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Shiv Sena leader compares Modi with Hitler

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Photo: Kunal Patil/ Hindustan Times

Photo: Kunal Patil/ Hindustan Times

Mumbai: Mumbai Mayor and Shiv Sena leader Snehal Ambekar compared Narendra Modi with Hitler and said they were quite similar.

In an interview with the Afternoon Despatch & Courier, the 43-year-old said, “I admire Narendra Modi for his self-reliant way of working. But at some level, I feel his rule is quite like Hitler…”

“This is bound to happen when power is concentrated in the hands of one man,” said Ambekar, a first-time municipal corporator.

Elected the city’s seventh woman and first Dalit woman mayor in September 2014, Ambekar has been seeking a red beacon for her vehicle.

The former Life Insurance Corp (LIC) officer claimed that her position in the city was akin to that of the chief minister.

“If a chief minister has red beacon, a mayor’s status is pretty similar in terms of a city,” she said.

Ambekar’s comments were the latest in a series of the barbs the Shiv Sena has fired at the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party. Both parties are allies in the centre and in Maharashtra.

(Agencies)

Retired US general: Drones cause more damage than good

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Retired US Lieutenant General Michael Flynn calls for “different approach” on drones in interview with Al Jazeera.

Flynn acknowledged the US invasion of Iraq helped fuel the rise of ISIL [File]

Flynn acknowledged the US invasion of Iraq helped fuel the rise of ISIL [File]

by Al Jazeera

US President Barack Obama’s former top military intelligence official has launched a scathing attack on the White House’s counter-terrorism strategy, including the administration’s handling of the ISIL threat in Iraq and Syria and the US military’s drone war.

In a forthcoming interview with Al Jazeera English’s Head to Head, retired US Lt. General Michael Flynn, who quit as head of the Pentagon’s Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA) in August 2014, said “there should be a different approach, absolutely” on drones.

“When you drop a bomb from a drone… you are going to cause more damage than you are going to cause good,” Flynn said.

Flynn was a senior intelligence officer with the Joint Special Operations Command (JSOC), which is responsible for the US military’s secretive and controversial drone program in countries such as Yemen and Somalia.

Asked by Al Jazeera English’s Mehdi Hasan if drone strikes tend to create more terrorists than they kill, Flynn, who has been described by Wired magazine as “the real father of the modern JSOC”, replied: “I don’t disagree with that”, adding: “I think as an overarching strategy, it is a failed strategy.”

“What we have is this continued investment in conflict,” the retired general said. “The more weapons we give, the more bombs we drop, that just… fuels the conflict. Some of that has to be done but I am looking for the other solutions.”

Commenting on the rise of ISIL in Iraq, Flynn acknowledged the role played by the US invasion and occupation of Iraq. “We definitely put fuel on a fire,” he told Hasan. “Absolutely… there is no doubt, history will not be kind to the decisions that were made certainly in 2003.”

“Going into Iraq, definitely… it was a strategic mistake,” said Flynn on Head to Head.

The former lieutenant general denied any involvement in the litany of abuses carried out by JSOC interrogators at Camp Nama in Iraq, as revealed by the New York Times and Human Rights Watch, but admitted the US prison system in Iraq in the post-war period “absolutely” helped radicalise Iraqis who later joined Al Qaeda in Iraq (AQI) and its successor organisation, ISIL.

Calls for accountability

Flynn also called for greater accountability for US soldiers involved in abuses against Iraqi detainees: “You know I hope that as more and more information comes out that people are held accountable… History is not going to look kind on those actions… and we will be held, we should be held, accountable for many, many years to come.”

Publicly commenting for the first time on a previously-classified August 2012 Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA) memo, which had predicted “the possibility of establishing a declared or undeclared Salafist principality in Eastern Syria (…) this is exactly what the supporting powers to the opposition want” and confirmed that “the Salafists, the Muslim Brotherhood, and [Al Qaeda in Iraq] are the major forces driving the insurgency in Syria,” the former DIA chief told Head to Head that “the [Obama] Administration” didn’t “listen” to these warnings issued by his agency’s analysts.

“I don’t know if they turned a blind eye,” he said. “I think it was a decision, I think it was a willful decision.”

Pakistan summons Indian envoy over ‘spy’ drone issue

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The Pakistan military maintains that the 'spy drone' is used for aerial photography. (Photo: Twitter)

The Pakistan military maintains that the ‘spy drone’ is used for aerial photography. (Photo: Twitter)

Islamabad: Pakistan today summoned Indian envoy to Foreign Office here claiming violation of its territory by an alleged Indian “spy” drone which was being used for aerial photography near the Line of Control (LoC).

High Commissioner T C A Raghavan was called to the Foreign Office today, an official of Indian mission said.

Pakistan Army yesterday claimed that the Indian drone was being used for aerial photography near the LoC in Bhimber area of Pakistan occupied Kashmir (PoK) and was “brought down for violation of Pakistan’s territorial integrity”.

The Indian Army as well as the Indian Air Force, however, denied that any of their drone has been shot down or crashed.

Days after India and Pakistan agreed to re-engage, fresh strains surfaced in the ties yesterday after Pakistan Rangers violated the ceasefire twice by resorting to firing and mortar shelling in the Akhnoor sector in which a woman was killed and six others, including two BSF jawans, were injured.

(PTI)

CBI raid at Teesta’s house ‘vindictive’, say opposition MPs

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Teesta Setalvad

New Delhi: Expressing their solidarity with activist Teesta Setalvad, several opposition MPs including Ghulam Nabi Azad of Congress and Sharad Yadav of JD(U) today accused the Centre of “subjecting her to the worst kind of harassment” to silence voices of dissent.

In a joint statement, the opposition leaders said the recent CBI recent raid at her residence was a “blatant misuse” of the central agency for “vindictive reasons”.

Besides Yadav and Azad, who is the Leader of the Opposition in Rajya Sabha, Motilal Vora of Congress, K C Tyagi of JD(U) and D P Tripathi of NCP endorsed the statement, which also bore signatures of Hannan Mollah of CPI(M) and Manoj Jha of RJD.

“We express our solidarity with Teesta Setalvad, Javed Anand and their colleagues who are being subjected to the worst kind of harassment by the (Narendra) Modi government,” they said.

Setalvad has been severely critical of the BJP government in Gujarat over the 2002 riots and her NGO has been pursuing criminal cases against the accused. The state government has accused her of working at the behest of its political opponents and charged her with misappropriating money. Anand is also an activist and her husband.

The leaders hailed Setalvad, saying she had been working courageously to expose the criminal involvement of BJP leaders in the Gujarat riots, in which mostly Muslims were killed, and asserted that they were determined to support her.

They said it was no co-incidence that the raid occurred a day before the case involving former Gujarat minister Maya Kodnani and Babu Bajrangi, both convicted, was to come up in the Gujarat High Court.

“The signatories are convinced that the Modi government is determined to silence voices of dissent like that of Teesta Setalvad… We appeal to it to end its vindictive actions,” they said.

CBI had on July 13 carried out searches at premises of social activist Setalvad and her organisation in connection with a case of alleged violation of the Foreign Contribution Regulation Act in receiving funds from abroad without taking prior permission from the Home Ministry.

(PTI)

No single momentous invention from India in 60 years: Narayana Murthy

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N R Narayana Murthy

Bengaluru: There has not been a single invention from India in the last 60 years that became a household name globally, nor any idea that led to “earth shaking” invention to “delight global citizens”, IT czar NR Narayana Murthy said today.

“Our youngsters have not done much impactful research work despite being equal to their counterparts in intellect and energy in Western universities,” he said delivering the convocation address at the Indian Institute of Science here.

Listing out 10 major inventions that Massachusets Institute of Technology has created in the last 50 years that includes Global Positioning System, Bionic Prostheses and Microchip, Murthy said these happened because students and faculty at MIT “walked the untrodden path, asked the unasked questions and used their intellectual prowess to take huge leaps”.

“They demonstrated unusual courage to achieve the plausibly-impossible. The story is similar at many other western institutions of higher education,” he said.

He said almost all inventions such as cars, electric bulb, radio, television, computers, internet, Wi-Fi, MRI, laser, robots and many other gadgets and technology happened, “thanks to the research by Western Universities”.

He added: “On the other hand, let us pause and ask what the contributions of Indian institutions of higher learning, particularly IISc ans IITs, have been over the last sixty-plus years to make our society and the world a better place?

“Is there one invention from India that has become a household name in the globe? Is there one technology that has transformed the productivity of global corporations? Is there one idea that has lead to an earth shaking invention to delight global citizens?”

Co-founder of the country’s major IT firm Infosys said, “Folks, the reality is that there is no such contribution from India in the last 60 years. The only two ideas that have transformed the productivity of global corporations — The Global Delivery Model and the 24-hours workday — came from the company called Infosys.”

(PTI)

Regulate Internet calls, disallow Internet.org-like app: DoT

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Internet calls

New Delhi: A government panel on Net neutrality has proposed to regulate domestic calls made using Internet-based calling applications such as Skype, Whatsapp and Viber at par with phone call services offered by telecom operators.

The panel has opposed projects like Facebook’s Internet.org, which allow access to certain websites without mobile data charges, while suggesting that similar plans such as Airtel Zero be allowed with prior clearance from TRAI.

“In the case of Over-The-Top (OTT) VoIP international calling services, a liberal approach may be adopted. However, in the case of domestic calls (local and national), communication services by TSPs (telecom service providers) and OTT communication services may be treated similarly from a regulatory angle for the present.

The Committee is chaired by DoT Advsior for Technology A K Bhargava and members in the panel include A K Mittal, V Umashankar, Shashi Ranjan Kumar, G Narendra Nath and R M Agarwal.

Net neutrality implies that equal treatment be accorded to all Internet traffic and no priority be given to an entity or company based on payment to content or service providers such as telecom companies, which is seen as discriminatory.

The neutrality debate flared up in India after telecom operator Airtel launched a platform, Airtel Zero, that would allow free access of some websites on its network. However, the companies were asked to pay Airtel for joining the platform.

The panel discussed Facebook’s Internet.org and said that until April 2015, Internet.org users could have free access for only a few websites, and Facebook’s role as gatekeeper in determining what websites were on that list was seen as violating Net neutrality.

The panel said that “collaborations between telecom operators and content providers that enable such gate-keeping role to be played by any entity should be actively discouraged”.

At the same time, the panel approved allowing zero rating platform after telecom operators compared it with a toll-free number. It said there is a multitude of possibilities in designing tariff plans and everything cannot be validated in advance on parameters of Net neutrality.

The panel proposed “ex-ante determination” and “ex-post regulation” model for dealing with tariff plan, including zero rating.

Under ex-ante determination, the panel has proposed telecom operators to follow current practice of filing tariffs before the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India and the regulator should carefully vet it on scale of Net neutrality before giving its nod.

In line with demand from telecom operators, the panel has recommended that OTT players should be brought under regulation to comply with national security norms like telecom operators in the country do.

“National security is paramount, regardless of treatment of Net neutrality. The measures to ensure compliance of security related requirements from OTT service providers need to be worked out through inter-ministerial consultations,” the report added.

(PTI)

India whitewash Zimbabwe, clinch last ODI by 83 runs

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India whitewash Zimbabwe

Harare: A power-packed performance with the willow was backed up by a dominant show with the white leather as India won the final One-Day International against Zimbabwe by 83 runs to whitewash the hosts 3-0.

In reply to India’s 276/5, Zimbabwe were bowled out for 193 in 42.4 overs.

Chamu Chibhabha top scored for Zimbabwe with 82. Stuart Binny was the pick of the bowlers for the visitors with figures of 3/55. Harbhajan Singh, Mohit Sharma and Axar Patel bagged two scalps each.

(IANS)

Goa renews ban on Sri Rama Sene’s Muthalik

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Muthalik

Panaji: Authorities in North Goa and South Goa districts have renewed the ban on the entry of Pramod Muthalik, chief of the Mangalore-based Hindu right-wing organisation Sri Rama Sene, a government official said on Wednesday.

“Muthalik and his associates from the Sri Rama Sene have been banned from entering the two districts of Goa for 60 days from July 16 (Thursday) onwards as his aggressive statements and comments could hurt community feelings of certain groups and create violence, riots or an affray resulting in serious law and order problem,” a government spokesperson said.

The ban orders against Muthalik – infamous for his alleged communal speeches – were passed by North Goa’s Additional Collector Swapnil Naik and South Goa’s District Collector Sachin Shinde respectively, the spokesperson said.

Muthalik, who first shot to notoriety nearly a decade ago after beating up patrons of a Mangalore pub, was first banned from entering Goa by the then Congress government in 2009, after he publicly announced that he would try to curb the pub culture in Goa and try and establish ‘Hindu culture’ in the state.

The ban was subsequently renewed by the Bharatiya Janata Party-led coalition government in 2014.

(IANS)

Rouhani says nuclear deal ‘political victory’ for Iran

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Dubbing it a proud moment for Iranians, President says Tehran will no longer be regarded as an international threat.

Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif, right, who led the negotiations, is now back in Tehran [AP]

Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif, right, who led the negotiations, is now back in Tehran [AP]

by Al Jazeera

The nuclear deal with world powers is a political victory for Iran, President Hassan Rouhani has said, adding that the agreement meant Tehran would no longer be regarded as an international threat.

Rouhani’s comment came on Wednesday, a day after Iran and six world powers reached the deal, capping more than a decade of negotiations with a landmark agreement.

“No one can say Iran surrendered,” Rouhani said. “The deal is a legal, technical and political victory for Iran. It’s an achievement that Iran won’t be called a world threat any more.”

Under the deal, sanctions imposed by the United States, the European Union and the United Nations will be lifted in return for Iran agreeing long-term curbs on a nuclear programme that the West has suspected was aimed at creating a nuclear bomb.

Rouhani said the deal was not “perfect” but it was necessary to compromise.

“It was really difficult to preserve some of our red lines,” he said. “There was a time we doubted there could be a deal. It’s a historic deal and Iranians will be proud of it for generations to come.”

Among Iran’s main conditions, or “red lines”, at the talks were a refusal to accept a long freeze on nuclear research and development and a demand for a rapid lifting of sanctions.

Thousands of Iranians gathered in the capital, Tehran, to celebrate the deal following the end of Ramadan fast on Tuesday. They waved Iranian flags from their cars, while drivers honked their car horns.

“My personal opinion is that I wish they had done this sooner so people wouldn’t have to go through all these difficulties,” Masumeh Momeni, a resident of Tehran, told Al Jazeera.

Meanwhile, Iran’s Foreign Minister, Mohammad Javad Zarif, is now back in Tehran following the 18-day negotiations in the Austrian capital, Vienna.

Arab concern

On Tuesday, Obama said the agreement offered a chance to reset strained relations with Tehran.

“Every pathway to a nuclear weapon is cut off,” he said, adding that the deal “offers an opportunity to move in a new direction. We should seize it.”

Iran’s supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei praised the “honest and hard endeavours” of the country’s nuclear negotiating team just after the deal was clinched.

But not everyone is happy with the deal. Arab countries have deep fears of Iran gaining a nuclear weapon, and some have been skeptical that a deal will prevent that from happening.

But equally high for key Sunni-dominated Gulf allies of the United States is the worry that a deal gives Iran the means and an implicit green light to push influence in the region.

Saudi Arabia issued a pointed warning, saying Iran must use any economic gains from the lifting of sanctions to improve the lives of Iranians, “rather than using them to cause turmoil in the region, a matter that will meet a decisive reaction from the nations of the region,” in a statement carried on the state news agency late on Tuesday.

Benjamin Netanyahu, the prime minister of Israel, criticised the deal calling the decision “a historic mistake for the world”.

In a second statement on Tuesday afternoon, Netanyahu said the deal gives Iran incentives “not to change” and said “the world is a much more dangerous place today than it was yesterday”.

Iranians gather for celebrations following a landmark nuclear deal in Tehran [AP Photo/Ebrahim Noroozi]

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