India – Page 1361

Bhopal gas disaster survivors to sit on an indefinite water-less fast in Delhi on the issue of compensation

November 4, 2014 by Nasheman

New Delhi: This December will mark the 30th anniversary of the Bhopal gas disaster. On 10th November survivors of the disaster will be coming down to Delhi and 5 of them will sit on an indefinite water-less fast at Jantar Mantar on the issue of compensation. They are demanding additional compensation for all survivors of the disaster and correction of figures of death and extent of injury in the curative petition filed in the Supreme Court. More than half a million gas victims have been denied compensation on an arbitary decision taken by Group of Minister on Bhopal in 2010. According to activists and various committees working for the welfare of the survivors, there is no scientific and legal basis to deny additional compensation to 93% of the victims.

The survivors say that they expect Prime Minister Narendra Modi to show the same keenness in getting adequate compensation to them, as keen he is to welcome American corporations to the country. They say that Bhopal is a good test for him.

For those who will be fasting that day, it will not be an easy task.

“We don’t think it is possible to continue the fast for more than 5 days without doing some serious damage to the fasters health and we are hoping the drastic nature of this action will pressure the PM to do something on this issue.”

For more information and to take part in the sit-in, you can contact:

Rashida Bi,
Bhopal Gas Peedit Mahila Stationery Karmchari Sangh
94256 88215

Nawab Khan,
Bhopal Gas Peedit Mahila Purush Sangharsh Morcha
8718035409

Balkrishna Namdeo,
Bhopal Gas Peedit Nirashrit Pensionbhogi Sangharsh Morcha
9826345423

Satinath Sarangi, Rachna Dhingra,
Bhopal Group for Information and Action
9826167369

Safreen Khan,
Children Against Dow Carbide

You can also sign the petition here: Revise figures of death & extent of injuries and move urgent hearing in the Supreme Court for the 1984 Union Carbide gas disaster in Bhopal.

Army man facing probe in madrasa boy burning case in Hyderabad commits suicide

November 4, 2014 by Nasheman

Hyderabad: A soldier, who was being questioned in a case in which an 11-year-old boy was burnt alive, committed suicide here early Monday, police said.

Lance Naik Appala Raju shot himself with his service rifle at the army garrisson in Mehdipatnam area in the heart of the city.

Police and army officials said no suicide note was found.

“Probably, the jawan was under immense mental stress due to the ongoing interrogation. The army is fully cooperating with police and wants the truth to come out at the earliest,” said a defence statement.

The lance naik was reportedly grilled by a Special Investigation Team (SIT) in connection with the Oct 9 incident in which a boy was burnt alive allegedly by armymen.

The army said the soldier’s suicide should not be taken as an indication of his involvement in the case.

They said the soldier was one of the over 70 people being interrogated by police in the case.

The boy was found with serious burn injuries near the main gate of the garrison. He told a magistrate in his dying declaration that some armymen poured kerosene on him and set him ablaze.

Mustafa, a madrasa student and a resident of Siddiq Nagar abutting the garrison, died the next day.

Police registered a case of murder against unidentified armymen and an SIT was constituted a few days ago to probe the incident.

(IANS)

I'm a victim in the whole situation: Shweta Basu Prasad on prostitution scandal

November 3, 2014 by Nasheman

New Delhi/IndiaToday: Actress Shweta Basu Prasad, who was in a rescue home after her arrest due to her alleged involvement in a prostitution racket, has broken her silence on the entire matter. Speaking to a daily, Shweta said that she had no clue about the ‘statement’ that had been attributed to her following her arrest and more.

“I came home on Friday (October 31). I’ve no complaints against anyone except the journalist who during my hour of crisis made up a statement attributed to me. That statement was circulated everywhere. I had no idea about it as I had no access to newspapers or websites for two months. It’s only now that I came to know of this,” said the actress, and added, “I was in custody. I wasn’t allowed to speak to my mother and father, then how would I speak to the media? Whoever made up that statement damaged my reputation by saying that all doors were closed on me – no such thing has happened and the film industry has always been very warm and welcoming to me – and that “people encouraged me to get into prostitution to earn money”. These are outrageous lies that I never uttered.”

The ‘statement’ in question, began doing the rounds of the media soon after Shweta’s arrest. She had been quoted by a daily as saying, “I have made wrong choices in my career, and I was out of money. I had to support my family and some other good causes. All the doors were closed, and some people encouraged me to get into prostitution to earn money. I was helpless, and with no option left to choose, I got involved in this act. I’m not the only one who faced this problem, and there are several other heroines who have gone through this phase.” Out of the rescue home now, Shweta refutes the statment and has said that they are tracking down the journalist who attributed the statement to her.

At the age of 10, Shweta had won a National Award for her role in Makdee. Following that, her acting in Iqbal earned her much critical acclaim. When the news of her arrest broke out, it shocked many. Basu was arrested from a hotel in Banjara Hills in Hyderabad, after a police raid. The actress said that she had no clue about it all, and that she had been invited to an awards’ event in Hyderabad, and put up in the hotel that was raided. “I had gone there to attend an awards ceremony. Call it fate or whatever, I missed my flight back in the morning. My air ticket and stay were done by the organisers of the awards function. I still have the ticket. I’ve been told that the agent has been arrested. The case is being investigated. I am a victim in the whole situation. There was a raid… I am not denying the incident. But the facts are not what they’ve been made out to be,” Shweta said.

Actor Sadashiv Amrapurkar passes away

November 3, 2014 by Nasheman

The 64-year-old actor, who has starred in films like ‘Ardhasatya’ and ‘Sadak’, was admitted to Kokilaben Dhirubhai Ambani Hospital here two weeks ago after being diagnosed with a lung infection. (Source: Indian Express)

Mumbai: Veteran actor Sadashiv Amarpurkar, who was hospitalised at the Kokilabein Dhirubai Ambani Hospital here with lung infection, passed away Sunday, his daughter Rima Amrapurkar confirmed.

“He passed away at 2.45 in the night (Sunday night),” Rima Amapurkar told IANS.

The actor known for his stellar performances in villainous roles in movies like Sadak, Ishq and Ardh Satya adopted the stage name Sadashiv Amrapurkar in 1974 and made a mark on theatre as well as the silver screen.

His performance in Ardh Satya (1983) as don Rama Shetty won him the Filmfare award for Best Supporting Actor. Amrapurkar was also the first actor to receive the Filmfare award for ‘Best Performance in a Negative Role’ for his portrayal of Maharani, an evil eunuch running a brothel, in the Sanjay Dutt-starrer Sadak in 1991.

“His cremation will take place in his hometown Ahmed Nagar tomorrow. Today his body will be kept at the Bhaidas Auditorium for the people to pay their last respect,” his daughter said.

Amrapurkar 64, is survived by his wife and three daughters.

Social media was filled with tributes for the actor. From Mahesh Bhatt to Rajdeep Sardesai, celebrities took to Twitter to extend their condolences:

Goodbye Sadashiv Amrapurkar you made a difference to my life. What would SADAK be without ‘Maharani’. Thank you dost.

— Mahesh Bhatt (@MaheshNBhatt) November 3, 2014

One of the finest actors of our time, Sadashiv Amrapurkar has passed away. RIP

— Rajdeep Sardesai (@sardesairajdeep) November 3, 2014

I am so saddened to know about the demise of a fine human being & a wonderful actor Sadashiv Amrapurkar. He was a kind & a learned man. RIP

— Anupam Kher (@AnupamPkher) November 3, 2014

T 1664 – Waking up in Kolkata to the sad news of the passing away of Sadasiv Amrapurkar .. a colleague and a gifted talent .. prayers !!

— Amitabh Bachchan (@SrBachchan) November 3, 2014

Sadashiv amrapurkar’death is a great loss. He was an active supporter of AAP. May his soul RIP. Heartfelt condolences to bereaved family

— Arvind Kejriwal (@ArvindKejriwal) November 3, 2014

The end of rustic cinematic era as we mourn the death of multifaceted actor and a compassionate #human being Mr #SadashivAmrapurkar

— Raajpal Yadav (@raajpal_yadav) November 3, 2014

Actor Sadashiv Amrapurkar passes away. RIP. He brought life to all his characters…#Bollywood

— Anil Kumble (@anilkumble1074) November 3, 2014

Rip Sadashiv Amrapurkarji- a great actor & a super human being. I was looking fwd to working with him in @Bankchor. Miss you sir.

— Riteish Deshmukh (@Riteishd) November 3, 2014

Rip sir Sadashiv Amrapurkar,you’ve been a legend.remember watching sadak and only seeing you.sure you in a better place now

— Esha Gupta (@eshagupta2811) November 3, 2014

Rahane and Dhawan score centuries, lead India to win over Sri Lanka

November 3, 2014 by Nasheman

Batting first, Indian Openers Ajinkya Rahane and Shikhar Dhawan scored tons to take India to 363/5 in 50 overs. The home team then defeated Sri Lanka by 169 runs in the first ODI. Photo: PTI

Cuttack: India defeated Sri Lanka by 169 runs in the first of the five match ODI bilateral series which kick-started at Cuttack yesterday.

Angelo Matthews won the toss and considering the dew factor, opted to bowl first. His decision looked good until the 20th over as the openers added only 90 runs , though both were given a life by Sangakkara.

It was in the 21st over bowled by Randiv, back into the side after 3 years, that things started to turn around. First it was Rahane who reached his 50 off 61 deliveries and then it was Dhawan’s show. He paddle swept the 3rd delivery to the boundary and in the next, reverse swept the bowler to bring 100 of the partnership. Not wanting to tail behind Rahane, he hit the bowler for a six to bring up his 50 in 65 deliveries.

With both the batsmen in full flow, the Indian team took the batting power play in the 24th over. The flood gates opened and each and every bowler on sight were dealt without mercy as boundaries were scored at will. The 2nd over of the power play bowled by Gamage yielded 15 runs while Matthews was taken apart for 18 runs in the 28th over. The Indian batsmen scored 62 runs in the power play overs and 105 between the 20th and 30th over.

Rahane was the first to reach his century in 99 deliveries while Dhawan reached it in the next over with a majestic six off 96 deliveries, his last 64 runs coming in just 35 deliveries. This was the first time after 2003, that both the Indian openers scored a century . The pair was separated only at the end of the 35th over with the score at 231 which consisted of 27 boundaries and 5 sixes.

Raina, playing his 200th ODI, scored a quick fire 52 off just 34 deliveries to keep up the scoring rate and in the process completed 5000 ODI runs. Quick wickets slowed down the rate, but it could not stop the Indians post 363 runs in 50 overs.

Chasing a mammoth score of 364 at a scoring rate of 7.3 RPO from the offset, Sri Lanka had a huge task ahead of them . India had a set back early on as Varon Aaron, bowling at speeds in excess of 150 had to leave the field after bowling just 4 overs. Thankfully it did not create a huge impact as by then the dangerous Dishan was back in the hut and Sri Lanka had just scored 39 in the first 10 overs. They lost wickets at regular intervals and with Sangakkara falling cheaply for 13, it was left to Jayawardane and Matthews to rescue the team.

Jayawardane was dismissed for a well made 43 off just 36 deliveries but his dismissal with the score at 130/5 with a required rate of 9.36 was a bit too much for the tail enders to achieve. The team folded in the 40th over with the score on 194 giving the Indians a huge 169 run victory. Ishanth Sharma was the pick of the bowlers as he scalped 4 batsmen giving away only 34 runs in his 8 overs while AR Patel bowled well to pick 2 wickets.

Scorecard
India: A. Rahane c Jayawardene b Randiv 111, S. Dhawan b Priyanjan 113, S. Raina lbw b Randiv 52, V. Kohli c Perera b Randiv 22, A. Rayudu c Perera b Gamage 27, W. Saha (not out) 10, A. Patel (not out) 14. Extras (lb 5, w 7, nb 2) 14. Total (for five wickets in 50 overs) 363.

FoW: 1-231, 2-247, 3-299, 4-314, 5-344.
Bowling: Prasad 9-0-60-0, Gamage 9-1-59-1, Mathews 4-0-33-0, Perera 7-0-51-0, Randiv 10-0-78-3, Prasanna 6-0-47-0, Dilshan 3-0-19-0, Priyanjan 2-0-11-1.

Sri Lanka: U. Tharanga c Dhawan b Ashwin 28, T. Dilshan c Saha b Yadav 18, K. Sangakkara c Saha b Sharma 13, M. Jayawardene c Kohli b Patel 43, S. Prasanna c Rahane b Patel 5, A. Mathews c Patel b Raina 23, S. Priyanjan c Saha b Sharma 12, T. Perera c Sharma b Yadav 29, S. Randiv b Sharma 5, G. Prasad c Saha b Sharma 0, L. Gamage (not out) 0. Extras (lb 4, w 13, nb 1) 18. Total (in 39.2 overs) 194.

FoW: 1-31, 2-61, 3-84, 4-109, 5-130, 6-144, 7-167, 8-175, 9-175.
Bowling: Yadav 6.2-2-24-2, Aaron 4.1-0-26-0, Sharma 8-1-34-4, Kohli 0.5-0-6-0, Ashwin 9-0-52-1, Patel 6-0-24-2, Raina 5-0-24-1.

Teams:
India: Shikhar Dhawan, Ajinkya Rahane, Virat Kohli(c), Ambati Rayudu, Suresh Raina, Wriddhiman Saha(w), Akshar Patel, Ravichandran Ashwin, Umesh Yadav, Varun Aaron, Ishant Sharma.

Sri Lanka: Upul Tharanga, Tillakaratne Dilshan, Kumar Sangakkara(w), Mahela Jayawardene, Angelo Mathews(c), Ashan Priyanjan, Thisara Perera, Seekkuge Prasanna, Suraj Randiv, Dhammika Prasad, Lahiru Gamage.

Provocative posters and speeches in Bawana have raised fears of a communal flare-up

by Ayushi Rawat, India Resists

Today some of us reached Bawana on getting the news of possible communal tension since a Mahapanchayat had been called by some Hindu right wing groups to incite against the Muharram (Tajiya) procession yet to happen on the 4th of November. This was a part of the on-going tension that started at the time of Eid this year.

Listening to the Mahapanchayat was a horrific experience but even more crushing was the vulgar State-Hindutva nexus that was being displayed on stage. The right wing leaders along with the BJP MLA Gugan Singh Ranga present on stage and the ACP attending the tamasha. The meeting was basically called as a show of power as well as a part of the larger fear generating and hate instigating mechanism of the fascist forces. Every speaker on the stage came and aggressively spoke about why the Tajiya should not be allowed to enter the Bawana village area and that the Muslim community should restrict itself to taking out the procession “only in their area”; they went to the extent of saying that they have collected over 3500 signatures for the same and informed the administration and openly warned in public that if this demand was not accepted, the consequences would be dire, “Agar Tajiya yahan se nikla toh jo bhi maar-kaat hogi uske liye hum zimmedaar nahi honge” (If the procession moves from here, then whatever violence happens, we will not be responsible for that).

With statements like, “Tajiya nahi niklega, hum khuli chunauti dete hain.. Hum yahan ke moolnivaasi hain… Hum sankalp lete hain ki hum hamare gharon ke saamne se Tajiya nahi nikalne denge.. Hum kamzor nahi hain…” (The procession will not go from here, we are giving an open challenge… We are the original inhabitants… We pledge that we will not let the procession go from in front of our houses… We are not weak…) There were repeated appeals to the close to 1000 yuva, the youth (which implies young macho-muscular adrenaline-infused boys) to instigate violence and be ready to oppose the procession’s entry strongly, with whatever means that they would find fit. The number of hate speeches was endless, references to words like talwaar and petrol were endless, the threats were endless, the voice was always aggressive, and the references to the legitimacy that “Modi Sarkar” now gives to these Mahapanchayats and ensuing riots were blatant. Towards the end, there was an open in public announcement that, “Sabhi bhai apne phone numbers yahan par likh dein.. Taaki hum gopniya tareeke se aap logon ko bata sake ki 4 taarikh ko kya karna hai.. Aap 4 taarikh ko tayyar rahein, Tajiya sham ko niklega…” (All the brothers should write down their phone numbers here… So that we can secretly inform you that what is to be done on the 4th of November… All of you be ready on the 4th, the Muharram procession would be in the evening…)

What is this if not an open instigation for a pogrom? It is only after we went and interacted with some people in the J.J. Colony, which is where the Muslim population mainly resides, that we got to know that the decision for not taking out the Tajiya in the Bawana village area was already deliberately taken by the Muslim community on 28th of October after the ACP appealed to them to do so. Some leaders in the community said that they did not want to incite violence, they did not want any tension to further deepen and that is why they decided to do so. Then what is the meaning of this show of power and Mahapanchayat, asked some of the young people in J.J. Colony. The youth seemed very hurt by the rise in such incidences after the new government came to power. One of the young boys said, “Hum Diwali bhi manate hain, Holi jab hoti hai toh wo bhi manate hain, hum musalmaan hain phir bhi hum sochte hain ki hum respect karte hain.. Ye desh jitna hinduon ka hai utna hi musalmaano ka bhi hai.. Phir hamare tyohaaron pe ye is tarah se kyun kar rahe hain?” (We celebrate Diwali, we also celebrate Holi, we are Muslims yet we respect… This country belongs to Muslims as much as it belongs to Hindus, then why such discrimination towards our festivals.) They also reported that there was no such feelings of communal hatred among the Hindus and Muslims residing in J.J. Colony, and that all those 1000 young men attending the Mahapanchayat mostly were not locals and were called from outside.

But this, the State does not find wrongful, this they do not find criminal, this they do not find threatening, this they think is something that they can enjoy with cups of chai and samosas without blinking a bloody eye! Shame on the Indian State!

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