New Delhi , October 11,2021: Justice Rohinton Nariman, former Supreme Court judge, has urged the top court to strike down colonial-era sedition law and offensive parts of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, 1967 (UAPA).
Speaking at a function organised by the Viswanath Pasayat Memorial Committee, Justice Nariman has said that it is “important for the court” to strike down Section 124A (sedition) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) which criminalises sedition.
He called the UAPA a “draconian legislation” and said the law requires to be scrutinised by the top court.
Justice Nariman was of the view that the top court should not refer the batch of petitions pending before it on the sedition law to the Central government and that it should assert its power of judicial review to strike down the contentious Section 124A.
“I would exhort the Supreme Court to not send sedition law cases pending before it back to the Centre. Governments will come and go (but) it is important for the court to use its power and strike down Section 124A and an offensive portion of UAPA. Then citizens here would breathe more freely,” Justice Rohinton said.
He explained how UAPA came into the statute book after India’s wars with Pakistan and China.
“We had the China and Pakistan wars. Thereafter, we introduced the draconian legislation– UAPA. Disaffection continues in the statute book and UAPA is a draconian act as it has no anticipatory bail and has a minimum of five years imprisonment. This act is not under scanner yet. This too has to be looked into along with the sedition law,” Justice Nariman said.
He also recounted how the British used the sedition law against Indians including prominent freedom fighters and mentioned how Bal Gangadhar Tilak, Mahatma Gandhi and Jawaharlal Nehru were convicted for sedition for speaking against the colonial government.
Justice Nariman also highlighted India’s rank in the global law index which is 142 “because of the draconian and colonial laws that still exist”. He said the Nobel Peace Prize was conferred on two journalists from the Philippines and Russia, and India was at rank 142 despite being known as the world’s largest democracy.
The former judge, who retired in August after a seven-year tenure in the top court, had in 2015 quashed Section 66A of the Information Technology Act for having the “chilling effect” on the right to freedom of speech. Section 66A gave the government power to arrest and imprison an individual for allegedly “offensive and menacing” online posts and conviction could fetch a maximum of three years in jail.
On July 15, Chief Justice of India NV Ramana had questioned the government on the requirement of sedition law even after 75 years of independence and pointed out that sedition law was used against freedom fighters like Mahatma Gandhi and Bal Gangadhar Tilak.
“Our concern is a misuse of the law and the lack of accountability. Why it continues in the statute book after 75 years of our Independence,” CJI had said, adding that sedition law was meant to suppress the freedom movement and asked what was its need today.
CJI Ramana had said that the apex court will look into the plea challenging the Constitutional validity of section 124A while observing that it is a “serious threat to the functioning of individuals and parties”.
CJI had further said that “use of sedition is like giving a saw to the carpenter to cut a piece of wood and he uses it to cut the entire forest itself” while adding that conviction rate under Section 124A is very low.
The top court CJI Bench had asked Attorney General for India KK Venugopal why sedition law can’t be repealed. Attorney General had replied that section 124A need not be struck down and only guidelines are set out so that section meets its legal purpose.
The penal provision is punishable with a jail term ranging between three years and a life term, with or without a fine.
Lakhimpur Kheri, Oct 9,2021: Police has been interrogating Ashish Mishra alias Monu, son of Union Minister of State for Home Ajay Kumar Mishra Teni who is accused of killing eight people, including four farmers, during the violence on Sunday last, police said on Saturday.
Ashish appeared before the Crime Branch on Saturday at around 1035hrs, well before the scheduled time of 1100 hours.
Ashish Mishra arrived at the police lines on a scooty and entered from the back gate in order to avoid the media.
The Crime Branch team started questioning Ashish Mishra from 1110 hours.
However a senior police official told UNI that Ashish Mishra, who has been booked under section 302 and other sections, will be arrested soon. “It is just a matter of time, as there is no scope left for Ashish to get any relief immediately,” sources said.
According to sources the Crime Branch team has put around 40 set of questions before Ashish Mishra in the presence of a Magistrate and the entire proceeding is being recorded on video .
The accused also came with several pen drives claiming evidence of his absence from the spot on the said day when the incident occurred. All these pen drives have all the videos which will prove where he was present at the time of the incident.
During his interrogation, the written statement of Ashish Mishra is being recorded and is being done in the presence of Ashish Mishra’s lawyer.
New Delhi, Oct 9,2021: Tata group has won the bid to acquire flag carrier Air India adding another airline brand in its hangar with the other two being Vistara and Air Asia India.
“Talace Pvt Ltd, a wholly owned subsidiary of Tata Sons Pvt Ltd, has emerged as a successful bidder for the sale of equity shareholding of GoI (Government of India) in Air India, in AIXL which is a subsidiary of Air India as a part of this transaction and 50 per cent of Air India in AISATS which is another joint venture of Air India along with management control,” Tuhin Kanta Pandey, Secretary, Department of Investment and Public Asset Management (DIPAM) announced on Friday.
Union Home Minister Amit Shah-led Ministerial panel has approved the winning-bid.
The government had in January 2020 invited Expression of Interest (EoI) from private parties for selling 100 per cent stake in Air India along with its subsidiary Air India Express (AIXL) and 50 per cent stake in the carrier’s ground-handling JV Air India SATS (AISATS).
Pandey said that Talace Pvt Ltd quoted an enterprise value of Rs 18,000 crore to acquire the airline.
The successful bidder will retain Rs 15,300 crore of Air India’s debt and pay Rs 2,700 crore cash to the government.
New Delhi, October 7,2021: Pakistan-based terrorist groups are using hybrid terrorists to disrupt the atmosphere of peace and prosperity in Jammu and Kashmir, said top government sources on Thursday.
The information comes on a day when two teachers were killed by terrorists in Srinagar.
“The hybrid terrorists used by these terror groups for these targeted killings are mostly engaged in normal jobs and are used for such killings using small weapons. They return to their normal routine after carrying out such acts,” top government sources told ANI.
They said the security forces have received inputs about many of these youth and strict action is underway.
Sources said the number of such youth is quite significant and their identification is being done rapidly.
The union territory has reported several terror attacks in the last three days.
Two teachers were killed in a terrorist attack at a government school in the Eidgah area of Srinagar on Thursday.
Earlier on Wednesday, a street hawker was shot dead by terrorists in Srinagar.
Lakhimpur Kheri/ Lucknow, Oct 4,2021: Even as a FIR has been registered against Ashish Mishra, son of Union minister of state for home Ajay Mishra Teni in yesterday’s incident, Uttar Pradesh government has gone strict against the politicians trying to reach Lakhimpur Kheri.
Police said a FIR has been registered against 14 people, including Ashish Mishra, son of Union Minister of State for Home, in connection with the death of farmers. Case registered under 302,120B, and 147 of the IPC on the complaint of the farmers.
Similarly a counter FIR has been lodged against the farmers by the BJP leaders too.
UP Additional Chief Secretary Avnish Awasthi in a written order has asked Lucknow airport not to allow Chhattisgarh CM Bhupesh Baghel and Punjab Deputy Chief Minister Sukhjinder S Randhawa to land at the airport.
They were supposed to reach Lucknow by their state aircrafts on Tuesday morning and were scheduled to go to Lakhimpur.
Samajwadi party president Akhilesh Yadav too have been forced to remain inside his Vikramaditya Marg residence in Lucknow after large contingent of police including RAF have been deployed outside his house.
A truck has also been put blocking the road. Akhikesh Yadav was slated to go to Lakhimpur this morning.
Pragatsheel Samajwadi party Lohia presidebt Shivpal Singh Yadav was also detained at his residence.
Congress general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, has been detained in Sitapur even after she reached Hargaon, dodging the police.
Priyanka was stopped at Hargaon on Monday morning around 5.30 am.
Officials claimed that Priyanka would be sent back to Lucknow. Presently she along with other Congress leaders were lodged at a guest house in Sitapur police lines.
Meanwhile, second round of talks between the agitating farmers and Lakhimpur authorities were underway to resolve the issue.
Around 12 farmers including farmer leader Rakesh Tikait are present in the meeting. DM and SP of Lakhimpur are also present in this meeting.
Following the death of eight people in Uttar Pradesh’s Lakhimpur Kheri incident, District Magistrate Arvind Kumar Chaurasiya on Sunday said that it was an unfortunate incident, and it should not be politicized.
Chaurasiya confirmed that four farmers and four others have died in the incident.
“Four farmers and four others have died (in the Lakhimpur Kheri incident). Probe underway. It’s an unfortunate incident, should not be politicized,” the District Magistrate told reporters.
Additional Superintendent of Police, Lakhimpur Kheri Arun Kumar Singh confirmed eight deaths including four farmers and four occupants of the vehicle(s) that allegedly ran over the farmers in the Lakhimpur incident on Sunday.
Meanwhile, Uttar Pradesh police in a tweet said, “In the unfortunate incident of Lakhimpur, 8 casualties have been reported till now as per the district administration. ADG LO, ACS Agriculture, IG Range and Commissioner are on the spot and situation is under control. Adequate deployment has been done to prevent any untoward incident.”
New Delhi, Oct 2,2021: President Ram Nath Kovind, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Vice President M Venkaiah Naidu paid floral tributes to Mahatma Gandhi and Lal Bahadur Shastri at Raj Ghat and Vijay Ghat on Saturday.
Paying tribute to the Father of the Nation on his 152nd birth anniversary, President Kovind urged people to take a pledge to strive towards making India the country of his dreams.
“Homage to Bapu on Gandhi Jayanti. It is a special day for all Indians to remember Gandhiji’s struggles and sacrifice. Let us take a pledge that we will continue to strive for making India a country of Gandhiji’s dreams while adhering to his teachings, ideals, and values,” he wrote in a tweet.
The President also paid tributes to former Prime Minister Lal Bahadur Shastri at Vijay Ghat on his 117th birth anniversary.
He tweeted, “Homage to former PM Shri Lal Bahadur Shastriji on his birth anniversary. He was a great son of the country who served the nation with full devotion and dedication. His simplicity, conduct, and integrity are a source of inspiration for all fellow citizens”.
PM Modi also visited Bapu’s Samadhi Sthal at Raj Ghat hereto pay floral tributes. He said Bapu’s life and idea will inspire every generation to walk the path of their duties.
Taking to Twitter, Modi said, “I bow to Bapu on Gandhi Jayanti. His ideal principles are relevant across the world and strengthen millions of people.”
“Humble tribute to the Father of the Nation Mahatma Gandhi on his birth anniversary. The life and ideals of Pujya Bapu will continue to inspire every generation of the country to walk on the path of duty,” he tweeted.
On this occasion, Sarva Dharma Prarthana Sabha was also organised.
The Prime Minister also paid tribute to former Prime Minister Lal Bahadur Shastri at Vijay Ghat.
In his message, he wrote that his life based on values and principles will always remain an inspiration for the countrymen.
Vice-President M Venkaiah Naidu also paid tribute to Mahatma Gandhi at Raj Ghat.
Amritsar (Punjab), September 30 ,2021: Punjab Students’ Union and Naujawan Bharat Sabha on Tuesday started an indefinite protest against the facelift of the historic Jallianwala Bagh.
Hardeep Kaur, a protester of the Punjab Students’ Union said that the protest will continue until they restore the historical monument back to its original form.
“Changing the outlook of the historic monument also changes the narrative of history; It had only one gate previously, now it has two. For the ones visiting it for the first time will question that if there were two doors, why did people jump into the well instead,” she said.
Alleging a political agenda, she added, “After the face-lift, the entry looks like people are going to a fair. A lotus, the symbol of BJP, has also been placed on the door. Why not use any other flower? The names of Muslims who died here have been cut off. Why? Is it an agenda?”
Adding to it, Ranbir Singh Randhawa a protester of Punjab Students’ Union said, “The look has been changed entirely. When you enter, there are statues of people dancing. The place does not feel like it has seen a struggle like the one it did. The well has also been covered.”
Further, he alleged, “The struggle at the Jallianwala Bagh was an Anti-imperialist one but the BJP has turned it to a nationalist one. When they present it like that, they show that the Muslims were anti-national. They have tried to change the narrative of the history of Punjab, but the youth here won’t allow it.”
Prime Minister Narendra Modi dedicated the renovated complex of Jallianwala Bagh Smarak to the nation through video conferencing on August 28.
As per the PMO, four Museum galleries have been created through adaptive reuse of redundant and underutilised buildings. The galleries showcase the historical value of events that unfolded in Punjab during that period, with the fusion of audio-visual technology, including projection mapping and 3D representation, as well as art and sculptural installations.
A ‘Sound and Light’ show has also been set up to display the events that happened on April 13, 1919.
Multiple development initiatives have been undertaken at the complex. Elaborate heritage restoration works have been carried out in sync with the local architectural style of Punjab. The Shaheedi well has been repaired and restored with a redefined superstructure. The heart of the Bagh, the flame monument, has been repaired and restored, the water body rejuvenated as a lily pond, and the pathways made broader for better navigability.
The Jallianwala Bagh massacre took place on April 13, 1919, when troops of the British Indian Army, under the command of Colonel Reginald Dyer, fired machine guns into a crowd of unarmed protesters and pilgrims who had gathered in Jallianwala Bagh in Punjab’s Amritsar on the occasion of Baisakhi.
The crowd had assembled peacefully at the venue to condemn the arrest of two national leaders — Satya Pal and Saifuddin Kitchlew — when they were fired at indiscriminately by General Dyer and his men.
New Delhi, Sep 27: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday launched Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission and pushed for enhancing the use of telemedicine to connect hospitals digitally, provide a unique digital health ID to people and maintain their health records.
Lauding the digital infrastructure created over recent years, the Prime Minister, through video conferencing, said, “Digital infrastructure is delivering ‘Ration to Prashasan’ to the common Indian in a fast and transparent manner.”
With 130 crore Aadhaar cards, 118 crore mobile subscribers, around 80 crore internet users and about 43 crore Jan Dhan bank accounts, India has the biggest “connected infrastructure” in the world, he said.
Modi said the Arogya Setu app has helped in preventing the spread of corona infections. He also lauded CoWIN app for its role in making India achieve a record administration of about 90 crore vaccine doses so far.
He said there has been an unprecedented expansion of telemedicine during Covid-19 pandemic and about 125 crores remote consultations have been completed through e-Sanjeevani till now.
“This facility has connected thousands of people, who are living in far-flung parts of the country, every day with doctors of big hospitals in cities while sitting at home,” Modi said.
He said Ayushman Bharat-PMJAY has so far covered more than 2 crore people, who availed the facility of free treatment under this scheme, adding that half of beneficiaries of this scheme are women.
As healthcare expenditure a major factor for pushing people into poverty, the Prime Minister said, “these healthcare solutions are a big investment in the present and future of the country.”
“These healthcare solutions are a big investment in the present and future of the country,” he said.
He said the newly launched mission would connect digital health solutions of hospitals across the country and also provide a unique health ID to people.
“Ayushman Bharat – Digital Mission, will now connect the digital health solutions of hospitals across the country with each other. The mission will not only make the processes of hospitals simplified but also will increase ease of living. Every citizen will now get a digital health ID and their health record will be digitally protected,” he said.
While stressing on a holistic and inclusive approach towards health, he said India is working on a health model that would stress on preventive healthcare and easy, affordable and accessible treatment for diseases.
Talking about the health reforms undertaken in the country, he said the numbers of doctors and paramedical staff has increased over the years, and a comprehensive network of AIIMS and other modern health institutions is being established across the country.
He said work is going on for establishing at least one medical college for every three Lok Sabha constituencies.
The network of primary health centre and wellness centres across villages is being strengthened, he said, adding “More than 80,000 such centres have already been operationalised.”
The pilot project of Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission had been announced by the Prime Minister from the ramparts of Red Fort on August 15 last year. Currently, Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission is being implemented in pilot phase in six Union Territories.
The nationwide rollout of Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission coincides with third anniversary of Ayushman Bharat Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana.
According to officials, the Mission will create a seamless online platform by providing a wide range of data, information and infrastructure services related to healthcare.
The key components of Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission include a health ID for every citizen that will also work as their health account, to which personal health records can be linked and viewed with the help of a mobile application.
The Mission will create interoperability within the digital health ecosystem, similar to the role played by the Unified Payments Interface in revolutionising payments, said government officials.
New Delhi, Sep 27: Transport was affected and several institutions remained closed in parts of the country as a call for a Bharat Bandh was given by Samyukt Kisan Morcha, an umbrella body of farmer groups that are protesting against the new farm laws.
The Bharat Bandh, the call for which was given on September 5 at a farmers’ Mahapanchayat in Muzaffarnagar, has been called against the Farm Laws, as a part of the agitations that have now been going on for over a year.
The call has also received support from several political parties including the Congress, Samajwadi Party, TDP, JD(S), Shiv Sena, NCP, DMK, YSRCP, JMM, RJD, Swaraj India and left parties including CPI-M, CPI, and CPI-ML (Lib).
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi supported the Bharat Bandh and said, “Farmers’ non-violent satyagraha is intact even today but the exploitative government does not like this and that is why today is Bharat Bandh.”
The Samyukt Kisan Morcha, in a statement called the support to the Bandh ‘unprecedented’, and said the call got extensive support in Punjab, Haryana, Kerala, Bihar, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, West Bengal, Telangana, Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and Madhya Pradesh.
In the national capital Delhi, where farmers have been camping at the borders since November last year against the Farm Laws, farmers blocked roads close to the protest sites at Singhu border, and Ghazipur border. Police meanwhile shut the road near the Red Fort, and some metro stations were also closed. A protest was held at Jantar Mantar by the trade-unions which remained peaceful.
In Bihar, the call for the Bandh was supported by all Opposition parties including the Rashtriya Janata Dal, Congress, and Left parties. Several roads were blocked and trains were stopped. Protestors took to streets in capital Patna, and in other districts as well. Crucial Gandhi Bridge close to Patna was also blocked by protesters from RJD.
In Uttar Pradesh, where the call for this shut down was given from Muzaffarnagar, extra security was deployed ahead of the Bandh. Impact of the call was higher in the western part of the state where several mahapanchayats of the farmers have been held over the last year.
The farmers’ agitation has also emerged as an issue for the upcoming polls, set to be held next year.
Samajwadi Party leader Akhilesh Yadav said his party is standing with the farmers.
In Andhra Pradesh, the call, supported by the TDP led state government, evoked good response. The bandh was complete and peaceful in Coastal districts in the state, police said.
Road and rail traffic was disrupted in both Punjab and Haryana as farmers blocked national highways, state highways, link roads and railway tracks at various places. Reports said a complete shutdown was observed at several places in Punjab, which has been the epicenter of the farmers’ protests.
In Kerala, both ruling Left Democratic Front (LDF) and Opposition Congress-led United Democratic Front (UDF) extended their support to the agitation. The LDF called for a state-wide hartal in support of the Bandh. In view of the strike, Kerala University postponed all the examinations scheduled to held on Monday. All emergency and essential services including Ambulance services were exempted from the shut down.
In Tamil Nadu, even though ruling DMK and allies supported the Bandh, normal life remained unaffected and the Bandh evoked little response. While protests were held at several locations, including rail and road blocks, buses plied as usual, shops and commercial establishments remained open, and schools and
colleges functioned normally across the state.
In West Bengal, protests were held, but normal life remained largely unaffected, and shops and commercial establishments remained open. In Maharashtra, ruling alliance of Shive Sena, Congress and NCP supported the Bandh. In Tripura, shops remained shut and streets were empty in capital Agaratala.
The call for the Bandh was given to mark one year of President Ram Nath Kovind’s assent to the three Farm Laws.