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Thanks to Rahul Gandhi, my son is a pilot now: Delhi gang-rape victim’s mom

News Network
November 2, 2017

The brother of the young physiotherapist Nirbhaya who died in a hospital after a brutal gang-rape in Delhi in 2012, is now a pilot. And their mother thanks Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi for making the family's dream come true.

"Aman (name changed) is a pilot now because of Rahul Gandhi," said Asha Devi, who fought for years to get justice for her daughter. The brutality of the crime against the 23-year-old, who was named "Nirbhaya" - meaning fearless - because of laws against naming rape victims, provoked intense anger and weeks of protests across Indian cities and also hit international headlines.

All the accused were arrested and charged with sexual assault and murder. One of them died in police custody. The four remaining adult defendants were found guilty of rape and murder and sentenced to death. A juvenile too was convicted and sent to a reform facility for three years.

The tragedy hurt Aman but could not stop him, Asha told media persons. Apart from sponsoring his higher education, Rahul's regular phone calls motivated him to achieve what he wanted, she said.

When his sister was killed, Aman was in Class 12. He wanted to join the military. But the brutal crime sent him into shock.

"Rahul Gandhi was the one who counselled him and motivated him to achieve something good in life to support the family. After learning that he wanted to join the defence forces, Rahul asked him to pursue a pilot's training course after completion of school," Asha said.

After his CBSE board examinations in 2013, Aman got admission at Indira Gandhi Rashtriya Uran Akademi in Rae Bareli, the Congress leader's parliamentary constituency.

"While shifting to Rae Bareli, Aman made up his mind that he will prepare for the Indian Army's recruitment examination. But on joining the course, he found it difficult. He never got time to pursue parallel studies," Asha said, quoting conversations with her son.

During his 18-month pilot's training course, Aman used to get regular updates about the Nirbhaya trial. "When he was studying, Rahul used to talk to him over the phone and taught him to adopt a 'never quit' attitude." she added.

"Even after he completed his studies, he called him to find out about his training-cum-job." Aman is now undergoing final training with a commercial airline in Gurugram. He will soon fly a plane. Asha said even Rahul's sister Priyanka calls them over the phone. "She often asks about our health," she said.

Nirbhaya's youngest brother is studying engineering in Pune. Their father is a permanent employee at Delhi airport's terminal 3 and has a desk job. On Wednesday, the Delhi Commission for Women (DCW) issued a notice to the city's Tihar Jail administration and the deputy commissioner of police in the south district for delaying the execution of the death penalty awarded to Nirbhaya's rapists.

Asha Devi had complained to the DCW, asking why the criminals have not been hanged as per the Supreme Court order which came five months ago.

Comments

Gigi
 - 
Saturday, 23 Dec 2017

Good question. If their appeals have been exhausted, why has the sentence not been carried out? 

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News Network
February 22,2020

Washington, Feb 22: US President Donald Trump will raise the issue of religious freedom with Prime Minister Narendra Modi during his visit to India next week, the White House said on Friday, noting that the US has great respect for India's democratic traditions and institutions.

"President Trump will talk about our shared tradition of democracy and religious freedom both in his public remarks and then certainly in private. He will raise these issues, particularly the religious freedom issue, which is extremely important to this administration," a senior official told reporters in a conference call.

The official was responding to a question on whether the president was planning to speak to Modi on the Citizenship (Amendment) Act or the National Register of Citizens.

"We do have this shared commitment to upholding our universal values, the rule of law. We have great respect for India's democratic traditions and institutions, and we will continue to encourage India to uphold those traditions," the official said, requesting anonymity.

"And we are concerned with some of the issues that you have raised," the senior administration official said, in response to the question on CAA and NRC.

"I think the President will talk about these issues in his meetings with Prime Minister Modi and note that the world is looking to India to continue to uphold its democratic traditions, respect for religious minorities," the official said.

"Of course, it's in the Indian constitution -- religious freedom, respect for religious minorities, and equal treatment of all religions. So this is something that is important to the president and I'm sure it will come up," said the official.

Pointing out that India has a strong democratic foundation, the official said India is a country rich in religious, linguistic, and cultural diversity.

"In fact, it's the birthplace of four major world religions," the official noted.

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News Network
April 5,2020

Thiruvananthapuram, Apr 5: Eight more COVID-19 positive cases were reported from Kerala on Sunday, four among whom attended the Tablighi Jamat congregation in Delhi and six people were cured, Health Minister K K Shailaja said.

With this, the total number of affected people under treatment in the state has gone up to 256, she said.

"Out of the eight cases, five are from Kozhikode, and one each from Pathanamthitta, Kannur and Kasaragod districts.

In the case of Kozhikode, four out of the five returned from Nizammuddin meet and one from Dubai.

As of date, 10 people who had returned from Nizammuddin in Delhi have been tested positive," the minister said in a release

A total of 314 cases have been reported from Kerala so far and 56 people have been cured, she said

"We have sent 10,221 samples for testing," she said.

A total of 1.58 lakh people are under observation in the state, out of which 776 are in isolation wards in hospitals.

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Agencies
August 7,2020

Washington, Aug 7: US President Donald Trump on Thursday (local time) signed executive orders halting all transactions with Chinese applications TikTok and WeChat within 45 days, citing national security concerns, further escalating the tensions between Beijing and Washington.

"WeChat, a messaging, social media, and electronic payment application owned by the Chinese company Tencent Holdings Ltd., reportedly has over one billion users worldwide, including users in the United States. Like TikTok, WeChat automatically captures vast swaths of information from its users. 

This data collection threatens to allow the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) access to Americans' personal and proprietary information," Trump said in a statement.

Citing reasons for the ban on WeChat, the US President said that the application captures the personal and proprietary information of Chinese nationals visiting the US, thereby providing the CCP a mechanism to keep tabs on the Chinese citizens who may be "enjoying the benefits of a free society for the first time in their lives".

"In March 2019, a researcher reportedly discovered a Chinese database containing billions of WeChat messages sent from users in not only China but also the United States, Taiwan, South Korea and Australia. WeChat, like TikTok, also reportedly censors content that the CCP deems politically sensitive and may also be used for disinformation campaigns that benefit the CCP. 

These risks have led other countries, including Australia and India, to begin restricting or banning the use of WeChat. The US must take aggressive action against the owner of WeChat to protect our national security," he added.

Earlier, Trump had issued an order banning TikTok as it "reportedly censors content that the CCP deems politically sensitive, such as content concerning protests in Hong Kong and China's treatment of Uighurs and other Muslim minorities. 

TikTok may also be used for disinformation campaigns that benefit the CCP."
US politicians have repeatedly criticised TikTok, owned by Beijing-based startup ByteDance, of being a threat to national security because of its ties to China.

The development comes as China and the US are at loggerheads on a variety of issues including Hong Kong national security law, the South China Sea, the novel coronavirus and trade.

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