Archives for 2019

Nasheman News : West Bengal’s martyred CRPF trooper Bablu Santra’s wife on Tuesday said the government can do whatever it feels is correct to avenge the Pulwama attack but it should have ensured the troopers’ safety.

Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) Head Constable Bablu Santra of West Bauria in Howrah district was one of the 40 troopers killed by a suicide bomber in Jammu and Kashmir’s Pulwama district.

The Indian Air Force carried out air strikes early Tuesday morning across the Line of Control in Pakistan’s Balakot. 

“The government thought that avenging the deaths is correct, they have done it. If they think that eliminating the terror camps is right, they will do it. Also, if they think they will attack Pakistan, they will do it,” Mita Santra said.

Santra, however, was categorical that the safety of the troopers should have been prioritised. 

Voicing her resentment at the government’s failure to ensure security, she said: “They did not think about installing IED jammers in the CRPF convoy or think about ensuring a safe journey for them. I think they must give more attention to the safety of the jawans”.

She mentioned that it is a binding responsibility of the Indian government to ensure all the defence forces posted in various parts of the nation are safe and secure. 

“I think wars will only snatch more lives. At the end of the day, one must not forget that the jawans are also somebody’s son, husband, brother and so on,” Santra said. 

The deceased trooper’s wife said the uniformed personnel also think about returning to their families safely, but the government doesn’t think that way.

Nasheman News :Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Tuesday postponed his indefinite hunger strike for full statehood in view of the “Indo-Pak situation”.

Kejriwal, who was to begin his indefinite fast from Friday, tweeted, “In view of the prevailing Indo-Pak situation, I am postponing my “upwas” (fast) for full statehood of Delhi. We all stand as one nation today.”

Addressing the Assembly during a discussion on full statehood to Delhi, the chief minister said he will start a movement to organise the people from March 1.

“It will be my proud privilege to lay down my life fighting for the rights of the people of Delhi. Delhi deserves full statehood and must get it at all costs,” he said.

Nasheman News : Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday attended the presentation of the Gandhi Peace Prize at the Rashtrapati Bhavan soon after he presided over a CCS meeting following an early morning strike by the IAF on a JeM terror camp across the Line of Control (LoC).

In his address at the ceremony, Modi apologised for arriving late on account of another important meeting – of the Cabinet Committee on Security. 

“I apologise for coming late, I was busy in another meeting… This year is important because this is 150th anniversary year of the birth of Mahatma Gandhi. 

“This prize is given to those who give their all in promoting the values by which he (Gandhi) lived and imbibed and which he continuously tried to infuse the society with,” Modi said while congratulating the prize winners. 

President Ram Nath Kovind presented the Gandhi Peace Prize to the Vivekananda Kendra, Kanyakumari, jointly with the Akshaya Patra Foundation for 2015,; to the Sulabh International for 2016; the Ekal Abhiyan Trust for 2017; and to Yohei Sasakawa for 2018. 

They were awarded for the work done by them in feeding and educating poor, encouraging sanitation, and eradication of leprosy. 

“From Martin Luther King Jr. in the United States to Nelson Mandela in South Africa and Lech Walesa in Poland, a dazzling galaxy of statespersons has learnt and borrowed from Gandhiji. 

“Gandhiji and his thoughts are invaluable to any understanding of contemporary human history, and of the quest to redress oppression and inequity,” Kovind said in his address. 

The Indian Air Force (IAF) jets early on Tuesday hit the biggest training camp of the Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) group in Pakistan, eliminating a very large number of terrorists and their trainers.

Aero India organiser Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd (HAL) did not have clearance from the fire and emergency department to host the event. Apparently, HAL even sued the fire and emergency department for parking fire tenders inside the premises during the five day event.

On February 23, during the Aero India show, 277 vehicles were gutted in a massive fire at the parking lot of the Yelahanka air base. Ministry of Defence and Indian Air Force conducting the inquriy into the mishap said an overheated silencer of one of the cars could have led to the fire.

A senior officer from the fire and emergency services told DH that HAL had not taken a no-objection certificate (NOC) from the department. “As is the norm, organisers approach the fire department seeking NOCs. We visited the venue a couple of times, checked the fire safety norms, and instructed them to follow safety norms. They said once the installation of temporary structures are completed, they will install fire safety measures. We even visited the venue on the night of February 19 and conducted and conducted a check. But, precautionary measures were not taken on fire safety,” he said.

According to the fire official, after inspecting the premises, the department issued a notice stating that no fire safety measures were taken and the event cannot be held. But still, HAL went ahead with the event, causing a major fire accident.

The fire department had 37 fire tenders lined up for the airshow. “Indian Air Force officials did not allow fire tenders to enter the Yelahanka air base. They forced us to park the fire tenders outside the compound. They said they have their own vehicles in case of an emergency and they will manage. We still parked two fire tenders at gate no. 5. Soon after the vehicles caught fire, within minutes those vehicles rushed to the spot. Even the investigation into the fire incident is done by defence officials,” the official said. 

Replying to the allegations, Gopal Sutar, spokesperson, HAL, said as far as the role of HAL is concerned, the land belongs to the Indian Air Force and fire services was the responsibility of the state fire department. “HAL provided assistance and requisite support as it has done in other areas related to Aero India 2019. HAL cannot comment on notices issued, etc.” he said. Indian Air Force officials, meanwhile, were unavailable for comment. 

A senior police officer said traffic police were not allowed inside the air base to man traffic or to monitor parking of vehicles. “Indian Air Force officials treated us in a discriminatory manner. Police personnel manning traffic near the gate were pushed outside. There was no cooperation from the defence officials at the venue,” the police officer said.

Nasheman News : The ruling BJP in Uttarakhand on Tuesday challenged the Congress to release a purportedly sting video against Chief Minister Trivendra Singh Rawat publicly.

“The Congress should show this video publicly. Let the people decide what is right or wrong,” said state Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) spokesman Devendra Bhasin. 

“We are not scared of any such video,” he said.

Karan Mehra, a Congress MLA and deputy leader of the Opposition, had recently threatened to publicly release the video if the government fails to recommend a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) probe on the issue within a month.

The Congress is seeking probe on the purported sting video – the contents of which were still not known on the ground – alleging that it has contents of money transactions also. 

Last week, the Congress members in the Vidhan Sabha created a ruckus on the issue that led to the adjournment of the Assembly.

Several BJP leaders who have seen the sting video partially are convinced that there was nothing wrong against the Chief Minister in the video. 

“If someone wants to get his work done in public interest then what is wrong in this,” said state BJP leader and Vikasnagar party MLA Munna Singh Chauhan.