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Army called out, curfew in Kishtwar after communal riots; 2 killed

August 10, 2013

srinagar

Srinagar, Aug 10: Authorities imposed curfew and called out the Army to control the situation as two persons died and around 80 sustained injuries in the worst communal riots to shake Jammu and Kashmir at Kishtwar on Friday.

Official sources said people from the peripheral villages of Bandirna, Hullar and Kuleed were heading for the spacious Chowgan Grounds to join congregational Eid-ul-Fitr prayers around 10 a.m., when a section of local Hindus objected to their pro-azadi slogans. What began as an altercation culminated into a major clash in which people from both sides resorted to intense stone-throwing.

Even as over 10,000 people performed Eid prayers, some miscreants ransacked commercial properties and set shops and vehicles on fire. The district headquarters turned into a battlefield with even government-controlled Village Defence Committee (VDC) members and Special Police Officers joining the violence in some cases using firearms. Private firing with .12 bore guns was also reported.

IGP (Jammu) Rajesh Kumar said from Kishtwar that the four-hour-long riots left two persons of the two communities dead and 23 civilians injured. However, independent sources claimed that around 80 persons, including 40 police and CRPF personnel, sustained injuries. They said 23-year-old Arvind Kumar Bhagat, son of the local BSP leader Desraj Bhagat, died of gunshot wounds. Some reports said he was hit when the police opened fire on a mob. However, some officials insisted that Mr. Bhagat was found hit by a private weapon as there was evidence of .12 bore ammunition on his body.

Sources said one unidentified person of the other community was manhandled, set on fire and burnt to death. His body was lying on the Chowgan Grounds till late on Friday night.

One petrol tanker, one police bunker, a number of buses and cars were among the 60 vehicles destroyed in fire. As many as 70 shops, one hotel and one residential house were destroyed in the arson as the police and the civil administration failed completely to control the situation.

Shaheedi Road, Malik Market, Kuleed Chowk, Dak Bungalow Chowk, Amar Market, Bus Stand and Hospital Market witnessed the worst of arson. Reports said some peripheral villages were also engulfed by late afternoon.

While Minister of State for Home and Kishtwar MLA Sajad Ahmad Kichloo is already in town, Chief Secretary Iqbal Khanday and Director-General of Police Ashok Prasad flew in to Kishtwar from Srinagar. Divisional Commissioner (Jammu) Shant Manu and Inspector-General of Police Rajesh Kumar also reached the spot. They called out the Army even as the Deputy Commissioner imposed indefinite curfew. After a flag march by the Army, situation was reportedly under control.

Tension also spread to Jammu, Samba and Udhampur district headquarters as some markets closed in protest and some people staged demonstrations.

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News Network
June 30,2020

New Delhi, Jun 30: With a spike of 18,522 COVID-19 cases in the last 24 hours, India's coronavirus count now stand at 5,66,840, said the Union Health and Family Welfare Ministry on Tuesday.

According to the Ministry, 418 deaths due to COVID-19 were reported in the last 24 hours. The number of deaths in the country now stands at 16,893.

There are 2,15,125 active coronavirus cases in the country while the number of cured/discharged patients stands at 3,34,821 and one patient migrated.

As per the Ministry, Maharashtra is the worst-hit state with regard to the COVID-19 cases and has reported 1,69,883 cases, including 73, 313 active cases 88,960 cured/discharged patients and 7,610 fatalities.

Tamil Nadu has a total of 86,224 cases including 1,141 deaths. Delhi's COVID-19 count stands at 85,161 cases and 2,680 fatalities.

The total number of samples tested up to 29 June is 86,08,654 of which 2,10,292 samples were tested yesterday, informed the Indian Council of Medical Research.

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Agencies
July 30,2020

Kochi, Jul 30: The Kerala High Court on Thursday refused to grant the extension for the stay of a 74-year-old US citizen, Johnny Paul Pierce, who had earlier said that he felt safer to remain in India than in the United States amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

The single-judge bench of Justice CS Dias, which considered the writ petition, observed that the grant or extension of visa to foreign nationals fall exclusively within the domain of the Government of India (GoI) and that judicial review in such matters is minimal.

The power of the GoI to expel foreigners is absolute and unlimited, the bench said.

"In view of the categoric declaration of law by the Supreme Court, the plea of the petitioner to permit him to stay back in India cannot be accepted, as it falls within the purview of the guidelines and the discretion of the Government of India," the order said.

"The petitioner cannot be heard that the guidelines/policies/regulations formulated by the Government of India, that an American national though has been granted a visa having validity of five years has to leave India within 180 days, is irrational or unreasonable," it added.

The High Court, which was hearing a plea to permit the US citizen to stay in India for a further period of six months, said that the petitioner does not have a case that there is an infraction of Article 21 of the Constitution of India.

"The petitioner was well aware of the visa conditions when he arrived in India, and it is too late in the day for him to raise a grievance on the visa conditions," the bench said noting that the petitioner's love for India was heartening.

The High Court also directed the Foreigners Registration Officer to consider the petitioner's representation within a period of two weeks in accordance with the applicable guidelines and policies.

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News Network
February 5,2020

New Delhi, Feb 5: Kapil Baisala who opened fired at the Shaheen Bagh protest site last week is a member of the Aam Aadmi Party, police said on Tuesday, sparking a war of words between the BJP and the AAP.

While the BJP accused Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal of "playing" with the security of the country, the AAP hit back, stating the saffron party was indulging "dirty politics".

Deputy Commissioner of Police (Crime Branch) Rajesh Deo said that Baisala and his father joined the AAP in early 2019.

Baisala's family, however, refuted the police's claim.

Kapil Baisala's uncle Fatesh Singh told PTI, "I have no idea where these photographs are circulating from. My nephew Kapil had no association with any political party nor does any other member from the family. My brother, Gaje Singh, (Baisala's father) fought assembly elections in 2008 on a Bahujan Samaj Party ticket and lost. After that no one from our family had any links with any political party."

Singh added that Baisala also doesn't have friends associated with the AAP or any other political party.

Gaje had also contested the 2012 civic body polls from the BSP, the police said.

The police officer said they seized Baisala's mobile phone and retrieved WhatsApp data.

On Saturday, Baisala fired two rounds in air at Shaheen Bagh. According to eyewitnesses, the man shouted "Hindu Rashtra Zindabad" and fired two rounds.

He was overpowered by the police and later arrested.

In the pictures, it was seen that he and his father joined the party in the presence of Atishi Marlena, Sanjay Singh and other leaders, sources said.

The police said on Thursday, Baisala, along with his friend Sarthak Larolla, went to Shaheen Bagh from his village on a bike.

Through CCTV footage, it was found they took the DND flyover, Maharani Bagh, Sarai Jullena and reached Holy Family hospital, a senior police officer said.

"Baisala was not comfortable on the bike as he had hidden the pistol near his waist. They entered the hospital's parking where he adjusted the pistol, used the washroom and headed towards Shaheen Bagh," the senior official added.

When they reached the protest site, Larolla left the spot with the motorcycle and Baisala's mobile phone. Later, Baisala fired two rounds in the air and was apprehended. The weapon was recovered from near the spot, the police said.

Larolla joined the investigation and the mobile phone was seized from his residence.

Baisala has been remanded to police remand for two days.

He had bought the pistol around seven years ago for his brother's marriage. The source of the weapon from where he procured it is yet to identified, police said.

The sources said Baisala was previously also involved in firing incident but was never caught nor was a case registered against him.

Hitting out at the AAP, BJP president J P Nadda accused Kejriwal of playing with the security of the country and said that the people will give the party a befitting reply.

"I want to make clear to Kejriwal that this country is bigger than any election, any government, and the country will not forgive those who play with its security. The people of Delhi will give a befitting reply," Nadda tweeted.

Senior AAP leader Sanjay Singh asked on whose directions was the Delhi Police accusing his party.

"Before the police revealed it (Baisala being an AAP member), how did BJP's Delhi president Manoj Tiwari come to know about it," Singh asked and accused the police of maligning the party.

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