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Kashi Vishwanath temple draws 7.35 million devotees within a year of the inauguration of a corridor by PM Narendra Modi

OpIndia Staff
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Kashi Vishwanath temple draws 7.35 million devotees within a year of the inauguration of a corridor by PM Narendra Modi

The newly constructed Kashi Vishwanath Corridor, also known as Kashi Vishwanath Dham, completed one year on Tuesday, December 13. Within a year of the inauguration of the Kashi Vishwanath Dham corridor connecting the temple with the Ganga river ghats, Varanasi’s iconic temple saw a record-breaking footfall and an almost five-fold increase in donations from devotees.

According to reports, since December 13, 2021, when Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the ambitious Kashi Vishwanath Dham in Uttar Pradesh, the temple has drawn 7.35 million pilgrims and collected donations totalling Rs 100 crore against the previous records of 30-40 lakh devotees.

As per the temple’s data, 4,842,716 pilgrims reached KV Dham in December 2021 while 7,459,471 visited in January, 6,856,142 in February, 7,171,163 in March, 6,587,264 in April, 6,290,511 in May, 6,916,981 in June, maximum 7,681,561 in July, 6,711,499 in August, 4,013,688 in September, 3,830,643 in October, 3,870,403 in November and 1,350,000 visited in the current month till Monday.

The Kashi Vishwanath Temple (KVT) administrators estimate that if the temple’s earnings continue to see this steady development, the Rs 900 crore invested in creating the KV Dham will be recovered in the next four to five years based on the trend of increasing pilgrim foot traffic as well as income.

“A many-fold increase in the numbers of both devotees and earnings has been recorded in a year after the opening of KV Dham,” said Divisional commissioner and chairman of Shri Kashi Vishwanath Dham Special Area Development Board Kaushal Raj Sharma.

KVT Chief Executive Officer Sunil Verma provided information about the massive rise in devotee traffic, saying, “On an average 30-40 lakh devotees used to throng the temple every year before the KV Dham had come into existence. Immediately after the opening of KV Dham, a footfall of 7.35 crore devotees has been recorded at this shrine area in the last year alone.”

Kashi Vishwanath Temple gets a golden makeover

It is pertinent to note that Prime Minister Narendra Modi, last year, expanded the Kashi Vishwanath Temple area from 2,700 sq ft to 5 lakh sq ft under the Kashi Vishwanath Dham Corridor project worth Rs 900 crores. The BJP-led government established direct connectivity between the Kashi Vishwanath Temple and River Ganga through Jalasen, Manikarnika, and Lalita ghats.

In June 2022, the Kashi Vishwanath Temple got a complete golden makeover as the gold plating of the lower portion of the temple Shikhara and the door frames. According to the reports, 23 kgs of gold was used to decorate the lower portion of the temple Shikhara.

Earlier in March this year, the Kashi Vishwanath Temple was decorated with 37 kgs of gold. The gold was used to decorate the inner walls of the sanctum of the temple. This is after an anonymous donor donated 60 kgs of gold to Kashi Vishwanath Temple out of which 37 kgs of gold was utilized for the purpose on March 1, 2022.

Delhi: Hindu refugees from Pakistan who have come to India almost a decade ago finally get electricity after HC order

OpIndia Staff
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Delhi: Hindu refugees from Pakistan who have come to India almost a decade ago finally get electricity after HC order

People who were forced to flee their homeland to save their lives from persecution by the Islamic regime in Pakistan came to India with hope and a sense of security. But upon reaching India, the Hindu refugees for a decade had to live in darkness in the national capital. This era of darkness, however, came to an end as the refugee camps near Majilis Park in northwest Delhi are finally getting an electricity supply.

As per a report in Times of India, around 900 people have been living in appalling conditions on an open large ground behind the Majlis Park metro station with almost no basic facilities. However, on November 10, 2022, the Delhi High Court ordered the city’s power distribution provider Tata Power Delhi Distribution Limited (TPDDL) to provide electricity supply to all the houses of the refugees within a month. During the hearing, the Delhi High Court bench comprising Justice Satish Chandra Sharma and Justice Subramanium Prasad had observed that “non-provision of electricity amounts to the denial of a basic need.” 

After the Ministry of Defence, which owns the land where the refugees reside gave a No Objection Certificate (NOC) the bench ordered TPDDL to provide electricity supply to the refugee camps. 

In 2013, a large number of Pakistani Hindus moved to India. Interestingly, the Indian tricolour, and saffron flags, as well as the flag of the Bhartiya Janta Party (BJP), can be spotted at several houses of these refugees. For these refugees, Indian citizenship and voting rights remain a distant dream. However, with the electricity supply being provided to the refugee houses, there is a ray of hope that things will change for the better. 

Image credit: ThePrint

While speaking to the Times of India (TOI), Gulab Chand, a 47-year-old refugee who is originally from Sindh province in Pakistan said, “We are raising our demand in legitimate ways that is why this struggle will be long. A few years ago, solar panels were installed but those were not enough to even light up a room.”

Newly installed bulbs, tube lights, and switch boxes can be seen in the camp’s houses, and the installation process is underway in many others.

Pradhan Nehru Lal, another Pakistani Hindu refugee told TOI, “We came here in 2013, there are around 900 people living here and many of our relatives who are still in Pakistan want to move to India. Things will change gradually and maybe someday we will get Indian citizenship as well.”

While the Hindu refugees are happy about the gradual yet positive changes taking place, water supply, drainage, and condition of roads remain major issues in the area. Despite the hardships, the Pakistani Hindus take immense pride in calling India their home and this deep-rooted love gives them the strength to struggle for their basic rights.

FIFA 2022: Moroccon fans go on rampage as France celebrates victory in FIFA semi-finals, 14-year-old part of group attempting to bring down French flag dead

OpIndia Staff
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FIFA 2022: Moroccon fans go on rampage as France celebrates victory in FIFA semi-finals, 14-year-old part of group attempting to bring down French flag dead

On December 14, France defeated Morocco in the semi-finals 2-0 and booked its place in the finals against Argentina in FIFA 2022. Moroccan fans got irked by the defeat, and riots broke down in France and other European cities. Reports suggest that a 14-year-old boy was killed in the riots. He was part of the Moroccan group that attempted to take away a French flag from a car. The group also pounded on the car’s hood. Scared by the attack, the driver reversed the car a bit and took a sharp turn backwards crushing the boy. The injured boy was rushed to the hospital where he was pronounced dead.

In a statement, the Prefect of Hérault Hugues Moutouh said, “A young boy was hit on Wednesday evening in Montpellier by a driver after the semi-final match of the FIFA World Cup. He was rushed to the hospital where he died shortly after his medical treatment started. My thoughts go out to his family and loved ones. The vehicle has been found by the police and the investigation is progressing rapidly as per the prosecution’s direction.

In Wednesday’s game, goals from Theo Hernandez and Randal Kolo Muani made it impossible for Morocco to make a comeback. Now Morocco will defend the trophy at Lusial Stadium that they won in Russia four years ago.

As per reports, after France won the game, its supporters took to the streets to celebrate. However, Moroccans living in the area got irked, and both sides clashed. Notably, Frace is a former colonial ruler of Morocco. There is a large population of people of Moroccan origin living in the country. As per the statistics, around a million Moroccans live in France, concentrated across the Mediterranean coast and in Paris.

With such a substantial population, any riot-like situation involving Moroccans can become a serious issue for law enforcement agencies. This was exactly what happened following the semi-finals. As per reports and viral videos on social media platforms, Place de La Comedie saw violent clashes among the fans. In the videos shared by Midi Libre Montpellier on Twitter, groups of fans threw fireworks and flares at each other. The police intervened and used tear gas to disperse the crowd on both sides.

In Paris, the police reach Champs-Elysees to disperse the crowd. Reports and videos showed clashes between the fans from both sides. France deployed around 10,000 security personnel across the country, out of which 5,000 have been deployed in Paris itself. In a statement, the interior minister of France, Gerald Darmanin, said, “Our Moroccan friends, just like the French supporters, are welcome to organise a party, and our job is not to stop them from partying… but this will have to be done under good security conditions.”

Freelance journalist Sotiri Dimpinoudis shared a number of videos on Twitter. In a tweet, he reported that 2,500 police personnel were deployed at Champs-Elysees to control the situation.

There were clashes reported in Brussels, Belgium. The Belgian police clashed with Moroccan fans following the loss in the semi-finals. He shared a video from Champs-Elysees where the fans clashed.

As per the visuals available on social media, Moroccan fans pelted stones and fireworks at a flat with a French flag on the balcony. The resident of the flat had to remove the flag following the threats of vandalism.

As the French fans celebrated the victory, more Moroccan fans gathered on the streets to disrupt the celebrations.

Checkpoints have been established in different parts of the country to keep a check on the use of smoke bombs and flares. Notably, Moroccan fans created a riot-like situation on December 10 as well when the Moroccan team defeated Portugal and entered the semi-finals. The police set up checkpoints following the violent celebrations to ensure the safety of the residents; however, Moroccan fans did not take the defeat in the semi-finals with sportsman spirit and again created a ruckus.

Speaking to French CNews, Parisian district mayor Jeanne d’Hauteserre expressed concerns about Champs-Elysees turning into a battlefield. He said, “When you want to celebrate victory, you don’t come with mortars. But these people are really only coming to smash with iron bars. For Wednesday, everyone is afraid of a war, a guerrilla war, a civil war, and we do not want the Champs-Elysees to be transformed into a battlefield.”

The city of Nice also saw violent clashes. Similarly, Lyon faced a riot-like situation, and local media reported police had to use teargas to disperse the crowd that was pelting stones.

Rahul Singh Chaddha’s prolonged Yatra is pointless and clueless, just like the megaflop Amir Khan movie

Sanghamitra
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Rahul Singh Chaddha’s prolonged Yatra is pointless and clueless, just like the megaflop Amir Khan movie

Rahul Gandhi has been walking. For months now, people flicking through newspapers and scrolling through gadgets among the drama-loaded Indian political news have been noticing that Rahul Gandhi has been walking. The mainstream media and a certain section of social media have been going gaga over it, for some unknown reason. Everyone has been watching Rahul Gandhi has been walking. But ask why, and there will be no answer. Nobody knows why is he walking.

Maybe that is the thing about Rahul Gandhi anyway. Nobody knows why he does what he does. Nobody knows why he keeps contesting elections despite losing again and again. The people of the country have made it very clear that they are not going to vote for Rahul. Whenever Congress does manage to win, it is because of the regional leaders and individual efforts by some dedicated MLAs who have been doing their party a huge favour by NOT antagonising the people of the country as their top leadership does.

Nobody knows why the so-called prince of the party goes away on vacations abroad after declaring major party campaigns. Nobody knows where he goes. Nobody knows why he kept screaming hoarse over non-existent scams and repeating the same dumb speeches like ‘Made in Jaunpur Pateela and Made in Chhatisgarh mobile phones‘ when everyone and their grandma knew they mean nothing, and are never going to bring votes for the party. Nobody knows anything about the point or purpose behind anything that Rahul Gandhi does.

Similarly, the Bharat Jodo Yatra has been another of the usual Rahul Gandhi ‘activity’. When the poor sincere leaders of Congress were desperately trying to salvage the fortunes of their party in Gujarat and running a spirited campaign in Himachal, because there were elections coming, the Prince was walking somewhere in the South, oblivious to all political ‘Moh Maaya’.

It is not that he is walking under great hardships. There are luxurious container vehicles fitted with every comfort imaginable that follow his entourage. He eats and sleeps well, and his comforts and clothing, security and health are very well taken care of, unlike the Laal Singh Chaddha he is trying to emulate. The beard is vanity because the container vehicles have toilets and everyone knows that he is not shaving only because he doesn’t want to.

Attached washroom and toilet inside the luxury containers that are being used for Rahul Gandhi’s Bharat Jodo Yatra, image via Indian Express

Aamir Khan’s Laal Singh Chaddha was made and released with a lot of pomp and ceremony. As we all know by now, the actor is particularly fond of preaching and absolutely loves to give sermons. He probably thought that since his insufferable sermons have seen commercial success in the past, nobody would remember Forrest Gump, especially the unwashed Indians, and he can just make a scene-by-scene copy, throw in some India-Pakistan, “Hindu Muslim Sikh Isai” type of primary school assembly hall level preachings and can laugh all the way to the banks.

Sadly, Indians didn’t fall for his sermons this time around. The remake was a resounding flop. Those who did watch it, kept wondering what exactly was the point of the prolonged movie. What exactly was Aamir khan trying to do by destroying a Hollywood classic with his ridiculous expressions and insufferable sermons? However, one person probably watched it very seriously. Since almost all methods of “launching” Rahul Gandhi into Indian politics have been tried, and retried, again and again, his ‘advisers’ probably thought what is the harm in trying once more? Indians have a weak spot for pilgrimages, Yatras and marches anyway.

So Rahul began his walk, and has been walking in the news space since September 7. Every day, some obscure starlet joins him and walks a few steps with him. There are photographers around him to take nice photos. Everyone and their grandma in this country know that as an MP and the son of a former PM, he gets Z+ level security paid by the taxpayers. The starlets and wannabe actors consider themselves especially blessed if Rahul holds their hands, for some unknown reason. Then they go their own way and Rahul is again seen walking with another person in the next photo. Sometimes he holds hands, kisses and hugs people.

It is indeed a lot like relatives and family friends lining up to get clicked with the bride and groom at wedding receptions, people coming, smiling, getting clicked and moving on like bags on airport baggage belts. Wannabe starlets, out-of-job actors, rejected professional protestors, seasonal politicians, economic soothsayers on extended leave from Chicago, abusive stand-up comedians, everyone gets to come, smile and pose with Rahul Gandhi in his walk, like our neighbourhood wedding reception.

While Rahul Gandhi walks, Congress got swept out in Gujarat and Himachal is already showing signs of faction war among the party leaders. We all saw what happened in Punjab and how Rajasthan has Gehlot and Pilot playing the role of ‘Naaraz phupha’ alternatively. But somehow, the party Prince is untouched, unbothered about all that. He has been clicked walking, for some unknown reason. And quite frankly, the Indians have now reached a stage where they have finally learned to accept the fact that Rahul Gandhi is here to stay. Governments will come and go, Congress presidents will come and go, and elections will come and go, but Rahul Gandhi will be there in media space perpetually, still being hailed as the ‘youth icon’, still learning and still being projected as the future PM of India by people who have been clicked with him, to prove their proximity to the family.

Assam: Muslims trying to grab land in Dhing region, says Hindu family, CMO takes stock of the situation, directs probe

OpIndia Staff
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Assam: Muslims trying to grab land in Dhing region, says Hindu family, CMO takes stock of the situation, directs probe

On Tuesday, two families from the Dhing region of Assam’s Lahorighat city clashed as a Hindu family in the region stated that certain persons from the Muslim community were seeking to forcefully acquire land in the area. The incident was reported from the Dhing region of Morigaon district in Assam.

According to the Times Now report, the Chief Minister’s Office took cognizance of the incident and directed an investigation. The police security in the area was increased as a team-led Superintendent of Police began looking into the case. However, because it was a land problem, the District Admin Circle Officer was also contacted.

Meanwhile, local Muslim citizens came out in favor of the Hindu family, stating that it was a personal problem that would be resolved in full harmony. According to the SP, a Hindu household complained that a land-snatching effort was attempted by certain persons of the Muslim community. According to the police officer, an investigation is ongoing, and the circle officer is on the scene to assess the matter. The police presence has been increased in the area to avert any untoward incidents.

The circle officer who examined the area stated that they had visited the location and investigated the problem. “We will be looking into the land mapping. We have not reached any conclusion. Police are investigating the allegations”, he said.

Bihar Love Jihad: Muslim man pretends to be Samir Khanna, wears Kalawa to lure a Hindu woman into marriage

OpIndia Staff
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Bihar Love Jihad: Muslim man pretends to be Samir Khanna, wears Kalawa to lure a Hindu woman into marriage

Cases of Love Jihad continue to appear from the state of Bihar led by CM Nitish Kumar who in June ruled no need for an anti-conversion law in the state. In one such dreadful case of Love Jihad reported from the Siwan district of Bihar, a Muslim man pretended to be a Hindu to marry a Hindu woman.

According to the reports, the identity of the Muslim man who posed himself as Samir Khanna is yet to be ascertained. However, it has been confirmed that the Muslim man who owned a coaching centre where he taught English concealed his religious identity to marry a Hindu girl who was once a student at his centre.

The woman in the complaint filed at the Police station stated that the accused after the course offered her to be a staffer at the coaching centre to which she agreed. He, who posed himself as Samir Khanna respected and adorned all the Hindu rituals and the Hindu way of life.

She said that the accused also wore Kalawa which is a sacred thread worn on wrists by people from the Hindu community. Reports mention that the victim came to know about the original religious identity of the accused only after he married her in court and solemnized the wedding in March 2017.

Siwan SP Shailesh Kumar Sinha has taken the cognizance of the incident and has assured justice to the woman. He has also ordered severe inquiry into the matter. Further investigations in the case are underway.

Earlier, a similar case was reported from Katihar district of the state where one Taufiq Alam pretended to be Raj Rajput to lure a Hindu woman Julie Kumari into a love marriage. Once Julie knew the reality and resisted Taufiq, who was already married and had an 11-year-old daughter from his earlier marriage, he started forcing the victim woman to convert to Islam.

Notably, Bihar CM Nitish Kumar in June this year had said that there was no need for an anti-conversion law in the state. He also said that there was ‘complete harmony’ and members of different communities lived in peace within the state.

Maharashtra government forms committee to study and collect information on interfaith and intercaste marriage couples: Details

OpIndia Staff
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Maharashtra government forms committee to study and collect information on interfaith and intercaste marriage couples: Details

The Maharashtra government has formed a committee to study and gather information on intercaste and interfaith marriages. The 12-member committee has been named as Intercaste/Interfaith Marriage-Family Coordination Committee. Headed by the state’s Women and Child Development Minister Mangal Prabhat Lodha, the committee will comprise government officials along with people from the non-government sector.

This committee will gather and analyse information about couples in such marriages, as well as the women’s maternal families, to determine if they are estranged. The panel will contact the women’s families to inquire about the status of the marriage and to offer to counsel if the interfaith marriage was done against their will.  In addition, the committee will gather information on marriages performed in religious places and ascertain whether such marriages were registered.

The committee also intends to launch a platform to address issues that arise from such marriages.

It is also worth noting that the Maharashtra government is considering introducing legislation in the upcoming winter session of the state assembly to prohibit forcible religious conversions and ‘Love Jihad’ in the state. Reportedly,  the law will be modeled after the UP government, and those found guilty will be jailed for 3-5 years. If the victim is a minor or belongs to a scheduled caste, the punishment will be harsher.

In a press briefing, BJP MLA and Maharashtra’s Women and Child Development minister said that this initiative intends to prevent a repeat of the Shraddha Walkar murder case wherein the victim Shraddha was strangulated and chopped into 35 pieces by her Muslim live-in partner Aftab Amin Poonawala. 

“It’s frightening that Shraddha Walkar’s family was unaware she died six months ago… We don’t want another Shraddha Walkar, which is why the committee is being formed to ensure that women in such marriages are not separated from their families,” Minister Lodha said.

‘More job cuts next year’: WaPo announces layoffs post losing 500k subscribers in a year, employees outraged as publisher refuses to answer questions

OpIndia Staff
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‘More job cuts next year’: WaPo announces layoffs post losing 500k subscribers in a year, employees outraged as publisher refuses to answer questions

On December 14 (local time), The Washington Post publisher Fred Ryan announced during a meeting with the employees that the company would eliminate some positions in 2023. Some of these positions would be from the newsroom. Ryan added that steps were being taken to expand the company’s coverage areas. Notably, less than a week ago, it was reported that WaPo had lost over 500,000 subscribers since President Biden started his tenure.

Furthermore, the layoffs will be in a single-digit percentage, and it would not be affected in terms of overall headcount in the newsroom as WaPo would hire more people in other areas. Currently, there are over 2,500 employees in the company. WaPo’s report suggested that Ryan said the layoffs would be for the positions that are “no longer serving readers”. It is unclear if WaPo will continue to pay authors like Rana Ayyub, who are not regular contributors.

As per reports, Ryan informed the employees about the layoffs during a town hall meeting. Videos available on social media platforms show that Ryan stepped off the stage when confronted by the employees with follow-up questions about the same.

After the meeting, Washington Post Guild leaders expressed anguish over the “unceremonious announcement”. Furthermore, the leaders and employees were “outraged” as Ryan refused to take questions. A statement by the Guild read, “This behaviour is unacceptable from any leader, but especially the leader of a news organization whose core values include transparency and accountability. There is no justification for The Post to lay off employees during record growth and hiring.”

In its statement, WaPo said that the layoffs were part of a plan to “invest in coverage, products, and people in service of providing high value to our subscribers and new audiences. The Washington Post is evolving and transforming to put our business in the best position for future growth.”

After the town hall meeting, Ryan reportedly emailed the staff and explained the situation. As per The New York Times report, he wrote that he recognized that the announcement would “understandably generate a great deal of uncertainty across our organization.” NYT report further suggested that when President Trump was in office, WaPo’s digital subscriber base expanded; however, post his tenure, the company has struggled to expand it further.

WaPo’s report suggested that Ryan informed the employees in his email that the layoffs did not mean the company was scaling back its ambitions. However, “like any business, The Post cannot keep investing resources in initiatives that do not meet our customers’ needs,” he added.

In addition to a lower subscriber base rise, WaPo is reportedly struggling with the downturn in the advertising market. Media houses across the United States have recently seen a steep fall in revenue from advertisements. To add to the agony, WaPo recently announced it would close the print edition of its standalone magazine. The ten employees linked to the magazines would leave the company. The last issue of the magazine is planned for December 25.

In recent months, Chief Information Officer Shailesh Prakash, Chief Communication Officer Kris Coratti, Chief Product Officer Kat Downs, and Vice President of Audience Development and Analytics Beth Diaz have left the company. In addition to these key people, Managing Editor Steve Ginsberg has also announced his departure as he would join NYT as Executive Editor of The Athletic in January 2023. Reports suggest that employees at WaPo have raised questions about the company’s business strategies and work-from-home policy.

Following Ryan’s announcement about the layoffs, WaPo’s writers have approached Union, saying they wanted to join. The names listed by NYT who called the Union include Ashley Parker, Josh Dawsey, Jose Del Real, Shane Harris, John Woodrow Cox and Tyler Pager.

Apart from WaPo, CNN, Vox Media, and Gannett have reduced the workforce at their offices.

Hosting Osama Bin Laden, attacking neighbouring Parliament: What Jaishankar said in the UN in response to Pakistan’s Bhutto raising Kashmir bogey

ANI
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Hosting Osama Bin Laden, attacking neighbouring Parliament: What Jaishankar said in the UN in response to Pakistan’s Bhutto raising Kashmir bogey

Without naming any country, External Affairs Minister (EAM) S Jaishankar slammed the neighbouring state after Pakistan Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari unceremoniously raked up the issue of Kashmir during a UN gathering in New York to discuss the issue of multilateralism.

Speaking in his national capacity, Jaishankar said the credibility of the UN depends on its effective response to the key challenges of our time be it pandemic, climate change, conflicts or terrorism. He continued saying, “while searching for solutions, our discourse must never accept the normalisation of such threats. The question of justifying what the world regards as unacceptable should not even arise.”

“That certainly applies to state sponsorship of cross-border terrorism. Nor can hosting Osama Bin Laden and attacking a neighbouring Parliament serves as credentials to sermonize before this council,” he said in an apparent reference to Pakistan.

Jaishankar’s response came after Bhutto raked up the issue of Kashmir during a meeting convened to debate the New orientation for reformed multilateralism (NORM) under India’s December presidency of UNSC.

Pakistan foreign minister said that UN Security Council (UNSC) is primarily responsible for maintaining international peace and security.

“Multilateral solutions under the umbrella of the security council offer the most effective approach to promoting peace and resolving conflicts. Parties to a dispute can not advocate multilateral process one day, multilateral reforms one day and insist on bilateral avenues the next and ultimately impose unilateral actions,” he said in a reference to Jammu and Kashmir without naming them.

Bhutto said Pakistan firmly believes that major security problems including those in its region can be effectively and peacefully resolved through the active involvement of the Security Council.

“Multilateralism should be based on universal and consistent adherence to the UN charter,” he added.

Amidst calls for India’s inclusion in Security Council Bhutto said “Adding new permanent members to UNSC will numerically reduce the opportunities for the vast majority of the UN member states to be present on the Security Council. We must adhere to sovereign equality of all, not superiority of some.”

This is not the first time Pakistan has used the UN stage meant for multilateral agenda to discuss its bilateral issues. India responds in equal measures and calls out its misuse of the UN stage.

(This news report is published from a syndicated feed. Except for the headline, the content has not been written or edited by OpIndia staff)

Union Home Minister Amit Shah lays out a five-point action plan to resolve the Maharashtra-Karnataka border dispute

OpIndia Staff
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Union Home Minister Amit Shah lays out a five-point action plan to resolve the Maharashtra-Karnataka border dispute

On 14th December 2022, Union Home Minister Amit Shah called a special meeting of Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, and Karnataka Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai on the Maharashtra-Karnataka boundary issue. Speaking to the media after the meeting, Amit Shah spoke to the media and outlined the five points for a solution to the dispute.

Eknath Shinde and Devendra Fadnavis from Maharashtra and Basavaraj Bommai from Karnataka and his home minister Araga Jnanendra Kumar were also present for the meeting. Amit Shah said, “There was a border dispute between the states of Karnataka and Maharashtra. I called the Chief Minister and Deputy Chief Minister of Maharashtra and the Chief Minister and Home Minister of Karnataka here today to find a solution to put an end to this dispute and to find a constitutional way out of it. Talks with both sides were held in a good atmosphere in the presence of officials of the Home Department of the Government of India. Both sides have played a positive role. It is generally agreed that disputes cannot be settled on the streets in a democratic process. A solution can only be found through constitutional means. Some decision has been taken in this regard.”

Amit Shah further said, “These decisions have been taken unanimously in today’s meeting. As home minister of the country, I also appeal to the opposition parties in both states that whatever the political opposition, it should not be made a political issue in the interest of other languages in the border areas. I hope the Congress, NCP, and Uddhav Thackeray’s group will cooperate in this matter.”

The decisions made in the meeting are as follows:

  1. No state will stake claim to each other’s state until the Supreme Court gives a verdict in this regard.
  2. Six ministers from both states, three each on both sides, will sit together and discuss the matter in detail.
  3. There are many other small points of disagreement among the neighbouring states. Such disputes are commonly seen in neighbouring countries. A solution to such issues will also be discussed by a committee of three ministers each that will discuss the two sides together.
  4. Both states have agreed to constitute a committee under the chairmanship of a senior IPS officer to ensure that the law and order situation remains normal in both states and that the traders or the common people from other linguistic groups do not have to face any kind of harassment. The committee will try to maintain law and order.
  5. Fake Twitter accounts also played a big role in this entire case. Rumours were spread over social media by creating fake Twitter accounts in the name of some top leaders. This kind of thing is serious because such tweets are working to provoke people’s sentiments. So a case will be registered against such fake accounts.
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