Posts
Evening NEWS DIGEST
29 Jan.2017: 30 Rabius Sani 1438: Vol:8, No:101
TRUMP & IMIGRATION BAN
Trump's immigration ban derailed: Federal court grants emergency stay temporarily HALTING deportation of visa holders detained at US airports after nationwide protests
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-4167812/Donald-Trump-DEFENDS-immigration-ban-order.html#ixzz4X9ZIj4qE
A federal court has granted an emergency stay blocking the deportation of migrants detained at airports around the US due to Donald Trump's immigration ban.The federal court for the Eastern District of New York issued the stay Saturday evening after only two of 12 refugees held at JFK airport were released, after 14 and 24 hours respectively. ACLU had filed a petition on their behalf, but the stay is effective nationwide. Under the stay, none of the travelers held at airports across the nation can be sent back. However, the measure doesn't mean they have to be allowed into the country - leaving them in a grey area.Earlier on Saturday, Trump defended his new immigration measures, which prompted outrage as migrants were barred from entering the US, including families of refugees and Ivy League students.Trump's comments came as migrants around the country were detained in airports because they arrived just after the executive order was signed. The stay issued Saturday evening blocks the situation pending a permanent ruling. ACLU lawyers who handled the case have also filed a motion for class certification, which means other people affected by the order will be able to benefit from the stay as part of a class action.Judge Donnelly also ordered the govt to give a list of people detained due to Trump's order. The measure means detained travelers cannot be deported back to their home countries, but it does not force authorities to allow them into the US. Judge Ann Donnelly ruled that sending them back would expose them to irreparable harm.Trump's ban affects citizens from Iraq, Syria, Iran, Sudan, Libya, Somalia and Yemen. The temporary stay also protects refugees with an approved case.It is unclear what will happen to those detained. A later court date has been set for Feb.Daily Mail
Judge halts deportations as refugee ban causes worldwide furor
https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/social-issues/refugees-detained-at-us-airports-challenge-trumps-executive-order/2017/01/28/e69501a2-e562-11e6-a547-5fb9411d332c_story.html?postshare=1621485658426142&tid=ss_tw&utm_term=.d7566dd33249
Trump refugee ban: UN condemns President's bar on asylum and entry from Muslim-majority countries
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/donald-trump-refugee-ban-executive-order-muslim-majority-countries-syrians-un-united-nations-a7550576.html
Trump Order Will Block 500,000 Legal U.S. Residents from Returning to America From Trips Abroad
https://www.propublica.org/article/trump-executive-order-could-block-legal-residents-from-returning-to-america
Trump’s Muslim ban prevents Iraqi-born British MP from visiting his children
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/donald-trump-muslim-ban-british-mp-nadhim-zahawi-iraq-visit-kids-a7551576.html
World a horrible mess: Trump defends ban on immigrants from Muslim countries
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/us/world-is-a-horrible-mess-donald-trump-defends-ban-on-immigrants-from-muslim-countries/articleshow/56855966.cms
New Delhi: US President Donald Trump on Sunday defended his decision to issue executive orders temporarily barring refugees from seven Muslim-majority countries entering the US, by describing the world as being in 'a horrible mess.'TOI
Showdown begins: Hundreds gather spontaneously outside New York's airport to protest Trump's Muslim ban
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/us/showdown-begins-hundreds-gather-spontaneously-outside-new-yorks-jfk-airport-to-protest-donald-trumps-muslim-ban/articleshow/56846794.cms
NEW DELHI: Hundreds of people gathered spontaneously at the John F Kennedy International Airport in New York and other airports around the country late on Saturday to protest US President Donald Trump's ban on Muslim refugees and immigrants, international media is reporting.TOI
Indian Muslims react on Trump's immigration ban order
http://www.indiatomorrow.net/eng/indian-muslims-react-on-trumps-immigration-ban-order
New Delhi: Joining the global chorus condemning US President Donald Trump's executive order to ban people from seven Muslim-majority countries, Muslim leaders in India say the order is not just against the international law but also the Idea of America. It is a disturbing indication from a head of state like America, they say. "This hate policy is basically against the Idea of America. We should not forget that what America is today is because of immigration. The identity of America is the identity of immigration," said Navaid Hamid, national president of Indian Muslims' umbrella organization All India Muslim Majlis-e Mushawarat.Order is shocking, disturbing, will damage image of America, Jamaat-e-Islami Hind, India's largest socio-religious Muslim organization, said the immigration ban order is surprising and shocking from a country like America and it is very disturbing."It is very surprising and shocking that a country like America which claims to be a larger democratic country. Such kind of orders clearly mentioning Muslim communities is highly undesirable and highly condemnable in a democratic society and the world which is becoming smaller and people are opening to everyone," said Mohammad Salim Engineer, Secretary General of Jamaat. "This kind of statement from head of the state like America is highly disturbing. It is not a good indication - not only for American society but also for the world because this mentality which has been shown to the Muslim community will extend to other areas and faces of life. It is very disturbing and very alarming indication from the president of United States of America," said Jamaat leader and added that it will damage the image of America.Dr. Mohammad Manzoor Alam, national general secretary of Milli Council says Trump's executive order violates international law and Constitution of America.Maulana Syed Arshad Madani, president of Jamiat Ulama-I-Hind, said the US President should see how his order will affect his own country and the globe. indiatomorrow
World leaders condemn Donald Trump's 'Muslim ban'
http://www.aljazeera.com/news/2017/01/world-leaders-condemn-donald-trump-muslim-ban-170128134635041.html
European leaders, the United Nations and international groups have condemned US President Donald Trump's measures against refugees and travellers from several Muslim-majority countries. The chorus of criticism came as passport holders from Arab countries were blocked on Saturday from passing through customs at US airports and others were prevented from boarding US-bound planes.
US: Mosque burned to the ground hours after Trump signs immigration order
http://metro.co.uk/2017/01/29/mosque-burned-to-the-ground-hours-after-donald-trump-signs-immigration-order-6412649/
A mosque in Texas has been completely destroyed just hours after Donald Trump signed an executive order restricting migration. The fire was noticed by a worker at a shop across the street who reported seeing smoke and flames billowing from the Islamic Center of Victoria at around 2am and called the fire department.The mosque, which had been targeted by burglars previously, was burned to the ground.‘It’s sad to stand there and watch it collapse down, and the fire was so huge,’ Shahid Hashmi, the Islamic center’s president, said. ‘It looks completely destroyed.’Victoria Fire Marshal Tom Legler asked for help from the Texas Fire Marshal’s Office and federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives to determine what caused the blaze. Hashmi said authorities have told him it was too early to speculate.A fundraiser has been set up for the mosque.‘None whatsoever right now,’ the center director said. ‘We don’t have any lead or information as to what started the fire and what happened. So I’m sure it’s going to be a few days, they told us, before they can come up with any answers for us.’The congregation’s pastor, known as an imam, was awake in the early morning hours and checked online surveillance of the mosque and found no alarm active and the doors unlocked, Hashmi said. On Jan.21, someone broke in and stole some electronics, including laptops.‘He was worried about it and drove over there,’ Hashmi said. ‘By that time, fire engines were already there pouring water on the fire.’ Hashmi, who’s lived in Victoria 32 years, said the congregation of about 140 has had few other problems and has enjoyed support from the city of about 115 miles southwest of Houston. He already has received offers of temporary quarters for the congregation to worship.‘Because of growing anti-bigotry in our nation, and because of the recent spike in hate incidents targeting Islamic institutions and individuals, we urge investigators to keep the possibility of a bias motive for this fire in mind,’ CAIR-Houston Executive Director Mustafaa Carroll said.Metro.co.uk
Texas mosque goes up in flames hours after Trump’s Muslim ban: AP
http://www.hindustantimes.com/world-news/us-texas-mosque-goes-up-in-flames-hours-after-trump-s-muslim-ban/story-0QBpRs5n5ycDcygeFwNnlN.html
INDIA
Missing JNU student Najeeb's family accuse cops of intimidation
http://www.dnaindia.com/delhi/report-missing-jnu-student-s-family-accuse-cops-of-intimidation-2297982
Anger broke out at the home of the maternal uncle of missing JNU student Najeeb Ahmed, as the Delhi Crime branch, along with Uttar Pradesh police, carried out a search at his residence on Saturday. Alleging high-handedness by the police, Najeeb’s family said that the police had misbehaved with him.“At 4:30am, around 40 police personnel, of both Delhi police and UP police, stormed my uncle Ashraf Qadri's resident in Badaun and treated him like a criminal. They misbehaved with him and asked him inappropriate questions regarding Najeeb's disappearance,” said Najeeb's brother Mujeeb Ahmed.The family claimed that it was not just Najeeb’s uncle’s house that was searched.According to them, police also searched the house of his uncle's friend Tarruf Shujat.“They (police) had checked my brother's cellphone from which the last call was made to his friend Tarruf Shujat, who lives near my brother’s place," said Najeeb's mother Fatima Nafees. “They stormed into his house. They have checked their phones (Najeeb’s uncle and his uncle’s friend) and taken their SIM cards along with them," she alleged.Police officials, however, refuted the claims of the family members and said that they only went to interact with them to know more about the case. Calling it an attempt to scare the family so that they give up and return to their native place, Badaun, Nafees said, "Instead of searching the houses of Najeeb’s assaulters they are harassing us. They want me to leave Delhi and give up my fight to search my son. But they should know, I won't give up and I won't go back without my son.” dnaindia
Najeeb's Family Claims Harassment by Delhi Police
http://www.news18.com/news/india/missing-jnu-student-najeeb-ahmeds-family-claims-harassment-by-delhi-police-1342296.html
CIA assessed Rajiv assassination 5 years before he was killed, says report
http://www.hindustantimes.com/india-news/cia-assessed-rajiv-assassination-5-years-before-he-was-killed-says-report/story-VOUiWmCTotR79MkNw2o95J.html
New Delhi:Five years before Rajiv Gandhi was killed in 1991, the US CIA had prepared a very detailed and thorough “brief” on what would happen if he is assassinated or makes an “abrupt departure” from the Indian political scene.A 23-page report, titled India After Rajiv ... was put out as early as March, 1986 for comments from other senior CIA officials. The “sanitised” report was declassified recently by the CIA.The report, whose complete title is not entirely available as it is part deleted, was prepared on the basis of inputs available to the CIA till Jan, 1986.Very first sentence of the report’s available (undeleted) page reads: “Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi faces at least an even chance of assassination before his tenure in office ends in 1989.” It, however, later clearly said that “assassination is the major near-term threat” to him.PTI
Some Indian clerics spreading distorted versions of Islam on Internet, claim Security agencies: Sunday Standard
http://www.newindianexpress.com/thesundaystandard/2017/jan/29/some-indian-clerics-spreading-distorted-versions-of-islam-on-the-internet-security-agencies-1564553--1.html
A section of Indian maulanas (Muslim clerics) are now using this platform to radicalise gullible people overseas by imparting takreer (religious sermons) on distorted versions of Islam, claimed Security agencies.According to security agencies, the clerics are targeting youths in Bangladesh, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Malaysia, Hong Kong and Philippines to spread hatred. Intel reports say over 100 such preachers have so far been identified.Maulanas have not only found ways to evade the police in India, but they have also exploited loopholes of the law of countries being targeted by them. After being in the dark for many years, central probe agencies have now created a database of such radicals. The agencies are keeping tabs on the masterminds and their funding.“Videos of radical speeches are made abroad and contents are either uploaded online or CDs distributed among people in other countries. Even when they come under the scrutiny of agencies in India, they seek immunity on grounds of not having violated the country’s law,” an Intelligence official said.Many maulanas in the probe agencies’ database are from Kerala, Maharashtra, Gujarat and Uttar Pradesh. These rich clerics go abroad to spread hate sermons thus making it impossible for the Intel agencies to take action.Agencies are now identifying those who act behind the scenes, sources said. Jamiat Ulema-e-Hind president Arshad Madani admitted that social networking sites were being misused. “There’s a need to inform people about the positives and negatives of social media,” he said. The Jamiat Ulema-e-Hind is the largest body of Muslim clerics. While the Deobandi stream of madrassas teaches students about the correct interpretation of Islam, a section has distorted it to serve their interests besides maligning the Muslims. “Islam does not permit violence. It stresses peaceful existence. But some are misusing the religion for evil activities,” Madani added.Maulana Rahimuddin Qasmi of the All India Majlis Ulema said, “Any action which has the potential to create trouble is against Islam. Without verification, religious sermons available online should not be followed. When Islam is even against wasteful expenditure of water, how can it permit violence? Loving the country is part of the faith, and anyone acting against the nation cannot be accepted.” Arshad Farooqui, Mufti of the Darool Uloom Zakaria, Deoband, told The Sunday Standard: “Lack of education leads to radicalisation. Successive governments have failed to provide education to all. Deprivation also leads to a sense of alienation and some youths are tilted towards violence. Both the government and the Muslim community should take steps to check radicalisation among the youths.”Sunday Standard
Gujarat bakery blast accused dies in Arthur Road Jail
http://www.asianage.com/metros/mumbai/290117/gujarat-bakery-blast-accused-dies-in-arthur-road-jail.html
Mumbai: An under trial Ramesh Jayanti Gohil died of an alleged heart attack in his cell at Arthur Road Jail on Saturday. Gohil had been arrested by the NIA for his involvement in the Best Bakery blast of 2002 in Gujarat. He was also allegedly involved in the 2007 Ajmer Dargah blast case.He was one of the four people, including his father Jayanti Gohil, brother Mahesh Gohil and Harshad Solanki who were convicted with life terms. They had earlier been acquitted by a local Vadodara court but went absconding after the Supreme Court ordered a retrial. All four were later caught by the NIA. Asian age
NIA files formal charge sheet against suspected IS woman
http://www.hindustantimes.com/india-news/nia-files-formal-charge-sheet-against-suspected-islamic-state-woman/story-jdClVsGq9lb5vJKqARVmzL.html
NIA has formally charged a woman, Yasmeen Mohammed Zahid, who was caught trying to leave India for Afghanistan to join the Islamic State (IS) .She was the second woman in India to be arrested for alleged links with the IS.She was intercepted at the New Delhi International Airport on July 30 last year while she was trying to board a flight for Kabul along with her minor child.NIA said she was going to Kabul to join a co-accused Abdul Rashid who was in the territory under the control of IS in Afghanistan.The charge sheet against Yasmeen and Rashid was filed in Kerala for criminal conspiracy and waging war against an Asiatic power in alliance with India.Rashid is from Kasaragod district of Kerala and Yasmeen, originally a resident of Bihar’s Sitamarhi district, was living in Delhi’s Batla House area at the time of her arrest.HT
Fatwa against BJP leader Muddin for remarks on triple talaq
http://www.financialexpress.com/india-news/fatwa-against-bjp-leader-s-k-muddin-for-remarks-on-triple-talaq/526720/
Jaipur: City-based Darul Uloom Ahle Sunnat (DUAS) has issued a fatwa against BJP leader S K Muddin ostracising him from the community over his triple talaq remarks with the the latter today hitting back saying he is going to file a defamation suit against the decree.Sunnis’ Barelvi sect Islamic Study Centre’s DUAS Mufti (cleric) Mohammad Asrar Ahmed Ashrafi issued the fatwa against Muddin, who is the MP Backward Classes and Minority Finance and Development Corporation vice president, on Jan.23 to ex-communicate him over his remark on triple talaq which he described as anti-Islamic.A week ago, Muddin, along with two others — Naseem Bain and Shakir Quereshi while addressing a press conference had said that triple talaq was against Shariat laws.The fatwa says that if the trio apologises for their remark, they will be pardoned and allowed back into the community’s fold. PTI
Uniform Civil Code will definitely come:S Swamy
http://www.thehindu.com/todays-paper/tp-national/tp-karnataka/%E2%80%98Uniform-Civil-Code-will-definitely-come%E2%80%99/article17111946.ece
Udupi: Subramanian Swamy, MP and BJP leader, said on Saturday that the Uniform Civil Code will definitely come. He was delivering a lecture on the topic of Uniform Civil Code at a programme by the district unit of BJP Legal Cell, here.Dr. Swamy questioned if triple talaq was not a violation of human rights. Half the Muslim population was with the government on this issue, he claimed.Most political parties had banked on unity of minority communities and disunity in majority community for political gains in the country. But in 2014, the reverse had happened. If the Hindus united fully, the BJP could get a two-thirds majority in the next parliamentary elections. The Union government would have to bring a Bill for the Uniform Civil Code and get it passed. If it did not enjoy a majority in Rajya Sabha, it would have to be passed in a joint session of the Parliament, he said. the hindu
No job on compassionate grounds for ‘second wife’
http://www.thehindu.com/todays-paper/tp-national/tp-newdelhi/No-job-on-compassionate-grounds-for-%E2%80%98second-wife%E2%80%99/article17111507.ece
New Delhi: Under the Hindu law, marriage is a sacrament and not a contract, which can be entered into by execution of a marriage deed, the Delhi High Court observed while rejecting the plea of a woman that she be declared the legally wedded wife of a government servant, now deceased, so that she can get a job on compassionate grounds and avail of the other benefits.The court noted that when the woman got married to the government servant, Hari Ram, he already had a wife and had not applied for divorce. The second marriage, as claimed by the petitioner, was by way of a marriage deed.The petitioner, Champa Devi, had initiated the litigation mainly to get an appointment on compassionate grounds as well as the financial benefits payable to legal heirs of Hari Ram on his death. Hari Ram was a sweeper at GTB Hospital. thehindu
Marriage under hindu law is 'sacrament', not contract: HC
http://www.news18.com/news/india/marriage-under-hindu-law-is-sacrament-not-contract-delhi-hc-1342165.html
Vijay Bhatkar, Head of RSS-Affiliated Science Body, Named Nalanda University Chancellor
https://thewire.in/103609/vijay-bhatkar-nalanda-university/
New Delhi: Nalanda University’s third chancellor will be Vijay Bhatkar, a well-known computer scientist who is president of RSS-affiliated outfit Vijnana Bharati, which promotes ‘swadeshi’ science, and was formerly chair of IIT Delhi’s board of governors.The university’s newly-constituted governing board recommended Bhatkar’s name to the Visitor, President Pranab Mukherjee, who then approved the appointment on Friday, January 27. There were no other choices, according to sources.Bhatkar’s appointment was confirmed two months after George Yeo, former Singapore foreign minister, resigned from the post in protest, claiming that the Indian government had not consulted him before making a series of decisions, including deciding not to extend the term of the Nalanda Mentors Group-Governing Board, ending interim vice-chancellor Gopa Sabharwal’s extended term and determining the constitution of the new governing board.The Wire
Hyderabad: Yoga teacher booked in Old City for sharing blasphemous post on FB
http://www.siasat.com/news/hyderabad-yoga-teacher-booked-old-city-sharing-blasphemous-post-fb-1119972/
Charminar: A Yoga teacher from Delhi was booked for allegedly uploading an ‘objectionable’ video on social media website which is described as “blasphemous”.Abdul Quyyam, a resident of Falaknuma noticed the post which was posted by Ashu Parihar aka Ginni the yoga teacher. He said the image hurt religious sentiments and it’s an insult of a religious section of Islam.Quyyam also claimed that the blasphemous video has gone viral and requested to remove it from the social media network.A senior officials of south zone police ordered Falaknuma police station to register a case under section 295 A and 153 A of IPC). Siasat
states polls & politics
Election Commission asks RBI to reconsider decision to not ease cash withdrawal limits for polls
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/elections/assembly-elections/election-commission-writes-to-reserve-bank-asks-again-that-cash-withdrawal-limits-be-increased-for-poll-candidates/articleshow/56853704.cms
New Delhi: Election Commission (EC) has repeated its demand that the RBI increase cash withdrawal limits for candidates contesting the Assembly polls, after the central bank declined to do so on Friday."It is re-iterated that that it is the constitutional mandate of the ECI (Election Commission of India) to conduct free and fair elections and to provide (a) level playing field to all candidates. In order to facilitate proper conduct of elections, it is imperative that directions issued by the commission are complied with," Dilip Sharma, Director General (Election Expenditure) wrote in a letter to RBI Governor Urijit Patel. Sharma said "it appears the Reserve Bank of India has not realized the gravity of the matter," and urged it to reconsider the EC's proposal.TOI
Can’t increase weekly cash withdrawal limits for poll candidates, says RBI
http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/Can%E2%80%99t-increase-weekly-cash-withdrawal-limits-for-poll-candidates-says-RBI/article17112578.ece?homepage=true
Election Commission unhappy after RBI refuses to raise cash withdrawal limit for candidates
http://indiatoday.intoday.in/story/assembly-elections-2017-rbi-election-commission/1/869365.html
Lucknow roads witness Samajwadi -Congress ‘unity’ show
http://www.india.com/news/india/lucknow-roads-witness-samajwadi-party-congress-unity-show-1793294/
Lucknow: Days after announcing electoral alliance for the crucial up Assembly Elections 2017, Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi and Samajwadi Party president Akhilesh Yadav on Sunday took out a joint road show under the theme ‘UP ko ye saath pasand hai’ (UP relishes this alliance), hours after they held a joint press conference. This is their maiden road show together after the two leaders entered a seat sharing agreement for the polls, which starts from Feb.11.During their road show, the duo were showered by their ardent supporters. One of the highlights of show was that only Akhilesh’ face and the party’s symbol was visible throughout the procession.ANI
Warm handshakes, hugs, bonhomie mark Rahul-Akhilesh outing
http://news.webindia123.com/news/Articles/India/20170129/3044841.html
Election Commission bans exit polls between Feb.4 and March 8
http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/Election-Commission-bans-exit-polls-between-February-4-and-March-8/article17112828.ece?homepage=true
Election Commission on Sunday banned exit polls between February 4 and March 8 in view of the Assembly polls in five States and the Amritsar Lok Sabha bypoll.PTI
UP election: Politics over Muzaffarnagar riot victims leaves Kairana polarised
http://www.hindustantimes.com/india-news/up-election-politics-over-muzaffarnagar-riot-victims-leaves-kairana-polarised/story-4ulkDn0QSSj9hzq4lK21QI.html
Abdul Sattar was just 12 years old when India was partitioned in 1947, yet it was the macabre of 2013 riots in western Uttar Pradesh that has shaken him to the core.“In 1947, the violence lingered on for over two months, but it was never so bad that we would have to leave our homes,” the octogenarian said.Sattar was among the thousands of people who shifted from the villages of Muzaffarnagar to neighbouring Kairana after the Jat-Muslim riot broke out in August 2013.“Houses around ours were set on fire and we were forced to leave our village Ranagana,” he said. Nearly 5,000 families had moved out from the violence- stricken western UP district never to return. An estimated 3,000 victims landed in makeshift tents in the Malakkpur refugee camp on the outskirts of Kairana.Now, two years later, the camp has been disbanded and its residents moved to two colonies that have come up with the help of the local MLA, Samajwadi Party’s Nahid Hassan. The one that Sattar lives in has been named Manawwar Hassan colony after the MLA’s father and has 128 brick houses and around 230 huts.“He (Hassan) has promised to give us pucca houses after the elections,” says Mohammed Haroon, 35, who moved from Kirthal village. Two kilometres away, the Sapa colony — named after the Samajwadi Party — houses around 1,200 people.Most people in the two settlement colonies have also been enrolled as voters.
‘BJP would even brand Shivaji, Tilak as anti-national for politics’: Shiv Sena regrets 25 yrs of alliance
http://www.hindustantimes.com/india-news/bjp-would-even-brand-shivaji-tilak-as-anti-national-for-politics-shiv-sena-regrets-25-years-of-alliance/story-AnUr0TC5I6TJTzpKxUoWeO.html
Mumbai: After deciding to go it alone in civic polls in Maharashtra, Shiv Sena on Saturday attacked BJP, saying it feels it wasted a quarter century in an alliance with the saffron party for the sake of “Hindutva” and the interests of Maharashtra. Sena also accused the BJP of going out of the way to flaunt its “secular credentials” and said it would not even hesitate to dub Chhatrapati Shivaji and Lokmanya Tilak as “anti-nationals” to serve its purpose.“We have been experiencing this for the last 25 years for the sake of Hindutva and for the welfare of the state. But these 25 years have been wasted and rusted. What should have happened 25 years back has happened today,” an editorial in party mouthpiece Saamana said.“The state will breathe fresh for the first time in 25 years because the rope tied around the neck of Hindutva has finally been unknotted,” it said.“The alliance with BJP was over during the (2014) assembly polls itself...what remained was a mere relation for Hindutva and Maharashtra, but BJP finished that as well owing to their ill intentions of winning everything with money and power.“These people are worse than those who were in power under the Congress regime. These people could dub icons like Shivaji Maharaj and Lokmanya Tilak as anti-nationals to prove their secular credentials,” the Sena said. hindustantimes
OTHERS
Representation of minorities very low in Delhi govt. departments: Minority panel's annual report
http://www.indiatomorrow.net/eng/representation-of-minorities-very-low-in-delhi-govt-departments-minority-panels-annual-report?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=emailemail&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+Indiatomorrownet+%28IndiaTomorrow.net%29
New Delhi: In Delhi Tourism & Transportation department of the Delhi government, there are 741 employees against the sanctioned posts of 1004. Presently, there are only 32 employees from minority communities, reveals the annual report 2015-16 of the Delhi Minorities Commission. In the Delhi Metro, there are currently 80683 staffers – only 282 of them are from minority communities. Chapter 10 of the report is titled “Representation of Minorities in Govt. Services”.IndiaTomorrow
Padmavati row: Noted historian claims Rani Padmavati never existed in real
http://www.deccanchronicle.com/entertainment/bollywood/280117/padmavati-row-noted-historian-claims-rani-padmavati-never-existed-in-real.html
Mumbai: Activists of the Rajput Karni Sena wrecked havoc on the sets of Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s film ‘Padmavati’ on Friday by attacking the filmmaker and vandalising the crew’s equipment. The group claims that the director is showcasing wrong facts about Rajput queen Padmavati in the film and is keen to protect the lineage of their ancestors from any misrepresentation.However, noted historian S Irfan Habib disputes the argument put forward by the activists.It is said that the story of Rani Padmavati, also known as Padmini, and Alauddin Khilji’s siege of King Rawal Ratan Singh’s Chittor took place in 1303. However, Habib claims that Rani Padmavati was not a historical figure as there is record of her before 1540. According to him, the queen was a fictional figure created in the poem, ‘Padmavat’ written by Malik Mohd Jayasi in 1540.The poem had famously traced the story of Padmini, Alauddin Khilji and Rawal Ratan Singh, to be played by Deepika Padukone, Ranveer Singh and Shahid Kapoor respectively in the film.Habib took to Twitter to express his views, also finding similarities with the character Anarkali, shown in films like ‘Mughal-E-Azam’, who he also claims was not a historical character but a fictional one.Deccan Chronicle.
Delhi couple arrested for abandoning 4-month-old who ‘cried too much’
http://indianexpress.com/article/delhi/delhi-couple-arrested-for-abandoning-4-month-old-who-cried-too-much-4496484/
New Delhi:A couple have been arrested for allegedly abandoning their four-month-old baby on the Mehrauli-Badarpur road in southeast Delhi, said police. Eighteen-year-old Mobina Khatoon allegedly abandoned her daughter around 6 pm on Friday in the jungle behind the Hanuman temple on MB Road, said a senior police officer who probed the case. A police team patrolling the area found the child and decided to look after her till they could find her parents.The police team also spread information about the child, whom they named Dakshina, using social media as well as electronic media. Based on a tip-off, police eventually managed to track down Mobina and her husband Irshad Ali (33).During questioning, Mobina told police that the child, Nagma, was from her first marriage. After her husband left her, she married Ali. “Ali was irritated with the baby as she used to cry a lot. He even threatened to kill the child and pressured Mobina to abandon her,” a police officer said.
Delhi-Ghaziabad border Shaheed Nagar murder: Family denies communal angle to incident
http://www.hindustantimes.com/noida/shaheed-nagar-murder-family-denies-communal-angle-to-incident/story-KKFg2zdBgrgpxWmju7T7VJ.html
The family members of 65-year-old Singhasan Yadav who murdered, allegedly by 4 neighbours, have ruled out any communal angle to the incident. Members of a Hindu outfit had come to the area on the day of the murder and tried to give it a communal colour, ahead of UP elections which are scheduled in Ghaziabad for Feb.11.The man, who hails from Gorakhpur, was murdered in his residence at Shaheed Nagar, a Muslim-dominated locality near Delhi-Ghaziabad border in Sahibabad. “We don’t view it as a communal outburst against my father. It is a case of murder that was done in retaliation after an altercation. We have been living here for several decades now. The young men have been our neighbours and attacked after they had an altercation with my father, who objected to their foul language,” Madan Yadav, son of the victim, said.The family resides in a flat in C-block of Shaheed Nagar. The victim operated a milk dairy and had been a worker of the Samajwadi Party for the last 30 years. The altercation between the victim and his neighbours took place around 9pm on Jan.25.HT
Yoga isn’t an all-Hindu tradition – it has Buddhist, even Sufi, influences: Malini Nair
https://scroll.in/magazine/827658/yoga-isnt-an-all-hindu-tradition-it-has-buddhist-even-sufi-influences?utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=Jan_27.Yoga&utm_content=2017-01-27+10+%2810%216072076220282%21qwaya%210%29&utm_term=Jan_27.Yoga
WORLD
Barrow removes 'Islamic' from Gambia's official name
http://www.aljazeera.com/news/2017/01/gambia-president-adama-barrow-pledges-reforms-170128194124520.html
Adama Barrow, The Gambia's new president, has vowed to reform the country's notorious intelligence agency and promised to ensure media freedom in the country.Speaking at his first news conference since returning to take office on Thursday, Barrow announced plans to rename the National Intelligence Agency (NIA), a dreaded secret police accused by rights groups of forced disappearances and torture under the control of former leader Yahya Jammeh.Barrow told reporters on Saturday the NIA was "an institution that has to continue", but with a different name.Barrow also said the country's official name will no longer contain the word "Islamic", which had been added by Jammeh in 2015. Aljazeera
Israel PM: All embassies should move to Jerusalem
http://aa.com.tr/en/middle-east/israel-pm-all-embassies-should-move-to-jerusalem/737245
Jerusalem: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Sunday he expects all foreign embassies to eventually move to Jerusalem, following claims he may have delayed U.S. President Donald Trump's controversial plan to relocate the U.S. embassy. "Our position has always been, and will always be, that the U.S. embassy needs to be here, in Jerusalem," Netanyahu said at his weekly cabinet meeting.He said that Jerusalem is the "capital of the state of Israel". “It is proper that not only should the American embassy be here, but all embassies should come here, and I believe that over time most of them will indeed come here, to Jerusalem," he said. AA
Israeli forces kill Palestinian youth in West Bank
https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20170129-israeli-forces-kill-palestinian-youth-in-west-bank/
A Palestinian youth was shot dead by Israeli forces during an overnight raid in the occupied West Bank on Sunday.A source at the Jenin Government Hospital told Anadolu the youth had already died when he arrived at the hospital. middleeastmonitor
Israel’s global death squads
https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20170128-israels-global-death-squads/
Israel’s Mossad spy agency has long had a reputation for brutality. Its agents have a history of travelling the world using stolen and fake passports of supposedly allied states, and kidnapping, torturing and murdering Israel’s enemies.In 1972, for example, the Mossad murdered the Palestinian Marxist and poet Ghassan Kanafani. A famed intellectual and author in the Arab world, Kanafani was also an activist with the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP). An Israeli car bomb in Beirut blew him up along with his 17-year-old niece.While most of its victims are Palestinians and other Arabs, in 1986 the Mossad drugged, kidnapped and interned the Israeli dissident and whistle-blower Mordechai Vanunu. A former nuclear technician, Vanunu exposed to the world Israel’s cache of nuclear weapons. He gave the evidence to the Sunday Times in London, which eventually printed the story. Unfortunately, he also passed the story to the Mirror, whose then owner, Robert Maxwell, had close ties to Israeli intelligence; the Israeli embassy in London was tipped-off about the story about to be published. Vanunu was enticed by a female Mossad agent “honey trap” to Rome, where he was kidnapped and whisked off to Israel. middleeastmonitor
Syrian army captures Wadi Barada
http://www.aljazeera.com/news/2017/01/syrian-army-captures-wadi-barada-170129131830656.html
Syrian government forces have recaptured all towns and villages in the Wadi Barada valley near Damascus, the Syrian military said in a statement on Sunday."Units of our armed forces, together with ... allied forces have achieved their mission in returning security and stability" to the area, said the statement, read out by a military spokesman on Syrian state TV.The Syrian army and its allies took over a Wadi Barada village containing a major spring and pumping station that supplies most of Damascus's water on Saturday.Heavy clashes between government troops and rebel forces were sporadic in Wadi Barada since the December 30 ceasefire brokered by Russia and Turkey. Fighting continued even after a negotiated a deal to restore water to Damascus earlier this month. Aljazeera
6 armed groups form new umbrella grouping in Syria
http://aa.com.tr/en/middle-east/6-armed-groups-form-new-umbrella-grouping-in-syria/737120
IDLIB, Syria: Six armed opposition groups on Saturday joined ranks to form a new grouping in Syria.The umbrella group brings together Jabhat Fateh al-Sham (JFS), Nour al-Din al-Zenki movement, Liwa al-Haq, Jabhat Ansar al-Din, Jaysh al-Sunna, and Mujahido Ashiddaa, according to a statement released by the six groups.The move came a few days after JFS, formerly known as al-Nusra Front, launched a military campaign against opposition factions that took part in last week's peace talks with the Syrian regime in Astana.
Trump and Putin vow to cooperate in ISIL fight
http://www.aljazeera.com/news/2017/01/trump-putin-isil-170129052128631.html
US President Donald Trump and his Russian counterpart have made a "significant start" in fixing their countries' relationship, while agreeing to cooperate in fighting the ISIL group, the White House said following an hour-long phone call.2 leaders' first conversation since Trump's inauguration covered topics ranging from cooperation in defeating ISIL "to efforts in working together to achieve more peace throughout the world including Syria," statement said. Aljazeera
US raid kills 40 in southern Yemen
https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20170129-us-raid-kills-40-in-southern-yemen/
At least 40 people were reportedly killed in a US raid that targeted suspected Al-Qaeda leaders in southern Yemen on Sunday, according to local sources.Helicopter-born commandos attacked the house of senior Al-Qaeda leader Abdulraoof al-Dhahab in Qayfa district in al-Bayda province, a source, who spoke on condition of anonymity due to restrictions on speaking to media, said.The dawn raid, in which drones and helicopters were used, has triggered deadly clashes, which left at least 40 people dead, the source said. 2 other Al-Qaeda leaders, including al-Dhahab’s brother, were killed in the raid, according to the same source.middleeastmonitor
'US air raids' kill civilians, al-Qaeda chiefs in Bayda
http://www.aljazeera.com/news/2017/01/yemen-170129101045539.html
Prominent Muslim lawyer gunned down in Myanmar
http://www.deccanherald.com/content/593775/prominent-muslim-lawyer-gunned-down.html
Yangon:A prominent Muslim lawyer and member of Myanmar's ruling party was shot dead along with a taxi driver outside Yangon's international airport today, officials said.Ko Ni, a member of Aung San Suu Kyi's National League for Democracy party, was gunned down as he got into a taxi outside arrivals around 5pm (local time) by an assassin who also killed the driver.Zaw Htay, a spokesman at the president's office, said Ko Ni had just returned from a govt delegation trip to Indonesia.AFP
Compiled and edited by Anwarulhaq (Released at: 8:32 PM)
