QBullet: 7 Indians Abducted in Afghanistan; No CBI Probe in Kathua
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1. Seven Indian Workers Abducted from North Afghanistan
Seven Indian engineers and an Afghan national working for a power plant project in northern Afghanistan’s Baghlan were kidnapped by a group of armed men on Sunday, 6 May, officials said.
The group was travelling in a largely Taliban-controlled area when the eight people were abducted from their vehicle, Baghlan police spokesperson Zabihullah Shuja said.
External affairs ministry spokesperson Raveesh Kumar confirmed the incident. “We are aware of the abduction of Indian nationals from Baghlan province in Afghanistan. We are in contact with Afghan authorities and further details are being ascertained,” he said.
The Indian nationals are employees of KEC International Limited, an infrastructure company that recently bagged a ₹226 crore contract in the war-torn country as a sub-contractor of Da Afghanistan Breshna Sherkat (DABS), which operates power generating stations.
(Source: Hindustan Times)
2. Survivors May Get to Report Child Sex Abuse till Age 25
For people who have been sexually abused as children, the Union Ministry of Women and Child Development (WCD) is seeking a seven-year time limit, after they turn 18, to report such offences, senior ministry officials familiar with the development said.
If the move gets a nod from the Centre, it will mean survivors will have to file a complaint before they turn 25, after which the statute of limitations will expire.
The issue was discussed at a review meeting chaired by women and child development minister Maneka Gandhi last week. “It was decided that having a specific time limit will help ensure that evidences or samples in sexual offence cases such as rape and molestation are good enough to stand scrutiny,” said a ministry official who asked not to be named.
(Source: Hindustan Times)
3. Wani Aide, Professor Among 5 Hizbul Men Killed in Kashmir
The death of Kashmir University teacher Mohammad Rafi Bhat in a gunfight with security forces on Sunday 6 May, has left his family, friends and students shocked and at a loss to explain his decision to join militant ranks.
The assistant professor of sociology was among the five militants killed in a fierce gun battle fire in Badigam in south Kashmir’s Shopian.
The 32-year-old’s stint with militancy was perhaps the shortest in the Valley — he is believed to have joined the Hizbul Mujahideen Friday afternoon and was dead early Sunday.
“It was a shock. He never discussed militancy with us nor did he show any inclination towards it,” said Mudasir Rasool Mir, who is pursuing a PhD in social work at Kashmir University in Srinagar.
(Source: Hindustan Times)
4. Mehbooba: Don’t Need CBI Probe in Kathua, If Not J&K Police, Then Who to Trust
J&K Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti has said there is “absolutely no need for a CBI probe” into the rape and murder of an eight-year-old Bakerwal girl in Kathua and “if you don’t trust J&K Police, there is no one left to be trusted in the state”.
Mufti said that “to question the officers of the Crime Branch team based on their religion or which region they belong to is shameful and dangerous”. “Each time there is a crime, we can’t organise a referendum to choose the team of investigators,” she said, adding, “Those who question the Crime Branch investigation have a vested interest and their aim is to protect the perpetrators of this heinous crime”.
On Monday, 7 May, the Supreme Court is hearing a petition filed by the biological father of the victim who has sought transfer of the trial to Chandigarh. The J&K government is against transferring the trial outside the state.
(Source: The Indian Express)
5. Five Women Were Raped Every Day in Delhi in First 100 Days of 2018
More than five women were raped every day in the national capital in the first three and a half months this year, according to Delhi Police statistics, PTI reported on 6 May.
The police claimed that in 96.63 percent of the rape cases reported last year, the accused was known to the victim.
According to the data, 578 rape cases were reported to the police till 15 April this year as against 563 in 2017 during the same period.
However, the statistics showed a decline in the number of molestation cases reported this year.
In 2017, as many as 944 cases of assault on women were reported till 15 April, while 883 cases were reported this year during the same period, according to the data.
(Source: The Times of India)
6. Jinnah Portrait Row: AMU Campus Reverberates with Slogans of ‘Azadi from RSS’
A video clip of Aligarh Muslim University (AMU) students raising slogans of ‘azadi’ from “RSS and BJP”, in the aftermath of the Jinnah portrait controversy and clashes on campus, was widely shared online on Sunday, 6 May.
President of AMU Students Union Mashkoor Ahmad Usmani admitted that students had raised slogans of freedom for the country from RSS. “We are demanding a ‘Sangh-free India’. The time has come to launch a countrywide movement to rid it of people who are dividing the nation and creating hatred among communities by spreading venom.”
Right-wing activists retaliated by raising slogans such as “We gave azadi to Afzal Guru, Ajmal Kasab and will give it to others” at a rally at SMB College on GT Road.
Speaking to media, convenor of Aligarh unit of RSS affiliate Dharm Jagran Samiti Saurabh Chaudhary said, “Our slogans are for those who are indulging in anti-national activities and demanding freedom.”
(Source: The Times of India)
7. China Here to Stay in Indian Ocean, Keeping Eye: Navy Chief
The People’s Liberation Army-Navy (PLAN) is here to stay in the Indian Ocean and its military movement has fuelled concerns about China’s intent in the region, India’s senior-most military commander said on 6 May.
Navy chief Admiral Sunil Lanba said the Navy is keeping a sharp eye on “the pattern and periodicity of extra-regional deployments” in the Indian Ocean Region. A fleet of 50 combat-ready Indian warships is carrying out round-the-clock surveillance, he said.
“Their (PLAN) headquarters is now used to handling forward deployments. Over the last decade, China has developed the capacity to operate its warships at a great distance from its shores and for long periods of time,” Lanba said in an interview. He is the country’s top military leader as chairman, chiefs of staff committee — a panel consisting of the three service chiefs.
(Source: Hindustan Times)
8. Offer Namaz Only Inside Mosques, Says Haryana CM Khattar
Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar said on Sunday, 6 May, – after right wing hindu groups prevented Muslims from performing their Friday prayers in public spaces in Gurugram – that namaz should be performed only in mosques and that too on designated days.
Several Hindutva groups on Friday prevented prayers at three places; Cyber Park, IFFCO Chowk and a plot near Sahara Mall in Gurugram.
Khattar said that there was an increase in instances of namaz being offered in the open these days leading to protests from the local residents. So such congregations should be restricted to mosques or Idgahs rather than public areas.
“In our point of view, namaz should be offered at their designated places. Namaz should be offered at mosque and Eidgah. If there is shortage of place for namaz, then it should be offered at personal place. These are not such issues which should be displayed at public places,” he said.
(Source: The New Indian Express)
9. Justice Kurian Joseph Slams Government over Supreme Court Stand-Off
Supreme Court judge Justice Kurian Joseph on Sunday, 6 May, chose to publicly express his disagreement with the Centre on the issue of Uttarakhand High Court Chief Justice KM Joseph’s proposed elevation to the apex court, saying, “Things that shouldn’t have happened are happening. Things that haven’t happened so far are also happening.”
Justice Kurian said, “The list of names sent by the collegium getting altered, cut short and later sent back has never happened before. The hope is that there would be discussions on how it happened so that it wouldn’t happen again,” during a book release in Ernakulam.
On 28 April, he had told reporters in Thrissur that the collegium, which was scheduled to meet on 2 May, was planning to send back Justice KM Joseph’s name to the Central government for reconsideration. However, the collegium subsequently decided to defer discussion on the matter.
(Source: The Times of India)
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