Month: March 2022

Ahead of the counting of votes for Uttar Pradesh assembly polls on Thursday, Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav has alleged “tampering with electronic voting machines” saying BJP was scared as his party was winning Ayodhya. He urged Election Commission to look into the issue.

“Samajwadi Party is winning Ayodhya that is why BJP is scared. Election Commission officials tampering with EVMs,” he claimed at a press conference in Lucknow.

He also alleged that EVMs had been tranported in Varanasi without information to local candidates.

“Exit polls want to create a perception that BJP is winning. This is the last fight for democracy. EVM is being transported without being informed to candidates. We need to be alert if EVMs are being transported this way. This is theft. We need to save our votes. We may go to court against it but before that, I want to appeal to people to save the democracy,” he said.

The SP chief also made similar allegations in a tweet.

“The reports of EVM being caught (transported) in Varanasi is a message to be alert in every constituency. To deal with any attempt of cheating during counting of votes, the candidates of Samajwadi Party and its allies should stay ready with their cameras. The youth should become soldiers during counting for the sake of democracy and their future,” he said.

The voting for seventh and last phase of assembly polls in Uttar Pradesh were held on Monday.

The exit polls have predicted BJP getting a comfortable majority in the state. The counting of votes will take place on March 10. (ANI)

A report titled ‘Human Rights Observer 2022’ prepared by the Centre for Social Justice (CSJ) has revealed that every second accused of blasphemy happened to be a Muslim.

According to the report, in the year 2021, Muslims made up the largest chunk of people accused of blasphemy, followed by Ahmadis, Hindus and Christians.
The study says that a total of 84 persons had been booked under blasphemy out of which 42 people accused of blasphemy were Muslims, 25 Ahmadis, seven Hindus and three Christians, reported The Express Tribune.

The report not only covered the data for blasphemy but also mentioned the cases of lynching. The study includes three cases of lynching, including the notorious lynching of Sri Lankan national Priyanka Kumara in Sialkot, reported in 2021.

In the Kumara lynching case, the accused persons included one transgender person and six women. Out of them, the transgender and two women happened to be Muslims by faith whereas four were Christians.

The study suggests that the issues of ‘unverified and speculative accusations’ of blasphemy have increased over the years. Because of these issues, the incidents of lynching and extrajudicial settlements have deepened.

The misuse of the draconian blasphemy laws against minorities and even members of the Muslim community to settle personal grudges is rampant in Pakistan.

Many people have been lynched to death in Pakistan on the mere accusation of blasphemy. Countless others languish in jails for years on end with no hope of getting justice as the lawyers, fearing for their own lives, refuse to defend them, reported The Express Tribune.

Judges in the lower courts routinely hand the accused the ultimate penalty of death without examining the evidence. Recently, a counsel for an accused was murdered in Multan; and before that, a Lahore High Court justice was shot dead in his chambers for acquitting a wrongly accused Christian man. (ANI)

Amid ‘Russia’s atrocities’ in Ukraine, Shell plc, a multinational oil and gas company based in the UK, on Tuesday (local time) announced its intent to withdraw from its involvement in all Russian hydrocarbons, including crude oil, petroleum products, gas and liquefied natural gas (LNG).

In a tweet, the company said, “As an immediate first step, we will stop all spot purchases of Russian crude oil, shut service stations, aviation fuels & lubricants operations in Russia.”
This comes at a time when UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson in a joint press conference with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte on Monday said that London and other Western governments are seriously considering sanctions on Russian energy exports in response to the ongoing military operation in Ukraine.

“Something that perhaps three or four weeks ago we would never have considered, is now very much on the table. We have to all consider how we can all move away … from dependence, reliance on Russian hydrocarbons,” Johnson told a press briefing alongside his Canadian and Dutch counterparts in response to a question regarding sanctions on Russian energy exports.

The company said that the withdrawal will be done in a phased manner, aligned with new government guidance As an immediate first step, the company will stop all spot purchases of Russian crude oil. It will also shut its service stations, aviation fuels and lubricants operations in Russia, said the company in its online portal.

Shell Chief Executive Officer, Ben van Beurden, was quoted as saying, “We are acutely aware that our decision last week to purchase a cargo of Russian crude oil to be refined into products like petrol and diesel – despite being made with the security of supplies at the forefront of our thinking – was not the right one and we are sorry. As we have already said, we will commit profits from the limited, remaining amounts of Russian oil we will process to a dedicated fund. We will work with aid partners and humanitarian agencies over the coming days and weeks to determine where the monies from this fund are best placed to alleviate the terrible consequences that this war is having on the people of Ukraine.”

The CEO said that that actions to date have been guided by continuous discussions with governments about the need to ‘disentangle’ society from Russian energy flows while maintaining energy supplies.

In his remarks mentioned on the portal, he said that the threats to stop pipeline flow to Europe further illustrate the difficult choices and potential consequences.

The company said, unless directed by governments, it will Immediately stop buying Russian crude oil on the spot market and we will not renew term contracts.

“We are changing our crude oil supply chain to remove Russian volumes”, it said adding, “we will shut our service stations, aviation fuels and lubricants operations in Russia. We will consider very carefully the safest way to do this, but the process will start immediately.”

“These societal challenges highlight the dilemma between putting pressure on the Russian government over its atrocities in Ukraine and ensuring stable, secure energy supplies across Europe,” said van Beurden. “But ultimately, it is for governments to decide on the incredibly difficult trade-offs that must be made during the war in Ukraine. We will continue to work with them to help manage the potential impacts on the security of energy supplies, particularly in Europe,” he added. (ANI)

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Tuesday denounced Western powers for not approving necessary decisions against Russian military operations in Ukraine and also not saving the country from the missiles and bomb attacks.

“Zelensky: “While Russians are to blame for the killings, responsibility is shared by those who for 13 days in their Western offices haven’t been able to approve an obviously necessary decision, who didn’t save our cities from these bombs and missiles – although they can,” tweeted The Kyiv Independent.
President Joe Biden and European leaders are facing political and geopolitical heat after Russian President Vladimir Putin crossed the red line by launching military operations in Ukraine.

Moreover, Zelenskyy daily videos highlighting his country’s heroism make it impossible to look away from the horror of the Russian military operation.

In the latest video message, Zelenskyy left his bunker and appeared defiantly in his government office, lauding Ukrainians protesting against Russian troops.

“(They say), ‘I’m here, it’s mine, and I won’t give it away. My city. My community. My Ukraine,’ ” Zelenskyy said in the message on Monday.

The West hitting a wall: But nearly two weeks after the invasion began, the question for the West is becoming what options there are for stepping up the economic heat rising on Russia while avoiding a parallel military escalation, CNN reported.

And there are increasing signs that for all his heroism, Zelenskyy may be coming up against the West’s prudent desire to avoid triggering a worst-case scenario that could lead to a third world war.

Meanwhile, in the latest development, Dmytro Kuleba, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine alleged that Russia is holding 300k civilians hostage in Mariupol.

“Russia holds 300k civilians hostage in Mariupol, prevents humanitarian evacuation despite agreements with ICRC mediation. One child died of dehydration (!) yesterday! War crimes are part of Russia’s deliberate strategy. I urge all states to publicly demand: RUSSIA, LET PEOPLE GO!” tweeted Kuleba.

As per The Kyiv Independent, 21 civilians, including 2 children were killed in the Russian attack on Sumy. Russian forces bombed a residential neighbourhood in Sumy in the early hours of March 8.

Russia on Tuesday declared a ceasefire amid the ongoing conflict in Ukraine from 10 am (Moscow time) to provide humanitarian corridors in the cities of Kyiv, Chernihiv, Sumy, Kharkiv and Mariupol.

“Ceasefire violated! Russian forces are now shelling the humanitarian corridor from Zaporizhzhia to Mariupol. 8 trucks + 30 buses ready to deliver humanitarian aid to Mariupol and to evac civilians to Zaporizhzhia. Pressure on Russia MUST step up to make it uphold its commitments,” tweeted the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine. (ANI)

Ban on imports of Russian petroleum products by the western countries will have catastrophic consequences for the global economy and it will push crude oil price to over $300 per barrel, Russian Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak has warned.

“It is absolutely obvious that abandoning Russian oil will lead to catastrophic consequences for the world market. A surge in prices will be unpredictable – more than $300 per barrel, if not more,” Russian News Agency TASS quoted Novak as saying.

The crude oil price has soared to a 14-year high. Brent crude oil price in London surged to near $140 a barrel on Monday, the highest level since July 2008.

Novak said the ban on Russian oil will lead to a rise in prices for fuel, electricity and heating in Europe and the United States.

“It is impossible to replace the volume of Russian oil on the European market quickly, it will take more than one year, and it will be much more expensive for European consumers,” Novak told reporters in Moscow.

“Under this scenario, they will become the main victims. European politicians should then honestly warn their citizens, consumers, what awaits them and that prices for gas stations, for electricity, for heating will skyrocket. This will affect other markets, including the American one,” he said. (ANI)

On the occasion of International Women’s Day, Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Tuesday announced that 33 per cent of government jobs in Tripura would be reserved for women.

“33 per cent reservation in jobs in Tripura administration is going to be reserved for women”, said Shah. He was addressing a public rally in Agartala on the completion of four years of the BJP government in Tripura.

Attacking the previous CPI-M government in Tripura, Shah said that Chief Minister Biplab Deb has put a complete stop to political killings in the state while the previous CPI-M government played Holi with Opposition’s blood during their rule.

“Wherever there is Communist government, Holi is played with the blood of political opponents. But I can proudly say that our Chief Minister Biplab Dev has put a complete stop to the political killings in Tripura. I assure you that in the last four years we have taken Tripura’s responsibility”, said Shah, adding that more than 39 workers of BJP and other parties were killed.

He said, “Give BJP one more chance after it completes its tenure, we will make Tripura the number one state in the country.”

According to Shah, CPI-M in Tripura ruled for 25 years in the name of poor but did nothing for their upliftment. He said, “For 25 years, the communists ruled here in the name of the poor. But did nothing for the poor.”

Shah said the BJP freed Tripura from drugs and addiction. “After four years of the formation of BJP government, I can see that Tripura, which was earlier plagued with drugs and addiction, moving towards becoming self-reliant.” He added that the BJP government has provided electricity to every poor in Tripura.

“Earlier there used to be extremism, infiltration, bandh, tension, corruption in Tripura. PM Narendra Modi has made the entire North East a big hub of development, connectivity, infrastructure, sports, investment and organic farming by giving the form of ‘Ashta Lakshmi’.”

Speaking on the development, Shah said, “We will establish a National Forensic Science University at an expense of Rs 200 crores, for the youth of the state… the per-person income has increased by 13 per cent to Rs 1.30 lakh in only four years.”

He said the government has completed dozens of road and railway schemes in Tripura. (ANI)

Union Minister Hardeep Singh Puri on Tuesday said that all 694 Indian students stranded in Ukraine’s Sumy have left for Poltava today.

Answering queries of reporters about Indians stranded in Ukraine, he said, “Last night, I checked with the control room, 694 Indian students remain stranded in Sumy. Today, they have all left in buses for Poltava.”

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday spoke with Russian President Vladimir Putin and suggested that a direct conversation between the presidents of Russia and Ukraine may greatly assist the ongoing peace efforts to deal with the ongoing conflict.

Prime Minister Modi conveyed his deep concern for the safety and security of the Indian students still remaining in Sumy.

President Putin briefed Prime Minister about the ongoing measures related to humanitarian corridors for facilitating the evacuation of civilians including Indian students.

The Prime Minister welcomed the ongoing negotiations between Russia and Ukraine and expressed hope that they would lead to the cessation of the conflict.

Meanwhile, the Indian Embassy in Kyiv evacuated 75 Indian sailors stranded in Mykolaiv Port on Tuesday.

“Mission intervened to evacuate 75 Indian sailors stranded in Mykolaiv Port. Yesterday buses arranged by Mission evacuated a total of 57 sailors including 2 Lebanese & 3 Syrians. Route constraints precluded the evacuation of balance 23 sailors. Mission is attempting their evacuation today,” tweeted the Embassy of India in Kyiv, Ukraine.

Russia on Tuesday declared a ceasefire amid the ongoing conflict in Ukraine from 10 am (Moscow time) to provide humanitarian corridors in the cities of Kyiv, Chernihiv, Sumy, Kharkiv and Mariupol.(ANI)