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India-China to resume ‘hand-in-hand’ military drill after one year gap due to Doklam standoff

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India-China to resume ‘hand-in-hand’ military drill after one year gap due to Doklam standoff

India and China are set to resume their joint military drills on Tuesday after a gap of one year. The joint military drill will be held in the Chinese city of Chengdu. The opening ceremony of the drill will be held on December 11.

The joint military drill will be a ‘hand-in-hand’ military drill which will focus on counter-terrorism operations, as informed by Chinese Defence Ministry spokesperson Col Ren Guoqiang. The drill is being held after a gap of one year as it could not be held earlier due to the strained relations of the two countries over Doklam issue which had led to a 73-day standoff in 2017. Later on, when China stopped the construction of the contentious road, the relations between the two sides improved and a meeting was held between Prime Minister Modi and Chinese President Xi Jinping in the Wuhan (China) in April 2018.

The 7th India-China joint military exercise is scheduled to conclude on December 23. Both the countries will send 100 troops each in the military exercise which will include live shooting and adoptive and basic training. Col Ren said that the exercise is true to its name ‘hand-in-hand’ as the Indian and the Chinese militaries should also work hand in hand for the benefit of the people in both the nations. “The drill will promote understanding between the two militaries and improving their capabilities in fighting terrorism”, he added.

As part of the efforts for improving the relations by the two countries post-Doklam, a couple of meetings were held in the month of November this year. On November 13, India and China held the 9th Annual Defence and Security Dialogue after the one-year gap caused by the Doklam standoff. Both the countries agreed to enhance military exchanges and interactions. Thereafter on Nov 24, The two countries held the 21st round of border talks to maintain peace and tranquility at the border.

India resolute to bring back Vijay Mallya, sends a joint ED and CBI team to London to appear for his extradition proceedings

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India resolute to bring back Vijay Mallya, sends a joint ED and CBI team to London to appear for his extradition proceedings

A joint team comprising of officers from the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and the Enforcement Directorate (ED) led by CBI Joint Director A Sai Manohar has left for the UK for court proceedings there, on India’s request seeking extradition of Liquor baron Vijay Mallya, reports ANI. The Westminster Magistrates’ Court in London had earlier set December 10 as the date of hearing in Vijay Mallya’s extradition case.

The UK court is expected to pronounce its judgment on Monday.

The Indian government has been trying hard to extradite Vijay Mallya after he ran away to the UK on March 2, 2016. Mallya faces charges of defaulting on loans to the tune of Rs 9000 crores. The extradition trial which began at the London court on December 4 last year, is aimed at proving fraud case against Mallya and convincing the court that he will be subject to a fair trial in the country.

The ED and CBI, resolute to get back fugitive Vijay Mallya back to India, are prepared to take any steps required to achieve the extradition. It was reported earlier, how in an attempt to leave no stone unturned, the Indian government had spruced up the Arthur jail where Mallya is expected to be lodged after he is brought back to India, to assure the UK court about the conditions of the jail.

Lately, for Vijay Mallya, things have not gone his way. Last month he faced a major setback in a legal battle to save his London home from foreclosure.

A few days ago, a London Court had ordered the confiscation of the six highly expensive cars of Mallya to repay Indian Consortium of Banks Rs 10,000 crore.

In separate legal proceedings, the businessman had also lost his appeal in the UK’s Court of Appeal against a High Court order in favour of 13 Indian banks to recover funds amounting to nearly 1.145 billion pounds.

The high court order, earlier this year, in favour of the State Bank of India led consortium had reinforced a worldwide freezing order against Mallya’s assets.

Vijay Mallya, sensing that all doors for escape are slowly shutting on him, recently, had in a series of tweet brought to fore a settlement offer for repayment of the principal amount he owes to various Public Sector Banks in India. This came hours after the extradition of the wanted fugitive and middleman in the Rs 3,600-crore AgustaWestland chopper deal, Christian Michel from UAE to India.

In June, Mallya had made similar claims by releasing a letter he had written to Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

There have been reports that Mallya is reiterating the settlement offer and claiming innocence as his extradition verdict is soon to be announced. It so seems that deep down somewhere Mallya probably realises that his ‘good times’ are soon to reach its end.

Who is he to say we don’t need a Ram temple? JD(U)’s Pavan Verma hits out on Farooq Abdullah

OpIndia Staff
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Who is he to say we don’t need a Ram temple? JD(U)’s Pavan Verma hits out on Farooq Abdullah

Janata Dal (United) senior leader Pavan Verma on Sunday slammed National Conference leader and former Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Farooq Abdullah for his recent controversial remarks on Ram Mandir, where he had made brazen comments on Lord Ram.

The diplomat-turned-politician Pavan Verma advised Farooq Abdullah not to lecture Hindus after the former J&K CM had questioned whether Lord Ram would come from heaven to address farmer woes in the country. He had recently said that the BJP government is allegedly fooling the people of the country by ”ignoring real issues of farmers, unemployment and Dalits, and is instead fighting for the construction of a Ram temple.”

The senior NC leader had in November asked why a Ram temple should be built in Ayodhya only as Lord Ram is omnipresent and belongs to the entire world. “Today, look at secular democratic India. You’re not fighting on issues that matter to people. You’re fighting for Ram. Is Ram going to come from heaven and give farmers something better? Or unemployment will disappear in a day because Ram is coming. They are fooling people.” had said.

JD(U) leader Pavan Verma slammed Abdullah for his statements against the construction of Ram Mandir at Ayodhya. “I would strongly advise Mr Abdullah not to give homilies to Hindus. He had said that since God is in hearts of people, why build a temple but that applies to all. What’s he trying to say? That because God is in your heart, you can’t build a temple?” said Verma.

Targeting Abdullah for his controversial comments, Verma said that Abdullah’s references to equate to building a Ram temple to the developmental issues of the country is not appropriate and questioned him over his authority to decide on whether Hindus need a Ram temple or not.

Verma further added that people visit temples as a matter of faith and governments will pursue developmental agenda nevertheless. He said that no country has ever advanced a situation where it has lead to faith versus development. He said that proportion must be right and said that they do not want to hear any advice from Farooq Abdullah on this issue.

The Supreme Court on October 29th had adjourned hearings in the Ayodhya dispute until January next year. The Supreme Court has also said that it will decide in January whether the case should be heard in February, March, April or after that.

Uttar Pradesh: Samajwadi party leader detained after being caught on camera assaulting BJP spokesperson

OpIndia Staff
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Uttar Pradesh: Samajwadi party leader detained after being caught on camera assaulting BJP spokesperson

Samajwadi party spokesperson Anurag Bhadoria, was detained by Noida police after being caught on camera getting into a scuffle with his Bharatiya Janata Party counterpart Gaurav Bhatia during a live debate on a television show on Saturday.

Participating in a live debate show on Zee News Hindi, at Film City in Noida’s Sector 16A, SP spokesperson Anurag Bhadouria allegedly assaulted Bhatia. The later, in his police complaint, stated, “While I was part of the panel discussion… he (Bhadouria) manhandled me, physically assaulted me and threatened me of consequences.”

Gaurav Bhatia also shared the video clip of the alleged assault on his official Twitter handle, which showed both the participants engaging in a verbal exchange. Bhadoria is then seen pushing Bhatia away after he was approached. The leaders then brawled on live television even as a few men tried to separate them.


Bhatia claimed that Bhadoria “physically manhandled” him on the news show. “I could have done the same but as a law-abiding citizen, I have given a complaint against him and the law will take its own course now,” he tweeted.


Soon after Twitterati poured in with disgust, condemning such a trivial act,


After Bhatia’s complaint, Bhadouria was detained and later shifted to the Expressway police station. Dozens of SP workers, led by MP Surendra Singh Nagar, held a sit-in at the police station in sector 20, where he was taken earlier, protesting against the detention.

Nagar claimed, “During the show, Bhatia aggressively marched towards Anurag to assault him. Our spokesperson raised his hand in order to defend himself. Seeing this, Gaurav called the UP DGP and dialled the emergency police number to lodge a complaint with the police,” said Nagar.

Manoj Pant, station house officer of Sector 20 police station, said, ”Taking cognizance of the complaint, we have booked Bhadouria under Indian penal code sections 352 and 506 for assault and criminal intimidation.” Meanwhile, the police have also directed the news channel to submit the video clip of the incident.

Political leaders who are the so-called representatives of our country have often been seen indulging in such pettiness. Recently Congress spokesperson Alok Sharma was caught live on camera threatening a journalist.

A similar threat was recently issued by Sanjay Jha, Congress spokesperson after journalist Arnab Goswami was appointed the member of Nehru Museum.

Meanwhile, last year, in what might be called a blatant show of bloodthirsty belligerence, CPM workers from Kerala’s Kannur district had been caught on camera making highly provocative statements against RSS and BJP personnel of the region.

Jammu and Kashmir: Army neutralised over 225 terrorists this year, says Indian Army commander

OpIndia Staff
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Jammu and Kashmir: Army neutralised over 225 terrorists this year, says Indian Army commander

Northern Army Commander Lieutenant General Ranbir Singh confirmed on Saturday that so far this year the security forces have managed to neutralise more than 225 militants in the valley. He explained that the efforts and initiatives of the Government of India, as well as security forces, were one of the primary reasons for the drop in the number of youth joining militancy.

“We have been able to neutralise a large number of terrorists,” Singh told reporters here on the sidelines of his visit to Sainik School, his alma mater in Kapurthala city of Punjab. “As on date, we have been neutralised more than 225 terrorists. However, a couple of days of this year are still balanced [left].”

Singh furthered that the local youths have been coming forward and sharing information about terrorists with the Indian army, which he said was a “good sign” as this would result in a decline in militancy.

“That is a very positive sign, which shows a decline of militancy. It shows frustration on the part of Pakistan to push more and more terrorists into J&K. But our resolve is clear that as long as terrorists are moving around they shall not be provided space to carry out activities at their will. They will be acted against and neutralised,” he said.
“We will ensure that peace and stability are maintained in J&K,” he added. Singh added that the Army would not allow any further radicalisation of local youth in the state.
The commander accused Pakistan of trying to spread terrorism in India beyond Kashmir. Singh said those militants who would dare to cross the LoC (Line of Control), “will face death”.
He confirmed that the terror-related incidents so far this year has been higher than previous years and he attributed the rise to the increased attacks mounted by terrorists from Pakistan with the support of local cadres in the Kashmir Valley. He said the Army has always given a befitting response to Pakistan’s snipers and the force had kept up the pressure on the adversary along the LoC. He had previously also said that the army is fully prepared to thwart Pakistan’s misadventures.
While praising the government’s initiative to curb terrorism in the valley he further lauded them for their efforts to build the Kartarpur corridor, which will connect Dera Baba Nanak in India’s Gurdaspur district with Gurdwara Kartarpur Sahib in Pakistan.

Congress tweets about ‘International Anti-Corruption Day’, Twitter users remind them of their own legacy

OpIndia Staff
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Congress tweets about ‘International Anti-Corruption Day’, Twitter users remind them of their own legacy

Today is International Anti-Corruption Day. In the mother of all ironies, Congress Twitter account today put out a message saying that corruption hinders the development of the society.


Twitter users were more than glad to remind Congress, which has headed the central government for almost 50 out of 70 years of independent India, about their own history of corruption.


Amusingly, today is also former Congress President Sonia Gandhi’s birthday, under whose leadership, UPA led by Congress from 2004 to 2014 presided over some of the major corruption scams in history of independent India.


Sonia Gandhi is currently the chairperson of the UPA which formed the central government between 2004 to 2014. You could read about all the scams related to the UPA era here.

India is not a ‘dharamshala’ for illegal immigrants, they should be identified and deported: BJP Chief Amit Shah

OpIndia Staff
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India is not a ‘dharamshala’ for illegal immigrants, they should be identified and deported: BJP Chief Amit Shah

On Saturday, speaking at an event, BJP’s national president Amit Shah clearly stated that Indians have the right to the country’s resources, and it is not a ‘dharamshala’ where illegal immigrants can come to settle down.

According to the reports, Amit Shah describing illegal immigrants as a security threat to the country, he said National Register of Citizens is the only way to solve the basic problems of the country and it should not be connected to the BJP.

“NRC should not be seen by connecting it with the BJP only. It is a way to solve the country’s basic problems. How is it possible that anyone can come and settle down here? The country cannot run like this. Those who are its citizens should stay here only and they only have the right to the resources of this country. This country is not a ‘dharamshala’ that anyone can come and settle down here,” Amit Shah said while speaking at the Jagran Forum organised by the Dainik Jagran media group.

Taking on opposition over the issue, Amit Shah slammed the opposition parties over their stand on the issue. He accused the opposition parties of using illegal immigrants as a vote bank for 70 years who have now become a threat to the country and added that BJP believes in taking tough decisions which are in the interest of the country.

He further added that illegal immigrants should be identified first and their names should be deleted from the electoral roll. “The BJP clearly believes that they should be identified and deported. Intruders are also threatening the security of the country”, he said while replying to a question on NRC.

Amit Shah during an election rally in Rajasthan had reiterated his party’s position on the issue of illegal immigrants, saying that the government under Prime Minister Narendra Modi will ensure that “each and every infiltrator is identified and thrown out of the country”. The BJP chief Amit Shah in the past had also said that illegal migrants were like termites, and each one of them would be struck off the electoral roll.

To drive out the illegal immigrants residing in the state of the Assam, the Supreme Court had ordered to update the National Register of Citizens in the state. Taking it into cognizance, the government of Assam and Union Home Ministry had initiated to prepare a draft, which was published on July 30, 2018. The list had included the names of 2.9 crore people out of the total applications of 3.29 crore.

Over 10 lakh people gathered for the Muslim congregation event against permission of 2 lakh people in Bulandshahr

OpIndia Staff
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Over 10 lakh people gathered for the Muslim congregation event against permission of 2 lakh people in Bulandshahr

More than 10 lakh Muslims had gathered in Bulandshahr despite the permission was given to only 2 lakh, ahead of the Tablighi Ijtema event ended a day before the violence that took place, reported ANI.

Ijtema is a congregation of Muslims which is an essential part of Tablighi Jamaat. Often referred to as a show of strength of the Muslims, the 3-day event is all about moral reform of individuals and often described as ‘making Muslims true Muslims’. Lakhs of Muslims from across the country and world had gathered in Bulandshahr.

According to the reports, Anuj Kumar Jha, District Magistrate (DM), Bulandshahr speaking to the media said they had issued multiple notices and warning to the organisers of the event after there was a surge in the crowd. The 3-day event was scheduled for 1st, 2nd and 3rd December.

A notice was first issued on December 1 itself, but the crowd kept increasing on the second day too, following which a second notice was issued, said the DM. He added that the permit for gathering had mentioned a gathering of 2 lakh people, but the overall number of people attending the event was 10 lakh.

Prashant Kumar, Additional director general (Meerut zone) said to the media, “If something had gone wrong, riots of unprecedented scale would have occurred.” Anand Kumar said the number could be close to 15 lakh, while organisers said that the official claims are exaggerated and the numbers could be in the range of 3-4 lakh.

Rafeeq Ahmad, convenor of Tablighi Ijtema confirmed that the numbers of visitors had gone up and also rejected official sources regarding the number of visitors. It was a religious event of a scale that occurs once in 40 years, how can we send back the devotees, he said. “We have not given any reply to the notices because everything passed off peacefully. If they still want it, we will provide them the replies,” he further added.

On December 3rd, violence broke out in Bulandshahr after carcasses of cows were found in a field in Mahav village near Chingravati, Bulandshahr. The protest turned violent over police inaction after repeated complaints of illegal cattle slaughter. In the violence, a 17-year-old boy Sumit was accidentally killed Inspector Subodh Singh, who was also later killed in the mob violence.

West Bengal: TMC workers ‘purify’ the ground with Gangajal and cow dung after BJP holds a rally in Cooch Behar

OpIndia Staff
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West Bengal: TMC workers ‘purify’ the ground with Gangajal and cow dung after BJP holds a rally in Cooch Behar

Trinamool Congress workers ‘purified’ the ground where the BJP held a rally in Cooch Behar with Gangajal and cow dung.


TMC workers sprinkled Gangajal after applying cow dung on the ground where the rally was held. According to TMC workers, the TMC was ‘cleansing’ the ground where the BJP held a rally which gave a message of ‘communal hate’. TMC leader Pankaj Ghosh reportedly said that this is the land of lord Madanmohan and since BJP gave the message of communal hate, they have ‘purified’ the place.

On Saturday morning, hundreds of TMC workers reportedly gathered at the ground where the BJP rally was held and enclosed it with a barricade made of bamboo poles and hoisted Trinamool flags. According to Rabindranath Ghosh, Trinamool Cooch Behar district president, the ‘purification’ programme was announced by TMC chief and West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee. TMC leaders across Bengal have announced that wherever BJP holds a rally, they will go and ‘purify’ the land.

BJP leader Rahul Sinha took on the TMC and said that after appeasing the Muslims, Trinamool has turned to the Gau Mata ‘to seek salvation’. BJP has been facing bitterness by TMC members in West Bengal over the BJP’s proposed ‘rath yatra’, or the ‘Save Democracy Rally’, comprising three ‘RathYatras’, in the state. West Bengal BJP chief, Dilip Ghosh’s convoy was attacked on Thursday by unidentified miscreants at Sitalkuchi area of Cooch Behar district. Video footage showed some people with their faces covered in black clothes attacking the vehicles with sticks.

Raghuram Rajan backed yet-to-be functional Krea University among 19 new institutes to get ‘Institute of Eminence’ tag

OpIndia Staff
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Raghuram Rajan backed yet-to-be functional Krea University among 19 new institutes to get ‘Institute of Eminence’ tag

Former RBI Governor Raghuram Rajan backed Krea University is set to get the ‘Institute of Eminence’ tag as per the recommendation of Ministry of Human Resource Development (HRD). The liberal arts institute will commence its classes for its undergraduate classes in August 2019 for a batch of 125 students in the first batch. Industrialists Anand Mahindra, Kiran Mazumdar Shaw and Sajjan Jindal are three other corporate backers for Krea University which is coming up in Sricity in Andhra Pradesh.

Other universities recommended for the tag include Azim Premji University in Karnataka, Shiv Nadar University in Uttar Pradesh, Haryana based O.P. Jindal Global University, Satya Bharti University and Ashoka University and Tamil Nadu’s Vellore Institute of Technology.

Earlier this year, the HRD Ministry had awarded the Institute of Eminence tag to 3 public institutes IIT-Bombay, IIT-Delhi and IISC-Bangalore and 3 private institutes Jio Institute by Reliance Foundation, Manipal Academy of Higher Education and BITS Pilani. The government had then received a lot of backlash for awarding the Institute of Eminence tag to a yet to be operational Jio Institute.

The new list, which features other institutes like Banaras Hindu University and Panjab University does not have a single IIT and other prominent institutes like JNU.

When the earlier list was announced in July this year, few politicians and so-called journalists had tried to spread false information and narrative that Jio Institute which was still not functional, would be given Rs. 1,000 crore of public money and termed it ‘corruption’ and used it to mock the Institute of Eminence tag.


However, most are silent on yet-to-be-operational Krea University being awarded the ‘Institute of Eminence’ tag.

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