Archives for 2021

Thane: A man who returned from South Africa to Dombivali in Thane district of Maharashtra recently has tested positive for coronavirus, a Kalyan-Dombivali Municipal Corporation (KDMC) official said on Sunday.

It is not confirmed whether the patient was carrying the Omicron variant of coronavirus, which was identified as the variant of concern by the WHO, the official said.

The man had travelled from Cape Town to Dombivali on November 24.

“He underwent a COVID-19 test which returned positive,” the official added.

The man didn’t come in contact with anyone after returning from South Africa, Dr Pratiba Panpatil, Medical Officer, KDMC, told reporters.

The patient is currently admitted at the Art Gallery isolation centre of the KDMC, the official said.

“The KDMC health department is on alert. We are prepared to deal with the new variant,” Dr Panpail added.

Delhi: The BJP’s ally National People’s Party leader Agatha Sangma on Sunday demanded the repeal of the Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA) at a meeting of constituents of the ruling NDA as well as at the all-party meeting convened ahead of the Winter Session of Parliament.

Sangma, the MP from Tura in Meghalaya, urged the government that as it has repealed farm laws keeping in mind the sentiments of the people, the CAA should also be repealed.

Sangma made the demand at the all-party meeting called by the government as well as at a meeting of the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) in the presence of Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and Union ministers Pralhad Joshi and Piyush Goyal.

“Since the farm laws have been repealed and this was done primarily keeping in mind the sentiments of the people, therefore, I requested the government to repeal the CAA keeping in mind the same sort of sentiments of the people from the Northeast,” she told PTI after the NDA meeting here.

There was no response from the government but it has taken detail notes of the demands made by the floor leaders of all parties, Sangma said.

When asked whether other parties from the Northeast which are part of NDA also share the same sentiments, she said,”I made this demand on behalf of my party and people from the Northeast. I know a few others who also share the same view.”

The CAA, which facilitates granting of Indian citizenship to persecuted non-Muslim minorities of Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan, was passed by Parliament in 2019 and had led to protests in different parts of the country.

The President had given his assent to the legislation on December 12, 2019.

The objective of the CAA is to grant Indian citizenship to persecuted minorities — Hindu, Sikh, Jain, Buddhist, Parsi and Christian — from Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan.

People from these communities who had come to India till December 31, 2014 due to religious persecution in these countries will not be treated as illegal immigrants but be given Indian citizenship.

After the CAA was passed by Parliament, widespread protests were witnessed in the country. Those opposing the CAA contend that it discriminates on the basis of religion and violates the Constitution. They also allege that the CAA along with the National Register of Citizens is intended to target the Muslim community in India.

New Delhi: Incidents of caste-motivated violence show that casteism has not been annihilated even after 75 years of independence and it is high time civil society reacts and responds with “strong disapproval” about the ghastly crimes committed in the name of caste, the Supreme Court has said.

The apex court, which delivered its verdict on a batch of pleas in a 1991 Uttar Pradesh honour killing case, in which three persons, including a woman were killed, said it had earlier issued several directions to authorities to take strong measures to prevent honour killings.

Those directives should be carried out without any further delay, it said.

A bench headed by Justice L Nageswara Rao also said that to avert trial getting tainted and “truth becoming a casualty”, the State has a definite role to play in protecting witnesses, to start with, at least in sensitive cases involving those in power who have political patronage and could wield muscle and money power.

It said that “bigotry” perpetuated by caste-based practices, which are prevalent even today, impedes the Constitution’s objective of equality for all citizens.

“Two young men and a woman were physically assaulted for nearly 12 hours and killed by the accused for violating caste-ridden societal norms. These episodes of caste-motivated violence in the country demonstrates the fact that casteism has not been annihilated even after 75 years of independence,” the bench, also comprising justices Sanjiv Khanna and B R Gavai, said.

The top court, while upholding the Allahabad High Court verdict with regard to conviction of 23 accused in the case, acquitted three persons in view of ambiguity in their identity.

Referring to the aspect of witness protection, the bench noted that 12 prosecution witnesses in the case turned hostile.

“Even if the witnesses have turned hostile, their evidence can be accepted, if they are natural and independent witnesses and have no reason to falsely implicate the accused,” it said.

The apex court said the right to testify in courts in a free and fair manner, without any pressure and threat whatsoever, is “under serious attack today”, and if one is unable to testify in courts due to threats or other pressures, then it is a clear violation of the rights under articles 19 (1) (a) and 21 of the Constitution.

“Right to life guaranteed to the people of this country also includes in its fold the right to live in a society which is free from crime and fear, and the right of witnesses to testify in courts without fear or pressure,” it said.

The bench said one of the main reasons why witnesses turn hostile is that they are not accorded appropriate protection by the State. It is a “harsh reality”, particularly, in cases where the accused are influential people and are tried for heinous offences and they make attempts to terrorise or intimidate witnesses, the bench said.

“This unfortunate situation prevails because of the reason that the State has not undertaken any protective measures to ensure the safety of these witnesses, commonly known as ‘witness protection’,” it noted while referring to an earlier judgment of the Supreme Court.

The bench said that as a protector of its citizens, the State has to ensure that during a trial a witness can safely depose the truth, without any fear of being haunted by those against whom he or she has deposed.

It noted that according to Dr B R Ambedkar, inter-caste marriage is one remedy to get rid of casteism in order to achieve equality.

“His vision for ensuring justice and equality to all sections of society, especially to the repressed segments, is well enshrined in the preamble of the Constitution,” the bench said.

“Though the number is a tad less, honour killings have not stopped in this country and it is high time that the civil society reacts and responds with strong disapproval about the ghastly crimes committed in the name of caste,” it said.

Referring to an earlier verdict of the apex court, the bench said honour killings, pursuant to the decree of ‘khap panchayats, have been strongly criticised by the top court in its earlier verdict.

It said harsh punishment was recommended to those “brutal and feudal minded persons” who commit atrocities in the name of castes.

“The Law Commission of India in its 242nd report suggested the legal framework on prevention of interference with the freedom of matrimonial alliances in the name of honour and tradition,” the bench noted.

The ‘panchayatdars’ or caste elders have no right to interfere with the life and liberty of young couples whose marriages are permitted by law. They cannot create a situation whereby such couples are placed in a hostile environment in the village or locality concerned and exposed to the risk of safety, it said

The bench said in the interest of “liberty and dignity” of young men and women in choosing their life partners and in the interest of peace, tranquillity and equality in society, it is imminently necessary that directions issued by the apex court earlier should be carried out by states without any further delay.

It also referred to the Witness Protection Scheme, 2018, which was approved by the apex court earlier.

In the 1991 Uttar Pradesh honour killing case, a trial court in November 2011 had convicted 35 accused. The high court had acquitted two while conviction of remaining persons were upheld by the high court.

However, the high court had commuted the death sentence awarded to eight convicts to life term till the end of natural life.

New Delhi: Former cricketer and BJP MP Gautam Gambhir on Sunday received another death threat allegedly from ‘ISIS Kashmir’, the third in six days, police said.

“Your Delhi Police and IPS Shweta (DCP) cannot uproot anything. Our spies are also present in the police. All the information is being received about you,” the e-mail, which Gambhir received from isiskashmir@yahoo.com at 1.37 am, read.

A senior police officer said they had received the content of the e-mail and were investigating the matter.

The cricketer-turned-politician had received death threats on Tuesday and Wednesday.

According to a police complaint filed by Gaurav Arora, Gambhir’s personal secretary, the MP received the first death threat on his official e-mail ID at 9.32 pm on Tuesday. The e-mail, allegedly from ISIS Kashmir, read, “We are going to kill you and your family.”

“On receiving the complaint, the district police increased (Gambhir’s) personal security as well as the security of his residence in Rajinder Nagar area. The police are currently inquiring into the source of the complaint,” Deputy Commissioner of Police (Central) Shweta Chauhan had said.

Soon, the Intelligence Fusion and Strategic Operations unit of the Special Cell wrote to Google seeking information on the account handlers and the registered e-mail ID through which the alleged mails were sent.

Police said the DCP was informed over a phone call about the second death threat from the same e-mail ID at 2.32 pm on Wednesday.

According to the complainant, the second e-mail was attached with a video of Gambhir’s residence.

“We intended to kill you, but you survived yesterday. If you love the life of your family, stay away from politics and Kashmir issue,” the second e-mail read.

Chandigarh: Some village children on Sunday got a pleasant surprise when they were invited by Punjab Chief Minister Charanjit Singh Channi to fly with him in a government helicopter at Punjab’s Morinda.

Channi had gone to Morinda. He saw there some children hailing from a village “playing near the helicopter”.

He asked them to get inside the helicopter and fly with him.

“During my visit to Morinda, saw children playing near the helicopter. When I was young, I used to see planes & think that one day I too would get a chance to sit in it. Reminiscing about the same, I made a few village children fly with me in helicopter & fulfilled their dream,” said Channi in a tweet.

He also shared photographs of children along with him in the helicopter.

Channi further said while interacting with them, he felt that there was no dearth of talent in Punjab.

“But there is a need to give proper guidance to these children. I promise all children of Punjab that I will do my best to create a bright future for them,” said Channi in another tweet.

Ever since Channi has become the chief minister of Punjab, he has been projecting himself as an “aam aadmi” (common man).

From being spotted performing Bhangra at an event, Channi has grabbed limelight on social media for stopping his vehicle to wish a newly married couple and joining villagers in rescuing a cow trapped in a pit.

Bengaluru: Karnataka on Sunday reported 315 fresh COVID-19 cases and two deaths, taking the caseload to 29,95,600 and the toll to 38,198.

Discharges numbered 236, taking the total number of recoveries to 29,50,542, leaving 6,831 cases, a health department bulletin said.

Bengaluru Urban remained the major contributor of coronavirus cases with 152 fresh infections. Both the deaths were from the city.

Other districts too reported fresh cases, including Dharwad 49, Mysuru 26, Dakshina Kannada 19, Tumakuru 11 and 10 each in Shivamogga and Udupi.

There were zero fatalities in 30 districts.

While 12 districts reported zero infections and nil fatalities, 14 had cases in single digits.

The positivity rate for the day was 0.42 per cent and the Case Fatality Rate was 0.63 per cent, the bulletin said.

A total of 77,818 samples were tested in the state, taking the cumulative number of specimens examined so far to 5.31 crore.

The number of vaccinations administered till date rose to 7.32 crore, with 1,83,255 people being inoculated on Sunday, the bulletin said.