Modi govt seeks report from Karnataka, other states to extend ban on SIMI

News Network
June 6, 2018

New Delhi, Jun 6: Aiming at extending ban on the Students Islamic Movement of India (SIMI) beyond January 2019, the Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led union government has written to all state governments including Karnataka seeking an update on the activities of the outfit.

In a communication to all States, the Home Ministry said the ban imposed on SIMI under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) comes to an end on January 31, 2019, but if the central government finds the group continues to indulge in unlawful activities, then the prohibition may be imposed afresh.

“In case the State government finds that the aforesaid organisation is still indulging in unlawful activity and other activities prejudicial to the integrity and internal security of the nation or with a potential to threaten the secular fabric of the country, the relevant material covering cases under the Act registered before February 1, 2014, and their latest status indicating persons convicted, released, appeal preferred, if any, may be provided to this ministry,” the letter from the Joint Secretary in the Ministry S.C.L. Das said.

Cases registered on or after February 1, 2014, and their status which can stand judicial scrutiny, any other relevant information concerning SIMI along with the State government’s assessment and recommendation for a fresh ban may be furnished and a nodal officer may also be nominated for regular interaction and follow up, it said.

The Home Ministry said it is essential to watch the activities of SIMI and if its membership continues then 'ipso facto' a case of unlawful activity under the law is made out.

 “If this organisation and its members commit offences in furtherance of their aims and objectives, then the charge sheet would have to contain the reference to such violation of Act. This is important since the evidence of such activities in the form of FIRs and charge sheets are required to be produced before the Tribunal,” the communication said.

Described as a terrorist organisation, the SIMI was first declared an outlawed outfit in 2001.

Since then, it has been declared a banned group under the relevant law. The last time it was declared a banned outfit was under the UAPA on February 1, 2014, for a period of five years. The ban was confirmed by a tribunal on July 30, 2014.

Comments

Arif
 - 
Wednesday, 6 Jun 2018

If that is so, why RSS was banned earlier? What for?

Danish
 - 
Wednesday, 6 Jun 2018

Let them probe and findout something. If they are clean why you are worried

Who told you these lies.. Did you ever visit RSS sakha? Anytime you can visit and observe or participate in their activities. Nobody from RSS oppose you. Dont blabber without knowning the facts. If central govt suspecting them then there must be some suspicious activities

Arif
 - 
Wednesday, 6 Jun 2018

Also open your eyes for the activities of RSS and other organizations like BD. There are many training centers around India where they train young people on guns and rifle. Rule should be applied to everyone. I haven't seen activities of these people, but definetly many of RSSs and BDs.

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News Network
May 29,2020

Bengaluru, May 29: The hotel industry is one of the worst-hit industries due to lockdown, along with the tourism industry. Bengaluru's hotel industry has incurred a loss of around Rs 1200 crore during the lockdown period however, the hotels here are likely to open in June if the State government issues guidelines for the resumption of their services.

Speaking to media, PC Rao, President, Bangalore Hotelier's Association said, "It's not only the loss of business, but we have lost the customer base as well. 
We don't expect any good future for the next six months. There will be a slow down in the business even after opening."

"We have requested our CM to give first preference to the hotels. We are going to restart our business in June if granted permission. Around 10 per cent of the hotels cannot open at all. They are in the stage of merging or closing down position. Few hotels may open after five or six months," he added.

He continued saying that many hotels are for sale but there are no buyers. There are around 21,000 restaurants in Bangalore, 3500 hotels with rooms and restaurant which has an average turnover of Rs 20 crores per day, Rao informed.

"We expect losses of around Rs 1200 crores in these two months. We are giving special online training to all the hoteliers and to our managers particularly to deal with the COVID-19 situation, including how to deal with the guests, employees, how to start the hotel services. 

Each and every manager has already been trained and we are still continuing it. We will conduct face to face meeting as well and brief the managers," said Rao.

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News Network
August 5,2020

Bengaluru, Aug 5: The Janata Dal (Secular) will contest all the 243 assembly seats in Bihar, the elections for which are due in October-November this year, its state unit chief Haldhar Kant Mishra announced on Tuesday.

Mishra said party supremo Deve Gowda has asked him to expand JD(S)'s base and also to prepare itself for contesting all the constituencies in view of the zeal and enthusiasm shown by party workers and office-bearers.

Deve Gowda announced the decision during a virtual meeting with presidents of party's various cells and office- bearers, he said.

He assured that the party will provide all kinds of support for its expansion and selection of candidates for the Bihar polls, Mishra said.

The former prime minister told the party functionaries that several leaders from Bihar are in touch with him and they will join the JD(S) to play their part in the elections, he added.

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News Network
May 5,2020

Dubai, May 5: Tickets on repatriation flights from UAE to India, which start on May 7, could be costlier than regular airfare, and adding to the financial woes of those flying back. Nearly 200,000 Indians in the UAE have registered on the website seeking to return home.

“A one-way repatriation ticket to Delhi will cost approximately Dh1,400-Dh1,650 - this would earlier have cost between Dh600-Dh700 [during these months],” said Jamal Abdulnazar, CEO of Cozmo Travel. “A one-way repatriation flight ticket to Kerala would cost approximately Dh1,900-Dh2,300.”

This can be quite a burden, as a majority of those taking these flights have either lost their jobs or are sending back their families because of uncertainty on the work front. To now have to pay airfare that is nearly on par with those during peak summer months is quite a blow.

Sources said that officials in Indian diplomatic missions have already initiated calls to some expats, telling them about likely ticket fares and enquiring about their willingness to travel.

Although many believed repatriation would be government-sponsored, Indian authorities have clarified that customers would have to pay for the tickets themselves. Those who thought they were entitled to free repatriation might back out of travel plans for now.

Fact of life

But aviation and travel industry sources say higher rates cannot be escaped since social distancing norms have to be strictly enforced at all times. That would limit the number of passengers on each of these flights.

“One airline can carry only limited passengers - therefore, multiple airlines are likely to get the approval to operate repatriation flights,” said Abdulnazar. “Also, airports will have to maintain safe distance for passengers to queue up at immigration and security counters.

“Therefore, it is recommended that multiple carriers fly into multiple Indian airports for repatriation to be expedited.”

The Indian authorities, so far, have not taken the easy decision to get its private domestic airlines into the rescue act. Gulf News tried speaking to the leading players, but they declined to provide any official statements. So far, only Air India, the national airline, has been commissioned to operate the flights.

Air India finds itself in the driver's seat when it comes to operating India's repatriation flights. To date, there is no confirmation India's private airlines will be allowed to join in.

UAE carriers ready to help out

UAE’s Emirates airline, Etihad, flydubai and Air Arabia are likely to also operate repatriation flights to India after Air India implements the first phase of services.

“We are fully supporting governments and authorities across the flydubai network with their repatriation efforts, helping them to make arrangements for their citizens to return home,” said a flydubai spokesperson.

“We will announce repatriation flights as and when they are confirmed, recognising this is an evolving situation whilst the flight restrictions remain in place.”

An AirArabia spokesperson said the airline is ready to operate repatriation flights when the government tells them to.

Travel agencies likely to benefit

Apart from operating non-scheduled commercial flights, the Indian government is also deploying naval ships to bring expat Indians back. Sources claim the ships are to ferry passengers who cannot afford the repatriation airfares.

Even then, considering the sheer numbers who will want to get on the flights, travel agencies are likely to see a surge in bookings since airline websites alone may not cope with the demand set off in such a short span.

Learn from Gulf governments

In instances when they carried out their own repatriation flights, some GCC governments paid the ticket fares to fly in their citizens. Those citizens who did not have the ready funds could approach their diplomatic mission and aid would be given on a case-to-case basis.

Should Indians wait for normal services to resume?

Industry sources say that those Indians wanting to fly back and cannot afford the repatriation flights should wait for full services to resume once the COVID-19 pandemic settles.

But can those who lost their jobs or seen steep salary cuts stay on without adding to their costs? And is there any guarantee that when flight services resume, ticket rates would be lower than on the repatriation trips.

As such, normal travel is expected to pick up only after the repatriation exercise to several countries is completed. UAE-based travel agencies are not seeing any bookings for summer, which is traditionally the peak holiday season.

“Majority want to stay put unless full confidence is restored,” said Abdulnazar. “I expect full normalcy to be restored not until March 2021.

“People have also taken a hit to their income. Without disposable income, you will curtail your travel.”

What constitutes normalcy?

Airfares are expected to remain high, given the need to keep the middle seats empty to practise safe distance onboard.

“We expect holiday travel to resume by October or November - but, the travel sentiment will not go back to pre-COVID-19 levels anytime soon,” said Manvendra Roy, Vice-President – Commercial at holidayme, an online travel agency. “The need to keep the middle seat vacant will add 30-40 per cent pricing pressure per seat from an airline perspective.

“This will make holidays more expensive.”

As for business travel, it will take some time to recover. Corporate staff are now used to getting work done via conference calls. “Companies will also curtail their travel expenditure since their income has taken a hit,” said Abdulnazar.

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