The Indonesian government on February 11 allowed functioning of Hindu and Buddhist religious rituals at the Prambanan temple and Borobudur temple as it restored Asia’s most renowned sacred sites for the religious interests of Hindus and Buddhists in Indonesia and the World. It also officially launched Pawon Temple and Mendut Temple in Central Java as global worship sites for Hindus and Buddhists.
According to the reports, a Memorandum of Understanding was signed at Yogyakarta between the Indonesian government and religious leaders to agree upon functioning of religious rituals based on the main reason for their construction. Borobudur Temple embraces Mahayana Buddhism and was built in the 9th centuries CE during the reign of the Sailendra dynasty. While Prambanan Temple, constructed in the 10th century by the syncretic Hindu-Buddhist Mataram Kingdom, is the largest temple compound dedicated to Shiva in Indonesia.
Adung Abdul Rochman, Religious Affairs Ministry special staff coordinator said during the signing of a MoU in that the four temples have been mostly used for research, culture and tourism. This is after the Indonesian government took into consideration the rise in destruction of religious and cultural sites by the Muslim extremists. The Muslim extremists have destroyed world’s diverse cultural and religious heritages in Middle East, Africa, Europe and also North America.
Reports mention that the temples of Borobudur and Prambanan rest in the cultural heartland of Java. Java reportedly has majority of the Muslim population who tend to embrace humanitarian Islam as a source of universal love and compassion and have protected the pre-Islamic religious sites from the invaders.
Yogyakarta Governor Sultan Hamengku Buwono X meanwhile said that the MoU on temples being regarded as international sites for worship is the actualization of religious moderation, social cohesion, and harmony between religious communities in Indonesia. “The intention arises from the spirit of Oneness Amid Diversity which is Indonesia’s national motto. It is the key to developing a nation whose people value diversity amid the harmonious mosaic of a unified Indonesia”, he was quoted.
Sultan Hamengku Buwono X signing the MoU (Image source- baytarrahmah.org)
The MoU was signed on last week between the religious leaders and the Indonesian government supported by Ministry of Religious Affairs, Ministry of Education, Culture, Research and Technology, State-owned Enterprises (SOEs) Ministry, Tourism and Creative Economy Ministry as well as the Yogyakarta and Central Java provincial governments.
Three Naxal leaders charged in the Elgar Parishad – Bhima Koregaon case have been denied bail by a special court in Delhi, citing evidence that the trio, along with other members of the banned CPI (Maoist), plotted “serious conspiracy” to cause disturbance in the country and overthrow the Modi government, reports PTI.
The bail to the accused namely Sagar Gorkhe, Ramesh Gaichor, and Jyoti Jagtap, all members of the Kabir Kala Manch, was denied by the special NIA court judge D E Kothalika on February 14, Monday. The detailed order was made available on February 17, Thursday.
According to the court, a letter on record prima facie reveals that the CPI (Maoist) was hell-bent on eliminating the “Modi raj” and that they were planning another incident similar to the assassination of previous Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi by targeting PM Narendra Modi’s road shows.
“From the letters and documents placed on record, prima facie it can be gathered that the applicants along with other members of the banned organisation hatched a serious conspiracy to create unrest in the entire country and to overpower the government, politically,” the court said.
The evidence on record prima facie shows that the accused were not only members of the banned CPI (Maoist), but that they were also carrying out acts that furthered the organization’s goal, which is to undermine the nation’s democracy, the court added.
“The contents of the aforesaid letter prima facie speaks that the CPI (Maoist) was bent upon ending the Modi raj, that is the Modi-led government. Not only this, but they were also thinking to go for another incident, like the death of Rajiv Gandhi, by targeting the roadshows of Modi,” the court furthered while referring to the letter placed on record.
“If these allegations are taken into consideration in proper perspective, in that case, there will be no hesitation to prima facie conclude that there is prima facie case against the applicants that they have done an act with intent to threaten or likely to threaten the unity, integrity, security and sovereignty of India and with intent to strike terror in a section of the people in India by other means to likely to cause death of, or injuries to, any person or persons,” the court added.
The court went on to say that the evidence on record prima facie demonstrates that the applicants were actively involved in the planning of the Elgar Parishad summit in Pune.
The three aforementioned accused, Jagtap, Gorkhe and Gaichor were arrested in September 2020 and have been in custody since then.
Letters recovered by Pune police hinted at a ‘Rajiv Gandhi type incident’ being planned
It may be recalled that a letter was unearthed by Pune Police in 2018 suggesting plans to assassinate Prime Minister Modi in a “Rajiv Gandhi type incident” by “targeting road shows”. The police had then sought custody for the five people arrested and booked them under provisions of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act namely, Delhi based activist Rona Wilson, advocate Surendra Gadling, professor Shoma Sen and Mahesh Raut from Nagpur and Mumbai’s Sudhir Dhavle.
Without naming Modi, public prosecutor Ujjwala Pawar had then told the court that the email talked about “another Rajiv Gandhi type incident”. Pawar also submitted a letter which the police had claimed to have recovered from the laptops of those arrested.
Elgar Parishad-Bhima Koregaon case
The Elgar Parishad-Bhima Koregaon case pertains to an event organised at Shaniwar Wada by Kabir Kala Manch called Elgar Parishad on December 31, 2017. On the next day (January 1, 2018), violence took place at Bhima Koregaon, where lakhs of Dalits had gathered to celebrate the 200th anniversary of the Battle of Bhima Koregaon, won by the British Army—comprising mostly soldiers from the Dalit community—against the Peshwas in 1818. On January 8 Pune Police lodged an FIR and the probe revealed that the event was organised by urban Naxals. A number of Naxal ideologues and urban Naxals were arrested including Stan Swamy, Hany Babu, Sudha Bharadwaj, Rona Wilson, Surendra Gadling, Mahesh Raut, Shoma Sen, Arun Ferreira, Vernon Gonsalves, Varavara Rao and Gautam Navlakha.
Days after the Justin Trudeau-led Canadian government invoked the Emergencies Act to curb the ongoing truckers’ protests, the financial institutions have frozen the accounts of people allegedly linked to the protests in Ottawa, leaving an unknown number of protesters in financial distress.
Speaking to the media on Thursday, Canadian Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland said financial institutions have frozen the accounts of protestors in Ottawa. Freeland, who is also the country’s Finance Minister, vowed to take more accounts offline in the coming weak in an attempt to cut off the funds to the protestors who have stormed into the nation’s capital against the Covid regulations.
Canada has begun to freeze the bank accounts of people who donated to the truckers. Imagine if Trump had done this to BLM protest donors. Yet Canada does it to people donating to truckers & most in media pretend it isn’t happening. pic.twitter.com/EUwG9vJtUW
Freeland said the Royal Canadian Mounted Police and other law enforcement agencies have gathered intelligence on convoy protesters and have shared the same information with the financial institutions to restrict access to cash and cryptocurrency.
Issuing a strict warning to the peaceful protesters, Deputy PM Freeland said those “who have their big rigs on Ottawa’s streets will see their insurance cancelled and their corporate accounts suspended” — a move that will make it difficult for these drivers ever to work again.
“The consequences are real, and they will bite,” she said.
The Deputy Prime Minister said the government felt “great sorrow” about these actions, but they were necessary to “defend our democracy” and to “restore peace and order.”
The Canadian government has used the Emergencies Act to order the country’s banks and other financial institutions to stop doing business with people who are “directly or indirectly” associated with the anti-vaccine mandate Truckers’ protests. On February 14, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau had invoked the Emergencies Act to curb the ongoing truckers protest.
The Canadian authorities may also target the accounts that have donated to the protestors through GoFundMe campaigns.
The Canadian government have enforced terrorist financing laws to target crowdfunding websites and payment providers. They have to now register with the Financial Transactions and Reports Analysis Centre of Canada (FINTRAC), which functions under the government’s financial intelligence unit.
This comes weeks after the online fundraising platform had announced that the fundraiser for Canada’s trucker convoy has now been ‘removed’ from the platform over violation of ‘terms of service’. The platform is now withholding the over 9 million dollars donated to the protesting truckers in Canada. The end of the online campaign came after the Public Safety Committee voted to bring Go FundMe to testify about the fundraising for the truckers on their platform.
Ottawa police to remove pets, children from the protest sites
The Ottawa administration has warned parents who bring children to protest sites stating that they could face massive fines or jail time under the Emergency Act.
Acting Police Chief Steve Bell said children of the demonstrators would be taken to safety as the law enforcement agencies have started to arrest the protestors assembled in Ottawa to protest against the vaccine mandates imposed by the Canadian government.
Interim Ottawa Police Chief says he is working with social services and Freedom Convoy protestors to “have children removed from the area prior to any sort of police action.” pic.twitter.com/5ZmtEwHeLq
“We continue to work with our partners from the Children’s Aid Society and other social services to look at the best, most safest way to have children removed from the area prior to any sort of police action,” said Bell.
On Thursday, Ottawa police began arresting Freedom Convoy protesters after they refused to leave the city that has seen protests for over three weeks now. ‘
The Ottawa police have also warned the protestors who brought their pets that their animals may be placed into protective care for a period of time if they fail to care for them.
In a tweet issued on Thursday, Ottawa by-law said pets would be placed into protective care for eight days at the owner’s cost.
“If you are unable to care of your animal as a result of enforcement actions, your animal will be placed in protective custody for [eight] days, at your cost,” the tweet read.
“After [eight] days, if arrangements are not made, your animal will be considered relinquished,” the Ottawa police have issued a statement.
A special court in Ahmedabad announced the sentences in the 2008 Ahmedabad bomb blast case on Friday 18th February 2022. In the verdict, the court has awarded death sentences to as many as 38 convicts out of the 49 accused who were convicted in this case, while the remaining 11 have been sentenced to life imprisonment until death. Earlier on 8th February 2022, the court had convicted 49 out of 77 accused in the case. The serial bomb blasts that took place in Ahmedabad on 26th July 2008 had caused 56 deaths and 243 innocent citizens were injured in the blasts.
All the convicts virtually attended the court today when the sentences were awarded. As per law, the death sentences will need to be confirmed by the Gujarat High Court.
The list of all 49 convicts in the case is given below. The names of those who were awarded the death penalty among them will be known later when the detailed court order is made public.
1. Zahid Sheikh
18. Sarfuddin Itti
34. Abubasar Sheikh
2. Imran Sheikh
19. Md. Sadiq Sheikh
35. Abaas Sameza
3. Iqbal Sheikh
20. Md Arif Sheikh
36. Saifu Ansari
4. Samsuddin Sheikh
21. Akbar Chaudhary
37. Md. Saif Sheikh
5. Javed Sheikh
22. Fazal Durani
38. Zishan Sheikh
6. Asif Sheikh
23. Nausad Sayed
39. Jia-ur-Rahman
7. Atique Khiljee
24. Ahmed Barelvi
40. Tanveer Pathan
8. Mehdi Ansari
25. Rafiq Afidi
41. Abraar Maniyar
9. Safiq Ansari
26. Amin Sheik
42. Shaduli Karim
10. Rafiuddin
27. Md. Mobin Khan
43. Tausif Pathan
11. Arif Mirza
28. Md. Ansar
44. Md. Ali Ansari
12. Kabumuddin
29. Gyasuddin Ansari
45. Md. Ismail
13. Sibyl Muslim
30. Arif Kagzi
46. Kamruddin
14. Safdar Nagori
31. Usmaan
47. Aleem Kazi
15. Hafiz Mulla
32. Yunus Mansoori
48. Aniq Sayed
16. Sajid Mansoori
33. Imran Pathan
49. Md. Shaqil
17. Afzal Usmani
Source: Dainik Bhaskar
The special court judge AR Patel had already acquitted 28 accused. Along with these punishments, judge AR Patel has also awarded various compensations to the deceased and the injured in this incident. Rs. 1 lakh compensation is awarded to those who were killed in this attack. Victims with serious injuries are awarded Rs. 50000 compensation while those having minor injuries are awarded a compensation of Rs. 25000. Besides, the court has also imposed a fine of Rs. 2.85 lakhs on all the convicts.
The arguments from the prosecution had concluded on 14th February 2022 and the verdict was awaited. These accused were convicted by the court under various sections of the Indian Penal Code, UAPA that is Unlawful Activities Prevention Act, Explosive Substances Act, and Damage to Public Property Act. The sections imposed include section 302 (murder), 307 (attempt to murder), 121 (a) (conspiracy to wage war or attempt to wage war against the nation) and 124 (a) (sedition), and Section 16(1)(a)(b) of the UAPA pertaining to terrorist acts.
On 26th July 2008, 20 serial bomb blasts had left the city of Ahmedabad in shock. The haunting memories of this terror attack still leave the people in a trauma-like situation. Within three weeks of the attack, major arrests, in this case, had taken place owing to the coordinated efforts of the Gujarat police and the ATS. A big network of the Indian Mujahidin terrorists was exposed. These terrorists were also involved in the bomb blasts in other cities of the country. Then Gujarat CM Narendra Modi had extended every possible support to the investigating officers in order to ensure that a strong case is built against the terrorists.
The Gujarat police had claimed that these attacks were executed as an attempt to take revenge for the 2002 post-Godhra riots. Indian Mujahidin was a section of the banned organization Students Islamic Movement of India that is SIMI. The terrorists have threat emails about these blasts to various news channels and media houses. Also, a few days after the blasts, a large number of live bombs were found and defused in Surat city of Gujarat.
Foxconn, the Taiwanese manufacturing company, has partnered with Anil Agarwal’s Vedanta group, an Indian oil, gas, and metals conglomerate, to make semiconductor chips in India.
Foxconn has announced that it intends to invest $118.7 million, or around Rs 900 crores, in a joint venture with Vedanta. Foxconn and Vedanta have signed a memorandum of understanding to manufacture semiconductors, which Foxconn describes as a “major boost to local electronics manufacturing in India.”
Vedanta and Foxconn Sign MOU for Manufacturing Semiconductors in India
According to the MOU, Vedanta will hold the majority of the equity in the JV, while Foxconn will be the minority shareholder. Vedanta Chairman Anil Agarwal will be the Chairman of the joint venture company. pic.twitter.com/lGZBxbrDrX
Vedanta will control the bulk of the shares in the JV, while Foxconn would be a minority partner, according to the MOU. The joint venture business will be led by Vedanta Chairman Anil Agarwal.
This action follows the unveiling of the Rs 76,000 crore PLI scheme by the central government for semiconductor manufacturing in the country, which aims to make India one of the world’s major semiconductor manufacturing hubs. It would provide financial assistance of up to 50% of the project cost to qualifying bidders under this initiative.
Vedanta group Chairman Anil Agarwal indicated last year that the company will invest around Rs 60,000 crore over the next three years to establish a chip manufacturing cluster.
According to Rajeev Chandrasekhar, minister of state for electronics and information technology, the government has also decided to prolong the application window for its massive incentive-backed semiconductor chip design and production plan. The change is intended to allow a plethora of prominent global semiconductor companies to submit bids as well. According to sources aware of the developments, the government is mindful that, given the enormity of the commitment, firms may want more time to submit formal proposals.
On Tuesday, Union Minister for Electronics and Information Technology Ashwini Vaishnaw commended the industry’s “superb” response to the government’s semiconductor manufacturing initiative.
He said, “I am really pleased that such a positive response has been received from semiconductor industry participants in such a short time frame.”
The Production Linked Incentive scheme
Following the Covid-19 outbreak in 2020, the government proposed 13 Production Linke Incentive (PLI) schemes aimed at encouraging big companies to expand output, strengthen supply chains, and promote exports. The total incentives under the PLI schemes, which cover industries like telecom, electronics, auto parts, pharmaceuticals, chemical cells, and textiles, were initially estimated to reach Rs 1.97 lakh crore over a five-year period.
On December 15 last year, the Union Cabinet approved a Rs 76,000-crore programme to promote semiconductor and display manufacturing, with a focus on capital assistance and production-linked incentives.
Several chipmakers, notably Intel, TSMC (Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company), and United Microelectronics Corporation, have expressed interest in building up semiconductor manufacturing facilities in India because of the attractive PLI programme.
According to the World Bank’s latest Global Economic Prospects report, India’s GDP growth is expected to be 8.3 per cent this fiscal year and 8.7 per cent in 2022-23. The Statistics show that the Modi government’s Production-Linked Incentive (PLI) Scheme would help India’s economy develop at 8.7% in the fiscal year 2022-23, outperforming emerging market rivals such as China.
The notorious radical organisation Popular Front of India (PFI) has also got support from Mamata Banerjee-led TMC government in West Bengal, on the same day the Congress-led Rajasthan government authorised the extremist outfit, set to be banned in India, to stage an annual march on February 17 to mark its formation day.
According to a report by ThePrint, the Popular Front of India organised a rally in West Bengal’s Murshidabad district on Thursday, February 17, where a representative of the ruling Trinamool Congress (Manirul Islam, TMC MLA from Farakka) was openly seen sharing a stage with members of the notorious Islamist organisation.
Screenshot taken from the article published by ThePrint
During the rally, the PFI national secretary Mohamed Shakif spewed venom against RSS by calling it a “cancer” and accusing it of dividing India’s Hindus and Muslims amid slogans of Allahu Akbar and PFI zindabad. The TMC MLA, in turn, stood shoulder to shoulder with the PFI leader, heaping praises for the “overwhelming” response the radical outfit received from the people of West Bengal, read the report.
TMC and Congress Govt in Rajasthan on the same plain
It may be recalled that only yesterday, the Ashok-Gehlot government in Rajasthan had also permitted the PFI to hold a protest in the state. On Thursday, radical Islamist outfit Popular Front of India (PFI) had organised a ‘unity march’ in Rajasthan’s Kota on the occasion of its annual ‘PFI Day’.
This came despite the PFI’s designation as a radical hate organisation by the National Investigation Agency and its documented involvement in a number of communal riots and conflicts, including the hijab row.
With its insensitive decision to let the rally take place in the state, the Congress government infuriated the BJP, which accused the former of legitimising the extremist organisation.
However, this isn’t the first time a TMC leader has been seen expressing support for the hardline group. TMC MP Abu Taher Khan sparked outrage in 2020 when PFI posters bearing his name were distributed in Murshidabad in support of anti-CAA-NRC protests.
PFI – a radical Islamic organisation
Ever since it was formed in 2006, the Popular Front of India (PFI) has been involved in several clashes. The radical Islamic outfit has been allegedly involved in several clashes and political murders. The radical Islamic organisation has been accused of having links with the banned Islamic terror group Students’ Islamic Movement of India (SIMI).
Several investigation agencies, including the National Investigation Agency (NIA), have named PFI in many cases. The first module of Islamic State that NIA busted in Kerala had some members of PFI. Along with its youth wing – SDPI, PFI perpetrates crimes against Hindus and is responsible for communal riots across the country.
The PFI is currently active in seven states of India. According to the Uttar Pradesh police, PFI has been active in different parts of India since 2010, and the members of this group have been involved in disrupting the peace and harmony in the country.
Most recently, the Popular Front of India along with Islamic organisations like the Jamaat-e-Islami have come under the scanner for being involved in orchestrating the Karnataka hijab protests. Several reports have emerged revealing how the notorious radical Islamic outfit Campus Front of India (CFI) – the student wing of Popular Front of India and banned radical terror outfit Jamaat-e-Islami Hind had counselled Muslim students to orchestrate the hijab controversy in Karnataka.
It is worth mentioning that radical Islamic organisations such as PFI, SDPI and other associated organisations had come under the scanner in UP after the anti-CAA violence triggered in the state in the years 2020 and 2021. In addition, several leaders of the Popular Front of India were also named as accused in the Bengaluru riots that took place in August 2020.
Last year in January, the Yogi Adityanath-led UP Government had asked for a ban on PFI because of the violence caused by PFI members during the anti-CAA riots.
PFI members have been frequently found to be indulging in criminal activities, including murder with communal motives. Earlier in January, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) had alleged that the PFI raised money through hawala channels for running terror camps in Kerala.
Besides this, it has been accused by the National Investigative Agency (NIA) of being involved in the controversial ‘love jihad’ cases in Kerala. The activists of its political arm SDPI were arrested for an ABVP worker’s brutal murder in Kerala’s Kannur. Furthermore, PFI members were accused of killing 42-year-old activist Ramalingam. The activist was brutally murdered for opposing forced religious conversions. In the past, the PFI members have been accused of chopping off the hands of a Kerala Professor for allegedly insulting the Islamic Prophet Mohammed.
In Kerala, most of its leaders were members of the banned Student Islamic Movement of India. Reportedly, the PFI was allegedly involved in at least 24 political murders in Kerala.
In February last year, during a rally to mark the Moplah Massacre of Hindus, PFI had paraded men dressed in RSS uniforms in Kerala. A video from the rally confirmed a lot of Islamic chanting, including “Allahu Akbar, La ilaha illallah Muhammad ur Rasulullah”, and others chanted during the procession.
On Thursday (February 17), the Indian Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) reportedly summoned Singapore High commissioner Simon Wong after the country’s Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong claimed that Indian Parliamentarians have pending criminal cases against them.
Citing sources, news agency ANIreported that India has dubbed the remarks of Singaporean PM as ‘unacceptable’ and ‘uncalled for.’ A source confirmed, “The remarks by the Prime Minister of Singapore were uncalled for. We are taking up the matter with the Singaporean side.”
Contentious remarks made by Singaporean PM about India
On Tuesday (February 15), Lee Hsien Loong delivered a 44-minute long speech in the Singaporean Parliament, during a debate on a report by the Committee of Privileges that probed accusations of lying by members of the Opposition Workers’ Party. The career politician commented about ‘political decline’ in India, Israel and the United Kingdom.
He remarked, “Most countries are founded and start off on the basis of high ideals and noble values. But more often than not, beyond the founding leaders and the pioneer generation, over decades and generations, gradually things change.”
“Things start off with passionate intensity. The leaders, who fought for and won independence, are often exceptional individuals of great courage, immense culture, and outstanding ability. They came through the crucible of fire and emerged as leaders of men and nations. They are the David Ben-Gurions, the Jawaharlal Nehrus, and we have our own too,” he further added.
While pondering about how Singapore can be protected from facing a decline in political probity, Lee Hsien Loong had alleged, “Nehru’s India has become one where, according to media reports, almost half the MPs in the Lok Sabha have criminal charges pending against them, including charges of rape and murder.”
The comments by the incumbent Singaporean Prime Minister wherein he insinuated that ‘Nehru’s India’ got somehow overshadowed by criminal Parliamentarians at present had drawn the ire of the Indian government. As such, the MEA summoned the Singaporean High Commissioner and expressed its displeasure.
Singapore was ‘offended’ by the reference of country-specific Covid-19 variant
In May last year, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal took to Twitter to claim that a new variant of Covid-19 was found in Singapore, which could result in India’s third wave. While resorting to fear-mongering, Kejriwal alleged that the new variant was extremely dangerous for children.
His ‘ignorant’ claim not only embarrassed India on a global platform but also invoked strong reactions from the Singapore government. Simon Wong, Singapore High Commissioner to India, said that Singapore and India are solid partners in the fight against COVID-19, and the pandemic knew no boundary or political colour.
“Singapore Government called in our High Commissioner today to convey strong objection to Delhi CM’s tweet on “Singapore variant”. High Commissioner clarified that Delhi CM had no competence to pronounce on Covid variants or civil aviation policy,” the MEA clarified.
Singapore Government called in our High Commissioner today to convey strong objection to Delhi CM’s tweet on “Singapore variant”. High Commissioner clarified that Delhi CM had no competence to pronounce on Covid variants or civil aviation policy.
Wong said that the false statements by Arvind Kejriwal would invite actions under Protection from Online Falsehoods & Manipulation Act (POFMA), an act intended to mitigate misinformation in the country. However, he added that they are satisfied with the government of India’s clarification, putting an end to the matter.
In a money laundering case, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) will take custody of Iqbal Kaskar, the brother of fugitive gangster Dawood Ibrahim, on February 18, Friday. Kaskar, who is now imprisoned in Thane in an extortion case, will be brought before the special Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) court today.
Crackdown on Dawood & aides | ED to take custody of Dawood Ibrahim’s brother Iqbal Kaskar.
Kaskar was made an accused in the money laundering case registered by the ED against Pakistan-based fugitive Dawood Ibrahim after his name had emerged during the interrogation of Salim Qureshi, a close aide of Chhota Shakeel, the dreaded underworld gangster and a high-ranking leader of Dawood Ibrahim’s D-Company.
Dawood Ibrahim’s brother Iqbal Kaskar is already lodged in a jail in Thane after he was arrested on September 9, 2017, for forcibly extorting one flat and ₹90 lakh as protection money from builder Suresh Jain.
On February 16, the special court in Mumbai had issued a production warrant against Kaskar in a money laundering case registered by the Enforcement Directorate (ED). Moreover, the court directed the Taloja Central Jail authorities to produce Kaskar before it after ED’s counsel Hiten Venegavkar requested the court to do so.
ED raids properties linked with Dawood Ibrahim
A day prior to this, on February 15, the ED had conducted raids in South Mumbai in connection with a money laundering case against underworld don Dawood Ibrahim and his aides. Close to 9 places in Mumbai and 1 in Thane have been raided by the ED including the residences of Dawood Ibrahim’s late sister Haseena Parkar and brother Iqbal Kaskar.
Recently, The ED has registered a money laundering case against Pakistan-based fugitive Dawood Ibrahim based on an FIR registered by the National Investigation Agency (NIA). Among the premises raided by the ED, some are in the Nagpada area which was once the stronghold of Dawood. The ED is also reportedly investigating the Hawala angle, through which Dawood diverted his illegal money for spreading terrorism, promoting anti-national activities and creating a rift between religious groups in India.
A case under the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA) has already been registered against Dawood Ibrahim and his aides.
A ship carrying cars from Germany to the United States has caught fire in the Atlantic Ocean on Wednesday, forcing the crew members to abandon the vessel and leave it burning and adrift.
Felicity Ace, a 650-foot-long ship carrying thousands of vehicles, including 1,100 Porsches, was on fire and drifted off the coast of the Azores on Thursday.
According to the reports, a fire broke out on Wednesday morning in Felicity Ace. The ship had departed from Emden, Germany, on February 10 and was scheduled to arrive in Davisville, Rhode Islands, on Wednesday.
The Panama-flagged ship put out a distress signal on Wednesday morning. The signal reached the Portuguese Navy patrol boat as well as four merchant ships in the area. The ship was about 200 miles from Terceira Island in the Azores, the Portuguese island territory when Portuguese forces spotted the ship. They immediately rushed to the spot to rescue the crew.
The Portuguese Navy rescued the crew members in a “highly skilled and physically demanding” operation, including a helicopter that flew the crew members to the nearby Portuguese island of Faial. None of the crew members was hurt.
However, the Porsches, Volkswagens, and other luxury brand-new cars that were set to be delivered to North America have been left on board.
As per the automotive website – The Drive, the Volkswagen Group has estimated nearly 4,000 vehicles were on board, including 189 Bentleys. The Felicity Ace is regularly used as a charter vessel for VW Group. Last month, it had carried at least 21 Lamborghinis from Europe to America.
The Felicity Ace, built-in 2005, measures 656 feet long and 104 feet wide, with a carrying capacity of 17,738 tons.
On Thursday, China called for a “fair, transparent and non-discriminatory” trade pattern with India as it expressed serious concerns over India’s decision to ban 54 more Chinese apps over security concerns. China Commerce Ministry stated that India has severely damaged the legitimate rights and interests of Chinese companies in Indian markets.
According to the reports, India on February 15 had banned 54 more Chinese apps spurred by security concerns bringing the total tally of apps banned in the country since June 2020 to around 321. The Spokesperson of the Chinese Ministry of Commerce Gao Feng urged India to improve its business environment and treat China on equal bars with the other foreign investors.
“Foreign investors have created a large number of employment opportunities in India and made positive contributions to India’s economic development. Hope that India will improve its business environment and treat all foreign investors, including Chinese companies, in a fair, transparent and non-discriminatory manner”, he was quoted in a tweet by the Spokesperson of Chinese Embassy in India, Wang Xiaojian.
Hope that India will improve its business environment & treat all foreign investors, including Chinese companies, in a fair, transparent&non-discriminatory manner.
Feng specifically mentioned that India-China’s economic and trade cooperation still had strong resilience and great potential. “China and India are inseparable neighbours and important economic and trade partners to each other. In 2021, bilateral trade volume between China and India reached $125.7 billion, with a year-on-year increase of 43%”, he added hoping for the Indian side to take concrete measures to maintain sound development momentum of bilateral economic and trade cooperation for benefit of the two countries and the two peoples.
In the past week, Indian authorities had also raided the premises of Chinese telecom company Huawei. Earlier Chinese phone manufacturer Xiaomi had faced similar probes for tax evasions. In January this year, Xiaomi was served a notice for Rs 653 crores for tax evasions.
Recently banned 54 Chinese applications by India include game Free Fire Illuminate, Tencent Xriver, Nice Video baidu, Viva Video Editor and more. The Indian authorities opined that the apps collect critical permissions and data from the users and provide them to servers located in hostile countries, posing a security threat to India. Earlier in the year 2020, India had banned 59 Chinese apps including TikTok, UC Browser and more saying they were prejudicial to the sovereignty and integrity of India.
The ban on Chinese apps came after Chinese aggression in the LAC. India had retaliated with calculated strategic moves after China’s constant and relentless attempts to undermine India’s territorial boundaries. After the initial ban, India had banned 47 more Chinese apps that were variants of the 59 apps blocked earlier. Later, it also banned around 118 Chinese apps, this time including the popular game PUB-G, saying that it posed threat to India’s security.
It is important to note that China’s exports to India have today reached $97.52 billion against India’s $28.14 billion to China and the bilateral trade volume between the two countries have reached $125.7 billion. Though the actions by India coincide with the Chinese aggression at Ladakh borders, it has put a ban on only those apps which do not shield user data from the Chinese government appropriately by Chinese servers.
