate: BJP’s Sambit Patra
The Bharatiya Janta Party (BJP) on Monday refuted the charges made by Congress President Rahul Gandhi regarding the NaMo app and described the latter as technologically illiterate. Congress President Rahul Gandhi is technologically illiterate, BJP spokesman Sambit Patra said. Patra went on to add, He (Rahul Gandhi) does not know that data analysis is not equivalent to spying or snooping. This new age is the age of information technology, which Rahul ji will not understand. Through the NaMo app, Prime Minister Narendra Modi communicates with the ground level party workers. It is a smart app and like all smart apps, it will be called smart only if it facilitates two way communication with ease, he added. Congress president Rahul Gandhi on Monday criticised Prime Minister Narendra Modi for misusing his app NaMo to build a personal database with data on millions of Indians. Modi misusing PM position to build personal database with data on millions of Indians via the NaMo App promoted by Govt. If as PM he wants to use tech to communicate with India, no problem. But use the official PMO APP for it. This data belongs to India, not Modi Earlier on Sunday, he tweeted, Hi! My…
PM Modi invited Tripura’s Biplab Deb to CMs’ meet in Delhi a month ago, says official
Tripura Chief Minister Biplab Kumar Deb has been invited by Prime Minister Narendra Modi to attend a meeting in the National Capital on May 2, a senior official said here today. Deb had received the invitation to the meeting of chief ministers a month ago, additional secretary in the chief ministers office Milind Ramteke said. The CMs meeting was on the commemoration of the 150th birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi, he said. The officials statement came in the wake of reports in a section of the media that Modi had summoned Deb to Delhi over the chief ministers controversial statements on a range of issues. It was yet to be confirmed whether the chief minister would be going to Delhi, he said. Deb had recently courted controversy when he said the Internet existed in the Mahabharata era. Last week, he had questioned the rationale behind Diana Hayden being crowned Miss World 21 years ago. Deb was all praise for Aishwarya Rai, who won the Miss World crown in 1994, saying she represented Indian women. Deb had also claimed that international beauty pageants were a farce.
Civil Aviation Minister Suresh Prabhu orders inquiry into IndiGo offloading passenger over complaint of mosquitoes
Civil Aviation Minister Suresh Prabhu on Tuesday ordered a probe into an incident involving the IndiGo staff offloading a passenger at Lucknow airport on Tuesday, news agency PTI reported. The ministers order of an inquiry into the matter came barely hours after the report surfaced in the media. Dr Saurabh Rai, the passenger of Indigo aircraft who boarded the plane on Monday, was allegedly deboarded after he complained of mosquitoes onboard. The doctor has accused IndiGo staff of manhandling and de-boarding him from a Lucknow-Bengaluru flight. Rai said that he would take legal recourse soon against the airline as well as lodge a complaint with the civil aviation ministry, aviation regulator DGCA and Prime Ministers Office. Prabhu soon ordered an inquiry into the incdent. I have ordered an enquiry into the incident of off-loading passenger Dr Saurabh Rai by IndiGo at Lucknow Airport, the minister said in a tweet. I have ordered an enquiry into the incident of off-loading passenger Dr Saurabh Rai by Indigo at Lucknow Airport It alleged that he even attempted to instigate other passengers to damage the aircraft and used words such as Hence, keeping in mind applicable safety protocols crew apprised pilot-in-command, who decided to…
Repeated intelligence alerts on Maoist attack in Sukma were ignored: Report
The Maoist attack in Sukma in Chattisgarh resulted in the killing of 9 personnel of the 212 Battalion of the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) on Tuesday. Intelligence agencies had earlier issued multiple warnings and had alerted the security forces about the Maoist presence in the region, reported IE. The report also said that there were several letters written by the State Intelligence Bureau (SIB) asking the forces to not use vehicles in districts across Bastar, during the tactical counter-offensive campaign (TOCOC). The CRPF personnel lost their lives in an IED blast in the Kistaram area of Sukma. Reports suggest that around 100 Maoists carried out the ambush and attacked the CRPF personnel. The attack at Sukma comes in the wake of security forces neutralising 10 Maoists in Bijapur district of Chattisgarh. The report also mentioned a letter written to DM Awasthi, Special Director General, SIB and Anti-Naxal Operations. The letter dated 18th February 2018, also alerts the forces of a large group of armed Maoist cadres from Telangana along with PLGA BN 01 who were suspected to be camped near Gudrai village. The letter also mentions that they were carrying out a recce of Palodi camp and suggested that…
Cauvery row: MDMK leader Vaiko’s nephew Saravana Suresh sets himself on fire
MDMK leader Vaiko A police officer told The Indian Express that the incident reportedly took place at around 7 AM when Suresh doused himself with kerosene and set himself on fire on an open ground near his house. Around 7 am, he was found to have doused himself with kerosene and set himself on fire on an open ground near his house. He was reportedly raising slogans demanding the formation of the Cauvery management board, the officer said, while adding that he had suffered 80 per cent burns and was taken to the Virudhunagar government hospital before being shifted to a private hospital in Madurai. Meanwhile, Vaiko broke down while addressing the media at the Madurai hospital and appealed people not to commit suicide. Suresh is the son of Vaikos wife Renuka Devi He is fighting for his life now, he said. Suresh did not hold any official post in the party but Vaiko said that he was actively involved in work for several years now. Suresh had recently participated in Vaiko People have been protesting since April 9 when the Supreme Court pulled up the Centre for not sticking to the March 29 deadline on framing a scheme to…
Srinivas Kuchibhotla murder: US man pleads guilty to charges of killing Indian techie at Kansas bar, faces 50 years in jail
A man charged with fatally shooting an Indian techie Srinivas Kuchibhotla last year at a suburban Kansas City bar pleaded guilty Tuesday to murder in the slaying that fanned fears of anti-immigrant violence following President Donald Trumps election. Witnesses said Adam Purinton, who is white, yelled Get out of my country! before firing at two men who had stopped for an after-work drink at Austins Bar and Grill in Olathe, Kansas. Srinivas Kuchibhotla was killed in the Feb. 22, 2017, attack. His friend Alok Madasani was wounded. The men, both 32, had come from India to the U.S. as students and worked as engineers at nearby GPS-maker Garmin. Another man, Ian Grillot, was wounded when he tried to intervene. Purinton faces life in prison with no chance of parole for 50 years when he is sentenced May 4 for premeditated first-degree murder. At the time of the shooting, officials in India expressed concern about their citizens safety in the United States. Kuchibhotlas widow, who was not present at the hearing, issued a statement saying she hoped the guilty plea would send a strong message that hate is never acceptable. We must understand and love one another, Sunayana Dumala said. According…
Dawood Ibrahim keen to return to India, government spurns ‘preconditions’
Well-known criminal lawyer Shyam Keswani on Tuesday said fugitive mafia don Dawood Ibrahim Kaskar is reportedly keen to return to India but with certain preconditions which are not acceptable to the Indian government. Speaking to the media outside the Thane Court, where he represented Iqbal Ibrahim Kaskar (the absconder dons brother) in an extortion case, the lawyer said among the conditions Dawood has stipulated are that he should be lodged only in the high-secure precincts of Arthur Road Central Jail (ARCJ) in Mumbai. He had also conveyed his intentions through (former union minister and eminent lawyer) Ram Jethmalani a few years ago but the Indian government has not entertained any of his preconditions to return, Keswani said. The ARCJ is the same prison where the Pakistani terrorist Ajmal Kasab was lodged for nearly four years till his hanging for his role in the 2008 Mumbai terror attack. Keswanis statement on Dawoods desire to return came more than six months after Maharashtra Navnirman Sena President Raj Thackeray made a similar revelation in Mumbai. In his explosive remarks, Thackeray had claimed that not only was Dawood keen to come back but he was reportedly negotiating a settlement with the Modi government. The…
Babas become ministers in Madhya Pradesh! Why Shivraj Singh Chauhan took this step? Know about them
With less than a year before Madhya Pradesh goes to assembly polls, BJP government has accorded Minister of State status to five Hindu religious leaders, triggering a row. The opposition Congress has termed the decision as a political gimmick. All the five Sadhus have been identified as Computer Baba, Bhaiyyuji Maharaj, Narmadanandji, Hariharanandji and Pt Yogendra Mahant. Before according them the MoS status, the government appointed them to a committee that was set up to create awareness about aforestation, cleanliness along the Narmada river and water conservation. As a MoS, all five will enjoy the perks equivalent to a state minister. While the Congress has accused the government of trying to exploit religious appeal of these saints, the BJP said that the decision will increase public participation on conserving the river. Saints and seers were accorded the MoS status to make their work of environment and river conservation easy. The saints were roped in for the Narmada conservation work to ensure public participation, state BJP spokesperson Rajnish Agrawal said. Assembly elections in Madhya Pradesh are slated to be held later this year. While the BJP is facing anti-incumbency, the Congress is desperate to return to the power at any cost….
Mehbooba Mufti expects Jammu and Kashmir to emerge as international trading destination
Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti today expressed hope that the state will open up to the world as an international trading destination through land routes. I hope that Jammu and Kashmir opens up to the world as an international trading destination through land routes, realising its geopolitical situation, as part of a peaceful region, Mehbooba said addressing a function on the inauguration of 7th International Buyer-Seller meet at SKICC here. The chief minister said the state has been the recipient of major cultural, social and economic influences from the areas of Silk route from the past seven centuries. These influences, once used contextually, will help in making the state a hub of economic activity in the region, On the efforts of the government in this direction, the chief minister said two dry ports are being set up at Jammu and Srinagar to get the goods from the state to the international market in a hassle free manner. With such an easy mode of transportation the agricultural and horticultural produce from the state will get a quality international market, she said. Terming the buyer-seller meet as a milestone to promote the crafts of the state, Mehbooba said she is…
ED to begin attaching Vijay Mallya’s properties
The Enforcement Directorate (ED) will on Tuesday begin attaching the properties of liquor baron Vijay Mallya, under Section 83 of the Criminal Procedure Code. Section 83 of the Criminal Procedure Code mandates attachment of the property of an absconder. Earlier a Delhi court had declared Mallya as proclaimed offender for evading summons. As per the case registered by the ED, Mallya had allegedly paid USD 200,000 to a British firm and some European countries for displaying Kingfisher logo in Formula One World Championships in London in 1996, 1997 and 1998. The court had earlier in 2016 lifted the exemption granted to Mallya from mandatory personal appearance in the case of evading summons in Foreign Exchange Regulation Act (FERA)s violation case. The investigative agency also claimed that the money was paid without prior approval from the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) in violation of the FERA norms.
Manmohan Singh warns this will undo democracy in India, achievements of 70 years
Former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said on Wednesday that a dangerous and false binary was emerging in the countrys political discourse which could be a danger to the democratic system. Addressing the first Prof. S.B. Rangnekar Memorial lecture at his alma mater Panjab University here, the Congress leader said that it was time to ask ourselves if we were losing patience with democracy 70 years after getting independence. We need to ask ourselves whether we are losing patience with democracy and turning to more authoritarian alternatives that may well yield superior short-term results but in the long term will end up destroying our country and all the achievements of the last 70 years, he said while addressing students and faculty. Governance is complex. It is messy. It is slow. Its benefits are long term. It requires great patience. Above all, democracy is a system in which people without privilege have a decisive voice in governance. If this is lost, democracy becomes meaningless, he added. Regarding the present day scenario in the country, Manmohan Singh said: A dangerous and false binary is now surfacing in Indian political discourse, which must be firmly rejected. It is that we have to choose between…