Anti-rape Bill delayed again, referred to GoM

March 12, 2013
New Delhi, Mar 12: A bill which seeks to make punishment for crime against women more stringent was today referred to a Group of Ministers for further consultations after differences erupted in the meeting of the Union Cabinet on certain provisions, including lowering the age of consensual sex to 16 years.

anti-rapeSources said the hour-long special Cabinet meeting convened to clear the bill could not arrive at an agreement, following which Prime Minister Manmohan Singh referred it to a GoM.

The proposed GoM is likely to have Finance Minister P Chidambaram, Women and Child Development Minister Krishna Tirath, Law Minister Ashwani Kumar, Home Minister Sushilkumar Shinde and Telecom Minister Kapil Sibal, sources said.

While there was unanimity in the Cabinet to pass the Bill, certain issues remained unresolved.

The bill proposes that the age of consent be lowered from 18 to 16. The issue had led to lengthy inter-ministry consultations with some arguing that it should not be reduced. The Women and Child Development Ministry had opposed the move.

Sexual intercourse under the age of consent is considered statutory rape.

Sources also said some senior ministers were not able to agree on issues such as whether the word "rape" - which is more gender specific- should replace "sexual assault" - which is gender neutral - in the proposal, and how to define voyeurism and stalking, which the bill identifies as criminal offences. The two were for the first time defined as criminal offsenses in the ordinance.

Some ministers expressed concern about not enough safeguards against false evidence and testimony.

The bill retains a key provision of the ordinance under which if rape leads to death of the victim or leaves her in a vegetative state, it can also attract death penalty. The minimum punishment is 20 years in jail which may extend upto the "natural life" of the convict.

The Criminal Law (Amendment) Bill, 2013 will replace the February 3 Criminal Law (Amendment) Ordinance.

The Ordinance will lapse on April 4 - six weeks from February 21 when the Budget session was convened.

Since the ordinance is the 'law of the land' as of today, cases of rape and similar crimes will continue to be registered under its provisions till the President signs the new bill to make it into law.

The Criminal Law (Amendment) Bill, 2012 introduced in the Lok Sabha in December last will be scrapped once the new bill is introduced in Parliament, most likely later this week.

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Agencies
June 12,2020

Google on Friday announced the launch of a new feature on Google Search, Assistant, and Maps for users in India to help them find information on COVID-19 testing centres near them.

The search giant has partnered with the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) and MyGov to provide the information on authorised testing labs.

The feature is currently available in English and eight Indian languages including Hindi, Telugu, Tamil, Malayalam, Kannada, Bengali, Gujarati, and Marathi.

According to the company, users will now see a new "Testing" tab on the search result page providing a list of nearby testing labs along with key information and guidance needed before using their services.

On Google Maps, when users search for keywords like "COVID testing" or "coronavirus testing" they will see a list of nearby testing labs, with a link to Google Search for the government-mandated requirements.

Google said that the Search, Assistant, and Maps currently feature 700 testing labs across 300 cities and working with authorities to identify and add more testing labs located across the country.

The company reiterates that it is important to follow the recommended guidelines that help determine testing eligibility before visiting.

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News Network
January 27,2020

New Delhi, Jan 27: The government on Monday issued the preliminary information memorandum for 100 per cent stake sale in national carrier Air India. As part of the strategic disinvestment, Air India would also sell 100 per cent stake in low cost airline Air India Express and 50 per cent shareholding in joint venture AISATS, as per the bid document issued on Monday.

Management control of the airline would also be transferred to the successful bidder.

The government has set March 17 as the deadline for submitting the Expression of Interest (EoI).

EY is the transaction adviser for Air India disinvestment process.

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Agencies
February 14,2020

Lucknow, Feb 14: Uttar Pradesh doctor Kafeel Khan was on Friday booked under the National Security Act (NSA) over his alleged anti-CAA speech at Aligarh Muslim University on December 12, 2019.

The Uttar Pradesh slapped NSA on Kafeel Khan on Friday even as the doctor waited to be released from jail despite being granted bail on Monday in connection with his alleged inflammatory speech.

SP Crime Dr Arvind said that there were sufficient grounds to book the doctor under NSA.

The suspended pediatrician, Kafeel Khan, was arrested for allegedly delivering a controversial speech during Anti-CAA protests on December 12 at the Aligarh Muslim University or AMU. While he was granted bail on Monday, his family members claimed on Thursday that he was yet to be released.

Dr Kafeel Khan's brother Adeel Ahmed Khan had issued a statement saying that despite being granted bail Mathura jail authorities had not honoured the court's order.

Dr Kafeel Khan was arrested by the UP Special Task Force from Mumbai on January 29 for participating anti-CAA protest at AMU. A case was registered against him at the Civil Lines police station here for promoting enmity between different religions.

After his arrest in Mumbai, Dr Khan was brought to Aligarh, from where he was shifted to the district jail in neighbouring Mathura.

According to police, this was done as a precautionary measure in view of the anti-CAA protests on the AMU campus and at the Eidgah grounds in the old city. Police had said that the Dr Khan's presence in the Aligarh jail could have aggravated the law and order situation in the city.

The doctor was earlier arrested for his alleged role in the death of over 60 children in one week at the BRD Medical College in Gorakhpur in August 2017. Short supply of oxygen at the children's ward was blamed at that time for the deaths.

About two years later, a state government probe cleared Khan of all major charges, prompting him to seek an apology from the Yogi Adityanath government.

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