HC may pronounce verdict on plea to trace Najeeb Ahmed

Agencies
October 7, 2018

New Delhi, Oct 7: The Delhi High Court is likely to pronounce Monday its verdict in a plea for tracing JNU student Najeeb Ahmed, who went missing from the university nearly two years ago.

A bench of justices S Muralidhar and Vinod Goel had on September 4 reserved its decision on the petition filed by the student's mother after concluding hearing of arguments of her lawyer and that of the CBI, which took over the investigation on May 16 last year.

Ahmed had gone missing from the Mahi-Mandvi hostel of the Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) on October 15, 2016, following a scuffle with some other students, allegedly affiliated to the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP), the previous night.

The CBI, which took over the probe from the Delhi Police, told the court that it has decided to file a closure report in the case as it has investigated all the angles and does not think that any offence was committed against the missing person.

However, the lawyer for the student's mother, Fatima Nafees, contended in court that it was a "political case" and that the "CBI has succumbed to the pressure of its masters".

The CBI, on September 4, had told the high court that it has not yet filed the closure report before the trial court concerned as it wanted to first bring it to the knowledge of the high court.

The CBI had submitted that its investigation was complete as it has probed all the angles left by the Delhi Police and it did not think there was any offence committed against the missing person.

It had said the petition may be disposed of by the high court, after which it will file the closure report before the magistrate "and the petitioner may file a protest petition there, if they wish to".

Senior advocate Colin Gonsalves, appearing for Ahmed's mother, had said neither the CBI has done its best in the case nor has it probed the matter in a fair manner.

The petitioner also sought setting up of an SIT comprising independent experts to enquire into the matter.

Ahmed's mother had moved the high court on November 25, 2016, seeking directions to the police to trace her son.

However, as the Delhi Police remained clueless about his whereabouts even seven months after he went missing, the probe was handed over to the CBI on May 16 last year.

The Delhi Police had not opposed the handing over of the investigation in the case, saying that it has done its bit in the matter.

Nafees's counsel had earlier said the nine suspected students were named in a complaint by 18 students who were eyewitnesses to the alleged assault on Ahmed, yet they were not interrogated.

The nine suspected students have denied all allegations against them.

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News Network
February 22,2020

Feb 22: Prime Minister Narendra Modi is unlikely to accompany US President Donald Trump and his family members during their visit to the Taj Mahal in Agra on Monday, official sources said.

The US President will arrive in Ahmedabad at around noon on February 24 for a less that 36-hour visit to India. He will be accompanied by a high-level delegation including First Lady Melania Trump, the President's daughter Ivanka Trump, son-in-law Jared Kushner and a galaxy of top US officials.

After attending an event at Ahmedabad, the Trumps will travel to Agra on Monday afternoon to visit the Taj Mahal before arriving at the national capital for the main leg of the visit.

When asked about reports that Modi may accompany Trump to Agra, official sources said there was no such plan.

They said the visit to the Taj Mahal in Agra by the US President and his family members will afford them the opportunity to view the historical monument suitably. Therefore, no official engagements or presence of senior dignitaries from the Indian side is envisaged there, the sources said.

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News Network
June 22,2020

New Delhi, June 22: Former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Monday asked Prime Minister Narendra Modi to be “mindful of the implication of his words” as a controversy raged over his “no intrusion” remark about the violent face-off with Chinese troops in the Galwan Valley.

“The Prime Minister must always be mindful of the implications of his words and declarations on our Nation’s security as also strategic and territorial interests,” Singh said in a statement here as Chinese media welcomed Modi’s ‘no intrusion’  remarks contending that it may lead to a de-escalation of tensions between China and India.

Congress has been maintaining that Modi’s assertions at Friday’s all-party meeting that neither was there any intrusion nor was any Indian post captured ran counter to the statements made by the Indian Army and the External Affairs Ministry.

Singh said the prime minister cannot allow his words to be used by China as a vindication of its position and all organs of the government should work together to tackle this crisis and prevent it from escalating further.

“We remind the Government that disinformation is no substitute for diplomacy or decisive leadership. The truth cannot be suppressed by having pliant allies spout comforting but false statements,” the former prime minister said.

Singh said the prime minister and the government should rise to the occasion to ensure justice for Colonel B Santosh and the army jawans who made the supreme sacrifice and resolutely defended the nation’s territorial integrity.

“To do any less would be a historic betrayal of the people’s faith,” the former prime minister said.

“At this moment, we stand at historic crossroads. Our Government’s decisions and actions will have serious bearings on how the future generations perceive us,” Singh said.

Singh said China was brazenly and illegally seeking to claim parts of Indian territory such as the Galwan Valley and the Pangong Tso Lake by committing multiple incursions between April 2020 till date.  

“We cannot and will not be cowed down by threats and intimidation nor permit a compromise with our territorial integrity,” said Singh. 

The former prime minister said this was a moment where “we must stand together as a nation and be united in our response to this brazen threat.”

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News Network
March 23,2020

Singapore, Mar 23: Oil prices fell at the open in Asia on Monday after a trillion-dollar Senate proposal to help the coronavirus-hit American economy was defeated and death tolls soared across Europe and the US.

US benchmark West Texas Intermediate initially tumbled more than three percent but then pulled back some ground to trade 1.5 percent lower, at $22 a barrel.

Brent crude, the international benchmark, fell 4.9 percent to $25 a barrel.

Prices have fallen to multi-year lows in recent weeks as lockdowns and travel restrictions to fight the virus hit demand, and top producers Saudi Arabia and Russia engage in a price war.

The latest drop came after a trillion-dollar Senate proposal to rescue the US economy was defeated after receiving zero support from Democrats, and with five Republicans absent from the chamber because of virus-related quarantines.

The bill had proposed funding for American families, thousands of shuttered or suffering businesses and the nation's critically under-equipped hospitals.

Coronavirus deaths soared across Europe and the United States at the weekend despite heightened restrictions.

The death toll from the virus -- which has upended lives and closed businesses and schools across the planet -- surged to more than 14,300 Sunday, according to an AFP tally.

AxiCorp chief markets strategist Stephen Innes said that "total demand devastation" had set it.

"Oil markets collapsed out of the gate this morning as prices react... to stringent containment lockdown measures," he said.

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