The much expected series victory of Team India was registered at Nagpur against babes Bangladesh. The visitors frittered away a good start to seal the second match and played into the hands of Team India in the decider. Deepak Chahar made a splash by becoming the first Indian bowler to take a hat-trick in T-20 internationals. The feat will go down in history for another reason as he took six wickets for 7 runs in 3.2 overs, which are the best figures by a bowler in the format. It surpasses the previous best of 6 for 8 by Sri Lanka’s Ajantha Mendis. It was indeed a magic spell of bowling which saw Team India clinch the T-20 series 2-1.
Calicut Ramani
Make public transport safer for women
Tejaswini BEST buses exclusively for the fair sex may not necessarily be safe for women. Mumbai is a responsible city and it is the men who come to the rescue of women whenever there is a security threat or crisis. I travel on local trains daily and it is the men on adjacent compartment to women’s bogey (which is separated by a half grill) who come to women’s rescue whenever a drunkard, thief, men with dubious intentions etc try to enter their space. Also, it is the men who jump for help whenever there is a medical emergency and a few untoward incidents are no reason to differentiate separate travel facilities on basis of gender.
CCTV cameras, earmarked seats for women or dividing bus seating arrangements between sexes are good enough for their safety and there is really no need for separate bus facilities for them. Bus drivers and conductors are mostly men keeping in mind the nature of their physical jobs and they too can misbehave in buses exclusively for women. Education is the need of the hour and stringent punishment for men who play with the modesty of the fair sex during travel would bring down or eliminate cases of molestations in public transport.
S.N. Kabra
Introduce Bengaluru-New York, Sydney flights
The recent announcement related to commencement of new winter schedules from Kempegowda International Airport is welcome. One is overwhelmed with the announcement of new connections from Bengaluru to UDAN cities like Tuticorin and Jharusguda and also most importantly to the international destinations like Amsterdam and Addis Ababa.
Further it is given to understand that the international airport at Bengaluru has no direct connectivity to New York and Sydney. The aviation authorities should now emphasise to introduce a new direct flight connectivity, subject to schedule availability, to both the cities of New York and Sydney. This will further enable faster and easier direct connectivity to these cities, as most of the business/operations of USA and Australia are based in Bangalore.
Further Bengaluru International Airport is now witnessing frequent new additions to daily/weekly schedules to both domestic and international destinations including UDAN flights and also towards Asia Pacific and South Asian cities. Thus it is high time that airline carriers now consider to develop a new hub at Kempegowda International Airport to facilitate and support such a massive growth of airline route network from Bengaluru.
Varun Dambal
(The views expressed by the author in the article are his/her own.)
Governor Bhagat Singh Koshyari had invited BJP and Shiv Sena to form the government but they were unable to prove their majority. So the governor has now invited NCP to form the government. The governor has given NCP time till 8.30 pm on Tuesday to prove majority. Meanwhile, BJP president Amit Shah’s silence on Shiv Sena-BJP tussle was very much surprising. The political scenario of Maharashtra took a dramatic turn. Arvind Sawant, Sena’s lone minister in Modi Cabinet, too resigned from his ministry. That meets the prime condition of NCP to align with Sena. Shiv Sena spokesperson Sanjay Raut said that the Governor has given them less time to prove majority on the floor. He further added that BJP was given 72 hours to stake claim but Shiv Sena has been given only 24 hours. With in this time, Uddhav not only asked his minister to resign for Modi cabinet, he also sought support from Sonia Gandhi.
When asked MNS spokesperson Sandeep Deshpande he said, “Shiv Sena- BJP has betrayed voters who voted for the alliance. People will teach them a lesson in next election.”
BJP spokesperson Vishwas Pathak said, “Essentially all spokesperson are not supposed to give reactions to media. Only Maharashtra BJP president Chandrakant Patil can speak on this issue.” And he just refrained making any comments. It is worth mentioning that people have voted the BJP-Sena alliance to the power. But Sena broke this pre-poll alliance on account of denied promises by BJP for the Chief Minister’s chair. Outgoing Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis denied stating that there was no agreement on so called 50-50 formula and Amit Shah never assured Sena of sharing chief minister’s chair for 2.5 years tenure to each. Sena remained adamant for chief minister’s post till last moment and rifted apart. Eventually, CM Fadnavis resigned on November 8 as tenure of existing assembly was ending on next day i.e. November 9.
There are speculations that the BJP is going to replace Sena’s Arvind Sawant with Narayan Rane to irritate Shiv Sena. Rane had started his political career with the Sena but he abandoned party due to differences within. Later on, he joined Congress. After resigning from Congress he launched his own political party called Maharashtra Swabhiman Paksha. Recent past he was about to join BJP and now he would be even given a ministry.
Addressing the media in Mumbai Shiv Sena MLA Aaditya Thackeray said, “Rather than going into if’s and but’s and anticipatory questions both the parties have been speaking to us however, all the talks are going on. Shiv Sena is the second-largest party. We have asked for more time, but the Governor has refused us.”
Very much unexpected and some new combination, Maharashtra is in political confusion. In a fresh twist to the ongoing political drama in Maharashtra, the Shiv Sena conveyed its willingness and staked its claim to form the government in the state. They showed their willingness and also risked our claim. They sought additional time of two days from the Governor, which was declined. Meanwhile, now governor has invited NCP to prove its majority. Shiv Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray met Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) chief Sharad Pawar to discuss getting together to form government in Maharashtra in anticipation that he would immediately get some help to prove his majority. The meeting took place after the Sena’s only minister in Prime Minister Narendra Modi‘s government, Arvind Sawant, resigned. That was NCP’s first condition for alliance with Shiv Sena to cut the complete ties with BJP and enter in new coalition. The Sena’s pullout was a key condition of the NCP to discuss an alliance in Maharashtra. In spite of obeying all the orders of Pawar, Uddhav could not get go ahead from him. Meanwhile, Congress president Sonia Gandhi too kept him on hold stating they will revert back. The Congress indicated that it had not decided on supporting the Shiv Sena after many meetings and a phone conversation between Uddhav Thackeray and Sonia Gandhi. Uddhav Thackeray made “numerous calls” as the two ideologically mismatched parties tried to get past their differences to collaborate. Sharad Pawar tried to be the bridge between Uddhav Thackeray and a reluctant Congress as alliances shape-shifted in one of India’s biggest states.
The political turmoil continues, Shiv Sena went pin to polls but could not get numbers and support and finally they are on hold, everyone thought that the state seemed to incline towards a Sena-led government with NCP and Congress leaders discussing their options. Uddhav Thackeray pushed back his meeting with Maharashtra Governor Bhagat Singh Koshyari as the NCP left it to the Congress to take a call on whether to support a Sena-led government in Maharashtra. Sonia Gandhi met top party leaders and then called former chief ministers and others from Maharashtra to sound them out. Congress ministers has differences while accepting to align with Shiv Sena, the party which was very vocal and nasty attacking NCP-Congress in state. On the other hand BJP now remained silent and watching the drama.
Uddhav Thackeray knocked all the possible doors as the ideologically mismatched parties tried to get past their differences to collaborate in a government in Maharashtra. In the recent past many Congress and NCP leaders were taken into Shiv Sena denting these old national parties. So having Congress-NCP in the corridors was not new to Sena, but allegiance with extreme right-wingers could be suicidal for NCP and Congress, because people of Maharashtra never voted them to power. But at the same time, Congress-Sena and NCP always remained as friends and where ever they had to stretch their muscles, they exchanged good gestures. If we go to flashback, its in Congress era Shiv Sena was given birth, Congress that always supported Balasaheb. He was the strongman of Maharashtra who openly supported the proclamation of Emergency by the Indira Gandhi government. Shiv Sena has never been apologetic about Bal Thackeray’s support to Indira Gandhi‘s Emergency. Writing in Saamana last year, party spokesman Sanjay Raut said, “If the day when the Emergency was proclaimed by Indira Gandhi is to be called ‘Black Day‘, then there were many such ‘black days’ under the [current] central government. The day demonetisation was announced should also be called ‘Black Day’, as it created the economic anarchy.” However, support for the Emergency led to a serious drubbing of the Shiv Sena in the 1978 Maharashtra Assembly and local body elections. It hurt the party to such an extent that founder-chief Bal Thackeray offered to resign at a rally in Mumbai’s Shivaji Park. He withdrew his resignation following uproar against it in the party. But gradually and timely, he held hands of similar ideological party and that was BJP. Since then Shiv Sena always acted as big brother, but in the recent past Uddhav had to take lot of humiliation from new Modi’s BJP.
Sena and BJP were never in good terms, they were with each other for the sake of power and there were no ideological differences. BJP of this era gone not only arrogant but also unreasonable, the party also wanted to get rid of Devendra because of his greed and loud mouth speeches. He created rift within the Maharashtra BJP. He also failed to take people in to confidence. Meanwhile, in spite in alliance Shiv Sena and Uddhav tried their level best to safeguard the democracy by opposing and attacking BJP and Modi’s high-handed moves. Political Pundits always predicted about the rift between Sena-BJP sooner and the later. At the end, Uddhav Thackeray failed to show the numbers and now ball is in NCP’s court. Top Congress leaders, former Maharashtra CMs Ashok Chavan, Prithviraj Chavan and Sushilkumar Shinde as well as state unit chief Balasaheb Thorat met party president Sonia Gandhi but could not draw any conclusion. If these three parties come together, it would be difficult for BJP to retain power in state in coming future, because their seat share will never go beyond these three. The Sena is the second largest party in the 288-member House with 56 MLAs after the BJP (105). Given the stalemate between the two alliance partners, the role of the Congress with its 44 legislators and the Nationalist Congress Party with 54 MLAs is crucial. With this episode, the BJP and the Sena, long-term allies for around 30 years comes to an end. Well voters are actually confused because Sena has given them a faith that they can control BJP’s arrogance and still remain in coalition and all of sudden they took U turn and nothing is yet clear to people.
(Any suggestions, comments or dispute with regards to this article send us on feedback@www.afternoonvoice.com)
Finally Ram Temple will be built in the land where Lord Ram was born. Supreme Court of India has on the basis of evidence has said that Babri Masjid was built at the place which was birth place of Lord Ram. This judgement of the Supreme Court is significant since it was delivered unanimously by the 5 –Judge Constitution Bench which also included Justice S Abdul Nazeer who belongs to Muslim community. All judges admitted that it was the place of birth of Ram which was based on research oriented excavation of the site by the Archeological Survey of India. The ASI had discovered that there was a Ram Temple at the site where Mir Baqi, a Minister of Mughal Emperor Babar built Babri Masjid in 1528. This helped the Supreme Court in deciding the case.
The Supreme Court Bench admitted that Babri Masjid was built at the same place where Ram Temple was constructed in 12th Century. However, the Constitution Bench also noted the fact that there is no evidence to show that the Ram Temple was destroyed before building the Babri Masjid. Obviously it is not easy to find evidence of an act committed in 1528 in the year 2019. But the Supreme Court outright rejected the contention of the Sunni Waqf Board that Babri Masjid was built on open or virgin land.
With the verdict of the Supreme Court on November 9 five hundred year old dispute is also over now. Grand Temple will be built at the birth place of Lord Ram. Many lives were lost by forces who tried to disturb communal harmony on this issue in the past. In His own land of Bharat Ram was subjected to disrespect. Can anyone imagine Bharat without Ram? Ram is present everywhere in every soul of Indians. For thousands of years Ram has been worshipped and is revered by all. Act of encroachment on birth place of Ram is not less than an act of sin. The Supreme Court has ended that piece of injustice by its November 9 judgement.
The judgement of the Supreme Court should also be seen as a big step in building social and communal harmony. Though the Supreme Court has rejected the claim of Sunni Waqf Board on 2.77 acre of land at the site, it has at the same time directed the Central Government and the State Government of Uttar Pradesh to allot 5 acre of land to Muslim community for building a new mosque in Ayodhya. This directive assumes significance since it is also a step in building communal harmony in the country.
It is unfortunate that Zafaryab Jilani, a senior member of All India Muslim Personal Law Board and advocate who pleaded the case of Sunni Waqf Board is making negative statement on the verdict. Jilani is saying that the Supreme Court has not done justice to the Muslims although he has been maintaining throughout the hearing of the petition that the judgement of the Supreme Court will be acceptable to all and no question should be raised once the judgement is delivered.
Like Jilani, Lok Sabha member from Hyderabad Asaduddin Owasi is also making noise by criticising the judgement when he says that the Supreme Court had given its verdict on faith and not on facts. Owaisi has also rejected the offer of 5 acre land to be given to build a new mosque in Ayodhya by saying that “We don’t need land in charity to build mosque”.
It will be in the fitness of things that contempt of court should be filed against Jilani and Owasi who are trying to destablise the social and communal harmony of the country by making irresponsible statement. Jilani and Owasi forget that by making irresponsible statement they are giving ammunition to anti-social elements in the society to flare communal disharmony and may be even communal violence.
The Supreme Court in its judgement has also rejected the claim of Nirmohi Akhara who was a party in the title suite petition. The verdict is not in favour or against any party in the dispute and it is based on justice and on evidence. There is peace and harmony in the country after the judgement. People are doing their job and leading normal life all over the country. How a small section of society can be given license to vitiate the peaceful atmosphere of the society post the Ayodhya verdict.
There is remarkable change in the Indian society which is not the same as it was in 1992. We are living in 2019. India has become a matured nation. It has the resilience to take any judgement on any dispute.
(The writer is a Rajya Sabha Member)
Disclaimer: The opinions expressed within this article are the personal opinions of the author. The facts and opinions appearing in the article do not reflect the views of AFTERNOON VOICE and AFTERNOON VOICE does not assume any responsibility or liability for the same.
Kudos to the Supreme Court’s verdict on the decades-long Ayodhya–Babri Masjid dispute for reaffirming the independence, transparency, and farsightedness of our judiciary” and for increasing the citizens’ faith in the system. The Chief Justice of India Ranjan Gogoi-led Bench of Justices Sharad Arvind Bobde, Dhananjaya Yeshwant Chandrachud, Ashok Bhushan and S. Abdul Nazeer and archaeologist K K Mohamed, a member of the first team who carried out excavation at the Babri site deserves big kudos for taking all necessary safety measures before articulating much awaited and sensitive verdict on Ram Janmabhoomi. The Supreme Court has rightly held the rights of Ram Lalla Virajman, the presiding deity of the disputed site. Ram Janmabhoomi has been the site of religious dissent and much bitterness all through history. In 1992, however, clashes between Hindus and Muslims escalated to unprecedented levels causing disturbances all over the country and affecting the lives of many hundreds. This Ayodhya land dispute had started in the way back 1853-1860.
The controversy began in the year 1853 after the construction of the mosque and the Hindus alleged that the place where the mosque was built was earlier the temple of Lord Rama, which was demolished, and the mosque was constructed. Ayodhya dispute had affected almost all the sections of Indian society. It is very sad that so many lives have been lost for this and now the Indian people would finally realise that all religions should try to unite people and not divide. Hindus consider Ayodhya as the birthplace of Lord Ram. They have religious sentiments. Hindus have faith and belief that Lord Ram was born under the dome. The verdict has brought joy and relief to the people of both the communities. The way all have treated this judgement with balanced opinion keeping in view of national interests is highly appreciable.
Ram Janmabhoomi is one of the major pilgrimage centers for the Hindus of India. In Ramayana the mythical granth of Hindus, it is said that Ram’s birthplace is on the banks of the Sarayu River in Ayodhya town. Ayodhya has been in the midst of a dispute and controversy, since last many decades, which has only increased since late 1980s. The controversial issue of Ram Janambhoomi and Babri Masjid has always been a big influence on Indian politics for several decades. We all are aware of the fact that the disputed land at Ayodhya in Faizabad district of Uttar Pradesh has always played major role in disturbing the communal harmony of India. In a unanimous judgement, a five-judge Constitution bench of the Supreme Court delivered a historic verdict in the decades-old Ayodhya’s Ram Janmabhoomi-Babri Masjid land dispute case, directing that Hindus will get the disputed land for the construction of a Ram temple while a suitable plot of land, measuring five acres, will be given to Sunni Waqf Board. In 1992, the demolition of Babri Masjid by Hindu nationalists gave birth to widespread Hindu-Muslim violence. Archaeological excavation has indicated the presence of a temple under the mosque’s debris. According to the reports from 2003, the Archeological Survey of India has found proof of the Ram temple’s existence predating the mosque at this site.
(This is the first part of the article and the remaining portion will continue tomorrow)
(The views expressed by the author in the article are his/her own.)
Not far away is a day when we shall see a magnificent temple and a grand mosque come up in Ayodhya and we shall also see thousands of devotees of all faiths thronging to these places which shall turn into a land of worship spreading peace, harmony, goodwill and shall be a Haven for humanity. Ayodhya should turn into the world’s capital of harmony and goodwill. This is not just a dream or an imagination but something that is going to be a reality. From now on we can proudly walk hand in hand embracing one another irrespective of religion to greater heights. And as our honourable Vice President M Venkaiah Naidu said- let’s leave the past behind and move towards building an India of peace and harmony.
The great verdict is not a loss or a win for any religion or party but a great victory to us Indians to show the world the greatness of our Indianness which in fact is synonymous to oneness. Jai Hind.
M Pradyu
Rishabh Pant’s wicket keeping skills is a matter of concern
Rishabh Pant’s wicket keeping has been shabby and he deserves to be replaced as a keeper. Wicket Keeping is an specialised job and even a small error of judgement can cost India an important game. Shikhar Dhawan too looks shaky and we may also need to replace him if his poor form continues for a few more game though he should be given chances for a few more matches to prove his credentials.
S.N. Kabra
Good judgement against rapist
A farmer from Thane has been sentenced to life by a court for raping and killing a 17 year old girl in 2014. District Judge H.M. Patwardhan pronounced Shankar Bhogade guilty under Sections 376 (rape), 302 (murder), 201 (causing disappearance of evidence of offence) of the Indian Panel Code and provision of the protection of children from sexual offences act. Of course this is a commendable decision which will play an important role in curbing rape.
H. Magdi.
Proceedings of Constitution Bench of Supreme Court should be live-telecast
The entire nation curiously depended on TV news-channels on November 9, for getting live updates of historic judgment on Ram-Janmbhoomi case by a five-member Special Bench of Supreme Court headed by the Chief Justice of India, for which there was an unprecedented 40-day long continuous hearing resulting in a long 1045-page verdict.
System should be formulated whereby proceedings of any such Special Bench and Constitution Benches of Supreme Court may be telecast live for benefit of public especially law-students and researchers. If complete proceedings of Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha can be telecast live, there must not be any problem in starting a new era of telecasting live proceedings of Special and Constitutional benches of Supreme Court. Even a Supreme Court bench headed by Chief Justice of India on July, 9 2018 expressed willingness for live streaming of its proceedings.
Also it should be compulsory to audio-record of all court-proceedings. Recordings may be replayed in case of need. With court-rooms equipped with necessary wiring-slots for the purpose, Supreme Court should take immediate steps for compulsory audio-recording of proceedings in all court-rooms right from Supreme Court to trial-courts including High Courts. Such audio-recordings may be available soon after court-proceedings are over for the day on payment-basis. System will induce much-needed transparency, accountability and responsibility for all present in court-rooms also effectively checking corruption at different levels in judiciary. It is also observed that at times judges forget their verbal directions on next date of hearing.
Madhu Agrawal
(The views expressed by the author in the article are his/her own.)
Lakhs of devotees are thronging the town for taking a dip in the River Saryu on Kartik Poornima on Tuesday, the first major congregation of devotees here after the historic judgement in the Ayodhya case.
The Supreme Court on Saturday paved the way for the construction of a Ram Temple at the disputed site at Ayodhya, while directing the Centre to allot a 5-acre plot to the Sunni Waqf Board for building a mosque.
Devotees will take the dip in Saryu in Ram ki Paidi and Naya Ghat and adjoining areas, officials said.
“Over five lakh devotees are likely to take a dip on the occasion of Kartik Poornima in Ayodhya. On normal days, around 8,000 visitors visit Ramjanmabhoomi for darshan. On festive occasion, the number crosses 50,000.Now, since the judgement has come on Ramjanmabhoomi, the number of visitors may increase as well,” Ayodhya District Magistrate Anuj Kumar Jha told agencies. He said the situation is absolutely normal around the Ramjanmabhoomi area.
“We have taken all precautionary steps to ensure security, and also to make sure that devotees do not face problem, and have a safe and hassle-free darshan.Posting of police officials and magistrates have been done keeping this in mind,” he said
For the convenience of visitors coming to Ayodhya, various health, sanitation and drinking water facilities among other have been put in place.
Water tankers have been installed at around 18 places, 20 medical camps with ambulance are ready besides 30 mobile toilets.
Deputy Director, Information, Ayodhya division, Murlidhar Singh said, “The bathing in Saryu river will commence at 4.00 pm on Monday, and will continue till Tuesday evening, since as per the Hindu calendar Poornima will begin on Monday evening.”
Elaborating on the significance of Kartik Poornima, Prayagraj-based convenor of organisations Ram Naam Bank and Ram Sewa Trust Ashutosh Varshney, told PTI, “The full moon day during the month of Kartik is known as Kartik Poornima. It is also known as Dev Deepawali — the Deepawali celebrated by Gods. This Dev Deepawali comes 15 days after Deepawali celebrated by us on Amavasya day.
“Earthen lamps are lit at all temples as well as at the bank of River Ganga on the day of Kartik Purnima,” he said. “This Kartik Poornima holds special significance as it comes days after the Supreme Court gave its verdict in the Ayodhya dispute case,” he said.
Sushil Kashyap, a resident of Gonda, who arrived here on Monday morning along with his family, said, “This dip is special for me as it comes days after the Supreme Court gave its verdict in the Ayodhya case.
“Every year, at least one member of our family comes to participate in Kartik Poornima festivities in Ayodhya, and take dip in the holy Saryu,” he added.
Mitthulal, a resident of neighbouring Barabanki district, who arrived here along with his grandsons, said, “We will try to finish our bathing at the earliest, and then offer prayers and pay obeisance to Ram Lalla, and subsequently visit other temples including Hanumangarhi.”
According to Sandeep Singh, a manager at a hotel here, the Kartik Poornima Snaan in River Saryu is quite popular among people from neighbouring districts, who flock the temple town on this occasion.
Senior Shiv Sena leader Sanjay Raut on Monday said if the BJP was not willing to fulfill its promise of sharing the chief minister’s post in Maharashtra, there was no point in continuing the alliance.
A day after Governor Bhagat Singh Koshyari invited the Shiv Sena to stake claim to form government, Raut told reporters here that the BJP “insulted” people’s mandate by not abiding to the “50:50” formula which, he claimed, was decided before the Lok Sabha polls.
The BJP on Sunday announced it would not form government in the state and accused the Shiv Sena of “disrespecting” people’s mandate secured by the NDA in the recent Assembly polls.
“The BJP’s arrogance that it would sit in the opposition but not share the chief minister’s post has led to this situation…if the BJP is not willing to implement its promise, then there is no meaning in staying with the alliance,” the Rajya Sabha member said.
To a query, he said when the BJP could tie-up with the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) to form government in the then Jammu and Kashmir state, why the Sena cannot do the same with the NCP and Congress in Maharashtra.
“Should we call the BJP’s association with PDP as ‘love jihad’? I am simply underscoring here the contradiction behind the question,” Raut said.
The PDP, a regional party, and the BJP, both ideologically different, came together to form government in the erstwhile Jammu and Kashmir state in 2015. However, the BJP ended its alliance with the Mehbooba Mufti-led party last year, following which the government there collapsed.
Raut also expressed disappointment over the Uddhav Thackeray-led party being given just 24 hours to stake claim.
The Sena, which is the second-largest party in the 288-member House with 56 MLAs after the BJP (105), has time till 7.30 pm on Monday to stake claim to form government.
“The BJP was the single largest party, but it was given 72 hours, as per my information. Our numbers are less than the BJP, in such a situation we should have been given more time. However, the Sena will respect the governor’s decision and we will inform him our stand by today evening,” Raut said.
“A conspiracy is going on to keep Maharashtra under control through President’s rule. The Sena, NCP and Congress have agreed to not let this conspiracy succeed,” he added.
Reaching out to the opposition parties, he said the Congress and NCP should bury their internal differences to come up with a ‘common minimum programme’ in the interest of Maharashtra.
“The Sena, NCP and Congress agree on protecting the interest of Maharashtra,” he said.
After the BJP declined to form government in Maharashtra on Sunday, the governor asked the Sena to “indicate its willingness and ability” to stake claim.
While the Sena has been making efforts to reach out to the NCP and the Congress, the Sharad Pawar-led party on Sunday said the Sena will have to walk out of the NDA first.
Sena leader Arvind Sawant, the lone party minister in the Modi Cabinet, on Monday announced his decision to quit the NDA government at the Centre.
A 10-year-old girl who had been missing from in Bhandup area was found dead in Ghatkopar on Sunday.
According to police, the minor girl was last seen outside her residence on November 5 in Bhandup West. After that, her family member filed a complaint of kidnapping at Bhandup police station.
Police said, on Sunday morning they received a phone call from Tilak Nagar police station about the death of the minor girl. As per the police report, the body of the girl was partially decomposed. Later on, police reached the spot with the family member of a girl who has identified her body.
Police have sent the body of the minor girl for post-morten report at Rajawadi Hospital in Ghatkopar. According to the doctor, the cause of death was strangulation and she was sexually assaulted too. Currently police are investigating the matter further probe is on.
After coming to power BJP has fulfilled its core election promises such as scrapping of Article 370, abolishing Triple Talaq, Ram Temple in Ayodhya, now many of BJP voters are expecting to introduce Uniform Civil Code (UCC) in India.
Uniform Civil Code is defined in our Constitution under Article 44 of Directive Principles of State Policy. It states that it is the duty of the state to secure for the citizens a Uniform Civil Code throughout the territory of India. In other words we can say that it means ‘one country one rule’. The question of Uniform Civil Code‘ (UCC) has remained a controversial topic in Indian politics. In a country like ours where individuals are governed on civil matters such as marriage, inheritance, adoption and succession on the basis of the personal laws of their religion, UCC will contain same set of secular civil laws for each and every individual irrespective of his/her religion, gender, caste, creed, race etc. Our country is a culturally diverse one where religion is a very sensitive topic and so bringing about a change in personal laws is a challenging task. The very idea of having a UCC has ignited many debates in the present political scenario and in the past too. Afternoon Voice took opinion of people to know the pros and cons.—
Najmul Hasan Rizvi, senior journalist said, “Article 25 in the Constitution gives fundamental rights to everyone for practising their own religion. And almost every religion has their own personal law. Uniform Civil Code is a political gimmick, which doesn’t stand in common citizens’ view. Hindus get rebate in taxes through Hindu Undivided Family (HUF) whereas in one religion widow can remarry. Muslims have their own personal law.”
Sumita Chakraborty, Editor of STARDUST magazine said, “Yes I think it’s time we follow the common civil code in India. For long we have had personal rules governing various communities. This caused a lot of chaos and disruption. A common or Uniform Civil Code sets the same rules for everyone so nobody can hide behind antiquated laws of the past and get away. I think it will work very well in India as we have now become on par in terms of norms with all the modern countries of the world.”
Arya Money, Reporter at Rajshree Production said, “Uniform Civil Code may or may not work in India because of one major reason. Being the age old tradition or method, it is very difficult to change the mindset easily. The adaptation be it extremely good or bad because society takes time to adapt to it.”
She further said, “The civil code in India is good, till it respects the culture and need of the people, while amending acts for the people. Before taking any major acts into consideration the government should consider the interests of the people, as in if they need such a change rather than imposing something on them. “A change is a must, but not at the cost of violation of public beliefs and interests,” she added.
Abhishek Rai, journalist said, “As far as I know, India officially calls itself a secular country, which means every citizen of India is equal before laws, rule and regulations of our nation, regardless of its religion, caste, culture or creed. Therefore when it comes to maintaining its secular nature, we should have Uniform Civil Code. Because it seems hypocritical to me if there is no equal application of law on various communities in a secular country. The government should introduce Uniform Civil Code as soon as possible.”
Manisha Karki, journalist at UrbanAsian said, “I think it is a matter of debate on Uniform Civil Code since 1949 and because we believe in ‘One Nation One Law‘. India is a diverse country and every set of religion has their own personal laws. No matter there are differences but we all are bound to follow some laws as being the part of the nation. With change in time and generation we see many cases around us either its inappropriate divorce or about gender equality.”
She continued, “I think it’s time for India to take a stand and set an example like other countries. As we can see the Uniform Civil Code can help in solving many problems and settling down thing. In the world where people can see religious extremism, India can be one of the country which others can look into and see how a diverse nation can stand united with its people.”
BJP spokesperson Madhav Bhandari said, “Uniform Civil Code is our constitutional commitment in the preamble of our constitution. We had committed that we shall bring Uniform Civil Code. In every secular country in the world has a Uniform Civil Code. In our constitution we are saying that we are secular nation.”
Congress spokesperson Atul Londhe said, “Basically all other codes are uniformed like CrPC (Criminal Procedure Code) and IPC ( Indian Penal Code). The sections of these acts are equally applicable to each and every community present in India. The introduction of Marriage Act, Succession Act is remaining. Uniform Civil Code should be implemented only after arriving at a consensus among all communities in India.”
Adv. Vibin Nair, Managing Partner, Orizon Legal said, “The implementation of Uniform Civil Code is the need of the hour to project the outlook of ‘Sarva Dharma Sama Bhav’ – (All religions are equal). It will also bring a positive change in the field of marriage, divorce, property, succession and inheritance laws in our country with the Parliament also in review and recodification of CrPC (Criminal Procedure Code) and IPC (Indian Penal Code) . Having said that, our Parliamentarians should also bear in mind about it’s application having a retrospective or prospective effect to the existing matters already going on.”
Shivani Lokhande, Freelancer Hr executive said, “The Uniform Civil Code is a very sensitive topic and I will support this rule because firstly it will lead to gender equality, there’ll be secularism. People that are divided due to religions can be united and there won’t be discrimination as law will be same for everyone.”
When asked whether Uniform Civil Code should be applicable in India she replied, “Implementing Uniform Civil Code will be a grave problem as people in India are way more religious, they will feel that law is enforced on their way to pray, do rituals, etc. As we all know Indian mentality is majorly conservative in such situation and bringing UCC will be difficult. But like I said initially it’s really needed.”
Aditaya Iyer, CA intern said, “Uniform Civil Code looks to be a good idea as it states equal rights for all citizens and will promote national integration. But at the same time, we need to keep in mind that India is a very diverse nation and there are various laws governing, keeping the interests of the various sections of the society safe. These laws safeguard the interests of both sections of society differently.”
“I feel there will be a lot of difficulty in the implementation of a Uniform Civil Code and don’t see it happening in the near future. But I do feel as time passes all these laws may individually be amended and overtime when almost all are on the same page we can think of a Uniform Civil Code,” he added.
Bhaskar Parikh, Architect said, “Yes, a common civil code should be amended on every citizen in India and there are some major changes that needs to be taken place in the Constitution. He further said, “Though it will be very difficult and a sensitive task to put forth because of the diversity in India. However, this needs to be implemented so that people in India get equal rights, equal status and no gender discrimination.”
“I think this step will take a major turn on the positive side of national integration,” he added.
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Kudos to the 
Lakhs of devotees are thronging the town for taking a dip in the River Saryu on Kartik Poornima on Tuesday, the first major congregation of devotees here after the historic judgement in the Ayodhya case.
Senior Shiv Sena leader Sanjay Raut on Monday said if the BJP was not willing to fulfill its promise of sharing the chief minister’s post in Maharashtra, there was no point in continuing the alliance.
