UPA govt should have acted after 26/11 attacks, says Manish Tewari in his new book

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November 23, 2021

In his latest book, Congress leader Manish Tewari has criticized the inactions of the then UPA government after the 26/11 attacks in Mumbai and said that India should have “actioned a kinetic response” to “a state that has no compunctions in brutally slaughtering hundreds of innocent people”.

“Our actions should have spoken louder than our words”, Tewari says as per the excerpts of the book ’10 Flash Points; 20 Years – National Security Situations that Impacted India’ released by the Congress leader himself on his Twitter account.

“For a state that has no compunctions in brutally slaughtering hundreds of innocent people, restraint is not a sign of strength; it is perceived as a symbol of weakness. There comes a time when actions must speak louder than words. 26/11 was one such time when it just should have been done,” excerpts from the book read. “It, therefore, is my considered opinion that India should have actioned a kinetic response in the days following India’s 9/11,” it added.

Mumbai had come to a standstill on November 26, 2008, when 10 Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) terrorists who entered the city via sea route from Pakistan carried out a series of coordinated shootings and bombings that injured over 300 and claimed the lives of 166 people in India’s financial capital. The attacks took place at Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus (CST) railway station, Cama Hospital, Nariman House business and residential complex, Leopold Cafe, Taj Hotel and Tower and the Oberoi-Trident Hotel.

ICC confident all teams will travel to Pakistan for 2025 Champions Trophy

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Afternoon Voice

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November 23, 2021

India’s participation in the 2025 Champions Trophy in Pakistan is a “challenging” issue for the International Cricket Council but the world governing body said it is confident all teams will travel to the country for the tournament.

International sides have largely steered clear of Pakistan since an attack by Islamist militants on the Sri Lanka team bus in Lahore in 2009 that killed six policemen and two civilians.

The 50-over tournament will be the first ICC event hosted by Pakistan since it shared the 1996 World Cup with India and Sri Lanka and last week’s announcement came as a big boost after England and New Zealand pulled out of tours there in September. Asked if the ICC was confident teams would travel to Pakistan, chairman Greg Barclay told reporters on Monday: “From what we can see, absolutely.

“We wouldn’t have awarded the event if we didn’t think Pakistan was capable of hosting it. “I’m sure, as with all countries, they will put together appropriate security plans to deliver the event. We’re comfortable and confident it will go ahead.”

There were fears the decisions by New Zealand and England would again dampen the prospects of international cricket in Pakistan but Australia confirmed this month they would tour next year for the first time since 1998. The prospects of India travelling to Pakistan for the first time since the 2008 Asia Cup remain unclear, however.

Anurag Thakur, India’s sports minister and former cricket board chief, told reporters last week security was the main concern and that the government would make the call when the time comes. India hosted Pakistan in a bilateral series in 2013 but the bitter neighbours rarely meet outside global tournaments these days. Pakistan played in India at the 2011 World Cup as well as the T20 World Cup in 2016.

“We know it’s a challenging issue,” Barclay said. “From my point of view, I can’t control geopolitical forces. “I just hope cricket can be a force to help improve relations between countries. One of the great things’ sports can do is to help bring nations together. If we can do something in a small way to contribute to that, that’s fantastic.”

International Emmys: No win for Nawazuddin Siddiqui, Vir Das and ‘Aarya’

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Afternoon Voice

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November 23, 2021

Actors Nawazuddin Siddiqui, Vir Das and the series “Aarya”, led by Sushmita Sen, could not register a win at the 2021 International Emmy Awards but the comedian said it was “an honour” to represent the country at the awards ceremony.

Siddiqui, who was nominated for the best performance by an actor category for his Netflix movie “Serious Men”, lost out to Scottish actor David Tennant.

While Das’ Netflix comedy special “Vir Das: For India” lost out to “Call My Agent” Season 4 from France in the comedy category.

The comedian, who has been in news back home for his “I Come From Two Indias” monologue, said he loved the French drama.

“I was nominated for best comedy at the International Emmy Awards, for jokes. Call My Agent, a gigantic beautiful show I love won. But I got this medal and ate this fantastic salad with a very interesting crispy cheese topping. It was an honour to represent my country. Thanks so much to the @iemmys For India. It’s always for India. #VirDasForIndia,” he wrote on Instagram.

Das has received praise as well as police complaints about his monologue in Washington recently.

Sen’s “Aarya”, a Disney+ Hotstar series directed by Ram Madhvani, was nominated in the best drama series category alongside Chile’s “El Presidente”, Israel’s “Tehran” and the second season of “There She Goes” from the UK.

Israel’s “Tehran” topped the drama series category, ending India’s run at the yearly awards.

Madhvani on Monday had hoped to bring the trophy home. “Here we are after taking a 16-hour flight, we are hoping when we go back, we will win but even if we don’t it is a big big thing to be nominated,” he said on Monday.

Last year, director Richie Mehta’s “Delhi Crime”, fronted by Shefali Shah, won the best drama series honours at the International Emmys. Both Das and Siddiqui attended the ceremony in New York along with Madhvani. Sen, who recently underwent surgery, gave the awards night a miss. Organised by the International Academy of Television Arts & Sciences, the International Emmys aim at “recognizing excellence in television produced outside of the U.S. for over 48 years”.

This year’s best performance by an actress trophy went to Hayley Squires for the series “Adult Material”, while Thailand’s “Hope Frozen: A Quest To Live Twice” won the documentary award. 21st Annual Latin GRAMMY Awards were given the non-English language U.S. primetime program and UK’s “The Masked Singer” was awarded in the non-scripted entertainment category. New Zealand’s “INSiDE” became the best short-form series, while the best telenovela was given to China’s “The Song Of Glory”. “Atlantic Crossing”, a Norway set historical drama, won in the TV movie / mini-series category. France’s “Kubrick By Kubrick” was recognised in the Arts Programming category. The nominations for the year 2021 were announced in September. The ceremony was organised adhering to COVID-19 safety guidelines.

Road accidents have earned India an uncertain feature

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Vaidehi Taman

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November 22, 2021

accident, hit-and-run, deaths, accidental cars, accident cars, road accidents — Image: Shutterstock.com

Accidents are the most unwanted thing to happen to anyone on the road, though they happen quite often. The report showed that the city and the state contributed 5% of the nationwide hit-and-run incidents at 163 and 2,470 cases, respectively. (The city hit-and-run figure was compared with the ‘national urban hit-and-run figure’, or the total number of such cases in 19 cities.)

Among states, Uttar Pradesh topped with 54,373 cases of death due to negligence that resulted in 60,936 fatalities from 2017 to 2019. Cases registered under Section 304(A) (causing death due to negligence) of the IPC during the period numbered 37,517 in Tamil Nadu, with these incidents resulting in 41,193 deaths. Madhya Pradesh at 32,305 cases and 35,787 deaths, Karnataka was fifth at 30,024 cases and 37,949 deaths. Among cities, Delhi topped with 4,075 cases and 4,493 deaths from 2017 to 2019, followed by Chennai at 3,808 and 3,950, Bengaluru at 2,055 and 2,142, Jaipur at 1,887 and 1,955, and the city at fifth place at 1,232 cases and 1,345 deaths.

According to the report by the ministry of road transport and Highway, close to 5 lakh road accidents occurred across the country annually, killing at least 1.4 lakh people. On average 50,000 of the accidents were hit-and-run cases, killing at least 18,000 people annually. In 79% of all accidents, the driver was found to be at fault, though that did not mean the person behind the wheel was punished for the crime. Conviction rates for urban road accidents typically hover between 5% and 10%. In hit-and-run cases, lack of eyewitnesses and surveillance typically leads to a “blind” close of the case if the victim does not note the licence plate number of the vehicle.

There are multiple reasons for road accidents, but most of the people are on call while driving thus they drive recklessly and accidents happen as most of the Indians now have mobile phones, this is the most potential reason. Distractions could be outside or inside the vehicle. The major distraction nowadays is talking on mobile phones while driving.

Indian drivers are quick to learn to drive but they don’t learn traffic rules and the purpose of such rules. Hence, they violate rules to put themselves and others on the road at stake. Indians buy a car without knowing the proper technique of driving in city traffic and highway traffic and do so without having basic emergency utility skills, most motor training schools don’t know them.

A tendency to violate traffic signals has been developed by Indians to save time while going to school, office or college because these institutions tend to be extremely humiliating while punishing latecomers. Malpractices such as over-speeding, triple riding, underage driving, etc are reducing the safety of road users. Most of us don’t know the latest amendments to the MVA (Motor Vehicles Act) unless declared via news.

Walking on the road with the phone in the ear, driving a car with the phone in hand, necessarily reading a text or browsing can be dangerous. There are innumerable reasons for mishaps on Indian roads. From alcohol to drugs, lack of effective law enforcement to pathetic road conditions and most importantly the lack of driving sense. I would rather not go into the details of the causes because bringing effectiveness is the accountability of the government. With so much going around in the country, the current situation most likely won’t improve in the distant future.

The legislators (Minister & other administrative officers, who make the rules) and the executors (the Police) themselves do not respect the law & rules of what to say of the general public. Police are supposed to execute the rules but, it may be a lack of workforce or lack of intention, they also fail to execute. Mostly police use the rules to mint money either officially by Chalan or in person.

The life of roads is not good due to the substandard raw materials and potholes accidents caused. The increasing traffic on roads and conditions of roads are not proportionate to each other. Bad roads are definitely an issue because it requires drivers to focus on the surface of the road instead of looking at traffic flow. A lot of drivers are either unskilled or scared to drive fast because of this, and that frustrates others who don’t mind going faster. The latter start to cut lanes and accelerate/brake abruptly, which only makes driving harder for other motorists.

The driving tests are a joke. When you have millions of untrained motorists on bumpy roads, it’s no surprise that there are crashes every once in a while. Consumption of alcohol to celebrate any occasion is common. But when mixed with driving it turns celebration into a misfortune. Alcohol reduces concentration. It decreases the reaction time of the human body. Limbs take more to react to the instructions of the brain. It hampers vision due to dizziness. Alcohol dampens fear and incites humans to take risks. All these factors while driving cause accidents and many times it proves fatal. For every increase of 0.05 per cent of blood alcohol concentration, the risk of accident doubles. Apart from alcohol, many drugs, medicines also affect the skills and concentration necessary for driving.

Hit-and-run cases on the rise, Mumbai reports nearly 1 in 5 road deaths by hit-and-run

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Afternoon Voice

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November 22, 2021

According to the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) deaths in hit-and-run cases are on the rise. In Mumbai, of 1,681 road accident deaths between 2017 and 2020, over 17.5% were hit-and-run deaths. This proportion for Maharashtra during the same period was much higher, at over 23%. Experts say that the majority of road accident victims, especially of hit-and-run cases, die because of not getting immediate medical assistance. They could be saved during the golden hour if only accused drivers would not speed away.

Additional director general of police (traffic) BK Upadhyay said, “In such hit and run cases pedestrians and two-wheeler riders are mainly the victims comprise over 30% of road accident losses in the country. Barely five per cent of hit and run cases remain unsolved. In such cases, the accused are booked under the Motor Vehicles Act for not providing medical assistance to the victim, apart from IPC sections where the accused are booked for rash and negligent driving and culpable homicide not amounting to murder.”

IPS officer-turned-lawyer YP Singh said that in cases related to motor accident deaths, there is a complete lack of clarity in the legal definition of what constitutes “accidental death” and what constitutes “culpable homicide not amounting to murder”. While accidental death is a bailable offence, culpable homicide is not. “In many cases, this leads to arm-twisting by the police”.

Nearly 1 in 5 road deaths in Mumbai are caused by a hit-and-run. Every day an average of nearly 33 cases of negligence on the road leading to death were registered in the state from 2017 to 2019. The city had one such case making up its daily average, according to a National Crime Records Bureau report. The report showed that the city and the state contributed 5% of the nationwide hit-and-run incidents at 163 and 2,470 cases, respectively. (The city hit-and-run figure was compared with the ‘national urban hit-and-run figure’, or the total number of such cases in 19 cities.) Experts said that a study by the ministry of road transport showed the conviction rate was poor and was hampered by a lack of eyewitnesses in most road accidents.

Bad roads and rash drivers were the common reasons for accidents. Among states, Uttar Pradesh topped with 54,373 cases of death due to negligence that resulted in 60,936 fatalities from 2017, Mumbai is 5th, the state is 3rd in cases of negligence causing road death. Cases registered under Section 304(A) (causing death due to negligence) of the IPC during the period numbered 37,517 in Tamil Nadu, with these incidents resulting in 41,193 deaths.

Next came the state at 35,992 cases and 38,590 deaths, followed by Madhya Pradesh at 32,305 cases and 35,787 deaths. Karnataka was fifth at 30,024 cases and 37,949 deaths. Among cities, Delhi topped with 4,075 cases and 4,493 deaths from 2017 to 2019, followed by Chennai at 3,808 and 3,950, Bengaluru at 2,055 and 2,142, Jaipur at 1,887 and 1,955, and the city at fifth place at 1,232 cases and 1,345 deaths. According to the report by the ministry of road transport and Highway, close to 5 lakh road accidents occurred across the country annually, killing at least 1.4 lakh people.

On average 50,000 of the accidents were hit-and-run cases, killing at least 18,000 people annually. In 79% of all accidents, the driver was found to be at fault, though that did not mean the person behind the wheel was punished for the crime. Conviction rates for urban road accidents typically hover between 5% and 10%. In hit-and-run cases, lack of eyewitnesses and surveillance typically leads to a “blind” close of the case if the victim does not note the licence plate number of the vehicle.

Nawab Malik’s tweets on Wankhede stem from malice but no blanket gag order: Bombay HC

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Afternoon Voice

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November 22, 2021

The Bombay High Court on Monday refused to impose a blanket injunction against Maharashtra cabinet minister Nawab Malik to restrain him from making any public statement or post tweets targeting NCB Zonal Director Sameer Wankhede.

Justice Madhav Jamdar, however, said prima facie (on the face of it), Malik’s tweets against Wankhede had actuated out of malice and personal animosity.

However, since Wankhede was a government officer and the allegations made against him by Malik pertained to activities related to the NCB Zonal Director’s public duties, the minister couldn’t be completely prohibited from making any statements against him, the judge said.

The minister, however, henceforth, must make statements against Wankhede or his family only after “reasonable verification of facts,” the HC said.

The HC’s judgement came on an interim prayer for such an injunction sought by Wankhede’s father Dnyandev.

Malik has been alleging that Sameer Wankhede, currently posted in Mumbai, was born a Muslim and had secured a central government job claiming to belong to a Scheduled Caste.

Wankhede’s father, Dnyandev had filed a defamation suit against Malik earlier this month in the HC, seeking among other things, that the minister is restrained from posting defamatory statements against him and his family on social media.

Dnyandev Wankhede has also sought damages worth Rs 1.25 crore.

Sameer Wankhede and his family have repeatedly denied all allegations made by the state minister.

Kejriwal promises to give Rs 1K monthly to every woman in Punjab if AAP comes to power in state

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Afternoon Voice

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November 22, 2021

Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) National Convener and Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Monday announced that the party will give Rs 1,000 per month to every woman in Punjab above 18 years of age if it forms the government after upcoming assembly elections in the state.

Addressing a party programme in Moga city of Punjab on Monday, Kejriwal said, “If we form the government in Punjab in 2022, then we will give every woman of the state, who is above 18 years of age, Rs 1,000 per month. If a family has three female members, then each will get Rs 1,000.”

Kejriwal calls this announcement “world’s biggest women empowerment programme”. He further said that “one fake Kejriwal” is roaming in Punjab. “In Punjab, a fake Kejriwal is roaming. Whatever I promise here, he repeats the same. In the entire country, only one man, Kejriwal, can bring down your electricity bill to zero. So, beware of that fake Kejriwal,” he added.

In view of the 2022 assembly elections, Kejriwal began his two-day visit to Punjab to launch his Mission Punjab. While addressing media in Amritsar, Kejriwal said that he will visit Ludhiana where he will talk to auto drivers.

On Tuesday, Kejriwal will attend the party’s program after addressing a press conference in Amritsar. In the 2017 Punjab Assembly polls, Congress won an absolute majority in the state by winning 77 seats and ousted the SAD-BJP government after 10 years.

Aam Aadmi Party emerged as the second-largest party winning 20 seats in 117-member Punjab Legislative Assembly. The Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) could only manage to win 15 seats while the BJP secured three seats.

Air pollution: Delhi lifts ban on construction; call on school reopening on Nov 24

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Afternoon Voice

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November 22, 2021

The Delhi government has lifted the ban on construction and demolition activities in view of an improvement in the air quality and inconvenience caused to workers, Environment Minister Gopal Rai said on Monday. Rai also said the government will take a call on the reopening of schools, colleges, and other educational institutions and work-from-home for government staff during a review meeting on Wednesday.

“We will also discuss if CNG-operated trucks carrying non-essential items can be allowed to enter Delhi if the situation continues to improve,” he said.

The Delhi government on Sunday night extended the ban on the entry of trucks carrying non-essential items and work-from-home for its employees till November 26 to combat air pollution and minimize its health effects.

“For some time, the air quality index remained above the 600–mark. However, steps are taken to contain air pollution and change in the wind pattern have resulted in a gradual decline in air pollution levels,” he said.

“In view of the improvement in the air quality and inconvenience caused to workers, we have decided to lift the ban on construction and demolition activities. However, the government will continue to monitor the implementation of dust control measures by all agencies,” Rai said at a press conference.

He said 585 monitoring teams have been working to ensure compliance with directions.

“If any agency is found violating dust control norms, the government will stop work and impose a penalty without notice,” Rai warned.

The minister said the government has hired 1,000 private CNG-operated buses to augment public transport. These will have ”Prayavaran Bus Sewa” written on them and people can travel on them like DTC buses. Strong surface winds gusting up to 30 kilometers per hour barrelled through the capital on Monday, dispersing pollutants and improving the air quality. Delhi’s Air Quality Index (AQI) stood at 307 at 1 pm, down from 349 at 4 pm on Sunday.

Param Bir Singh claims ‘not absconding’, SC grants interim protection from arrest

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Afternoon Voice

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November 22, 2021

As the former Mumbai Police Commissioner Param Bir Singh told the Supreme Court on Monday that he is very much in the country and he is not absconding, the top court granted him interim protection from arrest and directed him to join the investigation. A Bench headed by Justice Sanjay Kishan Kaul asked Singh to join the investigation and issued notices to the Maharashtra government and CBI on Singh’s plea. The apex court now posted the case for hearing on December 6.

Singh’s counsel told the Bench that the former police chief is ready to appear before CBI within 48 hours and need some protection. At the outset, senior advocate Puneet Bali appearing for Singh told the Bench, “Instructions received. He is very much in the country. The discussion is the moment he touched Maharashtra there is a threat to his life.”

To this, the Bench said, “You (Singh) say I have a threat to life with Bombay Police. What hope for other people.” The apex court also expressed concern over the ongoing fight between former Home Minister Anil Deshmukh and Param Bir Singh saying the matter has become “curiouser and curiouser”.

“We find it very disturbing… Wonder what would happen to a common man. The matter has become curiouser and curiouser in the battle between the then Home Minister and the (former) Police Commissioner,” the Bench said. The apex court was hearing a petition of Singh filed against the September 16 judgment of the Bombay High Court which dismissed as not maintainable his pleas challenging the two enquiries orders issued by the State Home Ministry for allegedly violative service rules and the second over allegations of corruption.

During the hearing, advocate Bali argued that FIRs against Singh was filed by bookies, extortionists, against whom he had taken action. “They had allegations of corruptions, extortionist money taken from builders, these are the complainants against me,” he told the Bench. Six cases of corruption and extortion were filed against Singh after he wrote a letter to Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray levelling corruption and misconduct against the then Home Minister and senior NCP leader Anil Deshmukh, the lawyer said.

He added, “In March the DGP (Maharashtra police chief) asked me to withdraw my letter. He asked me to make peace with the Home Minister. I sent that communication to CBI and CBI registered a case against Deshmukh.” Singh, a 1988-batch IPS officer, was removed from the post of Mumbai Police Commissioner on March 17 and was made the General Commander of Maharashtra State Home Guard after he levelled allegations against Deshmukh.

On November 18, the Bench had asked Singh to disclose his whereabouts while making it clear that no protection can be granted to him against arrest until his location is known. “Where are you? Are you in the country? Outside the country,” Justice Kaul had asked from Singh’s counsel while inquiring about former police chief’s whereabouts.

Singh was recently declared as an absconder by a Mumbai Magistrate after his non-appearance in an extortion case. “No protection, no hearing till we have the answer to the question – where are you?,” the Bench told Singh’s counsel and had posted the case for hearing for today.

Wrist spinners are match-winners in shorter formats, says Adil Rashid

By

Afternoon Voice

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November 22, 2021

England bowler Adil Rashid feels wrist spinners can become match winners or can shift the momentum of the game in the shortest format. Adil Rashid said the most important thing for a leg spinner in the shortest format (T10) is to maintain the confidence with which he is bowling despite going for runs.

“It can be difficult you know because in this day and age you are playing on smaller grounds, flatter pitches and bigger bats, people are hitting the ball further so they can be a bit difficult,” said Adil on the sidelines of Abu Dhabi T10 League where he is playing for Delhi Bulls. “Especially you know if you get hit for a couple of games in a row for sixes and fours, it can play with your mind but the most important thing is like you said as a spinner, as a wrist spinner it has been maintaining that confidence knowing that you can change the game.

“You can become a match-winner, you are a match-winner, you can change the game in what 3 or 4 or 5 balls by getting a key wicket then another wicket, that’s the ability of a wrist spinner in general,” he added. The England spinner also admitted that bowling is a little tough in T10 format since the batter has the license to go after you right from the word go.

“Well, the challenges are people are trying to hit every ball for sixes and four in T10 cricket whereas in T20 batsmen takes a couple of balls to see and know the game,” said Adil. “But in T10 they are going to keep coming at you and can be a challenge if it’s a flat pitch and keep hitting it for fours and sixes and it can be quite tricky,” he added.

Delhi Bulls have won all their three games in the ongoing T10 League and Adil is 100 per cent sure that the team can go on to win the title this year. “100 per cent (on Delhi Bulls’ possibility of winning tournament). The coach Andy flower has good experience and captain Dwayne Bravo one of the best T20 players ever and we have got Eoin Morgan the best captain going around,” said Adil

“So, there is a bit of experience around and hopefully we go out there and enjoy ourselves and we can come on top,” he added.