AAP victory sees spike in biryani prices in Delhi

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February 12, 2020

A fallout of the dramatic victory of Aam Aadmi Party in the Delhi assembly elections on Tuesday was the spike in sales of biryani with some restaurateurs offering discounts on the same to cash in on the sudden surge in demand for the traditional rice-based delicacy.

For some days, Social media platforms were agog with posts of citizens announcing celebrations with biryani after the AAP win. This was in response to comments of some senior BJP leaders including Uttar Pradesh chief minister Yogi Adityanath that AAP was serving biryani to anti-Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) protesters at Shaheen Bagh in South Delhi.

“We have seen a higher uptake on our orders today which saw an increase in the the evening,” said Raymond Andrews, co-founder of Biryani Blues, a restaurant chain in the national capital region. “Biryani as a cuisine is celebratory by nature, be it a birthday, an anniversary or friends celebrating,” he added.

Many restaurants have come up with promotional offers on biryani. “We did a 1+1 (one-plus-one) on all biriyanis for delivery between 6 to 10:30 pm yesterday,” said Thomas Fenn, partner of Mahabelly, a South Indian restaurant at Saket.

Vishal Jindal, co-founder of biryani and kebab chain Biryani by Kilo (BBK) said the chain was running a 25 per cent off on the promotional exercise.“Despite being a Tuesday, we saw a pickup in sales,” he said. Many people in India refrain from consuming non-vegetarian food on Tuesday for religious reasons.

High profile sex racket busted in Andheri; 2 rescued, 1 held

By

Hema Singh

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February 12, 2020

On Tuesday, Crime branch unit 10 busted an online flesh trade racket in Andheri and arrested 37-year old person who uses to run the racket. Two women who were forced into flesh trade were rescued.

According to the report, the accused roped in needy women and used to target rich people and foreign nationals through a ‘massage services’ website. The gang had posted mobile phone numbers on ‘massage republican.com’ to accept calls from customers.

The arrested accused has been identified as Jatun Mahadeo Yadav, a resident of Mahakali Caves in Andheri East. Police said that they got a tip from the sources about a flesh trade being operated on a website name ‘MassageRepublican.com’. Acting on the tip, the police visited the website and found a number flashing. After contacting that number, a meeting was set up at Hotel Skyway Inn in Andheri (E), near Saki Naka.

Later, police sent a decoy customer to the hotel where the main accused had come along with two women aged 21 and 30. After verifying that an illegal operation was underway, police officials immediately raided the hotel and arrested the accused and rescued the two women.

Sunil Mane,Senior inspector of Crime branch unit 10 said, “During the interrogation, it was revealed that Jadhav, an auto rickshaw driver, had lured in women with desperate need of money and promised to give them a cut of 30 per cent for every stint while he took the rest. We recovered cash worth Rs 17,500 and two SIM cards from Yadav.”

Police have registered a complain at Saki Naka police station under Prevention of Immoral Trafficking Act.

Nightmare for Gargi College girls

By

Hema Singh

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February 11, 2020

A college fest turned out to be the worst nightmare at Delhi’s University’s all-girls Gargi College where a group of drunken men broke into the institute and allegedly groped, harassed and molested several women during the fest. The incident came to light days after complaints of mass molestation and abuse inside the campus went viral on social media.

“The DCW has issued notices to the Delhi Police and authorities of Gargi College. We are yet to receive any reply on the same. We will take appropriate action once we receive an answer,” said Satyvrat Nehra an official from DCW.

On Monday, the students of Gargi College protested against the administration and demanded a full and impartial inquiry into the alleged incident. Not only this, students also called for the resignation of the college Principal as well as of the head of the Student Union for the delay in action against the criminals.

The incident took place on February 6, when the students of were pumped to enjoy the music performance of popular musician Jubin Nautiyal. It was the last day of the three-day annual festival, Reverie 2020 and students from across colleges started queuing up from the afternoon to enjoy the show. However, the fest was hijacked by hordes of unidentified men who swarmed the venue and allegedly verbally as well as physically molested women students.

It was reported that several middle-aged men (not students of the college) entered the college campus around 6.30 pm. As per eyewitnesses, there was no checking of passes or ID cards at all. Even male students were required to carry a pass to enter the girls’ college. The crowd started to build by 4 pm. By 6.30 pm, the main gate was opened and all the men standing among the gathered crowd outside made their way into the venue unchecked. Also the students said, the group of men were drunk and were chanting “Jai Shree Ram” in the college campus and was reportedly wearing saffron. From the group a few of them even climbed on the table of an empty stall and started shouting “Jo larki mujhse pategi usey 50k ki makeup kit dunga (I will present a makeup kit worth Rs 50,000 to the girl who agrees to go out with me).”

Several students’ claimed that CRPF and Delhi Police personnel were deployed on the campus. However, they weren’t able to curb the mayhem and chaos, nor did the college authorities or union bodies try to intervene much.

A student said on the condition of anonymity, “There was a complete lapse of security. The students were groped, molested and even assaulted by the men who all appeared to be in their mid-30s. The college had claimed to set up security but, I don’t think there must have been such an incident in any college campus across the country.”

The students have demanded a fact-finding committee to instantly be instituted to investigate the incident and bring the perpetrators to book. They have also asked for written apology from the Principal as well as those responsible for handling the security on the day of the event. This was because when the students went to complaint about the incident to the authorities, they told the students to not attend the fest if they felt unsafe instead of helping them.

Students of Gargi College wait for this fest whole year however, this year it turned out to be a great disappointment as the administration was zero concerned about the safety. Students have decided to boycott classes until their demands will not fulfilled by the authorities.

After the all chaos the Delhi Commission of Women Swati Maliwal took suo moto cognizance of the complaints made by some of the students on social media.

A case has been registered at the Hauz Khas police station under IPC Sections 452 (house-trespass after preparation for hurt, assault or wrongful restraint), 354 (assault or criminal force to woman with intent to outrage her modesty), 509 (word, gesture or act intended to insult the modesty of a woman) and 34 (acts done by several persons in furtherance of common intention).

After the incident, the question has arisen that where our country is heading? As every hour in every corner women are assaulted, raped, molested or killed. Why the government is not taking any strict action against such crime? Why the conviction rate is so poor, that the accused is not thinking once before committing crime?

AAP foils BJP’s dream to rule Delhi

By

Suraj Chandran

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February 11, 2020

After thrashing the BJP, Arvind Kejriwal-led Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) romped home with a resounding victory in the Delhi Assembly Election. The party won 62 seats while the BJP won only 8 seats in the 70 member assembly while the Congress failed to open its account. Even though Delhi witnessed a three way contest between AAP, BJP and Congress, this time the actual battle was fought by the BJP and AAP. Exit polls had predicted another term for AAP. In the 70-chair Legislative Assembly, a political party or an alliance needs the support of at least 36 MLAs to form the government.

AAP MP Narain Dass Gupta said, “This win has to go to the people of Delhi so also to the work done by AAP. This win has turned a new leaf in politics which says that good work will only pay and not on false talk. In the coming years we will develop Delhi in a big way that will help us make Delhi a world class city.”

After emerging victorious AAP seems to now signal its national ambitions. Posters installed outside the party office are asking people to join AAP in nation building. While campaigning for Delhi assembly polls, Kejriwal had promised to offer free delivery of rations at home, offer patriotism curriculum to school students and spoken English classes. His party also coined the slogan ‘Five years have gone by well.’

It may be recalled that the BJP had failed to declare its chief ministerial candidate as AAP highlighted this aspect while campaigning for polls. BJP’s strategy of not declaring a chief ministerial candidate too seems to have backfired as a wrong message that was sent to voters that the party lacked the services of an able leader to lead the state. The party had promised wheat at Rs 2 per kg for the poor, cycle for girls from poor families who enter class IX, free electric scooter for college-going girls from poor families and Rs 51,000 for marriage of daughters of poor widows.

All these promises failed to attract voters as the party suffered another debacle in the polls. Here it may be recalled that BJP had last come to power in Delhi in 1990.

“Country to run by ‘Jan ki Baat’ not ‘Mann Ki Baat’” says CM Uddhav on AAP win in Delhi

By

Hema Singh

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February 11, 2020

Amid the excitement of the results of the Delhi election, Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray on Tuesday slammed the BJP on its defeat in the National capital and said that the country will be run by ‘Jan Ki Baat’ not ‘Mann Ki Baat’.

“I congratulate Arvind Kejriwal and the people of Delhi for AAP’s victory in #DelhiPolls2020. People have shown that the country will be run by ‘Jan Ki Baat’ and not ‘Mann Ki Baat’. Though BJP called Kejriwal a terrorist, but it couldn’t defeat him,” observed Thackeray.

Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray: I congratulate Arvind Kejriwal and the people of Delhi for AAP’s victory in #DelhiPolls2020. People have shown that the country will be run by ‘Jan Ki Baat’, not ‘Mann Ki Baat’. BJP called Kejriwal a terrorist but couldn’t defeat him. pic.twitter.com/ocfqSGInlM

— ANI (@ANI) February 11, 2020

The Shiv Sena chief broke 30 years alliance with the BJP and formed the Maharashtra government with NCP and Congress in the state.

As per the result available till 5 pm, AAP has won 63 seats while the BJP, a distant second, has accumulated seven seats.

The Shiv Sena said that the BJP got only “limited success” in its efforts to “polarise” votes over the ongoing Shaheen Bagh protest in Delhi. Apart from Thackeray, state minister Anil Parab said that the people of Delhi have backed the development works of AAP and voted for the party.”Despite deploying top leaders in the poll campaign, the BJP has been decisively rejected in Delhi as the people have voted on the issue of development only,” Parab said.

After the AAP won 63 seats, Manoj Tiwari said, “I thank the people of Delhi. I thank our party workers for their hard work, they’ve done a lot. I accept the mandate of the people of Delhi and congratulate Arvind Kejrwial. I hope he’ll perform well as per the expectations of the people.”

Manoj Tiwari, Delhi BJP chief: I thank the people of Delhi. I thank our party workers for their hardwork, they’ve done a lot. I accept the mandate of people of Delhi & congratulate Arvind Kejrwial. I hope he’ll perform well as per the expectations of the people. #DelhiResults pic.twitter.com/aZGOIEJz0s

— ANI (@ANI) February 11, 2020

State govt. to charge green cess up to Rs10 on every bottle of IMFL, country liquor and beer

By

Afternoon Voice

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February 11, 2020

In its move to generate additional revenue, the Maharashtra government is likely to levy up to Rs 10 green cess on each of the 350 crore bottles of India Made Foreign Liquor (IMFL) and country liquor and 125 crore bottles of beer sold annually in the state. The move will come into existence instead of increasing the excise duty. “Exact quantum of green cess will be decided later but it will be up to Rs 10 per bottle,” an official of the Excise Department said.

On the point of lowering excise duty on premium brands of imported liquor, the official said that excise duty in the state was the highest in the country. The official said the imbalance encourages large-scale smuggling of imported liquor from neighbouring states leading to loss of revenue.

“We found that for a bottle of premium brand of imported liquor, Maharashtra was levying an excise duty ranging between Rs 2,000 and Rs 3,000, whereas in most states it was below Rs 1,000. We have proposed rationalisation of the duty structure on imported liquors. This move will continue to garner the same amount of excise duty owing to more consumption of liquor,” the official said.

The official continued by saying that excise on premium brands of imported liquor was much lower in Karnataka, Uttar Pradesh, Tamil Nadu and New Delhi. “It was always believed that Maharashtra is charging the highest excise duty on imported liquor. We will reduce it suitably, so that our revenue mobilisation is not affected adversely,” the official said.

The official said that compared to Uttar Pradesh and Tamil Nadu, the state target for excise duty is much lower because it has lesser number of shops. In UP, the number of country liquor shops is 14,000 and the excise duty target is Rs 29,000 crore.

While in Tamil Nadu, the target is Rs 31,000 crore, in Andhra and Telangana the target is Rs 38,000 crore. “In Maharashtra, there are 4,000 country liquor shops and 1,400 IMFL shops. We have not given new licences after 1974. We have imposed total ban on liquor in three districts viz. Wardha, Chandrapur and Gadchiroli,” the official added.

Curtain falls on Kalaghoda fest

By

Afternoon Voice

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February 11, 2020

Cutains of the 21st edition of the Kalaghoda Arts Festival (#KGAF2020) exhibition was wrung down last Sunday (Feb. 9). The event organised by the Kala Ghoda Association achieved what it set out to do; make typically inaccessible art reach the masses.

People in large to very large numbers thronged the venue and had a gem of a time. “People came in overwhelming numbers. Every venue was completely full. It has been one of the most successful editions of the festival,” said festival coordinator Nicole Mody.

What made the event more lovable to the audience were things like Irani cafe heritage walks, silly stand-up comedy shows, serious theatre, queer films, hip hop dance, children’s workshops and the kind of indoor and outdoor artworks that stopped many office-going Mumbaikars in their tracks. Besides, there were several stalls selling pieces of art, jewellery and of course food of different varities.

If one exhibit featuring a tightrope walker served as a metaphor for navigating modern life with all its pushes and pulls, an Ambassador car juxtaposed values of youth today with Gandhian values by shrouding itself in both denim and khadi.

Celeb-spotters too had their share of fun. Fans of Usha Uthup, for instance, got a rare glimpse into her fifty-year-long journey from nightclub singer to renowned Bollywood playback artist during her literature session in which Uthup discussed her recently-released Hindi biography.

As a matter of fact, from its crumbling chawls to sky reaching skyscrapers, all the varied spare parts that make up Mumbai found centre stage at various points in the festival.

While some intellectual sessions reminded one about the city’s past as a clutch of islands, others urged Mumbaikars to drink in its gothic and art deco glory before the metro starts looking like “Gurgaon by the bay.”

Is the law prevalent in India?

By

Afternoon Voice

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February 11, 2020

Talking about long-drawn cases in India, there are millions of them that are pending and awaiting justice. One of the historical case is Raj family of Sova bazaar that was a land case involving (Raja Radhakrishna Deb), a land case that is still pending in the Calcutta High Court. This case is pending for about 175 years that came to Court in the year 1833.

Off late, two long-drawn murder cases have been hogging the limelight for quite some time now. First is the Nirbhaya case that has been going on for eight long years (incident happened on December 16, 2012) while the second is the Sheena Bora murder case has been going on from 2015 when her murder case came to light.

Let’s take a look at both the murder cases in detail:

On December 16, 2012, Jyoti Singh, now nicknamed Nirbhaya and her friend Awindra Pratap Pandey got onto a private bus after watching a show of Life of Pi in South Delhi. The night out was supposed to be a fun break from Singh’s studies; she was a medical student who had aspirations of becoming a physiotherapist. Instead, the night turned out one when it was the last time she would ever venture outdoors again. Six men including the bus driver attacked Pandey before brutally beating and raping Singh for an hour, causing irreparable internal damage, before discarding her battered body on the side of the road.

“They tore my clothes and raped me in turns,” Jyoti had reportedly told the police. “They hit me with an iron rod and bit me on my entire body with their teeth. They took away all my belongings, my mobile phone, purse, credit card, debit card, watches, etc. Six people raped me in turns for nearly one hour in the moving bus.”

Two weeks later, Jyoti died. Pandey, though injured, survived.

Singh’s death and the subsequent investigation sparked massive protests and a worldwide conversation. Millions criticised India’s political and criminal justice systems and the country’s historic dismissal of sexual assault victims and survivors.

The second case is of Sheena Bora murder who was allegedly murdered by her mother Indrani Mukerjea and father Peter Mukerjea.

Seven years after the alleged murder of Sheena Bora, the doctor who had examined her skeleton and conducted the post-mortem told a Mumbai court that till date he has not been able to find the cause for her death. Sanjay Thakur, who is a doctor at BYL Nair hospital in Mumbai, had conducted the tests after the skeleton was dug out in 2012.

A witness in the court said that the doctor collected the samples of skin, teeth, hair and bones from the skeleton for the DNA tests. He kept the samples of bone and teeth in one jar and the samples of skin and hair in another. He then handed over the sealed jars to police as it is.

However, when advocate Sudeep Pasbola, appearing for the prime accused in the Sheena Bora murder case Indrani Mukerjea inquired Sanjay Thakur on why the cause of death could not be ascertained, he said that since the body was half burnt and decomposed when it was found, the cause of the death could not be ascertained.

Police inspector Vinod Bhagat, while in the witness box, said that he was present at the site when the skeletons were exhumed, however, no FIR was registered.

According to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), Sheena Bora, a resident of Guwahati was killed by her own mother Indrani Mukerjea in 2012. Indrani had allegedly killed and disposed off Sheena Bora’s body which was later found by a local villager on May 23, 2012. However in 2015, when Sheena Bora’s murder came to light, the skeletons were re-exhumed and examined all over again.

According to the CBI, the motive behind Sheena Bora’s killing was her demand for a flat in Mumbai. CBI chargesheet stated that Sheena Bora was blackmailing her mother.

While in the first case, even though the day of the hanging of the convicts was fixed for February 2 by the Supreme Court, but due to a last minute hindrance, the hangings were stalled. The second case has been going on as scheduled but in between Indrani fell ill and was admitted to the JJ Hospital. Then she lodged a complaint that the jail authorities were ill treating her. Meanwhile Peter Mukerjea has been granted bail. However, the court has stayed his release for a certain period in which the CBI could drag Mukerjea to the Supreme Court.

It is only in India I believe cases in Court take long time to be solved. While the convicts are fed and allowed to live long, the interest in the case is lost and it goes on lingering.

(The views expressed by the author in the article are his/her own.)

Letters to the Editor: 11 February, 2020

By

Web Team

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February 11, 2020

1Govt is responsible for the sorry state of MTNL

MTNL was a goldmine once upon a time but bureaucracy and corruption killed this company which today is languishing in the doldrums. 18K employees opting for VRS literally means that the company is on the verge of closure. Communication is the key to path of progress and today hardly anybody uses the services of this company except for address proof. Government is responsible for the sorry state of MTNL today as it was badly managed inspite of having the top infrastructure as well as the required manpower.

However, MTNL still owns huge properties in prime locations of the country the value of which runs into billions. There is a fear the company may be sold to some business house which is close to the government for a penny. MTNL as a company should be closed down and it’s value should be monetized by sale of it’s properties. Closed Mills in Mumbai fetched their promoters billions of rupees in the real estate market and the same story can be exploited by the government when it comes to MTNL. The court should monitor MTNL sale so that there is no foul play.

S.N. Kabra

2Fire at chemical unit in Boisar

In yet another fire accident at a chemical factory in Boisar property worth lakhs of rupees was lost. While no casualties were reported in the blaze, two workers sustained injuries. The blast took place during mixing of few chemicals and the unit was gutted. It is one more case of serial fire in the state that is causing loss to property. The fire at Harshal Chemical alarmed employees of neighbouring factories causing panic.

Nikhil Akhilesh Krishnan

3Hang Nirbhaya rape convicts

The four convicts in the Nirbhaya rape and murder case Mukesh Kumar Singh, Pawan Gupta, Vinay Kumar Sharma and Akshay Kumar Thakur should be hanged to death at the earliest so that men who keep treating women like sex objects may learn a lesson from this incident. It’s a shame that some men keep treating women like sex objects only to play with them. When will our men learn to treat women with dignity? Weren’t they born from a woman’s womb?

Jubel D’Cruz

4Harnessing of solar power a right step by railways

The recent budget announcement to help railways tap solar energy extensively through various innovative schemes is welcome. Solar power generation on vacant unused lands will prove to be a game changer under the ambit of India’s National Solar Mission. The announcement comes at a right time when economies like India otherwise should be leading at the forefront to mitigate climate change and reduce carbon emissions. As complete electrification of entire railway network was announced recently by Hon’ble Railway Minister Piyush Goyal- the budget announcement to harness solar power along the railway network will only help Indian Railways to become a completely self-sufficient and a sustainable organization by 2030.

The other ministries and departments should now be at the forefront to take cue from the Railway Ministry to adopt sustainable solutions and rely on solar power to harness energy. National Solar Mission launched should extensively promote and create an awareness to tap solar energy across all levels. The positive step will help India become a sustainable and low-carbon emission nation atleast by 2030.

Varun Dambal

(The views expressed by the author in the article are his/her own.)

Mumbai’s first Ro Ro ship to arrive tomorrow; service to start next month

By

Hema Singh

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February 11, 2020

The much awaited Ro Ro ship is going to arrive in Mumbai tomorrow though the service is expected to start by the end of this month or the first week of March. The Ro-Ro ship will provide service between Mumbai and Alibaug. The travelling time will be just 60 minutes which does not include the docking and undocking time. With this, the ship will save three hours time that it often takes. And the view that one will get will be much better for sure.

As per a leading tabloid, the Ro-Ro car ship can carry up to 180 cars and 500 passengers at a time. Coming to its ticket price, it is learnt that a ticket will be priced between Rs1,000 and Rs.1500 for four wheelers depending upon their size while passengers will be charged Rs.235.

This initiative will not only reduce road traffic and fuel consumption, but will also bring down pollution in the city. Reportedly, over 20 lakh passengers travel between the Gateway and Mandwa annually.

The RO-RO service was the brainchild of the Minister for Road Transport and Highways and Shipping, Nitin Gadkari. He made the Mumbai Port Trust (MbPT) complete the infrastructure on the Mumbai side while the Maharashtra Maritime Board (MMB) completed the work at the other end. Though the infrastructure was ready more than a year ago, the project was stuck in some legal issues. As states like Goa and Karnataka have Ro-Ro services, Gadkari wanted the service to be available in Mumbai. For this, he acquired the land from the MbPT at Ferry Wharf to create a terminal.

It is reported that the state government and the Centre spent nearly Rs 150 crores on the terminal and the breakwater in Mandwa to make water transport possible during the monsoon season.