Seven Indian sailors, held hostage by Somali pirates for 2 years, appeal for help

October 6, 2012
Indian_Sailors

New Delhi, October 6: Seven Indian sailors, who have been held hostage by Somali pirates for the last two years, have appealed to the PM, the President, Congress leader Sonia Gandhi and opposition leader Sushma Swaraj for help.

The sailors have narrated their ordeal in a video message uploaded on YouTube and have sought immediate intervention of the government. "Our condition is very bad. I don't know what action the government is taking. We have been here for a very long time now. We are fed up and mentally tensed. Our health is not good. So we are requesting the honourable President of India, honourable Prime Minister, UPA President Mrs Sonia Gandhi and opposition leader Mrs Sushma Swaraj to please save us. Save our life. We want our release. Please help us," appeals a sailor, Bahadur Singh, in the message. The video was reportedly uploaded on the web 45 days ago, but was accessed by the family of one of the hostages yesterday.

One of the sailors, the vessel's Second Officer Bhaskaran Nair Unnikrishnan, is reportedly a diabetic patient and is said to be in urgent need of medicines.

The sailors were taken hostage on September 28, 2010 when their ship, MT Asphalt, was hijacked by Somali pirates. The vessel and eight of its crew members were released on April 15, 2011after the intervention of the Mumbai-based shipping company. But these seven sailors were held back as hostages.

The hijackers have demanded that the Indian government release 100 Somali pirates in exchange for the release of these seven sailors. But sources say the government is unwilling to release them.

The Director General of shipping has reportedly time and again written to the owners of the ship to negotiate with the pirates. But the talks have not moved forward as the shipping company is reportedly unwilling to intervene in the matter as its ship has been released, sources add.

A total of 43 Indians are currently in the custody of Somali pirates. Of these, 15 have spent over two years as hostages.


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News Network
March 23,2020

Bengaluru, Mar 23: Indian stocks plunged over 9% on Monday, as the rapidly spreading coronavirus pandemic sent major states including the country's capital into a lockdown amid increasing fears that outbreak could bring world economies to a grinding halt.

The NSE Nifty 50 index slipped 9.17% to 7,937.75 by 0408 GMT, while the S&P BSE Sensex was 9.42% lower at 27,093.24.

Over the weekend in India, the virus drove several companies to shut operations and the government sent states into lockdowns, bringing normal life to a grinding halt.

"Panic has gone up domestically because of the lockdown situation," said Vinod Nair, head of research at Geojit Financial Services.

"There is fear that the situation will not be brought under control soon."

The rupee hit a fresh record low of 76.05 against the dollar, as a flight into cash and worries about tightening liquidity boosted demand for the world's reserve currency.

Meanwhile, global markets crumbled, with MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan sliding nearly 4% as the global death toll climbed to over 14,000, further battering economic activity, and raising fears of a global recession.

After market hours on Friday, the Securities and Exchange Board of India halved position limits for certain stock futures, restricted short-selling of index derivatives and raised margin rates for some shares to curb "abnormally high" volatility amid the pandemic.

In domestic trading, the Nifty PSU Bank Index plunged 8%, while the Nifty bank index crashed nearly 10%.

The Nifty Auto Index slid 9% after several carmakers over the weekend suspended production due to the virus.

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Agencies
August 2,2020

New Delhi, Aug 2: Union Home Minister Amit Shah today tested positive for COVID-19 coronavirus infection and has been admitted to a hospital. 

Shah took to social media today to inform about his infection. “I have tested positive but my health is fine," he said, adding that he has been hospitalised on the assistance of doctors. 

The Union Home Minister also appealed to those who came into close contact with him in the last few days to get themselves tested for COVID-19.

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News Network
January 17,2020

Mumbai, Jan 17: A 68-year-old convict of the 1993 Mumbai serial blasts case, Jalees Ansari, went missing on Thursday morning while being on parole, officials said.

Ansari, a resident of Mominpura in Agripada here who is serving a life term, is suspected to be involved in many bomb blast cases across the country, an official said.

He was on parole for 21 days from the Ajmer Central Prison, Rajasthan, and was expected to surrender before prison authorities on Friday, he said.

During the parole period, he was ordered to visit the Agripada Police Station everyday between 10.30 am and 12 pm to mark his attendance, he said.

However, Ansari did not visit the police station on Thursday during the designated time, the official said.

In the afternoon, his 35-year-old son Jaid Ansari approached the police station with a complaint about his “missing” father, he said.

According to the complaint, Jalees Ansari woke up in the early hoursand told family members he is going to offer namaz, but did not return home.

On his complaint, the Agripada Police registered a missing case, he said.

The Crime Branch of the Mumbai Police and the Maharashtra ATS have launched a massive manhunt to trace him, he said.

Jalees, who is known as Doctor Bomb, was allegedly connected with terror outfits like SIMI and Indian Mujahidin and taught terror groups how to make bombs, he said.

He was also questioned by the NIA in 2011 in connection with the 2008 bomb blast in Mumbai, he said.

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