Tag: CLAT

INTERNATIONAL NEWS 

Two major explosions outside Kabul airport, hand of Islamic State suspected

The U.S. military confirmed a large explosion on Thursday outside the Kabul airport in Afghanistan, where the United States and other countries have been evacuating tens of thousands of people. Subsequently, a second explosion was reported outside Baron Hotel, also near the Kabul airport. We can confirm an explosion outside Kabul airport. Casualties are unclear at this time. We will provide additional details when we can, said Pentagon spokesman John Kirby. Unconfirmed reports put the explosion at the airport’s main Abbey Gate, where thousands of people have massed over the past 12 days hoping to be evacuated after the Taliban seized power. Other reports located it close to the Baron Hotel near the gate, which Western nations had used to stage some evacuations. U.S. and allied officials have said they had intelligence that suicide bombers tied to the Afghan arm of the Islamic State group the Islamic State-Khorasan (IS-K) were threatening to attack the airport ahead of Washington’s August 31 deadline to finalise the evacuation. Early on Thursday Kabul time, Western nations warned their citizens to immediately leave the surrounds of the airport over a terrorist threat, as thousands of people tried to reach a dwindling number of evacuation flights. Those at the Abbey Gate, East Gate, or North Gate now should leave immediately, said the US State Department. Britain’s Armed Force Minister James Heappey said on Thursday a terrorist threat against the airport was imminent. Reporting over the week has become ever more credible. And it is of an imminent and severe threat to life, Heappey said. Most member nations of the U.S.-led coalition said on Thursday they had wound up or would soon end their own evacuation flights from Hamid Karzai International Airport. The total number of people who have been taken out of the US-controlled hub since the international airlift began on August 14 hit 95,700 on Thursday, including both Afghans and foreign nationals. President Joe Biden said Tuesday that the United States would stick to its deadline of withdrawing all troops from Afghanistan by August 31, to end the two-decade US-led war there. Meanwhile, the Russian Foreign Ministry said a suicide attack outside Kabul airport killed at least two people and wounded 15, AP reported. It was the first official report specifying a number of casualties.

Taliban stops 140 Hindu, Sikh Afghans from leaving Kabul 

At least 140 Afghan Sikhs and Hindus and others have been stopped by the Taliban from going to the Kabul airport, said president of the Indian World Forum Puneet Singh, who has been coordinating the evacuation with the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) and the Indian Air Force (IAF). The development has forced a delay in the departure of a special IAF aircraft, which has been waiting at the Kabul airport since Wednesday. The Indian World Forum said the Taliban turned back the passengers from outside the airport on Wednesday night. The Hindu had reported that around 200 Hindus and Sikhs of Afghanistan, including other citizens of the country, were scheduled to arrive in the Hindon airbase by Thursday morning. But the movement has been stopped, as the Taliban reportedly blocked those approaching the airport. The Taliban has been urging Afghan nationals not to leave the country and work with the Islamic Emirate that it aims to set up in the coming weeks. Sources said India had moved out a total of 565 stranded individuals from Afghanistan since evacuation flights began. This included 175 personnel of the Indian embassy, 263 other Indian nationals, and 112 Afghan nationals, including Hindus and Sikhs. The Hindu was informed that multiple checkpoints by various armed militant groups, overflight clearances from different countries, and delay in landing permissions have been the major problems posing a challenge to the evacuation process. The biggest challenge, however, came from the frequent firing near the airport and inside.

NATIONAL NEWS 

Baghel summoned again by Congress’s central leadership 

Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel has been summoned again by the Congress’s central leadership and he is expected to be in Delhi on Friday amidst the continuing power struggle between him and State Health Minister T.S. Singh Deo. Party sources did not rule out a change of guard in the State, though Baghel is resisting it. On Tuesday, Baghel and Deo met former Congress president Rahul Gandhi to resolve the issue. Deo has invoked the assurance made by Gandhi when he was leading the party in 2018 that he (Deo) will be handed over the reins of the State halfway through the government tenure. Following the meeting, party’s State-in-charge P.L. Punia told reporters that the leadership change issue was not discussed, indicating Baghel will continue. The Congress has 68 MLAs in the 90 member Assembly and its central leadership is said to be assessing the risk of effecting a leadership change. Gandhi is reportedly eager that the mid-course change of guard agreed upon by both leaders must be honoured. With the party’s position numerically very strong in the Assembly, the party high command is confident that a rebellion by either Deo or Baghel can be reined in. Baghel returned to Chhattisgarh on Wednesday to a rousing welcome at the airport by his supporters and loyalist MLAs. All along Thursday, more than 30 MLAs paid him a visit. Deo, on the other hand, continued to stay in Delhi. Sources close to him said he was told to remain in the Capital for further meetings. On Wednesday, he met party general secretary K.C. Venugopal, who has been entrusted with the responsibility of arriving at a compromise formula. Deo said, If a person plays in a team, then he can aspire to be the captain too. It’s not about his thoughts or aspirations. It’s about his capabilities and it is for the high command to take a decision. Venugopal has a tough job on his hands, with both sides refusing to cede space. Sources said it was suggested that except for the Chief Minister’s post, Deo could be given other concessions, including admitting his loyalists in the Cabinet and weeding out those against him. He was also offered the Deputy Chief Minister’s post, but he is not too keen to take it up. On the other hand, Baghel also remains adamant on not changing the composition of his Cabinet.

Can PM-CARES Fund spare money to help children affected by Covid-19 stay in school, SC asks Centre 

The Supreme Court on Thursday asked the Centre whether it can immediately release funds from the PM-CARES Fund for the education of children who have been orphaned or have lost legal guardians or either of their parents during the pandemic. A Bench of Justices L. Nageswara Rao and Aniruddha Bose highlighted that education was a fundamental right of children. Children needed to stay in school. It was especially anxious about the future of children who studied in private schools, where the fee may be on the higher side, and had lost their parents after the Covid-19 virus began disrupting lives since March 2020. Children should not lose the benefits of education because of the pandemic… Can the PM-CARES Fund come forward and immediately release some funds for the education of these children at least for the year? Is there any facility for that? Justice Rao asked Additional Solicitor General Aishwarya Bhati, for the Centre. Justice Rao said the Centre could coordinate with the States and help with the funds for education of children. Justice Rao asked Bhati to enquire with the Central authorities about the release of funds later in the day so that the court could pass an appropriate order. We can say that the States can contact the Central government for funds for the education of these children… the Bench observed.

SC orders shifting ex-Unitech bosses from Tihar jail to Mumbai prisons after discovery of their ‘secret underground office’  

The Supreme Court Thursday directed that erstwhile Unitech promoters Sanjay Chandra and Ajay Chandra be shifted from Tihar Jail in Delhi to Mumbai’s Arthur Road Jail and Taloja jail in Maharashtra. A bench of Justices D Y Chandrachud and M R Shah said that two reports of Enforcement Directorate about the conduct of Sanjay and Ajay and connivance of Tihar jail staff in flouting the orders and undermining the jurisdiction of the court have raised some serious and disturbing issues. It directed that Delhi Police Commissioner personally hold inquiry forthwith about the conduct of Tihar Jail staff with regard to the Chandras and submit the report to the court within four weeks. Making a startling revelation in the Supreme Court, the ED said it has unearthed a secret underground office which was being operated by erstwhile Unitech founder Ramesh Chandra and visited by his sons Sanjay and Ajay when on parole or bail. The ED, which has been investigating money-laundering charges against the Chandras’ and Unitech Ltd, said in its report that both Sanjay and Ajay have rendered the entire judicial custody meaningless as they have been freely communicating, instructing their officials and disposing of properties from inside the jail in connivance with the prison staff there.

DGCA lifts ban on Boeing 737 MAX airplanes 

The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) on Thursday cleared the decks for operating Boeing 737 MAX upon satisfactory compliance to applicable requirements for return of service. The order, ending more than two years of grounding, would come into immediate effect, aviation sources said. The DGCA had, effective March 13, 2019, banned the operation of two makes of Boeing airplanes following two fatal accidents involving Boeing 737 Max airplanes (Lion Air Flight 610 and Ethiopian Airlines Flight 302) and directed that, for the purpose of securing safety, operation of Boeing 737-8 and 737-9 would not take place from/to Indian airports and transit or enter into Indian airspace. In April, the order was relaxed to the extent that foreign-registered Boeing 737 Max aircraft, which were grounded in India due to the ban, were permitted to fly out of the country. Also, overflying foreign registered Boeing 737 Max aircraft were allowed to fly over Indian airspace. However, commercial operations in the country remained prohibited. The decision now to allow the operation of the airplanes was taken after the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) issued an Airworthiness Directive on November 18, 2020, mandating actions for Boeing 737 Max airplanes to return to service. The European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) also issued the Airworthiness Directive on February 17, 2021. The move followed certain design changes by Boeing. After the grounding order for the airplanes was rescinded by FAA and EASA, the regulatory authority closely monitored the global trend on removal of ban. World-wide 17 regulators have permitted operation of Boeing 737 Max airplanes. A sizeable number of airlines (34) with B737 airplane (345) are operating currently and have attained 1,22,824 departures with 2,89,537 cumulative hours since the ungrounding from December 9, 2020, with no untoward reporting, the DGCA said in an order.

NATIONAL NEWS 

Pegasus row: Supreme Court asks Bengal to wait and not go ahead with judicial inquiry

The Supreme Court on Wednesday urged the West Bengal government to wait and not go ahead with a separate judicial inquiry into the Pegasus snooping allegations when the apex court is already seized of the issue. A Bench of Chief Justice of India (CJI) N.V. Ramana and Justice Surya Kant did not pass a formal order staying the work of the government-appointed commission of inquiry after senior advocate Abhishek Manu Singhvi gave an oral assurance to convey the apex court’s message of restraint to the government. The commission of inquiry comprises retired Supreme Court judge Justice Madan B. Lokur and retired Chief Justice of the Calcutta High Court, Justice Jyotirmay Bhattacharya. Senior advocate Harish Salve, appearing for the petitioner, an NGO called ‘Global Village Foundation’, submitted that there cannot be a parallel inquiry when the apex court was hearing the issue. The petition has challenged the government notification, which appointed the commission in July. It said the commission has no jurisdiction to embark on such an inquiry. Salve submitted that a public notice was issued by the commission of inquiry and proceedings were taking place on a day-to-day basis. The Bench said it may take up the Pegasus cases next week and pass a comprehensive order. It tagged the petition with the Pegasus cases pending before it. Justice Kant said any decision in the Pegasus issue would likely have a pan-India impact. The Supreme Court issued a pre-admission notice to the Centre on August 17 on petitions seeking an independent enquiry into the charges that the government used the Israeli-based spyware to snoop on journalists, activists, dissenters, parliamentarians, Ministers and other citizens. After issuing the notice, a Bench of CJI Ramana, Justices Kant and Aniruddha Bose said it would consider the further course of action, including the formation of a committee to inquire into the allegations, in due time. The notice was issued after the government, represented by Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, stood firm by its two-page affidavit, denying all and any allegations. Mehta had said any revelation about any software allegedly used by government to counter terrorism would compromise national security.

Won’t take action against Narayan Rane in FIR till Sept. 17, Maharashtra govt tells HC 

The Maharashtra government told the Bombay High Court on Wednesday that no coercive action would be taken till September 17 against Union Minister Narayan Rane in the FIR registered at Nashik for making a ‘slap’ remark against Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray. Rane moved a division bench of justices S.S. Shinde and N.J. Jamadar to quash the FIR registered at the Nashik cyber police station on Tuesday and sought no coercive action against him. Advocate Satish Maneshinde, appearing for Rane, told the court that there were multiple FIRs against him, and he would amend the petition with all the details. Senior advocate Amit Desai, representing the government, said no action would be taken against him in the Nashik FIR till September 17. Rane, Minister for Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises, in the petition filed through advocate Aniket Nikam has urged that he is innocent and falsely implicated in this crime. The plea mentions, The investigation in the said crime is completed and nothing remains to be investigated. FIRs at various police stations against Rane for the same series of transactions is nothing but causing harassment and multiplicity of litigation. On Monday, while addressing a ‘Jan Ashirvad Yatra’ of the BJP in Raigad district, Rane said Thackeray forgot the year of Independence during his August 15 address to people and had he been present at the spot, he would have slapped the Chief Minister.

Supreme Court directive to HC on Asthana’s appointment as Delhi Police chief 

The Supreme Court on Wednesday asked the Delhi High Court to decide the legality of Gujarat cadre IPS officer Rakesh Asthana’s appointment as Delhi Police Commissioner preferably within two weeks. A Bench led by Chief Justice of India (CJI) N.V. Ramana allowed NGO Centre for Public Interest Litigation (CPIL), represented by advocate Prashant Bhushan, to intervene in the case in the High Court. The order was passed when Bhushan’s case, also challenging the Asthana appointment, came up for hearing before the apex court Bench. The identical case pending before the High Court has been filed by a Delhi-based advocate, Sadre Alam. As soon as the hearing began before the CJI Bench, Solicitor General Tushar Mehta informed the Supreme Court about Alam’s case in the High Court. He said the apex court should allow the High Court to decide that petition first. Bhushan initially resisted. He said the petition in the High Court was filed after his client had moved the apex court. It was a word to word, copy-paste of the CPIL’s plea. There is this spectre of ambush petitions filed in collusion with the government in order to disable genuine petitions, he submitted. Mehta retorted, Less said the better about professional PIL litigants who file surrogate petitions. However, Justice D.Y. Chandrachud assuaged the situation by highlighting how the court has given Bhushan’s client permission to intervene in the High Court proceedings. We have given you the liberty to file a substantive petition in the High Court so that you don’t have to, if such a situation arises, wait for the other petitioner [Alam], though he is the dominuslitis, to file an appeal in the Supreme Court, he explained to Bhushan. Meanwhile, the CJI raised the issue of his participation in the CPIL case. He referred to how the CPIL petition alluded to the fact that his views based on law in a high-powered meeting with Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Opposition leader Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury had led to Asthana’s exit from the list of contenders for the CBI Director post in May. The CJI had at the time informed the committee about the Supreme Court judgment that only officers with a minimum residual tenure of six months ought to be considered for appointment as CBI Director. Asthana was scheduled to retire in July, leaving him with less than six months of service. During the hearing, Bhushan said the appointment of Asthana, merely four days before his superannuation, was egregious and a brazen violation of every law, every norm. The CPIL said the Centre violated the apex court’s directions in the Prakash Singh judgment as Asthana did not have a minimum residual tenure of six months before retirement. The Centre did not bother to form a Union Public Services Commission panel for the appointment of the Delhi Police chief. Again, the government ignored the criterion laid down by the court in the judgment that candidates should have a minimum tenure of two years. The CPIL petition has urged the court to cancel the order of the Appointments Committee of the Cabinet (ACC) headed by the Prime Minister on July 27, granting Asthana inter-cadre deputation from Gujarat to AGMUT cadre. It has asked the court to direct the government to take steps for a fresh appointment strictly in accordance with the directions of the apex court in the Prakash Singh case. The central government did not have the power under Rule 3 of All India Services (Conditions of Service- Residuary Matters) Rules, 1960 to relax Rule 16(1) of the All India Services (Death-Cum-Retirement Benefits) Rules, 1958 to give extension to Rakesh Asthana, the CPIL noted.

There are forces that want to end my career, alleges J& Kashmir cricket captain Parvez Rasool

Once the posterboy of cricket in Kashmir, earning praise from Prime Minister Narendra Modi, cricketer and captain of the J&K team Parvez Rasool, who hails from the small town of Bijbehara in south Kashmir, is distraught by an e-mail written by a Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI)-appointed sub-committee member seeking to nail him down. I fail to understand why I am being targeted. It’s clear the intention is to tarnish my image and ruin my future. It seems there are forces who want to end my career. The mail of a sub-committee member talking about ‘nailing me down’ has disturbed me mentally, Rasool, the first cricketer from Kashmir to play for Team India (in 2014) and join Indian Premier League (IPL) teams, told. Rasool was referring to the email he received inadvertently from Brigadier Anil Gupta, member, administration, J&K Cricket Association, on July 26, in which he addresses coach Majid Dar with a short message: Do we have any proof to nail him down, a copy of which is with them. In  a subsequent email, though, Brig. Gupta praises Rasool, saying, JKCA has high regards for your cricketing achievements and wish you all the best for the future. However, Brig. Gupta also accuses Rasool of not returning equipment belonging to the JKCA. Earlier, in another mail, Brig. Gupta asks Rasool to return a pitch roller or face police action. Please keep me out of this as I reiterate that I have not taken any machinery from the JKCA. In case you have any receipt, please enlighten me…I assure you my support for the betterment of J&K cricket, as a cricketer who has given his life to it, reads the reply from Rasool, who alleges unnecessary victimisation after a new sub-committee was constituted in the JKCA. Three months ago, a three-member administrative sub-committee was constituted by the BCCI to look after the affairs of the JKCA and resolve the long-pending dispute between 30 cricket clubs and 20 district-level teams in the Union Territory. It is headed by Brig. Gupta, a BJP spokesperson according to his Twitter account; advocate Sunil Sethi, also a BJP leader who shot into limelight during the Amarnath land row agitation in 2008; and former cricketer Mithun Manhas, who owns the Jammu Cricket Club. However, the committee’s functioning came in for criticism from several members of the JCC. A joint letter by them to Brig. Gupta demands strict compliance with the Lodha Committee recommendations, which bars any politician from being a member of the BCCI committees.

Covid Watch: Numbers and Developments 

The number of reported coronavirus cases from India stood at 3,25,15,843 with the death toll at 4,35,854. Union Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya on Wednesday said more than two crore additional Covid-19 vaccine doses are being made available to States this month to vaccinate all school teachers on priority before Teachers’ Day on September 5. Schools across the country were closed in March last year ahead of a nationwide lockdown to contain the spread of the novel coronavirus infection. The Centre had allowed the reopening of schools as per the Covid-19 situation in October last year. While several States began partial reopening of schools, there was a complete closure again in April when an aggressive second wave of Covid-19 hit the country. With an improvement in the COVID-19 situation again, several States have begun reopening schools now, even as concerns have been expressed over the staff and teachers not being completely vaccinated. In addition to the plan to provide vaccines to every state this month, more than 2 crore vaccine doses are being made available. We have requested all states to try to vaccinate all school teachers on priority before Teachers’ Day, which is celebrated on September 5, Mandaviya said in a tweet in Hindi. In line with the announcement made by the Union Health Minister, more than 2 crore additional vaccine doses will be dispatched to the States from August 27 to 31 to vaccinate school teachers and non-teaching staff on a priority basis, an official release said.

INTERNATIONAL NEWS 

India anticipated Taliban takeover: Gen. Rawat India anticipated the takeover of Kabul by the Taliban, said Chief of Defence Staff  Speaking at a think tank event, he observed that India was ready to deal with a possible upsurge in terror activities that may be an indirect outcome of the victory of the Taliban. Everything that has happened was something that had been anticipated, only the timelines have changed. From the Indian perspective, we were anticipating the Taliban takeover of Afghanistan, said Gen Rawat at the event titled The India-US Partnership: Securing the 21st Century by the Observer Research Foundation. The event was attended by the Commander of US Indo-Pacific Command (US-INDOPACOM) Admiral John C. Aquilino, who also met the Tri-Service chiefs and Defence Secretary Dr Ajay Kumar. Gen. Rawat expressed India’s concern over a possible increase in terror activities following the arrival of the Taliban fighters in Kabul. India’s contingency planning had been ongoing and the Indian forces were prepared for that, he asserted. He expressed surprise over the fast pace at which the Taliban moved into various cities of Afghanistan and captured Kabul. The timeline has surprised us because we were anticipating this happening, may be a couple of months down the line.

Kamala Harris reaches Hanoi after ‘Havana syndrome’ delay. 

Vice-President Kamala Harris began a visit to Vietnam on Wednesday to stress U.S. commitment to Asia, a trip critics have slammed as tone-deaf given the parallels with the superpower’s evacuations from Saigon and Kabul. Ms. Harris will meet the communist state’s President and Prime Minister in Hanoi, a day after accusing regional giant Beijing of intimidation in the disputed South China Sea. Her arrival was delayed due to what U.S. officials called an anomalous health incident in Hanoi, an apparent reference to the so-called Havana syndrome, which has afflicted U.S. diplomats in several countries including China and Russia. It is not clear what causes the syndrome and it has led to unproven allegations that Russians or others used sonic or other high-intensity. The visit, the first to Vietnam by a sitting U.S. Vice-president, comes after a two-day stop in Singapore, where Ms. Harris took aim at China and sought to shore up U.S. credibility in the wake of the Taliban’s stunning return to power. But the Vietnam leg of the Asian tour has sparked criticism after the chaotic evacuation of Kabul prompted comparisons with the trauma of 1975 Saigon, when U.S. Helicopters ferried final evacuees from the embassy roof in the last days of the Vietnam War. Ms. Harris used a speech in Singapore to say Beijing continues to coerce, to intimidate and to make unreasonable claims to large areas of the South China Sea. We need to find ways to pressure and raise the pressure, frankly, on Beijing to abide by the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, she added. China hit back at the accusations through its state media on Wednesday, accusing the U.S. of hypocrisy in attempting to coerce and intimidate countries in the region in its scheme to contain China. China claims almost all of the resource-rich South China Sea, through which trillions of dollars in shipping trade passes annually, with competing claims from four Southeast Asian states including Vietnam.

NATIONAL NEWS

Union Minister Narayan Rane arrested in Maharashtra for remarks on Udddhav Thackeray.

Narayan Rane, Union Minister for Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises, was on Tuesday arrested and taken into custody from Sangameshwar by the Ratnagiri police and the Bombay High Court refused to grant him any relief over his would have slapped Uddhav Thackeray comment. Advocate Aniket Nikam, for Rane, will approach the High Court on Wednesday, seeking to quash the FIRs against the former Chief Minister. On Tuesday, Nikam appeared before a division bench of Justices SS Shinde and NJ Jamadar and sought the quashing of the FIRs . He said the offences under which Rane had been charged were below seven years and no notice was issued to him under section 41A (notice of appearance before police officer) of the Code of Criminal Procedure. Rane is charged with section 153 (wantonly giving provocation with intent to cause riot-if rioting be committed-if not committed) and 505 (statements conducing to public mischief) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC). The court told him to follow the procedure and get the petition numbered by the registry first. On Monday, while addressing a ‘Jan Ashirvad Yatra’ of the BJP in Raigad district, Rane said the Maharashtra Chief Minister forgot the year of Independence during his August 15 address to people and had he been present at the spot, he would have slapped Thackeray. Rane said, The State’s economy and all businesses are in turmoil owing to this man’s [Mr. Thackeray] pathetic management of affairs more than 1.5 lakh persons have lost their lives due to the State’s mismanagement of the COVID-19 pandemic. There was a shortage of vaccines, no medical staff, no doctors. The State’s health infrastructure was in a shambolic state… Does he [Mr. Thackeray] even have the right to speak on anything… He ought to keep a secretary as he did not even know it was the 75th anniversary of India’s Independence and was asking someone backstage [on Independence Day]. I would have given him a tight slap had I been there for forgetting the number of years of India’s Independence. Soon, clashes broke out all over the State. Shiv Sena supporters protested in Solapur, where they blackened Rane’s photo, garlanded it with chappals and hit it with footwear. Shiv Sainiks also vandalised the BJP’s office in Nashik. Agitations were believed to have broken out in Baramati, Nagpur and Sangli too. Earlier in the day, a court in Ratnagiri district in the Konkan region rejected his anticipatory bail plea. The FIRs registered against Rane include one in Pune by the Yuva Sena (the Shiv Sena’s youth wing), one in Nashik, and two at Mahad in Raigad district. High drama was seen in Ratnagiri when the Sangameshwar police went to arrest him, triggering heated altercations between his aides and the authorities. Pramod Jathar, BJP leader from the Konkan, said, What crime has Mr. Rane committed. This is a lawless State…we told the Superintendent of Police that we are ready to come down to the jail if the police had a proper warrant. But the police claim they are under tremendous pressure. Is this rule by law or goonda raj. While BJP Leader of the Opposition and former Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis admitted that Rane ought to have shown restraint in his statements, State BJP president Chandrakant Patil said it was against protocol for a State government to arrest a Union Minister. All this arrest drama has been contrived by the Maha Vikas Aghadi government to divert the public’s attention from the fact that Rane has been receiving overwhelming support in the Konkan region during his ‘Jan Ashirwad Yatra’, Patil claimed. Himself a former Shiv Sainik and an important face of the Maratha community, Mr. Rane’s ‘Sena baiting’ has grown even more strident since he exited the Congress in 2017. However, his entry into the BJP had not been smooth and was a bone of contention when the BJP and the Sena were in alliance in the erstwhile Devendra Fadnavis government. The Konkan strongman had accused the Sena of deliberately delaying his entry, given the mutual antipathy between himself and Thackeray.

No request to delist Haqqani from Taliban sanctions yet, say diplomats

There are no requests from the UN Security Council Permanent members for the delisting of the Taliban’s top leadership from sanctions thus far, officials said here. They also refuted reports that the next meeting of the UN’s 1988 Sanctions Committee, due next month, would lift restrictions on designated terrorists like Sirajuddin Haqqani and Mullah Baradar. Sources told The Hindu that the next meeting of the Taliban Sanctions Committee, as the resolution 1988 committee is referred to, is due to be held in mid-September, ahead of an important meeting to discuss the renewal of the mandate of the UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA), which expires on September 17. India’s Permanent Representative to the UN (UNPR), T.S. Tirumurti is the Chairman of the committee until December 31 this year, and is key to deciding the date of the meetings, and scrutinising requests to delist the Taliban leaders. While diplomats from at least three countries, as well as MEA officials confirmed that there were no requests to de-designate or delist any of the sanctioned 135 individuals and five entities, they said a decision was likely to be taken on whether to extend the special travel exemptions given to 14 Taliban members to participate in the peace and reconciliation efforts. The meeting could also discuss whether to include other Taliban leaders in the exemptions, giving them permission to travel and access some funds, which are frozen at the moment. The reports concerning Sirajuddin Haqqani are significant for India as he and the Haqqani group, founded by his father Jalaluddin Haqqani, are wanted for the Indian Embassy bombings in Kabul in 2008 and 2009. Around 70 people, including the Indian defence attaché Brig. Ravi Datt Mehta and press counsellor V. Venkateswara Rao, were killed in the attacks. Sirajuddin Haqqani, deputy to Taliban chief Haibatullah Akhundzada, is now likely to have considerable influence in the next government in Afghanistan. His brother Anas Haqqani, who was arrested in 2014 for financing the group’s terror attacks, and was released as part of a hostage swap in 2019 from Bagram prison, is now one of the chief negotiators in government formation talks in Kabul.

Four Ministers, over two dozen MLAs speak against Capt. Amarinder’s leadership 

The Congress high command’s efforts to resolve issues in the party’s Punjab unit have failed to yield the desired results as the crisis only deepened further on Tuesday, after factions supporting Chief Minister Captain (Retd.) Amarinder Singh and Punjab Pradesh Congress Committee chief Navjot Singh Sidhu spoke out against each other. On the one hand, four Ministers and over two dozen MLAs openly came out against Capt. Amarinder’s leadership. On the other, taking exception to the anti-national and pro-Pakistan comments of two of Sidhu’s aides, Malwinder Mali and Payre Lal Garg, a group of Punjab Congress Ministers and MLAs called for strong legal action against them. Raising the baton against Capt. Amarinder in a meeting held here, four Ministers, including Sukhjinder Randhawa, Tript Rajinder Bajwa, Sukhbinder Sarkaria and Charanjit Channi, apart from close to two dozen MLAs, expressed lack of faith in the leadership of the Chief Minister in fulfilling the party’s 2017 Assembly election promises. We have lost faith in his [the CM’s] leadership. There are certain issues for which we have been fighting for a while now. It’s all about those issues, which are not settled, be it the Bargari sacrilege, curbing the drugs and transport mafias, etc. All these issues relate to the previous Akali Dal government, which have not yet been addressed. We earlier appraised the Central leadership about these issues, after which an 18-point programme was released to resolve them. But the Chief Minister is only attempting to kill time and doing nothing on the ground. Each passing day is critical as we are inching towards the Assembly elections, Channi told.  the meeting it was decided that a five-member delegation would meet Congress president Sonia Gandhi and appraise her about the situation and their demands. A consensus among us emerged and we decided that if the Chief Minister doesn’t want to work, he should step down. To raise this demand and convey our sentiments, we have sought time from the high command. We are going to meet AICC (All India Congress Committee) in-charge of Punjab affairs Harish Rawat tomorrow in Dehradun and then decide further, he said. After the meeting, Sidhu tweeted: Got a call from Tripat Bajwa ji asking for an emergency meeting. Met him along with other colleagues at the PPCC office. Will appraise the high command of the situation. Amid a power tussle between Capt. Amarinder and Sidhu, the AICC had on July 18 appointed Sidhu as president of the PPCC in an apparent attempt to resolve the crisis. Capt. Amarinder and Sidhu have been at at loggerheads since the 2019 Lok Sabha poll. Meanwhile, hitting out at Sidhu’s aides, Mali and Garg, State Ministers Brahm Mohindra, Vijay Inder Singla, Bharat Bhushan Ashu, Balbir Singh Sidhu and Sadhu Singh Dharamsot, along with MLA Raj Kumar Verka, said, Statements by both these newly appointed advisors of Punjab Congress president Navjot Sidhu are clearly against India’s interests and detrimental to national security. Besides stringent legal action against Mali and Garg, these leaders also urged the Congress national leadership to direct Sidhu to immediately rein in his aides in the interest of the party as well as the country. The Congress has made many sacrifices for the protection of the nation’s security and peace, as have our soldiers at the borders. Nobody can or should be allowed to undermine these sacrifices and jeopardise the safety of our country and its people, they emphasised, citing, in particular, the grave implications such statements could have for the border State of Punjab. Congress leaders also questioned Sidhu’s failure to put his foot down on the diatribe by his close aides, despite the justified uproar it has triggered across party lines. Sidhu’s omission in this regard had given ammunition to Opposition parties, which were quick to recall the PPCC’s chief’s personal bonhomie with the Pakistan Prime Minister and Army chief, they pointed out, warning against the massive damage this could cause to the Congress in the run-up to the 2022 Punjab Assembly polls, which are due in less than six months.

Don’t construe graveyard’s silence in J&K as normalcy: Gupkar alliance 

The People’s Alliance for the Gupkar Declaration (PAGD) on Tuesday reiterated its demand for the restoration of the pre-August 5, 2019 special constitutional position of Jammu and Kashmir and warned the Central government against misconstruing the current graveyard’s silence in J&K as normalcy. It demanded an end to humiliating people that, otherwise, has dangerous consequences. To India’s civil society and political parties, we want to convey that we too want to live a life of dignity. However, the current government takes pride in inflicting humiliation on us. It’s unacceptable to the people of Kashmir, Jammu and Ladakh, Gupkar alliance spokesman M.Y. Tarigami said. He made these remarks after a meeting of the Gupkar alliance held at the residence of National Conference president Dr. Farooq Abdullah. Former Chief Minister and Peoples Democratic Party president Mehbooba Mufti participated in it. The unjustified and frequent raids of agencies such as the National Investigation Agency (NIA) and the Enforcement Directorate (ED) on the leaders seemed to be aimed at projecting all the leaders as thieves and criminals in J&K, he observed. We will rest our case before the people of India and the political parties. We appeal to all that the current trend of humiliating people should end. Besides, the voices are being muzzled. It has dangerous consequences for the entire nation, he stated. The government got unnerved even by the press conferences of leaders, he alleged. He accused the LG (Lieutenant Governor) administration of depriving local officers of top positions in the government. Most of the posts are held by the outside officers. He questioned the Centre’s claims on development, investment and employment. They stand exposed. Even people in Jammu have started feeling lack of governance and development now, he noted. The Gupkar alliance also criticised the move not to issue security clearance to people involved in pelting of stones for passports and jobs. Nobody can be deprived of their rights until proved guilty by the court, Tarigami asserted. Referring to their demand made during the all-party meeting with Prime Minister Narendra Modi on June 24, he said, We want to ask the government how many people have been released. There are cases where people have been released by courts after a decade saying they were innocent. A resolution passed by the Gupkar alliance said the unconstitutional decisions of August 5, 2019 had created a big political void and deep uncertainty in the erstwhile State. The successive executive orders post August 2019 like domicile laws, curbs on media, intimidation of government employees, discriminatory rules on employment are some of the authoritarian diktats that have been imposed on the people of Jammu and Kashmir, it stated. On the June 24 meeting with the Prime Minister, it noted that nothing substantial had emerged after Mr. Modi’s ‘Dilli ki Doori and Dil ki Doori’ slogan during the meeting. No confidence-building-measures have been taken to provide some relief to distressed people of the region, it stressed. It demanded that statehood, as it existed prior to August 5, 2019, must be restored. All political prisoners must be released immediately. Indiscriminate use of draconian laws must be put to an end, it added.

INTERNATIONAL NEWS 

Hong Kong to check old films for security breaches.

Hong Kong will scrutinise past films for national security breaches under a tough new censorship law announced on Tuesday in the latest blow to the financial hub’s political and artistic freedoms. Authorities have embarked on a sweeping crackdown to root out Beijing’s critics after democracy protests convulsed the city two years ago. A new China-imposed security law and an official campaign dubbed Patriots rule Hong Kong has since criminalised much dissent and strangled the democracy movement. Authorities in June said the city’s censorship board would check any future films for content that breached the security law. But on Tuesday they unveiled a new censorship law which would also cover any titles that had previously been given a green light. Any film for public exhibition, past, present and future, will need to get approval, Commerce Secretary Edward Yau told reporters. The maximum sentence for showing illegal films will be increased to up to three years jail and a HK$1 million ($130,000) fine.

Kamala Harris accuses China of ‘intimidation’ in disputed seas. 

Vice-President Kamala Harris accused China on Tuesday of intimidation in disputed Asian waters, seeking to rally regional allies as the United States’ superpower status takes a hit over Afghanistan. Her comments in Singapore came as Washington seeks to reset relations in Asia after the turbulent Donald Trump era and build a bulwark against the rising might of Beijing. But her trip to the region, which also includes a stop in Vietnam, comes as Washington faces fresh questions over its dependability amid the U.S. pull-out from Afghanistan. In a speech laying out her administration’s foreign policy goals, Ms. Harris reiterated that Washington had enduring commitments in Asia – and took aim at China. Beijing continues to coerce, to intimidate and to make claims to the vast majority of the South China Sea, she said. Beijing’s actions continue to undermine the rules-based order and threaten the sovereignty of nations. Beijing hits back But Beijing hit back, holding up the Afghan debacle as an example of Washington’s selfish foreign policy, and accusing Washington of bullying, hegemonic behaviour. The current events in Afghanistan clearly tell us what the rules and order the U.S. speaks of are, China’s Foreign Ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin said. China claims almost all of the resource-rich South China Sea, through which trillions of dollars in shipping trade passes annually, with competing claims from four Southeast Asian states as well as Taiwan. Ms. Harris also sought to allay fears that growing U.S. China tensions could force countries that have strong ties with both of the world’s top economies to choose sides. Our engagement in Southeast Asia and the IndoPacific is not against any one country, nor is it designed to make anyone choose between countries, she said. In Tuesday’s speech, she defended Biden’s decision to push ahead with the U.S. pull-out from Afghanistan as courageous and right and reiterated that the U.S. officials were laser-focused on the chaotic evacuation from Kabul airport.

NATIONAL NEWS

India airlifts 392 from Afghanistan amidst reports of Pakistani presence among Taliban

India on Sunday airlifted 392 individuals from Kabul in an operation that covered Indian citizens as well as Afghan nationals, including Sikhs and Hindus of Afghanistan. The people airlifted were flown in three aircraft that included a heavy-lift C17. Air India and Indigo operated two flights via Tajikistan and Qatar, completing the airlift operation that is expected to continue over the coming days. Apart from workers and engineers employed at various India-backed projects, Sunday’s evacuation also included an infant Iknoor Singh, the youngest person to be evacuated so far from Kabul. A number of Indians from Darjeeling who were stuck in Afghanistan were also among those airlifted on Sunday. West Bengal Chief Mamata Banerjee had earlier urged the central government to help in bringing back those workers.  The Hindu has learnt that the largescale evacuation carried out on Sunday was facilitated by a small multi-agency Indian team that has found base in Kabul airport. The cell has taken charge days after Government of India evacuated the India-based staff from the embassy in Kabul. Initial reports suggested that the team consists of seven officials drawn from different sections of the government and are led by Indian diplomats in the US-controlled airport.  Among those evacuated was Narender Pal Singh Khalsa, a member of Afghanistan’s Parliament who maintained that the Taliban have been undependable since they took over Kabul. They came to my office on Saturday and took away my computers, official vehicles and other personal vehicles. They claimed that they were there to take away my official car that was given to me because of my status as an MP but ultimately took away many personal items, including three watches, said Khalsa, who maintains that there are a large number of Pakistanis among the fighters. I found that those who came to my house could not speak Farsi and spoke in Urdu. There were some who spoke a language that I could not even understand. It’s quite clear that they were either from Pakistan or some other country, said Khalsa, who said that he had not seen the Afghan Taliban among those who were present in Kabul, saying, In my 36 years, I have never seen such Taliban fighters. Khalsa is the son of Avtar Singh Khalsa, a dynamic Sikh politician of Afghanistan who was assassinated in Jalalabad in a suicide bomb attack in 2018. Apart from Singh, Dr Anarkali Kaur Honaryar, the only female Sikh MP of Afghanistan, was also among those who were airlifted to Hindon air base. Hundreds of others, however, are left behind, and they need to be airlifted in the coming days even as the security situation in Afghanistan is expected to deteriorate fast because of the growing military tension between the Taliban leaders and the Tajiks of Panjshir Valley led by the faction of Ahmad Massoud and Amrullah Saleh. A spokesperson for the Resistance on Sunday told The Hindu that they require support of allies to take on the Taliban. Taliban are trying to send delegations and also use Dr Abdullah Abdullah and Hamid Karzai to mediate with the Resistance Leaders in Panjshir. The stance of the Resistance is clear. We have a legitimate Caretaker President Amrullah Saleh who enjoys people’s support from Republic’s side, said Homayon Ahmadi, their spokesperson.   Afghanistan’s ambassador to India, who was appointed by the government of President Ashraf Ghani also on Sunday called for international support and said the suffering of Afghanistan is man-made. In a message posted on social media, Ambassador Farid Mamundzay said, The avoidable suffering of Afghanistan is man-made and at a scale beyond all civilised contemplation. Afghanistan is going through a difficult time, and only good leadership, compassionate attitude and international support to the Afghan people would somewhat bring an end to these miseries.  

FinMin summons Infosys CEO over I-T portal glitch.

With the new Income Tax filing portal becoming completely inaccessible over the weekend and yet to become fully functional 77 days after its launch, a furious Finance Ministry summoned Infosys managing director and CEO Salil Parekh to explain the mess to Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman in person on Monday. Ministry of Finance has summoned Shri Salil Parekh, MD & CEO @Infosyson 23/08/2021 to explain to hon’ble FM as to why even after 2.5 months since launch of new e-filing portal, glitches in the portal have not been resolved. In fact, since 21/08/2021 the portal itself is not available, the Income Tax Department stated on Sunday. And just hours after the summons, the Income Tax portal became accessible again late on Sunday. The emergency maintenance of the @IncomeTaxIndia portal has concluded and the portal is live. We regret any inconvenience caused to taxpayers, Infosys tweeted at 8.52 p.m. The Ministry launched the taxpayer friendly portal developed by Infosys on June 7, promising immediate processing of Income Tax returns to issue quick refunds to taxpayers, and a host of other features. However, many critical functionalities were nonstarters from day one, and problems continued to fester despite a claimed course correction. On Saturday afternoon, Infosys said the portal was currently inaccessible due to planned maintenance. On Sunday, the company switched from the planned maintenance argument to say that the portal continues to be under emergency maintenance.

Assam moves to ease fresh row with Mizoram.

Authorities of Assam’s Hailakandi district returned some seized construction material to their counterparts in Mizoram’s Kolasib district on Sunday to ease fresh tension brewing on the inter-State border since August 20 afternoon. The police in Kolasib’s border town Bairabi had filed a case of theft against some unnamed Assampolice personnel after the latter stopped work on a bridge Mizoram claimed was on its territory. The Assam police team also seized – stole, according to the Mizoram police – TMT bars being used for the bridge. Kolasib Deputy Commissioner H. Lalthlangliana said his Hailakandi counterpart Rohan Kumar Jha had 5 quintals of iron rods returned around 6 p.m. on Sunday, more than 24 hours after he was intimated about the theft case. The case filed at the Bairabi station against the Assam police personnel will be withdrawn, he told The Hindu. Kolasib Superintendent of Police Vanlalfaka Ralte said the Mizoram police team withdrew from the disputed site after the return of the construction material.

I-T portal glitch: Finance Ministry summons Infosys CEO Salil Parekh

The Finance Ministry has summoned Infosys MD and CEO Salil Parekh on August 23 to explain to Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman why even after 2.5 months since the launch of new e-filing portal, glitches in the portal have not been resolved. The Income Tax department has said that in fact, since 21/08/2021 the portal itself is not available. On August 16, the Finance Minister had said glitches on the new Income Tax portal were expected to be fixed entirely in the next 2 to 3 days. I have been reminding Infosys constantly… and Nandan Nilekani has been messaging me with assurances that they will sort it out, the Minister had said. Since its launch in early June, many critical functionalities of the income tax portal have been non-starters, and the Minister had admitted that there are ‘still some issues’ with it. Revenue Secretary [Tarun Bajaj] has been neutrally monitoring the progress on fixing the portal on a weekly basis, Sitharaman had said, stressing that she had been pushing Infosys ‘not to let the taxpayers down’ with constant reminders. The Ministry’s latest statement on August 22 suggests the situation has got worse instead of improving, with the income tax portal becoming inaccessible since August 21.

INTERNATIONAL NEWS 

G7 to discuss Afghanistan on Tuesday, says U.K. PM Boris Johnson 

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said he had called a G7 leaders’ meeting on Tuesday to discuss the crisis in Afghanistan and urged the international community to find ways to prevent it from escalating. Taliban militants seized control of Kabul last weekend in an upheaval that sent civilians and Afghan military allies fleeing for safety. Many fear a return to the austere interpretation of Islamic law imposed during the previous Taliban rule that ended 20 years ago. Western governments are discussing how to handle the situation in Kabul where thousands of civilians desperate to flee Afghanistan have descended on the airport after the Taliban seized control of the country. It is vital that the international community works together to ensure safe evacuations, prevent a humanitarian crisis and support the Afghan people to secure the gains of the last 20 years, Johnson said on Twitter on Sunday. Britain currently holds the rotating leadership of the G7, which also includes the United States, Italy, France, Germany, Japan and Canada.

Amid Afghan debacle, Harris begins Asia trip. 

U.S. Vice-President Kamala Harris began a trip to Asia on Sunday where she will offer reassurances of Washington’s commitment to the region after the chaotic U.S. pullout from Afghanistan and Taliban takeover. The hardline Islamists’ swift return to power a week ago, and desperate scenes of thousands trying to flee, have cast another shadow over the U.S.’ status as a global superpower. But on her visit, Ms. Harris will seek to allay concerns about U.S. dependability. The Vice-President will make clear throughout the trip that we do have an enduring commitment to the region, said a senior U.S. official. Ms. Harris landed in Singapore on Sunday. The crisis has prompted comparisons with the trauma of 1975 Saigon, when U.S. helicopters ferried final evacuees from the Embassy roof, as Viet Cong troops advanced. U.S. officials say the trip was planned long before the Afghan debacle, however and insist Ms. Harris is focused on Washington’s broader strategic goals in Asia.

NATIONAL NEWS 

Indians detained on way to Kabul airport, released later: reports

For 150 Indians it was an anxious and a nervous wait to return home since the Taliban took over the reins in Afghanistan leaving the country in chaos and mayhem. As developments of the day brought the news that they had been picked up by the Taliban, they were released eventually. It is learnt they are inside the Kabul airport waiting to be airlifted out of the conflict zone. As they were being taken to a nearby police station for verification of their travel documents, local media reported that they had been abducted by the Taliban. The news came hours after an Indian Air Force transport aircraft managed to evacuate around 85 Indians from Kabul; the plane has landed safely in Dushanbe in Tajikistan. As the Government doubles up its efforts to bring in, and that includes setting up of a special cell to address and expedite visas for Indians, sources said that the government is trying to bring as many Indians as possible into the airport at Kabul to keep them safe while it works out the evacuation logistics. India has evacuated all embassy staff but an estimated 1,000 citizens remain in several cities in the war-torn country, and ascertaining their location and condition is proving to be a challenge, a Home Ministry official had said, since not all of them registered themselves with the embassy. Among those are around 200 Sikhs and Hindus who have taken refuge at a gurudwara in Kabul. A spokesperson for the Taliban – since the takeover of the nation the dreaded organisation has gone on a PR offensive convincing the world that the outfit has changed with the times — released a video statement of the gurudwara head saying he had been assured of their safety. Meanwhile, Reuters, reported an official of the Islamist group as saying that the Taliban will be accountable  for its actions and will investigate reports of reprisals and atrocities carried out by members. The organisation will be also coming out with a model to govern the country.

Militants killed in Pulwama

Three unidentified militants were killed in an encounter in a forest area of Pulwama’s Tral in South Kashmir in the morning taking the toll of militants killed in the last 24 hours to five in the district. An official said the militants, associated with the Jaish-e-Muhammad (JeM), were encircled in Nagbaeran area of Tral in Pulwama. On being encircled by the security forces, the militants opened fire and were killed in the subsequent encounter, the police said, as reported in The Hindu. The encounter with militants poses a concern for India as terrorists of banned outfitsLashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) and Jaish-e-Mohammed, who had been fighting alongside the Taliban against the U.S led forces in Afghanistan for the past several years, may soon intensify efforts to infiltrate into the Indian territory, according to the latest assessment of security agencies. As reported in The Hindu, a government official told the newspaper, Carrying out terror attacks in Jammu & Kashmir has been the primary goal of these outfits. Over the years, they have extended active support to Taliban. JeM has been deploying senior commanders and trained cadres for Taliban operations. LeT has also been a major source of armed men fighting along with Taliban and Haqqani Network. They share the same ideology. The official said: However, after things settle down a little in Afghanistan, their focus would again shift to their main objective. Among the hundreds of prisoners released from Afghan prisons, many were from LeT and JeM. Since January, 95 terrorists have been neutralised in Jammu & Kashmir and 18 of them were Pakistani nationals, officials claimed. JeM has an organic link with Taliban. In the past, it has also provided refuge to their cadres following Taliban takeover, the JeM chief on August 16 congratulated his followers through a message titled ‘Manzil Ki Taraf (Towards the Goal)’, he said. This apart, as per a UNSC report in June, based on the Monitoring Team’s observations, Taliban and Al-Qaeda continued to be closely aligned. Al-Qaeda elements were said to be residing in at least 15 Afghan provinces.

Supreme Court nod for ‘equivalent qualification’ for jobs

In an important decision the Supreme Court veering away from the norm that an aspirant should have the requisite qualification at the time of notification of job vacancy, said an equivalent qualification at the time of application will do equally well. The judgment was based on appeals filed by two applicants to the posts of High School Assistants in Kerala. The question before the court was whether their B.Ed. degrees were in the subjects fulfilling the eligibility criteria for the job notified by the State Public Service Commission in 2012. The job required a Bachelor of Education (B.Ed) degree in the subject of Natural Sciences. The principle of service jurisprudence that a candidate must possess the requisite qualification for a post on the date of issue of employment notification cannot be applied in the appellants’ cases, as in our view, they possessed equivalent qualifications when they applied for the posts, a Bench of Justices L. Nageswara Rao and Aniruddha Bose said in a recent judgment. The appellants, Praveen Kumar and P. Anitha Devi, represented by advocate Sarath S. Janardanan, had B.Ed degrees in Biological Science from the University of Mysore and the Bharathiar University in Coimbatore, respectively. Their degrees in Biological Sciences were considered equivalent to Natural Sciences’ degree from a varsity in Kerala. They were both shortlisted and even allowed to participate in the job interview. However, their candidatures were put on hold after an objection came up on the ground that they were not qualified in the concerned subject for which the job was notified. The judgement is likely to inform decisions on eligibility of candidates for jobs in the future.

INTERNATIONAL NEWS

Taliban co founder in Kabul for talks to form government. 

Taliban co-founder Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar arrived in Kabul on Saturday for talks on establishing a new inclusive government in Afghanistan, a senior official said. It comes after other senior Taliban leaders were seen in the capital in recent days, including Khalil Haqqani – one of America’s most wanted terrorists with a $5 million bounty on his head. A senior Taliban official said that Baradar would meet jihadi leaders and politicians for an inclusive government set-up. Hours later, pro-Taliban social media accounts showed Haqqani announcing that Ahmad Massoud the son of Afghanistan’s most famed anti-Taliban fighter Ahmad Shah for talks at the country’s second-biggest city Kandahar – the Taliban’s spiritual birthplace. Within hours of his return, the group announced its rule would be different this time. But they have given few details about who would form their government. Arrested in Pakistan in 2010, Baradar was in custody until pressure from the U.S. saw him freed in 2018 and relocated to Qatar. He was appointed head of the Taliban’s political office in Doha, where he oversaw the signing of the agreement last year that led to the withdrawal of U.S. forces and an end to their 20-year campaign. On Friday, Haqqani – the uncle of Taliban deputy leader Sirajuddin Haqqani wasseen leading prayers at a mosque in Kabul.

Hundreds held in Australia after clashes over lockdown. 

Hundreds were arrested after violent clashes between anti-lockdown protesters and police in Australia’s two largest cities on Saturday as the country recorded its sharpest rise in daily COVID-19 cases since the pandemic began. Sydney’s State of New South Wales posted 825 infections – a record for the entire country – a day after authorities extended the city’s lockdown until at least September to try to head off the Delta variant. No matter how hard we work, no matter if 99% of people are doing the right thing, there’s an element of Delta that nobody can control, NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian told media. The best way we can look forward to freedom is by making sure that we get vaccinated. An increasing outbreak in Melbourne’s State of Victoria also prompted stay- at home orders to be extended across the State on Saturday. But Melbourne’s public health orders didn’t deter thousands from venting anger in a march against the lockdown rules, with police using pepper spray in violent clashes with protesters. Seven officers were injured and more than 200 people were arrested in the violent and unlawful protest, Victoria Police said in a statement. While there were some peaceful protestors in attendance, the majority of those who attended came with violence in mind, they said. In Sydney more than 1,500 police flooded the city, setting up roadblocks and making dozens of arrests as around 250 gathered there, NSW Police said. Large crowds were also reported at an anti-lockdown rally in Brisbane. Sydney’s outbreak has also been linked to a case that sparked a national lockdown in New Zealand.