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No sub-manifesto on Muslim quota, says Congress

April 26, 2014

MusklimsNew Delhi, Apr 26: The Congress made it clear on Friday that it had not promised a sub-quota for OBC Muslims as the matter is pending before the Supreme Court. It said the party cannot do anything until the matter is resolved in the court.

The clarification came from Union Law Minister Kapil Sibal after the Bharatiya Janata Party, responding to a newspaper report, described it as a “last desperate” act by the Congress to get Muslim votes. The report claimed that the “promise” of a sub-quota had been made in a supplementary manifesto of the Congress, a claim denied by the party.

“The Congress has not come out with any sub-manifesto,” Mr. Sibal said, pointing out that it was only one of the suggestions made to the party during one of the public consultations it had held before framing manifesto.

Those suggestions that were accepted were included in the manifesto, he said, while those that needed more work have been placed on the Congress website as suggestions that need to be deliberated on.

“We have put it before the people,” Mr. Sibal said, “These are suggestions for consideration, when the government comes to power. These are suggested policies and programmes, which have come up in the open manifesto consultation process. There is no appeasement, we must respect the sentiments of the public.”

He also stressed that the issue of a sub-quota for backward Muslims was pending in the Supreme Court and as long as the matter is not resolved, the party can do little.

On the Congress website, the party has listed the suggestions that came up in the course of the open consultations but which were not included in the manifesto. “We recognise,” the website says, “that there are some more expectations expressed by these groups, which will continue to guide the Indian National Congress’ efforts towards their development. The Congress is committed to finding a way forward towards meeting all such expectations of these groups, by putting in concerted efforts, as detailed below.”

Some of the suggestions that could not be included in the manifesto were extension of Scheduled Caste status to all Dalit minorities; examining the feasibility of mandating the next Delimitation Commission to ensure that minorities are not disenfranchised through reservation of constituencies where minority population equals or exceeds the SC/ST population; ensuring adequate representation of minorities in all public positions; ensuring that funds earmarked for minorities are allocated to various minority groups in a population-proportionate manner and earmarking a quota of 4.5 per cent for backward Muslims in the existing OBC reservation.

On Thursday, Bahujan Samaj Party chief Mayawati pitched for a sub-quota for OBC Muslims and also wanted quota benefits extended to the poor from upper castes.

Addressing a rally in Gonda, Ms. Mayawati said, “Along with Muslims, our party wants to extend benefit of reservation to poor from the upper castes.”

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Agencies
February 11,2020

Bhadohi, Feb 11: With just two days left for the State Budget Session, a widow from Uttar Pradesh''s Bhadohi district has accused BJP MLA Ravindranath Tripathi and six others of sexual harassment over the years, the police said.

The incident is likely to cause considerable embarrassment to the ruling Yogi Adityanath government.

Bhadohi Superintendent of Police (SP) Ram Badan Singh said: "The woman, whose husband died in 2007, met the BJP MLA Ravindranath Tripathi''s nephew in 2014. She said that she was physically exploited by him for many years on the pretext of marriage."

The complainant also said that the nephew then got her lodged in a Bhadohi hotel for about a month during the 2017 Uttar Pradesh Assembly elections, "where she was raped by the MLA and his other family members".

The case has been handed over to the Additional Superintendent of Police for further investigations.

A case is yet to be registered.

The Uttar Pradesh Budget Session starts from Thursday.

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News Network
March 12,2020

New Delhi, Mar 12: The Supreme Court told the Uttar Pradesh government on Thursday that as of now, there was no law that could back their action of putting up roadside posters of those accused of vandalism during anti-CAA protests in Lucknow.

An apex court bench refused to stay the March 9 Allahabad High Court order directing the Yogi Adityanath administration to remove the posters.

The top court, which grilled the Uttar Pradesh government for putting up such posters in public, described the plea as a matter that needed "further elaboration and consideration".

A vacation bench of justices U U Lalit and Aniruddha Bose said a "bench of sufficient strength" would consider next week the Uttar Pradesh government's appeal against the Allahabad High Court order directing the state administration to remove the posters of those accused of vandalism during anti-CAA protests.

It directed the apex court registry to put up the case file before Chief Justice of India (CJI) S A Bobde so that a "bench of sufficient strength can be constituted at the earliest to hear and consider" the case next week.

During the hearing, the bench told Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, appearing for the Uttar Pradesh government, that it was a matter of "great importance".

It asked Mehta whether the state government had the power to put up such posters.

The top court, however, said there was no doubt that action should be taken against rioters and they should be punished.

Mehta told the court that the posters were put up as a "deterrent" and the hoardings only said that these persons were liable to pay for their alleged acts during the violence.

Senior advocate A M Singhvi, appearing for former IPS officer S R Darapuri whose poster has also been affixed in Lucknow, told the bench that the state was duty-bound to show the authority of law backing its action.

He said the action of the Uttar Pradesh government amounted to a "mega blanket" approach of naming and shaming these persons without final adjudication and it was an open invitation to common men to lynch them as the posters also had their addresses and photographs.

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Agencies
July 30,2020

Mumbai, Jul 30: Counterfeiting incidents have increased 24 per cent in the country in 2019 over the previous year, creating an over Rs 1 lakh crore hole in the economy, according to a report.

The report also said counterfeiters are having a free run due to the pandemic-driven disruptions to organised supply chains and the resultant spike in consumer demand.

According to the report by ASPA, a self-regulated industry body of anti-counterfeiting and traceability solutions providers, counterfeiting has risen steadily in the last few years, and exploiting the pandemic as a cover for their activities.

Between February and April 2020, over 150 incidents of counterfeiting cases were reported, mostly about fake PPE kits, sanitisers and masks taking advantage of the high demand for these products, it noted.

"There was a 24 per cent increase in counterfeiting in 2019 over 2018, leading to the loss of more than Rs 1 lakh crore to the overall economy," said Nakul Pasricha, president of Authentication Solution Providers Association.

The association works with global authorities like the International Hologram Manufacturers Association, Counterfeit Intelligence Bureau of the Interpol, and domestic industry lobbies like Ficci, he said.

Counterfeiting is a universal issue and is 3.3 per cent of global trade, according to the OECD data, impacting social and economic development across the world.

The report lists the currency, FMCG, alcohol, pharma, documents, agriculture, infrastructure, automotive, tobacco, lifestyle and apparel, as the 10 sectors impacted most by counterfeiting.

Among these, currency, alcohol and FMCG continue to be the top three sectors with the highest counterfeiting in the last two years. The FMCG sector is most vulnerable, as counterfeit incidents rose 63 per cent between 2018 (79) and 2019 when the reported cases jumped to 129.

Within the states, the fakers have a free run in Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Bengal, Punjab, Jharkhand, Delhi, Gujarat, and Uttarakhand, calling for urgent actions to frame anti-counterfeiting policy measures.

According to the report, UP continues to be on top followed by Bihar, Rajasthan, and together these three states represent almost 45 per cent of all counterfeiting reported in the last two years.

What is more alarming is that counterfeiting is not limited to high-end luxury items today, as common everyday items as fake cumin seeds, mustard cooking oil, ghee, hair oils, soaps, baby care vaccines and medicines are aplenty in the markets.

"There is an urgent need for building and nurturing authentication ecosystems in the country with the active involvement and active participation of all stakeholders," said Pasricha.

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