Amid the ongoing fracas over the viral video doing rounds on the web for alleged Pakistan zindabad slogans in a PFI protest in Pune, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) Pune president Jagdish Mulik will meet the city’s police commissioner on Sunday.
The BJP leader will meet Pune Police Commissioner Amitabh Gupta to file a complaint against anti-social elements who raised pro-Pakistan slogans during the PFI protest.
Earlier the Maharashtra BJP president Chandrashekhar Bawankule on Saturday said that he will speak to Chief Minister Eknath Shinde and Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis to ban the Popular Front of India (PFI), which is involved in anti-national work in the state and country.
His remarks came after a video surfaced on social media, which shows that a “Pakistan Zindabad” slogan was allegedly raised during a protest organised by the PFI in Pune. The BJP chief further said that those who raised the “Pakistan Zindabad” slogans should be arrested under cases of sedition.
“I will speak with the Chief Minister and Deputy Chief Minister to ban PFI, which is involved in anti-national work in the state and country. I will demand from the Chief Minister and Deputy Chief Minister that wherever they are in Maharashtra, find them and arrest them by filing a case of sedition against them,” Bawankule.
With a video showing that ‘Pakistan Zindabad’ slogans were allegedly raised during a PFI protest outside the District Collector’s office here on Friday against the crackdown by NIA-led multi-agencies, Pune Police have said they will probe and verify the videos and action will be taken accordingly.
We have received some videos, we will investigate and verify them completely and take action accordingly,” said Sagar Patil, DCP Zone II, Pune. ‘Pakistan Zindabad’ slogans were heard outside the District Collector’s office yesterday in Pune city where PFI cadres gathered against the recent ED-CBI-Police raids across 15 states.
Due to the high ambience noise in the original video feed some parts of the slogans in the video were faint. Information about slogans was further corroborated by reporters at the spot. Some protestors were detained by Pune police and a case was registered for unlawful assembly against protestors.
Police also arrested some protestors. Joint teams of the National Investigation Agency, Enforcement Directorate and police had conducted multiple raids across 15 states of the country against PFI on September 22 and arrested over 106 members.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday said that Chandigarh airport will now be named after Shaheed Bhagat Singh as a tribute to the great freedom fighter.
“As a tribute to the great freedom fighter, it has been decided that the Chandigarh airport will now be named after Shaheed Bhagat Singh,” said Modi in the 93rd episode of his monthly Mann ki Baat address.
PM Modi requested people to share their views on the campaign for naming cheetahs brought to India from Namibia last week. The cheetahs were released in Madhya Pradesh’s Kuno National Park.
“It will be great if the naming of cheetahs is in tune with our traditions. Also, suggest how humans should treat animals. Participate in this contest & maybe you could be the 1st one to witness the cheetahs,” PM Modi added.
He further said that people from many corners of the country expressed happiness over the return of cheetahs and 1.3 crore Indians were elated and filled with pride.
He added that a task force will monitor cheetahs, on the basis of which it will be decided when people can visit the cheetahs.
The cheetahs were declared extinct from India in 1952 but on September 17, eight cheetahs (5 females and 3 males) were brought from Africa’s Namibia as part of ‘Project Cheetah’ and the government’s efforts to revitalize and diversify the country’s wildlife and habitat.
PM Modi released cheetahs at two release points in Kuno National Park. ‘Project Cheetah’, under which the BJP government at the Centre reintroduced big cats in the country with the support of Namibia, is the government’s endeavor towards environment and wildlife conservation.
The eight cheetahs were brought in a cargo aircraft in Gwalior as part of an inter-continental cheetah translocation project.
Later, the Indian Air Force choppers carried the cheetahs to Kuno National Park from Gwalior Air Force Station. Radio collars have been installed in all the cheetahs to be monitored through satellite.
Apart from this, there is a dedicated monitoring team behind each cheetah who will be monitoring their location for 24 hours. Cheetahs have been brought under an MoU signed earlier this year.
Under the ambitious Project Cheetah of the Indian government, the reintroduction of wild species particularly cheetah was undertaken as per the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) guidelines.
India has a long history of wildlife conservation. One of the most successful wildlife conservation ventures ‘Project Tiger’, which was initiated way back in 1972, has not only contributed to the conservation of tigers but also to the entire ecosystem.
In continuation of this, the reintroduction of cheetahs is one step ahead and a milestone in the history of wildlife conservation in India.
Glue traps, which are commonly used to catch and kill rats and pests, are becoming a threat to wild animals in Mumbai and neighbouring districts, as they often get injured and die after coming in contact with these devices.
Citing that the use of such devices was in violation of the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act and the Wildlife Protection Act, a city-based wildlife organisation has written to the Maharashtra government seeking a ban on the production, sale and use of glue traps.
Glue traps, also known as rat bait stations, are boxes with a strip of adhesive used to catch rodents.
These traps are activated by placing food items, and once a rodent steps into the device, it gets stuck and dies a slow and painful death.
Resqink Association for Wildlife Welfare (RAWW) has written to the chief wildlife warden and principal chief conservator of forests (PCCF), wildlife of the state forest department, appealing for a ban on the production, sale and use of such traps.
The use of glue traps was not only an inhumane way of dealing with pests, but several protected species were also falling prey to this, RAWW founder and honorary wildlife warden Pawan Sharma stated in the letter.
The RAWW has rescued different species of wild animals, birds and reptiles such as squirrels, bats, kingfishers, owls, python and monitor lizards from such traps, he said.
Glue traps are a major cause for concern in urban areas, where they are regularly used by pest control agencies, at factories, companies, residential and commercial areas.
Talking to Agencies, Sharma said, “Several cases of animals dying or getting injured due to glue traps go unreported due to lack of awareness and in most instances, people don’t come forward to avoid legal hassles.” Mumbai, Thane and surrounding areas have a unique biodiversity that needs to be protected and conserved, he said.
The RAWW has been campaigning to spread awareness and was appealing to citizens and officials to understand this issue and address it by stopping the use of the device and discontinuing its production, he said.
“Glue traps are also a potential human hazard, as rodents that get trapped in it remain alive for hours and slowly die of trauma, pain and starvation, and eventually become carriers of dangerous diseases,” Sharma said.
Moreover, there is no clarity on the safe disposal or audit of these traps, which are discarded with regular garbage and they pollute the environment, he added. Sharma further claimed that the use of glue traps or rat bait stations is in violation of the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act, 1960, Wildlife Protection Act, 1972, Environment Protection Act, 1986, Indian Forest Act, 1927 and Indian Penal Code.
According to veterinarians Dr Rina Dev and Dr Priti Sathe of the RAWW, if a bird gets stuck in a glue trap, its feathers and wings get damaged and this can result in permanent loss of its ability to fly. Reptiles and mammals lose their skin when they get stuck and their internal organs are left exposed, which can lead to death if they are not provided timely medical attention, they said.
The National Investigation Agency (NIA) in its remand report stated that 10 accused members of the Popular Front of India (PFI) who were arrested this week had encouraged vulnerable youth to join terrorist organizations including Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) and Al-Qaeda.
The accused PFI leaders also conspired to establish Islamic rule in India by committing terrorist acts as a part of violent jihad, as per the report.
The remand report said, “PFI, its office bearers, members and affiliates in Kerala have conspired to indulge in unlawful activities, by creating enmity between members of different religions and groups, prejudicial to maintenance of harmony, with the intention to disrupt public tranquility and cause disaffection against India, propagating alternate justice delivery system justifying the use of criminal force causing alarm and fear amongst the general public, encourage vulnerable youths to join terrorist organization including Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS)/Daesh and Al-Qaeda and also conspired to establish Islamic rule in India by committing a terrorist act as a part of violent jihad.”
“PFI also spreads disaffection against India by wrongful interpretation of Government policies to the particular section of people to create hatred against the state and its machinery,” the report stated.
The seized documents also contain highly incriminating material related to targeting prominent leaders of particular communities.
The hitlist seized clearly showed that the PFI, which is working through its leaders, members and associates have gone far ahead in creating atrocities among the community.
More investigation is required in this aspect not only to obtain more evidence but also to prevent bloodbath in society.
The accused were actively involved in organized crimes and unlawful activities repeatedly, to terrorize other religious sections of the society besides creating fear in the minds of the general public based on the more prominent conspiracy hatched among themselves and others.
The initial scrutiny of the materials collected and the investigation conducted also pointed out the incriminating roles played by the accused in this case.
Indian all-rounder Deepti Sharma’s act of ‘mankading’ England’s Charlotte Dean at the non-striker’s end has generated a lot of polarizing reactions on social media, leaving the cricketing fraternity divided.
Sometimes, the batter at the non-striker’s end leaves his popping crease while the bowler is in his/her final delivery stride. If a bowler sees this, he/she can legally attempt to run out that batter as per the laws of the sport.
This was first done by Indian cricket legend Vinoo Mankad during 1947-48 during India’s tour of Australia by running out Australia’s Bill Brown at non-striker’s end, which earned it the name ‘Mankading’.
Though many cricketers argue that it is against the spirit of the game, it is totally legal as per the laws of the sport. Indian cricketers were extremely quick in coming to defence of Deepti.
Ravichandran Ashwin, who had run out Rajasthan Royals’ Jos Buttler during IPL 2019 in a similar manner while playing for Punjab Kings, quipped on him trending after Deepti’s act, saying that “tonight is about another bowling hero Deepti Sharma” “Why the hell are you trending Ashwin? Tonight is about another bowling hero @Deepti_Sharma06,” tweeted Ashwin.
Former Indian opener Virender Sehwag also defended the all-rounder, posting a meme and sharing the Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) law as per which Mankading is completely legal. “Funny to see so many English guys being poor losers. #Runout” tweeted Sehwag.
Former Indian opener Wasim Jaffer also defended Deepti, saying that the ball comes into play when the bowler starts his run up and as a non-striker one must have his eye on the ball.
“It’s actually quite simple. Ball comes into play when bowler activates run up. From that moment on as a batter or non-striker you have to keep your eyes on the ball, if you are a bit careless, opposition will get you out. And you can get out at either ends,” tweeted Jaffer.
Deepti found support from international players from other countries as well. South African bowler Tabraiz Shamsi seemed to voice out his support for Deepti, saying that batters can also learn to stay behind the line just like bowlers are forced to stay behind the line while bowling.
“I’m on no one’s side here but my opinion is that if bowlers are forced to stay behind the line while bowling due to the laws in place…. batters can learn to stay behind the line too while backing up due to the laws in place Seems fair to me if we all just follow the laws,” tweeted Shamsi.
Former English spinner also said that though it will be questioned, but mankading is under the laws of the sport. “It would be questioned for a long time but it’s in the law of the games. You can be run out by #mankading. Bear in mind it’s in the laws of the game. #ENGvsIND,” tweeted Panesar.
England opener Alex Hales, who recently returned to international cricket also replied to a tweet by English wicketkeeper-batter Sam Billings, seemingly supporting Deepti, “It shouldn’t be difficult for the non-striker to stay in their crease till the ball has left the hand…” But on the other side, Deepti also has received some criticism for her act, notably from England players. “As Nasser Hussain said on commentary. “No.”, tweeted Stuart Broad. He would later go on to tweet that he would not like to win a match like that. “I find the debate of the Mankad really interesting. So many views from either side. I personally wouldn’t like to win a match like that, also, very happy for others to feel differently,” he tweeted.
English wicketkeeper-batter Sam Billings also had a lengthy conversation thread on Twitter where he voiced out his displeasure against Deepti’s act. “There’s surely not a person who has played the game that thinks this is acceptable? Just not cricket…,” said Billings.
James Anderson, England’s ageless spin legend also replied to Billings that Deepti had no intentions of bowling the ball. “Spot on. No intention of bowling the ball,” replied Anderson.
As per Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) Laws of Cricket, “If the non-striker is out of his/her ground at any time from the moment the ball comes into play until the instant when the bowler would normally have been expected to release the ball, the non-striker is liable to be Run out. In these circumstances, the non-striker will be out Run out if he/she is out of his/her ground when his/her wicket is put down by the bowler throwing the ball at the stumps or by the bowler’s hand holding the ball, whether or not the ball is subsequently delivered.”
Also, as per updated playing conditions of the International Cricket Council (ICC), which will come into effect from October 1, 2022, this method of running out will be moved on from the ‘Unfair Play’ section to ‘Run Out’ section following the laws.
Coming to the match, India was bundled out for 169 after being put to bat first by England.
Half-centuries from Smriti Mandhana (50) and Deepti Sharma (68) helped Women in Blue avoid humiliation. Pacer Kate Cross (4/26) was England’s leading bowler. Freya Kemp (2/24) and Sophie Ecclestone (2/27) also did great for England. Chasing 170, a brilliant spell from Renuka Singh (4/29) had reduced England to 65/7.
Knocks from captain Amy Jones (28) and Charlotte Dean (47) took England close to a victory, but a Deepti Sharma ran out Dean, who was at the non-striker’s end to seal a 16-run win for India.
Jhulan (2/30) and Rajeshwari Gayakwad (2/38) also starred in India’s win. With this victory, Team India has sealed the series 3-0. They have won their first series against England since 1999.
Naxalite footprint in Gadchiroli, one of the two Left Wing Extremism-affected districts in Maharashtra, is shrinking with a significant drop in their activities over the last five years, according to police officials.
Police also claimed the Gadchiroli district, which shares its boundaries with Chhattisgarh, has virtually seen no Naxalite recruitment in the last few years and their strength has gone down considerably.
Senior officials attribute the decline in Naxalite activities to a multitude of factors, including the elimination of top leadership in the district in encounters with the police, the arrest of cadres, the growing number of Naxalites putting down their weapons, and the effective implementation of rehabilitation programs.
“Naxalite activities and their presence have declined in the district in the last five-six years, considerably in the last two to three years. The number of Naxalites has fallen considerably due to various encounters, arrests, and surrenders,” Gadchiroli Superintendent of Police, Ankit Goyal, told Agencies.
Goyal said many Naxalite dalams are disbanded, especially in the North Gadchiroli region.
“The number of dalam members has fallen from 180 to 120,” he said, adding that police killed 54 Naxalites in the last two years while several others were arrested.
Only 10 to 12 dalams are operational now, including Korchi dalam, Saathgaon dalam, platoon 7, platoon 14 and Company 4. Among12 dalams, some are merged while others are disbanded. As per sources in Gadchiroli police, 137 Naxalites were killed in encounters with police from 2017 till August 31, 2022.
These numbers stood at 50 in 2018 and 49 in 2021. Similarly, 196 alleged Naxalites were arrested from 2017 till August 31 this year while 91 others surrendered before the police during the same period.
Police achieved a major success when top Naxalite leader, Milind Teltumbde, and 26 others, including many leaders from North Gadchiroli, were gunned down in an encounter with the police in the Mardintola forest on November 13, 2021.
Goyal said Naxalites are facing a serious leadership vacuum from middle to top level in the district, especially in the north Gadchiroli region. “In the last few years, senior Naxalites like Milind Teltumbde, Lokesh, Mahesh Gota Pawan alias Bhaskar Hichami were neutralised by the Gadchiroli police in north Gadchiroli,” he said.
Goyal said senior Naxalite cadres exist only in the south Gadchiroli region and they are identified as Girdhar, Prabhakar and Rupesh.
He said the Naxalite operations mainly remain centralised in Etapalli-Bhamragadh taluka. Though north Gadchiroli still sees such activities, they dropped significantly.
Goyal also said that Naxalites have suffered a huge setback as the number of recruits has almost dried up.
“The Naxalite recruitment has come down close to zero in Gadchioli. The recruits are mostly from neighbouring Chhattisgarh,” the police officer said.
He said the police and local administration achieved this success through various measures. The SP said the police and local administration reached out to the youth and came up with various job-oriented vocational courses and placements.
“As many as 5,814 youths were imparted vocational training in areas of hospitality, automobile (engineering), nursing, business development and others in the last two years from January 2021 to July 2022. They secured jobs in various sectors,” he said.
The Directorate General of Training under the Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship lists Gadchiroli and Gondia as LWE-affected districts in Maharashtra for skill development programs.
Goyal said that improving infrastructure and connectivity in the district is also a major factor in mainstreaming Naxalite-affected areas. “Multiple roads and bridges have been constructed under various schemes of the state and Central governments,” he added.
The International Association of Chiefs of Police (IACP) has also recognized the ‘Dadalora Khidki’ (Single window facilitation service) initiative of the Gadchiroli police which was aimed at reaching out to the people in remote areas with various welfare schemes and services.
This initiative was launched by Goyal in 2021 to deliver public services and benefits of welfare schemes of the government to senior citizens, divyangs, unemployed people and surrendered Naxalites.
Former Kerala minister and senior Congress leader Aryadan Muhammed passed away at the age of 87 years on Sunday. Muhammed was undergoing treatment at a private hospital in Kozhikode and died in the morning.
The former Kerala minister was an eight-time MLA, who represented the Nilambur constituency in the Malappuram district of Kerala. He entered politics as a member of the Congress party in 1952 and remained the part of Kerala Pradesh Congress Committee till 1958.
He was the Secretary of Congress Legislative Party during the 10th KLA.
Further, the former minister served as Chairman of the Public Accounts Committee of the Kerala Legislative Assembly from 1998 to 2001 tenure and served as the Chairman of PUC of KLA from 2001 to 2004.
He was a minister for Labour and Forest in the E.K. Nayanar Minister from 1980 to 1982 and served as the Minister for Labour and Tourism in the A.K. Antony Ministry during 9th KLA and Minister of Power in Oommen Chandy Ministry from 2004 to 2006.
Muhammed was elected to the Kerala Legislative Assembly in 1977, 1980, 1987, 1991, 1996, and 2001.
As many as 58 new cases of coronavirus have been detected in Maharashtra’s Thane district, taking its tally of infections to 7,44,785, a health official said on Sunday.
With the addition of the latest numbers on Saturday, the district, which is part of the Mumbai Metropolitan Region, currently has 462 active COVID-19 cases, he said.
The death toll stood in Thane remained unchanged at 11,962, the official said, adding that the recovery count has reached 7,33,056.
Maharashtra BJP president Chandrashekhar Bawankule on Saturday said that he will speak to Chief Minister Eknath Shinde and Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis to ban Popular Front of India (PFI), which is involved in anti-national work in the state and country.
His remarks came after a video surfaced on social media, which shows that a “Pakistan Zindabad” slogan was allegedly raised during a protest organized by the PFI in Pune. The BJP chief further said that those who raised the “Pakistan Zindabad” slogans should be arrested under cases of sedition.
“I will speak with the Chief Minister and Deputy Chief Minister to ban PFI, which is involved in anti-national work in the state and country. I will demand from the Chief Minister and Deputy Chief Minister that wherever they are in Maharashtra, find them and arrest them by filing a case of sedition against them,” Bawankule.
With a video showing that ‘Pakistan Zindabad’ slogans were allegedly raised during a PFI protest outside the District Collector’s office here on Friday against the crackdown by NIA-led multi-agencies, Pune Police have said they will probe and verify the videos and action will be taken accordingly.
“We have received some videos, we will investigate and verify them completely and take action accordingly,” said Sagar Patil, DCP Zone II, Pune.
‘Pakistan Zindabad’ slogans were heard outside the District Collector’s office yesterday in Pune city where PFI cadres gathered against the recent ED-CBI-Police raids across 15 states. Due to the high ambience noise in the original video feed some parts of the slogans in the video were faint.
Information about slogans was further corroborated by reporters at the spot. Some protestors were detained by Pune police and a case was registered for unlawful assembly against protestors. Police also arrested some protestors.
Joint teams of the National Investigation Agency, Enforcement Directorate and police had conducted multiple raids across 15 states of the country against PFI on September 22 and arrested over 106 members.
Reacting to the sloganeering incident, Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, who is also the state Home Minister said stringent action will be taken. “We will take stringent action against any person raising Pakistan Zindabad slogans in Maharashtra”.
Bharatiya Janata Party MLA Nitesh Rane took to Twitter and warned those raising such slogans. He also sought a ban on PFI.
The largest-ever crackdown that was conducted against the Popular Front of India (PFI) members spread across 15 states was code-named “Operation Octopus”, sources said on Saturday.
The searches were conducted in connection with five cases registered by the NIA following “continued inputs and evidence” that the PFI leaders and cadres were involved in the funding of terrorism and terrorist activities, organizing training camps for providing armed training and radicalizing people to join banned organizations.
A large number of criminal cases have been registered in different states over the last few years against the PFI and its leaders and members for their involvement in many violent acts.
Criminal violent acts “carried out” by PFI include chopping off the hand of a college professor, cold-blooded killings of persons associated with organizations espousing other faiths, collection of explosives to target prominent people and places, support to Islamic State and destruction of public property.
They have had a demonstrative effect of striking terror in the minds of the citizens. The PFI had on Friday called for a 12-hour shutdown in Kerala, which turned violent in parts of the state. Stone-pelting was witnessed at various places, including at the RSS office at Mattannur in Kannur.
Two police officials were also injured in the incident in Kollam. The Kerala High Court initiated a suo motu case against PFI leaders who called for a strike in the state against the arrest of its members by the NIA.
As per a Kerala HC order on January 7, 2019, nobody can call for a bandh in the state without prior notice of seven days. Taking cognizance of the matter, the court directed the police to ensure that “adequate measures are put in place to prevent any damage/destruction to public/private property of Government/citizens who do not support the call for hartal”.
“Adequate police protection shall also be granted to all public utility services that apprehend violence, at the hands of those supporting the illegal hartal,” the court added.
The Indian women’s team was all out for a paltry 169 against England in the third and final ODI here on Saturday.
Sent in to bat, India kept losing wickets at regular intervals to be bundled out in 45.4 overs at Lord’s in veteran seamer Jhulan Goswami’s farewell game.
All-rounder Deepti Sharma top-scored for the visitors with an unbeaten 68 off 106 balls, while opener Smriti Mandhana was the second highest scorer, making exactly 50 runs in 79 deliveries.
Barring these two, none of the Indian batters could make any substantial contribution in the final game of the series, which the tourists have already claimed with wins in the first two matches.
Among England bowlers, medium pacer Kate Cross returned with excellent figures of 4/26, while there were two wickets apiece for Freya Kemp and Sophie Ecclestone.
Brief scores: India: 169 all out in 45.4 overs (Deepti Sharma 68, Smriti Mandhana 50; Kate Cross 4/26).
