Tag: CLAT

NATIONAL NEWS 

Govt. curbs funding for 10 climate change, child labour NGOs

Five years after it cancelled the registration of international non-governmental organisation (NGO) Greenpeace to receive foreign funds, the government has moved to restrict the funding for a group of ten American, Australian and European NGOs dealing with environmental, climate change and child labour issues. An internal Reserve Bank of India (RBI) circular dated July 1, 2021, that was sent to all banks, said the government had specified a number of foreign entities to be placed on the Prior Reference Category (PRC list) using the stringent Foreign Contribution Regulation Act 2010, that was tightened in September 2020, making both banks and chartered accountants accountable for any unauthorised funds that come through.  The NGOs, that add to more than 80 international voluntary agencies now on the government’s PRC list, include the European Climate Foundation, three U.S.-based NGOs (the Omidyar Network International, Humanity United and Stardust foundation), two Australia-based NGOs (Walk Free Foundation and Minderoo Foundation), and U.K.-based Children’s Investment Fund Foundation, Freedom fund and Laudes foundation, as well as U.K./ U.A.E. based Legatum fund. The RBI has instructed that any fund flow from the (specified) donor agencies to any NGO/Voluntary organisation/ persons in India should be brought to the notice of the Ministry of Home Affairs so that the funds are allowed to be credited to the recipients only after clearance/ prior permission from the MHA’s Foreigners Division of the FCRA wing, the notice sent out recently by a private bank to its branches, which The Hindu obtained a copy of, said. The Reserve Bank didn’t respond to a request for a comment, but officials confirmed informally that the note had been sent out, in line with previous such circulars sent to banks warning them of NGOs banned or suspended from acquiring or disbursing foreign funds. Significantly, all the NGOs on the latest list work on climate change and environmental projects and/or child rights and slavery projects, subjects where the government has been sensitive to international criticism in the past. When asked why so many environmental NGOs are on the list, given the government’s stated international commitments on fighting climate change, an official said that despite India’s record in complying with the Paris agreement, global pressures are intensifying on India to raise the Nationally Determined Contributions. In order to create noise in the media, several pro-climate NGOs are focusing on advocacy against coal, which is considered a violation of FCRA provisions, the official added. In 2017, the Ministry of Home Affairs(MHA) had also objected strongly to the International Labour Organisation’s Global Slavery Index, questioning the credibility of data which had ranked India 53rd of 167 countries where modern slavery was prevalent, and as the country with highest number of people in forced labour, according to a reply in Parliament. The index is part of the Australian Walk Free Foundation’s annual survey that is used by other NGOs working in the field. According to the MHA’s responses in Parliament, between 2016-2020, the government cancelled the FCRA licenses of more than 6,600 NGOs and suspended those of about 264. Among those who have been put on the PRC list or had to downsize or even shut down their Indian operations due to FCRA action by the government in the last few years are Greenpeace International, Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, Compassion International, National Endowment for Democracy, U.S. Centre for Disease Control (CDC), and Open Society Foundation. A UK-based NGO Commonwealth Human Rights Initiative (CHRI) has now taken the government to court for suspending its FCRA license, and won temporary relief in the High Court in Delhi in, allowing it to access 25% of its funds, and a final order is expected in October.

Bhupendra Patel sworn in as Gujarat CM

Bhupendra Patel was sworn in as the Gujarat Chief Minister by Governor Acharya Devvrat at the Raj Bhavan in Gandhinagar on Monday, a day after he was unanimously elected as the BJP legislature party leader in a meeting. Union Home Minister Amit Shah and Chief Ministers of Goa, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh and Haryana and Union Ministers Mansukh Mandaviya, Narendra Singh Tomar, Pralhad Joshi, Parshottam Rupala, Bhupender Yadav and others attended the swearing-in ceremony. Only the Chief Minister took oath on Monday and the Cabinet members will be sworn in separately after the names are decided by the party. According to sources, Shah, Bhupendra Patel and other leaders will decide on the names as many senior leaders and members of the outgoing Cabinet are likely to be dropped to bring in new faces. There is yet no clarity regarding the continuation of Deputy Chief Minister Nitin Patel. We don’t know yet whether there will be a new Deputy CM or just Cabinet Ministers, a party leader said. It is also not clear whether Mr. Nitin Patel will be part of the Cabinet or not. Nitin Patel on Monday denied media reports that he was sulking after being overlooked for the post of Chief Minister as the party picked first-time legislator Bhupendra Patel, a protege of Uttar Pradesh Governor Anandiben Patel, as the successor of Vijay Rupani.

JEE-Main results by Wednesday, JEE-Advanced registrations postponed again

Twelve days after the last session of the Joint Entrance Examination (JEE-Main) was held, results are yet to be declared, forcing the Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs) to once again postpone registrations for their entrance test JEE-Advanced, which were due to begin on Monday. The top 2.5 lakh ranked students from JEE-Main are eligible to write JEE-Advanced, which is scheduled to be held on October 3. The results will be declared tomorrow or latest by Wednesday, said Higher Education Secretary Amit Khare, who did not comment on the reasons for the delay. Senior officials at the National Testing Agency and the Education Ministry insisted that it was not related to the Central Bureau of Investigation’s (CBI) ongoing probe into an alleged cheating scandal at a JEE-Main examination centre in Sonepat, Haryana. One senior official said a COVID-19 infection among key personnel contributed to the delay. The JEE-Main examination is not just an entrance test for admission to the National Institutes of Technology and other central and state engineering colleges, but is also used as the eligibility test for IIT aspirants. This year, four sessions of JEE-Main were held, with students allowed to attempt the examination as often as they liked, with their best score to be used for ranking purposes. The fourth session, initially scheduled to be held in May, was delayed because of COVID-19, and then delayed again to allow a greater gap from the third session. The last session for B.E./B.Tech aspirants was completed on September 1, and the provisional answer keys released on September 6. The final results and the all India ranking was expected to be released by September 10, in time for the JEE-Advanced registrations to begin the next day. As the JEE-Main results were delayed, JEE-Advanced registrations were initially postponed to September 13. Faced with further delays, a Monday evening notice to candidates on the JEE Advanced website simply asked them to keep visiting for updates on registration without specifying when registration would actually open. The CBI has arrested 11 people in connection with an alleged scam where students were charged up to ₹15 lakh for assistance in cheating in the JEE-Main examination through remote access to computers at a Sonepat centre.

Former Union minister Oscar Fernandes passes away

Following a nearly two-month long hospitalisation, former Union minister and member of Rajya Sabha Oscar Fernandes passed away on September 13. The 80-year-old Congress leader was admitted to Yenepoya hospital in Mangaluru on July 19 following intracranial bleeding suffered after a fall in his house during a routine workout on July 18. He underwent operation for removal of a clot in the brain on July 27 and was undergoing regular dialysis. A hospital spokesperson said Fernandes passed away at 2.15 p.m. He is survived by his wife, a son and a daughter. Hailing from Udupi, Fernandes had been a member of Parliament since 1980. As a Union minister in the UPA government, Fernandes held the portfolios of Road Transport and Highways, Labour and Employment, Statistics and Programme Implementation and Overseas Affairs, both as a Cabinet Minister and Minister of State. He was among the close confidants of Indira Gandhi’s family, including former prime minister late Rajiv Gandhi, his wife Sonia Gandhi and son Rahul Gandhi. He served Rajiv Gandhi as his Parliamentary Secretary. He had held various positions in the All India Congress Committee (AICC), including general secretary, and had served as president of Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC). He was among the six trustees of National Herald.

INTERNATIONAL NEWS 

Malaysian PM signs key pact with opposition MPs. Barely a month in office, Malaysia’s new leader has won opposition support to shore up his fragile government in exchange for a slew of reforms as Parliament reopened on Monday. Prime Minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob signed an unprecedented cooperation pact in Parliament with the main Opposition bloc led by Anwar Ibrahim, in a move to prevent any bid to undermine his rule ahead of general elections due in two years. The political stability and transformation pact will give Mr. Ismail the backing of 88 lawmakers in Anwar’s bloc, in addition to 114 that support him in the 222member house. Mr. Ismail said in a statement that the pact will lead to bipartisan cooperation and political reforms that will bolster governance, fight the COVID-19 crisis, and help to revive the economy. The government is confident that this memorandum of understanding will not only help cast aside all political differences but also ensure the country’s recovery is holistic and inclusive, Mr. Ismail said. Officials said further details of the agreement will be unveiled soon. The pact came after Mr. Ismail last week offered reforms, including new laws to prevent party defections and limiting the Prime Minister’s tenure to 10 years. He also pledged to immediately lower the minimum voting age from 21 to 18, ensure bipartisan agreement on any new Bill and get opposition input on the country’s economic recovery. He also made it so the role of Opposition leader gets the same remuneration and privileges as a Cabinet Minister.

Malaysia has recorded close to two million COVID-19 infections, with more than 20,000 deaths.

Climate change could cause 216 mn to migrate:World Bank. Climate change could push more than 200 million people to leave their homes in the next three decades and create migration hot spots unless urgent action is taken to reduce global emissions and bridge the development gap, a World Bank report has found. The second part of the Groundswell report published on Monday examined how the impacts of slow-onset climate change, such as water scarcity, decreasing crop productivity and rising sea levels, could lead to millions of what it describes as climate migrants by 2050 under three different scenarios with varying degrees of climate action and development. Under the most pessimistic scenario, with a high level of emissions and unequal development, the report forecasts up to 216 million people moving within their own countries across the six regions analysed. Those regions are Latin America; North Africa; Sub-Saharan Africa; Eastern Europe and Central Asia; South Asia; and East Asia and the Pacific. In the most climate friendly scenario, with a low level of emissions and inclusive, sustainable development, the world could still see 44 million people being forced to leave their homes.

NATIONAL NEWS 

Bhupendra Patel becomes new Chief Minister of Gujarat

Bhupendra Patel, a protege of UP Governor Anandiben Patel, was made the new Chief Minister of Gujarat on Sunday. Bhupendra Patel is an MLA from Ghatlodia seat earlier held by Anandiben Patel. Bhupendra Patel has been chairman, Standing Committee of Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation and also Chairman, Ahmedabad Urban Development Authority (AUDA). He is a first-time MLA. Earlier, he served as municipal councillor in Ahmedabad. Bhupendra Patel had won by a margin of 1.17 lakh from Ghatlodia in the last Assembly polls. The Gujarat BJP legislature party met earlier at the party headquarters in Gandhinagar to elect a new leader to replace Chief Minister Vijay Rupani, following his sudden resignation on September 11. The party high command deputed two Central observers Narendra Singh Tomar and Pralhad Joshi who conducted the legislature party meeting in which a new leader would be elected to the Chief Minister’s post. He will be sworn-in on September 13. Union Home Minister Amit Shah will attend the oath-taking ceremony at Raj Bhavan. On Saturday, Rupani suddenly submitted his resignation along with his Council of Ministers, paving the way for a long expected change of guard in the State. Among the names doing the rounds as a likely replacement for Rupani were outgoing Deputy Chief Minister Nitin Patel, Union Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya, Administrator of Union Territories of Daman and Diu and Lakshadweep Praful Patel, and outgoing Cabinet Minister and former State party chief R.C. Faldu. The State BJP president C.R. Patil’s name also figured among the probables but in a video statement he ruled himself out stating that he was not a Chief Ministerial candidate. There was a strong buzz in the party about a likely Patidar face as the new Chief Minister before the next year’s Assembly election. All top contenders, including Mandavia and Faldu, are from the Patidar community. In Gujarat, the Patidars are a dominant caste having a sizeable control over the political economy with its hold over the lucrative cooperative sector, education, realty and construction, and small and medium enterprises. The Patidars form the backbone of the BJP in Gujarat as the party’s first Chief Minister in 1995 when it came to power for the first time was Keshubhai Patel, a Patidar leader from Saurashtra region. However, there was also another theory that the new Chief Minister could be from the OBC community but there was no prominent leader in the party who could be chosen for the post ahead of the crucial elections next year. Insiders in the party contended that the high command wanted to go to the electorate with a fresh face in order to dilute the anti-incumbency factor after the pandemic in which the State administration under Rupani often floundered.

Trinamool criticises U.P. govt for using photo of Kolkata flyover in its advertisement 

The Trinamool Congress (TMC) on Sunday criticised the Uttar Pradesh government and Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath for running an advertisement in an English language publication with photographs of a Kolkata flyover. A number of TMC leaders took to social media accusing Adityanath of stealing images from infrastructure seen in Bengal. Transforming UP for @myogiadityanath means stealing images from infrastructure seen in Bengal under @MamataOfficial’s leadership and using them as his own! Looks like the ‘DOUBLE ENGINE MODEL’ has MISERABLY FAILED in BJP’s strongest state and now stands EXPOSED for all!, TMC general secretary Abhishek Banerjee tweeted. A number of Ministers of the West Bengal government, including Urban Development Minister Firhad Hakim, said that Maa Flyover, which had been represented in the advertisement, was the pride of Kolkata and completed under the Trinamool Congress regime. Previously BJP used photos from failures of law & order of their states to spread misinformation about West Bengal. Now they use photos of the flyover built under the leadership of #MamataBanerjee and under my chairmanship of KMDA to advertise for the development in UP, Hakim said. Senior TMC leaders Partha Chatterjee and Lok Sabha MP Mohua Moitra also took to social media highlighting the issue and tearing into the Uttar Pradesh government for the advertisement. The advertisement Transforming Uttar Pradesh Under Yogi Adityanath carried on Sunday in an English language publication has a cutout of Adityanath with a flyover that resembles Kolkata’s Maa flyover that connects the central part of the city with Salt Lake and Rajarhat located in the northeastern fringes of the city. The image also has Kolkata’s iconic yellow taxi and a high rise that resembles a five-star hotel in the city next to the Maa Flyover. As the controversy picked up on social media, the publication that carried the advertisement admitted the error and added that the image had been removed in all digital editions of the paper. A wrong image was inadvertently included in the cover collage of the advertorial on Uttar Pradesh produced by the marketing department of the newspaper. The error is deeply regretted, and the image has been removed in all digital editions of the paper, a tweet by the publication said.

Delhi High Court questions West Bengal over handling of requests of AIS officers seeking transfers 

The Delhi High Court has questioned West Bengal over its handling of the requests of All India Service (AIS) officers seeking inter-cadre transfer to other States. A bench of Justice Rajiv Shakdher and Justice Talwant Singh said that the West Bengal government was trotting out shortage of officers as the reason for rejecting the request of inter-cadre transfer, without placing the relevant material on record. We are noticing that, this approach has been taken, in matter after matter, by the petitioner (West Bengal government) where officer(s) have sought inter-cadre transfer to other State(s) on account of their marriage, and which has been refused on a similar ground, the high court remarked. Unless the reasons set out in the order of refusal for inter-cadre transfer are backed by relevant material, it cannot pass muster of this Court, it added. The high court’s remark came while dismissing the West Bengal government’s appeal against an order passed by the Central Administrative Tribunal directing it to relieve a 2013 batch Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officer of West Bengal cadre. The IAS officer, in her application filed over five years ago on April 5, 2016, had sought transfer to Uttarakhand as she had married an Indian Forest Service (IFS) officer of 2012 batch of Uttarakhand Cadre on November 26, 2015. Citing this development, she submitted representation to the Central government on April 5, 2016, with a request to change her cadre from West Bengal to that of Uttarakhand. The IAS officer stated that the Uttarakhand government expressed its no objection for the transfer and the Department of Personnel & Training (DoP&T) was waiting for the consent of the West Bengal government. However, on November 30, 2016, the West Bengal government rejected her request stating the ground of shortage of IAS officers. On her appeal against this rejection order, the Tribunal on July 22, 2021 set aside the November 30, 2016 order of the West Bengal government. The Tribunal, additionally, ordered the West Bengal government to pass necessary orders on the IAS officer’s transfer request within six weeks. In case the applicant is not relieved by that time, she shall be deemed to have been relieved on expiry of six weeks, the Tribunal had ordered. The inter cadre transfer of AIS (All India Service) officers on the grounds of marriage is not something new…On certain occasions, the States from whose cadre the transfer is sought, pleaded the ground of shortage of officers. The Supreme Court held that such grounds cannot constitute the basis to deny the right of an officer to seek transfer in terms of the rules, the Tribunal had remarked. The high court concurred with the Tribunal’s decision, noting that the IAS officer was entitled to seek inter-cadre transfer, in terms of Rule 5(2) of the Indian Administrative Services (Cadre) Rules, 1954, which provides for change of cadre.

Trust youth to check deviations in society’s journey towards peace and progress, says CJI Ramana

Chief Justice of India N.V. Ramana on Sunday said the unity and sacrifice of young people across faiths, beliefs and communities, who took to the streets to challenge authoritarian figures, gave the country democratic rights which were being taken for granted today. The democratic rights that we take today for granted are a result of the struggles of thousands of young people who took to the streets fighting authoritarian figures either during the Freedom Struggle or the dark days of Emergency. Many lost their lives, sacrificed lucrative careers, all for the greater good of the nation and society. Trust the youth to check the deviations in a society’s journey towards peace and progress, Chief Justice Ramana said in his address on the 128th anniversary of the historic Chicago address of Swami Vivekananda. The CJI, quoting Swami Vivekananda, said the youth did not tolerate injustice, either to themselves or against others. They did not compromise with their ideals, come what may. They were not only selfless but were also adventurous. They were willing to sacrifice for the cause they believed in. It is these unadulterated minds and pure hearts which formed the backbone of our nation. The CJI said it was necessary for youth to be aware of social realities and challenges. Remember, any change in the nation’s trajectory always stems from its youth and their participation. It is for you to build the ideal nation and society that you desire to witness, Chief Justice Ramana said. The CJI’s words have significant import even as the past few years have seen young activists, academicians and journalists being jailed for sedition and students chased and beaten up by the police in university campus.

INTERNATIONAL NEWS 

Taliban spokesman Zabiullah Mujahid says he lived in Kabul right under nose of his adversaries Taliban’s spokesman Zabiullah Mujahid, who appeared before the media for the first time in a decade at a press conference after the insurgent group seized Kabul last month, said that he lived in the Afghan capital right under the nose of his adversaries who considered him a ‘ghost-like’ figure during the war. Mujahid, who operated in the shadows for years, also admitted that he studied at the Haqqania seminary in Nowshera in northwest Pakistan, which has also been dubbed the Taliban University or the ‘University of Jihad’ internationally. They (US and Afghan National Forces) used to think I did not exist, Mujahid told The Express Tribune newspaper in an interview. I escaped so many times from their raids and attempts to capture me that they seriously considered that ‘Zabiullah’ was a made-up figure, not a real man who exists, the 43-year-old spokesman said. And yet, I managed to move about Afghanistan freely. I think this perception helped with that, he explained. I lived in Kabul for a long time, right under everyone’s noses. I roamed the width and breadth of the country. I also managed to have first-hand access to the frontlines, where the Taliban carried out their actions, and up to date information. It was quite puzzling for our adversaries. Due to his shadowy appearance for years, there was speculation as to whether the faceless spokesman might actually be more than one person. The US forces would often pay off locals to obtain some information about my whereabouts. Using that information, like I said, they must have launched dozens of intelligence-based operations hoping to find some trace of me, he said. But I never left or tried to – even think about try to leave Afghanistan. Mujahid, who was born in the Gardez district of Paktia province sometime in 1978, said that he specialised in Islamic jurisprudence from the Haqqania seminary in northwest Pakistan. The Taliban government’s acting interior minister Sirajuddin Haqqani, Water and Energy Minister Mullah Abdul Latif Mansoor, and Telecommunication minister Najibullah Haqqani – all on the UN blacklist — and Education Minister Maulana Abdul Baqi Haqqani studied at the Haqqania seminary, which has regularly received grants from successive governments in Pakistan. Mujahid said he became the spokesman of the Taliban following the arrest of his predecessor. He also said that he had never seen the Taliban founder Mullah Umar. But I have worked with Sheikh Mullah Mansoor, and Sheikh Hebatullah, he said, referring to Mullah Omar’s successors.

Taliban: women can study in gender-segregated varsities. 

Afghan women will be allowed to attend university as long as they study separately from men, the Taliban’s new Higher Education Minister said on Sunday. Women’s rights in Afghanistan were sharply curtailed under the Taliban’s 1996-2001 rule, though since returning to power last month the hardline Islamists have claimed they will implement a less extreme rule. But speaking to reporters about the new regime’s plans for the country’s Education, Minister Abdul Baqi Haqqani was unapologetic about bringing an end to mixed sex classes. We have no problems in ending the mixed-education system, he said. The people are Muslims and they will accept it. The Taliban announced earlier this month that women could still study at university if they wore an abaya robe and niqab covering most of the face, with classes segregated by sex or at least divided by a curtain. Haqqani said that the education system had changed greatly since the Taliban’s last time in power, when women were barred from schools and universities. Compared to the past the number of eeducational Institutions have increased dramatically, he said. This gives us hope for a future, prosperous and selfsufficient Afghanistan … we will continue from where they were left. Some fear the new rules will exclude women because the universities do not have the resources to provide separate classes. But Haqqani insisted there were enough women teachers and, where they were not available, alternatives could be found without breaching rules. It all depends on the university’s capacity, he said. We can also use male teachers to teach from behind a curtain, or use technology. The Taliban say they want to distance themselves from the harsher policies of old, when half the population was excluded from work and education.

NATIONAL NEWS 

Rupani steps down ahead of Assembly polls in Gujarat

Whether it was a sign of the BJP national leadership’s increasing dissatisfaction with the Gujarat Chief Minister or the practical necessities of a State that will be facing Assembly elections next year, Vijay Rupani has stepped down paving the way for  a change of guard in the state. His replacement will be in place soon. BJP general secretary B L Santosh is understood to have held meetings at the State party headquarters during the day. Rupani met the Governor Acharya Devrat and submitted his resignation. I have resigned after conveying my wishes to the party leadership to let me work in the organisation, Rupani said. For quite some time now speculative theories have been doing the rounds of a possible  change of guard in the state. A journalist even faces the sedition charge for a news item suggesting CM Rupani could be asked to step down! The ruling party had been contemplating to effect a change of guard in Gujarat given the apparent lacklustre administration of C M Rupani, whose performance was not as per the expectations of the party high command. Some political observers have also pointed out to the manner in which the chief minister handled the Covid-19 pandemic leading to many deaths in the state. Rupani took over the reins of the state in August 2016 after the sudden resignation of the then chief minister Anandiben Patel who stepped down following her inept handling of the Patidar agitation that rocked the state. Patel is currently the Governor of Uttar Pradesh.

Editors Guild expresses concern on attacks on press freedom

The Editors Guild of India (EGI) on Saturday expressed concern over Income Tax department officials seizing journalists’ data from the offices of news websites Newslaundry and NewsClick and passing them off as surveys conducted by the agency.  The IT raid on NewsClick comes close on the heels of a recent directive from the Delhi HC asking the Enforcement Directorate to act with caution. In a statement, the EGI said it was disturbed by what were called ‘surveys’ by the I-T officials. Newslaundry co-founder Abhinandan Sekhri, however, said in a statement the visit was an attack on press freedom. It is learnt that the I-T team made clones of Sekhri’s mobile and laptop, as well as some other office machines, and no hash value was given to them. This is clearly beyond the mandate of surveys as defined under Section 133A of the Income Tax Act, which only allows data pertaining to the investigation to be copied, and certainly not personal and professional data of journalists, the EGI said. It said the seized data could include information about sources and ongoing reporting. The EGI also raised the issue of raids by the Enforcement Directorate at the office of NewsClick recently. Both NewsClick and Newslaundry have been critical of policies and functioning of the Union government. The dangerous trend of government agencies harassing and intimidating independent media must stop as it undermines our constitutional democracy, it said.  The EGI said such investigations should be handled with great care and sensitivity so as not to undermine the rights of journalists and the media.

I have been placed under house arrest in Srinagar, says Mehbooba Mufti 

Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) chief Mehbooba Mufti on Tuesday claimed that she had been put under house arrest in Srinagar, a day after she alleged that the police had shown disrespect to the body of Syed Ali Shah Geelani. GOI [Government of India] expresses concern for the rights of Afghan people but willfully denies the same to Kashmiris. I’ve been placed under house arrest today because according to administration the situation is far from normal in Kashmir. This exposes their fake claims of normalcy, she said in a tweet. The former Chief Minister after a party meeting in Srinagar alleged ‘maltreatment’ of the body of Geelani on September 2. Meanwhile, mobile Internet was restored in Srinagar and Budgam districts on Tuesday, six days after Geelani’s death. Train services also resumed.

With eye-banking services badly hit by Covid-19, AIIMS study to ascertain its presence in various parts of eye 

The R. P. Centre for Ophthalmic Sciences at AIIMS is conducting a study to ascertain the presence of the coronavirus in various parts of the eye of those who have died due to the infection, the centre’s chief J. S. Titiyal said on Tuesday. Addressing a press conference on the 36th Eye Donation Fortnight celebration by the National Eye Bank (NEB), he said that five eye balls have been collected for carrying out the study. The research study will help ascertain the presence of the coronavirus in the cornea, optic nerve and retina of Covid-19 infected deceased, Titiyal said. These eye balls will be subjected to various molecular tests to detect presence of the coronavirus in these tissues and also look for genetic evidence, he said. Namrata Sharma of the R. P. Centre said that there is no proven evidence so far which establishes any direct link between Covid-19 leading to blindness. Because of Covid-19, cases of conjunctivitis have been reported but that does not lead to vision loss. Covid-19 leads to mucormycosis and there have been cases where it has impacted vision and lead to blindness, she said. There have been isolated cases of retinal and Venus blocks which may lead to sudden diminishing of vision due to thromboembolism . But there has been no proven cause and effect relationship between them so far, Sharma said. Tissue retrieval is performed only from presumed Covid-19 negative donors, according to established eye banking guidelines, she said. To ensure maximum safety we perform a post-mortem nasopharyngeal swab RT-PCR testing for all our potential donors. Of the tissues retrieved by us between July 2020 and July 2021, we found that 5.5 per cent of the presumed Covid-19 negative donors tested RT-PCR positive for SARS-CoV2, Sharma said. The tissues from these donors were not used for corneal transplantation and were subjected to further microbiological analysis, she said. Eye banking services have been one of the worst hit by the Covid-19 pandemic, Titiyal said. Corneal tissue retrieval activities by the NEB, which remained suspended from April 2020 to June 2020 during the nationwide lockdown, were restarted through the hospital cornea retrieval program (HCRP) from July 2020 onwards.

INTERNATIONAL NEWS 

Remembering 9/11, 20 years on

Twenty years after the world was upended, the day marking the grim anniversary of 9/11 was observed in the U.S.. The anniversary comes at a particularly difficult time for President Joe Biden, who has been criticised in recent for the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan, which ended a U.S. presence that began less than a month after the September 11 attacks; left the country in chaos and achieved little. The Taliban captured Kabul even before the withdrawal of U.S. from the country. In a video released on the eve of the 20th anniversary, the President paid tribute all those who who lost their lives. We honour all those who risked and gave their lives in the minutes, hours, months and years afterwards, Mr Biden added, speaking of the emergency workers who responded to the attacks. In his address on Friday, he said: No matter how much time has passed, these commemorations bring everything painfully back as if you just got the news a few seconds ago. President Joe Biden (C) waves as he is joined by (L-R) former President Bill Clinton, former First Lady Hillary Clinton, former President Barack Obama, former First Lady Michelle Obama, First Lady Jill Biden and former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg, during the annual 9/11 Commemoration Ceremony at the National 9/11 Memorial and Museum on September 11, 2021 in New York.  The attacks, which were planned by al-Qaeda from Afghanistan, saw four U.S. passenger jets hijacked by suicide attackers — two of which were rammed into the Twin Towers. Another plane struck the Pentagon, just outside the U.S. capital, Washington D.C., and a fourth crashed in a field in Pennsylvania after passengers fought back. British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said pn Friday that the perpetrators of the attack had failed to destroy Western values. We can now say with the perspective of 20 years that they (the jihadists) failed to shake our belief in freedom and democracy, he said in the message delivered ahead of the anniversary on Saturday. They failed to drive our nations apart, or cause us to abandon our values, or to live in permanent fear, Johnson said as reported by the BBC.

 

Pakistan resumes flights to Kabul

After the visit of Pakistan’s intelligence chief Faiz Hameed’s to Kabul, a day marked by protests in the country, and after the Taliban announced a news government and invited China, Russia, Pakistan, Iran, Turkey and Qatar to the inaugural, Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) announced that it will resume flights from Islamabad to Kabul next week, becoming the first foreign commercial service since the Taliban seized power last month. Kabul airport was severely damaged during a chaotic evacuation of over 1,20,000 people that ended with the withdrawal of U.S. forces on August 30. The Taliban have been scrambling to get it operating again with Qatari technical assistance. We have got all technical clearances for flight operations, PIA spokesman Abdullah Hafeez Khan told AFP. Our first commercial plane… is scheduled to fly from Islamabad to Kabul on September 13, Khan said adding that the service would depend on demand. We have received 73 requests which is very encouraging… from humanitarian relief agencies and journalists, he said. In the last two days Qatar Airways has operated two charter flights out of Kabul, carrying mostly foreigners and Afghans who missed being taken out during the evacuation. An Afghan airline resumed domestic flights last week.

NATIONAL NEWS

Restore J&K’s Statehood before announcing elections, says Farooq Abdullah 

Former Chief Minister and National Conference (NC) president Farooq Abdullah on Wednesday said the Centre must restore Statehood before announcing elections and pledged to continue the fight for restoration of Jammu and Kashmir’s special status. Whenever elections are held, we won’t shy away and rather participate and win as well. The Centre must first restore Statehood before holding polls, Dr. Abdullah said. He was speaking during a commemoration function held in Srinagar on the 39th death anniversary of party founder Sheikh Mohammad Abdullah. He said his party remained firm on the demand of restoration of Article 370 and 35A of the Indian Constitution and Statehood to Jammu and Kashmir. To a question on Taliban’s takeover of Afghanistan and its likely impact, Dr. Abdullah said, Afghanistan is a separate country. They [Taliban] must protect human rights in Afghanistan and follow Islamic principles in spirit. Taliban must build good relations with rest of the world.

Mamata starts campaign from Bhabanipur for bypoll

West Bengal Chief Minister and Trinamool Congress (TMC) chairperson Mamata Banerjee on Wednesday began her campaign for the Bhabanipur bypoll by addressing a meeting of party supporters in the constituency. She targeted the BJP for allegedly indulging in political vendetta. Just after the bypoll dates are announced, Trinamool Congress [TMC] leaders are being summoned by Central agencies. Notices are being sent to Abhishek [TMC general secretary Abhishek Banerjee] and Partha [TMC leader Partha Chatterjee), she said. She dared the agencies to probe the allegations against Bbanerjee. Her remarks came after the Enforcement Directorate served a second notice to Banerjee in a coal pilferage case. The Chief Minister has to face the bypoll as she lost the poll at Nandigram by a narrow margin of 1,956 votes to BJP leader Suvendu Adhikari. I have to contest a poll again due to a BJP conspiracy. We have gone to court over the issue. If there is no merit in the petition, the court would not have accepted it, she stated. Referring to the recent polls in which the TMC registered a convincing victory over the BJP by winning 213 seats in the 294-member Assembly, she asserted that the Centre, all its agencies and ‘money power’ and ‘muscle power’ of the BJP could not defeat her. There was a planned attack on her in Nandigram in which she suffered a foot injury and had to be confined to a wheelchair during the poll campaign, she observed. The Chief Minister noted that she was happy to contest from Bhawanipur, her home constituency from where she got elected in 2011 and 2016. Not only the Assembly polls, but for the six times I contested the Lok Sabha poll from South Kolkata, people of Bhabanipur supported me, she said. She announced that she would file her nomination papers on September 10. The constituency will go to the polls on September 30. Banerjee assured Minister Sovandeb Chattopadhyay, who resigned from Bhabanipur to pave the way for the bypoll, that he would also contest a bypoll and remain a Minister. State BJP president Dilip Ghosh said the real contest at Bhabanipur would be between the TMC and the BJP. There can be any number of candidates in bypolls, our voters are with us. The CPI(M)-Congress announcing or not announcing their candidates is not a factor in West Bengal polls; they didn’t get entry into the Assembly in the last polls. We’re ready, he added. The BJP is yet to announce its candidate for the Bhabanipur bypoll.

TN passes Bill seeking to dispense with NEET, to admit students based on qualifying exam marks

The Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly on Monday passed a Bill to enact a law seeking to dispense with the requirement of qualifying in the National Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test (NEET) for admission into undergraduate medical degree courses in the State. The Tamil Nadu Admission to Undergraduate Medical Degree Courses Bill, 2021, further sought to provide admission to these courses on the basis of marks obtained in the qualifying examination [Plus Two marks] through normalisation methods as was done prior to 2017. The Bill, moved by Chief Minister M.K. Stalin contended that admissions to medical education courses were traceable to entry 25 of List III, Schedule VII of the Constitution of India and the State was competent to regulate the same for underprivileged social groups. The Bill said it aimed to ensure social justice, uphold equality and equal opportunity, protect all vulnerable student communities from being discriminated against and bring them to the mainstream of medical and dental education and in turn, to ensure robust public healthcare across Tamil Nadu, particularly the rural areas. A high-level committee headed by retired High Court judge A.K. Rajan had, in its report to the State government, said that the NEET clearly undermined the diverse societal representation in MBBS and higher medical studies favouring mainly the affluent segment of the society, while equally thwarting the dreams of pursuing medical education by underprivileged social groups, the Bill said. The NEET does not seem to ensure merit or standard of the students being offered MBBS under its purview. The findings [of the Committee] indicate that the NEET has only enabled and empowered comparatively the low-performing (in NEET scores and HSc scores) students to get admission to MBBS. Therefore, the question of NEET ensuring quality and merit of the students is to be ruled out, the Bill said. Among others, the Committee recommended that the State government pass an Act similar to that of the Tamil Nadu Admission in Professional Educational Institutions Act, 2006 indicating the need for elimination of NEET at all levels of medical education and get the President’s assent for the same. This will ensure social justice and protect all vulnerable student communities from being discriminated in admission to medical education programmes, it said.

Pegasus case: SC to pass interim orders

The Supreme Court on Monday decided to pass interim orders after the government refused to respond, through a detailed affidavit, to allegations that it used Israeli-based Pegasus software to spy on citizens. The government said such an affidavit in the apex court would be too public and compromise national security. The petitioners demanded that either the Cabinet Secretary file an affidavit or the court itself form a committee led by a sitting judge to probe the snooping controversy. A Bench of Chief Justice of India (CJI) N.V. Ramana, Justices Surya Kant and Hima Kohli said there cannot be any beating around the bush in the issue. The CJI said the court had given the government a fair opportunity to file a detailed affidavit in order to get a clear idea of its stand in the Pegasus case. We thought the government would file a counter-affidavit now we will pass our interim orders, he remarked. However, after reserving orders, the court told Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, for the government, that he could mention the case if there were any second thoughts in the next few days before the pronouncement of the order. Senior advocate Kapil Sibal, appearing for senior journalists N. Ram and Sashi Kumar, said the government’s refusal to file a detailed affidavit was unbelievable. Mehta reasoned that a public discourse on whether a particular software was used or not would alert terrorists. He urged the court to allow the government to form a committee of domain experts who would look into the allegations of snooping orchestrated against citizens, including journalists, activists, Ministers, parliamentarians, among others. He assured the court that the committee members would have no relationship with the government and would place their report before the Supreme Court. The committee report will have to withstand the Supreme Court’s judicial scrutiny… I am not averse to an enquiry. The government takes individuals’ plea of violation of their privacy seriously. It has to be gone into, it must be gone into… It is the feeling of the government that such an issue cannot be placed on affidavit. It has to be gone through by a committee. It concerns national security, he submitted.

INTERNATIONAL NEWS

Biden vax order : ‘ We are in the tough stretch.  

In his most forceful pandemic actions and words, President Joe Biden ordered sweeping new federal vaccine requirements for as many as 100 million Americans, private-sector employees as well as health care workers and federal contractors, in an all-out effort to curbthe surging Covid-19 delta variant. Speaking at the White House Thursday, Biden sharply criticised the tens of millions of Americans who are not yet vaccinated, despite months of availability and incentives. We’ve been patient. But our patience is wearing thin, and your refusal has cost all of us, he said, all but biting off his words.The unvaccinated minority can cause a lot of damage, and theyare. Republican leaders, and some union chiefs, too, said Biden was going too far in trying to muscle private companies and workers,a certain sign of legalchallenges to come. Gov. Henry McMaster of South Carolina said in a statement that Biden andthe radical Democrats (have) thumbed their noses at the Constitution,while American Federation of Government Employees National President Everett Kelley insisted that changes like this should be negotiated with our bargaining units where appropriate. On the other hand, there were strong words of praise for Biden’s efforts to get the nation vaccinated from the American Medical Association, the National Association of Manufacturers and the Business Roundtable, though no direct mention of his mandate for private companies. The expansive rules mandate that all employers with more than 100 workers require them to be vaccinated or test for the virus weekly, affecting about 80 million Americans. And the roughly 17 million workersat health facilities that receive federalMedicare or Medicaid also will have to be fully vaccinated.

Spread of Delta Covid-19 knocks windout of UK economy in July. 

Britain’s economy unexpectedly slowed to a crawl in July as the Delta variant of Covid-19 spread rapidly after lockdown restrictions were eased and as a pingdemic’ kept many workers at home self-isolating. Economic output rose just 0.1% in July, the Office for National Statistics said on Friday, the smallest monthly increase since January when Britain went into a new national lockdown. Economists polled by Reuters had mostly expected month-on-month growth of 0.6% in gross domestic product. Only two of the 26 analysts had expected such a weak reading. Finance minister Rishi Sunak said he was confident that the economy would continue to recover from the pandemic. But the slowdown in growth may bolsterthe case of Bank of England officials ital Economics consultancy. Britain saw a sharp increase in Covid19 cases in July as the Delta variant spread rapidly, leading to hundreds of thousands of workers being ordered to stay at home underself-isolation rules which have been relaxed. The ONS said some businesses had complained of staff being unable to come to work because they were required to selfisolate, the so-called pingdemic and a fall in construction output was linked to post. Who think it is premature to talk about withdrawing stimulus, despite growing inflation pressure. Earlier this week, BoE Governor Andrew Bailey said he saw a levelling-off in the recovery taking place, with labour shortages, global supply chain problems and Brexit disruption combining to stunt the economic rrecovery Stalling GDP and rising inflationwill leave a whiff of stagflation in the air,said Lockdown problems in global supply chains. The dominant services sector was flat in July from June with output in consumer-facing services falling for the first time since January, driven mostly by a drop in the retail sector. Industrial output grew by 1.2%, boosted by the return to production of an oil field, but manufacturing was flat. Construction output fell by a monthly Paul Dales, chief Ukeconomist at the Cap- 1.6%.

INTERNATIONAL NEWS 

Ford to stop manufacturing cars in India; 4,000 employees to lose jobs

U.S.-headquartered Ford on Thursday announced a restructuring of the Indian operation under which the company will stop manufacturing vehicles at its two plants in the country, resulting in loss of jobs for about 4,000 employees. Ford India will cease manufacturing vehicles for sale in India immediately…[the company] will wind down vehicle assembly in Sanand by the fourth quarter of 2021 and vehicle and engine manufacturing in Chennai by the second quarter of 2022, the company said in a statement. Ford said India will remain home to Ford’s second-largest salaried workforce globally, and in addition to Ford Business Solutions, Ford India will continue engine manufacturing for export, as well as full customer support operations with service, aftermarket parts and warranty support. It also added that more than 500 employees at the Sanand Engine plant, which produces engines for export for the best-selling Ranger pickup truck, and about 100 employees supporting parts distribution and customer service, will continue to support Ford’s business in India. The company said that it plans to serve customers in India with iconic vehicles, including Mustang coupe. Customers in India also will benefit longer term from the Company’s plan to invest more than U.S. $30 billion globally to deliver all-new hybrid and fully electric vehicles, such as Mustang Mach-E, it said. Ford said it will continue to provide customers in India with ongoing parts, service, and warranty support. The decision follows accumulated operating losses of more than $2 billion over the past 10 years and a $0.8 billion non-operating write-down of assets in 2019. Ford India will maintain parts depots in Delhi, Chennai, Mumbai, Sanand and Kolkata and will work closely with its dealer network to restructure and help facilitate their transition from sales and service to parts and service support. 

 

Al-Qaeda may seek a comeback in Afghanistan: Pentagon chief. 

U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said on Thursday alQaeda may attempt to regenerate in Afghanistan following an American withdrawal that has left the Taliban in power. Mr. Austin spoke to reporters in Kuwait City at the conclusion of a four-day tour of Gulf states. He said Washington was prepared to prevent a return of the extremist group in Afghanistan that would threaten the U.S. The whole community is kind of watching to see what happens and whether or not al-Qaeda has the ability to regenerate in Afghanistan, he said. The nature of alQaeda and (the Islamic State group) is they will always attempt to find space to grow and regenerate, whether it’s there, whether it’s in Somalia, or whether it’s in any other ungoverned space. I Lloyd Austin think that’s the nature of the organisation. The Taliban had provided al-Qaeda with sanctuary while it ruled Afghanistan from 1996 to 2001. The U.S. invaded and overthrew the Taliban after it refused to turn over al-Qaeda leaders following the September 11, 2001 attack on the United States. During the course of the 20-year U.S. war, al-Qaeda was vastly diminished, but questions have arisen about its future prospects with the Taliban back in Kabul. We put the Taliban on notice that we expect them to not allow that to happen, Mr. Austin said, referring to the possibility of al-Qaeda using Afghanistan as a staging base in future. In a February 2020 agreement with the Trump administration, the Taliban leaders pledged not to support al-Qaeda or other extremist groups that would threaten the United States. But U.S. officials believe the Taliban maintain ties to al-Qaeda, and many nations, including the Gulf Arab states, are concerned that the Taliban’s return to power could open the door to a resurgence of al-Qaeda influence. Mr. Austin asserted that the U.S. military is capable of containing al-Qaeda or any other extremist threat to the U.S. emanating from Afghanistan by using surveillance and strike aircraft based elsewhere, including in the Gulf.

NATIONAL NEWS 

IITs top Education Ministry’s rankings for 2021 

The Indian Institute of Technology (IIT)-Madras was ranked the best higher education institution in the country for the third year in a row by the Education Ministry, which released its India Rankings 2021 under the National Institutional Ranking Framework on Thursday. In fact, IITs dominated the overall rankings, with seven of the top 10 positions. The Indian Institute of Science (IISc) in Bengaluru ranked second, followed by IIT-Bombay, IIT-Delhi, IIT-Kanpur, IIT-Kharagpur, IIT-Roorkee and IIT-Guwahati. Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) and Banaras Hindu University (BHU) closed out the top 10 at rank nine and 10 respectively. The Indian Institute of Technology Madras retained the top spot among institutes in the country among universities, IISc was ranked one, followed by JNU, BHU, Calcutta University, Amrita Vishwa Vidyapeetham in Coimbatore, Jamia Millia Islamia in New Delhi, Manipal Academy of Higher Education, Jadavpur University, University of Hyderabad and Aligarh Muslim University at rank 10. Delhi University was placed 12 in the university rankings and 19 overall. Among engineering institutions, IIT-Madras remained number one, followed by IIT-Delhi, IIT-Bombay, IIT-Kanpur, IIT-Kharagpur, IIT-Roorkee, IIT-Guwahati, IIT-Hyderabad, National Institute of Technology (NIT)-Tiruchirappalli and NIT-Karnataka. For management institutions, Indian Institute of Management (IIT)-Ahmedabad was ranked one, followed by IIM-Bangalore, IIM-Calcutta, IIT-Kozhikode, IIT-Delhi, IIM-Indore, IIM-Lucknow, Xavier Labour Relations Institute in Jamshedpur, IIT-Kharagpur and IIT-Bombay. Jamia Hamdard was ranked one for pharmacy, followed by Panjab University. Manipal College of Dental Sciences was ranked the best in the dental category. All-India Institute of Medical Sciences in New Delhi scored the top rank for medical institutions, followed by Post Graduate Institute of Medical Education and Research in Chandigarh, Christian Medical College in Vellore, National Institute of Mental Health and Neuro Sciences in Bengaluru, Sanjay Gandhi Postgraduate Institute of Medical Sciences in Lucknow, Amrita Vishwa Vidyapeetham, BHU, Jawaharlal Institute of Post Graduate Medical Education and Research in Puducherry, King George’s Medical University in Lucknow and Kasturba Medical College in Manipal. Among institutions teaching law, National Law School of India University in Bengaluru was ranked number one, followed by National Law University in Delhi, NALSAR University of Law in Hyderabad, West Bengal National University of Juridicial Sciences, IIT-Kharagpur, Gujarat National Law University, Jamia Millia Islamia, National Law University in Jodhpur, Symbiosis Law School in Pune and Kalinga Institute of Industrial Technology in Bhubaneswar. IISc was ranked the best research institution, a category included for the first time.

 

Gyanvapi mosque title dispute: Allahabad High Court stays lower court proceedings 

The Allahabad High Court on Thursday placed an interim stay on the proceedings in a lower court in the Gyanvapi mosque-Kashi Vishwanath temple title dispute in Varanasi, including the April order of the lower court which had directed the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) to conduct a comprehensive physical survey of the Gyanvapi mosque compound adjacent to the temple. The HC put a stay on further proceedings in the original suit of 1991 pending before the court till the next date of listing on October 8. Justice Prakash Padia came down heavily on the lower court in Varanasi, saying that it should not have proceeded and decided the application filed by the plaintiffs in the original suit for survey by the ASI even as the judgment in the original pending petitions in the matter was reserved by the HC on March 15 the Court below should wait for the verdict in the petitions pending before this Court and not proceed further in the matter till the time a judgment is delivered. The judicial courtesy and decorum warranted such discipline which was expected from the Court below but for unfathomable reasons, neither of the courses were taken, said the HC. Justice Padia also regretted that the lower court judge departed from this traditional way in the present case and chose to examine the question himself. I have said so with the fond hope that judicial enthusiasm should not obliterate the profound responsibility that is expected from the Court below, Justice Padia observed. The court allowed the amendment applications filed by the Uttar Pradesh Sunni Central Waqf Board and the managing committee of the Gyanvapi Mosque in Varanasi, Anjuman Intezamia Masjid, and directed their counsel to make necessary amendments in the petition in three days. The lower court had in April directed the ASI to find out whether the Gyanvapi mosque was a superimposition, alteration or addition or there is structural overlapping of any kind, with or over, any other religious structure. Senior civil judge fast track court Ashutosh Tiwari had directed the Director General of the ASI to constitute a five-member committee of experts and those well versed in the science of archaeology, two out of which should preferably belong to the minority community. The committee would trace as to whether any Hindu temple ever existed before the mosque in question was built or superimposed or added upon at the disputed site, the judge has said. The order had come on a petition demanding the restoration of the land on which the Gyanvapi mosque stands to the Hindus, claiming that Mughal emperor Aurangzeb had pulled down parts of the old Kashi Vishwanath temple to build the mosque.

 

‘Love jihad’ case: Gujarat High Court asks why government has problems when the woman wants to remain married? 

The Gujarat High Court today asked the State government to file an affidavit explaining its objections in an interfaith marriage case in which the police have lodged an FIR booking the husband, in-laws and priests for solemnising the marriage. The victim in the case has categorically stated that the contents of the FIR the Vadodara Police have lodged are not true and she wanted to remain married to the person who has been booked under the amended Freedom of Religion (Amendment) Act 2021 for forceful conversion through marriage. This is the first case the State police lodged after the Act was notified into the law to stop religious conversion through interfaith marriage using force, allurement or fraudulent means. Last month, provisions of the amended law dealing with interfaith marriages were stayed by the High Court. According to the details of the first case, seven persons were booked, including husband, in-laws and the priest who solemnised the marriage. All four have been arrested and are behind the bars. On Wednesday, the victim came to the High Court and stated before Justice I.J. Vora that she had voluntarily filed the petition seeking to quash the FIR and proceedings against her husband and others and also told the court that she wants to live together as married couple with her husband. In her petition in the High Court, the petitioner stated that when she had approached a local police station in Vadodara regarding petty and trivial matrimonial discord, the police, under the pressure of certain elements, brought in the love jihad angle and also registered the FIR under the new law. The police also added the charges of rape and sodomy in the FIR which she categorically denied and was even shocked that the police added such charges without asking her. In her petition, she also denied the charge of forceful conversion as mentioned by the police in the FIR and submitted that her affidavit in this regard denying such charges of forceful conversion and others was not accepted by the lower court while denying bails to the accused. She and her husband have stated that both were in a relationship and were aware of each other’s religion and both decided to solemnise their marriage as per the Islamic rites and the same was notarised and subsequently it was registered as per the Special Marriage Act. The couple have submitted that the girl’s father stood a witness in their marriage and both families had no issues but certain religio-political groups and overzealous police communalised and sensationalised their marriage. Now, the High Court has directed the State government to file an affidavit and explain its objections regarding the quashing of charges and criminal proceedings in the case by September 20.

 

Covid Watch: Numbers and Developments 

The number of reported coronavirus cases from India stood at 3,31,71,924 with the death toll at 4,41,970. The government today said 58% of India’s adult population has received at least one dose of the Covid-19 vaccine while 18% got both the shots as the total number of jabs administered in the country crossed 72 crore. Addressing a press conference, officials said India is still going through the second wave of coronavirus infections and it is not over yet. They said 35 districts in the country are still reporting a weekly Covid-19 positivity rate of over 10% while in 30 districts it is between five to 10%. Providing data about the number of cases reported from different parts of the country, officials said 68.59% of the total infection reported in the country last week was from Kerala. About resuming physical classes in schools, the government officials said no scientific body or evidence suggests that vaccination of children should be a condition for reopening schools. However, vaccination of teachers, school employees and parents is desirable, they said.

NATIONAL NEWS 

Tamil Nadu becomes eighth State to pass resolution against CAA

The Tamil Nadu Assembly on Wednesday adopted a resolution urging the Centre to repeal the Citizenship Amendment Act, 2019 to protect and ensure unity and communal harmony and uphold the secular principles enshrined in the Constitution. The Centre should also fully give up its initiatives related to preparation of the National Population Register and National Register of Citizens, Chief Minister MK Stalin said in his initial remarks on the CAA ahead of proposing the resolution. Tamil Nadu became the eighth State to pass a resolution against the CAA, while neighbouring Kerala and Puducherry were the first State and first union territory respectively to go against the Centre’s 2019 amendment law on citizenship. The Union Territory was under Congress rule last year. Stalin said the CAA was a big betrayal of Sri Lankan Tamil refugees as it usurped the rights of a section of them who do not desire going back and wanted to settle down in India. If those (refugees) from Pakistan, Afghanistan and Bangladesh can come (to India and get citizenship), why is there a bar on those belonging to Sri Lanka? This is the biggest betrayal of Sri Lankan Tamils (refugees), he said. Far from being concerned about Tamil refugees, the Union government actually discriminated against them and that was why this piece of legislation has to be opposed, he added. Refugees should be treated as only fellow human beings and there must be no discrimination on any grounds, be it religion, race or their country of origin and only this could be the correct view. Among the arguments advanced by Stalin against the CAA included a contention that it was against the basic structure of the Constitution and divided people. While the CAA provided for citizenship for refugees belonging to several faiths, Islamic people have been deliberately avoided and since this divides people based on religious lines, our party opposed this in the introductory stage itself (in Parliament), he said. The resolution moved by Stalin said the CAA passed by Parliament in 2019 is not in tune with the secular principles laid down in our Constitution and also not conducive to the communal harmony that prevails in India. As per established democratic principles, a nation should be governed taking into consideration the aspirations and concerns of the people belonging to all sections of society, the resolution said. Tamil Nadu follows Kerala, Punjab, Rajasthan, West Bengal, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh (Cabinet resolution) and Telangana (also, against National Population Register and National Register of Citizens), which had passed resolutions against the CAA. Andhra Pradesh, Delhi and Jharkhand Assemblies had passed resolutions against the NRC and NPR, while Gujarat and Goa passed resolutions and a congratulatory motion respectively in favour of the CAA. The Meghalaya Assembly had passed a resolution, urging the Centre to keep the state out of the ambit of the CAA.

Women will be allowed to enter National Defence Academy, Centre informs SC 

The Centre today gave the Supreme Court the good news that it had taken a decision to allow women entry into the National Defence Academy (NDA), so far a male bastion, for recruitment into the Armed Forces. If this decision comes through formally on paper, women can prepare for a career in the Armed Forces immediately after Class 12. There is good news. The Forces at the highest level and the government has taken a decision last evening to induct girls for permanent commission through the National Defence Academy, Additional Solicitor General Aishwarya Bhati informed a Bench led by Justices Sanjay Kishan Kaul and M.M. Sundresh. The Bench asked the government to file an affidavit in this regard by September 22, the next date of hearing. It said the Armed Forces was a respected institution, but it had more to do regarding gender equality. The court admitted that it was not a happy situation for it to constantly nudge the authorities into taking action on bettering gender representation. The Bench said authorities needed to act by themselves. The court commended Bhati for taking pro-active measures in favour of women interested in a career in the Armed Forces. Bhati urged the court for the time being to maintain status quo about the admissions to NDA in the present academic year. The law officer said the NDA exam, originally scheduled for September 5, had been postponed to November. Consider granting status quo for this examination and let it continue, as it will need policy, procedure, training and infrastructure changes, Bhati submitted. On August 18, the court had issued an interim order allowing women candidates to take the NDA exam, which was then scheduled on September 5. The court had also then questioned why co-education is a problem in the Armed Forces. The court had orally observed that it was absurd that women were not allowed to appear for the NDA exam even after the Supreme Court, in a judgment, had directed permanent commission for women in the Army. On February 17, 2020, the Supreme Court had upheld permanent commission for women officers. The court had dismissed the government’s submissions that women were physiologically weaker than men as a sex stereotype and declared that Short Service Commission (SSC) women officers were eligible for permanent commission and command posts in the Army irrespective of their years of service. Women officers of the Indian Army have brought laurels to the force… Their track record of service to the nation is beyond reproach. To cast aspersion on their abilities on the ground of gender is an affront not only to their dignity as women but to the dignity of the members of the Indian Army – men and women – who serve as equal citizens in a common mission. The time has come for a realisation that women officers in the Army are not adjuncts to a male-dominated establishment whose presence must be ‘tolerated’ within narrow confines, Justice Chandrachud had observed in a 54-page judgment in the Army case.

At least 1 dead, 35 missing in Assam after ferries collide in the Brahmaputra

One person died and at least 35 others were missing after two ferries collided in the flooded Brahmaputra off Neamatighat in eastern Assam’s Jorhat district in the afternoon of September 8. The dead and the missing were on the smaller ferry that capsized after the collision with the bigger ferry from the opposite direction about 350m off the Neamatighat ferry point at about 3.30 p.m. IST. Jorhat district officials said 42 people onboard ‘Maa Kamala’, the smaller ferry that had set sail from Neamatighat for Kamalabari ferry point in Majuli island, either swam to safety or were rescued. All passengers on ‘Tipkai’, the bigger ferry that was en route to Neamatighat from Kamalabari, were rescued by the personnel of the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) and the State Disaster Response Force (SDRF). Jorhat’s Superintendent of Police Ankur Jain said the rescued included seven children. A few were admitted to local hospitals, but a 28-year-old woman among them died. A communication error between the operators of the two boats perhaps led to the collision after which the smaller ferry sank, Mr. Jain told The Hindu.

Don’t want press freedom muzzled, says SC, granting interim protection to journalists of news website from any coercive action by U.P. 

The Supreme Court today said it did not want press freedom to be muzzled, as it granted interim protection to journalists of a news website from any coercive action by the State of Uttar Pradesh. We are aware of fundamental rights. We do not want press freedom to be muzzled, Justice L. Nageswara Rao addressed advocates Nitya Ramakrishnan and Shadan Farasat, appearing for the Foundation for Independent Journalism, which runs The Wire website. The foundation and some journalists with the website had approached the court against FIRs registered against them by the State. The court, however, advised the petitioners to approach the Allahabad High Court first rather than the apex court directly. The petitioners agreed to withdraw from the Supreme Court, which granted them interim protection for two months. Ramakrishnan said the FIRs were baseless. The news reports on which the FIRs were registered were factual and correct. The police action stifled the constitutionally guaranteed right of press freedom.

INTERNATIONAL NEWS 

Iran urged to resume nuclear talks

The U.S. and Germany on Wednesday stepped up pressure on Iran to return soon to talks on its nuclear programme. The last round of talks by the remaining parties to the 2015 Iran nuclear accord ended in June and no date has been set for their resumption.Last week, Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian said it takes two to three months for the new administration to establish and do planning for any sort of decision. Asked whether the delay suggested by Iran is too long, Mr. Blinken said: I’m not going to put a date on it, but we are getting closer to the point at which a strict return to the compliance with the (nuclear deal) does not reproduce the benefits that that agreement achieved. We’ve been very clear that the ability to rejoin the (deal), return to mutual compliance, is not indefinite, he added. On Tuesday, the U.N. nuclear watchdog said Iran has continued to increase its stockpile of highly enriched uranium in breach of the accord. The IAEA also said that its verification and monitoring activities have been seriously undermined.

China welcomes Taliban govt. as ‘end to anarchy’

China on Wednesday welcomed the Taliban’s announcement of formation of an interim government as a necessary step and an end to the anarchyin Afghanistan. Beijing also appeared to water down its earlier stand of underlining the importance of the Taliban setting up an inclusive government, which some officials had suggested was an expectation of Beijing as it considers recognising the new regime. Asked how China viewed Tuesday’s announcement by the Taliban of an interim government – one comprised of several sanctioned terrorists, no minorities, and no women and whether Beijing would recognise this government, Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin said: The Chinese Embassy in Afghanistan is operating normally. We stand ready to maintain communication with the new Afghan government and leaders. We hope the new Afghan administration in the capacity of interim government will broadly solicit the opinions of all ethnic groups and factions and live up to the expectation of the Afghan people and aspiration of the international community, he added. We noted that the Afghan Taliban stressed that all people will benefit from the new administration. Necessary step China earlier said it would consider recognising the Taliban only after government-formation in Kabul. Mr. Wang welcomed the announcement of an interim government, saying this has put an end to the anarchy in Afghanistan that lasted for over three weeks and is a necessary step for Afghanistan to restore domestic order and pursue post war reconstruction. China’s position on the Afghan issue is consistent and clear, he said. We always respect the sovereignty, independence and territorial integrity of Afghanistan, adhere to noninterference in Afghanistan’s internal affairs, and support the Afghan people in independently choosing a development path suited to the country’s conditions. Mr. Wang did add that China hoped Afghanistan will establish a broadly based and inclusive political structure, follow moderate and prudent domestic and foreign policies, resolutely combat all types of terrorist forces, and live on friendly terms with other countries, especially its neighbours. China and Russia, as well as China and Pakistan, have been regularly engaging on the Afghan issue in recent weeks. Mr. Wang said China had on September 5 attended a meeting with special representatives of Pakistan, Iran, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan and Turkmenistan held under the chairmanship of the Pakistani side.