Author: LokMarg

Delhi Police arrested three persons, including two main shooters in the Punjabi singer Sidhu Moose Wala killing case, said officials on Monday.

The police also said that a man named Manpreet Manu first shot at Moose Wala.
“Manpreet Manu riding in this Corolla car fired at Moose Wala. Soon after the incident Manpreet Manu and Roopa left. Priyavrat-led module also left the spot after the incident,” said the chief of anti-terror unit (Delhi special cell), HGS Dhaliwal.

A huge cache of arms including 3 pistols 50 rounds, 8 high explosive grenades and grenade launchers, and 9 electric detonators were recovered by the police.

“All four were travelling in one Bolero car driven by one Kashis. Ankit Sirsa and Deepak, and Priyavrat, the head of this one module of shooters were travelling in the car. There was another car, Corolla, driven by Jagroop Roopa,” said the Delhi Police Special Cell.

The arrests were made in Kutch, Gujarat on June 19.

The accused also planned to use Punjab Police uniforms but could not use them due to lack of initials on the uniform. A total of six uniforms were prepared.

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. Privarat 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 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)

As protests against the Centre’s newly-launched Agnipath military recruitment scheme intensified, Congress leaders on Monday met President Ram Nath Kovind to discuss the Agnipath scheme and police atrocities against MPs.

Earlier in the day, Congress functionaries were seen marching towards the Rashtrapati Bhawan from Vijay Chowk in protest against the Agnipath scheme.
Speaking to ANI, Leader of Opposition in the Rajya Sabha and senior Congress leader Mallikarjun Kharge said the president was informed that the Agnipath scheme was neither discussed with any committee nor was presented in Parliament which is a violation of democratic rights.

“On Agnipath scheme, we’ve told the President that it was neither discussed with any committee nor was presented in Parliament. We said that this is a violation of our democratic rights. President has been asked to take this into consideration,” Kharge said.

Senior leader P Chidambaram said a second memorandum submitted to Kovind was about the police atrocities on Congress leaders.

“We have asked the President to order an enquiry into this and send the matter to the Parliamentary Privileges Committee,” Chidambaram said.

“We will present our case and let the Delhi Police and the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) present their case. Let the committee decide whether there has been a breach or not. The President has assured us that he will look into it and take it up with the government,” he added.

Earlier in the day, Democratic Youth Federation of India (DYFI) cadres protested near Sasthri Bhavan in Chennai’s Nungambakkam.

DYFI cadres raised slogans against the Central government and demanded the rollback of the Agnipath Scheme.

Over 80 trains have been cancelled and massive traffic jams are being witnessed across Delhi-NCR on Monday as some organisations have called for a “Bharat Bandh” to mark their protest against the Agnipath recruitment scheme unveiled by the Central government last week. This comes a day after Tri-service chiefs ruled out the withdrawal of the scheme.

The commuters in the national capital experienced difficulties in commuting as heavy traffic jams were reported in various parts of the city including at the Delhi-Gurugram expressway as Delhi Police installed barricades at various checkpoints in wake of the Bharat Bandh against the Agnipath Scheme.

The Union Cabinet on June 14 approved a recruitment scheme for Indian youth to serve in the three services of the Armed Forces called Agnipath and the youth selected under this scheme will be known as Agniveers.

After the policy, which allows Indian youths to serve in the regular cadre of the Armed Forces for a period of four years, was announced on June 14, protests erupted in various states including Delhi, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Haryana, Telangana, Odisha, West Bengal, Madhya Pradesh, Punjab, Jharkhand and Assam.

As the agitation intensified in some places, protestors went on the rampage setting trains on fire, torching vehicles and damaging both private and public properties.

Protests have disrupted rail services in several parts of the country. A total of 491 train services have been affected throughout the country due to the ongoing agitation, informed railway officials on Sunday.

Meanwhile, the first batch of Agniveers will avail a further relaxation of 5 years beyond the upper age limit of 23, taking it to 28 years. (ANI)

Actor Kriti Sanon is a fitness freak and her latest Instagram video is proof of the fact.

On Monday, Kriti took to Instagram and shared a video of her doing her favourite workouts.

“Exercises I love!. (Maybe because i do them well),” she captioned the post.

Her favourite workouts include straight arm pull overs, halo swings, Russian twists, single leg hamstring bridge, bosu plank rainbows.

Kriti’s video has left netizens impressed.

“Monday motivation,” a social media user commented.

“Wow… you impart fitness goals,” another one wrote.

“Amazing. You are so good at it,” another one wrote.

Meanwhile, on the work front again, Kriti Sanon is super busy with massive films like Adipurush, Shehzada, Captain India, Freddy and Sajid Nadiadwala’s untitled next in her lineup.

She recently bagged Best Actress Award at IIFA 2022.

After winning the award, Kriti shared a series of photos with her trophy and wrote, “Dreams do come true! All you need to do is keep working hard towards it and never lose faith! It has taken me 8yrs to get my first #BestActress award. . But I’m so happy that I received my first for #Mimi – a film I’ll treasure forever, a character that will always be special in my filmography! Thank you @iifa for this validation and for an amazing evening!! Will always be grateful to #Dinoo @laxman.utekar sir for making me your Mimi for life and the whole cast and crew of Mimi for making this journey so memorable!.”

Kriti won the award for her role as a surrogate mother in ‘Mimi’. (ANI)

Pakistan’s sheer desperation for peace with the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) comes as the country’s economy continues to remain in shambles and the prevailing political instability has made the Pakistani state “weak and vulnerable.”

The differences between the coalition partners – Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) and Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) on the transparency issue of the TTP talks led Bilawal Bhutto and Asif Zardari to reach out to other political parties in the parliament over Pakistan’s talks with the TTP and constitute a three-member committee.

After much criticism over the absence of the government’s response to the ongoing ‘peace talks’ between the Pakistan Army, Afghan Taliban, and TTP, political stakeholders have finally decided to take cognisance of the matter. Under Pakistan’s constitution, the civilian government cannot negotiate — at least not directly with those waging an insurgency against it.

While PPP seems concerned about the concessions TTP is getting from the army establishment for the success of the dialogue, PML-N has largely ignored the matter.

In addition, the security establishment fears that the Afghan Taliban may support TTP in its quest to impose the ‘Sharia Law’, on the lines of Afghanistan, in Pakistan as well.

There is also a reported push from China to tame TTP to avoid any nefarious activities against China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) projects and targeting of Chinese nationals in Pakistan. Lastly, the possibility of ‘Pashtun’ nationalism may prove a grave threat to the Punjabi-dominated army establishment in Pakistan. Therefore, Rawalpindi is opting for a peace agreement with TTP, like the US-Taliban Doha accord, instead of military operations as the Pakistan army does not want to lose its “strategic depth” in Afghanistan by angering its “trusted” Islamist proxy elements.

Even retired officers from the defence forces and law enforcement agencies have cast aspersions over the dialogue and advised to “only negotiate the terms of surrender [of TTP militants].”

Overall, the talks have not yielded much in the last month as differences remain despite the Afghan Taliban’s push and participation of a suspicious 50-member delegation of tribal elders, dubbed as a Jirga, in Kabul. As a saving grace for the military establishment, the TTP has reportedly agreed to extend the ceasefire “indefinitely” to continue negotiations.

Nevertheless, the ceasefire may not hold for long unless TTP’s demands are not met soon. Based on the past experiences of negotiations between the Pakistan army and TTP – over a dozen agreements – this time as well the deal will eventually fall apart, leading to more bloodshed in the country.

Sirajuddin Haqqani, Taliban’s deputy Emir and minister of the interior, has played a critical role in facilitating the ‘peace talks’ between Pakistan and TTP, considering his historical closeness to both the TTP and Pakistan’s security establishment.

Therefore, Haqqani’s role in bringing peace between the two warring parties will be critical in deciding the future of the dialogue. Sirajuddin’s appointment as the new interior minister of Afghanistan was not a coincidence but a planned move by Rawalpindi to put their “trusted men” at the helm in Kabul.

However, the historical ties between the Haqqani Network and TTP, both eastern Pashtuns, may prove a roadblock for Pakistan to pressure Sirajuddin on fulfilling their objectives with the TTP.

Pakistan’s Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KPK) province has seen an uptick in terrorism-related activities since the Taliban took over Afghanistan in August 2021.

In the ongoing negotiations with Pakistan, TTP has put forth the following key demands: the reversal of the merger of former Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA) with KPK as per the 25th Constitutional Amendment; substituting all military presence from the region with frontier corps; enforcement of Sharia law in the Malakand division; release of 102 commanders and fighters and presidential pardon to two key militant commanders; and complete freedom of movement for the TTP’s members in the Malakand division.

It is noteworthy that some TTP factions have been operating with impunity in tribal areas of FATA, enforcing stricter versions of Islam, and levying taxes on the locals, especially in the Malakand division.

There have been reports that Pakistan may accept most of these demands except the re-merger of FATA into KPK. The open acceptance of TTP’s demands will be considered as an abject surrender of the Pakistan Army. Therefore, the dialogue has been kept opaque besides some deliberate leaks and rare official acknowledgements. (ANI)

Congress MPs will hold a meeting at the Parliamentary Party office in Parliament on Monday over the Enforcement Directorate’s (ED) probe against Rahul Gandhi in a money laundering case linked to the National Herald newspaper and the Centre’s newly launched Agnipath recruitment scheme.

Congress held a ‘Satyagraha’ at Jantar Mantar in the national capital on Monday to mark their protest over both these issues.
Top Congress leaders including Mallikarjun Kharge, Salman Khurshid, K Suresh, V Narayanasamy, KC Venugopal and others were present at Congress’ Satyagraha at Jantar Mantar.

As the protests continue, the Twitter handle of the Congress party on behalf of Rahul Gandhi wrote, “People who make false promises of providing employment to two crore youth every year, are forcing the youth of the country to walk on the ‘firepath’ of unemployment. The situation is deteriorating all around the country at this time, only and only the Prime Minister is responsible for it.”

Mallikarjun Kharge also lashed out at the Centre over the Agnipath scheme. He tweeted today, “For the first time in 75 years, service chiefs are being fronted to defend a policy decision by the government. Why are the Prime Minister, Home Minister and Defence Minister quiet on the Agnipath scheme?”

Over 80 trains have been cancelled and massive traffic jams are being witnessed across Delhi-NCR on Monday as some organisations have called for a “Bharat Bandh” to mark their protest against the Agnipath recruitment scheme unveiled by the Central government last week. This comes a day after Tri-service chiefs ruled out the withdrawal of the scheme.

The commuters in the national capital experienced difficulties in commuting as heavy traffic jams were reported in various parts of the city including at the Delhi-Gurugram expressway as Delhi Police installed barricades at various checkpoints in wake of the Bharat Bandh against the Agnipath Scheme.

Precautionary measures are being taken at various railway stations in many states as several stations were vandalised and many trains were set ablaze by agitators.

The Union Cabinet on June 14 approved a recruitment scheme for Indian youth to serve in the three services of the Armed Forces called Agnipath and the youth selected under this scheme will be known as Agniveers.

After the policy, which allows Indian youths to serve in the regular cadre of the Armed Forces for a period of four years, was announced on June 14, protests erupted in various states including Delhi, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Haryana, Telangana, Odisha, West Bengal, Madhya Pradesh, Punjab, Jharkhand and Assam.

As the agitation intensified in some places, protestors went on the rampage setting trains on fire, torching vehicles and damaging both private and public properties.

Protests have disrupted rail services in several parts of the country. A total of 491 train services have been affected throughout the country due to the ongoing agitation, informed railway officials on Sunday.

Meanwhile, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Monday rejoined Enforcement Directorate’s (ED) ongoing investigation in connection with an alleged money laundering case related to the National Herald newspaper for the fourth day.

The Lok Sabha member from Wayanad in Kerala arrived at ED headquarters at around 11.10 am accompanied by his sister Priyanka Gandhi.

Rahul Gandhi was questioned by the ED for over 27 hours on three straight days from June 13 to June 15. The Congress leader was deposed before the ED investigators in the case for the first time on June 13.

He first sought exemption from appearance on June 16, following which he was called on June 17. But the senior Congress leader wrote to the ED to postpone his questioning citing the illness of his mother Sonia Gandhi. The ED then allowed him to join the probe on June 20 on his request. (ANI)

The annual Urs-e-Mubarak (death anniversary) of well-known Sufi saint Hazrat-e-Zati Shahwali (RA) concluded at Drugmulla in Jammu and Kashmir’s Kupwara district.

Thousands of devotees including men, women and children participated in the Urs and observed the display of ‘holy tabarukat’ of Hazrat-e-Zati Shahwali (RA) after asar prayers at Muqam-e-Shahwali.
All arrangements including security, water and power supply, health, transport, sanitation and cleanliness were put in place by the District Administration with the help of line departments.

The devotees in large numbers thronged the shrine and participated in the special prayers. Many people including women, men, children, and elderly people were seen offering prayers at the shrine.

Meanwhile, Union Minister of State Jitendra Singh on Sunday reviewed the Amarnath Yatra preparation and arrangements with the District Administration of Ramban.

During the review meeting, Jitendra Singh emphasized that a dashboard must be prepared for the Yatris for the real-time information related to weather forecasts, highway updates, number of Yatris arriving, traffic updates etc.

The Minister also stressed upon the district administration that social media should be used for updating Yatris with reliable related information by creating separate handles exclusively for this year’s Amarnath Yatra, tagging important handles.

During the meeting, Dr Jitendra Singh said that the latest technology like RFIDs which have been made compulsory in this year’s Amarnath Yatra will help in the real-time monitoring of Yatris by tracking them enroute to the cave.

Dr Jitendra Singh also inquired about the status of the report of the unfortunate incident of tunnel collapse in district Ramban, to which the Minister was informed that the ex-gratia of Rs. 20 lakh has been paid to the deceased with 2 lakhs paid as an additional amount.

During the meeting, the Minister was informed by Deputy Commissioner, Ramban that 33 ‘Langars’ from Nashri to Lamber (Banihal) for the Yatris have been constructed with a carrying capacity of 30,000. The Minister was also informed that a Yatri Niwas will be completed before the commencement of Yatra consisting of 13 lodgement centers with a total capacity of 8000 with 3000 available beds and 961 toilets/baths for the Yatris.

The security-related arrangements are also put in place for this year’s Amarnath Yatra with the installation of CCTVs, deployment of CRPF, ITBP at important locations, PCR Control Rooms, the Minister was informed by SSP Ramban, Mohita Sharma. (ANI)

Prime Minister Narendra Modi who is on a two-day visit to Karnataka, unveiled a statue of Dr BR Ambedkar at Dr BR Ambedkar School of Economics (BASE) in Bengaluru on Monday.

Prime Minister also inaugurated a new campus of BASE University.
During the programme, PM Modi launched 150 ‘Technology Hubs’ that have been developed by transforming Industrial Training Institutes (ITIs) in Karnataka at a cost of over Rs 4,600 crore and are supported by many industry partners.

According to Prime Minister’s Office (PMO), the Technology Hubs aim to create a skilled workforce to address Industry 4.0 manpower needs. These Technology Hubs, through their various innovative courses, will provide high-skill training in cutting-edge technology and improve opportunities for ITI graduates in employment and entrepreneurship.

PM Modi arrived in Bengaluru on Monday to inaugurate and lay foundation stones for several rail and road infrastructure projects worth over Rs 27,000 crore. He was received by Karnataka Governor Thawar Chand Gehlot, Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai and other dignitaries.

Reaching Bengaluru, Prime Minister first inaugurated the Centre for Brain Research at the Indian Institute of Science.

The Centre is developed as a one of its kind research facility and focuses on conducting vital research to provide evidence-based public health interventions to manage age-related brain disorders.

“Glad to inaugurate the Centre for Brain Research at IISc, Bengaluru. The joy is greater because I also had the honour of laying the foundation stone for this project. This Centre will be at the forefront of research on how to manage brain-related disorders,” Prime Minister said in a Twitter post.

“At a time when every nation must give topmost importance to healthcare, efforts like the Bagchi Parthasarathy Multispeciality Hospital assume great importance. In the times to come, it will strengthen healthcare capacities and encourage pioneering research in the sector,” he said.

The 832-bedded hospital will be developed on the campus of IISc Bengaluru and will help integrate science, engineering and medicine at the prestigious institute.

In a step toward enhancing mobility and boosting connectivity in Bengaluru, Prime Minister will lay the foundation stone of the Bengaluru Suburban rail project (BSRP), which will connect Bengaluru city with its suburbs and satellite townships. The project, which is to be built at a cost of over Rs 15,700 crore, envisages four corridors with a total route length of over 148 km.

The Prime Minister will also lay the foundation stone for the redevelopment of Bengaluru Cantt and Yesvantpur Junction railway stations to be developed at a cost of around Rs 500 crore and Rs 375 crore respectively.

PM Modi will reach Kommaghatta in Bengaluru, where he will inaugurate and lay the foundation stone of multiple rail and road infrastructure projects worth over Rs 27000 crore.

On the occasion of the eighth International Day of Yoga (IDY) on Tuesday, Prime Minister will participate along with thousands of participants in a Mass Yoga Demonstration at Mysore Palace ground in Mysuru.

Prime Minister’s Yoga programme at Mysuru is also part of the novel programme ‘Guardian Yoga Ring’ which is a collaborative exercise between 79 countries and United Nations organisations along with Indian Missions abroad to illustrate Yoga’s unifying power that surpasses National boundaries. (ANI)

Seven tourists got stranded mid-air at Timber Trail Parwanoo in Himachal Pradesh’s Solan valley on Monday after their cable car developed a technical glitch.

“6-7 tourists stranded in Parwanoo Timber Trail (cable-car) due to some technical problem. Another cable car trolly deployed to rescue them. The technical team of the Timber Trail operator deployed and police team are monitoring the situation,” said Virender Sharma, Superintendent of Police.
Further information into the case is underway.

In April, some cable cars collided on a ropeway at Trikut hills close to Baba Baidyanath Temple on Sunday. (ANI)

Amid the row over the Centre’s newly-launched Agnipath scheme, senior Congress leader and former union minister Salman Khurshid on Monday questioned the “character” of the Armed Forces, doubting their intention behind bringing the scheme.

“We would not have any problem if those for whom the scheme is made were satisfied. But, the irony is those for whom the scheme is made are not satisfied. They are upset. So far there is an outcry against the scheme, it is our responsibility to raise the issue. This is now not only a matter of the youth but the character of the Armed Forces is also under question. It is a matter of grave concern for us,” Khurshid told ANI.
Asked about Enforcement Directorate’s probe against Rahul Gandhi, the Congress leader said, “Maybe ED does not have any work to do that is why the agency calls Rahul Gandhi every day.”

Congress leaders, including Mallikarjun Kharge, Salman Khurshid, K Suresh, V Narayanasamy and others, are holding a ‘Satyagraha’ at Jantar Mantar to protest against the Enforcement Directorate summons to Rahul Gandhi and Agnipath scheme.

As the protests continue, the Twitter handle of the Congress party on behalf of Rahul Gandhi wrote, “People who make false promises of providing employment to two crore youth every year, are forcing the youth of the country to walk on the ‘firepath’ of unemployment. The situation is deteriorating all around the country at this time, only and only the Prime Minister is responsible for it.”

Mallikarjun Kharge also lashed out at the Centre over the Agnipath scheme. He tweeted today, “For the first time in 75 years, service chiefs are being fronted to defend a policy decision by the government. Why are the Prime Minister, Home Minister and Defence Minister quiet on the Agnipath scheme?”

Over 80 trains have been cancelled and massive traffic jams are being witnessed across Delhi-NCR on Monday as some organisations have called for a “Bharat Bandh” to mark their protest against the Agnipath recruitment scheme unveiled by the Central government last week. This comes a day after Tri-service chiefs ruled out the withdrawal of the scheme.

The commuters in the national capital experienced difficulties in commuting as heavy traffic jams were reported in various parts of the city including at the Delhi-Gurugram expressway as Delhi Police installed barricades at various checkpoints in wake of the Bharat Bandh against the Agnipath Scheme.

Precautionary measures are being taken at various railway stations in many states as several stations were vandalised and many trains were set ablaze by agitators.

The Union Cabinet on June 14 approved a recruitment scheme for Indian youth to serve in the three services of the Armed Forces called Agnipath and the youth selected under this scheme will be known as Agniveers.

After the policy, which allows Indian youths to serve in the regular cadre of the Armed Forces for a period of four years, was announced on June 14, protests erupted in various states including Delhi, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Haryana, Telangana, Odisha, West Bengal, Madhya Pradesh, Punjab, Jharkhand and Assam.

As the agitation intensified in some places, protestors went on the rampage setting trains on fire, torching vehicles and damaging both private and public properties.

Protests have disrupted rail services in several parts of the country. A total of 491 train services have been affected throughout the country due to the ongoing agitation, informed railway officials on Sunday. (ANI)

Walking on the ramp for the first time dressed in a bridal attire Shehnaaz Gill made a stunning appearance and looked extremely pretty.

Looking exquisite in a Red Samant Chauhan Lehenga, Shehnaaz won everyone’s heart. She started off walking confidently as the showstopper of the fashion show and then danced her heart out on Sidhu Moose Wala’s song ‘Sohne Lagde’.

Shehnaaz took to Instagram to share the video, she wrote, “Debut walk done right! Walked for the super talented designer @samantchauhan. Thank you people of Ahmedabad for making us extra special for me! Your hospitality and love are immeasurable. #ShowStopper #ShehnaazGill”.

Fans were in awe of her as they left comments praising her for her Ramp debut. A fan wrote, “Most gorgeous punjabi bride #shehnaazgill”.

Another one wrote, “Most Beautiful Showstopper Ever, Keep Shining like the brightest star #shehnaazgill”.

And, another Instagram user echoed similar sentiments and wrote, “I’m so proud of you Gill, you nailed your first ramp”.

On the work front, Shehnaaz was last seen in the Punjabi film, ‘Honsla Rakh’ opposite Diljit Dosanjh. She is reported to make her Bollywood debut very soon. Due to Shehnaaz’s close proximity to Actor Salman Khan, fans have been speculating that she will be seen in his next film ‘Kabhi Eid Kabhi Diwali’.

‘Kabhi Eid Kabhi Diwali’ will have Pooja Hegde as the female lead, alongside Aayush Sharma and Zaheer Iqbal. (ANI)