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Real time data system to be put in place to curb female foeticide in Karnataka

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u-t-khader

Bengaluru: Faced with the challenge of curbing female foeticide which continues despite a ban, the state government is mulling to take the help of technology to fight the same.

Minister for Health and Family Welfare U T Khader who announced the same during the Legislative Council informed that a ‘real-time data system’ will be put in place to ensure that every scanning centre is put under round the clock surveillance.

The system will be put in place within a year said Khader replying to a question on Monday, February 9. Once the system is in place, information from an ultrasound centre will go into a central repository system automatically.

The overall female-male sex ratio in Karnataka rose from 965 to 968 between 2001 and 2011 census, the child sex ratio (between 0 to 6 years) declined from 946 to 943.

US authorities investigate motive in Muslim students' killings

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Early investigation appears to point to parking dispute as motive, but Muslim victims’ family want “hate crime” probe.

Family members said the shooter had bothered the students in the past [Getty Images]

Family members said the shooter had bothered the students in the past [Getty Images]

by Al Jazeera

Authorities in the US state of North Carolina are trying to determine whether hate played a role in the shooting deaths of three Muslim students.

Craig Stephen Hicks, 46, was charged with three counts of first-degree murder on Wednesday in the fatal shootings of Deah Shaddy Barakat, 23, his 21-year-old wife, Yusor Mohammad, and her sister, 19-year-old Razan Mohammad Abu-Salha.

Authorities said the preliminary investigation of the shooting in Chapel Hill, North Carolina showed that a long-simmering parking dispute was the motive, but family members insist it was a “hate crime”.

“This was not a dispute over a parking space, this was a hate crime,” Mohammad Abu-Salha, the father of the two slain women, told the News & Observer newspaper . “This man had picked on my daughter and her husband a couple of times before, and he talked with them with his gun in his belt. And they were uncomfortable with him, but they did not know he would go this far.”

Suzanne Barakat, sister of Barakat, appealed to authorities on behalf of her family, saying “we ask that the authorities investigate these senseless and heinous murders as a hate crime”.

Gerod King of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives said that agents were in touch with the US attorney’s office in North Carolina that encompasses Chapel Hill and that investigators had not ruled out a hate crime.

“We understand the concerns about the possibility that this was hate-motivated, and we will exhaust every lead to determine if that is the case,” Chapel Hill police Chief Chris Blue said in an email to reporters.

The cautious wording of the police statement contrasted sharply with the anguished reaction among some American Muslims who viewed the homicides as an outgrowth of anti-Muslim opinions.

Outrage was voiced on social media with the hashtags #MuslimLivesMatter and #CallItTerrorism.

“Based on the brutal nature of this crime … the religious attire of two of the victims, and the rising anti-Muslim rhetoric in American society, we urge state and federal law enforcement authorities to quickly address speculation of a possible bias motive in this case,” Nihad Awad, of the Council on American-Islamic Relations, said in a statement.

Vigils for the victims were being held on Wednesday night in North Carolina and elsewhere around the US.

Barakat and Mohammad were newlyweds who helped the homeless and raised funds to help Syrian refugees in Turkey this summer.

Abu-Salha was visiting them on Tuesday from Raleigh, where she was studying.

Imad Ahmad, who lived in the condo where his friends were killed until Barakat and Mohammad were married in December, said Hicks complained about once a month that the two men were parking in a visitor’s space as well as their assigned spot.

Both Hicks and his neighbours complained to the property managers, who apparently did not intervene.

“They told us to call the police if the guy came and harassed us again,” Ahmad said.

Hicks, who appeared briefly in court on Wednesday, is being held without bond. Police said Hicks turned himself in and was cooperating.

SC slams Centre: 100 Crore for R-Day parade, but no compensation to farmers

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Make in India tableau

New Delhi: The Supreme Court slammed the Union government today for spending crores on the Republic Day parade but delaying the payment of compensation to farmers for land acquired from them.

“You spend Rs. 100 crores on Republic Day parade but when it comes to payment of compensation to farmers, you file appeals,” Chief Justice HL Dattu told the Centre.

The court’s observation came during a hearing of the Defence Ministry’s appeals relating to compensation to farmers on land acquisition in cantonment areas in Punjab.

The Punjab and Haryana high court had awarded a substantial compensation to farmers and the ministry had appealed against it.

But the Supreme Court declined to interfere, saying, “farmers are deprived of reasonable compensation”. The government, the court said, spends “so much money on litigations” but “takes a different stand” when it comes to paying farmers.

The Chief Justice also criticised the Union government for not creating enough infrastructure for the functioning of tribunals. “If you are unable to provide accommodation, why create such tribunals?” the court said.

Justice Dattu said recently, a retired Supreme Court Judge who was appointed on a tribunal, was not provided accommodation.

“I am anguished that you are pushing them (Judges) to Commonwealth village. Why different treatment for them? You must create infrastructure before creating tribunals,” the court said.

(Agencies)

Manish Sisodia to be Deputy CM of Delhi

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AAP leader Manish Sisodia. Photo: IE

AAP leader Manish Sisodia. Photo: IE

New Delhi: Senior AAP leader Manish Sisodia, a close confidant of party chief Arvind Kejriwal, is all set to be the Deputy Chief Minister of Delhi.

The decision to make Sisodia the Deputy CM was taken at a meeting of AAP’s Political Affairs Committee (PAC) last night at Kejriwal’s residence in Kaushambhi, party sources said.

Sisodia is being given the responsibility so that Chief Minister-designate Kejriwal can focus on building the party at the national level, they said.

Sisodia is credited with strengthening AAP at the grassroot level after it lost all the seven parliamentary constituencies in the Lok Sabha elections last year.

He was minister of Education, PWD, Urban Development and Local Bodies in the 49-day AAP government that had resigned on February 14 last year on the Lokpal issue.

Kejriwal, Sisodia and other cabinet ministers will take oath of office at Ramlila ground on Saturday.

Sisodia had won from Patparganj constituency defeating BJP’s Vinod Kumar Binny who was expelled from the party last year.

He had worked as a journalist with Zee News and All India Radio for a long time. He later quit journalism to participate in the agitation for Right To Information.

He was one of the founding members of the Janlokpal agitation and part of the team which chalked out its first draft. When Anna Hazare was arrested and sent to jail during the agitation, he too was sent to prison.

(PTI)

Kiran Bedi blames 'fatwa' for her defeat in Krishna Nagar

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File Photo.

File Photo.

New Delhi: Kiran Bedi today appeared to blame a “fatwa” by Shahi Imam of Jama Masjid Syed Ahmed Bukhari, appealing Muslims to support AAP, for her defeat in BJP’s traditional stronghold of Krishna Nagar in East Delhi and sought a probe into it by the Election Commission.

She said the Election Commission should inquire the issue to know whether the Shahi Imam’s appeal to Muslims a day before the polls had any impact on the electoral outcome.

“I want the Election Commission to inquire this. (Then only) it will be clearly known whether fatwa had an impact on the voters or not,” she said.

Bedi claimed that though she was leading in the vote count, her vote share started dropping when counting of votes in a Muslim-dominated area of her constituency was taken up.

“I was told that during the vote count in Krishna Nagar, I was leading but when the counting of votes of the area, where fatwa might have an impact, was carried out, it started to drop,” Bedi said, adding “I lost by 2000 votes when the counting reached that area.”

A day ahead of the polls on February 7, Bukhari appealed to Muslims to vote for AAP but the party promptly rejected the offer.

Though it was an appeal by Bukhari, several BJP leaders called it “fatwa”.
Bedi said a “complete study” should be done whether there was an impact of the “fatwa” on the freedom of choice in voting.

“Fatwa means a diktat, a directive, it also means a hukumnama in a way. EC should examine whether fatwas issued last minute before the elections are good for democratic process or not,” added Bedi.

AAP’s S K Bagga defeated Bedi by a margin of 2,277 votes in Krishna Nagar which had stood by BJP even during the 15 years of Congress rule under Sheila Dikshit.

(PTI)

Spurred by Delhi success, AAP eyes Bengaluru civic polls

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Photo: TCN

Photo: TCN

Bengaluru: After its overwhelming victory in Delhi Assembly elections, Aam Aadmi Party is eyeing to make its mark in the country’s IT capital through city civic polls.

“Yes we are preparing for BBMP (Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike) elections. We will be contesting all the seats,” AAP’s senior functionary V Balakrishnan told PTI.

He said “planning is already on. Through ‘Bombat Bangalore’ similar to ‘Delhi Dialogue’ that we had in Delhi we will be interacting with people in all the wards. Based on the interactions we will be preparing agenda for each of the wards.”

There is uncertainty about BBMP elections that is slated for April as the government is mulling about bifurcation of the civic body.

Stating that there is a string of similarity between Bengaluru and Delhi, Balakrishnan said “whether it is bad governance, garbage issues, power problem, water and road related issues, the issues are similar. So I think there will be greater acceptance for AAP as an alternative in Bangalore.”

Halting the Modi juggernaut, the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) had yesterday scored a landslide victory in the Delhi Assembly election by winning 67 of the 70 seats after steamrolling BJP leaving it with only three seats and decimating Congress which drew a blank.

Balakrishnan, former CFO of IT major Infosys, was also coordinator of a group called “Well wishers of AAP” that had organised Rs 20,000-per person fund-raising dinner with Kejriwal in the city before Lok Sabha polls.

AAP that made its political debut in Karnataka aiming big has performed very dismally with its vote count in the state lesser than NOTA and votes secured here lesser than its membership base in the city.

Among different states, Karnataka had raised the maximum funds for the party during the Lok Sabha polls and the state stood third in the funds collected for the last Delhi polls.

Kejriwal was in the city for a fund raising event on January 11 as part of the preparations for the recent Delhi polls.

Balakrishnan also said that the city should have a CEO like full-term Mayor for the city.

“I think what Bengaluru needs is a directly elected Mayor, right now the the Mayors’ tenure is just one year. This has led to a situation where a single person won’t have control over the affairs of BBMP as it keeps on changing,” he said.

“Five years tenure for a Mayor is the way to go and he should function as a CEO of the city,” he added.

(PTI)

Kejriwal discusses Delhi's statehood with Rajnath; AAP receives IT notice

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Delhi CM designate Arvind Kejriwal meets Home Minister Rajnath Singh.

Delhi CM designate Arvind Kejriwal meets Home Minister Rajnath Singh. Photo: ANI

New Delhi: A day after registering a landslide victory in the Delhi assembly election, Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) chief Arvind Kejriwal Wednesday discussed the issue of full statehood for Delhi with Home Minister Rajnath Singh.

Kejriwal, accompanied by party leader Manish Sisodia, had about an half-hour meeting with the home minister at the latter’s official residence.

“We have discussed various issues with the home minister, including the issue of full statehood for Delhi,” Sisodia told reporters.

He also said that the union minister assured them of the central government’s full support, saying that “the party line would not come in between working of the two governments”.

Earlier in the day, the AAP leaders called on union urban development minister Venkaiah Naidu at his office and discussed various issues concerning the national capital.

During this meeting, the issues related to granting of full statehood to Delhi and granting land by Delhi Development Authority (DDA) for building schools, parking and play grounds were discussed.

The AAP leaders also spoke about regularisation of unauthorised colonies in the city.

Kejriwal, to be sworn in as chief minister Saturday at the Ramlila Ground for the second time, is scheduled to meet President Pranab Mukherjee at Rashtrapati Bhavan later Wednesday.

Aam Aadmi Party, Congress served IT notice over funding

The Income Tax Department has served a notice on Aam Aadmi Party seeking an explanation on charges of receiving funds from dubious sources as alleged by a splinter group — a charge that had already been denied by the party.

A similar notice has also been served on the Congress, a party spokesperson said.

The department, that functions under the Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) of the ministry of finance, has asked the party to furnish its reply by Feb 16 — two days after Arvind Kejriwal is scheduled to take oath as Delhi chief minister following a stunning win in the assembly polls.

In the run-up to the elections, Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley had alleged that the AAP was caught red-handed in receiving dubious funds from companies that did not have any business, and accused its leadership of adopting diversionary tactics to deflect attention.

He said such donations amounted to Rs.2 crore through cheques of Rs.50 lakh each from four firms.

The Aam Aadmi Party had protested such allegations. “Mr. Finance Minister. Stop throwing muck. Act. Arrest me if i am guilty,” Kejriwal tweeted. “Fin min (finance minister) says we took hawala money. Hawala money in cheques? I dare Fin min to arrest me if we took hawala money.”

He had also written to Chief Justice of India H.L. Dattu and urged him to set up a special probe team to probe investigate not just his party, but also the BJP and the Congress for the Delhi elections.

The Congress party said it has also received a similar missive from the IT Department.

“Yes, we have been served a notice. It is clearly a sign of political vendetta. Let me ask: Why has a similar notice not been served on BJP? Why single us and the AAP out. BJP has also spent crores of rupees on elections,” a party spokesperson told IANS.

At a press conference here last week, the AAP Volunteer Action Manch (AVAM), a breakaway group of the party, had questioned the sources of funding for the Kejriwal-led party and alleged some of it could be sourced to what it described as “fraud” companies.

It said claimed the money donated on the midnight of April 15 last year.

(IANS)

President asks Governors to ensure communal harmony in states

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Governors Conference

New Delhi: President Pranab Mukherjee on Wednesday warned that any deviation from the Constitutional principles and provisions would weaken the democratic fabric of the country and “jeopardise” social, economic and political well being of citizens.

In his opening remark at the 46th Governors Conference in Delhi, Mr. Mukherjee said Constitution was the only guiding document for providing framework for governance and asked Governors to ensure peace and communal harmony.

“Every Indian looks forward to the Constitution as the guarantor of liberties, freedom and equality. Any deviation from the principles and provisions embodied in the Constitution would weaken the democratic fabric of the country and jeopardise the social, economic and political well-being of our citizens,” he said.

The President said the Governors and Lt. Governors have the “primary responsibility” to ensure that the affairs of the States and Union Territories are conducted strictly in accordance with the letter and spirit of this hallowed document.

“Prevalence of peace and communal harmony must be ensured,” he said at the conference, which was attended by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and other Ministers.

(Agencies)

USA: Three Muslim students murdered at North Carolina campus

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Police captures suspect after three Muslim Americans are shot dead at University of North Carolina campus.

Friends and family, and online community condemning the murder shared victims' photos online following the incident [Facebook]

Friends and family, and online community condemning the murder shared victims’ photos online following the incident [Facebook]

by Al Jazeera

Three American students have been shot dead at a residential complex of University of North Carolina and a suspect has been arrested over the incident, according to the local police.

Chapel Hill police told local news outlets that Craig Stephen Hicks, 46, was arrested and charged with killing the three Muslim students. He is being held at the Durham County Jail.

Police said they responded to a report of gunshots at around 5:15pm on Tuesday, and found three people who were pronounced dead at the scene.

The victims were identified as 23-year-old Deah Shaddy Barakat, his 21-year-old wife Yusor Mohammad and 19-year-old Razan Mohammad Abu-Salha, police said.

Police said the investigation was continuing.

Residents told local media that the complex was a peaceful place.

“It’s a very quiet community,” Bethany Boring, who lives in the complex, told television station WRAL.

“It’s a lot of graduate and professional students. You know, professionals’ families.”

Friends and family and the online community shared photos of the victims via social media after the incident.

The hashtag  went viral after the incident was reported, many of the tweets criticising the US and other Western media for not covering the shooting.

Facebook partners with Reliance Communications to launch Internet.org

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Internet.org

Mumbai: Reliance Communications, a part of the Anil Ambani-led group, Tuesday said it has been roped in by Facebook to offer free access to data and web sites to customers through the social networking site’s global digital inclusion initiative, Internet.org.

The Internet.org initiative will provide access to popular websites and services with zero data charge to make it easier for people to access the Internet across both the 2G and 3G platforms, Reliance executives said at a press conference here.

“Internet is the integral part of our well being. It is tool to transform lifestyle. Data is the raw material of the information age,” said Gurdeep Singh, chief executive officer, consumer business, Reliance Communications.

To start with these services will be available to Reliance customers in of Mumbai, Maharashtra, Gujarat, Andhra Pradesh, Chennai, Tamil Nadu and Kerala. The services will then be extended to the rest of the country in a phased manner with more services and websites.

The company is already live with the he services in all these circles by, said Singh: “We are committed to go online pan-India within 90 days.”

The companies declined to share who will bear the cost of such data. “If we do good to people they will come back to us,” Singh said.

“Today, we’re excited to make the Internet available to millions of people in India through the launch of Internet.org and free basic services with Reliance,” said Chris Daniels, the vice-president of Internet.org at Facebook.

“This is a big step forward in our efforts to connect everyone in India to the Internet, and to help people discover new tools and information that can create more jobs and opportunities.”

Reliance customers can now explore Internet and reap its benefit in daily life, without having to worry about data charges. These set of services also come with free Facebook access, Singh said.

“It is not restricted to any handset, irrespective of screen size or operating platform,” he said.

“Through this partnership, we aim to increase Internet inclusion and encourage more Indians to go online. This will not only accelerate net penetration in India, but also open new socio-economic opportunities to users in areas like education, information and commerce.”

Saying that future belongs to the people with access to internet, he said that people with no access to internet will be “less comparative and agile.

Daniels said Facebook has helped Reliance in the project with technology and users experience.

Reliance customers can access these websites with zero data charges at www.internet.org, or in the Internet.org Android app. Most of the services will be available in English, Hindi, Tamil, Telugu, Malayalam, Gujarati and Marathi, to begin with.

Reliance Communications, an integrated telecommunications service provider with a pan-India presence, has a customer base of over 110 million, including over 2.6 million individual overseas retail customers.

(IANS)

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