Modi, Kejriwal nothing in front of Rahul: Lalu

December 29, 2013

LaluMuzaffarnagar, Dec 29: On a visit to relief camps of riot victims here, RJD chief Lalu Prasad today blamed both the BJP and the SP for the communal violence here even as he heaped praise on Rahul Gandhi, saying Narendra Modi and Arvind Kejriwal were nothing in front of the Congress Vice President.

"Kejriwal and Modi are nothing in front of Rahul. Rahul Gandhi is Rahul Gandhi. You guys have put them (Kejriwal, Modi) on the moon. It is you, who give them publicity. What have they done so far," the RJD chief said, adding his party will tie up with the Congress for the Lok Sabha polls.

Lalu, whose visit to the area comes a week after the Congress Vice President's unannounced visit to the camps in Shamli last Sunday, echoed Rahul's views that those living in camps should go back to their villages.

"We have come here to wipe away the tears of the victims. They should go back to their homes. Government should facilitate that," Lalu told reporters.

Slamming Aam Admi Party, he said the party is doing a "drama" by renouncing facilities such as vehicles with read-beacon cars, security etc.

"AAP is talking about corruption, they themselves are corrupt, he alleged.

Training his guns on Modi and his close aide Amit Shah, whom the RJD chief described as the Gujarat Chief Minister’s "General Manager for communalising society", Lalu said, "He (Shah) is spoiling the whole atmosphere. He is ... currently their warhorse here".

"RSS, Modi and Amit Shah, who is working here (in Uttar Pradesh) are well-known for this and see the riots happened. People used to live here together but the riots happened..."Communal violence erupted in UP after Amit Shah was sent to handle the party's poll campaign here. He is spoiling the atmosphere of the state," he alleged.

He said, "The BJP is the country's enemy, we are BJP's enemy."

"The powers, which were once propagating the rumour that Lord Ganesha is consuming milk, are trying to communalise the whole society and promote both external and internal divisions. Youths are the main victims of this," he said.

Lalu is considered a popular leader among the minority community and his party RJD had been in power in Bihar for 15 years largely on the basis of MY (Muslim-Yadav) combination.

The RJD chief said, "Divisive forces and those who want to occupy the seat of Hastinapur (Delhi) have targeted Hindi states.

"I had said at a rally in Patna that people have to decide whether the country will remain united or break in the 2014 contest," he said.

Interacting with riot victims, Lalu, who is out on bail in a fodder scam case, told them that he couldn't come early as he was in jail.

"No attention was paid in the beginning to those living in the relief camps. If they were taken care of initially, the situation today would have been better," he said, adding he will be visiting the Loi camp and then will be able to tell why people are being displaced from there.

"I saw a lot of TV coverage their on the riot victims living in relief camps," he said.

Referring to SP supremo Mulayam Singh Yadav's controversial comments that those living in camps were not riot victims but political activist, Yadav said, "It was too much and very bad...I have also heard people saying that those living in the camps are not victims"

Prasad reminded the SP chief that "minorities had voted with an open heart" for his secular government so much so that even the SP chief had not idea that his party will form a government with such a big a majority.

"Even we had no idea that they (SP) will get such a big majority," he said.

"I am not criticising anybody. But the kind of attention that should have been given in the beginning was perhaps not given to the issue (condition of riot victims) by the administration," the RJD chief said.

Asked about the statement of a senior UP official that people were not dying due to cold in relief camps, Lalu said, "All of them have gone mad. Someone else will have to pay for the kind of statements these officials have made".

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Agencies
January 12,2020

Mumbai, Jan 12: Thousands of citizens on Sunday congregated in Mumbai's suburban Jogeshwari to oppose the new citizenship law, the proposed NRC and NPR.

They also condemned last Sunday's violence on the JNU campus in Delhi, where masked men ran riot and attacked students. Leftist organisations had claimed RSS-affiliated ABVP's role in the attack, a charge denied by the students' body.

Former Tata Institute of Social Science (TISS) general secretary Fahad Ahmed told PTI that they assembled under the aegis of 'Hum Bharat Ke Log' in Millat Nagar area.

"Prime minister Narendra Modi should call 56 students from across the country to debate on the CAA, NRC and NPR," Ahmed said in an apparent jibe at Modi's "56 inch chest" remark, which the latter had made ahead of the 2014 Lok Sabha polls.

"Why the PM is not talking to us? Why is he not communicating? Even the Britishers used to talk to Indians whom they ruled, but our PM is not talking to poor people," he alleged.

Bollywood actor Sushasht Singh also spoke on the occasion.

"We are people of this country and such acts (CAA) are tarnishing the image of our country," he said.

At the gathering, people waved banners with slogans like "I Am From Gujarat, My Documents Burned in 2002", "No CAA, Boycott NRC, Stop Dividing India, Don't Divide us", "Save Constitution", written on them.

A large number of police personnel were present at the venue.

The Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA), which was notified on January 10, grants Indian citizenship to non-Muslim minorities migrated to India from Afghanistan, Pakistan and Bangladesh till December 31, 2014, following persecution over their faith.

Massive protests were witnessed against the CAA, mainly by the student community, since its passage by Parliament in December last year.

Opposition parties have been dubbing the CAA an "anti-Muslim" legislation, a charge being debunked by the government.

The Congress and other parties like the TMC have also opposed the proposed National Register of Citizens (NRC) and the National Population Register (NPR).

Union home minister Amit Shah has said that the government won't rest until persecuted refugees are granted Indian citizenship.

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News Network
June 25,2020

India has jumped past 4.5 lakh coronavirus cases and 14,476 people have succumbed to the viral infection so far. In this backdrop, speaking to IANS in an exclusive interview, AIIMS Director Randeep Guleria said India is also vulnerable to second wave of coronavirus and people should continue to follow social distancing, wearing mask and other precautions, after cases begin to decline.

He added that in order to contain the outbreak of Covid-19, a limited lockdown in hotspots, where volume of cases is very high, may be considered along with a micro-plan to prevent leakage of cases from these areas to other non-containment areas. Excerpts of the interview are below:

Q: Reports say China and South Korea are witnessing a second wave of coronavirus infection, what is this second wave, is India also vulnerable to this?

A: When cases come down significantly, people tend to drop their guard against the viral infection, and this leads to the second wave (which means a sudden increase in the number of cases). After cases begin to decline, people should continue to follow the precautions -- continue to maintain social distancing and wear masks regularly. See what happened in Singapore, it was struck by a second wave of coronavirus. Look, what happened in the 1918 pandemic, people dropped their guard and the second wave of viral infection struck back. If people do not follow social distancing then the spike in cases is apparent. We need to take these precautions at least for one year. India is also vulnerable to this second wave.

Q: If Covid-19 cases continue to rise rapidly, do you think we need another lockdown in areas where volume of cases are very high?

A: A large volume of cases is concentrated in specific areas like hotspots, and in order to maintain things in order, we may need a limited lockdown in these areas. This should be followed by a micro-plan which entails extensive testing of people and also extensive contact tracing of people who have got in touch with positive people. Need to ensure there is no leakage of cases from these areas. People from these areas should not mix with others in non-containment areas. This will aid in containing the outbreak of the virus. People who have developed symptoms should get themselves tested, especially in the containment areas.

Q: With more than 4.5 lakh cases and close to 14,500 deaths, do you think India has reached its peak and a decline in cases is prominent?

A: The cases will continue to increase for some time. The doubling time of cases has also increased. But, the cases will also begin to flatten. Though, it is difficult to give an exact time period in this viral infection, it seems, the growth in cases will flatten in the end of July or beginning of August. A decline will come to this viral infection, but it does not mean that people should drop their guard. As a measure, we need to decrease community participation and citizens should continue to follow social distancing. People should get themselves tested. All these efforts will help in preventing people from contracting this virus. These precautions will also prevent us from the second wave, and we must continue to take precautions. The virus has not gone away, it is still lurking.

Q: India has crossed the 4.5 lakh coronavirus cases so far, although our recovery rate is good, but still 10,000 to 15,000 cases are reported daily. Why do cases continue to spiral, what is the reason?

A: We have to remember a few things -- the bulk of cases are in 10 cities, nearly 70 per cent, and if we take into account cases per million population, the number is not very high, as compared with countries including countries in Europe. Many European countries put together still do not add up to the Indian population. Do not compare India to countries like Italy, Spain etc. We need to focus on hotspots, which contribute to between 70 -80 per cent of cases, and we have to identify cases in these areas at an early stage. The population density is very high in these cities. People in lower socio-economic status are highly vulnerable to the viral infection, as many live together in small spaces and there is a lot of mixing of people happening there. Look at the market places, people are not following social distancing and not wearing masks. In fact, many are in close vicinity of each other.

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Agencies
August 5,2020

Ayodhya, Aug 5: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday recalled the significance of the path of 'maryada' associated with Lord Ram in the backdrop of the situation created by COVID-19 and emphasised the importance of social distancing and wearing face masks.

He said that the current situation demands 'maryada' should be 'do gaz ki doori, mask hai zaroori' and exhorted everyone to follow it.

In his speech after laying the foundation stone of the Ram Temple in Ayodhya, the Prime Minister said the temple of Lord Ram will inspire and guide humans for ages to come.

He said that the path of `maryada' followed by Lord Ram is all the more necessary today in the situation created by COVID-19.

"The `maryada' (need) today is do gaj ki doori, mask hai jaroori (keep distance of two yards, wear mask). The Almighty may keep all the citizens healthy and happy, this is my prayer. The blessings of Mother Sita and Shri Ram be always there on the citizens," he said.

The Prime Minister termed the occasion as historic and said that India is starting a glorious chapter when people across the country are excited and emotional to have finally achieved what they had been waiting for centuries.

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