Panaji: The Central government should ban Nigerians from entering India, former Goa Chief Minister Ravi Naik has demanded, adding that the state does not need Nigerian tourists.

Referring to Nigerians with the pejorative “negroes”, the senior Congress leader also told reporters that Nigerians have been causing “problems” in Goa as well other metros.

“The government of India should ban them. They should be probed. It should be checked whether they are here to study or for picnic or to sell drugs,” said Naik, a former home minister in the erstwhile Congress-led coalition government.

“Nigerians come here and do ‘dadagriri’, in Delhi, Bengaluru and the entire country. We should chase the Nigerians out of here. Have they come here to study? Are they really studying? Are they really going to college, schools? Are they really going to bogus schools or bogus typing schools, this has to be probed. It is very important,” Naik said, adding that even Aam Aami Party leaders had a fight with Nigerians in the past.

“They create problems everywhere… We do not want Nigerian tourists,” Naik said, demanding a probe into the activities of Nigerians in Goa, who he alleged masquerade as students.

Naik’s comments come a few days after Goa Chief Minister Laxmikant Parsekar on May 30 said that Goans were unhappy with the attitude and the lifestyle of Nigerians living in the coastal state.

On the same day, Goa’s Tourism Minister Dilip Parulekar also said that Nigerians create problems in Goa and sell drugs.

In 2014, during the monsoon session of the Goa assembly, the state home ministry referred to Africans as ‘Negroes’, an error for which then Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar had to tender an apology after an outcry.

(Agencies)

Thiruvananthapuram: A senior judge of the Kerala High Court revealed in open court on Monday that he was offered Rs 25 lakh as bribe to ensure a favourable verdict in a gold smuggling case.

The judge, Justice K T Sankaran, made the statement while considering a batch of petitions filed by relatives of the nine accused challenging their detention under COFEPOSA (Conservation Of Foreign Exchange and Prevention Of Smuggling Activities) Act.

Justice Sankaran and Justice A Hariprasad, who comprised the bench hearing the case, recused themselves from the case because of “reasons beyond our control”.

Justice Sankaran said the money was offered through a mediator by one P A Naushad, the key member of the smuggling racket and one of the nine accused, adding that the bribe could have been part of a strategy to force him out of the case.

Justice Sankaran, however, did not comment on the reasons for recusal. The bench order, too, does not mention the bribe offer. The case is related to smuggling of about 2,000 kg of gold through the Cochin International Airport between 2013 and 2015. The smugglers operated from Muvattupuzha in Ernakulam district.

The racket was busted in May 2015 after the Special Investigation and Intelligence Branch of the Customs Department seized 13 kg of gold hidden under the seats of a bus ferrying passengers from the aircraft to the terminal.
Invoking provisions under COFEPOSA Act, the Central Economic Intelligence Bureau issued a preventive detention order against the nine accused–Naushad, his brother Faisal, Salim M M, Fazil K B, Yasir Ibn Muhammed, Saifuddin, Jabin K Basheer, Bipin Scaria and Shinoy Mohandas.

In January, the COFEPOSA advisory board, too, confirmed the preventive detention order. A former immigration official, Jabin K Basheer, and the ground handling staff at the airport were also involved in the racket.

(PTI)

Patna: Patna Police have loded FIR against three Class XII toppers and Vaishali’s VR College Management and examination and evaluation centre superintendents and teachers for forgery, cheating and criminal conspiracy. The FIR was lodged on Monday night after CM Nitish Kumar ordered police headquarters to set up a special investigation team under an additional director general of police. The SIT has been asked to submit report to the state DGP within 10 days.

Bihar School Examination Board has already cancelled result of controversial toppers Saurav Srestha and Rahul Raj – both from Vaishali’s VR College. Another VR College toppers in arts Ruby Rai, who has been given a week to take retest, faces FIR along with Saurav amd Rahul at Patna’s Kotwali Police station.

Kotwali Police station SHP Ramesh Kumar Singh said: “The case has been lodged on complaint of secondary education board director Rajiv Prasad Singh Ranjan.

CM Nitish Kumar earlier dissolved a judicial committee set up by BSEB to probe the matter as the board has no landate to set up such a committee. The CM had called an emergy meeting of education department officials last evening and reportedly pulled up BSEB chaian Lalkeshwar Prasad for exceeding his brief to order probe unilaterally. The CM had been also reportedly upset with contradictory view of the state board and education department on the raging controversy.

(Agencies)

Bengaluru: The Indian Army, which allows Sikhs to wear beard and turban in uniform, has terminated a Muslim solider and termed him ‘an undesirable soldier’ just because he insisted on growing a beard on religious grounds.

34-year-old Maktum Husen, a resident of Dharwad in Karnataka, was a sepoy in the Army Medical Corps for nearly 10 years from 2001, when he first sought permission from his Commanding Officer (CO) to have a beard on religious grounds.

The CO allowed him on the condition that he get a new identity card and retain the look for the rest of his service. Shortly afterwards, however, he discovered that the original rules — Army headquarters letters of 1951 and 1978, based on which he gave his nod — had been superseded by amendments to Regulation No. 665 of the Defence Services Regulations and the Ministry of Defence (Army) letter, 1991.

Under the amended rules, those other than Sikhs cannot sport a permanent beard. Citing this, the CO revoked his order and asked Mr. Maktumhusen to comply. The jawan refused and moved the Karnataka High Court, terming the order ‘discriminatory.’

Mr. Maktumhusen was, meanwhile, transferred to Command Hospital, Pune. His CO there also asked him to get rid of his beard. When he refused, a show cause notice followed, after which he was sentenced to 14 days detention for disobedience. The soldier paid no heed to further instructions, and the Army discharged him from service as an ‘undesirable soldier’ after an enquiry.

Sikhs can; Muslims can’t!

The Armed Forces Tribunal was not swayed by the contention of his counsel, C.R. Ramesh, that he had the right to grow a beard (under Article 25 of the Constitution on religious freedom) and that he should have rights on par with Sikhs.

The Tribunal said that having a beard was not among the ‘fundamental tenets’ of Islam. “The Army is a disciplined force and denominational differences among its members based on religion, caste etc. cannot be permitted. Practice of wearing a beard claimed on the basis of religion by the applicant, which goes against Regulation 665 of the Defence Service Regulations, is not conducive to the discipline of the Force,” it said.

(Agencies)

Mathura: At least 21 people, including a Superintendent of Police and an SHO, have been killed and dozens injured in clashes during an operation to clear hundreds of acres of government land from the activists of a so-called religious group, ‘Azad Bharat Vidhik Vaicharik Kranti Satyagrahi’, in Mathura district of Uttar Pradesh.

Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh, who spoke to Yadav, expressed anguish over the loss of lives and assured all necessary help to the state government.

19 people have been killed apart from SP City Mukul Dwivedi and SHO, Farah, Santosh Yadav, Pradeep Bhatnagar, Commissioner, Agra Division, said adding that a magisterial probe has also been ordered.

The violence had erupted when police were trying to evict illegal occupants, believed to be of Azad Bharat Vidhik Vaicharik Kranti Satyagrahi, from Jawahar Bagh yesterday on the directions of the Allahabad High Court.

In Lucknow, Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav ordered a probe by the divisional commissioner of Mathura, an official spokesperson said.

DGP Javed Ahmed and Principal Secretary (Home) Debashish Panda have rushed here.

The Union Home Minister said he has reviewed the situation in Mathura. “I have spoken to the Chief Minister of Uttar Pardesh and reviewed the situation in Mathura. I have assured him of all possible help from the Centre.

“I am anguished over the loss of lives in the incident in Mathura. May God give strength to the bereaved families,” Rajnath Singh said.

Police said some vehicles bearing Madhya Pradesh registration number have been found.

“The wrath of people against encroachers was such that when they were retreating, they were severely beaten by the public,” an official said.

The activists used not only hand grenades but also opened fire from automatic weapons after taking position on tree tops, DM Rajesh Kumar had said.

The area was filled with smoke following explosions from hand grenades and LPG cylinders and several huts caught fire, he said.

Are they not anti-national terrorists?

Over two years back, the activists of splinter group of Baba Jai Gurudeo, claiming themselves to be member of ‘Azad Bharat Vidhik Vaicharik Kranti Satyagrahi’, had occupied hundreds of acres of land of Jawahar Bagh on the pretext of ‘dharna’.

The Allahabad High Court, acting on a PIL, had recently ordered the authorities to get the land vacated.

According to police, members of this outfit and another smaller organisation, Swadheen Bharat Subhash Sena, had been staging demonstrations at Jawahar Bagh over the last two-and-a-half years.

Their demands include the cancellation of elections for President and Prime Minister, replacement of rupee with ‘Azad Hind Fauj’ currency, and sale of 60 litres of diesel and 40 litres of petrol at Re 1 each.

Among the other demands posted on their Facebook page are: “We demand all records relating to the ‘Ruler of the Nation’, law and order, and also the document of citizenship (which shows how we are citizens of the nation) to be made public.”

(Agencies)

Bengaluru: President of the Karnataka State Police Association V Shashisdhar was arrested on Thursday for planning to a state-wide strike on June 4 protesting exploitation, low pay and poor working conditions.

Bengaluru Police Commissioner NS Megharikh said that a case had been registered at Yelahanka New Town police station; Shashisdhar had been arrested and presented before local court and was remanded to judicial custody till June 16.

The state government on Tuesday had warned against staging the protest and had invoked the Essential Services Maintenance Act (ESMA) for maintaining public order and safety across the state.

However, it is said that despite the warning, the state’s association comprising of about 60,000 constabulary forces have decided to go ahead with the mass leave on Saturday.

Shashisdhar has alleged that constables were forced to work for irregular and long hours and they did not have a proper leave mechanism and were harassed by senior officers.

(