Pak group demands highest gallantry medal for Bhagat Singh

Agencies
January 18, 2018

Lahore, Jan 18: Bhagat Singh should be accorded Pakistan's highest gallantry award 'Nishan-e-Haider' and his statue be installed at Lahore's Shaadman Chowk where he was hanged 86 years ago, an organisation working to prove the legendary freedom fighter's innocence in a court has demanded.

Singh was hanged along with his two comrades Rajguru and Sukhdev by British rulers on March 23, 1931 at the age of 23 in Lahore, after being tried under charges for hatching a conspiracy against the colonial government and allegedly killing British police officer John P Saunders.

In its fresh application to Pakistan's Punjab province government, the Bhagat Singh Memorial Foundation said Singh had sacrificed his life for the cause to liberate the sub- continent.

"Pakistan's founder Quaid-e-Azam Mohammad Ali Jinnah had offered tribute to the freedom fighter by saying that there never been any such like brave person in the sub-continent like Bhagat Singh," it said in its application.

It further said: "Bhagat Singh is our hero and is entitled to be bestowed upon the greatest medal of gallantry (Nishan-e-Haider) like Maj Aziz Bhahti who also wrote on the bravery Bhagat Singh and declared him his 'hero and ideal'."

'Nishan-e-Haider' (which literary means 'Mark of Lion') is the highest military award in Pakistan and it is awarded to personnel of the armed forces for their extra-ordinary courage and bravery.

The foundation also made a fresh demand of naming Shadman Chowk as Bhagat Singh Chowk, asking the Punjab government to take the step without any further delay.

"Those nations that forget their heroes have been removed from the surface of the earth like 'wrong word'," it said.

Hafiz Saeed's Jammat-ud-Dawah is strongly opposing the proposal of renaming Shadman Chowk and even had threatened to the civil society members over this matter.

The foundation demanded the government to install a statue of Singh on Shadman Chowk to inspire the hearts of the people of Pakistan and the world as a symbol of freedom fighter.

"This will show that Pakistanis do not make any distinction on the basis of colour, creed, race or religion."

The foundation chairman, Advocate Imtiaz Rasheed Qureshi, told PTI that it would rigorously pursue this matter and press the government to accept its just demand.

He said the government should have no issue in acceptance of these demands that will reflect good on it (government) as well.

Qureshi has also been pursuing a case in the Lahore High Court to reopen the case of Singh and his two comrades who were hanged in 1931. It is pending in the court.

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News Network
July 24,2020

Kathmandu, Jul 24: At least 132 people lost their lives as a result of heavy rains triggering landslides, and flash floods in Nepal.

"132 people dead, 128 injured, 53 missing and 998 families affected due to rainfall, landslides and floods in the country as of 23rd July," Nepal Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Authority Within the last two weeks, the Myagdi district of western Nepal was the worst affected with 27 reported deaths.

Search and rescue operations are being conducted continuously with officials and police personnel who are looking through the debris to find missing people.

Monsoon-induced disasters are common in Nepal owing to the country's mountainous topography. Hundreds have been displaced as landslides have swept away their homes. They ended up taking refuge in local schools and community centers.

Nepal's Meteorological Forecasting Division earlier last week had predicted heavy downpour across the country. The Division had warned of monsoon winds being near the low-pressure line in the Terai belt, which would consequently cause more rainfall.

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Agencies
July 8,2020

Washington D.C, Jul 8:  US Secretary of State, Mike Pompeo on Tuesday (local time) announced visa restrictions on some Chinese officials under the Reciprocal Access to Tibet Act, 2018.

"Today I am announcing visa restrictions on PRC government and Chinese Communist Party officials determined to be "substantially involved in the formulation or execution of policies related to access for foreigners to Tibetan areas," pursuant to the Reciprocal Access to Tibet Act of 2018," Pompeo said.

"Access to Tibetan areas is increasingly vital to regional stability, given the PRC's human rights abuses there, as well as Beijing's failure to prevent environmental degradation near the headwaters of Asia's major rivers," he said.

The US Secretary of State pointed out that Beijing has continued "systematically to obstruct travel to the Tibetan Autonomous Region (TAR) and other Tibetan areas" by U.S. diplomats and other officials, journalists, and tourists, while PRC officials and other citizens enjoy far greater access to the United States.

"The United States will continue to work to advance the sustainable economic development, environmental conservation, and humanitarian conditions of Tibetan communities within the People's Republic of China and abroad," he said.

Pompeo said US also remains "committed to supporting meaningful autonomy for Tibetans, respect for their fundamental and unalienable human rights, and the preservation of their unique religious, cultural, and linguistic identity".

"In the spirit of true reciprocity, we will work closely with the U.S. Congress to ensure U.S. citizens have full access to all areas of the People's Republic of China, including the TAR and other Tibetan areas," he said.

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Agencies
February 23,2020

Washington, Feb 23: U.S. president Donald Trump on Saturday said he was looking forward to being with his "great friends" in India next week as he retweeted a short video in which his face was superimposed on the hit movie-character Bahubali, showing the president as a great saviour bringing peace to his kingdom.

Trump will pay a state visit to India on February 24 and 25, accompanied by a high-level delegation including first lady Melania Trump, his daughter Ivanka, son-in-law Jared Kushner and a galaxy of top American officials.

"Look so forward to being with my great friends India!" Trump said in the tweet.

Along with the tweet, Trump retweeted an 81-second video by a Twitter account identified as "Sol" with the handle Solmemes1.

"To celebrate Trump's visit to India I wanted to make a video to show how in my warped mind it will go... USA and India united!" the handle Solmemes1 tweeted in the original post with the video.

Trump appears as a great saviour, in the short animated clip, riding on a chariot with Melania. A few stills later, Trump is seen riding a horse carrying on his shoulders his son Donald Jr and daughter Ivanka.

Later, he is welcomed by Narendra Modi in a village setting. Hundreds and thousands of people are seen welcoming Trump in the video.

"This week Trump will visit India and in celebration I have created a new meme for the occasion... You few, who are my patrons, get to see it first!" Sol told viewers on subscription content service Patreon on Saturday. A few hours later, Trump retweeted the video.

In the Twitter description, Sol describes herself as "award winning master memetician, professor of memology at University of GFY, my views are my own and not associated with real life."

The Trump-Bahubali video, which ends with "USA and India United", went viral after Trump retweeted it. In a few hours, it was seen by nearly 6 lakh people.

Sol in one of her previous posts, dated January 23, writes she was inspired by a video of Bahubali sent to her by a friend, which is the story of 'good defeating evil.'

This inspired Sol to create her first Bahubali-theme meme. The video, lasting 93 seconds, is titled "Jiyo Re Baahu Trump", in which the first lady is seen wearing a saree. "Jiyo Re Bahubali," is the theme song of the video.

"I just loved this video when I saw it! A friend sent it to me and he told me that it is the story of good defeating evil... it was so fitting I had to make it (meme)..." Sol wrote in her post.

Sol's posts show that she is an admirer of Trump. Sol's January 23 video was released at the peak of Trump's impeachment proceedings.

Trump is seen being greeted by an elephant, which bears the logo of the Republican Party.

Towards the end of the video, Trump is seen riding the elephant, and putting on fire the effigy of "Raavan" marked as "D" in a big circle representing the opposition Democratic Party.

An arrow is given by warrior Narendra Modi to the First Lady, who then passes it on to Trump, before he lights the effigy.

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