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Helping Lalit Modi is legally, morally wrong: BJP MP R K Singh

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BJP MP R K Singh

New Delhi: BJP MP R K Singh today struck a discordant note over party leaders Sushma Swaraj and Vasundhara Raje extending help to former IPL boss Lalit Modi, saying “any help to a fugitive is legally and morally wrong”.

He urged the government to take all measures to bring him back to India to face the law.

Singh’s strong comments are the first public criticism by a ruling party MP against the help extended to Lalit Modi by External Affairs Minister Swaraj and Rajasthan Chief Minister Raje, an issue which has snowballed into a major political storm for the Narendra Modi government even though BJP has defended both the leaders.

“If anybody helps a ‘bhagoda’ (fugitive), it is wrong. This is wrong legally as well as morally. If anybody meets a fugitive, it is absolutely wrong. Whosoever has helped him, I think it is completely wrong,” Singh, a former Home Secretary, told reporters here.

He said Lalit Modi had been evading judicial warrants and summons and he was clearly a fugitive and any help given to him or any meeting with him was wrong.

He did not name either Swaraj or Raje.

Asked if Lalit Modi was being “saved”, Singh said the departments concerned should be doing their job.

“I have given my view,” he said when asked about BJP’s defence of both the leaders and added that he would not like to name individuals.

Singh said the government should appeal against the Delhi High Court order which restored the former IPL commissioner’s passport and demanded that his property should be attached, if needed.

“All measures should be taken to bring him back to India so that he faces the law,” he said.

Swaraj and Raje have been facing flak for helping Lalit Modi in procuring travel documents in the UK, a country which he has made his home to avoid legal processes in India.

Modi, 49, travelled to London in 2010 after the Indian Premier League (IPL) became embroiled in allegations of match-fixing and illegal betting.

(PTI)

Sister Nirmala Joshi, successor of Mother Teresa passes away

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Sister Nirmala

Kolkata: Sister Nirmala, who succeeded Mother Teresa as superior general of the Missionaries of Charity, died here on Tuesday. She was 81. Prime Minister Narendra Modi said her life was devoted to “caring for the poor and underprivileged”.

Nirmala became the second head of the Missionaries of Charity after its founder Mother Teresa stepped down from the post in March 1997. The Nobel laureate died on September 5 the same year.

Nirmala held the post till March 24, 2009, when she was succeeded by Sister Mary Prema.

Archbishop of Kolkata Thomas D’Souza told IANS that the funeral mass will be held at the Mother House on Wednesday at 4 p.m. Sister Nirmala will be laid to rest at the St. John’s cemetery.

Born Nirmala Joshi in Ranchi to a Brahmin family from Nepal in 1934, she joined the MoC after converting from Hinduism in het youth.

An MA in political science and a trained lawyer, Sister Nirmala started the MoC’s contemplative branch in 1976 and headed it till 1997 when she was elected to succeed Mother Teresa as the order’s Superior General.

She was elected for a second term in 2003.

Sister Nirmala was re-elected for a third term on March 13, 2009, but the MoC held a second election days later after she wanted to be relieved of the responsibility owing to ill-health and also expressed a desire to return to the contemplative life she led before heading the order.

Sister Nirmala was honoured with India’s second highest civilian order Padma Vibhushan in 2009 for her services to the nation.

West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee condoled Sister Nirmala’s death and tweeted: “Saddened at the passing of Sister Nirmala who headed Missionaries of Charity after Mother Teresa. Kolkata and the world will miss her.”

Banerjee paid her last respects to Sister Nirmala at St John’s Church here.

Describing it as a personal loss, she said the state government will extend all help and cooperation for the last rites.

International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON) also extended its condolences.

“Her life of dedication and service especially to the poor is a great inspiration and it is to be pondered upon and to be followed,” ISKCON’s spokesperson Radharaman Das said.

(IANS)

Karnataka government moves SC against Jayalalithaa's acquittal

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Jayalalithaa

New Delhi: The Karnataka government today moved the Supreme Court challenging the state high court verdict acquitting Tamil Nadu Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa in the disproportionate assets case.

The state government in its appeal, filed through advocate Joseph Aristotle, has sought setting aside of the Karnataka HC order and also pleaded that the disqualification of the AIADMK chief be restored.

It has also alleged that it did not get ample opportunity to put forth its case before the high court.

The Karnataka High Court had on May 11 acquitted the AIADMK leader in the case, saying that her conviction by the special court suffered from infirmity and was not sustainable in law.

The special court had last year held Jayalalithaa guilty of corruption and sentenced her to four years imprisonment and imposed a fine of Rs 100 crore.

(PTI)

Dalit brothers who cracked IIT attacked, provided police protection

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dalit-brothers-iit

Allahabad: The family of Brijesh Saroj and Raju Saroj, two Dalit brothers from Rehua Lalganj village of Pratapgarh district who made it to the coveted IITs despite their poverty, has been provided police protection after unknown persons attacked the family with stones on Sunday night.

Apprehending further trouble, district magistrate Amit Tripathi rushed SDM Lalgunj YP Singh and half a dozen policemen on Sunday night to guard the tormented family after he was informed of the attack.

The Saroj family was attacked soon after the brothers returned to Rehua Lalganj from Lucknow, where they were honored by chief minister Akhilesh Yadav for their feat. “We were sitting outside our hut when some unknown people started pelting stones on us. Ramesh Soni, my brother Brijesh and some women of the family were hit,” Rajesh Saroj, elder brother of the duo, told media.

“Things could have taken an ugly turn, but for the police protection,” a worried Rajesh added.

The father, Dharamraj, could not believe that his family had to seek police protection just because his sons made it to the IIT. “For years, my father, my sons and I have tolerated discriminatory acts of some villagers as we wanted the children to focus only on studies and not get distracted. This shows some people are envious of my boys,” he said.

“Now here we are, feeling unsafe in our own village despite the whole village applauding us. It is so uneasy to see police deployed in front of your house surrounded by people with whom my sons grew,” Dharamraj added with a heavy heart.

Raju, Dharamraj’s younger son who scored AIR-167 in JEE Mains, is confused. “We only raised the issue of village welfare with the chief minister. Why would someone throw stones on us… and we are being forced to take police refuge and our fault perhaps: clearing IIT?” Raju said.

“In fact, when we spoke to the CM about problems in our village, he announced that it would be developed as an Adarsh Lohia Gram,” said Raju. “We were pelted with stones just because we have achieved what we wanted for every bright child of the village,” Raju lamented.

Cops protected the Saroj family through the night on Sunday and on Monday. “It is shocking. Although a handful of people could be involved in the incident, which we are probing, it puts us all in bad light,” said Tripathi.

(Agencies)

How dare BJP question Hamid Ansari's patriotism again?

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The saffron party’s contempt for India’s largest minority is once again out in the open.

hamid-ansari

by Md Hussain Rahmani, DailyO

First, he is not invited to the event that has gone into the Guinness Book of World Records. Then, his absence is questioned by a very important RSS spokesperson-turned-BJP leader. The episode reflects how the current dispensation thinks of vice-president Hamid Ansari.

Had the BJP general secretary Ram Madhav not tweeted abut the V-P’s “absence” from the Yoga Day celebrations at New Delhi’s Rajpath, it would not have come to light that Ansari was not even invited for the event.

This is, however, not the first time that the high office of the vice-president of India has been questioned over “patriotism”. On the Republic Day celebrations this year, he was declared a “traitor” and lynched on Twitter for not saluting the national flag. However, Ansari was well within the rules and decorum to do so. There were others on the dais who didn’t salute the tricolour, but people went after Ansari calling him a “jihadi”, “anti-India”, and what not.

I was a student at the Aligarh Musilm University when Ansari was the vice-chancellor and had observed him from close quarters. His tenure as the V-C of one of the most watched campuses in India was one of its best time in terms of academics and law and order. He is a man who goes by the book, never beyond it.

Moreover, the left-of-the-centre scholar by no means is an ordinary politician and has risen to the rank of the vice-presidentship riding high on electoral arithmetic. He has been one of India’s top diplomats, who served at the United Nations as permanent representative for six years. You can’t question the patriotism of a man who has dedicated his life to the service of the country and represented it at various international forums. It is naive to think the BJP and its leaders flaunting their patriotism up their sleeves, don’t know about Hamid Ansari and his service record. The obvious question then is: What is the ruling party’s problem with him? Is it that an Indian Muslim, no matter how worthy and qualified, not being respected enough to assume a high constitutional office?

Politically, the BJP may not be comfortable with Ansari. The party had questioned his conduct in the Rajya Sabha for ending its session abruptly during the Lokpal Bill debate in 2011.

But political disagreement is fine in a vibrant democracy. What is strictly not is raising doubts over a Muslim high office holder’s patriotism. It says a lot about the saffron party’s contempt for India’s largest minority.

"Yoga was never secular, it is more Vedic and Sanatan": Pravin Togadia

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Praveen Togadia

Jaipur: Amidst opposition in some quarters to observing International Yoga Day, VHP International Executive President Praveen Togadia on Monday said that the discipline was never secular and was more of “Vedic and Sanatan”.

He also said that Surya Namaskar was an essential part of the exercise form and no performance of yoga was complete without it.

“Om and Surya Namaskar, two exercises of yoga, are very necessary and without them, yoga is incomplete,” Togadia told reporters at a VHP event here.

The Hindu right-wing leader leader further said that “yoga was never secular, it is more ‘Vedic and sanatan’ (ancient)”.

“Namaj and yoga are two different things. Those who do not want Om and Surya Namaskar, they should practise only gym activity for better health,” he said.

“Those who want to live healthy life should opt for yoga, and those who want to commit suicide (not better life) could avoid it,” he warned.

He also said that VHP would not allow any changes to be introduced in yoga exercises.

On the sidelines of a state-level training event, Togadia added that five lakh health ambassadors would be trained under a VHP programme over the next three years. He also said that similar training programmes would be launched in 300 cities.

After several Muslim groups expressed reservations against offering ‘surya namaskar’ and reciting Sanskrit ‘slokas’ during the yoga ‘asanas’ to be performed during the June 21 International Yoga day event on Rajpath in New Delhi, the government had decided not to include ‘surya namaskar’ and ‘om’ chanting in the set of ‘asanas’ to be performed during the official celebrations.

(PTI)

Pakistan: Heatwave devastates Karachi, other parts of Sindh; at least 136 dead

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EDHI volunteers and relatives shift the dead body of a heatwave victim into an ambulance at the EDHI morgue.—AFP

EDHI volunteers and relatives shift the dead body of a heatwave victim into an ambulance at the EDHI morgue.—AFP

by Hasan Mansoor, Dawn

Karachi: Despite the Met office’s academic conclusion about Karachi’s weather sliding down a notch, a devastating heatwave gripping Sindh for several days has taken a toll of at least 136 people in the province — 132 only in the metropolis. Most of them were pronounced dead at the Jinnah Postgraduate Medical Centre (JPMC), officials said on Sunday.

They said 85 of the people who had suffered heatstroke were either brought dead or died in JPMC. Thirty people died in the Abbasi Shaheed Hospital (ASH) on Saturday night and Sunday, nine in Lyari General Hospital and six in the Civil Hospital Karachi (CHK).

“Some 85 people have died since late Saturday night,” Dr Seemin Jamali, joint executive director of JPMC, told Dawn.

Most of them were men aged 50 or more.

“Thirty people were brought dead while another 55, who were in critical condition, died in the hospital during treatment,” Dr Jamali said, adding that severe heat was to blame for all the deaths — the alarming number of deaths has no precedent in the country’s recent history.

“They were brought to the hospital unconscious, suffering from high grade fever with pulse hardly visible and blood pressure barely noticeable,” said the JPMC official.

Many patients told their doctors that they had collapsed suddenly during the sizzling day and suffered extreme breathing problem.

The officials said the first patient of heatstroke was brought to JPMC at around 10pm on Saturday and by the filing of this report the number of such patients almost touched 100.

“The situation is that we are still receiving patients suffering from heatstroke,” said an official at JPMC.

KARACHI: Relatives mourn the death of a heatstroke victim at an Edhi morgue on Sunday.—AFP

Dr Salma Kauser, senior director (medical and health) at the Karachi Metropolitan Corporation, which oversees all KMC hospitals, said 20 people died in ASH on Sunday. Seven people were brought dead on late Saturday late and the cause of death was ascertained hours later.

Of the 20 people, 13 were brought dead to the ASH and seven died during treatment, said Dr Kauser.

Six women and five children were among the dead.

She said that more than 100 people were under treatment in various hospitals run by the KMC.

Nine people died because of sunstroke in Lyari General Hospital, six in Civil Hospital and two in KPT Hospital.

Sindh health secretary Saeed Ahmed Mangnejo said two deaths each were reported from Jacobabad and Larkana.

Dr Hasan Murad Shah, director general health, said that since it was Sunday the figures, if any, of the heatstroke patients might be landing his office on Monday.

Saturday was the hottest day of this year’s summer in Karachi, where the mercury had shot to 45 degree Celsius. The maximum temperature of 48 degree Celsius was recorded in three districts of Sindh — Jacobabad, Larkana and Sukkur — on Saturday, which slid down to 41 on Sunday.

The officials said the city would not see any let-up on Monday when temperatures are expected to go up to 44 degree Celsius.

The highest temperature Karachi ever experienced was 48 degree Celsius on May 9, 1938.

“There might be some patients of heatstroke at some private hospitals, but no major hospitals in Nawabshah, Sukkur, Khairpur, Ghotki, Shikarpur, Nausheroferoze, Qambar and Kashmore have reported any such deaths,” Dr Shah said.

Similarly, he said, no deaths or heat-related incidents had been reported from central and southern parts of Sindh.

Most of the people died belonged to poor neighbourhoods, lived in small houses and worked on daily wages.

A volunteer sits beside a window, while waiting for the relatives of a deceased who died due to intense hot weather.—Reuters

Officials at the Edhi Foundation said they had expedited the process of burying bodies as the number of new bodies arriving in their morgue had suddenly swollen and also because the temperatures were too high for the cooling facility.

Early this month, 17 people died because of heatstroke in Sehwan during the Urs of Lal Shahbaz Qalandar.

Diego Maradona Will Run for FIFA's Presidency

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The Argentine legend has promised to end corruption within the organization.

Diego Maradona

by teleSUR

Argentine football legend Diego Armando Maradona confirmed Sunday that he will be running for FIFA’s presidency.

“Diego will be candidate for FIFA (presidency), with all the authority he has, he has been in the front line fighting from that world of (football) players … Diego has been a spearhead to talk about corruption inside FIFA, and corruption within the AFA (Argentine Football Association),” revealed Victor Hugo Morales, host of teleSUR’s “De Chilena!” show.

Maradona has been a longtime critic of FIFA and its policies. During the last World Cup, the former star denounced FIFA for charging US$2 million dollars in transmission rights to Haiti, a country that is struggling to recover from devastating earthquake in 2010.

FIFA has been mired in scandal since seven of its officials were arrested when Swiss police swooped into a luxury hotel in Zurich ahead of the congress. The officials are set to be extradited to the United States, where they are suspected of receiving close to US$150 million in bribes.

Last week, Swiss officials also said they were investigating 53 new suspected cases of money laundering linked to FIFA.

“Partly in addition to the 104 banking relations already known to the authorities, banks announced 53 suspicious banking relations via the Anti-Money-Laundering-Framework of Switzerland,” the country’s Attorney General Michael Lauber stated, according to AFP.

Lauber praised banks for reporting the “suspicious” transactions, but said a full investigation could take years.

Some of the financial transactions are allegedly linked to FIFA World Cup bids, including those for the 2018 and 2022 games. According to Lauber, the investigation “does not exclude” FIFA’s outgoing head Joseph Blatter from possible questioning, though he isn’t under suspicion.

Blatter announced plans to resign from his position at the football organization just days after being re-appointed as its head on May 30 during FIFA’s annual congress. He is expected to step down by the end of the year, though earlier this week Blatter hinted he may reconsider.

Taliban stages deadly attack on Afghan parliament

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At least five people and seven attackers killed after suicide car bomb and gunfire rock sitting session of parliament.

The attack apparently started when a suicide car bomb exploded outside the parliament [Reuters]

The attack apparently started when a suicide car bomb exploded outside the parliament [Reuters]

by Al Jazeera

The Afghan parliament has been attacked by Taliban fighters in Kabul, with a series of explosions and gunfire forcing politicians to evacuate.

Al Jazeera’s Jennifer Glasse, reporting from Kabul, said five people were killed, in addition to the seven fighters who launched the attack on Monday.

The Taliban claimed responsibility for the raid, which injured at least 21 people, including five women and three children.

About two hours after the initial explosion, police declared the operation had ended with seven attackers being killed – including a suicide car bomber.

“Suicide bombers have attacked outside the [parliamentary] building,” she said, adding that gunfire continued to be heard for more than an hour after the first explosion. “There are burning cars outside the building.”

A police source at the scene told Al Jazeera that the attack apparently started when a suicide car bomb exploded outside the parliament.

Attackers then continued the attack, firing from a building under construction across the street, the source said.

Police said at least three police officers were injured in the attack, along with others outside the building who could not yet be reached.

Local news organisations reported that at least six explosions were heard in the vicinity of the parliament.

Glasse, who was watching parliamentary proceedings on TV at the time of the attack, said that the parliamentary speaker was at the podium when the video camera started to shake.

“We heard two loud explosions and people nearby heard gunfire,” she said, adding that the politicians evacuated from the parliament.

“Right now, the parliament is empty and full of smoke.”

Monday’s session of parliament was well attended because the defence minister nominee was to be introduced by the second vice president. Neither was in the building at the time of the attack.

Members of parliament have now been evacuated to safety.

The Taliban has been on the offensive across the country in recent weeks – taking control of districts in northern Kunduz province and staging attacks in southern Helmand province.

M S Dhoni offers to quit captaincy following ODI series loss to Bangladesh

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ms-dhoni-Bangladesh

Mirpur: Under-fire India captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni in a sarcastic tone said that if his removal from captaincy can help Indian cricket move in right direction then he is game for it.

“I am always the one who is responsible for anything bad that happens in Indian cricket. Everything that happens is because of me. Even the Bangladesh media is smiling,” Dhoni gave a tongue-in-cheek reply to a question at the post-match press conference after India suffered the ignominy of their first ever series defeat against Bangladesh.

When the question was asked differently about how long he would continue as captain, he made it clear that he would continue but not before taking a dig at the scribe.

“I am really enjoying my cricket. But when the earlier question was asked, I knew this question one was coming. These questions always keep popping. The media loves me. If it is justifiable if you remove me and the Indian cricket will start doing well, and if I am the reason for all the bad that’s happening to Indian cricket, definitely I would love to step away and play as a player.

“It doesn’t really matter, who is the captain because I was never really in line to become the captain. It was a job or responsibility for me. They want to take it away from me, I am fine,” he said.

(PTI)

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