January 2023 - Page 10 of 60 - Lokmarg

8 Killed, 10 Injured In Jerusalem Terror Attack

By LokMarg 28th January 2023

At least 8 people have been killed in a deadly terror attack in a synagogue in Jerusalem on Friday, Israel’s foreign ministry said in a statement.

According to the official statement, 10 people have been injured in the gun attack that occurred around 8:15 pm (local time), near a synagogue on Neve Yaakov Street. The paramedics reached the incident site right after the attack took place.
“8 killed, 10 injured in synagogue in #Jerusalem terror attack Paramedics have arrived onto the scene and began providing treatment to those injured,” the official Twitter handle of Israel’s foreign ministry tweeted.

The alleged shooter was also later killed by police forces, according to police.

The incident followed the deadly clashes in the refugee camp of Jenin on Thursday in which nine Palestinians, including an elderly woman, were killed by Israeli forces.

The raid that took place in the West Bank city took the overall toll of Palestinians killed by Israeli forces to 29 this year, according to CNN.

Moreover, Israel also launched a series of bombing raids in the central Gaza Strip in response to rocket attacks from Gazan terrorists and said that the raids will lead to “significant harm to Hamas efforts” in building up its arms, The Times of Israel reported on Friday.

The Israel Defence Force (IDF) said that they targeted Bottom of Form, an underground facility where rockets are manufactured in the Maghazi refugee camp in central Gaza.

“The attack will lead to significant harm to Hamas’ efforts to build up its arms,” the IDF said in a statement, according to The Times of Israel.

Footage published on social media showed several large explosions from the airstrikes in Gaza.

Separately on Thursday afternoon, a Palestinian man was killed in clashes with Israeli troops in the town of a-Ram, north of Jerusalem, the PA Health Ministry said. (ANI)

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Khanjawala Rerun: Motorist Rams Scooter, Drags Biker, Pillion Rider Dies

By LokMarg 28th January 2023

In a near rerun of the Khanjawala hit-and-drag incident, a motorist allegedly rammed his car into a scooter and dragged the rider on its roof for about 350 metres in the Keshav Puram area of the national capital on Friday.

According to the FIR registered at the Keshav Puram police station, such was the impact of the collision that the scooter rider was thrown off the pilot seat of his two-wheeler and landed on the vehicle’s roof, while the pillion rider died on the spot.
The biker was then allegedly dragged for 350 metres, the police said, adding the five persons were arrested in connection with the incident.

The biker was rushed to a nearby hospital, the police informed further.

There were two people riding the scooty, one of them died in the accident while the other one is hospitalised.

In a similar incident at Khanjawala on New Year’s night, 20-year-old Anjali Singh, who was driving a scooter, was allegedly rammed by a car and dragged for several kilometres as she held on to the vehicle in Outer Delhi’s Kanjhawala area.

The woman was found dead in the middle of the road, with her clothes tattered and torn.

A total of seven persons, including the five occupants of the car, were arrested in connection with the incident. (ANI)

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Protests could erupt in cities across the United States after horrifying video footage was released on Friday of US police beating Tyre Nichols in Memphis earlier this month, leading to injuries from which he later died.

Videos Of Fatal Police Beating Up Man In US Released

By LokMarg 28th January 2023

Protests could erupt in cities across the United States after horrifying video footage was released on Friday of US police beating Tyre Nichols in Memphis earlier this month, leading to injuries from which he later died.

The city of Memphis on Friday (local time) released four videos that show police officers kicking and beating Nichols, a 29-year-old, Black man, The New York Times reported.
Memphis civic leaders and the family of Nichols have asked people to protest peacefully, as per The New York Times report. US President Joe Biden joined their call in a statement on Thursday afternoon. The police department in New York City in a statement said that officials were preparing for the possibility of protests.

Calling for “justice” for her son, RowVaughn Wells, Mr. Nichols’s mother, said Friday that the five officers had “disgraced” their families, but that she would also pray for them, the New York Times reported.

Nichols, who was pulled out of his car by officers, can be heard saying, “I’m just trying to go home,” and at one point he repeatedly screams, “Mom, Mom, Mom.”

Nichols, a 29-year-old Black man, was hospitalized after the arrest on January 7 and died three days due to injuries, according to police.

Five officers have been charged with murder in the death of Tyre Nichols, according to The New York Times.

Video taken from a remotely controlled camera mounted on a utility pole in the area shows Memphis police officers hitting Nichols at least nine times without visible provocation, as per CNN. An officer is shown shoving Nichols hard to the pavement with a knee or leg when the camera turns towards the incident site.

According to CNN, Nichols is pulled by his shoulders and then kicked in the face. He was then pulled into a sitting position. The video shows Nichols being hit in the back with what seems to be a baton. After being pulled to his knees, Nichols was again beaten.

After being pulled to his feet, the officers hit Nichols in the face multiple times while his hands were kept behind his body after which he falls to his knees, according to CNN. In the video, an officer then appears to kick Nichols. More than three minutes after the encounter is seen on camera, officers let go of Nichols, and he rolls onto his back.

After one minute, Nichols was dragged along the pavement and propped up in a sitting position against the side of a car. After ten minutes, a person who seems to be a paramedic finally attends to Nichols. According to the video released by the city of Memphis, Tyre Nichols during his initial confrontation with police was heard telling officers that he is “just trying to go home,” as per the news report.

The video released by Shelby County District Attorney’s office showed the medical response to Tyre Nichols moments after he was beaten. About two minutes after paramedics started attending to Nichols, he is seen falling over to the side and seeming to hit his head against a piece of equipment. As per the CNN report, no one appears to help Nichols as he tries to sit up. After a minute, officers were seen crowding around Nichols.

The pole camera showed that 23 minutes pass from the time Nichols appears to be subdued and on his back on the ground before a stretcher arrived at the site, as per the news report. After two minutes, an ambulance arrived at the site of the incident. (ANI)

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Mulayam Should Have Got Bharat Ratna: Swami Prasad Maurya

By LokMarg 27th January 2023

Samajwadi Party (SP) leader Swami Prasad Maurya on Friday targeted the BJP-led central government, saying the Padma Vibhushan award doesn’t do justice to the persona and standing of the late party patriarch Mulayam Singh Yadav as he deserved the Bharat Ratna.

Annoucing this year’s picks for the coveted Padma awards on the eve of the 74th Republic Day, on Wednesday, the Centre named the former Defence Minister and Uttar Pradesh chief minister for Padma Vibhushan, the second-highest civilian honour in the country after Bharat Ratna.
The late SP stalwart, a long-time Parliamentarian, passed away last year afrer prolonged illness.

Speaking to mediapersons in Lucknow on Friday, the SP leader, who was formerly with the BJP, said, “Netaji Mulayam Singh Yadav should a ‘Bharat Ratna’. The ‘Padma Vibhushan’ is not beffting of his stature and personality. The government still has time to honour him with a Bharat Ratna.”

On his recent remark, demanding deleting of certain “insulting comments and sarcasm” in Ramcharitmanas, a poem on the epic Ramayana, Maurya said, “I respect all religions. I merely objected to certain verses in Ramcharitmanas which hurts the sentiments of 97 per cent Hindus. Those verses reflect poorly on our own religion. They also advocate killing women and the Shudras. This is nothing but an abuse and no religion should stand for such abuse and insult.”

“I just sought the deletion of a few lines that are disrespectful of women, Adivasis and the Dalits. All communities are being disrespected in the state since the SP was voted out of power. After the BJP came to power, 5, Kalidas Marg (the CM’s official residence in Lucknow) was cleansed with Gangajal (water from River Ganga),” added Maurya.

However, he was quick to clarify that his remarks on the holy verses were his own and does not reflect his party’s position.

Coming down heavily on self-styled godman Dhirendra Krishna Shastri alias Bageshwar Dham Sarkar, the SP leader said no religion should have place for such ‘pretence’ and ‘hypocrisy’.

The godman claimed that he would make India a ‘Hindu rashtra’ if he gathers enough public support to the cause and also exhorted people to practise ‘Sanatan Dharma’.

Earlier, an FIR was filed against Maurya at Lucknow’s Hazratganj police station over his statement on Ramcharitmanas. (ANI)

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Shehnaaz Gill received a special gift from her grandparents on her 29th birthday. Shehnaaz shared a special video with her fans that gave a sneak peek into her birthday eve celebrations.

Shehnaaz Receives Special B’day Gift From Grandparents

By LokMarg 27th January 2023

Shehnaaz Gill received a special gift from her grandparents on her 29th birthday.

On the occasion, Shehnaaz shared a special video of her grandparents on Instagram along with a caption, “the most adorable feeling to receive blessings & wishes from my grandparents through a video.”
In the video, the singer’s grandfather and grandmother were seen wishing her and showering their blessings.

In the earlier hours of Friday, Shehnaaz shared a special video with her fans that gave a sneak peek into her birthday eve celebrations. In the video, she could be seen cutting a couple of cakes, surrounded by her team, family, and friends at a hotel suite.

Actor Varun Sharma was also seen celebrating her birthday at the hotel.

She laughed, and danced to the tunes of the birthday song that people around her sang for her, looking beautiful as ever in a printed salwar kurta.

She even put cake on her brother Shehbaaz’s face and had a little banter with him when he tried doing the same. WHile cutting the cake, Shehnaaz’s friend asked her to “make a wish” to whish she candidly replied saying, “main wish nahi maangti…”

Later, Shehnaaz ended the video by announcing “Happy birthday to me!” and the whole video looked quite fun and wholesome.

She captioned the video, “A year older… Happy Birthday to me! #Blessed #Gratitude”

Shehnaaz Gill started her career in the Punjabi music and film industry and rose to fame with her stint in ‘Bigg Boss 13’.

She is now all set to make her Bollywood debut opposite Salman Khan in ‘Kisi Ka Bhai Kisi Ki Jaan’. She will also be seen in ‘100%’, a film by Sajid Khan. John Abraham, Riteish Deshmukh and Nora Fatehi are also a part of the family entertainer.

Talking about music, she recently collaborated with Guru Randhawa on the song ‘Moon Rise’ recently which took the internet by storm.

The audio version of the song that was released last year received immense love from the listeners and now with the music video is out, the biggest highlight is unquestionably the electric and playful chemistry between Guru and Shehnaaz. (ANI)

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DRI Recovers Smuggled Rare 139 Animals From Bengaluru Farmhouse

By LokMarg 27th January 2023

In a joint operation, the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) and Karnataka Forest Department have recovered 139 animals belonging to 48 different species, including 34 that were listed species under the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) from a farmhouse in Bengaluru, officials said.

In a statement, DRI mentioned that acting on specific intelligence, DRI officers intercepted three passengers including a lady passenger, who had arrived from Bangkok at the Kempegowda International Airport, Bengaluru on January 22.
“An examination of their checked-in baggage resulted in the recovery of non-indigenous 18 animals (four primates and 14 reptiles) with the assistance of Karnataka Forest Department officials,” the statement said.

Ten of these were also included in Appendix II of CITES; The import of wild animals (including their parts and products) as defined in the Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972 (as amended from time to time) is prohibited and those species which are listed in CITES are subject to the provisions of CITES, the statement further read.

All the passengers caught for smuggling animals were apprehended under the provisions of the Customs Act, 1962 by the DRI officials.

According to the DRI statement neither any documents evidencing the licit import of the wildlife items nor any filings under the Ministry of Environment Forest and Climate Change (Wildlife Division), Voluntary Disclosure Scheme till its extended deadline of March 2021 were recovered from the passengers.

However, pieces of evidence of financial transactions to source Non-indigenous wildlife through the route of smuggling, buy – sell transactions on WhatsApp and other social media platforms have been unearthed, the statement mentioned.

The DRI further stated that the recovered animals include extremely rare and threatened ones like the Yellow and Green Anaconda, Yellow-headed amazon parrot, Nile Monitor, Red foot tortoise, Iguanas, Ball Pythons, Alligator Gar, Yaki Monkey, Veiled Chameleon, Racoon Dog, White-headed pionus etc. handed over to Bannerghatta Biological Park.

Four people involved in the smuggling into India have also been placed under arrest, so far, the statement said.

Further investigations into the matter are underway, the DRI officials said. (ANI)

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AIADMK Row: EPS Moves SC Ahead Of Erode By-Poll In TN

By LokMarg 27th January 2023

The AIADMK interim general secretary Edappadi K Palaniswami (EPS) on Friday approached the Supreme Court seeking an interim order in the AIADMK leadership case while citing the deadline for filing nominations in the bypoll for Erode (East) constituency.

Senior advocate C Aryama Sundaram, appearing for EPS, mentioned before a bench of Justices Dinesh Maheshwari and Hrishikesh Roy and raised concerns over the problems in filing nominations in the Erode (East) by-election.
Election Commission refuses to accept the signature of EPS as All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam’s (AIADMK) interim General Secretary, citing the pendency of cases on party leadership before the Supreme Court, the senior counsel told the bench while mentioning the issue before it.

Sundaram pointed out that February 7 is the last date for filing nominations for the by-election.

The bench asked the senior advocate to file a proper mentioning memo and mention the matter again on Monday.

Justice Maheshwari told Sundaram, “let’s see whether we can give orders on the AIADMK General Council meeting case before the last day of nominations”.

If the order is delayed, then will decide on providing interim relief, the bench said.

On January 11, the apex court bench reserved its verdict on a batch of pleas relating to the tussle between former Chief Ministers O Panneerselvam and Edappadi K Palaniswami over AIADMK leadership.

In its General Council meeting held on July 11, the dual-leadership model in the AIADMK was “ended” and OPS was expelled from the party for “anti-party” activities.

In the meeting, EPS was elevated as the interim General Secretary of the party.

Since the passing away of former Chief Minister and All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK) General Secretary J Jayalalithaa, the party has been having a dual leadership with O Panneerselvam (OPS) and EPS leading it as coordinator and joint coordinator respectively.

However, recently, disputes arose between both leaders with the EPS group pressing for unitary leadership.

Erode (East) Assembly by-election is to be held on February 27, the last date of nomination is on February 7 and the result will be declared on March 2.

Both OPS and EPS factions appear keen on their candidate as AIADMK candidate in the polls.

The two factions have sought the support of their alliance partner Bharatiya Janata Party whereas BJP is yet to announce its stand. The party has said it will take a decision after a meeting with district secretaries on January 31.

On Saturday, leaders of AIADMK factions led by EPS and OPS went to BJP headquarters in Kamalalayam to meet BJP state president K Annamalai and discuss the Erode East by-poll in the state.

From the DMK alliance, Congress will fight the polls and has announced EVKS Elangovan as its candidate. Makkal Needhi Maiyam President and actor Kamal Haasan have announced his support for the DMK alliance candidate. (ANI)

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Lakhimpur Case: Accused Ashish Released From Jail

By LokMarg 27th January 2023

Ashish Mishra, the main accused in the Tikunia incident in Lakhimpur Kheri district of Uttar Pradesh and son of Union Minister of State for Home Ajay Mishra Teni, has been released from the district jail late on Friday evening.

Instead of the main gate, Ashish Mishra was secretly taken out through the side passage. Ashish Mishra’s close relatives had reached the residential colony built on the jail premises by car. He secretly rode out of the jail premises and reached his residence in the city. The gate of the house was closed as soon as he arrived.
On October 3, 2021, thousands of farmers were protesting against the visit of Deputy Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh, Keshav Prasad Maurya in the Tikonia area of Lakhimpur Kheri district.

It is alleged that Ashish Mishra’s car had run over the protesting farmers, in which four farmers died. After this, the protesters attacked the people riding the SUV, in which the driver of the car and two BJP workers were killed. A total of eight people lost their lives in the case, including the death of a journalist during the violence. Ashish Mishra is the main accused in this case. Ashish Mishra had filed a petition in the Allahabad High Court for bail, which the High Court approved. Still, the Supreme Court directed the High Court to decide on the bail petition only after giving sufficient opportunity to the aggrieved party.

After this, the High Court again heard the matter and dismissed the bail plea of Ashish Mishra. Ashish Mishra had moved the Supreme Court on this. As of now, Ashish Mishra has now got conditional bail for eight weeks. (ANI)

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Tripura Polls: Jolt To Oppo As Former State TMC Chief, CPI(M) Leader Join BJP

By LokMarg 27th January 2023

In a major jolt to the Opposition in Tripura ahead of the Assembly polls, former Tripura TMC chief Subal Bhowmik and CPI(M) leader from the state Moboshar Ali joined the Bharatiya Janata Party in the national capital on Friday.

Chief Minister Manik Saha was also present on the occasion.
The Chief Minister, on the occasion, welcomed the leaders into the party and said that they will strengthen the party.

“In wake of the upcoming polls, the joining of these two leaders will strengthen the party. Owing to the BJP leadership both at the Centre and in the State, there is a lot of public support and trust in us. BJP will definitely form the Government in Tripura once again,” Saha said.

Addressing after assuming the primary membership of the party, Bhowmik lauded the development in the Northeast during the past eight years and said that Prime Minister Narendra Modi has taken the region to the international forum.

“After PM Modi came to power at the Centre, Tripura has been recognized and development of the state has taken place. The work of 6 National Highways is underway in a small state like Tripura. Tripura has also got an international airport under the leadership of the Prime Minister. PM Modi took the Northeast to the international platform,” he said.

Stating that the two leaders will work for the further development of the state, Bhowmik exuded confidence that the BJP will repeat its government in Tripura.

“The Northeast has got an emotional connection with the Prime Minister. We are glad that we have joined the development of Tripura today. We will further develop Tripura. I have confidence that the BJP will repeat its government in Tripura with a thumping majority,” he said.

The BJP is likely to finalize the names of the candidates for the Tripura Assembly polls in the party’s election committee meeting which was held today in the national capital.

The Assembly elections are scheduled to be held in Tripura on February 16 this year. (ANI)

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Situation In Sikkim, Arunachal Stable But Unpredictable: GOC Eastern Command

By LokMarg 27th January 2023

Amid India-China border tension, General Officer Commanding-in-Chief (GOC-in-C) Eastern Command RP Kalita on Friday said that the situation in both Sikkim and Arunachal Pradesh is stable now but unpredictable because of the boundary issue.

The Eastern Command takes care of the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in the Arunachal Pradesh and Sikkim sectors.
Addressing a press conference, GOC-in-C Eastern Command Kalita said, “There are different perceptions about LAC which leads to friction, however, the situation in both Sikkim and Arunachal Pradesh is stable now but unpredictable because of the absence of delineation of borders.”

He further said that India is continuously monitoring the activities that take place across the border and we are prepared to beat any kind of emerging challenges.

“Eastern Army is responsible for maintaining territorial integrity on eastern borders and the task has been executed by our units and formations with utmost professionalism and dedication. We are continuously evolving and aware of oncoming operational challenges,” said GOC-in-C Eastern Command.

Union Defence Minister Rajnath Singh had told in parliament that China’s People’s Liberation Army (PLA) troops tried to transgress the LAC in the Yangtse area of Tawang Sector in Arunachal Pradesh and unilaterally change the status quo but they went back to their locations due to timely intervention of Indian military commanders.

Talking about the increase of Chinese troops in India-China border areas, he said, “We have read that gradually there has been an increase in deployment of troops opposite our sectors along with infrastructure being carried out by People’s Liberation Army (PLA) across the down borders.”

GOC-in-C Eastern Command said that it is difficult to quantify the number of Chinese troops deployed in these areas.

“But we are continuously and closely monitoring the developments in these areas,” he added.

When asked about measures being taken to protect Siliguri Corridor, Kalita said, “Siliguri Corridor is geo-strategically extremely important to us. All our mechanisms are in place to ensure there are no disruptions in connectivity in the northeast.”

He further said that PLA started infrastructure development post-2017 Doklam issue within their own territory.

“On our side, to mirror those activities, infrastructure development has been carried out to ensure better response from us in case we’re required to do it,” he added.

He said that Arunachal Pradesh comprises seven valleys so movement is extremely difficult and it is difficult to make roadways.

When asked how it feels when the man in uniform is questioned over the operation and political leaders ask for proof, he said, “This is the national issue as well as a political issue so I would not like to comment much but this much I can say those who raising question they should trust the Indian Army and their operations.”

The GOC Eastern Command said, “The year gone by witnessed profound changes in geopolitical dynamics in the form of security and economic fallout from the Russia-Ukraine war, the gradual shift of power centre to the Indo-Pacific region that saw sudden key developments in our neighbourhood.” (ANI)

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