'Delhi not safe; am returning to Kolkata', says Mamata after attack by Left activists

April 10, 2013
New Delhi, Apr 10: "Delhi is not a safe place," West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee said on Wednesday, as she abruptly cut short her three-day visit here cancelling her appointments with the Prime Minister and the finance minister.

delhi"Today, I was supposed to have a meeting with the finance minister... but I am returning to Kolkata. I was unwell since last evening and had to be administered oxygen. I will come back, but Delhi is not a safe place. I am sorry," she told reporters here before leaving for Kolkata.

She said soon after she cancelled her meeting with the Prime Minister last night, Manmohan Singh called her up and apologised for the incident outside the Planning Commission where she and state finance minister Amit Mitra faced the wrath of Left activists protesting the death of SFI leader Sudipto Gupta in Kolkata.

Asked about the details of her conversation with Singh and West Bengal Governor M K Narayanan, Banerjee said, "I had an appointment with the PM, which I could not do it. I apologise for that. He also told me that Mamataji, what happened ... I also apologise to you...which should not (have) happen(ed) and I think that in Delhi ... this is the first time, it is happening".

She also dismissed the reports about violence against the Left parties in West Bengal even after her appeal for calm in the state and blamed the CPI(M) for it.

"No violence. Whatever violence ... CPI(M) cadre is doing. Our cadres are totally peaceful. They are very emotional. They listen to me. Let me tell that 55,000 people have been killed by CPI(M)," she said.

Banerjee claimed that political clashes during Left rule in the state were "hundred times more" than during her rule so far. "In the last one year, it is only 10 political clashes and in that too six TMC workers have been killed."

The chief minister also criticised the Delhi Police for not being able to prevent the incident at the Planning Commission building yesterday.

Banerjee dismissed reports that she was asked by the police to enter through another gate, instead of the one where the demonstration was being held.

Police had yesterday reportedly said that she was advised to use the VIP gate of the Planning Commission instead of the main gate where SFI activists had assembled.

When asked about these reports, she said, "Not at all. Do you think I am a beggar? I never bow down my head. I consider myself as an LIP (Less Important Person) than a VIP."

She also ridiculed the CPI(M) for condemning the incident, dubbing them "hypocrites and have double standards."

"(On) one side they are killing the people and then they are condemning it. It is their double standard game always and they are hypocrites," she said.

Earlier
Mamata cancels meeting with Chidambaram
New Delhi, Apr 10: An upset West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee today cancelled her scheduled meeting with Finance Minister P Chidambaram and left for Kolkata, a day after she was gheraoed and her minister Amit Mitra manhandled by Left protesters here.

mamataHours after facing the ire of the Left activists at the Planning Commission, Banerjee had also cancelled her appointment last evening with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, who expressed regret over the incident.

As Mitra was hospitalised at the AIIMS last evening and kept under observation, Singh spoke to Banerjee after her office called up the PMO to cancel the meeting scheduled with him saying she was unwell and her blood pressure had dipped.

The Prime Minister also enquired about her well-being, sources close to the chief minister said.

They said the meeting with Chidambaram and a press conference she was to address in the evening have been cancelled.

Banerjee and Mitra were the target of the wrath of CPI-M and its students' wing SFI's activists who were protesting the death of their comrade Sudipta Gupta in police custody in Kolkata last week.

Some Trinamool Congress workers, led by party leader Mukul Roy, also staged a protest gathering at Jantar Mantar here.

Giving a new twist to the incident, Trinamool MP Sukhendu Shekar Roy claimed it was a "murderous attack" on Banerjee.

"It was a murderous attempt on the life of Mamata and three other Cabinet ministers, especially Amit Mitra," Roy told reporters here, adding that it was "a pre-planned attack on the eve of Panchayat Elections to create a situation so that the demand for central forces can be justified."

At the same time, he sidestepped questions on the attack by Trinamool Congress activists on CPI(M) offices and workers across West Bengal.

"That is a wild allegation against us. Nowhere in this country during the 34 year misrule of Left Front more than 60,000 innocent people were butchered. Don't compare this incident with that genocide," he said to questions on the attacks by Trinamool Congress activists in Bengal.

Condemning the attack, Roy claimed that the police had remained silent onlookers when CPI-M and SFI activists "roughed up Mitra and no arrests has been made yet."

He claimed that the protests at Planning Commission yesterday was not a demonstration by students as "there were many hired goons above the age of 40."

In the incident, while the Chief Minister was shielded by policemen, it was left to Mitra's lot to face the anger of the activists who were protesting the death of SFI member Sudipta Gupta.

The 65-year-old Finance Minister was pushed and jostled around as he tried to enter the Yojna Bhawan building.

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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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News Network
January 6,2020

Hyderabad, Jan 6: AIMIM president Asaduddin Owaisi on Monday expressed solidarity with students of Jawaharlal Nehru University in Delhi, following violence in the campus and said the "cruel attack" was meant to "punish"the students as they "dared to stand up".

"In solidarity with the brave students of JNU. This cruel attack is meant to 'punish' JNU students because they dared to stand up. It's so bad that even Union Ministers are tweeting helplessly. Modi Sarkar must answer why cops aresiding with goons," the Hyderabad MP tweeted.

The AIMIM has also tweeted expressing solidarity with the "students of JNU". "AIMIM stands in solidarity with the students of Jawaharlal Nehru University. Who feels threatened by the voice of students?," the party said in a tweet.

Violence broke out at the JNU on Sunday night as masked men armed with sticks and rods attacked students and teachers and damaged property on the campus, prompting the administration to call in police which conducted a flag march.

At least 28 people, including JNU Students' Union president Aishe Ghosh, were injured as chaos reigned on the campus for nearly two hours.

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News Network
June 20,2020

Hyderabad, Jun 20: IAF Chief Air Chief Marshal RKS Bhadauria on Saturday said that the force is well prepared and suitably deployed to respond to any contingency and it will never let the sacrifice of the bravehearts of Galwan go in vain.

"It should be very clear that we are well prepared and suitably deployed to respond to any contingency. I assure the nation that we are determined to deliver and will never let the sacrifice of the braves of Galwan go in vain," IAF Chief Air Chief Marshal Bhadauria said here.

Bhadauria was speaking at the Combined Graduation Parade (CGP) at Air Force Academy in Hyderabad.

His remarks come days after 20 Indian soldiers lost their lives in the violent face-off on June 15-16 during an attempt by the Chinese troops to unilaterally change the status quo during the de-escalation in eastern Ladakh.

Speaking about the current border situation with China, he said: "We are aware of the situation, be it on LAC or beyond, be it their air deployments, their posture and kind of deployments. We've full analysis and we have taken necessary action that we need to take to handle any contingency that may come up."

"We are monitoring all the moments and we are aware of the full situation," he added.

He further said that in spite of the "unacceptable Chinese action" at Galwan Valley in eastern Ladakh, which claimed lives of 20 Indian Army personnel, efforts are underway to ensure that the current situation at the Line of Actual Control (LAC) is resolved peacefully.

He asserted that the IAF is determined to deliver and the development at the LAC in Ladakh is a small snapshot of what the force is required to handle at short notice.

The IAF Chief further appealed to people to join him in paying tribute Colonel Santosh Babu and his brave men who made the sacrifice while defending the LAC in Galwan valley.

"The gallant actions in a highly-challenging situation have demonstrated our resolve to protect India's sovereignty at any cost," the Indian Air Force (IAF) chief said.

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