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From Fani, Titli, Gaja, Kerala floods to Karnataka: Here is how the Modi government has responded to natural disasters

S. Sudhir Kumar
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From Fani, Titli, Gaja, Kerala floods to Karnataka: Here is how the Modi government has responded to natural disasters

Starting with the Kerala floods of 2018, every time a natural calamity strikes, it has become almost fashionable to blame the Modi government for not giving enough money for disaster relief or at times, not even tweeting about the disaster! The WhatsApp group of “Self-declared Eminent Citizens” are typically at the forefront of spreading these rumours. At first, I did a cursory search in the Lok Sabha website and surprisingly found out that 1000s of crores of money was indeed given by the Central government to various state governments just in the past couple of years. Very curious, I dug further.

Under the Disaster Management Act, 2005, there are two kinds of funds set up exclusively for disaster relief – the National Disaster Relief Fund (NDRF) and the State Disaster Relief Fund (SDRF). In addition to maintaining the NDRF, the central government also used to contribute 75% of the funds of SDRF. So each state had to only contribute 25% to the SDRF (In the case of Special Category states, 90% came from the central government).

After the Modi government came into power, the total value of funds made available in SDRF for the period of the 14th Finance Commission (2015 to 2020) was increased from the previous INR 33,580 crores to INR 61,220 crores. That’s a startling 88% more money available for any kind of disaster relief. Additionally, starting April 1st, 2018, the Modi government has increased the centre’s contribution to the SDRF to 90%. Now, all states of the country get 90% of their SDRF funds from the central government itself.

The funds available in the SDRF are entirely at the disposal of the state government only. There is no need for the states to get the permission of the centre to use this money for all designated disasters. In case additional funds are needed, an Inter-Ministerial Team meets regularly to decide on how much to allot from the NDRF.

When the Kerala floods happened in August 2018, this WhatsApp group were at the forefront of this charade that while UAE was offering INR 700 crores for relief, our government had given only INR 600 crores. When the UAE offer turned out to be a big lie, this group went totally silent. And in December 2018, the centre released a whopping INR 3048 crores for the Kerala Floods. This is in addition to the INR 790 crores already available in the SDRF, and also in addition to many other things done at that time.

When the Titli cyclone hit the coasts of Odisha and Andhra Pradesh, the then AP CM, Shri N.Chandrababu Naidu was on the forefront of complaining that the centre was not giving him enough funds. Those were the days when he used to complain that the centre was not funding a new handkerchief each time he sneezes, but those were also the days when many people believed his propaganda. The cyclone hit the coast in October 2018. In addition to released INR 230 crores in October itself, the central government had given a total of INR 539.52 crores for Titli relief from the NDRF. Do note here that the state government already has INR458 crores in the SDRF, 90% of which came from the centre only! By the way, Odisha received additional assistance of INR 1023 crores from the NDRF for Titli relief measures.

Similar noise was made when cyclone Fani hit the coast and impacted AP, Odisha and West Bengal on April 2019. In a shocking move, Mamta Banerjee did not even talk to the PM when the PM himself called to assess the damage. Yet, advance assistance of INR 1086 crore was released to the three states. An additional INR 1000 crores were given to Odisha only after the PM visited the cyclone ravaged state. People who wanted to call this an election gimmick could not do so, for the simple reason that the cyclone hit Odisha and AP *after* the election was over!

When Cyclone Gaja hit Tamil Nadu, some usual suspects filed a case in the High Court. At that point of time, the HC was informed by the state government that the “Centre is yet to release 1000 crores”. Turns out that a total amount of 2177 crores was made available with the state government from the centre!

There was yet another outrage after the recent Karnataka floods. The centre has now released 1200 crores for rehabilitation efforts in Karnataka.

The expectation that as soon as calamity strikes, the central government should simply give as much money as is being demanded, is a totally unfair one. In all their responses to the various questions in the Parliament, the central government has a standard paragraph. It is important that we read it carefully (emphasis mine):

“Though the primary responsibility for disaster management rests with the State Governments, Central Government extends all possible logistics and financial supports to the States to supplement their efforts to meet the situation effectively. The concerned State Governments undertake an assessment of damage and provide financial relief in the wake of natural disasters including cyclone, from the State Disaster Response Fund (SDRF) already placed at their disposal. Additional financial assistance is extended from the National Disaster Response Fund (NDRF) by following the laid down procedure, which includes an assessment based on the visit of an Inter-Ministerial Central Team (IMCT).”

While we speak so much about money, there are many things that the Government of India provides as logistics support that doesn’t get counted into all the above amounts I have mentioned. Like the thousands of metric tonnes of relief material (Rice, water, milk etc); Like the helicopters/aircrafts the Indian defence forces have deployed; like the boats, the Navy deploys; like the occasional tax sops; like the additional trains run; like rebuilding the national highways and so on.

While it is indeed a fashion to blame Modi for everything, it is pertinent to note that the state governments usually tend to get away with this blame game. The state governments must be held more responsible for all the rebuilding efforts. With so much relief material that pours in from various parts of the country when disasters happen, what exact reason do the state governments have to not co-ordinate exemplary rebuilding efforts?

As for the lies propagated by the usual suspects, it is a shame that they simply dust it off when their cheap propaganda is pointed out.

The Pashtuns in Pakistan continue to fight for their rights, while the military labels them as traitors

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The Pashtuns in Pakistan continue to fight for their rights, while the military labels them as traitors

For decades Pakistan’s all-powerful military has been in control of the country, whether directly as in military dictatorships or indirectly by the installation of a ‘puppet’ head of the government. Recently the Pakistan military has been quite reluctant in getting what it wants, jumping like a ping pong: its ‘selected’ candidate as Prime minister, its media critics hounded into compliance, creating a domestic ruckus from Kashmir issue and a reason to tighten its grip on the nation.

In their effort to wrest control and power from every possible institution, Pakistan’s military has so ruthless in crushing all forms of dissent that, at times, picking up the fight and challenging the brass seemed a fight not worth picking. On the contrary, the military has also been reluctant in ‘championing’ themselves as saviours of ‘humanity’ for every crisis outside the boundaries of Pakistan.

One more demonstration of Pakistani military’s authoritarianism and cellularly absolutists character was seen this year on May 26 when Pakistan tried to suppress a rights demonstration in the troubled region of Waziristan. At a peaceful protest organised by Pashtun Tahafuz Movement (PTM) – an umbrella organisation and a political movement for the protection of basic rights of Pashtuns in Pakistan – at Khar Kamar checkpoint in northern Waziristan, Pakistan’s dictatorial military initiated violent confrontation that left at least 13 people dead and 25 others wounded. The protest was led by two members of parliament — Ali Wazir and Mohsin Dawar — who are members of the Pashtun Tahafuz Movement (PTM). The military, being true to its suppressing tactics, arrested the Pashtun parliamentarian Ali Wazir for allegedly attacking the Khar Kamar checkpoint. “Their time is up,” Maj. Gen. Asif Ghafoor, the spokesman, said of the P.T.M. at a news conference insinuating about an ever harder approach towards PTM. “North Waziristan has become a black hole since the incident,” said Mohsin Dawar, post-arrest of his fellow Ali Wazir. “Curfew has been imposed. Phones are not working. Roads are closed. The entire district has become a jail.”

Ali Wazir and Mohsin Dawar
Ali Wazir and Mohsin Dawar

The protest was in reaction to a series of severe human rights abuses by Pakistan Army in the Pashtun tribal regions, predominantly the small region of Waziristan close to the Afghan border. The suppression was another failed attempt at crushing a voice of dissent, a movement gaining ground in Pakhtunkhwa. PTM movement is steered by a 26-year-old young dynamic leader from the improvised tribal background of Waziristan – Manzoor Pashteen – in a place where dissent is crushed, suppressed, silenced and censored as anti-state, anti-Islam or as a product of nefarious foreign influence.

Despite all cryptic attempts by Pak establishment, PTM rose to prominence from a small university in the remote outpost ranges of Waziristan in early 2018. Although the grievances PTM tapped into—discrimination against tribal people, violence by the Taliban, and military presence in the area—were long-standing, the trigger for the group’s recent explosion was the extrajudicial killing of an aspiring model and artist from Waziristan – Naqeebullah Mehsud –in the city of Karachi in January 2018.

Manzoor Pashteen

Months ago I wrote about the rise of Pashtuns against the state encouraged and deeply embedded discriminatory attitude of Pakistan Army towards Pashtuns. The situation hasn’t improved a bit, only subjecting to further deteriorations in Pashtun life. Naqeebullah’s killing was a quintessential example of Pakistan’s state espoused system of extrajudicial killings and human rights violations. The young boy’s death bought back all the dark memories of Pakistan’s discrimination against Pashtuns in the past.

Pashtuns in Pakistan have been governed through draconian colonial laws for years and upon that came Pakistan military with its ever-authoritarian oppressive character. Military pillorying collective punishment to all villagers for the crime of one person was the most frequent tactic, particularly in the Waziristan of FATA.

In suspicion of any Taliban links in the village, the Pakistani Army completely decimated the entire villages, bulldozing the homes of family members of suspected militants and inflicting collective punishments to entire community/village.

No Pashtunwali practices including Jirga were allowed by Pakistan forces in these cases. Landmines were installed in community areas of Pashtuns in villages in Waziristan of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province. Instead of Taliban terrorists, these landmines used to affect average civilians, children and women.

Pakistani forces – an epitome of desuetude and egregious banality – used its well-versed tactic of arresting, kidnapping and extra-judicial killings of dissenting voices who dare to challenge the brass. Pakistan has a history of using these tactics and inflicting severe punishments on Pashtuns. One such heinous incident from the history was ‘Babrra Massacre’ of 12th August, 1948, when 600 unarmed Pashtuns supporters of Khudai Khidmatgar Movement, gathered on Babrra ground Hashtnagar, were brutally killed on the orders of Muslim League leader Abdul Qayyum Khan Kashmiri (the then C.M. of NWFP).

Even after this horrendous mass shooting of innocent civilians, neither A. Q. K. Kashmiri nor the Pakistan authorities, showed any grievances or atonement. Speaking at provincial assembly A.Q. Khan disparagingly said “They were lucky that the police ammunition ran out; otherwise not a single soul would have survived.”

There have been punishments meted out to students who support PTM and professors are forced to identify students attending rallies so authorities can take actions. Pashteen has been called a ‘traitor’ and a ‘terrorist’ by Pakistani establishments and PTM has been labelled as a foreign-funded organisation. Media coverage of PTM and Pashteen has been blocked and no media is allowed to air news about them.

“Punishment is all about sending a message to keep silent” told Pashteen to the Associated Press. Pashteen told “One thousand percent we were sure we would be killed”. Pakistan is a construct of preposterous institutions – a personification of fallacy – deeply enmeshed in extremism and hugely reliant on fawning. Impugning the Army spawns a series of severe punishments and sometimes extrajudicial killings.

“The military has become a state within a state”. “PTM leader Pashteen doesn’t mince his words and has made it clear who he holds responsible for the Pashtun suffering: “We have to identify the place that destroyed us,” Pashteen said at a recent rally. “It is GHQ!” he said, referring to the Pakistani military headquarters in Rawalpindi, cited a DW article.

One slogan that PTM regularly uses to highlight the misdeed of Pakistani forces is “Yeh jo dehshatgardi hai, is ke peechay wardi hai” (behind this terrorism, is the [military] uniform).

Pashtuns – who have been subjected to gross human rights abuses in their own land – are quickly morphing into an Achtung force for justice. The unremittingly difficult condition of Pashtuns in Pakistan is a gonged reminder to the world to wake up to reality and leave the bed of banality it is sleeping into for years now. Pashtun Tahafuz Movement is not an encoring performance steered for scoring brownie points, rather it is a strong rebuttal to the embedded world order, a chance of conformity towards realism for the entire global intelligentsia. The plight of Pashtuns in Pakistan must make the world to mirror Pakistan – when it ping pongs in every external conflict pufferying itself as the global human rights champion – that it needs to see no further than inside to exercise it’s supposed champion finesse.

Gwalior ADG’s Gita awareness campaign: Muslim murder convict in jail takes up Gita reading, believes religion unites

OpIndia Staff
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Gwalior ADG’s Gita awareness campaign: Muslim murder convict in jail takes up Gita reading, believes religion unites

Akeel Pathan, a murder convict in Gwalior jail has taken up reading the Shrimad Bhagwat Gita. He believes that religions teach unity, not divisions.

As per a report published in India Today, Pathan, who is a murder convict lodged in the Gwalior jail, has taken up reading the Bhagwat Gita after receiving a copy through an awareness campaign launched by ADG Gwalior Zone Raja Babu Singh.

Akeel has stated that he believes that religions always teach good things. He has been reading books in jail and being a Muslim, he has been reading books on his religion. But now that he has found a Bhagwat Gita, he has expressed a desire to read it and says he will try to understand the teachings and will implement them if he likes them.

As per the India Today report, Gwalior zone Additional Director General of Police Raja Babu Singh has started a campaign to create awareness about the Gita among various sections of the society. He even goes to schools to talk about the “Gita Gyan” with the children. Raja Babu Singh is often seen participating in spiritual talks and events. On the day of Dusshera, Singh distributed the copies along with rosary in the jail premises.

Speaking to India Today, Singh stated that he believes people become criminals and face jail due to their bad karma. He added that the Gita will show the path towards spiritual awakening and righteousness to those who have wavered.

The event saw a spiritual guru from Vrindavan, Anandeshwar Das Chaitanya, teach the inmates about the virtues of a righteous life. “The Gita is not just a religious book, it is a spiritual growth that a human being should accept as the life’s constitution. One who goes against this constitution of the country, lands in jail. Similarly, one who violates the spiritual constitution gets stuck in this life-cycle”, explained the guru.

The report states that many of the inmates, irrespective of their religion, have shown willingness to read the Gita.

The Gwalior jail has 3,396 inmates including 164 women. The women inmates have 21 children with them.

Rafale Shastra Puja: A new India is now confident about Hindu assertion

Abhishek Banerjee
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Rafale Shastra Puja: A new India is now confident about Hindu assertion

It’s a small gesture, but a strong assertion of identity. India’s Defence Minister Rajnath Singh performed Shastra Puja right before taking ownership of Rafale fighter jet.

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Some years ago, when BJP was still in the opposition, there was a firestorm over purported comments from Rajnath Singh about how much damage the English language had done to the nation. The media of the day, a wholly-owned subsidiary of the government of the day, joined in the mockery: is it not regressive to turn our backs on English, the global language of science and commerce?

Except, the media had (deliberately?) missed the nuance in what Rajnath Singh had said. He had not blamed English (Angrezi) itself; rather he had blamed “Angreziyat” which could probably be translated as something like “Englishness.” He was referring to a worldview, one that demeans anything and everything Indian and imports everything from accents to superstitions from abroad.

An American friend who took a deep interest in India once asked me, my Indian news anchors, speaking in English, tend to mispronounce Indian names. This was around 2008.

As a result of this “Angreziyat”, the vast majority of Indians were cut out from the mainstream and all positions of power and privilege came to be occupied by a tiny elite. In doing so, we ended up wasting perhaps 99% of our human capital.

You will see much of the same attitudes play out over the Rafale induction ceremony from yesterday. Hundreds of millions of Indians will feel happy to see the several thousand years old Om symbol on the side of the ultra-modern Rafale. A few thousand people, perhaps even a few hundred people, will pooh pooh this, make all sorts of jokes about it and cry that India is going ‘backwards.’ The same people, however, would not grudge watching British royalty in their funny hats, carrying out all sorts of their arcane traditions.

Actually, without the rising tide of Hindu assertion, India will go nowhere. Because self-hatred has never been a successful way to develop a nation.

Imagine how amused the Germans would be if they found out that Indian elites are lamenting that our kids might not be learning enough German in schools. Lamenting that they might end up learning Sanskrit instead. Without German, how will Indian kids compete in the modern world? Who knows, maybe the way the French do just fine without knowing German, even though they live next door to Germany!

This pathetic self-hatred of our elites would be funny, except for all the real damage it has done.

The Chinese tried the cultural revolution. They wanted to get rid of everything in ancient Chinese culture and replace it with stuff that was “modern.” It ended in genocide and ruin. Then, they had a change of heart. Today, China upholds its ancient culture with pride. As China’s global power increases, they are able to export their culture and get the whole world to regard it with the respect and admiration it deserves.

The same goes for Israel. After the Second World War, the Jewish people finally had their own state. Their ancient Hebrew language was nearly dead by then. Most Jewish people coming into Israel from all over the world had lost the language generations ago. But Israel began a national project for reviving their lost tongue and today the language thrives in their country. At the same time, Israel has established itself as the only democracy in the Middle East and as a global technological power. All of it against seemingly impossible odds.

The British don’t get into bouts of self loathing about their kings and queens and funny-sounding hats and crowns and titles. They thrive on it. They see it as a treasured marker of British identity. People come from all over the world to see the wonder and the pageantry.

And there’s, of course, the French, from whom we purchased the Rafale itself. The French are unrelenting and unapologetic in the ideals of their revolution. The French insist on the complete removal of religion from the public sphere. That’s why the face veil is banned in France. No apologies. When in France, be like the French. Remember that France is the most visited country in the world. The world appreciates those who are authentic and true to their identity.

The world rarely appreciates rootless elites who have nothing to offer from their own culture but get by on pale imitations of those of others. Except when it needs them as useful idiots.

The election of 2014 brought about a deep churn in Indian society. The classes left out from “Angreziyat” came to the fore and took control of their own destiny.

And you may have noticed that Indian news anchors no longer mispronounce Indian names.

I don’t know about you, but I’m actually looking forward to Indian elites making fools of themselves hating on the Om symbol on the side of the Rafale.

With $230 million deficit, United Nations could run out of money by October end, warns UN chief Antonio Guterres

OpIndia Staff
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With $230 million deficit, United Nations could run out of money by October end, warns UN chief Antonio Guterres

The United Nations is running a deficit of $230 million and could run out of money by the end of this month, Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said on Monday.

In a letter addressed to the 37,000 employees at the UN secretariat, Guterres said unspecified “additional stop-gap measures” would be needed to pay salaries and entitlements to employees.

“Member states have paid only 70% of the total amount needed for our regular budget operations in 2019. This translates into a cash shortage of $230 million at the end of September. We run the risk of depleting our backup liquidity reserves by the end of the month,” he wrote.


The UN Secretary-General Guterres said member states of the international body have only paid 70 per cent of the total amount needed for regular budget operations in 2019.

In a bid to cut costs, the UN chief also proposed postponing conferences, meetings and also reducing services. He also mentioned restricting official travel to only essential activities along with taking measures to save energy.

Reportedly, Guterres had asked member states earlier this year to increase contributions to the world body citing cash flow problems but the proposal was rejected. He said the ultimate responsibility for the UN’s financial health lies with the member states and only their funding can help sustain operations.

Besides the amount it pays towards peacekeeping operations, the report stated that the UN’s operating budget for 2018-19 is close to $5.4 billion.

Early in January, United Nations chief Antonio Guterres had warned of a liquidity crunch situation and had held te member nations responsible. Guterres had stated that U.N. member states owe nearly $2 billion in peacekeeping funds and the USA is responsible for a third of that amount.

The United States is responsible for 22 per cent of the $5.4 billion regular budget for 2018 and 2019 and more than 28 per cent of the $6.7 billion peacekeeping budget for the year to June 30.

According to UN officials, the United States owed $381 million to the regular budget as of January 1 and $776 million to the peacekeeping budget.

However, President Donald Trump had lamented that Washington is shouldering an unfair burden of the cost of the United Nations and had advised the UN to reform its operations.

Adding to that, the United Nations owes money to some contributing countries. The UN owes India $38 million, the highest it has to pay to any country for the peacekeeping operations as of March 2019. As of March 31, 2019, the total amount payable to troop- and police-contributing countries with respect to active peacekeeping missions was $265 million.

The top contributing countries are India, Ethiopia, Bangladesh, Pakistan, Nepal and Rwanda. The respective countries pay their troops according to their national salary scales and are reimbursed by the United Nations. As of July 2018, the UN paid $1,428 a month per soldier.

According to a report written by UN chief Guterres in April this year, the UN owes $38 million to India, followed by Rwanda ($31 million), Pakistan ($28 million), Bangladesh ($25 million) and Nepal ($23 million).

Rajasthan: Dussehra procession attacked with stones, curfew imposed in Tonk as Hindus demand arrest of stone pelters

OpIndia Staff
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Rajasthan: Dussehra procession attacked with stones, curfew imposed in Tonk as Hindus demand arrest of stone pelters

On Tuesday, a tense situation occurred in Malpura town in Tonk district of Rajasthan, after members of a community allegedly resorted to severe stone-pelting during the Dussehra procession, which led to delay in the burning of Ravan effigy.

According to the reports, the Hindus in the area were taking out a Dussehra procession on Tuesday and were confronted by members of another community near a high Muslim concentration area near Saadat Chowraha. A heated argument broke out between two groups resulting in communal clashes as members of the community pelted stones at the procession of Hindus.

Soon, police forces were deployed in Malpura town after clashes erupted. After the stone pelting attack, the Hindus reportedly protested and refused to carry out the procession any further, demanding immediate arrest of the accused. They complained that despite similar incidents of stone-pelting and attack last year, the police officials failed to provide security and ensure such incidents are not repeated.

Kanhiya Lal, the BJP MLA of Malpura protested outside the police station along with more than 150 members of the community. The protestors insisted that they should be provided security to continue their procession from the same area where they were attacked by the mob.

The situation did not improve till late night in Malpura even as senior officials reached the town to pacify protesters. Some shops were also torched during the clashes.

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=42hQSgWPHF4]

Reportedly, the burning of the effigy was delayed after severe protests by the Hindu communities as the protestors were firm on their stand that they will not burn the effigy unless the stone pelters were arrested. Later, the police officials accompanied by some municipal workers burnt the Ravana effigy early morning today. A curfew has been imposed from Wednesday morning and the internet has been shut down.

Reports state that the police have also restricted internet services in the area and banned newspapers.

Speaking to Times Of India, IGP (Ajmer Range) Sanjib Kumar Narzary said that some people were taking out a Dussehra procession when they had a heated argument with a member of another community. The verbal spat took a violent turn as the two communities clashed with each other and pelted stones. Even as the police resorted to the use of force to disperse the agitators, the local leaders staged a protest outside the police station and demanded arrest of those who attacked the procession.

“Some people are protesting outside the station, we are talking to them to find out a solution. The situation is now under control and no fresh incident of violence has been reported,” Narzary said.

The police officials further said that they have detained six people for further questioning. The police added that additional forces have been deployed in the wake of clashes. The CCTV footages have been recovered to nab the culprits, said a senior police official.

DNA shuts down its Mumbai and Ahmedabad print edition, takes the digital route

OpIndia Staff
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DNA shuts down its Mumbai and Ahmedabad print edition, takes the digital route

On 9th October 2019, DNA announced that it would be taking the digital route and shutting down its print version in Mumbai and Ahmedabad.

DNA note by Editor

In the Editor note published in the print edition, DNA has said that there is a thin line between its digital and print readership. With the overlap in both and their younger audience preferring to consume news digitally, it has decided to discontinue its print version in Mumbai and Ahmedabad and turn completely digital.

The print edition of DNA Mumbai and Ahmedabad are said to stop its publication from 10th October 2019.

The next offering that DNA is planning after going completely digital is launching its mobile application for better and more convenient consumption of news.

DNA was launched in 2005 published in English from Mumbai, Ahmedabad, Pune, Jaipur, Bengaluru and Indore in India. In 2010, it had discontinued its edit page that used to contain editorials, analysis and opinions. DNA, which is owned by the Zee Group has had financial troubles in the recent past.

In an interview with ET Now, Zee MD Punit Goenka allayed investor fears surrounding debt mounting on the Zee Entertainment, saying that his company aims to pay back the outstanding amount in the next three months through asset divestment, ahead of the six-month extension given to them by lenders.

The media industry is going through a massive churn with several cost-cutting measures and channels shutting down. Recently, Anil Ambani owned BTVI had unceremoniously stopped its operations and transmission. There was news of DailyO, India Today’s opinions website also shutting shop due to its targets not being met and had sacked its entire editorial staff. Scroll.in too had sacked a large part of its editorial staff.

USA starts imposing visa bans on Chinese officials tied to mass detention of Uighur Muslims in Xinjiang

OpIndia Staff
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USA starts imposing visa bans on Chinese officials tied to mass detention of Uighur Muslims in Xinjiang

The Donald Trump administration has started imposing Visa ban on the Chinese officials who are involved in the mass detention and repression of Uighur Muslims and other minority Muslim groups in China and especially, in Xinjiang. This is the latest step in the string of steps being taken by the United States of America (USA) in what Secretary of State Michael Pompeo has called “the stain of the century.”

According to the USA State Department, there is a Visa ban on those government officials and members of the Communist Party of China who was directly or indirectly involved in the abuse of Uighurs, ethnic Kazakhs and other minority Muslim groups in the far western region of Xinjiang.

“The Chinese government has instituted a highly repressive campaign against Uighurs, ethnic Kazakhs, Kyrgyz, and other members of Muslim minority groups,” Pompeo said in a statement Tuesday. “The United States calls on the People’s Republic of China to immediately end its campaign of repression in Xinjiang.”

According to the Immigration and Nationality Act, the State Department has the authority to deny Visa to any individual, whose entry into the United States of America would have a negative impact on the foreign policy of the USA. While the list of names cannot be revealed by the authorities, they have confirmed that the names have been added.

China has not responded kindly to the USA imposing Visa restrictions. The Chinese Embassy in the United States of America took to Twitter to express its strong opposition to the steps taken by the USA.

In a series of tweets, the Chinese Embassy said that China does not have the human rights problem that the USA is claiming. In fact, it went a step further and said that the USA is making these claims up so it can use them as a pretext for justifying its interference with internal matters of China.


Interestingly, China even defended its action against Uighur Muslims. China said, “The counter-terrorism and de-radicalization measures in Xinjiang are aimed to eradicate the breeding soil of extremism and terrorism. They are in line with Chinese laws and international practices, and are supported by all 25 million people of various ethnic groups in Xinjiang”.


China has been involved in mass detention of its Uighur Muslim population. In these detention camps, Muslims are ‘de-radicalised’. They are forced to eat pork and abandon every religious symbol. The Uighur Muslims are not even allowed to keep bears or wear their skull caps.

China snubs Pakistan’s rhetoric on Kashmir, urges both countries to resolve issue bilaterally

OpIndia Staff
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China snubs Pakistan’s rhetoric on Kashmir, urges both countries to resolve issue bilaterally

In a huge setback to the terror state of Pakistan, its closest ally China on Tuesday decided to snub Pakistan after it decided to drop references to the UN Charter and Security Council resolutions on Kashmir issue and stressed that India and Pakistan should take the bilateral route to resolve all disputes.

According to a Times Of India reports, in a significant departure from its earlier stand, the Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson said that China called upon both countries to enhance dialogue and consultation on issues including Kashmir. To make it worse for Pakistan, the Chinese Foreign Ministry made these comments in presence of visiting Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan and Chief of the Army Staff General Qamar Javed Bajwa.

“We call on India and Pakistan to engage in dialogue and consultation on all issues, including the Kashmir issue and consolidate mutual trust. This is in line with the interest of both countries and common aspiration of the world,” Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Geng Shuang said on Tuesday.

China’s statement comes ahead of Chinese President Xi Jinping’s upcoming visit to India, which is reportedly scheduled to take place between October 11 and 13.

Earlier, after the historic abrogation of Article 370, Beijing had insisted that Kashmir issue should be properly and peacefully resolved based on the UN charter, relevant UN Security Council resolutions and bilateral agreement. In fact, China had even supported Pakistan by maintaining such a position at a meeting of the UN Security Council on Kashmir, which ended without any outcome.

However, on Tuesday, China indicated that it was willing to engage with India on the issue of Kashmir and ready to go back to its pre-August 5 position when it had held that the Kashmir issue should be resolved bilaterally between India and Pakistan. The omission of references to the UN Charter and Security Council resolutions particularly assumes significance at a time when Imran Khan and Pakistan army chief Gen Qamar Javed Bajwa are in Beijing to meet Xi and other Chinese leaders.

With changing its stand on Kashmir, China now officially confirms to India’s stand that there should be no third-party mediation on the Kashmir issue. “China’s position on Kashmir issue is clear and consistent,” Geng emphasized.

Meanwhile, President Xi Jinping is expected to visit India in the next week. However,  Beijing has not yet formally announced Xi’s visit to India. It has called a press conference on Wednesday to discuss the President’s “outbound tour” where the announcement might be made.

The historic coastal town of Mamallapuram in Tamil Nadu is expected to be the venue for the second India-China informal summit between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chinese President Xi Jinping. Last year in April, Prime Minister Modi had visited Wuhan in the first informal summit to strengthen bilateral ties.

Ever since India repealed Article 370, stripping Jammu and Kashmir of its separate status, the Pakistan establishment has been running from pillar to post to garner support to internationalise Kashmir issue. However, major powers of the world have stood by India in declaring that abrogation of special status is an internal issue and urged both countries to resolve the issue bilaterally while rejecting Pakistan’s assertions.

Balrampur, UP: Stone pelting at Durga Puja Visarjan procession as music was not stopped while crossing mosque, 8 arrested

Nupur J Sharma
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Balrampur, UP: Stone pelting at Durga Puja Visarjan procession as music was not stopped while crossing mosque, 8 arrested

As Navratri and Durga Puja comes to an end, a shocking video has emerged on social media. In a viral video from Balrampur, Uttar Pradesh, that has sparked outrage, a procession for Durga Puja Visarjan can be seen getting attacked by heavy stone-pelting. The police have responded to the video and confirmed that 8 people have been arrested in the incident so far.


The Balrampur police responded on social media website Twitter and confirmed that 8 people have been arrested in connection with the attack and stone-pelting on the Durga Puja Visarjan procession and that the police is taking adequate measures to nab the rest of the individuals involved.


In the video itself, one can see even elderly Muslim men pelting stones at the Visarjan procession and in the distance, one can hear scared screams of individuals as the enraged stone-pelting carried on. One also gets a glimpse of an individual trying to hide in the truck and protect himself as the stone pelting carried on unabated.

What led to the stone-pelting

The Additional Superintendent of Police from Balrampur, Uttar Pradesh told OpIndia that the Durga puja Visarjan procession came under attack as it was passing in front of a mosque. Just before the mosque, there is a right turn. The procession that generally has a DJ and plays loud music passes through the mosque.

However, generally, the music is expected to be switched off while the Durga Puja procession passes through the mosque. The music, however, was not stopped and thus, an enraged Muslim community started pelting stones at the procession.

The Additional Superintendent said that the attack on the Visarjan procession might not have been spontaneous and the Muslim community may have been prepared with stones from before, in wait of the procession.

Law and Order in Balrampur after stone-pelting on Durga Visarjan procession

The Additional SP has confirmed that the law and order situation is under control in the area. He has asserted that currently, there is no communal tension in the area after 8 arrests were made in connection with the attack. After swift action by the police, the Durga Visarjan was also completed in peace by the Hindus of the area.

The Balrampur police has also released a press statement now.

Press note by Balrampur police

The press release says that a complaint has been filed against 24 named and several other unnamed individuals under sections 147, 148, 149, 153a, 295a, 336 and 323. The press release also says that other than the 8 people already arrested, 4 teams are on the lookout for the rest of the perpatrators. There is heavy police deployment in the area as well.

 

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