NATIONAL NEWS
Statue of Christ desecrated in Ambala A life-size statue of Jesus Christ at the British-era
Holy Redeemer Church in the cantonment area in Haryana’s Ambala was desecrated and the lighting inside the church premises damaged by two unidentified men in the early hours of December 26. A First Information Report has been lodged on charges of trespass and defiling a place of worship. The incident comes close on the heels of attempts by the right-wing groups to disrupt Christmas celebrations across the State, including a private school in Gurugram on December 24 evening. However, no formal police complaints were lodged in these cases. Superintendent of Police, Ambala, Jashandeep Singh Randhawa said the police were probing the desecration incident from all angles, including personal rivalry. He added that the pictures of the suspects in the closed-circuit television footage were being developed and secret sources were activated to gather leads in the attack. We are hopeful of a breakthrough soon, said Mr. Singh.
Mob stops Hindus from celebrating Christmas in Assam
A group of boys claiming to be members of the Bajrang Dal stopped Hindus from celebrating Christmas in southern Assam’s Silchar on December 25. They also manhandled a few non-Christian revellers at the town’s Presbyterian Church near the Cachar district police headquarters, locals said. In a video uploaded on social media, one Rangirkhari claiming to be a leader of the Bajrang Dal’s local unit, said: We have nothing against the Christians who have every right to celebrate Christmas. Our issue is with the Hindus who went against their dharma to sing Merry Christmas instead of observing ‘Tulsi Divas’ . Since 2014, December 25 has been marked as ‘Tulsi Divas’, a day to celebrate the medicinal and spiritual significance of the basil plant. In the video, Bajrang Dal activists donning saffron scarves and chanting ‘Jai Shri Ram’ also said they locked the church after 11 p.m. as there were too many people violating the COVID-19 protocols beyond the time allowed by the administration. A similar incident happened in Silchar during Christmas in 2020 with members of radical Hindu groups preventing Hindus from participating in a festival meant for Christians only.
Two more names added to Haridwar hate speech FIR Uttarakhand Police on December 26 added the names of two more persons in the First Information Report (FIR) pertaining to hate speeches at a religious event in Haridwar organised between December 17 and 19, where calls were made for genocide and violence against Muslims. Ashok Kumar, Uttarakhand Director General of Police, told The Hindu that many persons have been examined and the investigation was on. No arrests have been made so far in the case. Mr. Kumar said that adding the provisions of the anti-terror Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) to the existing case was being legally examined. Whether UAPA can be invoked or not is part of the investigation. It will depend on the facts of the case and we are getting it examined legally, he said. The Haridwar Police have registered a case under Section 153A of the IPC (promoting enmity between different groups on grounds of religion), entailing a maximum punishment of five years. Our investigation is on from both points of view — if more number of accused are to be added to the investigation and if any other Section is applicable, Mr. Kumar said.
Panel to look into AFSPA withdrawal from Nagaland
Days after a botched ambush by an elite armed forces unit killed 13 civilians at Oting in Nagaland’s Mon district, a decision has been taken to constitute a committee to study the possibility of withdrawing the Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act (AFSPA) from the State. The Act is said to give the armed forces personnel the license to kill. The committee will be headed by the Additional Secretary (Northeast) in the Ministry of Home Affairs and will include Nagaland’s Chief Secretary and Director-General of Police. A Naga holds a placard during a rally in Kohima. File The other members will be Inspector General of Assam Rifles (North) and a representative of the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF), an official statement issued by Nagaland Chief Minister Neiphiu Rio, Deputy Chief Minister Y. Patton and former Chief Minister T.R. Zeliang said on Sunday. The decision to form the panel was made during Home Minister Amit Shah’s meeting with Mr. Rio, Mr. Patton and Mr. Zeliang along with Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma in New Delhi on December 23.
INTERNATIONAL NEWS
South African Anti-Apartheid hero Desmond Tutu passes away at 90
A veteran of South Africa’s struggle against the white minority rule and Nobel Peace Prize laureate Archbishop Desmond Tutu passed away at the age of 90. He won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1984 in recognition of his non-violent opposition against the rule by the white minority in South Africa. Tutu had also become the face of the anti-apartheid movement all over the world.
James Webb Space Telescope launch
The James Webb Space Telescope was launched on December 25, 2021. It is the world’s largest and most powerful space telescope. It began a one-million-mile journey to see 13.5 billion years into the past. The James Webb Space telescope will take about a month to reach its destination in the solar orbit, which would be roughly 1 million miles from the Earth.
