OROP: Ex-servicemen resist eviction from Jantar Mantar

August 14, 2015

New Delhi, Aug 14: A group of ex-servicemen demanding 'One Rank One Pension' today resisted eviction from the protest site at Jantar Mantar here by Delhi Police and NDMC which were trying to clear the area in view of security concerns ahead of Independence Day.

oropThe move came under attack from the veterans who termed it as a "Black Independence Day". As police and NDMC started clearing the protest hotspot, the ex-servicemen refused to go away and alleged that cops manhandled those protesting quietly.

"I was pushed by the cops who even tore my shirt," said 82-year-old Vishambhar shouting anti-police slogans.

A group of ex-servicemen demanding 'One Rank One Pension' have been protesting for the past two months. Terming the police action as 'Black Independence Day' group captain (retd) VK Gandhi said, "The way police have acted against us just a day before Independence day is unjustified.If there was a security concern they should have discussed with us before.

"Now we will continue are protests from Jantar Mantar and if they arrest us, we will continue it in jail. It is a black Independence day as they have tried to curb our independence."

Ex-servicemen at the spot said the police action was "barbaric" and "undemocratic" and requested police commissioner BS Bassi to restore their tents. "This is shocking and obnoxious. Nothing can be worse. We are the protectors of India's Independence.

We are requesting the Police Commissioner to restore our tents since we had permission. The move to remove our tents is barbaric, undemocratic and dictatorial as it comes on the eve of Independence Day," Maj Gen (Retd) Satbir Singh, Chairman of Indian Ex-servicemen Movement.

However, senior police officer claimed that it was a drive by NDMC to clean the area and cops were assisting them. In the drive they were removing all posters, banners and tents.

"As Delhi is on a high alert ahead of Independence Day so we are removing the protestors to ensure security," a senior officer said.

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coastaldigest.com news network
June 17,2020

Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who had maintained silence on Chinese aggression and massacre of Indian in eastern Ladakh, now issued a statement saying ‘India wants peace’. He added that India is capable of giving a befitting reply if provoked. 

The prime minister started his meeting with chief ministers on the Covid-19 with a two-minute silence as a tribute to the 20 soldiers who were killed in action in Galwan Valley this week. As he spoke, it became clear that the message was aimed not just at reassuring the nation but also delivering a sharp message to Beijing.

“I would like to assure the nation that the sacrifice of our jawans will not be in vain. For us, the unity and sovereignty of the country is the most important,” PM Modi said. Home minister Amit Shah and defence minister Rajnath Singh were also present in the meeting.

Over twenty Indian soldiers were killed in the violent face-off which took place in Eastern Ladakh on Monday. The troops fought each other with fists and rocks. After the clash, the two sides “disengaged” from the area where the fighting happened, the Indian army statement said. A news agency quoting sources said four Indian soldiers are in critical condition after the face-off.

Defence minister Rajnath Singh mourned the death of 20 Indian soldiers. “The loss of soldiers in Galwan is deeply disturbing and painful. Our soldiers displayed exemplary courage and valour in the line of duty and sacrificed their lives in the highest traditions of the Indian Army,” he said in a statement.

“The Nation will never forget their bravery and sacrifice. My heart goes out to the families of the fallen soldiers. The nation stand shoulder to shoulder with them in this difficult hour. We are proud of the bravery and courage of India’s bravehearts,” the minister further said in the statement posted on Twitter.

These are the first Indian casualties in a border skirmish with PLA since October 1975 when Chinese troops ambushed an Indian patrol in Arunachal Pradesh’s Tulung La sector and shot four soldiers dead.

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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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Bloomberg
July 27,2020

New Delhi, Jul 27: India’s coronavirus epidemic is now growing at the fastest in the world, increasing 20% over the last week to more than 14 lakh confirmed cases, according to Bloomberg’s Coronavirus Tracker.

Infections in the South Asian nation of 130 crore people have reached 14.3 lakh, including 32,771 deaths, India’s health ministry said, with daily cases close to a record 50,000 on Monday. India is only trailing the US and Brazil now in the number of confirmed infections, but its growth in new cases is the fastest.

Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka are among the states where the maximum number of daily cares are being reported. The world’s second-most populous country has been ramping up testing, with 515,472 samples taken on Sunday, according to the Indian Council of Medical Research.

Still, India and Brazil have some of the world’s lowest testing rates, with 11.8 tests and 11.93 tests per 1,000 people respectively, compared to the US with 152.98 tests per 1,000 and Russia with 184.34, according to Our World in Data, a project based at the University of Oxford in the UK.

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