16 SEPT. NEWS DIGEST

INDIA

Before Moscow pact, Indian, Chinese troops fired 100-200 rounds on Pangong north bank: Indian Express

https://indianexpress.com/article/india/before-russia-pact-indian-chinese-troops-fired-100-200-rounds-on-pangong-north-bank-6597650/

Before External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar and his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi reached an agreement in Moscow on Sept.10 to dial down tensions along the Line of Actual Control in Ladakh, the heightened tensions led to a firing incident between Indian and Chinese troops on the north bank of Pangong Tso, far more intense than the firing of warning shots in the Chushul sub-sector, Indian Express has learnt. A top government officer, aware of the details, said this incident took place during the jockeying for dominating Fingers on the north bank of the lake. According to the officer, “100 to 200 shots” were fired in the air by both sides on the ridgeline where Finger 3 and Finger 4 merge before moving north as one ridge.Both India and China had issued statements on the firing incident in the Chushul sub-sector on September 7 which took place on a feature called Mukpari Heights — officials said this was the first time in 45 years that shots were fired along the LAC.Till date, neither side has officially said anything about the firing on the north bank which took place after the Chushul incident, and was bigger in scale.While tensions remain on the ground because the next round of talks between Corps Commanders of the two sides is awaited, it is not of the same levels as they were in the first week of September, the officer said.“In the first week of September, there was a lot of movement” on both the north and south banks of Pangong Tso, the officer said, mentioning “multiple” incidents of firing in the region in the first week of Sept. indianexpress

 

China deploys 10k troops on south bank of Pangong Tso, 50 battalions stationed in Ladakh LAC: Economic Times

https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/defence/china-deploys-10k-on-south-bank-of-pangong-tso/articleshow/78137294.cms

New Delhi: China is believed to have brought forward more troops in the past week along LAC in Ladakh, taking its total troop deployment to approximately 52,000. Of these, 10,000 troops have been deployed on the southern bank of the Pangong Tso that has witnessed hectic military activity since the manoeuvres of August 29-30.These details form part of a latest comprehensive assessment by security forces on the “eyeball to eyeball” deployment of Indian and Chinese troops in Ladakh, ET has reliably gathered. The report notes that Chinese aggressive moves have been met with “mirror deployment” on the Indian side. According to this assessment, the number of battalions deployed in Ladakh by People Liberation Army (PLA) has gone up from 35 in August to 50 in September. Each battalion consists of 1,000-1,200 soldiers. On September 7, PLA troops attempted to come dangerously close to one of the forward positions of Indian Army, which resulted in shots being fired in the air.“While there have been no fresh incidents of transgression or standoff in past week, there is considerable movement of PLA troops and equipment,” explained a senior official.

 

No Chinese infiltration in past 6 months, MHA tells Rajya Sabha amid India-China standoff

https://www.indiatoday.in/india/story/no-chinese-infiltration-in-past-six-months-says-mha-1722264-2020-09-16

Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) on Wednesday informed members of the Rajya Sabha that there has been no Chinese infiltration in the last six months.Minister of State (Mos) for Home Nityanand Rai stated in a written reply that “no infiltration has been reported along the Indo-China border during the last six months”. The answer was in reply to an unstarred question by Dr Anil Agrawal, a BJP MP from Rajya Sabha.

 

Road to Daulat Beg Oldi will allow tank movement by Oct 15 as army prepares for Ladakh winter: HT

https://www.hindustantimes.com/india-news/road-to-daulet-beg-oldi-will-allow-tank-movement-by-oct-15-as-army-prepares-for-ladakh-winter/story-2DMzLy5y1rZCyWvLWAd6tO.html

Preparing for a long winter ahead facing PLA in East Ladakh, Border Roads Organisation (BRO) has decided to allowed Srinagar-Zoji La-Kargil Leh axis to be closed only for 45 days from past average 95 days due to snow this year and will strengthen all the bridges on Darbuk-Shyok-Daulat Beg Oldi (DBO) road to bear the load of tank plus truck trailer by next month. Authoritative government sources told Hindustan Times that the BRO, under the defence ministry, will also keep the new Darcha-Padam-Nimu-Leh road clear of snow throughout Dec. and Jan. 2021 so that military supply route is maintained route the clock. Modi government is now considering to prepare for the shortest tunnel at Shinku La on Darcha-Padam axis so that this road this snow free throughout the year.

 

China surveillance: Key PMO officers, state Chief Secys, DGPs among 370-plus officials tracked

https://indianexpress.com/article/express-exclusive/china-surveillance-key-pmo-officers-state-chief-secys-dgps-among-370-plus-officials-tracked-6597686/

Key bureaucrats in PMO, IAS officers in infrastructure ministries, Chief Secretaries and DGPs of states mark a strong presence in the Overseas Key Information DataBase of Zhenhua Data, an IT firm in Shenzhen, in China’s Guangdong province, which tracks about 2.5 million individuals across geographies, including at least 10,000 Indians.There are at least 375 bureaucrats, most of them serving and a few retired, in the database.Those tracked include at least half-a-dozen bureaucrats in the PMO, or in ministries directly under the Prime Minister; at least 23 Chief Secretaries; and 15 DGPs. These are some of the findings of an eight-week investigation by Indian Express into a segment of the database made available by an anonymous source connected to the company, which has links with the Chinese government.

 

Tracked by Chinese firm: Over 6,000 accused of financial crime, terrorism, IPL betting, narcotics, smuggling, big to small

https://indianexpress.com/article/express-exclusive/tracked-by-chinese-firm-over-6000-accused-of-financial-crime-terrorism-ipl-betting-narcotics-smuggling-big-to-small-6597674/

From the accused in the AgustaWestland bribery case to a ring of juveniles who stole mobile phones, hundreds accused of financial crime, corruption, terror, organised crime, smuggling of narcotics, gold and wildlife form a significant chunk, as many as 6,000, of the Indian individuals monitored by Zhenhua Data, an investigation by Indian Express has revealed.Among the high-profile entries logged in Zhenhua’s Overseas Key Individual DataBase (OKIDB) are income-tax evasion cases against 19 companies founded by friends or relatives of former Satyam Group chairman Ramalinga Raju; the fodder scam corruption scandal where officials and suppliers conspired to fraudulently drain the Jharkhand treasury; and the Vyapam scam involving Madhya Pradesh Professional Examination Board. indianexpress

 

India Stages Walk Out At SCO Meet, Says Pakistan Presented ‘Fictitious Map’

https://www.outlookindia.com/website/story/india-news-india-stages-walk-out-at-sco-meet-claims-pakistan-presented-fictitious-map/360366

India on Tuesday walked out of a meeting of the national security advisors of Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) member countries in protest after the Pakistani representative used a "fictitious" map showing Indian territories as part of Pakistan."This was in blatant disregard to the advisory by the host against it and in violation of the norms of the meeting. After consultation with the host, the Indian side left the meeting in protest at that juncture," External Affairs Ministry Spokesperson Anurag Srivastava said.The virtual meeting was chaired by Russia. "As was to be expected, Pakistan then went on to present a misleading view of this meeting," Srivastava said responding to a query on the issue.PTI

 

"Their PM Admits Training Terrorists For J&K": India Shreds Pak At UN

https://www.ndtv.com/india-news/india-slams-pakistan-for-persecuting-hindus-sikhs-and-other-minorities-2296035?pfrom=home-topstories

Geneva: India on Tuesday described Pakistan as an "epicenter of terrorism" and said no one deserves unsolicited lecture on human rights from Islamabad that has consistently persecuted its ethnic and religious minorities including Hindus, Sikhs and Christians. Exercising the Right of Reply to the statements made by Pakistan at the 45th session of Human Rights Council (HRC), the Indian representative said that it has become habitual for Pakistan to malign India with false and fabricated narratives for its self-serving malicious purposes.PTI

 

Kashmir: India rejects UN high commissioner’s criticism, says region now has grassroots democracy

https://scroll.in/latest/973217/kashmir-india-rejects-un-high-commissioners-criticism-says-region-now-has-grassroots-democracy

India has deplored United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights Michelle Bachelet’s criticism on Kashmir, claiming that the abrogation of the region’s special status under Article 370 of the Indian Constitution had brought it grassroots democracy, the Hindustan Times reported.India’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations Indra Mani Pandey claimed that since changes were made in the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir in August last year, people in the region have enjoyed the same fundamental rights as people in the rest of India.

 

Journalists Beaten Up In Pulwama: India Tells UN Rights Chief 'Revived Grassroot Democracy' In Jammu-Kashmir

https://www.huffingtonpost.in/entry/kashmir-journalists-india-human-rights_in_5f618225c5b65fd7b8567f54

India on Tuesday told United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights it had been able to “revive grass root democracy” In Jammu and Kashmir even as a photojournalist said he was beaten up by security forces near the site of an encounter in Pulwama.Kamran Yousuf said he sustained leg injuries when he was thrashed by security forces while carrying out his professional duties at Marwal in Pulwama where an encounter with militants was on.Journalists Reshi Irshad and Faisal Bashir were also chased  and beaten up by the police, Free Press Kashmir reported. “My camera was damaged when a posse of armed forces personnel chased us and started beating without any reason,” Irshad told the news site. He also said this was not the first time that police had used force on journalists doing their jobs.While police did not deny the allegations levelled byYousuf, it said the mediapersons were “duly stopped” as they were moving close to the cordoned area.Kashmir Press Club denounced the thrashing of journalists by police in Pulwama and urged the Lieutenant Governor to take strong note of the incident.

 

14 US Senators Write to Pompeo, Demand Designation of India as ‘Country of Particular Concern’

https://clarionindia.net/14-us-senators-write-to-pompeo-demand-designation-of-india-as-country-of-particular-concern/

WASHINGTON:“Coalition to Stop Genocide in India”, a broad coalition of Indian American and US-based civil rights organizations and activists, Tuesday welcomed a letter written by fourteen US Senators to Secretary of State Mike Pompeo stressing that US law requires US Government to consider a federal commission’s recommendations that some countries be designated as a Countries of Particular Concern (CPC), which is the US Govt’s official term for countries that are the world’s worst offenders of religious freedom.The bipartisan letter was signed by ten Republican senators and four Democratic senators and sent to Secretary Pompeo this month. Should US government decide not to accept the recommendations made by US Commission for International Religious Freedom (USCIRF), a federal commission, the letter requires the State Department to inform US Congress of its reasons within 30 days of making that determination.Clarion India

 

Jammu and Kashmir: Over 16.79 lakh domicile certificates issued since June, says administration

https://scroll.in/latest/973238/jammu-and-kashmir-over-16-79-lakh-domicile-certificates-issued-since-june-says-administration

Jammu and Kashmir administration on Tuesday said that over 16.79 lakh domicile certificates have been issued so far across 20 districts of the Union Territory. On March 31, the Centre introduced new domicile laws that expanded who can live permanently in Jammu and Kashmir. The new rules replace “permanent residents” of the former state with “domiciles” of the new Union Territory. The administration began to issue certificates in June.The new laws allow Indian citizens who have lived in Jammu and Kashmir for 15 years, as well as those who have studied there for seven years, to claim a “domicile certificate” for residency benefits.

 

Can’t put someone in jail and say you cannot meet your lawyer: HC raps Tihar on Jamia alumni claim

https://indianexpress.com/article/cities/delhi/cant-put-someone-in-jail-and-say-you-cannot-meet-your-lawyer-hc-to-tihar-6597625/

Delhi High Court has pulled up Tihar jail authorities and asked them to substantiate their statement that the Alumni Association of Jamia Millia Islamia president Shifa ur Rehman declined to attend a video meeting with his lawyer and that opportunities were provided to him or his counsel for the purpose.“In this country, you cannot simply pick somebody and put him in jail and tell him that you cannot meet even your lawyer,” Justice Vibhu Bakhru observed. The court was hearing a petition by Rehman regarding the extended time period granted to Delhi Police’s Special Cell for probe into UAPA case registered against him and others in connection with the anti-CAA protests.One of the issues raised in the petition is regarding the alleged denial of grant of access to Rehman’s lawyers despite orders passed by a lower court in July asking authorities to consider the prayer for arranging a meeting between Rehman and his counsel.

 

Road blocks during Delhi riots sign of conspiracy, chargesheet by Thursday: Police

https://indianexpress.com/article/cities/delhi/road-blocks-during-delhi-riots-sign-of-conspiracy-chargesheet-by-thursday-police-6596305/

A day after former JNU student Umar Khalid was arrested, senior Delhi Police officers said they were set to file a conspiracy chargesheet in Northeast Delhi riots, and identified blocking of traffic by anti-CAA protesters as “the first indicator that there was a conspiracy due to which it all started”.Speaking at a webinar organised by Delhi Police Gazetted Officers Association, which was also attended by Commissioner SN Shrivastava, DCP (Special Cell) Pramod Singh Kushwaha was quoted by PTI as saying they had not found any proof yet of the involvement of pro-CAA-NRC protesters.With questions having been raised over the lack of action against BJP leader Kapil Mishra over his alleged inflammatory speech a day before riots in the area, DyCP was quoted as saying, “A narrative is being created that pro-CAA/NRC people were involved in it, but it has not come into the investigation yet.”

 

Delhi violence: Bail denied to 3 men

https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/delhi/northeast-delhi-violence-bail-denied-to-three-men-who-attacked-policemen/articleshow/78140436.cms

A Delhi court on Tuesday denied bail to three men arrested in cases attracting rioting and murder charges during the communal violence in northeast Delhi.Additional sessions judge Vinod Yadav dismissed the bail application of Junaid, Raiees Khan and Mohd Firoz in the murder case of Shahid.TOI

 

‘Democratic voices of dissent are being gradually implicated’: Activists on Umar Khalid’s arrest under UAPA

https://indianexpress.com/article/cities/delhi/umar-khalid-delhi-riots-uapa-6598124/

A group of activists on Wednesday released a statement against the “brazenness” of Delhi Police investigation in the Delhi riots. Demanding that activists arrested under UAPA be immediately released, the statement said, “The real culprits — who in broad daylight threatened to clear protest site by force or those who came with guns into protest sites, or those who chanted provocative and violent slogans — remain free. Even all democratic voices of dissent are being gradually implicated,”the statement read.The statement comes days after the Delhi Police arrested former JNU student leader Umar Khalid under stringent UAPA. Among the signatories are former Planning Commission member Syeda Hameed, lawyer Prashant Bhushan, JNUSU former president and CPI leader Kanhaiya Kumar, CPIML leader Kavita Krishnan, former DUTA president Nandita Narain, and senior journalist Pamela Philipose. The activists also alleged that Delhi Police has resorted to “a sinister plan to brand, target, frame and arrest all those voices that dared to speak up against the unconstitutional and immoral CAA.” “The ruling party has resorted to what it does best. It has deployed the police, a pliant media, and all the draconian laws at its disposal to unleash a vicious witch-hunt particularly against young minds. They do not want them to dream of an inconclusive, pluralist, egalitarian India.”

 

‘My Son Is A Tough Man, Not Easy To Break Him’: Umar Khalid’s Father Ilyas

https://www.outlookindia.com/website/story/india-news-my-son-is-a-tough-man-not-easy-to-break-him-umar-khalids-father/360392

“It’s going to be a long battle for justice. But we will fight it out,” said Umar Khalid’s father Sayed Qasim Rasool Ilyas after his visit to the office of Delhi Police special cell on Tuesday evening.Ilyas told, “I couldn’t meet Umar, but his counsel has spoken to him about legal matters and he is doing fine.”He added, “After 10 days, they may either extend the remand or send him to jail.”“It is a fight to protect the fundamental rights of the citizens. We are aware that we will have to face the consequences and we are ready for that,” said Ilyas. He added that he is proud of his son, who is a Ph.D. scholar from JNU.His mother Sabiha Khanum and sisters provide solid support to Khalid in his struggle.“My son is fighting to protect the constitutional values and for a better country. We have always stood with him,” said Ilyas, who is a member of AIMPLB.  “The police say that they require 10 days because they possess 11 lakh pages of data to confront him with. They may need a good number of people to read such data. The whole case is fabricated,” he alleged. outlookindia

 

CAA protests: Assam human rights panel tells state to complete inquiry into killings within a month

https://scroll.in/latest/973237/caa-protests-assam-human-rights-panel-tells-state-to-complete-inquiry-into-killings-within-a-month

Assam Human Rights Commission on Monday directed the state government to complete within one month the inquiry into the killing of four persons during the agitation against the Citizenship Amendment Act last year, the Assam Tribune reported on Tuesday. The order was passed during a hearing on a complaint filed on December 19 last year by Assam Pradesh Congress Committee chief Ripun Bora. “The complaint was filed on December 19 last year...and on Dec. 23 AHRC, taking cognizance of the matter, had directed the Chief Secretary to conduct an impartial enquiry and submit report,” Assam Pradesh Congress Committee legal department head Niran Borah said at a press conference in Guwahati.

 

CPI(M) Manipur condemns police actions against CAA protestors

http://www.uniindia.com/cpi-m-manipur-condemns-police-actions-against-caa-protestors/east/news/2163313.html

Imphal: Manipur State Secretariat of the CPI (Marxist) has expressed its shock by the brazenness with which the Delhi Police, acting under Home Minister Amit Shah has tried to implicate prominent political leadership, academics, cultural personalities and activists in connection with the horrific communal violence in North East Delhi. He said , "In scripting its own narrative of the organised communal violence, it is amply clear that BJP-RSS has gone about to portray Delhi riots being a “deep-rooted conspiracy” by anti-CAA protesters.UNI

 

After Bajrang Dal Campaign, 500-Year-Old Mosque Demolished in UP’s Mahoba

https://clarionindia.net/after-bajrang-dal-campaign-500-year-old-mosque-demolished-in-ups-mahoba/

A 500-year-old mosque was demolished in Uttar Pradesh’s Mahoba city after a campaign launched by members of Bajrang Dal, a militant youth wing of the Vishva Hindu Parishad, against the shrine on the Kanpur-Sagar Highway.A report in a Hindi news website khabalahariya.org said Madina Masjid was brought down in the dead of night on 5 August when Prime Minister Narendra Modi was laying the foundation stone for a Ram temple at the land where the Babri Masjid once stood in Ayodhya.The place of worship for Muslims was destroyed and its debris was thrown into the nearby pond which has been a source of drinking water for centuries.Muslims living in those areas said that according to the National Highway rules, the encroachments on a 75-feet piece of land from both sides of the highway were removed. The mosque fell on some part of the highway in the ongoing expanding works of the road. PWD officials said that 8 feet of the mosque land fell on the highway’s area but wanted a 10-feet land. The mosque caretakers were, however, ready to give 11 feet of land in order to sort out the issue. Yet, some part of the mosque remained.Clarion India

 

Construction of Ayodhya mosque to begin by Nov-end this year

https://indianexpress.com/article/cities/lucknow/construction-of-ayodhya-mosque-to-begin-by-november-end-this-year-6597745/

Lucknow :Indo-Islamic Cultural Foundation (IICF) has said construction of a mosque and other public utilities on a 5-acre land in Ayodhya’s Dhannipur village would begin by Nov-end. The land was registered in the name of IICF on Monday.IICF spokesperson and secretary Athar Hussain said that a hospital on land may be built in 3 years. “We have asked Professor SM Akhtar (dean of Jamia Millia Islamia’s Architecture Dept) to send the construction design as soon as possible. We are in a bit of a hurry for construction of the hospital. We have a time frame in mind regarding the hospital that it will be ready within two years,” said Hussain.

 

Bengaluru riot: Muslim leaders meet CM Yediyurappa, demand judicial probe

https://in.news.yahoo.com/bengaluru-riot-muslim-leaders-meet-050121069.html

Bengaluru :Over a dozen Muslim clergymen met Karnataka Chief Minister BS Yediyurappa on Tuesday and demanded that the state government appoint an independent judicial inquiry commission to probe into the DJ Halli violence that took place last month.The clergymen, led by Ameer-E-Shariat Karnataka, Moulana Sageer Ahmed, submitted a memorandum to the CM and strongly appealed that the state government should also act resiliently on those who tried to spread communal hate by posting indecent messages on social media sites.Speaking to IANS, Maulana Maqsood Imran Rashadi, Imam, Jama Masjid, appealed to the state government to take steps to release innocent Muslim accused, who have been booked in this case. "The police have picked more than 300 people till date for their alleged role in DJ Hall violence, but in reality, there are many innocents too who have been picked up. At least they must be let off is our primary demand," he explained.The News Minute

 

‘Are they ineligible?’ Why no Dalits, minorities on culture panel, Kanimozhi asks Centre

https://scroll.in/latest/973227/why-no-dalits-minorities-on-culture-panel-kanimozhi-asks-centre

Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam MP Kanimozhi on Tuesday asked the Centre why it had not included any member of minority communities and Dalits to an expert panel constituted by the government to study the origin and evolution of Indian culture. “Shouldn’t minorities and Dalits talk about Indian culture?” she tweeted. “Or are they ineligible?” The panel does not comprise any women either.On Monday, Union minister Prahlad Patel had informed Parliament in a written reply that a 16-member committee was looking into the origin and evolution of Indian culture dating back to around 12,000 years, according to PTI. Prahlad said the panel would also explore its “interface with the cultures of the world”.

 

Anti-noise campaigners urge Mumbai Police to start drive against noise from mosques

https://www.hindustantimes.com/mumbai-news/anti-noise-campaigners-urge-mumbai-police-to-start-drive-against-noise-from-mosques/story-0aETEmQBXUxPSdi4AEJQQM.html

Anti-noise campaigners have requested Mumbai Police to regulate noise levels from loudspeakers installed at mosques. After recording lowest-ever decibel (dB) levels during Ganeshotsav 2020, NGO Awaaz Foundation on Tuesday wrote to the police commissioner Param Bir Singh demanding a drive to enforce noise rules in mosques across the city.The letter was based on recurring complaints from citizens, and included a specific complaint about a mosque at Hasnabad Lane in Santacruz where loudspeakers were being used periodically violating noise norms for residential areas. “Average noise levels from mosques range between 82-87 dB, much above the safe limit for residential areas which is 55dB in day and 45dB during night,” said Sumaira Abdulali, convener, Awaaz Foundation adding that all complaints received had been forwarded to the police for follow up action.

 

Panel submitted report on Assam Accord to state govt: MHA

https://www.indiatoday.in/india/story/parliament-live-updates-monsoon-session-coronavirus-india-china-standoff-debate-bills-passed-1722209-2020-09-16

High-Level Committee constituted by MHA on Clause 6 of Assam Accord submitted its report to Assam Govt. Recommendations under examination of State Govt: Minister of State for Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA), G Kishan Reddy, says in a written reply in Rajya Sabha on the question of “whether recommendations on Assam Accord has been submitted by Panel to Govt”.

 

RSS-backed IAS institute has been quietly grooming ‘nationalist’ civil servants since 1986

https://theprint.in/india/education/rss-backed-ias-institute-has-been-quietly-grooming-nationalist-civil-servants-since-1986/503660/

New Delhi: At a time when minority institutes like Jamia and Zakat Foundation are in the middle of a row over the rising number of Muslims cracking the Civil Services Examination, an RSS-backed coaching institute, Samkalp Foundation, has claimed a 61 per cent success rate in this year’s exam.Of the 759 candidates picked by UPSC to enter the civil services this year, as many as 466 had undertaken Samkalp’s Interview Guidance Program (IGP), the foundation claims.For the 34-year-old institute, grooming as many successful candidates, in whatever way, is hardly an aberration.According to its website, as many as 649 candidates had enrolled for the IGP, out of the 990 candidates chosen by the UPSC in 2018. In 2017, 2016 and 2015, the numbers were 689, 648 and 670 against the total recruitment of 1,099, 1,078 and 1,236, respectively.

 

Will govt ban PFI, SDPI after Bengaluru riots, MP Tejasvi Surya asks in Parliament: thenewsminute report

https://www.thenewsminute.com/article/will-govt-ban-pfi-sdpi-after-bengaluru-riots-mp-tejasvi-surya-asks-parliament-133138

MP from Bengaluru South, Tejasvi Surya, on Tuesday asked the Union government if it is considering banning political outfits Social Democratic Party of India (SDPI) and Popular Front of India (PFI) in relation to their alleged involvement in the mob attack that took place in eastern Bengaluru on August 11. The BJP MP asked this unstarred question in the Parliament and said that many vandals associated with SDPI assaulted police officials and damaged property. The MP also asked whether the Union government will take action against Islamic outfits like Jamaat-e-Islami organisation's student wing SIO.

 

Islamic State ‘most active’ in southern states according to NIA probe, MHA tells Rajya Sabha

https://theprint.in/india/islamic-state-most-active-in-southern-states-according-to-nia-probe-mha-tells-rajya-sabha/503757/

New Delhi: Investigation in a series of cases by NIA has revealed that Islamic State (IS) has a strong presence in the southern states of India, the Ministry of Home Affairs told the Rajya Sabha Wednesday.According to the MHA, NIA has registered 17 cases related to the presence of IS in the southern states of Telangana, Kerala, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka and Tamil Nadu, and arrested 122 suspects.

 

Major terror attack averted in Punjab, pro-Khalistan terrorist module busted: DGP

https://www.timesnownews.com/india/article/major-terror-attack-averted-in-punjab-pro-khalistan-terrorist-module-busted-dgp/652770

Chandigarh: A major terror attack was averted in Punjab with the arrest of two persons associated with a pro-Khalistan terrorist module. The terrorists were allegedly operating in connivance with five criminals, including a Khalistan Zindabad Force (KZF) operative currently in Amritsar jail, Punjab DGP Dinkar Gupta said on Tuesday.Punjab DGP said six sophisticated weapons, eight live rounds of ammunition, several mobile phones and an internet dongle were seized from the arrested persons.Times Now

 

Army has a new action plan to curtail youths’ indoctrination by terror outfits in Kashmir Valley: Nav Bharat Times report

https://www.defenceaviationpost.com/2020/09/army-has-a-new-action-plan-to-curtail-youths-indoctrination-by-terror-outfits-in-kashmir-valley/

According to a news report in Nav Bharat Times, the Army is working on a plan that will help the youth of the valley find a fruitful life even if a family member has met his end during an act of terrorism. Army plans to create a database of surviving family members of the youths killed in encounters and to make a positive outreach to them so that they do not get poached by terror recruiters.The NBT report says that the biggest challenge that the Army has faced in the Valley is that of influencing the family members of a gunned-down terrorist to steer clear of terrorist activities. NBT reports says that under this new strategy, the Army now tracks down details of close friends, siblings, cousins and other family members of the slain terrorist. Then they reach out to them and try to explain the futility and perils of slipping down the path of terror.

 

Unmarried Hindu Daughter Can Claim Maintenance From Father Until She Is Married: SC

https://thewire.in/law/unmarried-hindu-daughter-maintenance-father-supreme-court

New Delhi: A Supreme Court bench of Justices Ashok Bhushan, R. Subhash Reddy and M.R. Shah on Tuesday held that as a proposition of law, an unmarried Hindu daughter can claim maintenance from her father till she is married, provided she pleads and proves that she is unable to maintain herself.However, for enforcement of this right, her application/suit has to be under Section 20 (3) of the Hindu Adoptions and Maintenance Act (HAMA), 1956, rather than under Section 125 of CrPC, the bench ruled. In the instant case, Abhilasha v Parkash & Others, an unmarried daughter challenged the order of the judicial magistrate 1st class, Rewari, granting her maintenance in 2011 at Rs 3,000 per month to be paid by her father from the date of filing of the petition under Section 125 CrPC until she becomes a major.

 

AMU mourns Professor Yasin Mazhar Siddiqui’s demise

https://indiaeducationdiary.in/amu-mourns-professor-yasin-mazhar-siddiquis-demise/

Aligarh : Noted Islamic scholar and author, Professor Yasin Mazhar Siddiqui (76), former Chairman, Department of Islamic Studies, AMU passed away after a prolonged illness.Professor Siddiqui wrote more than 40 books and 300 research articles in Urdu, Arabic and Persian. His writings on the Prophet and his teachings got wide acclaim. He wrote extensively in reputed literary journal, ‘Nuqoosh’ and got international ‘Nuqoosh Award’, ‘Seerat-e-Rasool Award’ and ‘Seerat Nigari Award’.Professor Siddiqui, an alumnus of AMU worked for ten years at the department of History before joining the department of Islamic Studies as a Reader, and later he became professor and chairman of the dept. Professor Tariq Mansoor, Vice Chancellor, expressed his deep sense of sorrow at the demise of professor Siddiqui whose profound scholarship explored new dimensions of Seerah writing. His death causes irreparable loss to the academic world.

 

Rajya Sabha has passed Institute of Teaching and Research in Ayurveda Bill, 2020

https://www.indiatoday.in/india/story/parliament-live-updates-monsoon-session-coronavirus-india-china-standoff-debate-bills-passed-1722209-2020-09-16

Parliament on Wednesday passed a bill to accord the status of an institution of national importance to a Jamnagar-based cluster of Ayurveda institutes. The Bill - 'The Institute of Teaching and Research in Ayurveda Bill, 2020' - was passed by a voice vote in Rajya Sabha.

  

CORONAVIRUS-LOCKDOWN

Govt May Not Have Data on Migrant Labourers, But a Website Built by 4 Volunteers Does

https://thewire.in/labour/migrant-labourers-data-deaths-numbers

New Delhi: On the opening day of monsoon session in Parliament, the government, in response to at least 7 questions posed by Lok Sabha MPs on the lockdown affecting the life and livelihood of migrant labourers, stated that it had no data on migrant labourers who died during the national lockdown. Maintained voluntarily by four persons, the database has recorded 906 deaths between March 14 and July 4, 2020, and classified them under 10 categories. The database has excluded 67 deaths due to the volunteers’ inability to categorise them for want of more details.Available on thejeshgn.com, database has been put together by Aman, an assistant professor of legal practice at Jindal Global School of Law, Thejesh G.N. and Kanika Sharma and R. Krushna, doctorate students at Emory University (Georgia) and Syracuse University (New York) respectively with help from Roadscholarz. As per the data in the public domain, the highest number of 216 deaths between March 14 and July 4 had taken place due to the combined reasons of starvation and loss of money. As many as 209 deaths had taken place during the national lockdown due to road or train accidents suffered by labourers who had taken to the streets to reach their home states after all means of communication were stopped by Central government in an overnight move.During the lockdown, 133 suicides were also reported. While the database shows that 77 persons died due to lack or denial of medical care, 49 of them lost their lives because of alcohol withdrawal.

 

Congress demands Centre's reply on outcome of nationwide lockdown

https://www.indiatoday.in/india/story/parliament-live-updates-monsoon-session-coronavirus-india-china-standoff-debate-bills-passed-1722209-2020-09-16

Rajya Sabha is discussing Union Health Minister Dr Harsh Vardhan’s remarks on coronavirus and the impact it had on India. Congress has demanded to know the outcome of the nationwide lockdown that has been going on for 6 months. India now has over 50 lakh coronavirus cases and the minister on Tuesday said the lockdown prevented over 14 lakh cases. Rajya Sabha Congress MP Anand Sharma demands Centre's reply on the outcome of the nationwide lockdown that was imposed in March, putting restrictions on all public activities in the country.Anand Sharma asks, “Yesterday, health minister said that this decision (lockdown) prevented approximately 14 to 29 lakh COVID-19 cases and 37,000-78,000 deaths. House must be informed what is the scientific basis on which we have reached this conclusion.”

 

After Backlash, Government's "Clarification" On Migrant Deaths

https://www.ndtv.com/india-news/after-backlash-governments-clarification-on-migrant-deaths-2296170?pfrom=home-topscroll

New Delhi: Facing opposition attacks for saying there is "no data" on migrant deaths in the coronavirus lockdown, the government today sought to clarify that there was "no mechanism" to collect such data in districts. Officials said birth and death-related data is maintained at the municipal level according to parameters developed over several decades."No mechanism exists at the municipal level to collect data on the death of migrant workers in a given district. It is immature to raise questions on the stand taken by the Labour Ministry on this issue," sources said.

 

Coronavirus Update: India Crosses 50 Lakh Mark, Records Highest Single Day Spike In Deaths

https://www.outlookindia.com/website/story/india-news-coronavirus-update-india-crosses-50-lakh-mark-records-highest-single-day-spike-in-deaths/360385

The total number coronavirus cases in India crossed the 50 lakh mark on Wednesday as the country recorded 90,123 new cases in the past 24 hours.The country’s caseload now stands at 50,20,359. India also recorded single day spike of 1,290 deaths which is the highest recorded deaths in a day since the pandemic began.In India, over 82,000 people have lost their lives due to coronavirus.According to Union Health Ministry, the caseload includes 9,95,933 active cases and 39, 42,360 recovered patients.

  

WORLD

 9 Islamic Nations To Normalize Ties With Israel Including Saudi– Donald Trump

https://eurasiantimes.com/nine-islamic-nations-to-normalize-ties-with-israel-including-saudi-arabia-donald-trump/

After the UAE and Bahrain, US President Donald Trump said that he believes that Saudi Arabia will fully normalize ties with Israel. Trump told reporters at the White House that Saudi Arabia is among several countries he believes are on the verge of opening diplomatic ties with Tel Aviv, saying that after speaking with King Salman, he thinks the country will do so “at the right time.”“We have many other countries going to be joining us, and they’re going to be joining us soon,” Trump said just hours after Bahrain and UAE officially signed documents normalizing ties with Israel.The president further increased the number of nations he says are close to following in the steps of the 2 Arab Gulf nations “fairly rapidly” after saying earlier Tuesday that it was five or six.“We’ll have 7 or 8 or 9. We’re going to have a lot of other countries joining us, including the big ones,” he said.eurasiantimes

 

 

Israel bombs Gaza UAE, Bahrain sign deals at White House

https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2020/09/israel-bombs-gaza-rocket-fire-uae-bahrain-signed-deals-200916064518070.html

Israeli military has carried out a series of air raids on the besieged Gaza Strip overnight on Wednesday, causing damage to property, Palestinian media reported.According to Wafa, official Palestinian news agency, Israeli warplanes fired missiles at a site in Beit Lahiya in the northern strip. They also targeted areas in Deir al-Balah, a city in central Gaza, as well as parts of Khan Younis in southern Gaza. No casualties were reported.Hamas, the group that governs the Gaza Strip, on Wednesday warned Israel it "will pay the price for any aggression against our people or resistance sites and the response will be direct". "We will increase and expand our response to the extent that the occupation persists in its aggression," it said in a statement.Without naming specific factions, the Palestinian Islamic Jihad group in Gaza said in response to the Israeli air raids, the "resistance" fired rocket salvoes at Israel.Earlier on Wednesday, the army in a statement said it carried out 10 air strikes against positions belonging to Hamas in response to rockets being fired into Israel. At the same time as Israel, UAE and Bahrain signed agreements at the White House in Washington to establish diplomatic relations.  US President Donald Trump hosted a White House ceremony capping a dramatic month when first UAE and then Bahrain agreed to normalise ties without a resolution of Israel's decades-old conflict with the Palestinians, who have condemned the agreements.At the US-brokered event, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu signed agreements with Emirati Foreign Minister Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan and Bahrain's Foreign Minister Abdullatif Al Zayani. "This peace will eventually expand to include other Arab states. And ultimately, it can end the Arab-Israeli conflict, once and for all," Netanyahu said.

 

After UAE and Bahrain deals, is Saudi softening its stance on Israel? Reuters

https://in.reuters.com/article/israel-gulf-usa-saudi-analysis/after-uae-and-bahrain-deals-is-saudi-arabia-softening-its-stance-on-israel-idINKBN2661A2

RIYADH: When one of Saudi Arabia’s leading clerics called this month for Muslims to avoid “passionate emotions and fiery enthusiasm” towards Jews, it was a marked change in tone for someone who has shed tears preaching about Palestine in the past. The sermon by Abdulrahman al-Sudais, imam of Grand Mosque in Mecca, broadcast on Saudi state television on Sept. 5, came 3 weeks after UAE  agreed a historic deal to normalise relations with Israel and days before Gulf state of Bahrain, a close Saudi ally, followed suit. Sudais, who in past sermons prayed for Palestinians to have victory over the “invader and aggressor” Jews, spoke about how Prophet Mohammad was good to his Jewish neighbour and argued the best way to persuade Jews to convert to Islam was to “treat them well”. While Saudi is not expected to follow the example of its Gulf allies any time soon, Sudais’ remarks could be a clue to how the kingdom approaches the sensitive subject of warming to Israel - a once inconceivable prospect. Marc Owen Jones, an academic from the Institute of Arab and Islamic Studies at the University of Exeter, “giving the Saudis a ‘nudge’ via an influential imam is obviously one step in trying to test the public reaction and to encourage the notion of normalisation.”There was no immediate response to a request by Reuters for comment from the Saudi govt’s media office.A diplomat in Gulf said that for Saudi, the issue is more related to what he called its religious position as the leader of the Muslim world, and that a formal deal with Israel would take time and is unlikely to happen while King Salman is still in power.“Any normalisation by Saudi will open doors for Iran, Qatar and Turkey to call for internationalising the two holy mosques,” he said.

 

Palestinians protest Arab normalisation deals with Israel

https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2020/09/palestinians-protest-arab-normalisation-deals-israel-200915192514017.html

Hundreds of Palestinians protested in the occupied West Bank and the Gaza Strip, denouncing the Emirati and Bahraini normalisation agreements with Israel as rockets were fired into the country.Clutching Palestinian flags and wearing face masks for protection against the coronavirus, demonstrators rallied in the West Bank cities of Nablus and Hebron and in Gaza. Dozens also took part in a demonstration in Ramallah, home of the Palestinian Authority (PA).Protesters trampled pictures of Netanyahu, US President Donald Trump, Bahrain's King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa, and Abu Dhabi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan before they were burned.Sami Abu Zuhri, a Hamas spokesman, said the Bahrain and UAE agreements would not bring Israel peace in the region. PA President Mahmoud Abbas said that only Israel's withdrawal from occupied territories can bring peace to the Middle East.The Palestinian Unified National Command of Popular Resistance called for protests to reject the normalisation deals. The secretary of the central committee of the Fatah Party, Jibril Rajoub, told reporters "what is happening today in Washington is a form of collapse of the official Arab order".

 

Analyst: Pakistan could normalise ties with Israel

https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20200916-analyst-pakistan-could-normalise-ties-with-israel/

A British-Pakistani analyst said he expects Pakistan to follow Gulf Arab countries and normalise ties with Israel, Israel Hayom reported on Monday.Noor Dahri, founder and executive director of Islamic Theology of Counter-Terrorism, a UK-based think tank, told Israel Hayom that many other Arab countries might follow in the footsteps of UAE and Bahrain who have announced the normalisation of ties with the occupation state.“The peace agreements of the UAE and Bahrain with Israel are just a door [for them] for opening further diplomatic, trade and strategic relations with Israel,” he said.“There are many countries that are awaiting their term to join the agreement, such as Oman, Sudan, Morocco, and Saudi Arabia.”At the same time, he pointed to the good Qatari relations with Israel, noting it might be an incentive to establish official relations in the future. Doha has mediated talks between Palestinian factions in the besieged Gaza Strip and Israel and provides aid to Palestinians with approval from the occupation state.“Pakistan has also not closed the door completely, but its national interests do not permit it to announce open relations with the Jewish state.”Meanwhile, Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan insisted that if all the world normalised ties with Israel, Pakistan would never do so.

 

Bahrain minister: Normalising with Israel protects us from Iran

https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20200915-bahrain-minister-normalising-with-israel-protects-us-from-iran/

The interior minister of Bahrain claimed that the normalisation deal with Israel was not an abandonment of Palestinian rights, but to protect the country from ongoing threats from Iran.“It is not an abandonment of the Palestinian cause… it is to strengthen Bahrainis’ security and their economic stability,” Sheikh Rashid Bin Abdullah Al Khalifa said, according to Reuters. “If Palestine is our Arab cause, then Bahrain is our fateful cause.”

 

Fear of war crimes probe against US as arms sales continue to Saudi, UAE

https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20200915-fear-of-war-crimes-probe-against-us-as-arms-sales-continue-to-saudi-uae/

US officials are at growing risk of being prosecuted for war crimes over the sale of arms to Saudi Arabia and UAE, a New York Times investigation has revealed as President Donald Trump clears the path for further sale of advanced weapons to the Gulf states following Abu Dhabi’s normalisation of ties with Israel.Interviews with more than a dozen current and former US government officials show that the legal fears related to the arms sales, over the course of two presidential administrations, run far deeper than previously reported. Those concerns are said to have prompted a number of officials to consider hiring their own lawyers to discuss the risk of being arrested while vacationing overseas.

 

Report: Northern Ireland militant group working with Lebanon Hezbollah

https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20200915-report-northern-ireland-militant-group-working-with-lebanon-hezbollah/

Intelligence gathered by the UK security services shows the New IRA, a dissident Irish republican group in Northern Ireland, could have ties to Hezbollah and other militant groups in the Middle East, a report by the Times claims.The Middle Eastern groups may be providing the New IRA, which is also known as the Irish Republican Army, with both funds and weapons, including mortars and assault rifles, according to the report.Intelligence services “on both sides of the Irish border”, the Times said, believe ties between Ireland and Middle Eastern organisations are being used for the illicit importation of arms, though no direct evidence to support this claim has been uncovered.

 

China and IAEA are helping Saudi achieve its nuclear ambitions

https://theprint.in/world/china-and-iaea-are-helping-saudi-arabia-achieve-its-nuclear-ambitions/503674/

Vienna: UN nuclear watchdog has been working in parallel with Chinese officials to help Saudi Arabia exploit uranium — the key ingredient for nuclear power and weapons — despite its inspectors being frozen out of the kingdom.International Atomic Energy Agency published a document ahead of its annual conference next week showing the Vienna-based organization assisting Saudi efforts to make nuclear fuel. An institute in Beijing affiliated with the IAEA has been prospecting for uranium in Saudi Arabia.

 

UN warns of Yemen famine; no aid from Saudis, UAE, Kuwait

https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2020/09/warns-yemen-famine-aid-saudis-uae-kuwait-200915182103529.html

UN's humanitarian chief warned on Tuesday "the spectre of famine" has returned to war-torn Yemen and for the first time singled out Saudi Arabia, UAE, and Kuwait for giving nothing to this year's $3.4bn appeal for desperately needed aid. Mark Lowcock told UN Security Council that famine in Yemen, the Arab world's poorest country, was averted two years ago because donors swiftly met 90 percent of the UN's funding requirements, enabling humanitarian agencies to increase monthly aid from eight million to 12 million people and save "millions of lives".Today, he said, the UN appeal has received only 30 percent, about $1bn, leaving nine million Yemenis to cope with deepening cuts to aid programmes including food, water, and healthcare.Lowcock said Saudi Arabia, UAE and Kuwait "who have a particular responsibility, which they have discharged in recent years, have so far given nothing to this year's UN plan".

 

Taliban Tell Afghan Govt They Have No Aim to Seize Power

https://www.bloombergquint.com/politics/taliban-tell-afghan-government-they-have-no-aim-to-seize-power

 Taliban leaders told their government counterparts at the Afghan peace talks they wouldn’t seek to seize power and that their struggle was to free the country from foreign forces and establish an Islamic system.“Our battle is not for taking power but for the independence of our country from foreign occupation and the establishment of an Islamic system,” group’s chief negotiator, Abdul Hakim Haqqani, told the government delegation Tuesday, according to a series of tweets by his spokesman.Bloomberg

 

Ex-Guantanamo inmate joins Taliban negotiating team

https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20200915-ex-guantanamo-inmate-joins-taliban-negotiating-team/

A former Guantanamo Bay inmate, Mullah Muhammad Nabi Omari, recently appeared in the Taliban delegation scheduled to meet with US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo.Fayez Al-Kandari claimed on Twitter that he had been imprisoned with Omari in Guantanamo and used to converse with him.Omari, 52, was detained for nearly 12 years in the infamous Guantanamo detention camp in Cuba.

 

Yoshihide Suga formally elected as Japan PM, readies 'continuity cabinet'

https://www.thehindu.com/news/international/suga-formally-elected-as-japan-pm-readies-continuity-cabinet/article32618132.ece?homepage=true

Japan's Yoshihide Suga was voted Prime Minister by parliament's lower house on Wednesday, becoming the country's first new leader in nearly 8 years, as he readied a “continuity cabinet” expected to keep about half of predecessor Shinzo Abe's lineup. Suga (71), Mr. Abe's longtime right-hand man, has pledged to pursue many of Mr. Abe's programmes, including his signature “Abenomics” economic strategy, and to forge ahead with structural reforms, including deregulation and streamlining bureaucracy.Reuters

                                  

OP-ED

·        Sudarshan TV's ‘UPSC Jihad’ Episode is an Assault Not Just on Muslims but on the UPSC Too, Rais I. Shaikh

https://thewire.in/communalism/sudarshan-tv-upsc-jihad-muslims-civil-services

 

·        From Stürmer to Sudarshan: Indian Media Should Realise Incitement of Hatred is a Crime:Pushkar Anand and Varsha Singh

https://thewire.in/media/from-sturmer-to-sudarshan-indian-media-should-realise-incitement-of-hatred-is-a-crime

 

·        Since Modi came to power, Muslims have faced systematic, chaotic form of cruel oppression: Sharjeel Usmani

http://twocircles.net/2020sep15/439030.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+Twocirclesnet-IndianMuslim+%28TwoCircles.net+-+Indian+Muslim+News%29

 

·        India-China Joint Statement Is Uncannily Similar to a Treaty Signed 66 Years Ago: Rahul Bedi, thewire

https://thewire.in/security/india-china-joint-statement-panchsheel-treaty-border-lac

 

·        From 'LAC' to 'Border Areas', the Joint Statement Indicates What India Has Lost to China: Pravin Sawhney

https://thewire.in/security/india-china-ladakh-pla-lac-border-areas

·        In Lok Sabha, Rajnath Paints Unclear Picture of Ladakh; Key Questions on China Stand-Off Remain: thewire

https://thewire.in/security/lok-sabha-rajnath-singh-china-ladakh-depsang

 

·        Turkey hiring Kashmir-based separatists in media to tarnish India's global image: Manish Shukla, DNA India

https://www.dnaindia.com/world/report-turkey-hiring-kashmir-based-separatists-in-media-to-tarnish-india-s-global-image-2843248

 

·        Umar Khalid not alone, 7 more students were arrested under anti-terror law for Delhi riots:Bismee Taskin

https://theprint.in/india/umar-khalid-not-alone-7-more-students-were-arrested-under-anti-terror-law-for-delhi-riots/503185/

 

·        Watch | 'Surprised Delhi Police Hasn’t Filed a Case Against Kapil Mishra': Ex Top Cop Julio Ribeiro

https://thewire.in/communalism/watch-kapil-mishra-delhi-police-julio-ribeiro-arfa

·        Delhi police, don’t let India down: ET Editorial

https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/blogs/et-editorials/delhi-police-dont-let-india-down/

 

·        SC drops bombshell for Arnab Goswami and others; wants 5-member committee to prepare new broadcasting standards for Indian electronic media, often dubbed as Radio Rwanda

http://www.jantakareporter.com/entertainment/supreme-court-drops-bombshell-for-arnab-goswami-and-others-wants-five-member-committee-to-prepare-new-broadcasting-standards-for-indian-electronic-media-often-dubbed-as-radio-rwanda/304929/

 

·        PM Modi’s tilt to US security interests pushes India’s drift towards war:Prem Shankar Jha

https://www.nationalheraldindia.com/opinion/pm-modis-tilt-to-us-security-interests-pushes-indias-drift-towards-war

 

·        China belts out Punjabi numbers for Indian soldiers at Ladakh. It is a ‘62 trick:Shishir Gupta, Hindustan Times

https://www.hindustantimes.com/india-news/pla-bombards-indian-soldiers-with-propaganda-via-loudspeakers-tells-them-to-blame-modi/story-9JIbg3SU5T6F2WNBpefIiO.html

 

Compiled and edited by Anwarulhaq