MPs under pressure to backtrack: American groups

July 24, 2013
Washington, Jul 24: Arguing that "human rights are universal", secular Indian American groups have justified the letter written by 65 Members of Parliament to US President Barack Obama urging him to maintain the current policy of denying visa to BJP leader Narendra Modi.

modu

These Indian American groups, who have been in the forefront of the anti-Modi campaign for more than eight years now and have been successful in convincing the US to deny an American visa, however, noted that some of the politicians who signed on to the letter to Obama against Modi last year, now have come under pressure to deny having signed it.

One letter was signed by 25 Rajya Sabha members and the other by 40 Lok Sabha members written on November 26 and December 5, 2012 respectively and re-faxed to the White House on Sunday.

Meanwhile, the MPs decision to write a letter to Obama on an internal issue, has been described by The Washington Post as, almost unthinkable.

"It is almost unthinkable that Indian lawmakers would appeal to the United States to take a stand on an internal matter.

Most Indian politicians, many of whom still nurse a Cold War-era suspicion of Washington, would bristle at the very thought of it," The Washington Post reported.

"It couldn't have been easy, then, for 65 members of India's parliament to fax a letter to President Obama on Sunday requesting that his government not grant a visa to the controversial Hindu nationalist politician Narendra Modi, the chief minister of the state of Gujarat," the daily said.

The group of Indian Americans, who worked for several years convincing MPs for such a move, have justified writing a letter to Obama.

"Human rights are universal. he victims of Gujarat pogrom have not received justice even after a decade while the person responsible might become the candidate for PM," said Shaik Ubaid president of ImanNet and one of the founder of the Coalition Against Genocide.

"India took a moral stand in "internal affairs' of other countries, such as against apartheid in South Africa and even after riots against Indians in Fiji, so why cannot President Obama be involved. After all Mr Rajnath brought the issue to the US, coming with a begging bowl for visa and a laundry bag with Modi's dirty linen," he said.

Ubaid brushed off the BJP attacks on the letter that one MP has backtracked. "It is a desperate diversionary tactic by the Modi camp. Politicians "flip flop" even in the US, I was expecting more to come under pressure. The issue is Modi. The whole episode shows Modi is a stigma and liability for India, Gujarat, Hinduism and even for BJP," Ubaid said. In another statement, the Coalition Against Genocide, hailed the letters.

"The letters represent an unprecedented move by MPs from various parties belonging to both houses of Parliament, in writing a candid missive to the US President on gross violations of human rights violations committed within India's borders," it said.

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News Network
January 21,2020

Amaravati, Jan 21: Telugu Desam Party president N Chandrababu Naidu and at least 17 MLAs of his party were taken in police custody late on Monday as they tried to conduct a foot march from the state assembly to nearby Mandadam village in violation of prohibitory orders.

TDP leaders started off on the march after staging a sit-in near the assembly main entrance following the suspension of 17 MLAs from the House for the day.

They were protesting the AP Decentralisation and Inclusive Development of All Regions Bill, 2020, that was passed by the assembly, enabling the establishment of three capitals for the state.

The TDP leaders were taken to the Mangalagiri police station.

Meanwhile, tensions prevailed at the Jana Sena Party headquarters at Mangalagiri as police prevented its president Pawan Kalyan from proceeding to the Amaravati region to speak to protesters fighting for the retention of only one capital for the state.

DIG Kanti Rana Tata and other senior police officials reached the Sena office and blocked the exit of Kalyan and political affairs committee chairman Nadendla Manohar, resulting in an argument.

Kalyan asked how could police impose restrictions within his own office.

Scores of Sena workers gathered outside the office even as a large posse of police was posted to thwart Kalyan and other leaders' plans.

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News Network
January 13,2020

New Delhi, Jan 13: The Jawaharlal Nehru University Students' Union (JNUSU) has alleged that the varsity administration has blocked the registration of 300 students on the basis of 'fake Proctor inquiries'.

The union had on Saturday asked students of the university to pay their academic tuition fee but not the hiked hostel fee.

"Today the Vice Chancellor first blocked the fee payment portal and then blocked the payment of tuition fees. It is clear that the VC was lying through the teeth when he said students want to register but are not being allowed to by protesters," JNUSU president Aishe Ghosh said.

She said the VC has also blocked the registration of 300 students based on fake proctor enquiries which are not even completed.

"The truth is that it is the administration which does not want students to register and is blocking their registration," she said.

JNUSU vice president Saket Moon said that in the meetings held in HRD ministry, it was decided that the administration would take a lenient view on the students' protest and not take action against them.

He said many students, who opened the portal for registration found they had been academically suspended and could not register.

He said the JNUSU had softened its stand by saying that they would register by paying the old fees but that has been kept on hold.

On Sunday, the administration extended the date for the winter semester registration till January 15.

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News Network
June 20,2020

New Delhi, Jun 20: With the highest single-day increase of 14,516 COVID-19 cases reported in the last 24 hours, India's coronavirus count stood at 3,95,048 on Saturday.

The death toll has gone up to 12,948 in the country with 375 persons succumbing to the infection.

According to the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, the total number of cases includes 1,68,269 active cases, 2,13,831 cured/discharged/migrated and 12,948 deaths.

Maharashtra with 1,24,331 cases continues to be the worst-affected state in the country with 55,665 active cases while 62,773 patients have been cured and discharged in the state so far. The death toll due to COVID-19 stands at 5,893 in the state.

The number of confirmed cases in Tamil Nadu also crossed the 50 thousand mark on Saturday and reached 54,449.

The national capital is the third-worst affected by the infection in the country with the count reaching 53,116 today.

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