Month: June 2022

Over 41 lakh people in 34 districts of Assam continue to reel under the impact of ongoing flood and landslide situations.

The flood situation in Assam’s Karimganj district has deteriorated after the flood waters of Kushiyara, Longai, and Singla rivers have inundated more areas of the district affecting more than 1.34 lakh people of the district.
The flood waters have submerged several main roads of the district.

82 people have died in floods and landslides in the state this year so far in Assam.

5,424 villages under 125 revenue circles of 32 districts – Bajali, Baksa, Barpeta, Biswanath, Bongaigaon, Cachar, Chirang, Darrang, Dhemaji, Dhubri, Dibrugarh, Dima Hasao, Goalpara, Golaghat, Hailakandi, Hojai, Kamrup, Kamrup (Metro), Karbi Anglong West, Karimganj, Kokrajhar, Lakhimpur, Majuli, Morigaon, Nagaon, Nalbari, Sivasagar, Sonitpur, South Salmara, Tamulpur, Tinsukia, Udalguri, are reeling under flood.

More than 12.30 lakh people have been affected alone in lower Assam’s Barpeta district followed by 4.69 lakh in Darrang, 4.40 lakh in Nagaon, 3.38 lakh in Bajali, 2.91 lakh in Dhubri, 2.82 lakh in Kamrup, 2.80 lakh in Goalpara, 2.07 lakh in Cachar, 1.84 lakh in Nalbari, 1.51 lakh in South Salmara, 1.46 lakh in Bongaigaon, 1.34 lakh in Karimganj district.

The ASDMA also reported that seven people have gone missing amidst the natural calamity whereas 2,31,819 people took shelter in the 810 relief camps in the state.

A total of 1,13,485.37 hectares of land have been affected because of the calamity, whereas the ASDMA in its report further stated that at least 11,292 people have been evacuated from the affected areas.

The administration of the flood-hit districts have set up 810 relief camps and 615 relief distribution centres and nearly 2.32 lakh people are currently lodged in the relief camps.

Meanwhile, the Karimganj district administration has closed down all government and private educational institutions in the district till June 23. (ANI)

Delhi Police Special Cell on Tuesday received information from the accused that the weapons used in the murder of Sidhu Moose Wala were supplied to them from across the border, said sources.

Earlier on Monday, Delhi Police arrested three persons, including two main shooters in the Punjabi singer Sidhu Moose Wala killing case.
A Delhi Court on Monday granted 14 days of custody of Priyavrat alias Fauji, Kashish alias Kuldeep and Keshav Kumar to special cell of Delhi police till July 4.

The arrests were made in Kutch, Gujarat on June 19. A huge cache of arms including pistols 50 rounds, eight high explosive grenades and grenade launchers, and nine electric detonators were recovered by the police.

According to information, the accused persons include Priyavrat (26) who was the module head and was in direct touch with Canada-based Goldy Brar and led the team at the time of the incident. Priyavrat has been previously involved in two murder cases. He was arrested in 2015 in a murder case of Sonipat and wanted in another murder case of Sonipat in 2021.

He was seen in CCTV footage at a petrol pump at Fatehgarh before the murder.

The second arrested person has been identified as Kashish (24) who is also a designated shooter and was also identified from the CCTV footage of petrol pump Fatehgarh. He has been a wanted accused in Jhajjhar case, Haryana in 2021.

The third arrested accused Keshav Kumar (29) was a facilitator who received the shooters in a four-wheeler just after the shootout and also accompanied the shooters till Mansa on the day of the incident, during reconnaissance and previous attempts. Kumar was arrested in a murder case at Bathinda, Punjab in 2020 and was also suspected to be involved in various cases of extortion in Punjab.

Canada-based gangster Goldy Brar had claimed responsibility for Moose Wala’s murder in a Facebook post. Goldy Brar is a close aide of gang leader Lawrence Bishnoi, who is the chief suspect in the Punjabi rapper’s murder.

Bishnoi was produced before Chief Judicial Magistrate on June 15, where the Punjab Police got 7 days remand of the wanted criminal.

Sidhu Moose Wala was shot dead by assailants in Jawaharke village of Punjab’s Mansa district on May 29. The incident took place a day after his security was withdrawn by the Punjab police among 424 others. Notably, the singer had joined the Congress party last year in December ahead of the Assembly elections. (ANI)

The Shiv Sena on Monday decided to remove its cabinet minister Eknath Shinde as its Legislative party leader and Sewri MLA Ajay Chaudhary will be the new Shiv Sena Legislative party leader, sources said.

This comes after Shinde and some Shiv Sena MLAs became “unreachable” today.
According to sources, a day after suspected cross-voting in Maharashtra MLC polls, prominent Shiv Sena leader and state cabinet minister Eknath Shinde has reportedly become inaccessible with several party MLAs. Sources said the MLAs moved to a hotel in Surat in Gujarat.

Shiv Sena leader Sanjay Raut also confirmed the developments and said, “Some MLAs of Shiv Sena and Eknath Shinde are currently not reachable. Efforts are being made to topple the MVA government but BJP has to remember that Maharashtra is very different from Rajasthan or Madhya Pradesh.”

Shinde is influential in the Shiv Sena and has been instrumental in strengthening the organisation in the Thane region.

Shinde was made the Leader of the Opposition in the Maharashtra Legislative Assembly in 2014 after the Shiv Sena parted ways with the BJP. He was appointed as a cabinet minister in the MVA government.

However, sources said Shinde has been feeling sidelined since the formation of the MVA government. His son Shrikant Shinde represents the Kalyan Lok Sabha seat.

Meanwhile, Congress leaders met at party leader Balasaheb Thorat’s official residence, Royal Stone bungalow in Mumbai. Former Chief Minister Ashok Chavan also attended the meeting.

On the other hand, Maharashtra BJP chief Chandrakant Patil took a potshot at Shiv Sena leader Sanjay Raut and said the political turmoil came up due to Raut.

Asked about Shinde’s removal from the party, Patil said neither Shinde has sent any proposal to BJP for government formation, nor the BJP has sent any proposal to him.

“It’s too early to say anything. We are currently waiting and keeping an eye on the situation. Neither Eknath Shinde has sent a proposal to BJP for government formation nor the BJP has sent any proposal to him,” he said

“So far, there has not been any proposal regarding government formation neither from the BJP nor from Eknath Shinde but anything can happen in politics at any time,” he added.

BJP bagged five seats, the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) and Shiv Sena won two each while Congress was able to clinch one seat out of the total 10 seats in Maharashtra Legislative Council (MLC) that went to polls on Monday.

MVA candidate from Congress Chandrakant Handore had lost in the MLC polls.

As many as 11 candidates were in the fray for the elections to the 10 seats in the MLC. All the five candidates of the BJP — Pravin Darekar, Ram Shinde, Shrikant Bharatiya, Uma Khapre and Prasad Lad emerged victorious. NCP candidates– Ramraje Nimbalkar and Eknath Khadse– and the Shiv Sena nominees- Aamshya Padavi and Sachin Ahir also secured their seats. Of the two candidates fielded by Congress, Bhai Jagtap secured the win while Chandrakant Handore lost.

BJP’s winning candidate claimed that cross-voting happened among members of Shiv Sena and Congress.

The BJP has 106 MLAs, Shiv Sena 56, NCP 53 and Congress has 44 MLAs. A total of 285 members cast their votes in the MLC polls.

Former Home Ministers Anil Deshmukh and Nawab Malik, who are in judicial custody in money-laundering cases were not allowed to vote. (ANI)

Following the release of Major Sandeep Unnikrishnan’s biopic ‘Major’, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath recently met with the movie’s lead star Adivi Sesh along with Unnikrishnan’s parents to congratulate them on the film’s success.

Adivi Sesh showed 10 minutes of the film to the CM and also invited him to watch the entire movie. They discussed it at length and Yogi Adityanath promised to spread the word and legacy of Major Sandeep Unnikrishnan to the world.

The CM congratulated them on making a great film and presented the actor and Major Sandeep’s parents with a shawl and silver coin as a memento.

Speaking about the recent meeting, Adivi said, “I’m so overwhelmed with all the love that is pouring in for the film. People from all over the country are honouring Major Sandeep’s memory and legacy and to us that is the biggest win. We recently met Yogi Adityanath ji and he had some wonderful things to say to me and Major Sandeep’s parents. He presented us with a shawl and silver coin and also felt that Major Sandeep Unnikrishnan’s legacy is one that the world deserves to honour.”

Not too long ago, the actor had also met Maharashtra Chief Minister, Uddhav Thackeray, to discuss the plans for the Major Sandeep Unnikrishnan fund that will help CDS and NDA aspirants from remote corners of the country to receive the training, guidance and funding to pursue their dreams of serving the nation.

The film revolves around Major Sandeep Unnikrishnan, who lost his life-fighting terrorists during the 2008 Mumbai serial attacks.

‘Major’ has been directed by Sashi Karan Tikka. It was shot simultaneously in two languages – Telugu and Hindi. At the same time, it will be released in Malayalam as well.

Sobhita Dhulipala, Saiee Manjrekar, Prakash Raj, Revathi and Murli Sharma are also a part of ‘Major’ which was released on June 3. (ANI)

Afghanistan and Iran have reached an agreement over the Helmand River Water Treaty, local media reported quoting a Taliban member.

Water of the Helmand River will be shared with Iran based on the Helmand Water treaty signed in 1973 between the two countries, reported Tolo News.
The 1973 treaty between Afghanistan and Iran states that Kabul will share the water from Helmand River with Tehran at the rate of 26 cubic meters of water per second, or 850 million cubic meters per annum.

Taliban member Barakutullah Aryoubi stated that mutual stations and facilities will be established on both sides of the Helmand River.

“The two sides called for the implementation of the treaty as the problem was within the area covered by the treaty,” he added.

Last year after the Taliban came to power in Afghanistan, Iran’s foreign ministry had said that the recent political changes in Afghanistan could turn into a strategic threat to Iran’s interests.

“If the Taliban with the current thought and format gets established in Afghanistan, it definitely will be a strategic threat against our country’s national interests. There is no doubt about it,” the General Director of the Iranian foreign ministry’s west Asia department, Rasoul Mousavi had said, according to Tolo News.

Mousavi made the statement after confirming the Taliban’s recognition of the 1973 Helmand River Treaty.

Former Afghan president Ashraf Ghani had repeatedly said Afghanistan would not give water free of charge to any country, especially to Iran. Ghani had said he will give water to the neighboring countries only in exchange for oil, but will not give it away for free.

Earlier, Helmand provincial council former head Attaullah Afghan also said that the water level has lowered in Helmand River and its water flow into Iran should not be allowed. (ANI)

Ruling out rollback of Agnipath scheme for recruitment in armed forces, National Security Advisor of India Ajit Doval said on Tuesday that the government’s move was “not a knee-jerk reaction that has come overnight” but has been debated and discussed for over decades.

In an exclusive interview with ANI on Tuesday, NSA Doval said several committees over the decades have suggested bringing down average age of armed forces.
“There is no question of any rollback (of the Agnipath scheme). Let me tell you one thing. This is not a knee-jerk reaction that has come overnight. This has been debated and discussed for over decades,” he said.

“In 1970s, we had committees that talked about reorganisation and reforming the army including the usage of manpower, technology and others,” he added.

Several opposition parties have slammed the Agnipath scheme and demanded its withdrawal.

Doval said under Agnipath scheme, every youth of this country who has got the desire and motivation and feels a sense of commitment to defend the country gets an opportunity. “His energy and talent are used to make this country strong,” the NSA said.

There have been protests against the Agnipath scheme in some states and the government has announced support measures to allay apprehensions.

Lieutenant General Anil Puri, Additional Secretary, Dept of Military Affairs, had told the media on Sunday the reform in the form of scheme like Agnipath was pending for long.

“We want to bring youthfulness and experience with this reform. Today, a large number of jawans are in their 30s and officers are getting command much later than in the past”, he had said.

The “transformative” Agnipath scheme, announced by Union Minister Rajanath Singh on June 14, in the presence of the three service chiefs provides for the recruitment of into the Armed services of youths between the age bracket of 17-and-a-half-years to 21 for only four years with a provision to retain 25 per cent of them for 15 more years. The Centre later extended the upper age limit to 23 years for recruitment in 2022.

The Union Cabinet had also approved Agnipath scheme on June 14 and the youth selected under this scheme will be known as Agniveers.

The government had announced that 46,000 Agniveers to be recruited this year. It had said that armed Forces will have “a younger, fitter, diverse profile” to face future challenges.

The Indian Army issued its first notification on Monday for recruitment under Agnipath scheme. (ANI)

Congress leader Jairam Ramesh on Tuesday announced that former Minister of Finance and External Affairs Yashwant Sinha will be the common candidate of the Opposition parties for the Presidential election, which will take place on July 18, 2022, said a statement.

In his long and distinguished career in public life, Sinha has served the nation in various capacities as an able administrator, accomplished parliamentarian and acclaimed Union Minister of Finance and External Affairs. He is eminently qualified to uphold the secular and democratic character of the Indian Republic and its Constitutional values, said the press release.
Ideally, a consensus candidate of the Government and the Opposition should be elected for the highest office of the Republic. However, the initiative for this should have been taken by the Government.

“We regret the fact that the Modi Government made no serious efforts in this direction. We, therefore, appeal to the BJP and its allies to support the candidature of Sinha so that the nation can have a worthy Rashtrapati elected unopposed,” the statement said. (ANI)

As protests against the new military recruitment scheme Agnipath continue to rage across states, National Security Advisor Ajit Doval on Tuesday said in the future we are heading towards a scenario where there will be contactless wars against invisible enemies and the country needs a young fit and agile army.

“The whole war is undergoing a great change. We are going toward contactless wars and also going towards the war against the invisible enemy. Technology is taking over at a rapid pace. If we have to prepare for tomorrow, then we have to change, Doval said in an interview to ANI.
The NSA said that security is a dynamic concept and it cannot remain static. “It is only in relation with the environment in which we have to protect our national interest and national assets.”

“The whole war is undergoing a great change. We are going toward contactless wars, and also going towards the war against the invisible enemy. Technology is taking over at a rapid pace. If we have to prepare for tomorrow, then we have to change,” he said.

“There is a need to look at it (The Agnipath Scheme) in a perspective. Agnipath is not a standalone scheme in itself. When Prime Minister Narendra Modi came to power in 2014, one of his prime priorities was how to make India secure and strong. That required many avenues, many steps – multitude of them,” he said.

Speaking about the priority accorded by the government to modernise and update the military infrastructure, the National Security Advisor said: “Broadly speaking, they come under the four heads. It requires equipment, it requires a change in systems and structures, it requires a change in technology, it requires a change in manpower, policies and they have to be futuristic,” he added.

The “transformative” Agnipath scheme, announced by Union Minister Rajnath Singh on June 14, in the presence of the three service chiefs provides for the recruitment of into the Armed services of youths between the age bracket of 17-and-a-half-years to 21 for only four years with a provision to retain 25 per cent of them for 15 more years. The Centre later extended the upper age limit to 23 years for recruitment in 2022.

Several states across the country have been witnessing violent protests since the scheme was announced

The Army, Navy and the Air Force on Sunday came out with a broad schedule for recruitment of soldiers under the Agnipath scheme while asserting that it is being implemented to bring down the age profile of the armed forces. (ANI)

The trouble of the Maha Vikas Aghadi government in Maharashtra has intensified further as over 15 Shiv Sena MLAs have become “unreachable” on Tuesday.

According to sources, a day after suspected cross-voting in Maharashtra MLC polls, prominent Shiv Sena leader and state cabinet minister Eknath Shinde has reportedly gone inaccessible with several party MLAs. Sources said the MLAs moved to a hotel in Surat in Gujarat.
Shiv Sena leader Sanjay Raut also confirmed the developments and said, “Some MLAs of Shiv Sena and Eknath Shinde are currently not reachable. Efforts are being made to topple the MVA government but BJP has to remember that Maharashtra is very different from Rajasthan or Madhya Pradesh.”

“I know Eknath Shinde Ji, he is a true Shiv Sainik. He will return without any conditions. I have heard that our MLAs are in Surat, Gujarat and they are not being allowed to leave. But they will certainly return as all of them are dedicated to Shiv Sena. I trust that all our MLAs will return and everything will be fine,” stated Raut.

Raut said that the party is in touch with the inaccessible MLAs. Discussions are also underway with Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray and Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) chief Sharad Pawar.

“We are in touch with our MLAs who are in Surat now. We are discussing the situation with Uddhav Thackeray Ji and Pawar Sahib. Those working with the thought that they are kingmakers will be unsuccessful,” he added.

Shinde is a big shot in Shiv Sena and has been instrumental in strengthening the organisation in the Thane region.

A Bal Thackeray loyalist Eknath Shinde, who is reportedly upset with the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) government will be addressing a press conference in Surat today, sources said.

The developments may certainly add a web of worries to the Uddhav Thackeray-led government.

Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray has called an urgent meeting of all Shiv Sena MLAs on Tuesday. All MLAs have been strictly asked to remain present in the meeting, said sources.

Shinde was made the Leader of the Opposition in the Maharashtra Legislative Assembly in 2014 after the Shiv Sena parted ways with the BJP. He was appointed as a cabinet minister in the MVA government.

However, sources said Shinde has been feeling sidelined since the formation of the MVA government. His son Shrikant Shinde represents the Kalyan Lok Sabha seat.

Meanwhile, Congress leaders met at party leader Balasaheb Thorat’s official residence, Royal Stone bungalow in Mumbai. Former Chief Minister Ashok Chavan also attended the meeting.

“BJP misuses its power. They are taking the Indian democracy towards untruthfulness. I am sure the truth will win. I have called a meeting of all Maharashtra Congress leaders today,” said Maharashtra Congress leader Nana Patole.

On the other hand, Maharashtra BJP chief Chandrakant Patil took a potshot on Shiv Sena leader Sanjay Raut and said the political turmoil came up due to Raut.

“Problems have cropped up in their party only due to instigating statements of Sanjay Raut. People will not tolerate it. Eknath Shinde’s rebellion is an example. Sanjay Raut should speak politely. He does not need to speak harshly on every matter. When Nana Patole spoke about the Centre’s intervention in Vidhan Parishad, I said that a script needs to be prepared after loss and he had already prepared it. Similarly, Sanjay Raut is writing the script of this rebellion (Eknath Shinde’s),” Chandrakant Patil told ANI.

Asked about Leader of Opposition in Maharashtra Assembly Devendra Fadnavis’ visit to Delhi, Patil said, “It is our tradition that we need to go to our national leaders with sweets, after winning an election. Devendra Fadnavis has gone to distribute sweets among our party leaders in Delhi.”

The Maharashtra BJP chief said his party is observing all the developments minutely.

“We are minutely observing the turn of events. It is a little premature to say that it will lead to any changes. It is a handle-with-care situation. We have to see it very keenly. We are observing all situations,” he said.

Leader of Opposition in Maharashtra Legislative Council Pravin Darekar said the BJP is the largest party in Maharashtra and Devendra Fadnavis is the popular leader. He emphasised that the MVA government sid not work for the people hence it is his party’s duty to set things right.

“Whatever is right for the people of Maharashtra will be done. People’s interest is more important than the power. If it is needed for Maharashtra such a movement can take place. BJP is the largest party here and Devendra Fadnavis a popular leader. What did the MVA government do in 2.5 years? It is our duty to set things right. We care for Maharashtra, they care about power,” Darekar told ANI when asked about speculations that BJP will soon stake claims to form government in the state.

“MVA government could not do anything in the public interest. People and public representatives are dissatisfied. In MLC polls all 5 of our candidates won. This is not only Devendra Fadnavis’ strategy but people are also dissatisfied with the government,” he added.

BJP bagged five seats, the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) and Shiv Sena won two each while Congress was able to clinch one seat out of the total 10 seats in Maharashtra Legislative Council (MLC) that went to polls on Monday.

MVA candidate from Congress Chandrakant Handore had lost in the MLC polls.

Taking to Twitter, BJP leader Kirit Somaiya said, “Maharashtra Vidhan Parishad election results – Shiv Sena (Mafia Sena) got 52 votes. 12 MLA’s revolted (55 Shiv Sena + 9 supporters = 64) Uddhav Thackeray’s Mafia Sarkar’s count down started.”

As many as eleven candidates were in the fray for the elections to the ten seats in the MLC. All the five candidates of the BJP — Pravin Darekar, Ram Shinde, Shrikant Bharatiya, Uma Khapre and Prasad Lad emerged victorious. NCP candidates– Ramraje Nimbalkar and Eknath Khadse– and the Shiv Sena nominees- Aamshya Padavi and Sachin Ahir also secured their seats. Of the two candidates fielded by Congress, Bhai Jagtap secured the win while Chandrakant Handore lost.

BJP’s winning candidate claimed that cross-voting happened among members of Shiv Sena and Congress.

“We are very happy. Maharashtra has shown faith in the BJP. Cross-voting happened among members of Shiv Sena and Congress. Otherwise, we would not have received so many votes. BJP will get more victory and received 134 votes,” said BJP leader Pravin Darekar.

The BJP has 106 MLAs, Shiv Sena 56, NCP 53 and Congress has 44 MLAs. A total of 285 members cast their votes in the MLC polls.

Former Home Ministers Anil Deshmukh and Nawab Malik, who are in judicial custody in money-laundering cases were not allowed to vote. (ANI)