Month: November 2020

In a blow to Congress in Gujarat, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has won all eight seats where assembly bye-elections were held in the state.

BJP won Dangs, Abdasa, Dhari, Kaprada, Karjan, Morbi, Limbdi and Gadhada.

In Dangs, BJP’s Pate Vijaybhai Rameshbhai defeated Suryakantbhai Ratanbhai Gavit of Congress by a margin of 60,095 votes.

Jadeja Pradhyumansinh Manipatsinh of BJP won in Abdasa against Shantilal Senghani of Congress with a margin of 36,778 votes while in Dhari, BJP’s Kakadiya JV defeated Suresh Manubhai Kotadiya of Congress by a margin of 17,209 votes.

In Kaprada, BJP’s Jitubhai Harjibhai Chaudhari defeated Babubhai Jivlabhai Patel Alias(Varatha) of Congress by 47,066 votes. In Karjan, BJP’s Akshaykumar Iswarbhai Patel won against Jadeja Kiritsinh Dolubha of Congress with 16,425 votes.

Kiritsinh Jitubha Rana defeated Khachar Chetanbhai Ramkubhai of Congress by 32,050 votes in Limbdi.

In Morbi, BJP’s Brijesh Merja won against Jayantilal Jerajbhai Patel of Congress by 4,649 votes.

In Gadhada, BJP’s Atmaram Makanbhai Parmar defeated Mohanbhai Shankarbhai Solanki of Congress by 23,295 votes.

The by-elections were held after the sitting Congress MLAs resigned ahead of the Rajya Sabha polls held in June this year.

Congress had in July this year appointed Hardik Patel as the working president of the part to boost the party’s prospects in the state. (ANI)

Several airlines operating in Pakistan may face a ban in 188 countries for failing to meet the international standards of pilot licencing recommended by an UN specialised agency, the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), Express Tribune reported.

The country’s national flag carrier– Pakistan International Airlines — has already been barred from flying to the United Kingdom and European Union over the licencing scandal.

In a meeting, the ICAO approved a mechanism for addressing Significant Safety Concerns (SSCs) to its member states. Pakistan being a member state of the ICAO was identified among eight countries that had failed to address the SSCs.

The ICAO issued a serious warning to the Pakistan Civil Aviation Authority (PCAA) – the regulator for all aspects of civil aviation in the country – over the safety concerns.

In its letter dated November 3, the ICAO stated that PCAA had failed to meet the international standards regarding the personnel licensing and training in relation to the licensing process for pilot.

Therefore, the country’s aircraft and pilots, are likely to be barred from flying to 188 countries in the world.

The European Union Air Safety Agency had suspended flight operations of PIA for a period of six months from July 1.

The suspension had come after it was revealed that the credentials of as many as 262 pilots were “dubious”. The pilots in the line of fire included 141 from PIA, nine from Air Blue and 10 from Serene Airline.

Post the revelation, Vietnam had grounded all of the 27 Pakistani pilots flying their aircrafts due to concerns about their qualifications.

All major airlines across the world have also begun to make Pakistani pilots redundant. Even the UK has decided to follow the EASA ban and barred any PIA flights to take off or land in the country.

Speaking about the warning issued by the ICAO, Pakistan Airlines Pilots Association (Palpa) spokesperson said: “This will have serious consequences and could be a total disaster for Pakistan’s aviation industry.”

He said, “Palpa had been raising this issue since June 2020 but unfortunately it was neglected by the authorities concerned.”

“Palpa had forwarded several options to revamp the system in accordance with the international practices and also given a presentation,” he added. (ANI)

Pakistan military establishment and successive administrations have exploited and politicised the sectarian fault lines in Pakistan occupied Kashmir’s Gilgit-Baltistan, which have allowed Islamabad to vindicate the militarisation of Gilgit-Baltistan and refute the extension of basic human rights to its inhabitants, according to a European think tank.

In a study paper–The Sectarianization of Society, Culture and Religion in Gilgit-Baltistan, The European Foundation for South Asian Studies (EFSAS), said that the conflict in the region is at its “core a political one that has been consciously sectarianized by the government, illustrating the highly relevant role religion continues to play in post-partition Pakistani politics”.

“What is ultimately important to recognize is that the contemporary conflict dynamics in Gilgit-Baltistan are not rooted in inherent sectarian alienation, but the exploitation, intensification and politicization of sectarian fault lines by the Pakistani military establishment and the sustenance of ‘divide-and-conquer’ tactics by successive administrations, which have allowed the government to vindicate the militarization of Gilgit-Baltistan and refute the extension of basic human rights to its inhabitants,” the EFSAS writes.

“The conflict, then, is at its core a political one that has been consciously sectarianized by the government, illustrating the highly relevant role religion continues to play in post-partition Pakistani politics,” it added.

Given the perseverance of the Jammu and Kashmir conflict, the think tank said that the geopolitical dimensions of the conflict and the general development of Pakistan as a political unit, such a development appears unlikely, thus banning Gilgit-Baltistan to continued existence in submission.

“As is observable throughout the legal-constitutional trajectory of Gilgit-Baltistan, the rights granted to the Pakistani population have routinely been denied to the inhabitants of Gilgit-Baltistan, and although legal gains have been made, the region and its people remain ostracized. Recent initiatives such as the 2009 Self-Governance Order and the 2018 Gilgit Baltistan Order can be discerned as attempts to respond to the increasingly loud demands within Gilgit-Baltistan for equal rights and equal representation without granting Gilgit-Baltistan the fundamental rights that locals require and deserve,” the EFSAS noted.

“Given the connection between Gilgit-Baltistan and the Pakistani strategy and interests surrounding Jammu & Kashmir, the demanded concessions hereby appear unlikely to materialize unless there is a significant shift in Jammu & Kashmir’s legal status quo, which, again, seems evasive,” it added.

In this Sunnified and radicalized sociopolitical climate in Pakistan, the EFSAS the situation for the inhabitants in Gilgit-Baltistan is unlikely to be resolved to the satisfaction of locals without the granting of basic human and cultural rights and genuine rather than performative dimensions of political representation.

The legal-constitutional conundrum surrounding Gilgit-Baltistan has decisively shaped its social, economic, and political fabric as its inhabitants have been denied fundamental constitutional rights as well as representative capacities in national political institutions such as the Parliament, the Finance Commission, and the Judicial Council (Sering, 2010), noted the think tank.

“As such, Gilgit-Baltistan is excluded from much of Pakistan’s political process, and Gilgit-Baltistan is a part of the Unrepresented Peoples & Nations Organizations (UNPO), a body that claims to ;empower the voices of unrepresented and marginalized peoples worldwide and to protect their fundamental human rights’ (UNPO mission statement),” it said.

“In lieu of being a part of the Pakistani body politic, the post-partition history of Gilgit-Baltistan has ultimately been characterized by marginalization and exclusion from Pakistan’s political system,” it added. (ANI)

Punjab Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh on Tuesday announced a two-hour window for use of green firecrackers on Diwali and Gurpurab, with a curb for Christmas too across the state, except in Mandi Gobindgarh, where a total ban has been imposed from the midnight of November 9-November 10 till November 30-December 1 midnight on account of its poor air quality index (AQI) levels.

“Only green crackers will be allowed as per these orders, which are in compliance with the directives of the National Green Tribunal (NGT), as well as various judicial orders passed amid reports of firecrackers likely to aggravate the COVID problem,” the official release said.

As per the state government, while on Diwali day (November 14), green crackers can be burst from 8 pm to 10 pm, on Gurpurab (November 30), bursting of crackers will be allowed from 4 am to 5 pm and from 9 pm to 10 pm. On Christmas Eve, people can burst these crackers from 11.55 pm till 12.30 am.

“Chairing a virtual COVID review meeting, the Chief Minister directed the Department of Science, Technology and Environment to issue the necessary notification in this regard. Warning against any violation of these curbs, he asked DGP Dinkar Gupta to crack down heavily to ensure penal action as per the law,” the release added. (ANI)

Rushan Abbas, an Uyghur American activist, has disclosed the inhumane treatment meted out to Muslim Uyghurs in Xinjiang province by the Chinese regime, saying that women are subjected to mental and physical torture, and are given unknown injections, and medications.

Abbas, whose sister went missing in China almost two years ago and is believed to be locked in a detention camp, said the world is unaware of the lies of Chinese regime because it tightly controls information flow.

“My sister disappeared in September of 2018, six days after I spoke out on a panel regarding the disappearance of my husband’s entire family. I have tried for two years to get proof of life, without any progress,” Middle East Monitor quoted Executive Director of Campaign for Uyghurs, Rushan Abbas as saying.

The activist’s sister, Gulshan Abbas, is a retired Uyghur medical doctor and mother who went missing two years ago.

“It is a constant struggle, especially for my nieces, to live normally with the weight of this burden. And yet, this is the same struggle that all Uyghurs have,” she said.

“Most people are largely unaware of just how many lies the Chinese regime gets away with because they so tightly control information. They find it unbelievable because they aren’t living in a similar system and don’t understand the realities of how barbaric a seemingly modern country like China actually is,” she added.

Rushan, who was born in the capital of Xinjiang in Urumqi, moved to the United States and attended Washington State University in 1989 where she pursued studies in Plant Pathology. She became a vocal activist and advocate for the human rights of Uyghurs.

On September 5, 2018, Rushan Abbas participated in a panel discussion named “China’s ‘War on Terrorism’ and the Xinjiang Emergency”. She talked about the fate of her in-laws and conditions of China’s camps. Six days later, Rushan’s sister and aunt were detained by the Chinese government as retaliation for her speech at Hudson Institute.

In order to discover what her missing sister may be going through, Rushan has interviewed former camp inmates who told her chilling details of the detention centres, including survivor Zumret Dawut, who last year testified that she was forced to undergo permanent sterilisation surgery.

In April 2018, Dawut, a mother of three, was detained at an internment camp where she was forced to recite Chinese propaganda, beaten for providing food to an ailing fellow prisoner, and injected with unknown drugs, according to her account at a UN event.

Prisoners are shackled 24-hours a day, she added.

This is a strikingly different picture to the one China has painted, claiming that the camps provide ‘vocational training’ and that prisoners can leave at any time.

“Women talk about seeing other women taken away to be gang-raped. They describe mental torture, physical torture, being given unknown injections, and medications. They describe being mocked for their faith as they are required to verbally worship [Chinese President] Xi Jinping and the [Chinese Communist Party] CCP before being given meagre rations of food,” explains Rashun.

“It’s hard to even grasp how these things can be happening in the modern age. Each time I listen to their horrific stories I picture my sister going through the same, or worse. With her delicate health, it’s very difficult to imagine how she could go through such things,” she added. (ANI)

Actors Sara Ali Khan and Varun Dhawan on Tuesday picked out coordinated checkered ensembles as they stepped out to promote their upcoming film ‘Coolie No. 1.’

Dhawan took to Instagram to share two pictures of himself with Sara, where the two “checkmates,” were seen posing.

While Dhawan is seen decked up in a yellow and blue checkered shirt which he paired up with white coloured T-shirt underneath and black coloured denim, the Pataudi scion is seen wearing an off-shoulder red and blue dress.

The ‘Love Aaj Kal’ actor chose to keep her hair loose and completed the look with matching open toe heels.

“Check-mate. You fell for the bait. Now please don’t hate. Because you are great @saraalikhan95,” Varun wrote in the caption.

‘Coolie No. 1’ is all set to premiere on online video streaming platform Amazon Prime Video on December 25. (ANI)

In a stern message to Pakistan and China during Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) annual meet on Tuesday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said it is important that the member countries respect one another’s “sovereignty and territorial integrity”.

In the virtual meet attended by Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan and Chinese President Xi Jinping, PM Modi said it is “unfortunate” that unnecessary attempts are being made to bring bilateral issues in the SCO agenda, which is in violation of SCO Charter and Shanghai spirit.

“India has strong cultural and historical ties with Shanghai Cooperation Organisation countries…India believes that to enhance connectivity it is important that we move forward while respecting one another’s sovereignty and territorial integrity,” PM Modi said.

“It is unfortunate that there are unnecessary attempts to bring bilateral issues in the SCO agenda, which is in violation of SCO Charter and Shanghai spirit,” Prime Minister Narendra Modi said while addressing the 20th Summit of SCO Council of Heads of State.

The annual summit, which is taking place virtually was also attended by all SCO member sates including Pakistan and China.

It is the first time that PM Modi and the Chinese President are sharing a platform since border stand-off between the Indian and Chinese troops in May. The two countries have held several rounds of diplomatic and military talks over border tensions.

The meet also comes after Pakistan Prime Minister Khan in August had released Pakistan’s new political map laying untenable claims to Indian territories. India had termed the act as an “exercise in political absurdity.”

This is the third meeting, in which New Delhi will be participating as a full member. It was granted the observer status of SCO in 2005 and in June 2017 it became a full member.

The summit is expected to conclude with the release of a Moscow declaration, which will reflect the broad agenda of the bloc for 2021.

Prime Minister Modi said India stands against terrorism, illegal arms smuggling and drugs and money laundering.

“We stand against terrorism, illegal arms smuggling, drugs and money laundering. India is firm in its commitment to work under SCO as per the principles laid down in the #SCO Charter,” he said.

During his address, Prime Minister Modi called for “reformed multilateralism” that reflects global realities of the present times and discussed topics such as expectations of all stakeholders, contemporary challenges and human welfare.

The Indian Prime Minister also said the United Nations has completed its 75 years but the basic goal of the world body is still incomplete.

“The United Nations has completed its 75 years. But despite many successes, the basic goal of the United Nations is still incomplete. The world struggling with the economic and social suffering of the epidemic is expected to bring radical changes in the system of the UN,” PM Modi said. (ANI)

Heavy number of police personnel have been deployed in several market and crowded areas in the national capital as a security measure ahead of Diwali, which will be celebrated across the country on November 14.

Dr Eish Singhal, Deputy Commissioner of Police, New Delhi District, told reporters, “During festive season, we intensify drive to check vehicles and inspect markets. We are sensitising shopkeepers and visitors from the anti-terrorist point of view.”

Police are conducting heavy patrolling in several locations and also keeping an eye on CCTV footage in markets.

In markets like Palika Bazar, the police department has made the arrangements in such a manner that a visitor can only enter after getting their baggage scanned.

“We have told them (shopkeepers and visitors) that entry will be allowed from the entrance where baggage scanner has been installed,” DCP added.

Meanwhile, in view of surge in pollution levels in the national capital, Delhi Environment Minister Gopal Rai said that if anyone violates the ban on firecrackers during Diwali, then the violator shall be penalized under the Air Act.The Environment Minister also said that more than 150 tankers have sprinkled water on the roads of Delhi to combat dust pollution. (ANI)

Six properties of underworld don and India’s most wanted terrorist Dawood Ibrahim at his ancestral place Ratnagiri were auctioned by the Smugglers and Foreign Exchange Manipulators (Forfeiture of Property) Authority (SAFEMA) on Tuesday.

While four of the properties were successfully bid by Delhi-based lawyer Bhupendra Bhardwaj in the virtual auction held today, the other two bids were won by advocate Ajay Srivastava.

“We had an excellent response in the auction. The six properties at Ratnagiri and Goregaon have been sold. While four bids were won by Bhupendra Bharadwaj, two were won by Ajay Shrivastava,” SAFEMA Additional Commissioner RN D’Souza told reporters here.

He said the highest bid for two of the properties went from the reserve price of Rs 1.89 lakh and Rs 5.35 lakh to Rs 4.3 lakh and Rs 11.2 lakh respectively. He added that the other properties went for their base prices.

One other property, belonging to Dawood Ibrahim, was however withdrawn from the auction by officials due to some technical reasons.

“We auction in all three modes — public auction, e-auction and silk tender. But, this being a very peculiar situation during the COVID-19 pandemic. So, we had to improvise a little. Instead of having a public auction, we conducted a virtual public auction,” D’Souza said.

The officials said there were several enquiries for the Mylton apartment, owned by gangster Iqbal Mirchi, but no bids were received for the same.

“As per the procedure, 25 per cent of the bid amount has to be deposited within seven days if the total amount is below Rs 50 lakh, if above 50 lakh, 25 per cent of the bid needs to be deposited within a period of one month. The rest of the amount can be deposited within one month and three months respectively. After the entire payment is made a confirmation letter will be issued communicating the same,” he added. (ANI)