Archives for December 2019

Nagpur: A 22-year-old woman allegedly committed suicide on Monday in Nagpur after failing to clear an exam for a government job, police said.

Pournima Sangore had a degree in nursing from a college in neighbouring Chandrapur and had appeared for an examination conducted by Western Coalfields Ltd (WCL) on December 1, said Inspector Sivram Kumre of Ganeshpeth police station.

“While she could not clear the exam, two of her roommates managed to do so. They had noticed that Pournima was depressed over this and were counseling her. On Monday, when the two had gone to work, Pournima hanged herself,” he added.

He said no suicide note was recovered and statements of the roommates were being taken as part of the probe. 

New Delhi:  Citing the rape and murder of a 27-year-old veterinarian in Hyderabad and the killing of the accused in police encounter, former Chief Justice of India R M Lodha on Tuesday said the country is struggling to protect human rights of citizens and such crimes reflect the “deep malice” that has crept in the society.

“Are we heading towards a society of lawlessness,” Justice (retd) Lodha said, while lamenting that criminals are not afraid of committing heinous crimes such as rape and murder and “sadder” is the killing of the four accused in the police ‘encounter’.

Supreme Court judge Justice D Y Chandrachud said that the Unnao rape survivor lying burnt and the dead bodies of four accused in the Hyderabad gangrape and murder case were the two “most telling pictorial representation of the two facets of India”.

Both of them were speaking at an event to mark Human Rights Day organised by International Institute of Human Rights here.

“While we are celebrating Human Rights Day, the fact of the matter is that we are struggling in protection of human rights. The case in point is the Hyderabad rape and murder of a 27-year-old veterinarian and the killing of the accused in police encounter,” Justice (retd) Lodha said.

“That the crime of rape and murder are happening everyday in one part of the country or other reflect the deep malice that has crept in the society. The criminals are not afraid of committing such heinous crimes. Sadder is the killing of the four accused in the police encounter. Are we heading towards a society of lawlessness?,” the former CJI said.

Referring to a statement by a Telangana minister that re-construction of crime scene in the Hyderabad gangrape and murder case was on instructions from above, he said it raises a big question as to whether we are “junking the due process and justice”.

He said that demand of such treatment by people to Unnao rape and murder case accused shows that the atmosphere of “mob mentality” is prevailing in society and people are going back to 17th century where it was “an eye for eye, tooth for tooth, nail for nail”.

Justice Chandrachud said, “We must ask ourselves whether close to a century of democratic rule has reduced the political, social and economic exclusion faced by many of our citizens.

“I think the most telling pictorial representation that we have seen last week is the representation of the two facets of India, the Unnao rape survivor lying burnt in the field and the four men lying dead in a field shot by the police”.

“Public deliberation will always be especially threatening to those who achieve power in its absence….

“It is just a reminder that we will not wait to be shocked by a terrifying take of human rights abuse but rather scrutinise the actions of those in power everyday to ensure that such abuses never occur in the first place. And that would be my long term answer to those visual images,” Justice Chandrachud said, while delivering lecture on the topic ‘Adding Nuance to Human Rights Discourse’.

Justice (retd) Lodha did not mince words as he spoke of the state of women safety in the country and said that 92 per cent of Nirbhaya fund created in 2013, which was meant to be utilised for improvement of safety of women, has remained unspent by state governments.

“The fact of the matter is that there is no effective working of schemes such as cyber crime against women and children and emergency response support system. These projects largely remain on paper. It is no surprise that crimes against women and children remain unabated. Blame game should stop,” he said.

It is time to completely strive for improving the systems and strengthening the institutions. The situation is grim as women and children are placed in insecure environment, Lodha said.

He said the prosecution was lax, adjournments in criminal cases are “given at the drop of hat” and the criminal justice system could not be expected to improve when the government spends just “0.08 per cent of GDP on judiciary”.

“Poor budgeting has led to capacity constraints in the judicial system. Judicial vacancies are not filled in time. At any given point of time 30 to 40 per cent vacancies in subordinate judiciary are always remaining,” he said.

Police and prison reforms should be high priority matter for the government. There is a complete lack of infrastructure for scientific investigation, Justice (retd) Lodha said.

He pointed out that there are only seven scientific forensic laboratories in the country due to which in large number of cases the forensic investigation of crime is not completed expeditiously due to non-availability of forensic experts.

“The insufficient number of forensic laboratories in the country results in an enormous backlog of forensic work and delayed investigation,” Justice (retd) Lodha said.

Justice Chandrachud gave reference of Aarey tree felling incident and said that deliberative democracy and courts together can lead to the protection of human rights.

“As a resident of Mumbai, I know just how dangerous and often impossible it can be to get from one end of the city to another during rush hours.

“The need for a safe and affordable public transport system is undoubtedly urgent.

“Yet at the same time an approach that ignores the environmental impact of development is unconscionable in a world where we see the dangerous effects of climate change,” he said.

In dissolving such competing rights, “we can see how deliberative democracy and the courts together can lead to the protection of human rights,” he said.

Earlier, Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray had said that CAB was an attempt to divide the country.

HYDERABAD:  Shiv Sena’s support to the Citizenship Amendment Bill in the Parliament has not gone down well with AIMIM chief Asaduddin Owaisi, who on Tuesday described Shiv Sena’s apparent reversal in stance on CAB as ‘bhangra politics’. “This is bhangra politics. It is politics of opportunism,” Owaisi said while speaking to media persons. 

Earlier, Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray had said that CAB was an attempt to divide the country. However, his party backed BJP on Bill. Now, it plans to take a sharp U-turn in RS, with Thackeray saying that his MPs would back the contentious law only if the government accepted its suggestion to hold back voting rights for brand-new citizens for 25 years.

Meanwhile, Owaisi also claimed that the government was bringing Mohammad Ali Jinnah alive with the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill. Owaisi said that even if the bill is passed by Parliament, he will “knock on all doors” in the country and keep his point of view in front of the people.

The Bill, which was passed in the Lok Sabha with 311 members favouring it and 80 voting against it, will now be tabled in the Rajya Sabha for its nod.

UNITED NATIONS: UN chief Antonio Guterres will not comment on India’s Citizenship (Amendment) Bill while the domestic legislative process is still underway, his spokesperson has said, stressing the need to ensure that all governments pursue non-discriminatory laws.

The Lok Sabha passed the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill or CAB, which seeks to provide Indian citizenship to non-Muslim refugees coming from Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan after facing religious persecution there.

The Bill, which was passed in the Lok Sabha with 311 members favouring it and 80 voting against it, will now be tabled in the Rajya Sabha for its nod.

“As far as I’m aware, this is legislation that is continuing to go through the legislative process.

“So, we wouldn’t have any comment while the domestic legislative process is being carried out,” Guterres’ Deputy Spokesman Farhan Haq said on Tuesday at the daily press briefing here.

Haq was responding to a question on whether the UN Secretary-General has any comment on the passage in the Lok Sabha of the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill, which the reporter said discriminates against Muslims.

“At the same time, you’re aware of what our concerns are about making sure that all governments pursue non-discriminatory laws,” Haq said.

According to the proposed legislation, members of Hindu, Sikh, Buddhist, Jain, Parsi and Christian communities, who have come from Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan, till December 31, 2014, facing religious persecution there, will not be treated as illegal immigrants but given Indian citizenship.

Chennai, Dec 10: Spiritual guru Sri Sri Ravi Shankar on Tuesday urged the Centre to consider giving citizenship to more than a lakh Sri Lankan Tamils living in the country as refugees for more than three decades.

“I request the Government of India to consider giving citizenship to more than one lakh Tamil Sri Lankans who are living in this country as refugees for the last 35 years.

I request the Government of India to consider giving citizenship to more than 1 lakh Tamil Sri Lankans who are living in this country as refugees for the last 35 years.

Sri Sri Ravi Shankar’s plea to the Centre comes a day after the Lok Sabha passed the Citizenship Amendment Bill.

According to the proposed legislation, members of the Hindu, Sikh, Buddhist, Jain, Parsi and Christian communities, who came to India from Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan by December 31, 2014 and faced religious persecution in those countries, will not be treated as illegal immigrants and given Indian citizenship.

Tamil Nadu has a significant number of Sri Lankan Tamils living in various parts of the state, including in government camps.

Mumbai, Dec 10: The Shiv Sena on Tuesday said centralisation of power in the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) was one of the main reasons for the “poor” economic health of the country.

The central government wants the finance minister and RBI governor under its control, an editorial in Sena mouthpiece ‘Saamna’ claimed, adding that the present BJP-led dispensation is not ready to listen to economists as it considers the economy as a “share market gamble”.

It supported concerns raised by former RBI governor Raghuram Rajan, who recently said India is in the midst of a “growth recession” with signs of deep malaise in the economy that is being run through extreme centralisation of power in the PMO and powerless ministers.

India’s economic growth slowed to a six-year low of 4.5 per cent in the July-September quarter. With inflation rising, fears of stagflation — a fall in aggregate demand accompanied by rising inflation — have resurfaced.

The Shiv Sena said former prime ministers Jawaharlal Nehru and Indira Gandhi cannot be held responsible for the country’s present economic situation.

“Centralisation of power in PMO and powerless ministers – this situation is not good for the economy,” the Marathi publication said.

“The present government is not ready to listen to economists as it considers the economy like a ‘share bazaar satta’. What is Nirmala Sitharaman’s contribution as finance minister – ‘I don’t eat onion, you also do the same’,” the Uddhav Thackeray-led party said in taunting remarks.

The government wants the finance minister, RBI governor, finance secretary and Niti Ayog chairman under its control, it claimed, adding that this is the main reason for the country’s “poor” economic health.

The economy is “paralysed”and former RBI governor Raghuram Rajan’s “diagnosis” is absolutely correct.

“The government is not ready to accept the economic slowdown. When the onion prices touch Rs 200 per kg, the finance minister says ‘I don’t eat garlic, onion, so don’t ask me’,” it quipped.

The Sena said Prime Minister Narendra Modi was “not trying” to improve the situation.

“When he was the chief minister of Gujarat, he had expressed concern over the rising onion prices,” it noted.

The Sena claimed that when Modi was the CM of Gujarat, he had said onion is an essential commodity and it has become so costly that it will have to be “kept in lockers”.

“The situation has changed and Modi is now the prime minister and the economy is in a ‘crisis’. An unconscious person is brought back to senses by being made to smell onion, but this is not possible now since onions have disappeared from markets,” it said in sarcastic comments.

The Sena also blamed decisions like demonetisation and “unnecessary focus” on projects such as the bullet train for the current economic situation.

“Whatever Pandit Nehru and his colleagues earned for the country, this government is selling it off,” it said, apparently referring to the proposed sale of public sector undertakings like the BPCL and Air India.