Will violate prohibitory orders if Citizenship Bill not withdrawn: Ex-Assam CM

Agencies
January 12, 2019

Guwahati, Jan 12: A day after protests were banned in parts of Guwahati, former Assam chief minister Tarun Gogoi said on Friday he would violate the prohibitory order and court arrest if the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill was not withdrawn by the Centre.

Addressing a press conference, Gogoi added that if protests or disturbances continue in the state, youths are likely to get attracted towards insurgency.

"I will violate (Section) 144 (of the Code of Criminal Procedure) if you (Centre) do not withdraw the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill. I will lead people and shout slogans. I will go to jail a jail bharo (movement)," he asserted.

The bill will not only affect Assam but threaten the entire country's unity and culture, Gogoi claimed.

By completely prohibiting all sorts of protests, the BJP-led government is curtailing the democratic rights of people and running the state in an autocratic manner, the senior Congress leader said.

"Before bringing the bill, why was no attempt made to have discussion by the government with all stakeholders? Even after protests started, the government could have talked. (Former prime minister) Indira Gandhi had herself come to talk when the Assam agitation was on," he said.

In view of protests on a daily basis against the bill, the Guwahati police on Thursday banned all sorts of agitation in parts of Guwahati under Section 144 of the CrPC.

The jurisdiction of the order will cover Dispur, where the Secretariat complex is, Bhangagarh, Basistha, Hatigaon, Sonapur and Khetri police station areas, said Deputy Commissioner (East) Ramandeep Kaur.

"If protests and disturbances continue, youths will be unhappy and terrorism will rise. Because of such developments like the Citizenship Bill, youths are getting attracted towards insurgency and joining the ULFA.

"We had brought them to the mainstream, but the BJP is doing the opposite by taking anti-people policies. The government should not ignore peoples' aspirations," Gogoi said.

He also said the BJP is unable to handle the law and order situation and added the home department was "clueless".

"That is why, a Bengal cadre officer is brought as security adviser. Why an Assam cadre officer was not appointed? Now they will appoint all officers from outside," he said.

Gogoi was referring to the appointment of former Kolkata Police Commissioner Ranjit Kumar Panchnanda as the security adviser to the Assam chief minister.

"May be, one day, we will have the CM also from outside. May be, Ram Madhav (BJP general secretary) will become the CM next time. In any case, the government is being run from outside," he claimed.

Talking about religious persecution of Hindus in Bangladesh, the former CM said in his 15-year tenure, he did not get a single application from anyone about religious persecution in the neighbouring country or political persecution.

"If the JPC got information that 31,000 have applied for citizenship under religious persecution, then why did the Centre not take up the issue with the Bangladesh government? In fact, Hindus are living at peace there," he said.

Assam Finance Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma is trying to create a clash between Hindus and Muslims in Assam on the citizenship issue, Gogoi alleged.

"Mizoram, Meghalaya are opposing (the bill). Manipur CM has asked to exclude his state. The alliance of the Tripura government has threatened to pull out if the bill is passed. However, the BJP leadership in Assam is silent and assuring people it will not harm us," he said.

Gogoi also vowed to defeat the BJP in the forthcoming Lok Sabha election and asked people to ensure that the saffron party's tally comes down to zero.

On infiltration, he said, "The BJP itself said that no Bangladeshi came to India in the last 10 years. So, they were not happy and now want to bring Bangladeshis into Assam with the help of the bill.

"During election rallies, (Prime Minister Narendra) Modi said that 'I brought all foreigners and I won with their votes'. Now, their own spokesperson said that his PM lied and it was a 'jumla'."

BJP spokesman Swapnanil Barua on Thursday said there had been no illegal infiltration from Bangladesh into India during the last 10 years, despite making the issue a major poll plank in the 2014 Lok Sabha and 2016 Assam assembly elections.

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Agencies
February 11,2020

New Delhi, Feb 11: Delhi BJP chief Manoj Tiwari on Tuesday said the party will review why it failed to meet its own expectations in the Assembly polls and saw a moral victory in the fact that the party's vote share has increased since 2015.

"Delhi must have given mandate after careful thinking. Our vote percentage has increased from 32 per cent to around 38 per cent. Delhi did not reject us and the increase (in vote share) is a good sign for us," he told reporters.

He said the BJP hopes that there would be less blame game and more work in the national capital and congratulated Arvind Kejriwal on his party's victory in the polls.

After winning the Patparganj seat, AAP senior leader Manish Sisodia accused the BJP of indulging in the politics of hate.

"We indulge in politics of development not politics of hate. We're against the roadblock in Shaheen Bagh as we were earlier," he said.

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News Network
May 19,2020

Kolkata, May 19: The super cyclonic storm 'Amphan' in west-central Bay of Bengal is likely to weaken into an 'extremely severe cyclonic storm' by noon on Tuesday, the Met department said here.

The system, which was situated 670 km south-southwest of Digha in West Bengal, is very likely to move north-northeastwards across northwest Bay of Bengal, and cross West Bengal-Bangladesh coasts in the afternoon or evening of Wednesday as a 'very severe cyclonic storm', the Met department said.

The weatherman said that 'Amphan' is expected to cross West Bengal-Bangladesh coasts between Digha in West Bengal and Hatiya islands in Bangladesh on May 20 as a very severe cyclonic storm, after losing some steam as it approaches landfall, with a maximum sustained wind speed of 155 to 165 kmph gusting to 180 kmph.

Gale wind speeds reaching 240 to 250 kmph were prevailing over west-central and adjoining east-central Bay of Bengal, the Met office said, adding, it will gradually reduce to 200 to 210 kmph gusting to 230 kmph by Tuesday evening.

The Met department, which has issued an "orange message" for West Bengal, warned of extensive damage in Kolkata, Hooghly, Howrah, South and North 24 Parganas and East Midnapore districts.

There is likely to be disruption of rail and road link at several places, uprooting of communication and power poles and extensive damage to all types of 'kutcha' houses, the weatherman said.

There is also likelihood of massive harm to standing crops, plantations and orchards, the Met office said.

Wind speeds along and off the coastal areas of West Bengal will reach 45 to 55 kmph with gusts of 65 kmph from Tuesday afternoon, and will gradually increase becoming gale wind speeds reaching 75 to 85 kmph with gusts up to 95 kmph from May 20 morning along and off districts of North and South 24 Parganas, East and West Midnapore, Kolkata, Howrah and Hooghly, Regional Met Director G K Das said.

"It will gradually increase thereafter becoming 110 to 120 kmph gusting to 130 kmph over West Midnapore, Howrah, Hooghly, Kolkata and wind speeds of 165 to 175 kmph gusting to 195 kmph over the districts of North and South 24 Parganas and East Midnapore from the afternoon to night of May 20," Das said.

Under its impact, the coastal districts of Gangetic West Bengal, including North and South 24 Parganas, Kolkata, East and West Midnapore, Howrah and Hooghly are likely to experience light to moderate rain at many places with heavy downpour at isolated places on Tuesday, he said.

On Wednesday, rainfall will occur in many places over the districts of Gangetic West Bengal, with extremely heavy rain at one or two places in Kolkata, Howrah, East Midnapore, North and South 24 Parganas and Hooghly districts, he said.

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News Network
February 16,2020

New Delhi, Feb 16: RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat on Saturday said everyone is unhappy in the society and constantly agitating notwithstanding a "many-fold rise" in materialistic comforts and pleasures.

Addressing a gathering of Sangh workers and intellectuals here in Gujarat, Mr Bhagwat also said that even political parties who are not in power are also agitating.

"Inspite of increase in comforts and materialistic pleasures, everyone is unhappy and is staging agitations. Be it owner or servant, a party in opposition, the common man students, teachers, everyone is unhappy and dissatisfied," the Rashtriya Swayamsewak Sangh (RSS) chief said.

He was speaking on the topic "India's Role in the Present World Context".

Mr Bhagwat further said that bigotry, violence and terrorism are on the rise in the present world.

"India has to give 'dharma'  (wisdom) to the world so that knowledge spreads but humans do not become robotic. We have always talked about the concept of global family but not global market," he said.

The lecture was organised by "Madhav Smruti Nyas", an organisation backed by the RSS.

"To think that we are living in a better world is a half truth. Facilities are not evenly distributed. Rule of Jungle is prevailing. A capable person is crushing the weak to climb up. Knowledge is used more for the destruction of the world," the Sangh chief said.

Mr Bhagwat said people are also misusing social media by spreading "false information" to create controversies.

He also stated that trying to put "everyone into one uniform" is also a form of bigotry.

"US and Russia are super powers. China would become a super power too. Now, what super power nations did to others? They just took control of other countries for their own selfish agenda. These super powers gave it back only when they were asked to do so. Otherwise, they never gave anything to others," said Mr Bhagwat.

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