Pakistan Finance Minister Ishaq Dar on Wednesday said that the talks with Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) chairman Imran Khan were only possible if the latter “apologise to the nation for the May 9 riots,” Pakistan-based ARY News reported.
Speaking to a private news channel, Ishaq Dar said that the talks with Imran will only take place when the PTI chairman “admits to his mistakes and vows not to repeat them.” He stated that Pakistan Muslim League – Nawaz (PML-N) supremo Nawaz Sharif will have to be persuaded for talks with Imran Khan. He said that
Nawaz Sharif is of the opinion that talks cannot be held with perpetrators of violence. Ishaq Dar said, “Nawaz Sharif says talks cannot be held with preparators of violence.” He stressed that the investigation is being made into May 9 incident and the elements involved in the incident that took place on May 9 will be brought to justice, ARY News reported.
Dar noted that examples should be made so that incidents like May 9 do not take place again. He added that evidence has revealed that Imran Khan was involved in planning the riots, ARY News reported. Dar, however, said that the government does not believe in political victimisation.
Responding to a question, he said that if Nawaz Sharif’s daughter can be arrested then anyone’s wife as “no one is above the law.” Ishaq Dar further said, “Women involved in May 9 incidents cannot get relief.” He stated that PTI chairman Imran Khan during his tenure did not play any role for the betterment of Pakistan, as per the news report.
Ishaq Dar said that Pakistan had to face economic difficulties due to the wrong decisions of the PTI chairman. He said that International Monetary Fund has raised questions over political instability in Pakistan. He added that international financial institutions were keeping an eye on Pakistan politics.
Earlier this week, the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) on instructions of party chief Imran Khan, constituted a seven-member negotiation committee for talks with the incumbent government over elections, Pakistan-based ARY News reported.
Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf while taking to Twitter, said that the seven-member committee, which will be headed by Shah Mahmood Qureshi, will decide the plan of action with the government regarding the elections, as per the news report. The committee comprises party vice chairman Shah Mahmood Qureshi, Pervez Khattak, Asad Qaiser, Hammad Azhar, Haleem Adil Sheikh, Murad Saeed and Aon Abbas Buppi.
(This news report is published from a syndicated feed. Except for the headline, the content has not been written or edited by OpIndia staff)
A case has been registered by Government Railway Police (GRP) following after a fire broke out in a coach of the Alappuzha-Kannur Executive Express train at Kannur railway station on the intervening night of Wednesday and Thursday, said, railway officials.
A miscreant activity is suspected behind the incident and a forensic team has also reached the spot to investigate the incident. “Officials are suspecting a miscreant activity behind the fire, based on a complaint given by the on-duty Station Master a case has been registered by GRP. A forensic team has also reached the incident site,” said Railways in a statement.
The incident occurred at 1:25 am on Thursday when the Alappuzha-Kannur Executive Express train (16307) was stationed at Kannur railway station. Three fire department teams worked for hours to extinguish the fire, however, the coach was completely destroyed in the blaze.
It is to be noted that it’s the second fire incident reported in Alappuzha-Kannur Executive Express. On April 2, a fire broke out in the same train in which Shahrukh Saifi (27), a resident of Delhi’s Shaheen Bagh, had set ablaze by pouring flammable fuel on the passengers when it reached Korapuzha bridge near Elathur in Kozhikode. In the incident, three people died and nine suffered burn injuries.
Later, Saifi was arrested by the Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) of Maharashtra police and Central Intelligence agencies.
(This news report is published from a syndicated feed. Except for the headline, the content has not been written or edited by OpIndia staff)
In an update to the Parbhani lynching case, the Maharashtra Police on Thursday disclosed that 7 accused who had been booked for brutally beating three minors belonging to the Sikkalkari Sikh community leading to the death of one of them have been arrested by the police. The police also said that three special teams have been deployed to search for and nab 2 more accused booked in the case.
Police official Kapil Shelke from Tadkalas Police Station of Parbhani district stated that the police identified 9 accused in the case and had taken a few of them into custody. Later 7 of them had been arrested.
Releasing a video statement around 4 days after the dreadful incident, Shelke confirmed the incident and said that three Sikkalkari youngsters were beaten by the accused who mistook them as ‘thieves’. “The three were caught by the accused of the village and were brutally beaten by them. They accused the minors of being theft. One of the minors died on the spot while the other two are out of danger and are still at the hospital. Based on the complaint filed by one of the minors, we filed an FIR under section 302 of the IPC and began the investigation,” he said.
परभणी जिल्ह्यात शिकलकरी समाजाच्या मुलाच्या मॉब लिंचिंगच्या दुर्दैवी घटनेला जातीय स्वरूप दिले जात आहे. परभणी जिल्हा पोलीस दलातर्फे आव्हान करण्यात येते की, कृपया सोशल मीडियावरील खोट्या अफवांवर विश्वास ठेवू नका, कोणत्याही धर्म किंवा समुदायाबद्दल द्वेषपूर्ण पोस्ट करू नका. pic.twitter.com/AEKX04Meob
— परभणी पोलीस – Parbhani Police (@Parbhani_Police) May 31, 2023
The FIR in the case has been filed under sections 302, 307, 341, 143, 147, 148, and 149 of the Indian Penal Code and section 135 of the Maharashtra Police Act, 1951.
The officer also meanwhile added that ‘rumours’ were being spread that people from a specific community had launched an attack on the minors which is untrue. “It is being spread that people from a specific community hit the minors. But during the investigation, we found that all the accused are not from the specific community. The accused hit them because they thought the minors were thieves. This was not a deliberate attack by people of a specific community towards the Sikkalkari youths,” he added.
Earlier, Parbhani SP Ragsudha had revealed that the police were informed about the incident at around 3:15 am on May 27. The police were informed saying that three ‘thieves’ were caught by locals in the Ukhalad village of Parbhani district. “We reached the spot to see that the three Sikkalkari minors were beaten and had sustained severe injuries. The Police admitted the victims to the government hospital where the doctors declared one of them dead. The other two are injured and serious. They are being treated,” SP was quoted as saying.
Victim says incident happened in Muslim dominated area, near Idgah
It however remains worth noting that relatives of one of the victims have informed OpIndia that the incident happened in the Muslim-dominated area near the Idgah in the village. The relative also said that all the accused who hit the minor boys belonged to the specific community and was leading the mob.
“The accused persons made an announcement from a speaker and gathered the crowd before assaulting the minors. They (Muslims) made an announcement claiming that the minors were thieves. ‘Chor aye chor aye,’ someone from the speaker yelled. The announcement was made from the speaker from atop the Masjid or some nearby playground and not from any other religious place,” the relative confirmed.
Also, the FIR copy obtained by OpIndia states that one of the accused who led the assault has been identified as Akram Patel. The victim in the FIR mentioned, “They poured spicy chutney into our eyes. They also broke our left arm and left leg. Later, one of them asked Akram regarding action to be taken against us. Akram then ordered saying- Maro salon ko (kill them).”
Therefore, while the police say the accused are from all communities, it is pertinent to note that according to the victim’s family and the FIR, the mob was initiated and led by one Akram Patel.
What is the case?
On May 27, three minors belonging to the Sikkalkari Sikh community had gone to catch the pigs. While on their return at 3 am, they were blocked by Akram Patel and 5-6 other men from the Ukhalad village of Parbhani district. The locals thought that these minors were thieves and so they brutally assaulted the minors. The minor victims in the case were identified as Arunsingh, Gorasingh and Kripalsingh.
The accused used iron rods and sharp weapons to attack the minors. They hit on their heads resulting in severe injuries to Arunsingh and Gorasingh. Kirpalsingh however fell unconscious after being attacked by the accused and was later declared dead by doctors at the government hospital. The other two are serious at the Parbhani government hospital and are being treated well.
The FIR has been filed under sections 302, 307, 341, 143, 147, 148, and 149 of the Indian Penal Code and section 135 of the Maharashtra Police Act, 1951. Further investigations into the case are underway.
The youth union of opposition CPN-UML (Communist Party of Nepal- Unified Marxist Leninist) on Wednesday burnt the effigy of the Nepal President and Prime Minister protesting ratification of the Citizenship Amendment Bill.
Members of Youth Federation Nepal burnt the effigy of President Ram Chandra Paudel and Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal and marched towards the Parliament in the capital Kathmandu. Bearing live torches, the youth wing of Nepal’s opposition chanted slogans against President and Prime Minister demanding their resignation. Earlier on Wednesday morning, President Ram Chandra Paudel authenticated the bill to amend the Citizenship Act.
According to a statement issued by the President’s Office, the President authenticated the bill as per Article 61 (2) (3) (4) and Article 66 of the Constitution of Nepal and in accordance with the principle propounded by the Supreme Court after receiving a letter from the Office of the Prime Minister and Council of Ministers requesting the authentication of the amendment bill.
The government following a Cabinet meeting on May 26 had requested President Paudel to authenticate the bill which former President Bidya Devi Bhandari had repeatedly refused to endorse.
A case filed against then President Bhandari’s refusal to authenticate the bill twice sent to her by the federal parliament is currently sub-judice at the Supreme Court. As per Article 113 (3) of the Constitution, the president can send back a bill passed by the federal parliament for reconsideration once.
“In case the President is of the opinion that any Bill, except a Money Bill, presented for authentication needs reconsideration, he or she may, within fifty days from the date of submission of such Bill, send back the Bill along with his or her message to the House in which the Bill originated,” it says about an exception to mandatory certification of bills sent to the president.
However, Article 113 (4) requires the president to authenticate any bill sent for a second time after being passed by both Houses of Parliament. “In case any Bill is sent back along with a message by the President, and both Houses reconsider and adopt such Bill as it was or with amendments and present it again, the President shall authenticate that Bill within fifteen days of such presentation,” it states.
The then President Bhandari refused to authenticate the bill violating that provision.
On August 14, Bhandari returned the Citizenship Bill sent to her for authentication after being passed by both the House of Representatives (HoR) and the National Assembly. She had sent a seven-point message to inform the federal parliament and for deliberation, and another eight-point message for drawing attention.
Bhandari had mainly raised two issues while sending the bill back. She had mentioned that the bill was silent about the provision of naturalized citizenship through marriage as per Article 11 (6) of the Constitution.
“If a foreign woman married to a Nepali citizen so wishes, she may acquire naturalized citizenship of Nepal as provided for in a Federal law,” states Article 11(6) of the Constitution.
President Bhandari pointed out that the Constitution clearly says federal law but the bill passed by the federal parliament did not have that provision. She had also raised questions about the provision requiring self-declaration by a woman to provide citizenship to her children. Bhandari also drew the House’s attention to other issues but mainly asked the House to reconsider the two issues.
The bill does not propose any restrictions on foreigners marrying Nepali citizens while acquiring naturalized citizenship. The main opposition CPN-UML, to which Bhandari was affiliated before becoming president, has been protesting the removal of the provision in the report submitted by the State Affairs and Good Governance Committee of the HoR that required foreigners marrying Nepali citizens to wait for seven years to get naturalized citizenship.
The bill passed by the federal parliament also has a provision to grant citizenship by descent to the children of those who received citizenship by birth through a one-time arrangement after the People’s Movement II in 2006.
Citizenship by birth was granted to persons born in Nepal before mid-April 1990, having permanent domicile and being continuously resident in Nepal throughout their life through the one-time arrangement.
The passed bill also allows citizenship to a person only through the name of a mother but has put four conditions for that. The child should be born in Nepal, should be residing in Nepal, the father should be unidentified and the person should make a self-declaration that the father has not been identified for that.
The person taking the citizenship certificate can choose to take the surname and address of either the father or mother. The bill has also paved the way for non-resident citizenship to anyone living outside the SAARC countries if there is proof that the person’s father/mother or grandfather/grandmother is/was a Nepali citizen.
Bhandari had earlier authenticated an ordinance, sent by the then prime minister KP Sharma Oli after dissolving the House, that included similar provisions. The bill’s passage has cleared the way to citizenship for up to 400,000 people who have been deprived of their constitutional rights and remain stateless in their own country.
(This news report is published from a syndicated feed. Except for the headline, the content has not been written or edited by OpIndia staff)
On May 27, Gurdwara Election Commission wrote to the Punjab Government asking them to prepare a list of voters for the Shri Gurdwara Prabandhak Committee (SGPC) elections. Notable, the last SGPC elections took place in 2011. For twelve years, the elections could not take place due to the legal battle over the voting rights of Sehajdhari Sikhs.
Who can register as a voter for SGPC elections?
As per the latest letter by the commission, only Sikhs who have attained the age of 21 are eligible to register as a voter for the upcoming SGPC elections. However, if the person cuts his or her hair, smokes, or drinks alcohol, that person is not eligible to register as a voter. At the time of registration, the person has to declare that he or she fulfills the requirement.
There is slight confusion over the matter for which Sehajdhari Sikh Party’s chief Paramjit Singh Ranu has sought clarification. He said, “It is unclear whether the Sikh women who remove their hair, including facial hair, can be registered as voters or not…” During a debate on News18 Punjabi, Ranu said he welcomes the notification as it would allow the majority of the Sikhs who are not Amritdhari (Baptised) but maintain unshorn hair and do not smoke or drink to register as a voter. However, SGPC needs to clarify its stand on Sikh women who get beauty services as it includes trimming hair and maintaining eyebrows.
Speaking to OpIndia, Paramjit Singh clarified that the question was raised by him only in the media. So far his party has not sought the clarification in writing. Furthermore, Paramjit Singh added that with the recent notification, Sehajdhari Sikhs have won 50 percent of the battle.
On examining Sections 49 and 92 of the Sikh Gurdwara Act, 1925, it has been well established by the Ministry of Home Affairs, Government of India that every person shall be entitled to have his or her name registered on the electors provided he is more than 21 years of age. Furthermore, it notes the same guidelines such as the person should not trim or shave his beard or Keshas, the person should not smoke and the person should not take alcoholic drinks.
Who can contest elections?
As per Sections 48 and 91 of the Sikh Gurdwara Act, 1925, while a person registering to vote is not bound to be an Amritdhari Sikh, the conditions to contest the election are different. The person has to be an Amritdhari Sikh above the age of 25. Being just Keshdhari will not be enough to contest the elections. Furthermore, the person has to be able to read Gurmukhi. That means he should be able to read and recite Shri Guru Granth Sahib in Gurmukhi.
Also, he should be able to fill out the nomination paper for the election to the Board in Gurmukhi in his own handwriting. If a person gets elected as a Board Member but is later found to be a ‘patit’ (a person who does not follow religion’s precepts), his election will stand void. Detailed guidelines for filing nominations for the elections will be issued later by the Gurdwara Election Commission.
The legal battle of Sehajdhari Sikhs’ voting rights
On October 8, 2003, the Government of India issued a notification and amended Sections 49 and 92 of the Sikh Gurdwara Act. As per the notification, Sehajdhari Sikhs were not allowed to register as voters for the SGPC elections. The notification by the then-BJP government was brought on the behest of Akali Dal leaders Prakash Singh Badal and Balwant Singh Ramoowalia. The notification was for five years and was challenged by the Sehajdhari Sikh Federation in the same year in the Punjab and Haryana High Court.
While the matter was in court, SGPC elections were held in 2011 and 57 lakh voters participated. A few days after the elections, in December 2011, a three-judge bench of the Punjab and Haryana High Court quashed the 2003 notification saying that the legal right of the Sikh voters cannot be taken away except by a competent legislature. The orders were challenged by SGPC in the Supreme Court.
In March 2013, the Supreme Court of India asked the Executive Committee headed by Sardar Avtar Singh Makkar to manage the institutions under SGPC. In 2016, the NDA-I-led Government of India amended the Sikh Gurdwara Act and added Sections 49 and 92 imposing restrictions on Sikhs to register as a voter if they shave a beard, shorn hair or consume alcohol and/or smoke.
During the debate on News18, when SGPC President Harjinder Singh Dhami said Sikhs should not shave beard or shorn hair, Paramjit Singh said he agree to it but they should at least have the right to vote. He said that it has been made clear that only Amritdhari Sikhs can contest elections and Sehajdhari Sikhs do not have any problem with it. However, voting rights should be extended to every Sikh, irrespective of the fact if he is Sehajdhari or Amritdhari.
The nation has been deeply disturbed by the Sakshi murder case, which took place in Delhi and has garnered significant attention as the video of the crime went viral. The Delhi Police apprehended Sahil Sarfarraz Khan, the accused, in Bulandshahr, Uttar Pradesh. The arrest took place one day after he committed the heinous act of murdering Sakshi in Delhi’s Shahbad Dairy area on May 28. In a gruesome manner, he inflicted more than 20 stab wounds on the girl before brutally crushing her head with a stone.
During the ongoing investigation into the Sakshi murder case, the police are exploring the possibility of a love jihad angle. In line with this, OpIndia visited the Shahbad Dairy area to investigate further. Apart from closely examining the post-crime scenes at the location, the team uncovered additional startling facts and information about the area.
OpIndia was told that in the Shahbad Dairy area, illegal drugs are traded with impunity, with the police being complicit, and there is an influx of Bangladeshi Muslims settling in the area. Furthermore, the team came to know about a lack of well-maintained public spaces, encroachment on designated public areas, a rise in the crime rate, unsafe social conditions, and the mushrooming of unauthorized Mazars in the locality.
The post-crime scene on the spot
Dev Singh, one of the local journalists working for TezT24 news stays at a distance of two kilometres from the murder spot and was the first person to report the murder. OpIndia met him to know more about the post-crime situation on the spot. He said, “The incident took place between 8:45 pm to 9:00 pm. I received a call informing me about this crime and I reached there within 15-20 minutes. I saw that the Delhi police were there and they had kept the public at a distance. The dead body was half in the gutter and half outside that. The police had marked the dead body with the bricks lying nearby. The Delhi police noticed and identified me. They immediately started putting pressure on me. They told me not to cover this and leave the spot. They kept me at a distance. But somehow I managed to do the coverage. I left the spot at around 12 at night after the dead body was taken from here at 11:30 pm.”
Nobody on the spot spoke much about the crime
He further said, “About half an hour after I reached the spot, an ambulance was called. They kept the ambulance waiting for some time. The forensic team came after the ambulance. The team collected evidence like blood and other things. Around 4 to 5 friends of the victim were present there at that time. These friends included Neetu, Jhabru, Bhavna, and others. Jhabru helped lift the body and put it in the ambulance. This happened at around 11:30 pm. I somehow finished my reporting and left.”
Dev Singh said, “Nobody talked much during my coverage that day. It is quite obvious as every one of them was afraid that they may get into some trouble if they speak anything about the crime. Sakshi’s friends also did not say anything.”
Why did the police not allow journalists to report that day
Dev Singh said, “The police in this area create hindrance every time I report any crime. There is a reason behind that too. They don’t want the area to get defamed. They feel if crimes in the area and the illegal drug business gets covered in the media, then their police station unit or district will be defamed. This is why they don’t allow us to report. We usually don’t visit the spot unless Forensic Team arrives. We usually stand at a distance and report. But after the Forensic Team gets hold of the spot, then also, the police don’t allow us to report from the visible ranges of the crime spot.”
Illegal drugs and liquor businesses in the area
He said, “Illegal drugs, illegal liquor, and marijuana business is spread everywhere in this area. The police have failed to stop this menace and nor do they let us report properly when something is exposed or some crime happens. Suppose if something is published in the media, they do a raid or two for the namesake. no further action takes place. All these illegal businesses are mostly done by illegal Bangladeshi migrants most of whom are Muslims.”
Illegal Bangladeshi Muslims
Dev Singh informed, “There are many such slums in sectors 26, 27, and 28. These Bangladeshis live in these areas. Take the example of the Shahbad Dairy area. Every lane here is facing two to three problems. Be it illegal liquor, drugs, marijuana, betting, gambling, etc. Illegal Bangladeshis are involved in this. Recently, the Narcotic Control Bureau – a special team – raided this area of Swati Chowk to seize drugs worth Rs 35 lakh. These people sell illegal liquor and drugs in their houses. Some reports said that Sahil was either under the influence of drugs or drunk before committing the crime because it is so commonly available in this area. This is the failure of the administration in the narcotics front.”
Encroachments on public spaces
Dev Singh underlined the severe problem of encroachments in the area. He said, “You see the MCD parks? All of them are full of illegal encroachments. Where will the local public go for refreshing themselves? Where will they go? Are there some lawns to sit on? Can the family go there? Can the senior citizens go there for morning walks or evening walks? No. All the parks in the Shahbad Dairy area are filled with illegal settlers. We cannot say that this consists of one particular community. All types of people live there. They have encroached on it in their own style. There is not a single place here, where a family can together go, sit, talk, have fun and refreshments, and do a morning walk or evening walk. Everything is encroached upon. All public spaces are gone. In such a situation, if a girl goes at some distance away from home then there is a risk that she may get raped.”
Crime rates in AAP and Congress governments are the same
When asked if there is any difference in the crime rate after the AAP came to power in Delhi with a promise of good governance, Dev Singh said, “There is no change in the crime rates. It was the same in the Sheela Dixit government as it is now in the AAP government. Yesterday only an incident of cow slaughter took place not so far from here. It is a crime that takes place every day. Some days ago it happened in Rohini. Before that, it took place in Kanjhawala. Now, in sector 28. So no change in crime scenes. And in this country, we need a Yogi government then only it may stop. Otherwise, there are these Bangladeshi people and god knows what different communities are there which kill cows. Such crimes are constantly increasing and there is no change. That cow slaughter took place around 5 kilometres from here. And who kills cows? We Hindus worship cows like a mother. Can we kill our mother?”
The Union Cabinet on Wednesday approved a Rs 1 lakh crore plan for “World’s Largest Grain Storage Plan in Cooperative Sector” by the convergence of various schemes of the Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare, Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution and Ministry of Food Processing Industries. This will create the world’s largest grain storage capacity in India in the cooperative sector.
In order to ensure a time-bound and uniform implementation of the plan in a professional manner, the Ministry of Cooperation will implement a pilot project in at least 10 selected Districts of different States/ UTs in the country. The Pilot would provide valuable insights into the various regional requirements of the project, the learnings from which will be suitably incorporated for the country-wide implementation of the Plan, according to a statement issued by the cabinet.
The move will help reduce crop damage and prevent distress sales by farmers. This will also help in strengthening the country’s food security and creating job opportunities in rural India.
Under the plan, an Inter-Ministerial Committee (IMC) will be constituted under the Chairmanship of Amit Shah, the Minister of Cooperation and Home, with Agriculture and Farmers Welfare Minister Narendra Singh Tomar, Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution Minister Piyush Goyal, Food Processing Industries Minister Pashupati Kumar Paras and Secretaries concerned as members. The IMC will modify guidelines/ implementation methodologies of the schemes of the respective Ministries as and when need arises, within the approved outlays and prescribed goals.
Several schemes under the concerned ministries have been selected for convergence under the Plan. The Plan would be implemented by utilizing the available outlays provided under the identified schemes of the respective Ministries. Under it, the government will create 700 lakh tonnes of grain storage capacity in the cooperative sector over the next five years.
The IMC will work towards the facilitation of the ‘World’s Largest Grain Storage Plan in Cooperative Sector’ by the creation of infrastructure such as godowns, etc. for Agriculture and Allied purposes, at selected ‘viable’ Primary Agricultural Credit Societies (PACS).
According to the government, the plan is multi-pronged – it aims to address not just the shortage of agricultural storage infrastructure in the country by facilitating the establishment of godowns at the level of the Primary Agricultural Credit Societies (PACS), but would also enable PACS to undertake various other activities.
The PACS will be enabled to function as procurement centres for State Agencies/ Food Corporation of India (FCI), serving as Fair Price Shops (FPS), setting up custom hiring centres, setting up common processing units, including assaying, sorting, grading units for agricultural produce, etc.
The creation of decentralized storage capacity at the local level would reduce food grain wastage and strengthen the food security of the country. Providing various options to the farmers, it would prevent the distressed sale of crops, thus enabling the farmers to realise better prices for their produce.
It would hugely reduce the cost incurred in the transportation of food grains to procurement centres and again transporting the stocks back from warehouses to FPS. Through a ‘whole-of-Government’ approach, the Plan would strengthen PACS by enabling them to diversify their business activities, thus enhancing the incomes of the farmer members as well.
Calling it a “visionary decision” which will lay the foundation of a prosperous, self-reliant and food grains-rich India, Union Home and Cooperation Minister Amit Shah said that lack of agricultural storage capacity leads to wastage of food grains and farmers are forced to sell their crops at low prices. With this decision, farmers will now get modern grain storage facilities in their blocks through Primary Agricultural Credit Societies (PACS), so that they will be able to get fair prices for their grains, he added.
Background of the scheme
Prime Minister Narendra Modi has observed that all out efforts should be made to leverage the strength of the cooperatives and transform them into successful and vibrant business enterprises to realize the vision of “Sahakar-se-Samriddhi”. To take this vision forward, the Ministry of Cooperation has brought out the ‘World’s Largest Grain Storage Plan in Cooperative Sector’.
The plan entails setting up various types of agri-infrastructure, including warehouses, custom hiring centres, processing units, etc. at the level of PACS, thus transforming them into multipurpose societies. Creation and modernization of infrastructure at the level of PACS will reduce food grain wastage by creating sufficient storage capacity, strengthening the food security of the country and enabling farmers to realise better prices for their crops.
There are more than 1,00,000 Primary Agricultural Credit Societies (PACS) in the country with a huge member base of more than 13 crore farmers. In view of the important role played by PACS at the grass root level in transforming the agricultural and rural landscape of the Indian economy and leveraging their deep reach up to the last mile, this initiative has been undertaken to set up decentralized storage capacity at the level of PACS along with other agri infrastructure, which would not only strengthen the food security of the country but would also enable PACS to transform themselves into vibrant economic entities.
The special operations group (SOG) of the Sabarkantha Police in Gujarat arrested Gafur Khan Pathan, the manager of the ‘Mahalaxmi Auto Parts’ garage in Wadali, with illegal weapons. The accused runs this auto garage on rent at the back of the Tahsildar office in Wadali. In a successful raid conducted by the local police and SOG team, two country-made pistols and live cartridges were recovered from Gafur Khan. The Wadali police have registered a case in this matter and are taking further legal action.
According to the lodged complaint, while conducting patrolling on the instructions of SOG PI N N Rabari, SOG PSI K B Khant received information about Gafur Khan Pathan, the manager of the ‘Mahalaxmi Auto Parts’ garage located behind the Tehsildar’s office, allegedly possessing illegal weapons. Following a subsequent raid, Sabarkantha SOG successfully apprehended Gafur Khan Pathan with illegal weapons.
OpIndia contacted SOG PI N N Rabari for getting more information on this matter. While speaking to OpIndia, the officer said, “When the SOG team was patrolling at Wadali, they got information that a person behind the Tehsildar office had an illegal weapon. The patrolling team raided the Mahalaxmi Garage located at the back side of the office as directed and spotted Gafur Khan Ayub Khan Pathan. The team found 4 live cartridges in the pocket of his night dress-like pants while he was being raided. On further checking of the clothes he was wearing, it was also found that a country-made pistol was kept in the clothes on the waist part.”
Giving more information, SOG PI N N Rabari said, “During this time the patrolling team also checked the garage, but no objectionable things were found there. The team also checked the room in which Gafur Khan was staying. The SOG patrolling team found one more country-made pistol from the cupboard kept in his room. After this, the team completed the necessary action and seized both the weapons and the recovered cartridges and arrested Gafur Khan. Now, the Wadali police are investigating from whom and why Gafur Khan procured the weapon and whether he was involved in any previous crime.”
It remains unexplained why Gafur Khan was running his garage with the name of a Hindu goddess. The police investigation may also reveal more facts regarding the matter. At present, the Wadali police have arrested the accused Gafur Khan Ayub Khan Pathan and seized a total of more than 20 thousand rupees. The Wadali police have registered a case under Section 25 (1-B) of the Arms Act, 1959 against Gafur Khan and initiated further proceedings. A copy of the FIR is available with Opindia.
Police and protesters clashed in southwest China in reaction to demonstrations against plans to partially destroy a mosque constructed in the fourteenth century. Violence was reported on Saturday, as a response to the government’s plans to partially destroy the Najiaying mosque in Nagu, a town in the Yunnan province.
A court in 2020 determined that the mosque’s most recent additions, including a domed roof and minarets, were unlawful and should be taken down. However, locals in Nagu, which is home to the Hui ethnic community, a mostly Muslim minority, complained when the demolition work started over the weekend, temporarily halting the action.
The Najiaying Mosque, a prominent landmark in Nagu, was recently extended with a new domed roof and many additional minarets.
Videos released on social media showed police grappling with hundreds of demonstrators outside the mosque while wearing riot shields and safety gear. Stones and chairs were also thrown by the people. There have reportedly been several arrests as well. Furthermore, a deadline has been set for the protesters to surrender.
The police could not demolish the illegal construction of the mosque due to fierce opposition by the Muslims. A huge crowd of policemen and Muslims can be seen outside the mosque in videos that have surfaced on social media. A fight broke out between the police and Muslims during this and stones were pelted on the cops who attempted to enter the mosque.
In a statement released on Sunday, the authorities in Tonghai County where Nagu is situated called on protestors to turn themselves in by June 6. “Those who voluntarily turn themselves in and truthfully confess the facts of violations and crimes may be given a lighter or mitigated punishment,” the notice read. Police described the occurrence as “a serious obstruction of social management order” and instructed people to “actively report” demonstrators.
The Hui, one of 56 designated ethnic groups by Beijing, are mainly Sunni Muslims. Approximately 700,000 of China’s 10 million Hui Muslims reside in Yunnan, in the southwest of the country.
In 2018, the communist government of the country wanted to demolish a mosque of Hui Muslims located in Ningxia, but after the protest by the Muslims, the government calmed down for a few days. It was eventually transformed into a Chinese pagoda by destroying the minarets and domes. Three mosques in Yunnan were shut down in the same year for giving what authorities believed to be “illegal religious education.”
A similar instance occurred in October 2021 when the government demolished the Dongguan Mosque in Jining, a city in northwest China. The green domes of this 700-year-old historic mosque were razed.
President Xi Jinping committed to further the “Sinicisation of religion” in 2021, which involves modifying religious practises to better reflect Chinese culture and society.
China is officially an atheist country and the government claims that it allows religious freedom. However, analysts point out that there has lately been an increased campaign against organised religion.
Since 2014, the Chinese government has engaged in severe violations of human rights against the Uyghur Muslims residing in Xinjiang, including forced sterilisation and compelled labour, which have been compared to acts of genocide. According to academic estimates, since 2017, at least a million Uyghurs have been unlawfully jailed in internment camps in Xinjiang.
Chinese government representatives maintain that these camps, established under the leadership of Chinese Communist Party (CCP) general secretary President Xi Jinping, were established to ensure adherence to the party’s ideology, suppress separatism, combat terrorism and provide the Uyghurs with vocational training.
The Uyghurs are a Turkic ethnic group with historical ties to Central and East Asia and a shared cultural heritage. They are one of the legally recognised ethnic minorities in China, and the government recognises them as a local minority and as the official inhabitants of Xinjiang.
A case of love jihad has been registered in the Versova police station of Mumbai against one Tanveer Akhtar Khan of Ranchi who blackmailed a model Manvi Raj Singh who works in Mumbai. Tanveer had lured the model by concealing his identity and saying that his name was Yash. The model said in her complaint that the accused raped her multiple times by concealing his identity and was continuously forcing her to marry and convert to Islam when his true identity was revealed.
Tanveer Akhtar also threatened the victim model of making her objectionable photographs viral. The police registered a case against Tanveer Akhtar under sections 376, 376 (2), 376 (N), 328, 506, 504, and 323 of the IPC and section 67 of the IT Act on the basis of the victim’s complaint.
The victim said in her complaint to the Mumbai police that she is a native of Bhagalpur in Bihar and came to Ranchi in connection with a modelling workshop when she came in contact with the accused. She had alleged that Taveer repeatedly raped her since 2021 and threatened and blackmailed her. She said the accused had also threatened her with dire consequences if she informed anyone.
She said that ‘The Kerala Story’ has given her the courage to talk about the incident. She told ANI, “He is sending my pictures to my family members and commenting on my social media posts. He also tried to kill me in Mumbai. After watching the film ‘The Kerala Files’, I got motivated to register a complaint against him.”
#WATCH | "He was putting pressure on me to marry him and convert my religion. All this started in the year 2020 when I joined his modelling agency. Earlier he told me that his name is Yash but after 4 months, I got to know that his real name is Tanveer Akhtar. He is sending my… pic.twitter.com/Tp0UiMw9fy
Manvi went to Ranchi in January 2021 after hearing about the modelling agency ‘Yash Models Agency’. There, Tanveer Akhtar introduced himself as Yash. The model was unaware of his original identity for many days. “While working in Tanveer’s model agency, people used to call him Yash. Some people would also talk about Tanveer sir in the office. But he did not know that Yash’s real name is Tanveer,” she said.
“Earlier he told me that his name is Yash but after 4 months, I got to know that his real name is Tanveer Akhtar,” she said.
Manvi Raj Singh said that while working at the agency, Tanveer started to molest her. “Tanveer used to try to touch me in different ways during training itself. But, I didn’t say anything at that time,” she said.
The model has revealed that Tanveer Akhtar one day gave her sedatives and took objectionable pictures with her. Tanveer has also been accused of pressurising the model for marrying him and converting to Islam. He used these photographs to pressurize the victim. He also used to beat and abuse the woman and didn’t allow her to leave Ranchi.
'तनवीर मुझे परेशान और ब्लैकमेल कर रहा थी, तनवीर ने मेरी अश्लील फोटों खींची..दो बार मुझे मारने की कोशिश भी की..'
The woman said the accused had also exerted pressure on her to go to Bangkok for shooting and when she refused, he threatened to make some pictures viral. The victim said he sent some objectionable photos to her brother and mother and she decided to end her life but was dissuaded from doing so by an acquaintance. The victim said she reluctantly agreed to go to Bangkok where the accused again raped her.
After that, she managed to leave Ranchi and went to Mumbai.
The victim also said in her complaint that fearing a complaint, Tanveer Akhtar first lured the model with money. He then threatened to kill her and her family. The model has also alleged that just a few days ago, Tanveer Akhtar reached Mumbai from Ranchi and tried to kill her by strangulating her.
She said that after reaching Mumbai, he started harassing and abusing her roommate and other acquaintances. He also pressurised her to convert to Islam and marry him. When she disagreed, he tried to kill her, she said.
Model Manvi Raj has further said, “Tanveer Akhtar Khan was pressurizing me to convert from the very beginning. He says he loves me and wants to marry me. He also said bad things about my religion.”
She posted a video on YouTube narrating the whole incident. “It has been 9 months since I came to Mumbai. During this Tanveer has tried to kill me twice. I complained about this to the police, but no action was taken. He has done dirty editing of my photos and is misusing them. He is doing all this so that I can become a Muslim and marry him,” she said.
The victim said that she had lodged a police complaint earlier but the accused gave an affidavit that he will not harass her and requested her to take back the complaint. In the affidavit, he confessed that he was blackmailing, torturing and harassing her and her family members.
She added, “His sister Shazia and her husband Shadab are also aware that Tanveer is troubling me. When I complained about Tanveer to Shazia, she told me that you yourself marry him, otherwise brother is very stubborn, he Will definitely marry you.”
But Manvi Raj Singh refused to convert to Islam and marry Tanveer. She said in the video, “He may kill me, but I am Hindu and will remain a Hindu, I will never become a Muslim and will never marry a Muslim. Prime Minister and Chief Minister save me from this monster. I don’t know what he will do tomorrow. I am a Hindu, will never marry a Muslim.”
In her complaint, the victim said that after she refused to accede to the demands of the accused, he created fake IDs in her name and has been posting objectionable photos and sending objectionable messages to harass her.
The model also alleges that she is not the first girl deceived by Tanveer Akhtar Khan. In this case, the Mumbai Police said that the case was from Jharkhand, so after receiving the complaint, an FIR has been registered and sent to the Jharkhand Police. The police have also prima facie found a case of love jihad in this case.
On the other hand, the accused Tanveer Akhtar Khan has denied the allegations levelled against him. Tanveer says that while working in the model agency, he suffered some losses because of Manvi. He demanded compensation for this from Manvi. After this, Manvi made these allegations against him.
He also alleged, “She circulated my nude photos among my friends and relatives. She took the help of her friends and boyfriend. She wanted to steal my data and use them.”
After the complaint was lodged in Mumbai by the model, a zero FIR was registered, and after that the case was transferred to Ranchi as the crime took place there. Ranchi SSP Kishor Kaushal said that they have registered a proper FIR and investigating the case.
