NEWS DIGEST, Afternoon
16 Dec. 2018:08 Rabiul-II 1440: Vol: 11, No:76
INDIA
Modi Government Admits it Never Studied the 'Impacts, After-Effects' of Demonetisation
https://thewire.in/government/centre-economic-impacts-after-effects-demonetisation-lack-of-assessment
New Delhi: While responding to a question in the Lok Sabha on Friday, the government said that it has not studied or assessed the ‘impacts and after-effects’ of demonetisation. The minister of state for finance, P. Radhakrishnan, responded with a ‘no’ when asked if the government had studied the impacts of demonetisation on the economy. On Nov.8, 2016, the Prime Minister Narendra Modi had announced the decision to suddenly demonetise notes of Rs 500 and Rs 1000. It led to severe hardships suffered by almost the entire population in the country. Modi had argued that a large part of the currency will be returned putting an end to the stock held as black money.Recently, the agriculture ministry had admitted to a parliamentary standing committee that demonetisation caused severe hardship for farmers. It said that due to the withdrawal of currency notes, farmers were unable to buy seeds and fertilisers when it was time for them to sow.“India’s 263 million farmers live mostly in the cash economy. Millions of farmers were unable to get enough cash to buy seeds and fertilisers for their winter crops. Even bigger landlords faced a problem such as paying daily wages to the farmers and purchasing agriculture needs for growing crops,” the ministry had said.However, a week later the agriculture ministry withdrew the report and served show cause notices to officers who were responsible for the earlier report. New report submitted by the agriculture ministry said that demonetisation had caused no adverse impacts on farmers in the country.P. Radhakrishnan also said in his response on Friday that 99.3% of the money in circulation was returned to the RBI. “As per data published in Annual Report 2017-18 of RBI, the total value of Specified Bank Notes (SBNs) in circulation as on Nov.8, 2016, post verification and reconciliation, was Rs 15,417.93 billion, and the total value of SBNs returned from circulation was Rs 15,310.73 billion,” he said.thewire
AIUDF loses to Congress, AGP in own bastion
https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/guwahati/aiudf-loses-to-cong-agp-in-own-bastion/articleshow/67098095.cms
Guwahati: The panchayat elections threw up a surprise for perfume baron-turned politician Badruddin Ajmal’s AIUDF with its vote share in minority areas in lower Assam and the Barak valley districts dipping. The party seems to have lost out to Congress and AGP in its very own bastion. In the 2013 panchayat polls, AIUDF was in the second position winning 76 of the total 420 zila parishads (ZP). Congress was in the lead with 273 ZPs in its fold, while AGP had 29 and BJP 15 in 2013. This time, of the 347 declared ZP seats on Friday, AIUDF is in the distant third position with 15 seats, though party leaders said they are hopeful of winning 25 ZPs as counting is still on.In Dhubri (South) district, which happens to part of the Lok Sabha seat represented by Ajmal, AIUDF won only two out of 17 ZP seats there so far. Likewise, in Mankachar—also in Dhubri district—AIUDF has drawn a blank so far. From central Assam to lower Assam districts and in some districts in northern Assam, it is Congress which has won the ZPs in the minority-dominated areas. Also, in the panchayat wards, panchayat president posts and anchalik panchayat member posts in minority areas, it is Congress taking the lead followed by AGP and in some places BJP has emerged as the front runner. “We will have to seriously introspect why we could not do well, especially in minority-dominated areas,” AIUDF general secretary, Haidor Hussain Bora, said. Bora, however, mentioned that they had not fielded candidates in many minority areas to ensure “secular votes” did not get divided. “We did not field candidates in many of minority-dominated areas to prevent division of votes. In many places under Rupahihat, Dhing, Lahorighat and other assembly constituencies, where minority voters play a decisive role, AIUDF did not have candidates,” Bora said. TOI
‘Muslim Hardliner’ Arif Masood is Congress’ New Minority Face in Saffron Citadel MP: news18
https://www.news18.com/news/politics/muslim-hardliner-arif-masood-is-congress-new-minority-face-in-saffron-citadel-mp-1974447.html
Bhopal: The assembly polls in the saffron stronghold Madhya Pradesh saw the emergence of a new minority face from Congress — Muslim hardliner Arif Masood who has been extremely vocal about issues such as Ram temple, mob lynching and Triple Talaq Bill. Contesting from Bhopal Madhya constituency, Masood defeated sitting MLA Suredra Nath Singh, a grounded politician and old friend of outgoing Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan. The constituency represents a sizable part of the Muslim-dominated Old Bhopal.Shunning his white skull cap and sporting Tilak on forehead, Masood offered a peep into his campaign strategy when he went around seeking votes in the Hindu dominated areas. He even paid a visit to Hanuman temple in the last phase of campaigning. His publicity materials exhibited his concern for the downtrodden form the both the communities. This shift in Masood's strategy came after 2013, when he lost to Singh after an intense polarised battle. Besides wooing the Hindus, Masood, a close aide of senior Congress leader Suresh Pachauri, also worked extensively to attract Dalits within his constituency. A couple of months ago, the middle-aged politician even took out a religious procession of Dalits with pomp and show. “My win is the win of Ganga-Jamuni tahzeeb in the city,” Masood had said after the poll results. Notwithstanding his ‘soft’ image peddled in this poll, Masood has been a prominent voice on anything connected to Muslims in Old city areas and also on issues of national importance. As an executive member of All India Muslim Personal Law Board (AIMPLB), the newly elected MLA always voiced his views on Ram temple issues.He also vociferously opposed the Triple Talaq Bill through various protests in the state and led protests in Bhopal when mob lynchings made national headlines. Masood emerged victorious in the vicinity of Bhopal North constituency represented by an ‘invincible’ Arif Aqueel’, who won five times from the seat including three times right under the nose of the BJP in 2003, 2008 and 2013. Still, Aqueel and Masood have remained poles apart in Bhopal politics.Masood has risen from the ranks in the Congress from being student union leader in NSUI,which he represented as district general secretary, and later as district head. Starting his career as a student leader at Benazir College, he had worked under the tutelage of former Congress veteran Rasool Ahmed Siddiqui.Meanwhile, the MP assembly which till now has witnessed a lone Muslim MLA Arif Aqueel, will soon see a new lawmaker in Masood and the community-related issues are likely to be pushed in the House vigorously, opine many Muslim residents in the city.news18
Composite Nationalism key to counter divisive forces: Mahmood Madani
https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/composite-nationalism-key-to-counter-divisive-forces-jamiat/articleshow/67108409.cms
New Delhi: Drawing attention to the need to focus on “composite nationalism”, Muslim clerics from the Jamiat Ulama -i-Hind (JUH) on Saturday came together in the Capital to build a dialogue to counter divisive forces with the narrative of unity and national integration. To mark 100 years of JUH, the minority organisation set off on Saturday the first of the 100 public meetings and seminars proposed over the course of the year around the theme of freedom, nationalism and how the organisation can the minority community contribute to nation building. Maulana Usman Mansurpoori, President of JUH delivering his inaugural speech hihglighted the crucial role of the Jamiat leadership in the freedom movement. “The idea of composite nationalism must be introduced to counter communal tension between the communities,” Mansurpoori said. Maulana Mahmood Madani, general secretary JUH, said that it was important to counter divisive forces trying to viciate the atmosphere using religion, caste or creed. “These forces can be countered by dwelling on the idea of India which is all bout rashtriaya ekta...national integration". One of the first of a series of seminars proposed to be held early next year is going focus on composite nationalism. Maulana Rabey Hasani Nadawi, President of the Muslim Personal law Board in his message to the event said that the new generation of Muslims is unaware of the contributions made by their ancestors, therefore there is need to highlight the role played by Muslims in the past in nation building so that they could face every situation with courage and tenacity.TOI
NIA sees Muslim terror link of UP-based module:TOI
https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/chandigarh/nia-sees-islamic-terror-link-of-up-based-module/articleshow/67110415.cms
Patiala: NIA investigators looking into the Shamli (UP)-based Sikh radical terror module that was plotting to kill SAD patriarch Parkash Singh Badal and his son Sukhbir Badal, president of the party, have dug out their links with Islamic terrorists trying to radicalise Sikh youths settled in western UP. Sources in NIA said the agency had found that Islamic terror outfits supported by Pakistan were trying to make inroads into the Sikh settlements in Shamli district of Uttar Pradesh. UP police had busted the terror module in October with the arrest of three persons, Karam Singh and Gurjant Singh, both residents of UP, along with Amrit Singh, a resident of Haryana, late on October 14 in connection with October 2 loot of two weapons, INSAS and.303 rifles, from a constable and a home guard in Shamli’s Jhinjhana area. During their interrogation the accused had revealed the name of Jerman Singh of Shamli, who was mobilising support for Khalistan. Jerman was later arrested by the Patiala police in a joint operation with the Rajasthan cops on Oct. 18 from Beechwal village on the outskirts of Bikaner. The terror module had planned to target Badals at party’s October 7 rally in Patiala, but could not carry out the attack. NIA later took up the case investigations and sought details from Patiala as well as Shamli police with regard to the terror module. The sources said that the investigations carried out by NIA have so far revealed that since many safe houses had come up in Shamli during the days of terrorism in the state and there were still a large number of Khalistan sympathisers in the area, Islamic terror outfits that were trying to revive militancy in Punjab were trying to evoke radical feelings among Sikhs settle in and around Shamli. TOI
FLASH: VIEWS & NEWS
BJP mahant’s defeat in Pokhran will hurt Yogi Adityanath more than most:MOUSHUMI DAS GUPTA
https://theprint.in/politics/bjp-mahants-defeat-in-pokhran-will-hurt-yogi-adityanath-more-than-most/164074/
Posts
0 comments:
Post a comment