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Hyderabad varsity incidents rock Telangana assembly

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University of Hyderabad

Hyderabad: The incidents at Hyderabad Central University and Osmania University rocked the Telangana assembly on Saturday with the opposition stalling the proceedings to demand full-fledged debate.

The house was adjourned thrice since morning as the opposition Congress and the Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (MIM) insisted on a debate on the police brutalities on students at Hyderabad Central University (HCU).

As soon as the house met for the day, the two parties demanded their adjournment motions on the issue be taken up but Deputy Speaker Padmadevender Reddy rejected this.

Members of Congress and MIM rushed to the well of the house, seeking an immediate debate. They wanted the government to respond to their demands for withdrawal of cases against students.

The Congress party also raised the issue relating to the attack on its legislator Sampath Kumar’s car in Osmania University and demanded action against those involved. The MLA’s vehicle was damaged when he visited OU campus on March 23 when students were staging a protest after recovery of a body of a man from a sump.

The Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS) government, however, suggested that the debate on the university incidents be taken as part of the demand for grants for home department.

Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao termed as ‘unfortunate’ the incidents that occurred at the two universities. “The death of a student at HCU is unfortunate,” he said referring to the suicide of Dalit research scholar Rohith Vemula.

He said that the attack on MLA’s car in Osmania University is condemnable. The chief minister, however, wondered as to why the Congress MLA did not lodge a complaint with police.

KCR, as the chief minister is popularly known, told the house that the government is ready to discuss all the issues. He took objection to the manner in which the opposition was raising the issue and alleged that they are only interested in taking political mileage.

MIM leader in the house, Akbaruddin Owaisi said the chief minister’s suggestion that the issue be discussed as part of the demand for grants is an insult to Dalits. He condemned the arrests of students on HCU campus and the police atrocities on them.

Owaisi demanded that the house pass a resolution to urge the central government to recall HCU Vice Chancellor P. Appa Rao. He also sought an inquiry into the beating up of students by police and university security.

Police arrested 24 students and two faculty members of HCU on March 22 when they were staging a protest over P. Appa Rao resuming charge as the vice chancellor. The protestors alleged that Appa Rao is responsible for Rohith’s suicide in January.

Student groups alleged that police beat up students after arresting them and also assaulted them in police stations.

Meanwhile, Congress party’s Telangana unit president Uttam Kumar Reddy alleged that police attacked the vehicle of MLA.

He said student and youth leaders of the Congress party were being harassed by police by summoning them to police stations.

(Agencies)

Sreesanth, film personalities in second BJP list for Kerala polls

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BJP S Sreesanth

New Delhi/Thiruvananthapuram: Former Indian pace bowler S. Sreesanth and several film personalities are in the second list of 51 BJP candidates who will contest the May 16 assembly polls in Kerala from Thiruvananthapuram segment.

The state BJP early this month announced its first list of 22 candidates, including all senior state leaders. The second list of 51 candidates was cleared in the national capital on Friday.

Sreesanth early this week confirmed that he was offered a Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) ticket.

On Friday, Sreesanth arrived at the BJP headquarters in Delhi and met with top party leaders. He later announced he had accepted the party membership and will do his best to strengthen the party in Kerala.

Malayalam actor Bheemen Reghu will be BJP candidate from Pathanapuram, to witness a triangular fight between three film stars – sitting legislator K.B. Ganesh Kumar who moved from the ruling United Democratic Front to the Left opposition and Congress’ popular comedian and character artiste Jagdish.

Friday’s BJP list also included the names of veteran film director Rajasenan from Nedumangad and another director Ali Akbar from Koduvally constituency.

The Thiruvananthapuram assembly segment, in the heart of the state capital, is presently held by Congress leader and state Health Minister V.S. Sivakumar and he is all set to contest again. The Left opposition is yet to announce its candidate.

The BJP is yet to open its account in the 140-member assembly.

Sreesanth was banned for life by the Board of Control for Cricket in India after match-fixing allegations. He last played in the 2013 Indian Premier League. He was arrested on charge of match-fixing and lodged in Tihar Jail in Delhi.

In July 2015, a Patiala House court in Delhi exonerated him and two other players in the case, against which Delhi Police have gone in appeal.

While his parents are settled in Ernakulam in Kerala, he keeps shuttling between Bengaluru and Kochi.

Sreesanth played 27 Tests (87 wickets), 53 ODIs (75) and 10 T20Is (seven wickets) and was part of two World Cup winning teams, in the 2007 World Twenty20 and the 2011 World Cup.

(Agencies)

Keralite nurse, toddler killed in Libya bomb blast: Family

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Libya

Kochi: A Keralite nurse working in Libya and her one-and-half-year-old son have been killed in a bomb blast in the ongoing civil strife in that country, her family said today.

Sunu Sathyan and the toddler were sleeping in their house when it was rocked by an explosion, killing them yesterday, her father Sathyan Nair, hailing from Kondadu in Kottayam district, said.

The victim was working as a nurse in Zawia Medical centre AZ Zawiya, Libya. Her husband Vipin Kumar, who is a male nurse in Libya, was away on duty.

Nair has sought government help to bring back the bodies.

“Yesterday I got information through phone that my daughter and her one-and-a-half-year-old baby died in a bomb blast at her residence while they were sleeping,” he said in his letter to the government.

He said he got only this much information from her fellow employees and relatives.

External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj said she has sought details from Indian embassy in the violence-hit country.

“I have asked for a report reg (regarding) the death of an Indian nurse and her child from our Ambassador in Libya,” Swaraj tweeted.

Nair, in his letter through Kaduthuruthy MLA Mons Joseph, sought help to bring back the bodies of his daughter and grandson.

“I came to know that the blast occurred due to regular fights between the rival groups in Libya. So I humbly request your good self to make available the detailed information about the incident and help us bring back the dead body of my beloved daughter and her son, whom we have never seen.”
“I also request you to extend all help and protection to her husband, who is in a state of shock after the blast,” Nair said.

When contacted, Kerala Information and Public Relations Minister K C Joseph told PTI that the state government has informed the External Affairs Ministry about the matter.

Meanwhile, state Home Minister Ramesh Chennithala said eight to nine people are stranded in Libya and efforts are on to bring them back.

“Kerala government is alert on this issue. We are in touch with the External Affairs Ministry and the Embassy in Libya. We are trying to evacuate all the people who are stranded there,” Chennithala told PTI.

(PTI)

Explosions heard as Belgian police carry new major raid

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State broadcaster says at least one man “neutralised” during the new raid in Schaerbeek neighbourhood of Brussels.

Brussels

by Al Jazeera

Armed police have launched a major new raid in Brussels in the wake of the suicide attacks in the capital, Belgian media reported, a day after six suspects were arrestedover the carnage.

Two explosions were heard at the start of the operation in the neighbourhood of Schaerbeek on Friday, and a man had been “neutralised”, according to the RTBF state broadcaster, but there was no immediate confirmation by officials.

Suicide bombers hit the Brussels airport and a metro train on Tuesday, killing 31 people and wounding at least 270 in the worst such attack in Belgian history.

The Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL, also known as ISIS) group, which claimed responsibility for the Brussels bombings, also took credit for coordinated attacks in Paris in November which killed 130 people.

Google-maps search for ‘anti-national’,’patriotism’ leads to JNU

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JNU-Anti-National-Google-Maps

New Delhi: Searching with key words such as ‘anti-national’, ‘sedition’, ‘patriotism’ and ‘Bharat mata ki jai’ on Google-maps will now direct the users to JNU, which is caught in a row over its students being booked under sedition.

The students of the university, who have been agitating against the alleged “branding” of JNU as “anti-national” after three of its students were arrested in connection with an event, have taken strong objection to the “technical certification”.

Google authorities, when contacted, said they are trying to resolve the issue.

“We will raise the issue with the administration to send an official communication to Google in this regard. We have been protesting against the branding of an institution as anti-national and now the search giant has gone a step ahead in certifying that,” JNU Students Union Vice President Shehla Rashid Shora said.

Jawaharlal Nehru University has been in news since last month over an event on campus against the hanging of Parliament attack convict Afzal Guru during which anti-national slogans were allegedly raised.

Three students – Kanhaiya Kumar, Umar Khalid and Anirban Bhattacharya, were arrested in a sedition case, kicking a national versus anti-national debate across the country. They are now out on bail.

“When I noticed this on google-maps, I laughed at it. But when I thought of it it seemed dangerous. Dangerous not because it represents my university but for fact that anyone or institution can be termed so through the power of government and MNC’s. Will GoogleMaps be answerable for this?,” another student N Sai Balaji said.

A Google spokesperson said, “we are aware of the issue and are working on a fix”.

A JNU faculty member, who did not wish to be named said, “though we have strong objections to JNU being referred to as anti-national but since google-maps is throwing same results for patriotism and Bharat mata ki jai as well, it could be a technical glitch too”.

However, this isn’t the first time that the map services of the tech-giant has landed in a situation like this.

Last year, the users were directed to White House when they searched for keyword “nigger house” and Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s name was reflected in search of top 10 criminals. In both the cases, Google had apologised to them for the technical errors.

(Agencies)

Australia win by 21 runs to throw Pakistan out of WT20

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Pak-Australia

Mohali: Australia beat Pakistan by 21 runs in a World Twenty20 Super 10 stage match in Mohali on Friday to stay on course for the semi-finals and eliminate their opponents from the tournament.

Australia captain Steven Smith hit an unbeaten 63 off 43 balls to steer his side to 193-4, before James Faulkner took five wickets, including two off consecutive deliveries in the final over, to help his team seal the win.

For Pakistan, Khalid Latif made 46 off 41 balls while Shoaib Malik remained unbeaten on a 20-ball 40. Umar Akmal 32 and Sharjeel Khan 30 also contributed to the team total. Skipper Shahid Afridi however could only manage to score 14 off 7 balls in most likely his last cricket match for Pakistan.

Earlier, Australian skipper Steven Smith played a captain’s innings on Friday, contributing an unbeaten half-century to set Pakistan a formidable 194-run target in the crucial World Twenty20 Super 10 stage match.

Smith, who won the toss and opted to bat on a green-tinged pitch at Mohali, struck an unbeaten 61 off 43 balls after Australia lost three wickets in quick succession.

Fit-again paceman Wahab Riaz did the initial damage, bowling in-form Usman Khawaja for 21 and castling David Warner on nine.

Aaron Finch, brought in at the top of the order for his first game of the tournament, went next, bowled by left-arm spinner Imad Wasim for 15 to leave Australia struggling on 57-3.Smith, however, steadied the ship aided first by Glenn Maxwell (30 off 24 deliveries) and then by the big-hitting Shane Watson.

Watson struck four fours and three sixes to race to an unbeaten 44 off 21 deliveries as Australia took 66 runs off the last five overs.

Imad Wasim picked up 2 wickets for 31 runs, while paceman Wahab Riaz, who replaced Mohammad Irfan for the game, took 2 for 35.

Australia, bidding for a first World Twenty20 title, made two changes to the team that beat Bangladesh in their last match, bringing in the big-hitting Aaron Finch in place of Mitchell Marsh and Josh Hazlewood for John Hastings.

Australia were fourth in Group Two behind New Zealand, who are already through to the semi-finals, with Pakistan and India.

Pakistan, who lost to India and New Zealand but also beat Bangladesh, needed a victory to keep their hopes of making it to the semi-finals alive.

Pakistan skipper Shahid Afridi made one change to the team that lost to New Zealand with paceman Mohammad Irfan, who conceded 46 runs in his allotted four overs, being replaced by Wahab Riaz.

(Geo)

Amnesty condemns police crackdown in Hyderabad University

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University of Hyderabad

New Delhi: Condemning the police crackdown on peacefully protesting students and faculty members of University of Hyderabad (UoH), Amnesty International India has demanded their immediate release.

“Violence against protesting students in a university cannot under any circumstance be justified,” said Aakar Patel, Executive Director at Amnesty International India, in a press release.

“Allegations of sexual violence and threats by the police to women students must be investigated and those suspected of being responsible must be prosecuted,” Aakar said.

“Any protesters who can legitimately be charged for acts of violence or vandalism must be prosecuted and tried in proceedings which meet international fair trial standards,” he said.

(Agencies)

Pakistan says it captures Indian spy, summons envoy to protest

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Photo: AFP

Photo: AFP

Islamabad: Pakistan summoned the Indian ambassador on Friday to protest against the illegal entry of an Indian spy who Pakistan said was captured in the violence-plagued province of Baluchistan the previous day.

The accusation could raise tension between the nuclear-armed rivals months after India blamed Pakistan-based militants for an attack on an Indian air base in which seven military personnel were killed.

“(Pakistan) conveyed our protest and deep concern on the illegal entry into Pakistan by a RAW officer and his involvement in subversive activities in Baluchistan and Karachi,” Pakistan’s foreign ministry said in a statement, referring to the message conveyed to India’s ambassador.

RAW is India’s Research and Analysis Wing, its main external intelligence agency.

Pakistan believes India is supporting a separatist insurgency in resource-rich Baluchistan. It also accuses India of fuelling strife in the city of Karachi.

India denies any such meddling.

India has long accused Pakistan of backing militants fighting Indian security forces in its part of the divided Kashmir region, of helping militants launch attacks elsewhere in India and backing the Taliban in Afghanistan.

Pakistan say it only offers diplomatic support to the Muslim people of Kashmir living under what Pakistan says is heavy-handed Indian rule. It denies backing militant attacks in India.

A Pakistani military official in Baluchistan told Reuters the suspected RAW spy was an Indian navy officer. Another Pakistani official gave the same information.

Both declined to be identified as they were not authorised to give details of the incident to the media.

One of the officials said the suspected spy had been moved to Islamabad for interrogation.

The neighbours have fought three wars since 1947, two of them over Kashmir which they both claim in full but rule in part.

Baluchistan’s provincial interior minister, Mir Sarfaraz Bugti, told reporters the arrest “proved Indian involvement” in his province.

Last year, Defence Minister Khawaja Asif said RAW was bent on annihilating Pakistan.

“RAW has been formed to undo Pakistan and to wipe Pakistan off the map of the world,” Asif said in a television interview.

Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif made improving ties with India a priority when he won a 2013 election. But his push is seen as causing friction with the army which sees relations with India as its domain.

Last December, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi made a surprise stopover in Pakistan to meet Sharif, the first visit by an Indian premier in over a decade.

The visit raised hopes that stop-and-start negotiations might finally make progress after decades of hostility.

(Rueters)

Arvind Kejriwal named among world’s 50 greatest leaders by Fortune

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Arvind Kejriwal

New York: Arvind Kejriwal has been named among the world’s 50 greatest leaders by Fortune magazine with the Delhi Chief Minister being the sole Indian leader on the list topped by Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos.

Fortune’s third annual ‘World’s 50 Greatest Leaders’ list features men and women from across the globe from the fields of business, government, philanthropy and the arts who are “transforming the world and inspiring others to do the same.”

47-year-old Aam Aadmi Party chief is ranked 42nd on the list and is the sole leader from India.

However, South Carolina’s Indian-American Governor Nikki Haley is also on the list at 17th while another Indian- American Resham Saujani is at the 20th spot.

Fortune credits Kejriwal for his efforts to curb pollution in New Delhi through the scheme of allowing vehicles of odd and even numbers on alternate days on the city’s roads.

“When Kejriwal unveiled a blueprint to tackle the smog in New Delhi — called the world’s most polluted city by the World Health Organization — many were sceptical. A key component: an ‘odd-even’ pilot project in which vehicles were allowed on the roads only on alternate days.

“The uplifting result of the pilot this January: roads were less clogged, hourly particulate air pollution concentrations dropped by 13 per cent, and citizens could breathe deep,” Fortune said.

It said leadership is not “demagoguery, pandering, even populism” but is defined by people across the world “you’ve never heard of who are rallying followers to make life better in ways you never imagined.”

“…the New Delhi ‘government official’ risking his career to fight pollution; the Italian mayor welcoming Middle East migrants to his tiny town—improving its economy and brightening their prospects,” the US-based magazine said in a reference to Kejriwal and Domenico Lucano, the Mayor of the Italian town of Riace, who was ranked 40th on the list.

“The leaders you’ll meet here, known and new, will lift your mood and upgrade your assessment of the world’s future. Some may inspire you to join their followers. And those unheard-ofs, so seemingly ordinary, may even prompt you to rethink your own potential as an inspiring leader,” Fortune said.

Bezos, who topped the list this year, has been on the list all three times, along with Pope Francis who comes in at the 4th position followed by Apple CEO Tim Cook.

The list includes German Chancellor Angela Merkel (2), Myanmar’s pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi at (3), US astronaut Scott Kelly and Russian cosmonaut Mikhail Kornienko (22), IMF Managing Director Christine Lagarde (36), Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation Co-chair and CEO Melinda Gates and Susan Desmond-Hellmann (41), Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau (48) and Bhutanese Prime Minister Tshering Tobgay (50).

Also on the list is Saujani, Founder and CEO of tech organization ‘Girls Who Code’.

Fortune lauded the 40-year old former Wall Street attorney for her message that girls should be taught to be brave rather than perfect.

Her organization aims to get more women into computer science and by the end of this year, more than 40,000 girls will have gone through its training and internship programmes, Fortune said.

Giving company to Kejriwal from South Asia is Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on the number 10 spot.

Fortune said the 68-year -old politician, the only female leader among the Organization of Islamic Cooperation member states, has “deftly navigated the competing demands of Islamic tradition and women’s rights”.

“She has committed Bangladesh, the nation with the world’s fourth-largest Muslim population, to securing legal protections for women and helping them attain more education,FINANCIAL freedom, and political power,” it said, adding that Bangladesh scores better on the World Economic Forum’s Gender Gap Index than any other South Asian country.

(Agencies)

 

Mehbooba Mufti to be J&K’s first woman CM; BJP’s Nirmal Singh to be her deputy

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Mehbooba Mufti

Jammu: The BJP on Friday elected Nirmal Singh as its leader in the Jammu and Kashmir assembly and nominated him for the deputy chief minister’s post in the new PDP-BJP alliance government to be headed by PDP leader Mehbooba Mufti.

Speaking after BJP legislators met here, state BJP president Sat Pal Sharma said: “The BJP legislature party has elected Nirmal Singh as its leader and nominated him for the deputy chief minister’s post in the new coalition government.”

Mr. Sharma also said the BJP had decided to extend support to Mehbooba Mufti, daughter of former chief minister Mufti Mohammad Sayeed, to head the PDP-BJP government in the state.

Nirmal Singh also served as the deputy chief minister in the Mufti Mohammad Sayeed-led PDP-BJP coalition that was in office for 10 months till Sayeed died on January 7.

Jammu and Kashmir has been under Governor’s Rule since January 8.

Besides the BJP legislators, Jitendra Singh, the minister of state in the Prime Minister’s Office, and Ram Madhav, general secretary in the Bharatiya Janata Party in charge of Jammu and Kashmir affairs, attended the meeting.

Informed sources said those at the meeting were apprised by Ram Madhav about the recent developments, including the Tuesday meeting in New Delhi between PDP president Mehbooba Mufti and Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

“The BJP reiterated that no fresh conditions (by PDP) had been accepted and the alliance with the PDP will continue on the basis of the agenda of alliance signed (earlier) by the two parties,” a BJP source told IANS.

Jitendra Singh represents the Kathua-Udhampur Lok Sabha seat for the BJP in the Lok Sabha.

He informed that a BJP-PDP joint coordination committee will meet before the PDP and BJP separately meet Governor N.N. Vohra on Friday.

If and when she takes oath, Mehbooba Mufti will be the first woman chief minister of Jammu and Kashmir.

(Agencies)

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