LIVE! ‘Blatant lies’: Reliance trashes Rahul’s charges on Rafale deal

18:56  ‘Blatant lies’: Reliance trashes Rahul’s charges on Rafale deal:  

Anil Ambani-led Reliance Group on Friday trashed Rahul Gandhi’s allegations against it on the multi-billion dollar Rafale deal and charged the Congress with “distorting” facts to mount an “unwarranted” campaign against the company for political gains.

 

In a statement, Reliance said that the company and its chief Ambani were continuously being dragged into a political battle in view of the impending state and general elections.

“The Congress Party has today once again resorted to blatant lies and distorted facts to mount an unwarranted campaign of calumny and falsehoods against the Reliance Group and its Chairman Anil Ambani personally,” it alleged.

Gandhi Friday alleged that Dassault Aviation, the makers of Rafale jets, paid Rs 284 crore to Reliance Defence as the “first installment of kickbacks” and claimed Prime Minster Narendra Modi was having “sleepless nights” fearing action if a probe was conducted into the aircraft deal.

He also alleged that CBI chief Alok Verma was removed as he wanted to investigate the deal.

Dassault Aviation has chosen Reliance Defence as one of its partners in India to fulfil the offset obligations of the Rs 58,000 crore Rafale deal.

The Congress has been alleging that the government had put pressure on Dassault Aviation to make Reliance its offset partner for the deal.

Both Reliance and Dassault Aviation rejected the charges. — PTI 

18:49  Amritsar train tragedy: Sidhu’s wife records statement before probe official:  

Punjab cabinet minister Navjot Singh Sidhu’s wife, who was the chief guest at the Dussehra function near Joda Phatak in Amritsar when a train mowed down 59 people last month, gave her statement on Friday before the probe official.

 

On October 31, the inquiry commission had asked the Sidhu couple to appear before it to record their statement.

Jalandhar divisional commissioner B Purushartha, who is conducting the magisterial inquiry into the October 19 Amritsar train tragedy, recorded the statement of Navjot Kaur Sidhu.

However, Navjot Singh Sidhu failed to turn up before the commission but he sent his view point in the written form in a sealed envelope through his wife to the probe official.

  

Fifty-nine people were killed and 57 injured after a crowd of Dussehra revellers that had spilled onto railway tracks while watching burning of Ravana effigy was run over by a train here.

So far the commission has recorded the statements of more than fifty one victims, including their family members.

When Navjot Kaur was asked about the absence of her husband, she said that he could not come up due to various political engagements.

“At the time of accident he was not in the city but was in Bengaluru,” Kaur told reporters.

After the train incident, Opposition had trained guns at Navjot Kaur claiming she ran away from the spot, a charge vehemently denied by the former legislator.   

Navjot Kaur refused to answer further questions raised by the reporters to her and preferred to leave the venue. — PTI 

18:40  Offline Retailers vs Amazon, Flipkart:  Shop owners in Ulhasnagar, Maharashtra, ‘decided to bombard Amazon India with fake orders, and the intention was that, due to this, Amazon and Flipkart will blacklist entire city!’

18:03  PM promises Rs 1 crore loan in 59 minutes to MSMEs:  
Prime Minister Narendra Modi Friday announced a slew of measures including sanction of loans of up to Rs 1 crore to small and medium enterprises in 59 minutes through a special portal to give a boost to the nation’s second biggest employing sector.

GST-registered small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) can now avail of loan of up to Rs 1 crore in just 59 minutes, he said announcing the measures. Also, GST-registered MSMEs will get 2 per cent interest subvention or rebate on incremental loan of up to Rs 1 crore, he said.

Interest subvention on pre and post shipment credit for exports by MSMEs has been increased from 3 per cent to 5 per cent, he said.

In all 12 decisions, which he termed as “historic”, were announced to boost MSMEs. Talking of India jumping 23 places on World Bank’s latest ‘Ease of Doing Business’ ranking, Modi said in four years his government has achieved what many did not believe and achieved what no other nation in the world has done – leaping from 142 rank in 2014 to 77th rank.

Breaking into top 50 rank is not far away, he said. Reform of processes will help small and medium enterprises, he said. — PTI

17:53  ‘There is desperation among anti-nationals’:  “Both Hindu and Muslim communities live in Kishtwar and attempts are being made to disturb this equation. By killing the state BJP secretary and his brother, the aim is to hot up the communal situation and revive militancy in an area which has remained peaceful,” says Sunil Sharma, Kishtwar’s BJP MLA. Read Archana Masih’s report on Rediff.com here.

17:51  Aadaab, India!:  Shah Rukh Khan greets fans gathered outside his residence, Mannat, on his 53rd birthday. Seen here with his son, AbRam. 

17:47  With little time left for wheat sowing, stubble fires spike in Punjab:  Stubble burning incidents have shot up in Punjab over the last few days with farmers apparently defying the ban as only a little time is left now for sowing wheat, officials said.

With about 30 per cent of paddy area still to be harvested and Diwali approaching, the coming week is going to be “crucial” for the state, they said. Though the total number of stubble burning incidents this year was about 25 per cent lesser than last year, the state has witnessed sharp rise in farm waste burning cases in the last few days, they added.

The ideal period for wheat sowing is considered to be between October 25 and November 15.

According to data provided by Ludhiana-based Punjab Remote Sensing Center, the fire incidents recorded in Punjab were 991 (October 25), 1,296 (October 26), 2,111 (October 27) and 3,162 (October 28). On October 31 and November 1, the number of fire incidents was 2,618 and 3,353 respectively.

The fire incidents on November 1 were highest in this season in Punjab. On Thursday, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal had blamed stubble burning in Punjab for rising pollution levels in the national capital and claimed that the situation aggravated after October 25. — PTI

17:45   Iyer-Mitra given one more day to submit affidavit:  Delhi based journalist Abhijit Iyer Mitra failed to submit his affidavit on his alleged derogatory remarks on Odisha and the Konark temple on Friday, the scheduled day, and a House Committee of the Odisha Assembly allowed him one more day to do so.

Iyer Mitra had earlier been asked by the panel to appear before the House Committee on November 2 and submit the affidavit. “As he (Abhijit) could not submit his affidavit on the day and requested the House Committee to give him one day more, the Committee took note of this and gave him the last chance to submit his affidavit tomorrow,” chairperson of the Committee Narasingha Mishra told reporters. — PTI

17:29  Manipur CM calls for review of AFSPA:   Manipur Chief Minister N Biren Singh said time has come to review the Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act in the state because of the prevailing peace, but time has not yet come to lift it totally.

While reviewing the AFSPA, the security concerns of the state sharing international border or being in the vicinity of other countries should also be considered, Singh told a group of visiting journalists here Wednesday.

The state shares a 398-km-long border with Myanmar, while China and Bangladesh are in the vicinity. “Manipur is a peaceful state now, but the country’s security must be a priority. Financial help and arms supply by foreign countries cannot be ruled out,” Singh said.

“Personally, I would like to ask the Centre to lift it given the law and order situation, but since we have international borders, we cannot ask for its lifting,” the chief minister said in reply to a question whether there is need for AFSPA to be in force in the state. — PTI

16:59  Online survey says majority prefer Modi as PM for 2nd term:   More than 63 per cent respondents in an online survey expressed their “trust” in Narendra Modi and over 50 per cent said a second term for him will provide them a better future.

The survey, carried out by the news portal ‘Dailyhunt’, and Nielsen India, a data analytics company, was based on opinion of over 54 lakh respondents taken online from within the country and abroad, claimed a statement by them.

“Sixty-three per cent of the respondents expressed more or similar levels of trust in Narendra Modi as compared to 2014 (when he came into power), representing satisfaction in his leadership capabilities for the last four years,” according to the survey.

The Congress, however, rubbished the findings and termed the survey as “wasteful” and “fake”. “A desperate Modi government has lost the faith of people and is facing imminent decimation in five poll-bound states. It is now only using its ill-gotten financial resources to latch onto fake surveys to find legitimacy. Such wasteful surveys will never prop up a government that has already been rejected by the government,” Congress chief spokesperson Randeep Surjewala said.

The survey also said that more than 50 per cent of the respondents believed that a second term for Modi “will provide them a better future”. When it comes to the five poll-bound states, the survey claimed the people in Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and Chhattisgarh are “currently keeping the faith in Modi”.

“Telangana is the only state bucking this trend,” it said without talking about the trend in Mizoram. The survey claimed 60 per cent of the respondents seem to trust Modi the most in order to uproot the longstanding issue of corruption.

“Interestingly, AAP National Convenor Arvind Kejriwal got higher precedence over Congress President Rahul Gandhi in this category,” it said, referring to the analysis of survey results of “trust and belief” factors.

“Sixty-two per cent of the respondents are confident that Narendra Modi is the best fit to lead the nation during a national crisis, followed by Rahul Gandhi, (17 per cent), Arvind Kejriwal, (8 per cent), Akhilesh Yadav, (3 per cent) and Mayawati, (2 per cent) respectively,” the survey said.

The statement by ‘Dailyhunt’ and Nielsen India clarified that the survey is motivated not by politics and that it was carried out to reflect the voice the people of the country. Prasun Basu, President, Nielsen (South Asia) said, “We used scientific methodology to help design the study and analyse data received from Dailyhunt platforms to arrive at the findings.” — PTI

16:40  Aasia acquittal: Pak army asks protestors to end standoff :  The Pakistan Army on Friday warned hundreds of radical Islamist hardliners not to test their “patience” and asked them to end the standoff peacefully to avoid the use of force as the mass protests against the acquittal of a Christian woman for blasphemy entered its third day.

Aasia Bibi, a 47-year-old mother of four, was convicted in 2010 after being accused of insulting Islam in a row with her neighbours. She always maintained her innocence, but has spent most of the past eight years in solitary confinement.

The apex court’s judgement, which was pronounced last Wednesday, triggered protests across Pakistan with protestors led by Islamic political party Tehreek-i-Labaik Pakistan and other groups blocking major highways and roads in different parts of the country.

Army spokesman Major General Asif Ghafoor told state-run channel PTV that a government team, including a representative of ISI was holding talks with the protestors. So far there were no reports about success of negotiations despite indications by the officials that a breakthrough might be reached. — PTI

16:25  SC issues notice to Vasundhara Raje, her son in Dholpur land deal :  The Supreme Court on Friday issued a notice to Rajasthan Chief Minister Vasundhara Raje and her son on a plea seeking a FIR against them for allegedly getting compensation of Rs 1.97 crore by selling a piece of government land to the National Highways Authority of India for widening a national highway in 2010.

A bench headed by Chief Justice of India Ranjan Gogoi sought a response from Raje, her son and others.

As per the petition, Raje was not a public servant at the time of the alleged commission of the offence in 2010. She was the Leader of Opposition in the Rajasthan legislative assembly.

The petition also stated that Raje and her son had allegedly illegally claimed ownership of a 567-square meter piece of land near the Dholpur Palace in Dholpur town, and sold it to the NHAI for Rs 1.97 crore that had caused a loss to the state exchequer.

A Rajasthan based lawyer, Srijana Shrestha, filed an appeal in the apex court challenging the Delhi High Court order which had dismissed the petition. — ANI

15:54  SC insulted Hindus by deferring Ram temple hearing: RSS:   A top RSS leader on Friday said the Supreme Court’s decision to defer hearing on the Ayodhya issue on the grounds that it was not a priority for it was an “insult” to Hindu sentiments.

Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh general secretary Bhaiyyaji Joshi said the organisation expected the apex court to decide on the Ram Janmabhoomi issue by taking into consideration the sentiments of the Hindu community as he vowed to launch an agitation if needed.

Addressing a press conference at the end of a three-day national executive body meeting of the RSS in Thane district, Joshi said, “We expected the court to decide on the Ram Janmabhoomi issue taking into consideration the sentiments of the Hindu community.”

He said the wait for the court’s verdict on the long-pending issue has been too long.

“A legal sanction is required to pave way for construction of the temple. The wait for court’s verdict has been too long. Since the matter was listed (for hearing) on October 29, we felt Hindus would get good news before Diwali.”

“But the Supreme Court refused to hear the matter and deferred the hearing. The court also said their priorities were different, when asked when the verdict would come,” Joshi said.

The RSS leader said it was a matter of pain and anguish that an issue which Hindus consider their faith and to which their sentiment is attached is not on the priority list of the court. — PTI

15:38  ‘Opened the door in your underwear’: This was former Asian Age journalist Tushita Patel’s experience with MJ Akbar. Read it here.

15:24  MJ Akbar’s wife’s statement :  Mallika Joseph’s statement on former Asian Age journalists Pallavi Gogoi and Tushita Patel accusing her husband MJ Akbar of rape and molestation respectively. 

15:19  Pallavi Gogoi flaunted her relationship with my husband: Akbar’s wife:  Mallika Joseph reacts to the rape and molestation accusations against her husband and former union minister MJ Akbar.

Speaking to news agency ANI, Joseph, a former journalist, working as a policy adviser with Global Partnership for the Prevention of Armed Conflict, released a statement on the issue that has forced her husband to step down as union minister.

Excerpts:

“I don’t know Pallavi’s reasons for telling this lie, but a lie it is.

“I have been silent all this while as a me too campaign has been unleashed against my husband, Mr. MJ Akbar. However, the Washington Post article by Pallavi Gogoi alleging that she was raped by him forces me to step in with what I know to be true.

“Over 20 yrs ago, Pallavi Gogoi caused unhappiness and discord in our home. I learned of her and my husbands involvement through her calls and her public display of affection in my presence. In her flaunting the relationship, she caused anguish and hurt to my entire family.

“At an Asian Age party at our home, crowded with young journalists, I have watched with mortification and pain as they danced close.  I had confronted my husband at the time and he decided to prioritize his family.

“Tushita Patel and Pallavi Gogoi were often at our home, happily drinking and dining with us. Neither carried the haunted look of victims of sexual assault. I dont know Pallavis reasons for telling this lie but a lie it is.”

Image: Mallika Joseph. Pic courtesy: @MallikaJoseph

15:08  Wife reacts to rape accusations on Akbar: Journalist is lying :  
Former Union minister MJ Akbar reacts to his former colleague at the Asian Age, Pallavi Gogoi, who in an report in the Washington Post on November 2, accused the former editor of rape.

Akbar responded to the accusation while speaking to news agency ANI saying, “On October 29, the Washington Post forwarded to my lawyers a series of cryptic and non-specific questions, regarding incidents alleged to have taken place approximately 23 years ago. These allegations were false and were consequently denied.

“On 2 November, 2018, the Washington Post ran a piece written by Ms. Pallavi Gogoi, detailing false allegations of rape and violence against me. I have had occasion to read this article and it has become necessary, at this point in time, to bring certain facts to light

“Somewhere around 1994, Ms. Pallavi Gogoi & I entered into a consensual relationship that spanned several months. This relationship gave rise to talk & would later cause strife in my home life as well. This consensual relationship ended, perhaps not on best note.

“People who worked with me and knew both of us have indicated that they would be happy to bear testimony to what is stated above and at no stage, did the behavior of Pallavi Gogoi, give any one of them impression that she was working under duress.”

Akbar’s wife Mallika Joseph, added, “I don’t know Pallavi’s reasons for telling this lie, but a lie it is.”

Gogoi, a US-based editor of a leading media house has accused former Union minister M J Akbar of raping her in India 23 years ago, saying the “brilliant journalist” used his position as the editor-in-chief of a newspaper to prey on her, an allegation denied by his lawyer.

Akbar, 67, who resigned from Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Union council of ministers in October after multiple women came out with accounts of alleged sexual harassment, has filed a criminal defamation case against one of them amid the raging #MeToo campaign in India.

The latest allegation of rape was levelled against him by Pallavi Gogoi, the chief business editor of National Public Radio (NPR), a Washington-based American media organisation.

She has detailed the “most painful memories” of her life in an article in The Washington Post.

Akbar’s lawyer Sandeep Kapur said: “My client states that these (allegations) are false and expressly denied”.

14:24  Qatar Airways clarifies, water tanker hit their plane :  Qatar Airways has clarified that their plane, which was parked at Kolkata’s Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose Airport, was hit by a water-servicing truck on Thursday.

Earlier, officials had reported that it was the plane that hit a water tanker during its arrival from Doha.

However, in an official statement, Qatar Airways specified that the aircraft was parked at its designated gate when a truck hit it.

The statement read, “Qatar Airways flight QR 541, scheduled to fly from Kolkata to Doha on 1 November, was stationary and parked at its designated gate when a water servicing truck came into contact with the aircraft prior to boarding.

“No passenger or crew member was injured in the incident. All passengers and crew were accommodated in hotels and are being assisted to ensure smooth onward connections to their final destinations. We regret any inconvenience caused and are doing our best to have passengers on their way,” the statement further added. — ANI

14:10  The curious case of Chinas missing 4th plenum:  ‘As China’s ruling Politburo wrapped up its October meeting on Wednesday, there was still no word on a key autumn meeting of the Communist Party, which according to party convention should be taking place soon if not convened already,’ reports Nectar Gan in the South China Morning Post.   

‘Usually, a third plenum would take place in the autumn, after the first plenum introduced the party’s new leadership immediately after the party congress and the second plenum settled personnel arrangements for state offices ahead of the annual legislative meetings in March,’ she writes, ‘But since the party’s 19th national congress in October, three plenums have already been convened by the new leadership. An extra one was convened at the start of the year to approve a controversial revision to the state constitution which scrapped the term limit that would have required Xi to step down in 2023.’   

And guess what? So far there has been no official word on the 4th plenum. 

Could it be that Beijing may be ‘waiting for the results of the US midterm elections and the meeting between Xi and US President Donald Trump at the G20 summit in Buenos Aires to make a better assessment’?   

Image: Chinese President Xi Jinping. Photograph: Themba Hadebe/Pool/Reuters

14:01  HC quashes I-T order sanctioning criminal prosecution against PC’s kin:  The Madras High Court Friday quashed an order passed by the Income Tax department sanctioning criminal prosecution against the family members of former Union minister P Chidambaram in a black money case.

When the petitions by Chidambaram’s wife Nalini, his son Karti and daughter-in-law Srinidhi came up, a division bench of justices S Manikumar and Subramania Prasad said no case was made out and quashed the criminal prosecution.

The writ petitions were filed challenging the criminal prosecution initiated by the I-T Department against them. — PTI

13:58  From the courts :  Bombay High Court: has refused to give interim stay on the construction of Chhatrapati Shivaji statue in the Arabian Sea near Mumbai.

2008 Malegaon blasts case: Next date of hearing is 12 November. List of 286 witnesses, 102 panch witnesses & 216 documents submitted before the Special NIA Court, Mumbai.

Delhi High Court: dismisses a PIL seeking orders to allow women of all ages to get entry in all temples, churches, mosques. The plea also called for reopening of women only Attukal temple and Kamakhya temple for entry of men.

13:48  US makes it tougher for companies to employ fresh foreign workers :  The Trump administration has introduced a new set of stringent provisions to the H-1B labour application process under which the US employers must disclose the total number of foreigners already employed by them, making it tougher to sponsor fresh foreign workers.

The H-1B visa, popular among Indian IT professionals, is a non-immigrant visa that allows US companies to employ foreign workers in speciality occupations that require theoretical or technical expertise.

The new information required by the Department of Labour is significant because before sponsoring a foreign worker for the H-1B visa, the company needs to get its labour application approved by it.

The department certifies that there are no domestic worker for that particular position and as such the company can hire a foreign guest worker under the H-1B visa category. — PTI

13:38  SC refuses to hear CBI’s Bofors case plea over 4500-day delay :  The Supreme Court Friday dismissed the CBI’s appeal against the Delhi High Court’s 2005 verdict discharging all the accused, including the Hinduja brothers, in the politically-sensitive Rs 64 crore Bofors pay-off case.

A bench headed by Chief Justice Ranjan Gogoi rejected the CBI plea seeking condonation of the 13 year delay in filing the appeal against the May 31, 2005 judgement of the high court.

It said it was not convinced with the grounds of the CBI to condone over 4,500 days’ delay in filing the appeal. The CBI had filed the appeal on February 2 this year. The apex court, however, said the CBI can raise all grounds in the appeal against the same high court verdict filed by advocate Ajay Agrawal who has also challenged the judgement.

The top court has already admitted the petition filed by Agrawal who had contested the 2014 Lok Sabha election against then Congress president Sonia Gandhi from Rae Bareilly.

Attorney General KK Venugopal asked the top court to make it clear in its order that dismissal of CBI appeal would not preclude the probe agency from carrying out investigation in the case.

The apex court, however, did not mention anything in its order on this issue. The high court in its 2005 judgement had quashed all charges against the three Hinduja brothers — S P Hinduja, G P Hinduja and P P Hinduja — and others under the Prevention of Corruption Act. — PTI

12:57  Amit Shah meets RSS chief Bhagwat :  Bharatiya Janata Party president Amit Shah met Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh chief Mohan Bhagwat in Mumbai Friday morning. Shah met several RSS leaders, including Bhagwat, at the sidelines of RSS executive meet, according to sources in the sangh.

Without divulging the details of the meeting which is being held in the Bhayandar area of suburban Mumbai, sources said that RSS functionary Bhaiyaji Joshi is likely to disclose information in the afternoon.

RSS’s national prachar pramukh Arun Kumar on Monday had said that the Supreme Court must take a decision on construction of Ram temple in Ayodhya or the central government should bring a law to pave the way for its construction.

12:49  PNB posts Rs 4532 cr loss in Q2:  Just In: Punjab National Bank (PNB) posts a loss of Rs 4,532.35 crore in the second quarter ended September 30: Regulatory filing.

12:48  Mr Modi can’t survive an inquiry on Rafale deal: Rahul:  

Congress president Rahul Gandhi addresses the media in Delhi on the Rafale deal. Excerpts from the press conference…

“Dassault invested Rs 284 crore in the company of Anil Ambani. Anil Ambani bought land with the same money.

“It is clear that Dassault CEO is lying. Why did they invest Rs 284 crore in a loss-making company?” the Congress president asked.

He said that Dassault CEO protecting only ‘one man who is running the country’.

“Rafale is an open and shut case. It is simply a PM Modi-Anil Ambani partnership,” Gandhi said.

“If an inquiry starts on this, Mr Modi is not going to survive it. Guaranteed. One, because of corruption. Two, because it’s very clear who the decision maker was…

“It was Narendra Modi and it was a deal done by Narendra Modi to give Anil Ambani Rs 30,000 crore,” he said.

He said that the Dassault CEO had said the reason HAL wasn’t given the contract was because Anil Ambani had land.

“Now it turns out that the land that Anil Ambani had was purchased by money given by Dassault,” Gandhi said.   — ANI

11:32  Ridley Scott working on ‘Gladiator’ sequel:  Veteran director Ridley Scott is planning a sequel to his multiple Oscar-winning film “Gladiator”. The original, released in 2000, featured actors Russell Crowe, Joaquin Phoenix and Conie Nielsen in the lead. According to Deadline, the director is set to take on the project for Paramount with a script to be written by Peter Craig. Craig is best known for penning the scripts of Ben Affleck’s “The Town” and “Hunger Games: Mockingjay”. He is currently working on Tom Cruise-starrer “Top Gun: Maverick”. The “Gladiator” sequel is in early stages of development, with Paramount currently in negotiations to land the project.

The story will reportedly focus on Lucius, the son of Lucilla (Nielsen) and the nephew of Commodus (Phoenix). “Gladiator” had won five Oscars at the 2001 Academy Awards, including Best Picture and Best Actor for Crowe.

Scott, 80, most recently helmed “All the Money in the World”, starring Michelle Williams and Mark Wahlberg, and is currently working on his first TV series, “Raised by Wolves”. — PTI

11:29  Supreme Court gets 4 new judges, still short of three :  Justices Hemant Gupta, R Subhash Reddy, MR Shah and Ajay Rastogi were Friday sworn in as judges of the Supreme Court, taking its strength to 28.

The swearing-in ceremony started at 10:30 am in court number 1 of the apex court and Chief Justice Ranjan Gogoi administered oath of office to the four judges.

The president had Thursday given his assent to the recommendation of the Supreme Court Collegium for elevating Gupta, Reddy, Shah and Rastogi, who were chief justices of different high courts, as apex court judges.

While Justice Gupta was the chief justice of the Madhya Pradesh High Court, Justice Reddy was the Gujarat High Court’s chief justice. Justice Shah was the chief justice of the Patna High Court and Justice Rastogi was the chief justice of the Tripura High Court.

The apex court has a sanctioned strength of 31. With the elevation of these four new judges, the strength has risen from 24 to 28. — PTI

Image: Chief Justice of India Ranjan Gogoi.

11:17  Assam police launches massive combing ops for killers of Ludo players:  The Assam Police Friday launched a massive combing operation to nab those involved the killing of five people in Tinsukia district on Thursday even as the ULFA (Independent) denied its involvement in the attack.

Director General of Police Kuladhar Saikia and Additional DGP Mukesh had rushed to Tinsukia to review the law and order situation.

A massive combing operation was launched to nab the accused, police said. All the possible hideouts were being combed and senior officials were directed by Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal to remain alert.

A bandh, called by the All Assam Bengali Federation, was also being observed on Friday in the district protesting against the attack.

Vehicles were off the roads and shops were closed. No untoward incident was reported till 9 am, police said.

Five people, including three of a family, were killed and two others injured at Kheronibari village under Dholla police station limits while they were playing a game of Ludo at a roadside dhaba, they said. The police had Thursday expressed suspicion that the ULFA (I) was behind the incident but the organisation denied its involvement.

Publicity Department member of the ULFA(I) Romel Asom in a statement e-mailed to PTI said, “The ULFA (I) would like to make it clear to all concerned authorities that our organisation does not have any involvement in the firing incident last night.”

In view of Thursday night’s attack, security has been beefed up in the state with the chief minister directing all deputy commissioners and superintendents of police to remain alert.

Condemning “the killing of innocent people”, Sonowal had said, “Strong action will be taken against the perpetrators of this dastardly violence. We will not tolerate such cowardly act.” Water Resource Minister, Keshav Mahanta, and Minister of State for Power, Tapan Gogoi, are in the district to take stock of the situation. Political parties and organisations across the state condemned the killing and demanded that the culprits be immediately nabbed. — PTI

Image: The All Assam Bengali Youth Students Federation has called a 12-hour shutdown in Tinsukia in protest against the murder of five people allegedly killed by ULFA terrorists in Bishnoimukh village near Dhola-Sadiya bridge in the district yesterday.

10:58  BJP leader, his brother killed by terrorists in J-K :  BJP Jammu and Kashmir secretary Anil Parihar and his brother were shot by terrorists in Jammu and Kashmir’s Kishtwar district on Thursday. The two later died at a hospital.The incident took place at around 8 pm today.

“Soon after the incident, they were immediately taken to a hospital where they succumbed to injuries,” BJP State President Ravinder Raina said.

Curfew has been imposed in Kishtwar. Police is now investigating the matter. – ANI

10:50  Snowfall at the Pir Panjal range in Kashmir this morning.

10:43  In TN burst crackers from 6-7 am and 7-8 pm:  Tamil Nadu government fixes a time slot for the bursting of crackers during Diwali. People will be allowed to burst crackers between 6 am and 7 am and 7 pm and 8 pm during the festival. The State Pollution Control Board will monitor air quality for seven days before and after the festival in all corporations.

This comes after the Supreme Court Tuesday modified its order which had fixed 8 pm to 10 pm as slot for bursting firecrackers on Diwali and other festivals, saying that authorities in states are at liberty to change the timings but the duration will not exceed two hours a day.

The TN government had sought permission for the bursting of crackers on Diwali morning in accordance with the religious practices in the state.

10:33  Happy birthday, SRK:  First look at a new poster of the upcoming Shah Rukh Khan film, Zero: “On his birthday today, the makers of #Zero unveil the new poster featuring SRK… #ZeroTrailer will be launched later in the day… #HappyBirthdaySRK,” tweets Taran Adarsh. 

10:26  Did not target media, DD cameraman was caught in ambush: Naxals :  Naxals today released a statement on the Dantewada attack, that left security personnel and a Doordarshan cameraman dead. The letter said that, ‘DD Cameraman Achutyanand Sahu was killed after being caught in the ambush and we had no intention of targeting the media.’

Police have howerver rubbished the statement. Dantewada SP Abhishek Pallav said, “Why was the camera looted? Because it had recorded evidence of what happened in the first few minutes of targeted media ambush. Multiple bullet wounds and skull fractures on the martyred cameraman in no ways indicates it was by mistake.”

Union Minister Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore has announced a compensation of Rs 15 lakh and a job to Sahus widow.  The Information and Broadcasting Minister strongly condemned the attack on Doordarshan News crew in Dantewada. Deeply saddened by the demise of our cameraman Achyuta Nanda Sahu and two jawans of CRPF. These insurgents will not weaken our resolve. We will prevail, he said.

The attacks came in the wake of Naxals warning the locals to stay out of the Assembly elections to be held in two phases on November 12 and 20. Meanwhile, about 65,000 troops from various Central and state police forces will be deployed for the first phase of the Assembly polls in the state, officials said.

Image: DD cameraman Achyutanand Sahu.

10:05  Sensex rallies over 400 points on strong global cues, falling crude prices:  The BSE benchmark Sensex Friday soared over 413 points to 34,845.15 and the NSE Nifty raced past 10,500 on widespread gains amid fresh foreign fund inflows, fall in global crude prices and rising rupee.

Positive leads from most other Asian markets on easing concerns over the US-China trade war, too, buoyed sentiments here.

The 30-share Sensex climbed 413.15 points, or 1.20 per cent, to quote at 34,845.15. The gauge had shed 10 points in Thursday’s volatile session. The NSE Nifty leaped 122.85 points, or 1.18 per cent, to 10,503.30. Investor sentiment got a big push after Brent crude, the international benchmark, dropped below the USD 73-mark to quote at a seven-month low of USD 72.65 by falling 3.48 per cent, traders said. — PTI

09:53  Lawyer Niteen Pradhan fined Rs 25,000 by Bhima-Koregaon probe panel:  Jyoti Punwani reports: Niteen Pradhan, the advocate representing Milind Ekbote, one of the two Hindutva leaders accused of instigating violence in and around Bhima Koregaon on January 1,  2018, was on Thursday, November 1, fined 25,000 by the the Bhima Koregaon Commission of Inquiry for coming three hours late.   

The commission’s hours in Mumbai are from 3 pm to 6 pm. Pradhan arrived at 6 pm. He was busy at the Bombay high court.    

The proceedings remained in limbo till Pradhan arrived since the two lawyers scheduled to cross-examine the witness, Kiran Channa appearing for victim Ravindra Chandane and Shishir Hiray appearing for the government and the police,  wanted Pradhan’s cross examination to conclude before they began.   

“This sends a very wrong message,” Justice J N Patel (retd),  the commission chairman, told Pradhan. “The witness has been waiting all this time.”    

Just as Pradhan offered to compensate the witness Bhimrao Bansod, Justice Patel told him he was imposing costs on him:  Rs 25,000 to be paid to the Tata Memorial Hospital, and the receipt brought to the commission.    

He also directed Pradhan to wind up his cross by 7 pm.   

Thursday was the fourth day that Pradhan was cross examining Bansod.    Bansod, an Ambedkarite activist and trade unionist,  has filed an affidavit which consists of a fact-finding report into the January 1 violence.    

Brought out by a four-member team led by writer and Left activist Dr Bharat Patankar, the report blames the followers of Milind Ekbote and Sambhaji Bhide, another Hindutva leader, for the violence.     

Bansod was part of the team which visited Bhima Koregaon and other areas affected by the violence three days after it took place.  

09:43  Imran arrives in China on maiden visit for talks on CPEC:  

Imran Khan arrived in Beijing on Friday in what is termed as the most significant visit to China by a Pakistani Prime Minister in recent years as the all-weather allies grapple to iron out differences over the multi-billion China-Pakistan Economic Corridor and Islamabad approaching ‘friendly nations’ to avoid a tough International Monetary Fund bailout package.

Khan arrived in the early hours for his four-day visit, official sources said.

He is scheduled to hold talks with Chinese President Xi Jinping and Premier Li Keqiang on shoring up the all-weather ties. Both the countries are expected to sign several agreements.

He will also attend China’s International Import Expo on November 5 in Shanghai during the visit, billed as the most significant one by a Pakistani Prime Minister to China in recent years.

Reports in the Pakistan media said Khan was accompanied by Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi, Finance Minister Asad Umar, Advisor on Commerce and Trade Abdul Razzak Dawood, Railways Minister Sheikh Rasheed among others.

Khan’s visit evoked considerable interest here as it comes in the wake of his past criticism of the $50 billion CPEC projects and remarks by his ministers to cut down some of the projects over debt concern.

The cricketer-turned-politician, during his first visit to China, is also expected to seek more Chinese loans to avoid approaching IMF for a bailout package.

He secured $3 billion funding from his recent visit to Saudi Arabia besides differed payment for oil imports worth about $3 billion for a year.

Pakistan has already approached the IMF but is concerned about the stringent conditions the international lender may impose specially to scrutinise the CPEC projects.

For its part, China is also concerned about critical remarks made by Ministers from Khan’s Cabinet.

While Dawood told the Financial Times that some of the agreements were unfair to Pakistani companies and should be put on hold for a year, Rashid said that Pakistan wants to cut the size of the $8 billion Karachi-Peshawar rail line, the biggest project of the CPEC, by $2 billion.

The statements evoked serious concerns in China as the CPEC is the flagship project of Xi’s pet project multi-billion-dollar Belt and Road Initiative (BRI).  — PTI

08:42  Brazilian Prez-elect plans to relocate embassy in Israel to Jerusalem:  

Brazil’s President-elect Jair Bolsonaro has declared his intentions to move the country’s embassy in Israel from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem once he assumes office.

“Israel is a sovereign state. If you decide on your capital city, we will act in accordance. When I was asked during the campaign if I’ll do it when I was president, I said yes,” Bolsonaro told Israel Hayom in his first interview since his election victory, Washington Post reported.

The move will follow the lead of the US President Donald Trump-led administration, which acknowledged Jerusalem as the Israeli capital last year and, in May, shifted their embassy from Tel Aviv.

Since the move, officials from Palestine have withheld engagements with their US counterparts.

Jerusalem is a disputed city as Palestinians regard East Jerusalem, which was occupied by Israel in the 1967 Arab-Israeli War, as the capital of the future independent state they demand.

Guatemala and Paraguay are the only two countries to have implemented the move after the US so far, although Paraguay later rescinded their decision.

Several other countries have indicated that they will also shift their embassies to Jerusalem in the future.

Though Brazil and Israel have a long history of bilateral relations, their relations have been strained in recent years. Brazil had in 2014 criticised the use of ‘disproportionate’ armed forces by Israel in the Gaza Strip, with an Israeli Foreign Ministry spokesman labelling the South American nation a ‘diplomatic dwarf’ and an ‘irrelevant diplomatic partner’.

Bolsonaro, who will assume the office of the Brazilian President from January 1, has often hinted towards his wish for closer ties with Israel, pledging his support for the Middle Eastern nation on the international stage during the interview with Israel Hayom.

“Rest assured that you can depend on our vote in the UN on almost all the issues having to do with Israel,” Bolsonaro said.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu took to Twitter, to laud the move to relocate the embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem.

‘Congratulations my friend, the incoming Brazilian President, Jair Bolsonaro, on his intention to move the Brazilian Embassy to Jerusalem. This is a historic step, right and exciting!’ Netanyahu tweeted.

Bolsonaro also said that he intended to shift the Palestinian Embassy in Brasilia, saying, “It was built too close to the presidential palace. No embassy can be so close to the presidential palace, so we intend to move it.”

During Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva’s tenure as the President, Brazil had recognised Palestine as a sovereign nation, which Bolsonaro has indicated he is opposed to.

“Palestine first needs to be a state to have the right to an embassy,” Brazil’s President-elect said.  — ANI

08:36  IMF against any govt move that ‘compromises RBI’s independence’:  

The International Monetary Fund has said it was monitoring the development in India with regard to the reported rift between the Reserve Bank of India and the Centre.

It expressed its opposition to any move that compromises with the independence of central banks anywhere in the world.

“We’re monitoring the development on that issue and will continue to do so,” IMF Director of Communications Gerry Rice told reporters on Thursday when asked about the row.

“Just stepping back, as a general principal, and we’ve said this before. I’ve said this before standing here that we support clear lines of responsibility and accountability…

“And, international best practice is that there should be no government or industry interference that compromises the independence of the central bank and financial supervisor,” Rice said.

This is true across the range of countries that the independence of the central bank and the financial supervisor is of utmost importance, he asserted.

“We regard it as such and we have to make that statement in the context of a number of countries. So, I think that’s probably the best response I can give you,” Rice said, responding to a question on the increasing efforts globally to criticise central banks, including the one by the US President Donald Trump in recent weeks.

The row was sparked off last Friday when RBI Deputy Governor Viral Acharya in a hard-hitting speech warned that undermining central bank’s independence could be ‘potentially catastrophic’, possible indication of the RBI being pushed to relax its policies ahead of general elections next year.

Sources privy to development said the government had sent at least three letters on different issues under Section 7 of the RBI Act that gives it powers to issue any direction to the central bank governor on matters of public interest.

The standoff was in relation to RBI’s handling of weak public sector banks, tight liquidity in the market and ways of resolving bad loans in the power sector.

Unconfirmed reports claimed Governor Urjit Patel was considering stepping down if the government were to issue an unprecedented direction.

Without acknowledging that the notices have been sent to the RBI, the Finance Ministry in a statement said that the ‘autonomy for the central bank, within the framework of the RBI Act, is an essential and accepted governance requirement. Governments in India have nurtured and respected this’.  —  PTI

00:04  CJI opens courtrooms, judges’ library for common people on Saturdays:  

The Supreme Court as a “public institution” needed to be opened for common people on Saturdays barring holidays, Chief Justice of India Ranjan Gogoi said Thursday.

 

The CJI also inaugurated the Centre for Research and Planning, an “in-house think tank” and launched a portal through which citizens can book their visit to the court, which will be open from 10 AM to 1 PM every Saturday, except on declared holidays.

The common public can now have a guided tour of courtrooms, judges’ library on Saturdays.

The think tank would carry out “cutting-edge research” into fundamental jurisprudence and the principles and doctrines of law as well as on judicial reforms for improvement in justice delivery system. 

“As my colleagues are concerned I really seek a post-facto approval. The decision was entirely mine. I did not consult any of you. I apologise for it but I hope you will approve of it,” the CJI said candidly when discussing the aspects to be covered by the ‘think tank’. 

In a function organised at Judges’ lounge, Justice Gogoi said, “The in-house centre will be a very small body but it will be meant for domain experts all over the country who will be contributing their line of thoughts.”

The main mandate of the think tank would be to collect, assimilate and disseminate inputs for judicial reforms, legal education and development of jurisprudence of the Supreme Court of India.

Dealing with the aspect of throwing open the gates of apex court for common public, Justice Gogoi said, “It is an experiment, a very limited exposure to the Supreme Court, a public institution that I thought should be opened up in a limited way.”

Professor Mohan Gopal, academician and former vice chancellor of National Law School of India, Bangalore, also spoke at the programme.

He said the think tank could play an important role in better explaining to the general public, the work of the Supreme Court.

“We are setting out on a very important venture to create a permanent body of knowledge that can be accessed by the entire legal fraternity and by the public that will improve the better understanding of the working of the judiciary and the justice system,” he said. — PTI

Photograph: Ravi Choudhary/PTI Photo