Month: August 2022

The Supreme Court on Wednesday agreed to list next week another petition challenging Talaq-e-Hasan and other forms of unilateral extra-judicial talaq.

A bench headed by Chief Justice of India NV Ramana agreed to list next week after the plea was orally mentioned by Senior Advocate Gaurav Bhatia seeking an early hearing.
Another plea has been moved in the Supreme Court seeking direction to declare the practice of “Talaq-e-Hasan and all other forms of unilateral extra-judicial talaq” as unconstitutional.

The petition filed by a Muslim woman sought appropriate direction to the Centre to frame guidelines for “Gender Neutral Religion Neutral Uniform Grounds of Divorce and Uniform Procedure of Divorce for all citizens”.

The plea filed by advocate Ashutosh Dubey sought to issue direction to declare the practice of “Talaq-e-Hasan and all other forms of unilateral extra-judicial talaq” as void and unconstitutional for being arbitrary, irrational and violative of Articles 14, 15, 21, 25.

The petitioner, who is a Mumbai resident w claimed herself a victim of unilateral Extra-Judicial Talaq-E-Hasan and said that she is filing this public interest litigation for the development of socially-economically downtrodden and marginalized women of the society, who are mostly humiliated by their husbands through illegal, arbitrary and unjust forms of Talaq, widely practised by the Muslim men to harass and torture their wives for one or another reason.

The plea also sought to declare Section 2 of the Muslim Personal Law (Shariat) Application Act, 1937 is void and unconstitutional for being violative of Articles 14, 15, 21, 25, in so far as it validates the practice of “Talaq-E-Hasan and other forms of unilateral extra-judicial talaq.

The plea also sought to declare the Dissolution of Muslim Marriages Act, 1939, is void and unconstitutional for being violative of Articles 14, 15, 21, 25 in so far as it fails to secure for Muslim women the protection from “Talaq-e-Hasan and other forms of unilateral extra-judicial talaq.

The fresh petition also sought to direct and declare Nikah halala (tahleel marriage) void and unconstitutional for being violative of Articles 14, 15, 21, 25 of the Constitution of India; e) direct the Centre to frame guidelines for Gender Neutral Religion Neutral Uniform Grounds of Divorce and Uniform Procedure of Divorce for all.

Earlier a plea was filed in the Supreme Court by a Muslim woman seeking to declare that “Talaq-e-Hasan and all other forms of Unilateral Extra-Judicial Talaq” as unconstitutional and sought to issue direction to the Centre to frame guidelines for Gender Neutral Religion Neutral Uniform Grounds of Divorce and Uniform Procedure of Divorce for all. That petition has been filed by one Muslim woman, who claimed to be a journalist as well as a victim of Unilateral Extra-Judicial Talaq-e-Hasan. (ANI)

Singer-turned politician Babul Supriyo, who crossed over from the BJP to the TMC, was among nine leaders sworn in as ministers in the Mamata Banerjee-led West Bengal government on Wednesday.

Apart from Supriyo, Snehasis Chakraborty, Partha Bhowmick, Udayan Guha, Pradip Mazumder, Tajmul Hossain, and Satyajit Barman took oath as Cabinet ministers. Birbaha Hansda and Biplab Roy Chowdhury were sworn in as state Ministers with independent charge.
Supriyo earlier has been a union minister in the Narendra Modi-led central government. However, he left the BJP to join the TMC.

This was the first cabinet reshuffle since Mamata Banerjee again stormed to power in the West Bengal after the 2021 assembly polls.

The reshuffle also comes in the backdrop of the removal of senior TMC leader Partha Chatterjee from the cabinet. Chatterjee was relieved of ministerial duties after his arrest by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) in the masssive SSC recruitment scam case.

Chatterjee was minister-in-charge of the departments of industry, commerce and enterprises, IT and electronics, parliamentary affairs and public enterprises, and industrial reconstruction. CM Banerjee had taken charge of the departments held by Chatterjee last week.

Chief Minister Banerjee had earlier said that there will be 4-5 new faces. She had also said that she alone could not take care of so many departments.

The reshuffle also comes at a time when the state BJP has been attacking the ruling TMC accusing it of massive corruption in the school teacher recruitment scam.

West Bengal BJP chief Sukanta Majumdar, while referring to the arrest of Chatterjee, had alleged that Banerjee’s cabinet reshuffle was an attempt to divert the media’s attention from the corruption cases in West Bengal.

“Due to the corruption cases that are coming to the fore in West Bengal, the people of Bengal have understood that the entire government is a thief. The thief will go and another new thief will come and he will start stealing again with his new energy, nothing much is going to change,” he claimed while speaking to ANI.

The TMC has also hit out at the BJP claiming efforts were being made to tarnish the state government’s image. (ANI)

Prime Minister Narendra Modi congratulated weightlifter Lovepreet Singh after he clinched a Bronze medal for India in the Men’s 109 kg final at the ongoing Commonwealth Games 2022 in Birmingham on Wednesday.

Indian weightlifter Lovepreet Singh added another medal to India’s tally after capturing a Bronze medal in the final of the Men’s 109 kg category at the ongoing Commonwealth Games 2022 in Birmingham on Wednesday.
“Congratulations to the talented Lovepreet Singh for winning the Bronze medal in Men’s 109kg weightlifting. The young and dynamic Lovepreet has impressed everyone with his calm temperament and dedication to sports. Wishing him the very best for all future endeavours,” tweeted PM Modi.

President Droupadi Murmu also lauded the weightlifter for his medal win.

“Indian weightlifters continue to excel and bring glory for the nation. Congratulations to Lovepreet Singh for winning bronze medal in weightlifting at #CommonwealthGames. My best wishes to him for success in future events,” tweeted the President.

Union Sports Minister Anurag Thakur also congratulated the weightlifter on his Bronze medal win.

“It took Lovepreet Singh 7 years of hardwork to make his place in the national camp at NSNIS Patiala, since then there has been no looking back for him! Congratulations on your medal at #CWG2022. Champ, wish you the best for your future. #Cheer4India,” tweeted Thakur.

Lovepreet finished with a combined lift of 355 kg. It consisted of 163 kg in his final Snatch attempt and a best of 192 kg in the Clean and Jerk category.

Cameroon’s Junior Periclex Ngadja Nyabeyeu took home the Gold with a combined lift of 361 kg, which consisted of the best lift of 160 kg in the Snatch category and the best of 201 kg in the C&J category.

The silver medal went to Samoa’s Jack Hitila Opeloge who had a combined lift of 358 kg. It consisted of the best lift of 164 kg in the Snatch category and 194 in the C&J category.

Lovepreet Singh was off to a great start. He lifted a solid 157 kg in the first Snatch attempt and he took the lead after this.

His other opponents outdid him and he was dethroned from the first spot. His second Snatch attempt was an impressive 161 kg, which once again placed him at the top.

However, in his final attempt, Canada’s Pierre-Alexandre Bessette lifted an impressive 163 kg, which pushed him to number one and Lovepreet was thrown at number two. Lovepreet responded with an amazing 163 kg lift in his final Snatch attempt.

He finished the Snatch event tied with Bessette for the second position. At the first position was Samoa’s Jack Hitila Opeloge, who lifted a fantastic 164 kg in his final attempt. Cameroon’s Junior Periclex Ngadja Nyabeyeu was at the third spot with a lift of 160 kg.

With the Indian in medal contention, things moved to the Clean and Jerk event.

Lovepreet lifted an impressive 185 kg in his first attempt in C&J, which strengthened his top position chances.

He followed this with an even better lift of 189 kg in his second attempt, which improved his combined lift from 348 kg to 352 kg.

Lovepreet’s final C&J attempt was a monstrous lift of 192 kg, which pushed his combined lift to 355 kg. The closest to him was Bessette with a combined lift of 349 kg, followed by Andy Griffiths of England, who had a combined lift of 346 kg.

However, some contestants were yet to complete their C&J attempts and Lovepreet had to wait to see if he could finish at a podium position, preferably the topmost one which he had occupied.

Samoa’s Opeloge lifted a massive 194 kg in his first attempt at C&J and Cameroon’s Junior Periclex Ngadja Nyabeyeu also lifted 196 kg in his first attempt. Both were in the first and second position with a combined lift of 358 kg and 356 kg respectively. Lovepreet was pushed down to third.

In the end, Lovepreet had to stay content with a bronze medal as he finished with a combined lift of 355 kg. (ANI)

US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s trip to Taiwan came to an end on Wednesday as she departed from the self-ruled island after a short and gripping trip which raised tensions in the Taiwan Strait.

“Our delegation had the distinct privilege of meeting with the President of Taiwan Tsai Ing-wen today. We discussed how America and Taiwan can deepen our economic ties, further strengthen our security partnership and defend our shared democratic values,” Pelosi said in a tweet.
The US House Speaker, the highest-level US official to visit Taiwan in over twenty years, reaffirmed America’s commitment to the people of Taiwan for decades to come.

“It was also my high honor to receive from President @iingwen of Taiwan the Order of Propitious Clouds with Special Grand Cordon: a symbol of our treasured friendship. Make no mistake: America remains unwavering in our commitment to the people of Taiwan- now and for decades to come,” she added.

The US Congressional delegation landed in Taiwan on Tuesday night. The US House Speaker Pelosi has since held several discussions with top leadership in Taiwan including President Tsai Ing-wen.

“There is a struggle between democracy and autocracy in the world. We cannot back away from that. As China uses its soft power in order to gain support, we’ve to talk about Taiwan in terms of its technological advancement and show people Taiwan’s courage to become more democratic,” Pelosi said in a response to a question about how an invasion can be avoided.

Responding to the aggressive response from China over her visit, Pelosi said that the demonstration of democracy offered a strong contrast to what’s happening in the country. She also said, “No more evidence is needed on what happened in Hong Kong, one country two systems didn’t happen. We don’t want anything to happen to Taiwan by force.”

During talks with Taiwanese leadership, Pelosi reiterated Washington’s support for the island country and said that the US’ determination to preserve Taiwan’s sovereignty is “iron-clad”.

“America has made a bedrock promise to always stand with Taiwan. On this strong foundation, we have a thriving partnership grounded in self-government and self-determination focused on mutual security in the region and the world committed to economic prosperity,” she said.

On Tuesday night, Pelosi had expressed US solidarity with 23 million people of Taiwan in the face of the increasing threat from China. She reaffirmed her country’s unwavering commitment to supporting Taiwan’s democracy and said this trip in no way contradicts long-standing United States policy on the self-governed island.

“Our Congressional delegation’s visit to Taiwan honours America’s unwavering commitment to supporting Taiwan’s vibrant Democracy,” Pelosi said in a statement.

China firmly opposed the US House Speaker’s Taiwan visit terming the trip a serious violation of the one-China principle and the provisions of the joint communique signed between the two countries.

It has also announced live firing as part of its military operations near Taiwan in response to Pelosi’s visit. (ANI)

The Delhi Government has told the Delhi High court that the state is making all possible efforts to ensure the creation of separate toilets for the use of Transgenders adding that the task will completed on a fast track basis.

The submissions of the Delhi government counsel came during the hearing of a public interest litigation (PIL) that sought directions for separate public toilets for transgenders.
After taking note of the submissions made by its counsel, the bench of Justice Satish Chander Mishra and Justice Subramoiumn Prasad granted the state government six weeks to file a fresh status report on the construction of new toilets for the use of Transgenders or Third Gender persons.

The Court listed the matter for November 14, for a detailed hearing.

According to the recent status report of the Delhi Government, as many as 505 toilets meant for Persons with Disabilities have also been designated for the use of Transgenders.

The Status Report further revealed that nine new toilets for the use of Transgender/Third Gender persons have already been constructed and the construction of 56 more toilets solely for Transgender/Third Gender persons is underway.

The Delhi government also filed a detailed chart furnishing minute details with respect to the separate toilets for Transgender persons.

The Delhi High Court had earlier sought a response from the Centre, Delhi Government, Civic Bodies and others on a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) seeking direction to respondents to take necessary actions for building separate washrooms for transgender/ third genders.

The Petitioner, Jasmine Kaur Chhabra, a Law Student through Advocate Rupinder Pal Singh sought direction to respondents for necessary actions as per the Swachh Bharat Mission (Urban) Revised Guidelines dated 5 October 2017 specifying the need to make separate seats/toilets for trans-genders.

The plea further sought direction to maintain the hygiene of the washrooms, so that every citizen of India gets equal rights and facilities for accessing the basic things, needed for a standard living.

The petition sought proper implementation of the Transgender Persons (Protection of Rights) Act, 2019 which criminalises the discrimination against a transgender person in education, employment, healthcare, movement and right to reside.

The plea further stated that the Centre has released funds but there are still no separate toilets for the Transgender/Third gender community in Delhi.

Mysore, Bhopal and Ludhiana have already started taking action on the matter and have built separate public washrooms and that Delhi was still nowhere in taking such an initiative, it added.

There are no separate toilet facilities for transgenders, they have to use male toilets where they are prone to sexual assault and harassment. Discrimination on the ground of sexual orientation or gender identity, therefore, impairs equality before law and equal protection of law and violates Article 14 of the Constitution of India. They don’t even have any remedy available for the same as there are no provisions in the IPC,1860 that protect transgender from sexual assault by any male, female or another transgender, the plea read. (ANI)

Union Roads, Transport and Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari on Tuesday said that good governance and development is Modi government’s mission and it will provide ample employment opportunity to the youth.

“Our government has taken a resolution to eradicate poverty from the country. We will provide employment to youth. We are working for the country. Good governance and development is our mission,” Gadkari said addressing a programme of Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav organised by the Republican Party of India.
Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav is an initiative of the Government of India to celebrate and commemorate 75 years of independence and the glorious history of its people, culture and achievements.

Addressing the same event, Union Home Minister Amit Shah emphasised on vital sectors of development and asserted that if the countrymen fulfil resolutions for the development of the country in the next 25 years, India will become a Vishwa guru.

“How will India be in 2047? How will it be in every field? How will it be in the field of education, health, and development? This year is the year to make India better in every field. If we work on these core sectors and fulfil its goals in the next 25 years, then after 25 years, India will become Vishwa Guru,” Union Home Minister Amit Shah had said while addressing an event in the national capital.

Shah was speaking at ‘Tiranga Utsav’, an event held to celebrate the 146th birth anniversary of freedom fighter Pingali Venkayya, who designed the national flag. On the occasion, Shah also launched ‘Tiranga’ anthem and video. The family of Venkayya was also felicitated at the event. A commemorative postage stamp in honour of Venkayya was later released.

Earlier, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday changed his profile picture on his social media handles to ‘Tiranga’ ahead of Independence Day celebrations in the country.

PM Modi on Sunday called upon all citizens to turn the ‘Har Ghar Tiranga’ campaign into a mass movement by hoisting or displaying the national flag at their homes and using the ‘Tiranga’ as a display picture on their social media accounts between August 2 and August 15 to commemorate the 75th anniversary of India’s Independence.

“Under the Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav, from the 13th to the 15th of August, a special movement – ‘Har Ghar Tiranga’ is being organized. Let us further this movement by hoisting the National Flag at our homes,” said Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday while addressing the monthly radio programme ‘Mann Ki Baat’. (ANI)

Prominent preacher and chief of Haryana Sikh Gurudwara Management Committee (HSGMC) Baljit Singh Daduwal has urged Sikh youths, especially the baptised ones, to shun radicalism and violence and stay away from dollar dreams shown by secessionist organisation in the name of Khalistan.

In a video message, the prominent Sikh preacher said that several Sikh families were suffering because their children were getting lured by payment of a few hundred to thousand dollars and promise of a job made by a US-based secessionist organisation, which is banned in India, in exchange for hosting Khalistan flags or writing its slogans.
He repeatedly urged the youth not to waste their life on radicalism and take care of their family.

“Lured by dollars, many lands in jails. It is tragic that the Sikhs, mainly Amritdhari (baptised) youths, have got swayed by these promises and end up in jails. They are not even getting bail. Many youths have been in jail for over two years. The organisation that got this unlawful work done, didn’t even pay them,” Daduwal said.

The US-based organisation had reportedly asked youths from Haryana and Punjab to hoist Khalistan flags and paint its slogans.

Daduwal appealed for foreign organisations to open factories or invest in projects in India to help the Punjabi youths instead of luring them into radicalism.

“If the foreign organisations are so concerned about unemployment, they should come here and open factories or invest in projects to help Punjab youths,” the Sikh preacher said.

Dadulwal also asked other religious leaders to spread the same message to youths.

In July, Patiala Police arrested two persons who were lured by a banned organisation into pasting its posters and hoist its flag.

Karnal Police in July arrested a Patiala-based man for writing “pro-Khalistan slogans” on the walls of two educational institutions on June 20. Police said that the accused was promised to pay USD 1,000 by a US-based person for accomplishing the job.

In May this year the Punjab Police’s intelligence headquarters building in Mohali was targeted with a rocket propelled grenade and central intelligence agencies found the role of suspected overground workers of Khalistani extremists group associated with Pakistan-based terrorists.

Besides this, in May this year, ‘Khalistan’ flags were found tied on the Himachal Pradesh Assembly main gate and walls.

Following this, the state police booked the banned organization outfit’s general counsel and held him as the “main accused” in the case. (ANI)

The United States attempted to divert attention from the situation in Ukraine and internal problems, including inflation, by creating a buzz around House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s visit to Taiwan, Russian foreign ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said on Wednesday.

“There is another vector — this is the situation around Ukraine, which led Washington to such a dead end that it was necessary to find some kind of informational way out of it,” Zakharova told Radio Sputnik.
According to the diplomat, the United States tried to divert attention of its citizens from the existing internal problems, such as rising prices, inflation, recession, creating a buzz around Pelosi’s visit.

“[The situation] required a change in the information paradigm,” she said, noting that this was done by Pelosi. (ANI/Sputnik)