1. Law for Ram Temple the Only Option: RSS’ Sarkaryavah Suresh ‘Bhaiyaji’ Joshi
Two days before Parliament meets in its Winter Session, RSS Sarkaryavah Suresh ‘Bhaiyaji’ Joshi told a rally of Hindu religious leaders and their followers in Delhi that a law to build the Ram temple in Ayodhya was now the “only option” and the “ruling dispensation” should deliver on its commitment.
Hansdevacharya Maharaj, a prominent religious figure from Haridwar, told the gathering that the sants would not allow Narendra Modi to leave the post of Prime Minister before the BJP had fulfilled its promise to build the Ram temple.
Sunday’s (9 December) gathering was much bigger than the similar Dharma Sabhas that the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) has organised in Nagpur, Ayodhya, Bengaluru, and Mumbai in recent weeks to press for the construction of the temple in Ayodhya.
(Source: The Indian Express)
2. Verdict in Case to Extradite Mallya from UK Expected Today
A UK court is likely to deliver on Monday, 10 December, its verdict in a trial to decide on the extradition of beleaguered liquor tycoon Vijay Mallya, who is wanted in India for alleged fraud and money laundering worth about Rs 9,000 crore.
A joint team of officials from the Central Bureau of Investigation and Enforcement Directorate left for London on Sunday, 9 December, to attend the court proceedings. The team is led by CBI’s joint director A Sai Manohar, who now heads the agency’s special investigation team in absence of special director Rakesh Asthana.
(Source: Hindustan Times)
3. 14-Year-Old Boy Among 3 Terrorists Killed in J&K
A 14-year-old boy was among three Lashkar-e -Taiba terrorists killed in an 18-hour-long encounter, which also left four securitymen and three civilians injured at Mujgund on Srinagar’s outskirts on Sunday, 9 December.
The terrorists were identified as minor Mudasir Rashid Parray, Saqib Mushtaq and Ali Bhai, a Pakistani national.
The injured security personnel — an Army jawan, two cops and a CRPF manwere admitted to a hospital. A senior police officer said that joint team of the Special Operations Group (SOG), CRPF and the Army had launched a cordon and search operation on Saturday, 8 December, on the house where the three were hiding, leading to a fierce gunfight.
(Source: The Times of India)
4. 2019 Framework, House Strategy on Oppn Agenda
Agrarian distress and allegations of corruption against the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-led government at the Centre are likely to be the key planks for leaders from different opposition parties to come together at a crucial meeting on Monday, 10 December, according to people familiar with the matter.
“The meeting will focus on identifying issues that will be important for the people and can form the bedrock of the Opposition’s campaign against the Narendra Modi-led National Democratic Alliance government in the coming months,” said a senior Opposition leader.
Those who have been invited for the meeting, arranged by Telugu Desam Party Chief N Chandrababu Naidu, are UPA Chairperson Sonia Gandhi, Congress Chief Rahul Gandhi, DMK Chief MK Stalin, Bahujan Samaj Party Chief Mayawati, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, Samajwadi Party President Akhilesh Yadav, Rashtriya Janata Dal leader Tejashwi Yadav, Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, Farooq Abdullah of the National Conference and West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, among others.
(Source: Hindustan Times)
5. After a BJP MP Backs Accused, Another Takes Aim at Murdered Cop
Days after a BJP MP came out in support of the main accused in the killing of SHO Subodh Kumar Singh following a brutal attack by a mob over the alleged killing of cows in Bulandshahr, another MP from the party, has chipped in, this time to point fingers at the slain policeman.
Meerut MP Rajendra Agrawal told The Indian Express on Sunday, 9 December, that the team investigating the violence last Monday, 3 December, should also check whether the SHO became a target because the station under his charge allegedly failed to check cow slaughter and cattle smuggling.
“Whatever has happened in Bulandshahr on 3 December leading to the death of the Siana Station House Officer in mob lynching is highly deplorable. But the probe team should also include within its purview why no action was taken by the SHO in connection with the FIR lodged regarding cow smuggling at the Siana police station before the violence,” Agarwal said.
(Source: The Indian Express)
6. BJP, Cong Focus on Fringe Players Ahead of Assembly Results
With exit polls pointing to close contests and even hung assemblies, smaller parties and independents have acquired a disproportionate importance as BJP and Congress managers look to mop up numbers in the event of a shortfall that leaves the parties stranded at less than the majority mark.
The dramatic turn of events in Karnataka is fresh in the minds of the BJP and the Congress as the initial saffron surge petered out and the party fell short of seven MLAs, paving the way for a Congress-JD(S) alliance in which the smaller regional party wrested the chief minister’s post.
While the current crop of polls are largely a Congress versus BJP affair, leaving no room for a JD(S)- type player, exit polls seem to have set the cat among the pigeons in four states where elections were held.
(Source: The Times of India)
7. New J&K Security Law by Governor, for Governor
J&K is set to get a new security force — this time, to protect the Governor and his family — with the move getting the green signal from the State Administrative Council, headed by Governor Satyapal Malik himself.
J&K already has the Special Security Group (SSG) on the lines of the Special Protection Group (SPG) at the Centre to provide security to the chief minister, former chief ministers and their families. The Governor’s security is currently being handled by J&K Police’s security wing under an SP-rank officer.
The new Jammu and Kashmir Governor’s Special Security Force Bill, 2018 has “provisions related to the constitution and regulation of a separate security force in the State of Jammu and Kashmir for providing proximate security to the Governor, members of his immediate family and matters connected therewith.”
(Source: The Indian Express)
8. Thirty Lakh in Assam May Lose Right to Vote
Around 30 lakh Assam residents who were excluded from the draft National Register of Citizens (NRC) and have not filed claims for inclusion in the final list may be staring at losing the right to vote.
With just about 10 lakh of the 40 lakh excluded residents having filed a claim, Union Home Ministry officials are insisting that the NRC cannot be disregarded as a proof of citizenship. The stance is at odds with that of the Election Commission, which has maintained that those left out of the list would not be automatically disenfranchised.
(Source: The Times of India)
9. Facing Probe by UPA Govt, Jignesh Shah’s Firm Rented Farmhouse Owned by Rahul, Priyanka
Raising questions of propriety, Rahul Gandhi, then Congress vice president, and sister Priyanka Gandhi Vadra rented their 4.69-acre farmhouse in Delhi to Jignesh Shah-promoted Financial Technologies (India) Ltd in early 2013 when the Congress-led UPA government was investigating the National Spot Exchange Ltd (NSEL), a company promoted by FTIL, for alleged market irregularities.
The rent agreement between FTIL and Rahul and Priyanka, is dated 1 February 2013, almost 10 months after NSEL received a show-cause notice for alleged violation of norms. The NSEL scam became public in July 2013 and the agreement was ended in October 2013, two months before the lease would have expired on 31 December, 2013.
Both FTIL and the Congress said that this was a routine business transaction.
(Source: The Indian Express)
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