India slams Pak for 'absurd' charges regarding Jadhav's wife's shoes

Agencies
December 28, 2017

New Delhi, Dec 28: India today slammed Pakistan for making "absurd" charges of a chip, camera or a recorder being installed in the footwear of the wife of Indian death row convict Kulbhushan Jadhav and said Islamabad has frittered away an opportunity to move forward in ties by turning his meeting with his family as a propaganda tool.

In identical statements in Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha, External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj said India has conveyed its objections to Pakistan in a note verbale yesterday over the way it had conducted Jadhav's meeting with his mother and wife in Islamabad earlier this week.

"This meeting could have been a step towards moving forward. But, it is a matter of great disappointment, that the meeting took place flouting all the understandings both countries had agreed to," she said.

Making a stinging attack on Pakistan, she said an emotional meeting of a mother with his son and of a wife with her husband after 22 months has been "used" by Pakistan as a "tool of propaganda".

Following the statement, the members of all parties in the Lok Sabha, as well as Rajya Sabha, supported the government on the issue.

Swaraj said Jadhav's mother and wife were taken for the meeting through a separate door without informing the accompanying Deputy High Commissioner of India, stripped of their bindi, bangles and 'mangalsutra', made to change into different clothes and wear slippers by discarding their shoes.

"If he had seen them (without bindi, bangles and 'mangalsutra'), he would have protested and would never have allowed them to go to the meeting that way. In his absence, the meeting was started," Swaraj said.

She emphasised that both the wife and the mother were asked to remove their bindis and jewellery, which had led Jadhav to ask about the welfare of his father as soon as they sat down for the meeting. Normally, a Hindu woman does not wear the 'mangalsutra' and bindi or vermillion after the death of her husband.

She said removal of the 'mangalsutra' was a height of disrespect as Jadhav's mother had told the Pakistani officials that it was a symbol of marriage, but they did not relent.

After the meeting, Pakistani authorities also did not return the shoes of Jadhav's wife despite repeated requests.

Swaraj said not returning the shoes has given rise to suspicions that Pakistan was up to some "mischief".

"The Pakistan authorities have been cautioned against any mischievous intent in this regard through a Note Verbale yesterday," she said.

Now, Pakistani authorities are talking about a chip, camera or a recorder being installed in the shoes, she said. The charge is "absurdity beyond measure," she said, adding that the two women had cleared security at airports in Delhi and Dubai and in Pakistan and no such device was detected during these through airport security checks there.

"The meeting of Kulbhushan Jadav with his mother and wife was portrayed by Pakistan as a humanitarian gesture. However, the truth is that both humanity and compassion were missing during the meeting that was arranged on humanitarian and compassionate grounds," the External Affairs Minister said.

She said there was "serious and gross violation of human rights of the family members of Jadhav and an intimidating atmosphere was created for them during this meeting."

"There are not enough words to condemn the same," she said. "I am fully confident that this entire House and through the House, the people of India, strongly condemns, in one voice, the obnoxious behaviour of Pakistan and affirm their solidarity with the Jadhav family."

The Minister said the government had approached the International Court of Justice and obtained provisional measures staying the execution of the death sentence that was passed on Jadhav through "a farcical Pakistani military court process."

"While the imminent threat to Jadhav's safety was averted as a result, we are now engaged in seeking a permanent relief, based on stronger arguments, through the legal avenue offered by the International Court of Justice," she said.

She said the mother and wife, on their return from Islamabad, had conveyed to her that Jadhav appeared "under considerable stress and was speaking in an atmosphere of coercion."

"As the meeting progressed, it was clear to them that his (Jadhav's) remarks were tutored by his captors and designed to perpetuate the false narrative of his alleged activities. His appearance also raised questions about his health and well-being," she said.

Before the statement, Rajya Sabha Chairman Venkaiah Naidu said the matter was sensitive and was before the International Court of Justice and urged the MPs should exercise restraint in making statements keeping the welfare of Jadhav in mind.

Members cutting across party lines supported the government on the issue with Leader of Opposition Ghulam Nabi Azad said the misbehaviour with Jadhav's wife and mother was "misbehaviour with wives and mothers of 130 crore Indians."

"We will not tolerate insults to the wives and mothers and to the country's dignity," Azad said, adding the government should ensure that Pakistan ensures Jadhav's safety in custody.

Ram Gopal Yadav (SP), Derek O'Brien (TMC), Harivansh (JD-U), Dilip Tirkey (BJD), Tapan Kumar Sen (CPM), T Devendra Goud (TDP), Veer Singh (BSP), Thiruchi Siva (DMK), D Raja (CPI), Sukhdev Singh Dindsa (Akali Dal), Abdul Wahab (IML), Sanjay Raut (Shiv Sena), Bhupendra Yadav (BJP) and Ram Das Athavale (RPI) supported the government in the matter.

Naidu said the entire House joins together to appreciate the efforts of the government and asks it to take steps to ensure the safe and secure release of Jadhav.

He also wanted the government to convey to the international community that Pakistan behaved in an inhuman manner.

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News Network
April 17,2020

The coronavirus pandemic has sickened more than 2,425,000 people, according to official counts. So far at least 164,000 people have died, and the virus has been detected in at least 177 countries, as the following table shows.

United States 

780,330

37,782

Spain

200,210

20,852

Italy 

181,228

24,114

Germany

141,672

4,404

U.K.

124,743

16,509

France

114,657

20,265

Turkey

90,980

2,140

Mainland China

88,466

4,632

Iran

83,505

5,209

Russia

47,121

405

Brazil

40,743

2,587

Belgium

39,983

5,828

Canada

36,823

1,690

Netherlands

33,405

3,751

Switzerland

27,944

1,142

Portugal

20,863

735

India

18,539

592

Peru

16,325

445

Ireland

15,652

687

Austria

14,795

470

Sweden

14,777

1,580

Israel

13,713

177

Japan

10,915

168

South Korea

10,674

236

Chile

10,507

139

Saudi Arabia

10,484

103

Ecuador

10,128

507

Poland

9,593

380

Romania

8,936

478

Mexico

8,772

712

Pakistan

8,418

176

Singapore

8,014

11

Denmark

7,515

364

U.A.E.

7,265

43

Norway

7,156

181

Czech Republic

6,900

194

Indonesia

6,760

590

Serbia

6,630

125

Australia

6,625

71

Philippines

6,459

428

Belarus

6,264

51

Qatar

6,015

9

Ukraine

5,710

151

Malaysia

5,425

89

Dominican Rep.

4,964

235

Panama

4,467

126

Colombia

3,977

189

Finland

3,868

98

Luxembourg

3,558

75

Egypt

3,333

250

South Africa

3,300

58

Morocco

3,046

143

Bangladesh

2,948

101

Argentina

2,941

136

Thailand

2,792

47

Algeria

2,718

384

Moldova

2,548

70

Greece

2,245

116

Kuwait

1,995

9

Hungary

1,984

199

Bahrain

1,907

7

Croatia

1,881

47

Kazakhstan

1,852

19

Iceland

1,773

10

Uzbekistan

1,627

5

Iraq

1,574

82

Estonia

1,535

40

New Zealand

1,440

12

Azerbaijan

1,436

19

Oman

1,410

7

Armenia

1,339

22

Slovenia

1,335

77

Lithuania

1,326

37

Bosnia and Herzegovina

1,309

49

North Macedonia

1,225

54

Slovakia

1,173

13

Cameroon

1,163

42

Cuba

1,087

36

Ghana

1,042

9

Afghanistan

1,026

36

Hong Kong

1,025

4

Bulgaria

929

43

Tunisia

884

38

Ivory Coast

847

9

Djibouti

846

2

Cyprus

772

12

Latvia

739

5

Andorra

717

37

Lebanon

677

21

Nigeria

665

22

Costa Rica

662

6

Niger

648

20

Guinea

622

5

Albania

584

26

Burkina Faso

581

38

Kyrgyzstan

568

7

Bolivia

564

33

Uruguay

535

10

Kosovo

510

12

Channel Islands

488

24

Honduras

477

46

San Marino

462

39

West Bank & Gaza

449

3

Malta

431

3

Jordan

425

7

Taiwan

422

6

Georgia

402

4

Senegal

377

5

Congo

332

25

Mauritius

328

9

Montenegro

312

5

Sri Lanka

304

7

Isle of Man

300

9

Guatemala

289

7

Kenya

281

14

Vietnam

268

Venezuela

256

9

Tanzania

254

10

Mali

246

14

Somalia

237

8

Jamaica

223

5

El Salvador

218

7

Paraguay

208

8

Faroe Islands

185

Republic of the Congo

160

6

Rwanda

147

Brunei

138

1

Gibraltar

132

Cambodia

122

Madagascar

121

Gabon

120

1

Myanmar

119

5

Trinidad and Tobago

114

8

Ethiopia

111

3

Sudan

107

12

Liberia

99

8

Aruba

97

2

Monaco

94

3

Bermuda

86

5

Togo

84

6

Liechtenstein

81

1

Equatorial Guinea

79

Barbados

75

5

Maldives

69

Cape Verde

67

1

Sint Maarten

67

10

Cayman Islands

66

1

Guyana

65

7

Zambia

65

3

Bahamas

60

9

Haiti

57

3

Uganda

56

Benin

54

1

Libya

51

1

Guinea-Bissau

50

Macau

45

Sierra Leone

43

Eritrea

39

Mozambique

39

Syria

39

3

Chad

33

Mongolia

33

Nepal

31

Zimbabwe

25

3

Angola

24

2

Eswatini

24

1

Antigua and Barbuda

23

3

Timor-Leste

22

Botswana

20

1

Laos

19

Belize

18

2

Fiji

18

Malawi

17

2

Dominica

16

Namibia

16

Saint Kitts and Nevis

15

Saint Lucia

15

Curaçao

14

1

Grenada

14

Central African Republic

12

Saint Vincent and the Grenadines

12

Falkland Islands

11

Greenland

11

Montserrat

11

Seychelles

11

Turks and Caicos Islands

11

1

Gambia

10

1

Nicaragua

10

2

Suriname

10

1

Vatican City

9

Mauritania

7

1

Papua New Guinea

7

Western Sahara

6

Bhutan

5

British Virgin Islands

5

1

Burundi

5

1

South Sudan

4

São Tomé and Príncipe

4

Anguilla

3

Yemen

1

 

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Agencies
February 11,2020

New Delhi, Feb 11 Congress's performance touched a record low in the Delhi Assembly election as the party bagged less than 5 per cent of the total votes polled and 63 of its candidates lost their deposits.

The party, which ruled Delhi for 15 years on the trot under former Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit, failed to open its account for the second consecutive assembly election in Delhi.

Only three of its candidates Arvinder Singh Lovely from Gandhi Nagar, Devender Yadav from Badli and Abhishek Dutt from Kasturba Nagar managed to save their deposits.

Security deposit of a candidate is forfeited if he/she fails to secure one-sixth of the total valid votes cast in a constituency.

Most of Congress candidates got less than 5 per cent of the total votes polled in their respective constituencies.

Delhi Congress chief Shubhash Chopra's daughter Shivani Chopra, who was the party candidate from Kalkaji, also could not save her deposit.

Former Delhi Assembly Speaker Yoganand Shastri's daughter Priyanka Singh also forfeited her deposit.

The party's campaign committee chairman Kirti Azad's wife, Poonam Azad, lost badly and stood fourth, polling only 2,604 (2.23) votes.

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News Network
May 30,2020

New Delhi, May 30: An Air India flight from Delhi to Moscow on Saturday had to return midway after the airline's ground team found out that one of the pilots had tested positive for novel coronavirus, officials said.

"When the A320 plane, which did not have any passengers as it was heading to Moscow to bring back stranded Indians under Vande Bharat Mission, had reached Uzbekistan's airspace, our team on ground realised that one of the pilots had tested COVID-positive," senior Air India officials said.

"The flight was immediately asked to return. It came back to Delhi at around 12.30 pm on Saturday," the officials said. The crew has been quarantined. Another plane would be sent to Moscow to bring back the stranded Indians, according to the officials.

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