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Vatican officials denied visa for Bengaluru meet, claims Catholic church

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Representational Image.

Representational Image.

Bengaluru: The Catholic church today alleged that two key Vatican officials who were to address the 27th national assembly of the Conference of Catholic Bishops of India (CCBI) in Bengaluru which began on February 3 had been denied visa.

Cardinal Oswald Gracias, CCBI president, said the 140 bishops from across the world are attending the assembly that commenced yesterday.

Archbishop Arthur Roche, Secretary of the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments, and Archbishop Protase Rugambwa, President of Pontifical Mission Societies and Adjunct Secretary to the Congregation for the Evangelization of Peoples, were key resource persons for the week-long conference.

CCBI is now planning to hold the session in which the two officials were scheduled to participate through video conferencing.

Though the two officials had applied for visa in mid-December, their applications were kept pending till the last minute and rejected, a CCBI statement said.

Sources claimed that even after the intervention by Vatican’s Secretary of State office the visa applications were kept pending.

(PTI)

Protests over church attack ahead of polls in the capital

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Indian Christians protest outside the Delhi police headquarters in New Delhi on December 2, 2014 after a Catholic church was badly damaged in a fire which some suspect was arson. EPA

File photo of protest outside the Delhi police headquarters in New Delhi on December 2, 2014 after a Catholic church was badly damaged in a fire which some suspect was arson. EPA

New Delhi: Just ahead of the Delhi Assembly polls, hundreds of Delhiites have come together for a protest march over the recent church attacks and governments inaction in the case.

The protesters will be marching from the Scared Heart Church till Home Minister Rajnath Singh’s residence in Delhi.

It’s a silent protest to express our anguish over government’s inaction in the church attack cases, said a protester to TV reporters.

The protesters demand an answer as to why police has not taken any action against the miscreants and why the government is silent.

The Delhi police has reached the spot and is detaining the protesters.

Section 144 has been imposed outside Home Minister’s residence.

A church was vandalised by unidentified miscreants in South Delhi’s Vasant Kunj area on Feb 2, 2015.

This is the fifth such attack on a church since November last year.

Last month, a church was vandalised in West Delhi’s Vikaspuri area. In December, the St Sebastian’s Church in Dilshad Garden, was partly gutted and the Christian community had alleged foul play in the incident.

(Agencies)

Tripura CM flays BJP remark on 'immigrants'

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Tripura chief minister Manik Sarkar. Photo: Indranil Bhoumik/Mint

Tripura chief minister Manik Sarkar. Photo: Indranil Bhoumik/Mint

Agartala: Tripura Chief Minister Manik Sarkar Wednesday attacked the BJP for describing people from the northeast living in Delhi as “immigrants” — a folly the BJP later rectified.

“The northeastern states are an integral part of India. Those people from northeastern states staying in Delhi are also citizens of India,” he told reporters.

Sarkar, a leader of the Communist Party of India-Marxist, said: “Why should people from northeastern states residing in Delhi be treated as immigrants? This is an absolutely wrong notion.”

A 24-page Vision Document released Tuesday by the Bharatiya Janata Party ahead of Saturday’s Delhi elections pledged to protect “immigrants” from the northeast living in the capital.

(IANS)

Sohrabuddin Killing: Former Gujarat police chief discharged on technicality

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Sohrabuddin_case

Mumbai/NDTV: Former Gujarat police chief PC Pandey, who was accused of trying to derail investigations into the Sohrabuddin Sheikh encounter killing case, was today let off on a technicality.

PC Pandey, a former Director General of Police, was discharged after a court in Mumbai ruled that the CBI should have taken the Centre’s sanction before charging him.

Sources say this could pave the way for more police officers to be discharged in the decade-old fake encounter case.

In 2005, Sohrabuddin, a petty criminal, his wife Kauser Bi and Tulsiram Prajapati were traveling on a bus from Andhra Pradesh when they were kidnapped by the Gujarat police. Sohrabuddin and his wife were killed a few days later. Tulsiram, a key witness to their kidnapping, was shot dead a year later; the police claimed that he was trying to escape.

Mr Pande was accused of suppressing evidence in Tulsiram’s killing.

Another controversial police officer, DG Vanzara, was granted bail in the case last year.

In 2013, Mr Vanzara quit the force and shot off a vitriolic letter in which he accused Narendra Modi, then Gujarat Chief Minister, and Amit Shah, a former state home minister, of making him and other police officers scapegoats for following their orders.

In December, a court in Mumbai accepted Amit Shah’s discharge petition and said the BJP president will not face charges in the Sohrabuddin Sheikh killing.

Alleged IM operatives brought to Mangaluru; custody extended

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Photo: R. Eswarraj

Photo: R. Eswarraj

Mangaluru: A court in Bengaluru on Tuesday extended the police custody of two of the Bhatkal based youth arrested last month on terrorism charges by two days for further interrogation.

Police said that Bhatkal based homeopathic doctor Dr. Syed Ismail Afaq and his cousin Abdus Subur were on Tuesday remanded in police custody for two more days in Bengaluru. Two other youth — Saddam Hussain and Riyaz Ahmed Sayeedi — were sent to judicial custody for 14 days.

The police, in their remand application submitted to the court, said that the Maharashtra Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) wanted custody of the suspects to probe into their suspected role in bombings in Mumbai in 2011. The Maharashtra ATS is expected to move court soon.

Taken to Mangaluru

The Bengaluru police had brought three of arrested Bhatkal youth — Afaq, Riyaz Ahmed Sayeedi and Abdus Subur — to Mangaluru and Bhatkal on Monday in connection with the investigation.

Sources say that the team headed by the investigating officer Omakaraiah took Sayeedi to an outlet on Kudmal Ranga Rao Road in Mangaluru from where he had reportedly sent a parcel a few months before his arrest, apart from a host of other places in the coastal city. Mr Omakaraiah said that they had visited various places in Mangaluru to collect evidences.

Congress attacks BJP over northeast 'immigrants', BJP withdraws word

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North East Racism

New Delhi: The Congress Tuesday attacked the BJP for referring to northeast people as “immigrants” in its vision document, and asked if the party considers people from the region like those from other countries. The BJP, rushing to make amends, withdrew the word and stressed that the “brothers and sisters of the northeast are the pride of Delhi”.

The Congress’ campaign chief Ajay Maken, while releasing the party manifesto here, said: “Does the BJP consider the northeast people like those from other countries? Does the BJP want to say that the northeast is not part of the country?”

Maken said that at a time when External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj was visiting China, which lays claim to Arunachal Pradesh, was it proper for the Bharatiya Janata Party to come out with a vision document terming the northeast people “immigrants”.

He said the Congress demands that the BJP rectify the error and apologise to the country.

“We will not tolerate that the BJP does this (refer to the northeast people as immigrants),” he said.

Noted journalist and BJP spokesperson M.J. Akbar, at a press conference Tuesday evening, said the party was withdrawing the word, and that it was “mistakenly used”.

“The brothers and sisters of the northeast are the pride of Delhi. The word was mistakenly used. We withdraw the word, and we repeat that their (northeast people’s) welfare is as important as that of any citizen of Delhi and the country,” Akbar said.

BJP leader and Minister of State for Home Affairs Kiren Rijiju, who is from Arunachal Pradesh, when cornered by journalists, said the word was a “typo” and “clerical error”.

The BJP’s vision document for the Delhi elections has a statement that says “North eastern immigrants to be protected”.

Many people from the northeast have been attacked in the recent past in Delhi.

(IANS)

24 positive cases of H1N1 reported last week

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Representational Image. Photo: REUTERS/Arko Datta

Representational Image. Photo: REUTERS/Arko Datta

Bengaluru: The number of confirmed H1N1 cases in the State has doubled, in the past one week. Health Department sources said that from the 24 positive cases reported last week, the number has now jumped to 54. However no deaths have been reported.

Of the total of 54 cases reported in the State from January 1, the majority have been reported in Bengaluru, itself. Of this, 37 cases have been reported in BBMP limits, while two other cases have been reported from Bengaluru Urban jurisdiction. Officials said 268 samples had been tested for H1N1.

Likewise earlier, last month cases were reported in Tumakuru as well, District Vector Borne Disease Control Officer, Dr.H. Veena informed, “Out of four H1N1 cases, three are from Sira taluk and one from Chikkanayakanahalli taluk.” She said they are all recovering from H1N1.

In the month of January, the hospitals in the city were finding it difficult to cope with the situation as the free supply of H1N1 medicine from the Centre has been stopped. The hospitals had been asked to procure it locally, which was turning out to be an expensive affair.

However Health Minister U.T. Khader said the situation was not alarming and it was being monitored.

RGICD Director Shashidhar Buggi attributed the cases to the fluctuating climate. “The flu can be treated if people seek medical advice at the earliest. But most people tend to ignore the symptoms and report it only when the condition worsens”, he said.

(Agencies)

Lottery to Fund Health scheme in Karnataka

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lottery-ibrahim

Bengaluru: State Planning Board Deputy Chairman C M Ibrahim said on Tuesday he had recommended reintroduction of lottery in Karnataka to fund a proposed healthcare scheme for poor and middle-class families.

Addressing a media conference here on Tuesday, Ibrahim said he has asked Mysore Sales International Limited (MSIL) to submit a detailed report in this regard. The JD(S)-BJP coalition government had banned all forms of lottery in 2008.

According to Ibrahim, starting a weekly draw lottery with each ticket costing 500-600 crore a year but also provide jobs to more than 2,000 people.

“The money mobilised could be used for providing long-term treatment, say up to five years, for the poor and the needy,” he said.

When asked whether restarting the lottery would encourage the growth of single digit lottery system and gambling, Ibrahim shot back, “Do you think matka and gambling dens are not active in the state?”

In case the government is not able to start the lottery, it will have to raise around `300 crore from various corporate houses under the corporate social responsibility scheme.

He claimed that the chief minister has agreed to fund the first phase of Anna canteens in Bengaluru. In the subsequent phases, it could be extended to other parts of the state, he said. “The chief minister can even announce it in his budget,” he said.

Seven years after the government completely banned lottery in Karnataka, the board headed by chief minister Siddaramaiah has proposed re-introduction of lottery in the state.

The board has asked the state government to introduce Rs 10 denomination lottery and entrust its issuance to Mysore Sales International Limited (MSIL), a government of Karnataka undertaking.

(Agencies)

Dr. Zakir Naik wins King Faisal International Prize

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Dr_Zakir_Naik

Riyadh: Dr Zakir A. Naik, president of the Islamic Research Foundation of India has won the 2015 King Faisal International Prize (KFIP) for Service to Islam.

Makkah Gov. Prince Khaled Al-Faisal and KFIP Secretary-General Abdullah Al-Othaimeen announced the names of the winners at a glittering function held at Al-Khozama Center on Tuesday.

Two internationally acclaimed scholars of chemistry, Professor Omar Mwannes Yaghi from the United States and Professor Michael Gratzel from Switzerland, were declared co-winners of the prize in science category (chemistry).

The award for Islamic studies went to Dr. Abdul Aziz bin Abdul Rahman Kaki, a consultant at Madinah Development Authority.

Prof. Jeffrey Ivan Gordon from the US was declared winner of the prize in medicine. Each prize consists of a handwritten Arabic certificate summarizing the laureate’s work, a commemorative 24-carat, 200-gram gold medal and a cash award of SR750,000.

The co-winners in any category share the monetary grant.

According to the citation read out by Al-Othaimeen, Naik, a non-Arabic Indian Islamic scholar, has become a renowned authority on comparative religion. “He has founded a TV channel called Peace TV, which remains the only channel in the world specialized in comparative religion with huge audience profile,” said the citation.

Referring to the prize given in science category, the KFIP secretary-general said that Gratzel, a professor at Swiss Federal Institute, is recognized for “his foundational and practical discoveries in the development of photo-electrochemical systems for solar energy conversion.”

The co-winner in science category, Yaghi, has made seminal contributions in the field of metal organic frameworks.

He applauded the achievements of Kaki in Islamic studies for “his distinguished research on cultural heritage of Madinah.”

The award for Arabic language and literature was withheld as none of the nominees met the criteria laid down by the selection committee this year.

(Agencies)

38-46 seats for AAP, says India Today Group-CICERO opinion poll

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AAP

New Delhi: With three days left for the Delhi assembly elections, the TG-CICERO opinion poll projected the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) getting the highest number of seats (between 38- 46 seats) and the BJP between 19-25 seats in the 70-member house.

According to it, the Congress would get between three and seven seats while the other parties would get between zero to two seats.

It said the AAP would get over 43 percent of the votes, the BJP over 35 percent of votes, the Congress 13 percent, down by over 11 percent votes, and the others eight percent votes, a slide of nearly four percent votes.

According to the India Today Group-Cicero poll, over 44 percent respondents feel AAP leader Arvind Kejriwal is best suited to be chief minister, while 35 percent think so of BJP’s chief ministerial candidate Kiran Bedi and just 12 percent hold Congress’ Ajay Maken best suited for the post.

The Delhi elections are on Feb 7 and results would be out on Feb 10.

(IANS)

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