Archives for October 2022

Jabalpur: An alleged suicide by a lawyer triggered a violent protest on the premises of the Madhya Pradesh High Court’s Jabalpur bench here on Friday, police said.

The State Bar Council of Madhya Pradesh (SBCMP) appealed to the lawyers to abstain from work on Saturday, alleging that Anurag Sahu, the deceased, was being harassed by some officials and fellow advocates.

Sahu allegedly hanged himself at his house after pleading a case in the high court in the afternoon, a police official said.

Following his death, a group of lawyers staged a protest on the high court premises and allegedly set fire to the chamber of a lawyer who had appeared against Sahu in the court, he said.

Police were forced to cane-charge the protestors to restore order and some policemen sustained injuries during the incident, Superintendent of Police Siddharth Bahuguna told PTI.

Asked if the deceased lawyer had left behind a suicide note, the SP said the matter will be probed.

In the evening, the SBCMP appealed to the lawyers to stay away from court proceedings across the state on Saturday to protest against advocate Sahu’s suicide.

Council’s vice chairman R K Singh Saini claimed in a statement that Sahu was facing harassment from some officers and advocates.

The Bar Council will also write to the Chief Minister demanding action against the policemen who “mercilessly lathi-charged the advocates”, he said.

New Delhi(PTI): Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday inaugurated the India Mobile Congress (IMC) 2022 exhibition ahead of the formal launch of 5G mobile telephony services in India.

After inaugurating the exhibition at Pragati Maidan here, he went around pavilions set up by different telecom operators and technology providers to get a first-hand experience of what 5G can do.

He started with Reliance Jio’s stalls, where he witnessed the ‘True 5G’ devices displayed and experienced the use case through Jio Glass.

Flanked by Telecom Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw and billionaires Mukesh Ambani of Reliance, Sunil Bharti Mittal of Bharti Airtel and Kumar Mangalam Birla of Vodafone Idea, he spent time understanding the indigenous development of end-to-end 5G technology.

He thereafter visited stalls of Airtel, Vodafone Idea, C-DOT and others.

United Nations: In a first, Mahatma Gandhi made a special appearance at the United Nations, sharing his message on education at the world organisation as it commemorated the International Day of Non-Violence on the occasion of the Indian leader’s birth anniversary.

A special life-size hologram of Gandhi was projected during a panel discussion organised on Friday by India’s Permanent Mission to the UN and UNESCO Mahatma Gandhi Institute of Education for Peace and Sustainable Development (MGIEP) at the UN headquarters here to commemorate the International Day of Non-Violence.

The International Day of Non-Violence is observed on October 2, the birthday of Gandhi. According to the General Assembly resolution of June 2007, which established the commemoration, the day is an occasion to “disseminate the message of non-violence, including through education and public awareness”.

The resolution reaffirms “the universal relevance of the principle of non-violence” and the desire “to secure a culture of peace, tolerance, understanding and non-violence”.

The panel discussion featured India’s Permanent Representative to the UN Ambassador Ruchira Kamboj; CEO of The King Centre, Atlanta Bernice King; and youth representative and digital education transformation champion Princess Hayu of Indonesia.

The discussion, moderated by UNESCO MGIEP Director Anantha Duraiappah, was focussed on Education for Human Flourishing’.

It was part of the Ahinsa Lecture Series and kickstarted the 10-year celebration of UNESCO MGIEP. It was for the first time at the UN that a life-size hologram of Mahatma Gandhi led the panel discussion, a statement said.

A voice-over accompanying the Gandhi hologram shared the iconic leader’s thoughts on education.

“Literacy is not the end of education or even the beginning. By education, I mean an all-around drawing out of the best in the child and the man, body, mind and spirit. By spiritual training, I mean education of the heart,” Gandhi said.

Ahead of the panel discussion, a message by UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres was read out.

In his message, Guterres said Gandhi’s life and example reveal a timeless pathway to a more peaceful and tolerant world, as the UN chief called on the international community to walk this path together, in solidarity, as one human family.

Director of the Mahatma Gandhi Digital Museum in Hyderabad Birad Yajnik told the event’s audience that the hologram was the second edition of the Gandhi hologram in 4k.

He recalled that the making of the hologram was a process that started in 2018 when Ambassador Kamboj was in South Africa.

In 2019, in association with the MGIEP, a dialogue with a hologram of Gandhi was envisioned. Ananda and his team researched the collected works of Gandhi and his thoughts on education.

“At our end, digitally graphic files were further sculpted, merged with motion graphics to produce a high-definition hologram that narrated the script,” Yajnik said, adding that this version led the panel discussion at UNESCO in Paris and later in New Delhi.

“The future of this hologram is to enable it with AI (Artificial Intelligence) voice engine that can engage the people of the world. The message of Mahatma Gandhi is a message of peace and love, a message that the world desperately needs today. And this would be our small effort to bring it to the youth of the world through the language of technology,” Yajnik said.

Guterres said in his message that the International Day of Non-Violence celebrates not only Gandhi’s birthday, but the values he embodied that echo across the decades: peace, mutual respect and the essential dignity shared by every person.

“Sadly, our world is not living up to those values. We see this through growing conflicts and climate chaos. Poverty, hunger and deepening inequalities. Prejudice, racism and rising hate speech. And a morally bankrupt global financial system that entrenches poverty and stymies recovery for developing countries,” he said.

The UN chief emphasised that the world can defeat these challenges by embracing Gandhi’s values and working across cultures and borders to build a better, more peaceful future for all.

“By investing in people’s health, education, decent jobs and social protection to prevent people from falling and catch them when they do. By ensuring access to financing and debt relief for all countries. By supporting developing countries as they build resilient infrastructure and protect populations from the impacts of climate change, while also accelerating the transition from planet-killing fossil fuels to renewable energy.

“By securing and upholding the rights and dignity of all people – especially the most vulnerable, and girls and women who are too often denied their basic rights. By taking concrete action for inclusion, recognising multicultural, multi-religious and multi-ethnic societies as a richness, not a threat,” he said.

The Gandhi hologram made three appearances during the panel discussion, showing him both sitting and standing as he spoke about the values of education.

“We assess the value of education in the same manner as we assess the value of land or shares in the stock market. We want to provide only such education as would enable the student to earn more.

“We hardly give any thought to the improvement of the character of the educated. The schools and colleges are really a factory of turning out clerks for the government. On the contrary, real education consists in drawing the best out of yourself. What better book can there be than the book of humanity,” the Gandhi hologram said.

Education should provide access, equity, quality and affordability, Kamboj said, adding that it is very critical to provide holistic development as well as upliftment and dignity for every individual.

Stressing the importance of resilience, Kamboj said while education is imparted in schools and colleges, “I wonder how much we teach our children how to deal with the ups and downs.”

“That is also very critical…life doesn’t always dish out the best moments, you have to learn to deal with the ups and downs and, therefore, I think education should also be transformative in the sense that you teach youngsters to be able to take setbacks as you also take your successes,” she said.

Gundlupet (KTK): Congress leader Rahul Gandhi led ‘Bharat Jodo Yatra’ on Saturday delayed due to rains in Karnataka.

The march on its second day in the state was affected by the torrential rains in Gundlupet.

According to the Congress party sources, the Yatra was supposed to start at 6.30 am on Thondavadi in Chamarajanagar district on Saturday.

The Indian National Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh tweeted, “The 24th day of #BharatJodoYatra that was to start from Begur at 6:30am has been delayed due to rains. The rains arrived after a gap of 15 days and will benefit farmers. This is exactly what the Yatra is for, directly or indirectly!”

The former Congress president arrived at Gundlupet in Karnataka on Friday morning from Gudalur in Tamil Nadu.

The leader will spend 21 days covering 511 km in the state during his march which started from Kanyakumari on September 7 to Jammu on January 30, 2023.

Senior Congress leader Jairam Ramesh | PC: PTI

Gundlupet: Senior Congress leader Jairam Ramesh on Friday said he does not know if there would be a party presidential election on October 17, as the last date for withdrawal of nomination is not over yet.

The party General Secretary in-charge of Communications said both M Mallikarjun Kharge and Shashi Tharoor, who filed their nomination papers, are multi-dimensional personalities.

“All I can say is the election will be free, fair and transparent,” Ramesh said.

“Congress is a more internally democratic party than the BJP and is the only political party that has the system to elect its President and has elected presidents,” Ramesh added.

In response to a question on Kharge’s Dalit identity and electoral prospects for the Congress with him as a president, Ramesh said, Kharge has had a long public life having occupied various positions, and he cannot be looked at with only one lens.

“He (Kharge) is a multi-dimensional personality and so is Shashi Tharoor (other candidate). As of now, it is a contest between two multi-dimensional personalities. The last date for withdrawal is still not over, we don’t know whether there will be an election on October 17 or not,” he added.

The last date for withdrawal of nominations is October 8.

BSP president Mayawati

Lucknow, Sep 30: Bahujan Samaj Party president Mayawati on Friday said the ban on the Popular Front of India ahead of elections in some states was an act of “political selfishness” aimed at appeasing the RSS.

The Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) chief said this decision was behind countrywide demands to also ban the RSS.

In a tweet in Hindi, Mayawati said, “After targeting PFI (Popular Front of India) in various ways across the country, the Centre has finally banned it along with eight of its affiliates before assembly elections and considering it a policy of political selfishness and appeasement of the Sangh, there is less of satisfaction and more of restlessness.”

In a related tweet, she added, “This is the reason why the opposition parties are angry and attacking on this issue considering the government’s intentions to be flawed and the demand for banning the RSS is also openly being raised that if PFI is a danger for the internal security of the country why should other organisations like it should also not be banned?

The Centre on Wednesday banned the PFI, which has allegedly been involved in a series of violence and has “links” with global terror groups like ISIS, along with several associates for five years.

The organisations which were also banned under the stringent anti-terror law Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act include Rehab India Foundation, Campus Front of India, All India Imams Council, National Confederation of Human Rights Organisation, National Women’s Front, Junior Front, Empower India Foundation and Rehab Foundation, Kerala.

More than 150 people allegedly linked with PFI were detained or arrested in raids across seven states on Tuesday, five days after a similar pan-India crackdown against the 16-year-old group had led to the arrest of over a hundred of its activities and seizure of several dozen properties.

BSP president Mayawati

Lucknow: Bahujan Samaj Party president Mayawati on Friday said the ban on the Popular Front of India ahead of elections in some states was an act of “political selfishness” aimed at appeasing the RSS.

The Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) chief said this decision was behind countrywide demands to also ban the RSS.

In a tweet in Hindi, Mayawati said, “After targeting PFI (Popular Front of India) in various ways across the country, the Centre has finally banned it along with eight of its affiliates before assembly elections and considering it a policy of political selfishness and appeasement of the Sangh, there is less of satisfaction and more of restlessness.”

In a related tweet, she added, “This is the reason why the opposition parties are angry and attacking on this issue considering the government’s intentions to be flawed and the demand for banning the RSS is also openly being raised that if PFI is a danger for the internal security of the country why should other organisations like it should also not be banned?

The Centre on Wednesday banned the PFI, which has allegedly been involved in a series of violence and has “links” with global terror groups like ISIS, along with several associates for five years.

The organisations which were also banned under the stringent anti-terror law Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act include Rehab India Foundation, Campus Front of India, All India Imams Council, National Confederation of Human Rights Organisation, National Women’s Front, Junior Front, Empower India Foundation and Rehab Foundation, Kerala.

More than 150 people allegedly linked with PFI were detained or arrested in raids across seven states on Tuesday, five days after a similar pan-India crackdown against the 16-year-old group had led to the arrest of over a hundred of its activities and seizure of several dozen properties.

Kabul: A suicide bomber struck an education centre in a Shiite area of the Afghan capital on Friday, killing 19 people and wounding 27, including teenagers who were taking university practice entry exams, a Taliban spokesman said.

The morning explosion at the centre took place in Kabul’s Dashti Barchi neighbourhood, an area populated mostly by ethnic Hazaras, who belong to Afghanistan’s minority Shiite community.

The Islamic State group has carried out repeated, horrific attacks on schools, hospitals and mosques in Dashti Barchi and other Shiite areas in recent years.

Around 300 recent high school graduates, boys and girls, had come to the Kaaj Higher Educational Centre at 6:30 am to take practice exams, said one survivor, 19-year-old Shafi Akbary.

The facility helps students prepare and study for the entrance exams, among other activities.

About an hour into the session, the blast went off.

“First, we heard the sounds of a few gunshots at the main gate. Everyone was worried and tried to run to a different direction,” said Akbary, speaking to The Associated Press over the phone.

“Soon after that, a huge explosion occurred inside the centre.”

Akbary, who was unharmed, said he saw dozens of bodies and wounded people scattered around him.

“I was so afraid and couldn’t even move myself to help them. Later, other people ran inside and took us out,” he added.

Akbary said he has attended classes at the centre the past six months.

Khalid Zadran, the Taliban-appointed spokesman of the Kabul police who gave the casualty toll, said students were among the victims of the blast, but he did not specify how many.

He said education centres in the area will need to ask the Taliban for additional security when they host events with big gatherings like Friday’s exam prep.

Police have arrested a suspect who may have links to the attack, Interior Ministry spokesman Abdul Nafi Takor said later. He was unable to provide any updates on the casualties.

Representational Image

New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Friday dismissed a plea by a political party which claimed electronic voting machine (EVM) were “controlled” by some companies and not the Election Commission, saying the court is not a place where everybody walks in just to get “some publicity”.

While rejecting the petition with a cost of Rs 50,000, the apex court said the election process under The Representation of the People Act, 1951 is monitored by a constitutional authority like the Election Commission (EC).

“Electronic Voting Machines (EVM) process has been utilized in our country for decades now but periodically issues are sought to be raised. This is one such endeavor in the abstract. It appears that party which may not have got much recognition from the electorate now seeks recognition by filing petitions!” a bench of Justices S K Kaul and A S Oka said in its order.

“We are of the view that such petitions must be deterred and thus dismiss this petition with costs of Rs 50,000 to be deposited with Supreme Court Group-C (Non-Clerical) Employees Welfare Association within a period of four weeks from today,” it said.

The top court was dealing with a petition filed by Madhya Pradesh Jan Vikas Party against the December last year verdict of the Madhya Pradesh High Court which had dismissed its plea raising the issue about EVMs.

The counsel appearing for the party referred to Article 324 of the Constitution which deals with superintendence, direction and control of elections to be vested in the Election Commission.

He asserted though Article 324 says everything has to be controlled by the EC, the EVMs are being controlled by some companies.

“Do you know how many people vote in parliamentary elections in the entire country? It is a huge exercise,” the bench orally observed.

It asked whether the petitioner wanted the court to monitor the exercise as to in what manner the EVMs should be used.

The counsel said the petitioner wanted some checks and balances should be there in this process.

He said the petitioner wants Article 324 be implemented in true spirit and everything should be controlled by the EC and not by some company. They only want a free and fair election process, the counsel said.

“It is not a place where everybody walks in just to get some publicity,” the bench observed, before junking the petition.

New Delhi: Delhi Commission For Women chairperson Swati Maliwal has written to the Central Bureau of Investigation seeking its intervention on the issue of the availability of child porn on Twitter.

The commission said it has identified 14 more tweets, apart from the ones it has already flagged, involving children in sexual activities.

In a letter to CBI Director Subodh Kumar Jaiswal, Maliwal has sought his urgent intervention by registering an FIR and the immediate arrests of those involved in the crime.

On September 20, the DCW chairperson had summoned Twitter India policy head and the Delhi Police Cyber Cell over tweets depicting pornography and rape videos of women and children on the micro-blogging site.

Some of the accounts engaging in such acts appeared to be running a racket, wherein they sought money for providing pornographic and rape videos of children, she had said.

In response, Twitter removed more than 20 tweets flagged by DCW from its platform and the Delhi Police registered an FIR under the Information Technology Act, the panel had claimed.

Senior officers of the Delhi Police, who appeared before the DCW on Friday, said they have set up eight expert teams and conducted raids across the country.

Three people have been arrested so far.

The DCW, however, termed the response of Twitter in the matter “casual”.