Nasheman News :Amid escalating tension between New Delhi and Islamabad, Union Minister Arun Jaitley on Wednesday said if US can do an Abbottabad finishing off Al Qaeda chief Osama bin Laden in Pakistan’s own backyard, then so can India, drawing parallel with IAF’s Tuesday bombing of a Jaish-e-Mohammad (JeM) base in Balakot.

The Finance Minister was referring to the US Navy SEALs’ operation in 2011 when the Americans neutralised the Al Qaeda founder in his Abbottabad home, where he was hiding for over a decade after pulling off the horrific 9/11 World Trade Center attack.

Jaitley said India too can do an US by bringing down its most wanted JeM chief Masood Azhar.

“I remember when the Navy SEALs of US took Osama bin Laden from Abbottabad… can’t we do the same? 

“This used to be just an imagination, a desire, a frustration, a disappointment. But today this is possible,” he said at an event here. 

“A week is too long a time in politics. The way the nation has rallied behind us in the last one week, it seems like a week slipped by too quick,” he said referring to the February 14 Pulwama terror attack by the JeM in which 40 CRPF troopers were killed. 

India in retaliation bombed the JeM’s biggest camp in Pakistan’s Balakot.

On Tuesday, at around 3.30 a.m., the Indian Air Force (IAF) jets attacked the JeM camp housing hundreds of its operatives, in what Foreign Secretary Vijay Gokhale said was a “non-military pre-emptive action” on a terror facility.

A large number of jihadis were killed in the camp located on a hill-top away from civilian areas, Gokhale said, claiming that the dead included Yusuf Azhar, brother-in-law of Masood Azhar.

India has said it acted on the intelligence inputs that JeM was planning another suicide bombing.

Nasheman News :Karnataka Chief Minister H.D. Kumaraswamy on Wednesday conducted an aerial survey of the Bandipur National Park after the raging forest fire there was brought under control on Tuesday.

“The Chief Minister did an aerial survey of the forest to assess the damage,” said a statement from the Chief Minister’s Office.

The blaze in the Bandipur National Park in Chamarajanagar district, about 220 km from here, was brought under control by the coordinated efforts of the Indian Air Force, the district fire brigade, forest guards and locals after nearly five days on Tuesday.

Two Indian Air Force (IAF) helicopters sprayed 19,000 litres of water in seven sorties across the affected area on Tuesday.

Though the cause of the wildfire was yet to be ascertained and under investigation, officials said it was confined to about 30 sq km in the core area and 20 sq km in the periphery of the 1,320 sq km national park that straddles across the inter-state border into Tamil Nadu.

Eyewitnesses said the blaze destroyed hundreds of trees and bushes, though no wildlife casualties have been reported.

Nasheman News : Saris with pictures of Prime Minister Narendra Modi are turning into a big hit among women, particularly Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) workers, in Jharkhand.

“Modi is a real hero and keeps his words,” said Charul Sharma, a local resident. “I have ordered online one sari carrying Modi’s photo,” she told IANS.

Echoing her Kalpana Singh said: “I have also ordered Modi sari online. It is rarely available at stores due to huge demand.”

These saris, costing Rs 1,500 a piece, was launched in Gujarat this month. It’s online sale is rising by day.

Several shopowners have placed orders seeing the demand ahead of elections. “We have ordered 100 saris. It will reach us in 10-15 days,” said Neeru Singh, a BJP leader.

As the Lok Sabha election is round the corner, we are expecting brisk sale,” Kailash Sahu, a shopkeeper, told media.

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.