[Nasheman news] LucknowA delegation of the Samajwadi Party (SP) and its ally Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) met Uttar Pradesh Governor Ram Naik at the Raj Bhawan on Wednesday and submitted a memorandum against the grounding of SP chief Akhilesh Yadav at the Chaudhary Charan Singh International Airport here.

The 15-member delegation, led by senior party leaders Ahmad Hasan and Rajendra Chowdhary, apprised the Governor of the development and registered their protest against what they termed was throttling of democratic and political rights. 

BSP supremo Mayawati has already castigated the Yogi Adityanath government over the action and called it a conspiracy to thwart their political movement across the state.

Yadav was to take a private chartered flight to Prayagraj on Tuesday where he was to attend a students union event, which was disapproved by the Allahabad University officials. 

The former Chief Minister was asked by district officials of Lucknow to go back to his home as the Allahabad administration had apprehended law and order issues if the SP leader visited the campus.

The incident had sparked protests across the state with SP workers disrupting traffic, taking to the roads and attacking government property. 

[Nasheman news] ChandigarhThe Punjab Police on Monday conducted raids at various places in Ludhiana district after a young woman alleged she was gang-raped by 12 men at a farmhouse near Jagraon town after she and her male friend were attacked and abducted.

No arrests have been made so far.

The victim, aged around 20 years, told the police that she and her friend were going in a car from South City area of Ludhiana city towards Issewal village on Saturday night when their car was attacked with bricks by two men on a motorcycle.

The attackers, who were joined in by three others, then got into the car and beat up the man (male friend) and took the car to a farmhouse near Jagraon town, around 170 km from here.

They also called up a friend of the man from his mobile phone and demanded a ransom of Rs 2 lakh. The friend approached the police following the call but the police did not take immediate action.

The couple, who were abducted, were allegedly beaten up at the farmhouse and the woman was gang-raped by five men.

She alleged that her attackers called seven other men who also sexually assaulted her.

The couple were set free on Sunday following which they complained to the police regarding the gang-rape and the abduction.

The police registered a case of rape at the Mullanpur Dhaka police station. Police officials said that raids were being conducted to nab the people behind the heinous crime.

Senior police officers from Ludhiana district reached the crime spot (farmhouse) on Monday as police teams started investigating the incident.

[Nasheman news] Jammu The Jammu-Srinagar highway remained closed for the sixth consecutive day on Monday, stranding hundreds of vehicles and creating a crisis of essential supplies in the Kashmir Valley.

“Even as hectic landslide clearance operation was on in the Ramsoo-Ramban sector, a massive landslide hit the highway at Marog on Sunday, delaying the opening of the highway,” a traffic department official said.

Unless this is cleared, no traffic will be allowed, he added.

Over 3,000 vehicles are stranded along the nearly 300-kilometre long road for the last six days. 

Many stranded vehicles are carrying essential supplies for the landlocked valley. Due to the non-availability of essentials a crisis situation has arisen there.

In addition to severe shortages of edibles like vegetables, poultry products, mutton, there is shortage of petroleum products as well.

Authorities were forced to order rationing of petroleum products till the supply position improves.

Airfare between the valley and outside has skyrocketed after the closure of the highway on February 6, with series of avalanches hitting Jammu and Kashmir in various spots.

Scores of valley-bound people stranded have started running short of money due to the unforeseen severing of road links.

Those stranded have demanded special air sorties so that they can reach the valley.

[Nasheman news] New Delhi Robert Vadra, the brother-in-law of Congress President Rahul Gandhi, on Saturday appeared before the Enforcement Directorate (ED) here for a third round of questioning in a money laundering case.

Vadra, who was questioned for over six hours on Wednesday and Thursday, reached the ED’s Jamnagar office at around 10.45 a.m.

He is being questioned on transactions, purchase and possession of certain immovable assets in London.

The ED case relates to the ownership of 1.9 million pounds of undisclosed assets abroad, allegedly belonging to Vadra. 

The ED counsel had told a city court earlier that the London property was part of the kickbacks received in a petroleum deal. The money was transferred by Santech International, FZC, a UAE-based company.

[Nasheman news] Amaravati Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu on Saturday asked members and cadres of his Telugu Desam Party (TDP) to stage protests during Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to the state on Sunday.

Naidu, who is also the TDP President, told the cadres and party members during a teleconference calls that the protests, against the Centre’s “betrayal” to the state, should be organised on a scale that the whole country should take note of it.

Modi is scheduled to address a rally in Guntur. This will be his first visit to Andhra Pradesh after TDP snapped ties with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) last year.

The TDP chief, who will be holding a day-long protest in New Delhi on Monday, said protests should be organised with the spirit shown by Mahatma Gandhi. 

The TDP chief alleged that Modi was coming to the state to see the destruction following the bifurcation in 2014. 

“Is he coming here to see whether people are still alive?” Naidu had earlier remarked on Modi’s visit.

Naidu said there was a conspiracy to destabilise the state government.

Nasheman News : A hoarding appearing in Bhopal ahead of Congress President Rahul Gandhi’s visit to the city is catching people’s attention as it is depicts Gandhi as “Ram” and Prime Minister Narendra Modi as “Ravan”.

On a road heading towards Jamboori Maidan — the venue of Gandhi’s ‘Aabhar Rally’ (rally to express gratitude) — a hoarding put up on behalf of the Youth Congress and the National Students Union of India (NSUI) has become a topic of discussion in the city. 

The hoarding depicts Gandhi as lord “Ram”, who is seen targeting 10-headed “Ravan” Modi with bow and arrow. The hoarding also has the picture of NSUI leader Abhimanyu Tiwari. 

“This poster shows the commencement of ‘Ram Rajya’ after the end of Ravan’s regime,” Tiwari told media. “Policies of the incumbent Central government are very much similar to what would be practised in the ‘Ravan Rajya’,” he added. 

Besides this hoarding, many posters and hoardings describing Gandhi as the “future Prime Minister” and “Ram Bhakt” appeared in the city a day pror to his visit on Friday.

Nasheman News : Sixteen persons died early on Friday and seven others were battling for life after drinking spurious liquor at Balapur village of Haridwar district in Uttarakhand, police said.

Most of the victims died in a hospital, said Anil Raturi, Director General of Police (DGP).

The victims had taken liquor at a function in the village last night following which most of the people started vomiting. 

While 11 victims belong to Jharbera block, where Balapur village is loacted, and five others belong to nearby Saharanpur district of Uttar Pradesh.

The police have launched a manhunt to nab the culprits. 

Taking serious view of the tragedy, the state government has launched a drive in the area against spurious liquor.

Nasheman News : A Marathi-origin ‘mulgi’ (girl) has been re-appointed as an Advisor in the Sweden Prime Minister’s Office in-charge of the crucial departments of Finance, Housing and Financial Markets, her family members said here on Wednesday.

Nila A. Vikhe-Patil, 32, will be working with the new Swedish Prime Minister, K. Stefan Lofven of the Social Democrat and Green Party coalition government that assumed office on January 18. She is the granddaughter of late Union minister Balasaheb Vikhe-Patil, who served under Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee. 

Her father, Dr Ashok Vikhe-Patil said that housing and finance are crucial portfolios and she would be in-charge of the country’s central budget and taxes. 

A member of the Green Party, Nila is also an elected member of the Stockholm Municipal Corporation’s City Council. 

“This is her re-appointment to the post. In the previous government, Nila has handled departments like small and medium industries, social development, gender policy and the central budget for three years,” her proud father told media on Nila’s unique distinction. 

Born in Sweden, Nila was educated mostly in Europe, and holds a management degree from Gothenburg School of Business, and studied economics and law and also acquired a MBA from Madrid’s University de Complutense, he said. 

Joining active politics from a young age, she has been associated with Swedish Young Greens, Green Party Gothenburg, Green Students of Sweden and on top executive positions of the Green Party, now part of the country’s ruling coalition, Vikhe-Patil added. 

However, Nila has not severed links with the country of her origin and comes visiting often, the last trip being in June 2018. 

The niece of Maharashtra’s Leader of Opposition Radhakrishna Vikhe-Patil, Nila’s great-grandfather made history by setting up Asia’s first cooperative sugar factory in Ahmednagar. 

[Nasheman news] Srinagar Fresh snowfall in the Kashmir Valley and rains in plains of Jammu on Thursday adversely affected life across the state with people forced to stay indoors without electricity at many places, road links snapped and flight operation disrupted.

Most people in Srinagar city and other places preferred to remain indoors as snow and water logging made many roads inaccessible. 

Fresh snowfall started early in the day in the city here as it recorded 0.5 degrees Celsius. Heavy spells were reported from the hills. Pahalgam and Gulmarg recorded minus 0.6 and minus 4 degrees, respectively.

The strategic Jammu-Srinagar highway remained closed for a second consecutive day due to the fresh snowfall in Bannihal sector and landslides in Ramsoo-Ramban. 

The one-way traffic from Srinagar to Jammu that was allowed on Wednesday, was halted. 

Prices of essentials like vegetables, mutton and poultry products, have skyrocketed in the landlocked Kashmir Valley due to severing of road links.

Flight operations, too, were suspended at the Srinagar airport due to poor visibility amid heavy snowfall. “All flights to and from Srinagar were cancelled on Wednesday. 

“No flight could land or take off from the airport today morning,” an official at the Srinagar International Airport said.

Flight operations will start only after visibility improves, he said, adding that snow clearance on the runway was hampered by the continued snowfall.

Electric supply was interrupted in many parts of the valley, especially north Kashmir areas with the Power Department informing that efforts were on to restore snapped lines.

“Our supply is normal in Srinagar city. There have been problems in Bandipora, Ganderbal and other reas due to hiccups in 33 KV transmission lines, but the problem is being addressed. 

“The staff has been at it even in the midst of heavy snowing this time,” Qazi Hashmat, Chief Engineer, maintenance and rural electrification Kashmir told IANS.

He said at present the department is supplying 850 megawatts to consumers against the requirement of 1,200 MW in the valley.

The Met said a western disturbance active over Jammu and Kashmir is likely to weaken after 24 hours on Friday.

“As the western disturbance persists, widespread snowfall and rain is expected today though there should be signs of improvement later in the evening,”

“Significant improvement is forecast from tomorrow onwards,” a Met official said.

In the Ladakh region, Leh recorded minus 3.2, Kargil minus 16.4 and Drass minus 5.8 degrees Celsius

Jammu was at 9.3, Katra 7, Batote minus 1.6, Bannihal 0.2 and Bhaderwah was at minus 0.4 degrees Celsius.

[Nasheman news] New Delhi it  was a cloudy Thursday morning here as light to moderate rains lashed parts of the National Capital Region (NCR), while the weather office has predicted more showers throughout the day.

The showers however, had no effect on the mercury with the minimum temperature recorded six notches above the season’s average at 15 degrees Celsius.

With humidity recorded at 89 per cent, the air quality was ‘very poor’ in the city.

According to the System of Air Quality and Weather Forecasting And Research (SAFAR), the overall quality index (AQI) of the national capital region was recorded at 265.

“The sky will remain generally cloudy throughout the day with light to moderate rain or thunderstorm and hail likely in the later parts of the day as well,” the India Meteorological Department (IMD) said.

At least 16 Delhi-bound trains were delayed by two to six hours due to fog and low visibility. 

In the past 24 hours, the city witnessed about 1 mm of rain.

On Wednesday, the maximum temperature was recorded at 25.1 degrees Celsius, two notches above the season’s average while the minimum was 12 degrees Celsius, three notches above the season’s average.