Sachin Tendulkar permitted to skip Parliament despite objection

August 11, 2014

New Delhi, Aug 11: Rajya Sabha Chairman Hamid Ansari on Monday accepted batting legend Sachin Tendulkar's leave request for rest of the session. Tendulkar hasn't attended a single session this year.

Sachin TendulkarDeputy Chairman PJ Kurien said Tendulkar has requested permission to be absent from the house, citing "personal and professional commitments" and "family exigencies".

However, as Kurien read out the application from Tendulkar seeking leave, some members raised objections and created a din.

But Kurien said the members were not supposed to discuss applications seeking leave.

"So many members are absent for various reasons, it is for the chair to enquire why they were absent. It is not for members to enquire why a certain member is not coming," said Kurien.

The house then granted leave to Tendulkar.

Ansari had last week given a clean chit to Tendulkar and former Bollywood actress Rekha over their regular absence from the Parliament amid a bitter row over their non-presence in the Upper House.

Ansari had said that there was no violation of constitutional provision, as they have not been absent for more than 60 days from house.

Tendulkar, despite his God-like status in India and thanks to his exploits in cricketing fields, is yet to mark his attendance in Parliament this year. The 41-year-old was nominated as a member of Rajya Sabha in 2012, but the legend could make only three appearances last year.

Meanwhile, ex-IPL chief and Congress spokesperson Rajeev Shukla had defended the absence of the two celebrities from the Parliament, saying that they had not also not availed the facilities which are available to MPs as well.

"Both of them haven't availed the facilities as well. Rekha is coming to the Parliament next week, Sachin will also come before the session ends. Prior to this, both of them have attended sessions," he said.

Earlier, when asked about his indifferent performance in Parliament by a Zee Media correspondent, the former Indian captain chose not to answer and walked-away.

Besides the batting maestro, the poor attendance of yesteryear’s screen siren Rekha also came to light. The 59-year-old actress has so far attended the parliamentary sitting only seven times.

Sachin Tendulkar, Rekha and industrialist Anu Aga were nominated to the 250-member Rajya Sabha in 2012. Their nomination was approved by the then President Pratibha Patil under Article 80 of the Indian Constitution.

As a notable tradition, famous personalities from varied backgrounds are nominated into the Parliament for their contributions to the society. But their attendance often becomes a national issue as many don`t consider it important enough to make their presence in the floor of Parliament.

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News Network
February 14,2020

New Delhi, Feb 14: Senior Congress leader P Chidambaram on Thursday said there must be a "huge mass movement" if any Muslim was sent to detention camps in case the Supreme Court upheld the validity of the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA).

Speaking at the JNU campus, the former Union minister said the CAA was an outcome of the "NRC fiasco" in Assam that left 19 lakh people out of the document.

The CAA was brought to accommodate the 12 lakh Hindus among the 19 lakh people who could not be included in the National Register of Citizens (NRC) in Assam, he claimed.

Replying to a question by a student on the best course of action if the CAA was upheld by the apex court, Chidambaram said, "When they touch the excluded...they will only be Muslims, to identify and throw them out, declare them stateless, there must be a huge mass movement, resisting any Muslim being thrown out or kept in detention camps."

He also said the Congress believed that the CAA must be repealed and there should be a political struggle so that the National Population Register (NPR) was pushed beyond 2024.

Claiming that the NRC, CAA and NPR were "closely connected" to each other, Chidambaram said, "The CAA was brought due to the NRC fiasco in Assam and the opposition to the CAA gave way to the NPR."

He asserted that the Congress was protesting against the CAA and the NRC across the country, but had consciously avoided going to Shaheen Bagh, as in that case, the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) would brand the demonstration against the amended citizenship law as a "political" one.

"See, we are not going to Shaheen Bagh because that would be falling into the BJP's trap. If we go there, they (BJP) will say it is political," the senior Congress leader said.

Slamming the CAA and the NRC as instruments undermining the very basis of the formation of India, he said the country, instead, needed a "broad law" on refugees.

Speaking at an event against the NRC, CAA and NPR hosted by the Congress's student wing, NSUI, at the Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU), Chidambaram accused the BJP of spreading lies against Opposition parties.

"The BJP says the Congress, the Left and other liberal parties are against citizenship to persecuted Hindus, Sikhs from Pakistan, Bangladesh. But we are not against those included, our opposition is against exclusion," he said.

Questioning the rationale behind the CAA, the former finance minister said it excluded people on the basis of religion.

"Why only three countries, what about other neighbouring countries — Nepal, Bhutan, China? What about others treated much worse? The Ahmadiyas and Shias of Pakistan, the Rohingyas of Myanmar, Tamil Hindus are equally persecuted, why are they left out?" he questioned.

Chidambaram also said the CAA did not cover persecution based on language, political ideology and economic deprivation.

Slamming the NRC, he wondered which country would accept those left out of the document.

"Which country is going to accept them? How will they go? Where will you send them? (Home Minister) Amit Shah saying that they are termites and he will throw them out by 2024 is talking through his hat," the senior Congress leader said.

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News Network
March 11,2020

New Delhi, Mar 11: A doctor in Kerala on Tuesday alleged that she was sacked by the management of the private clinic she was working with for informing authorities about a non-resident Indian (NRI) patient who reportedly declined to undergo the mandatory check for coronavirus.

Dr Shinu Syamalan said the patient had come to the clinic recently with suspected symptoms of the virus.

"When he was asked whether he had visited any foreign countries, he said he was coming from Qatar. But he had not reported to the Health department about his foreign trip," she said.

When he was directed to inform about his foreign travel to the state Health Department, which has been monitoring people coming from abroad for the virus, he refused and said he was going back to Qatar, she told reporters.

Concerned over the health of the person who had high fever, Ms Syamalan informed health and police authorities.

"Officials who let the patient go abroad do not have any problem, but I have become jobless," she posted on social media.

She alleged she was sacked by the management of the clinic for reporting the matter to police and informing the public about the incident through social media and through television.

"The argument of the management is that no one would turn up for treatment in the clinic if they come to know that it was visited by patients with suspected symptoms of Coronavirus," she said.

There was no immediate reaction from the management of the private health clinic.

Official sources said the District Medical Officer (DMO) at Thrissur has complained to the collector against Shinu Syamalan accusing her of defaming health officials.

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Agencies
February 11,2020

New Delhi, Feb 11: AAP chief and Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal has won from New Delhi assembly seat. He polled 46,758 votes, which is 61.1 per cent of total votes polled in the high profile constituency.

Kejriwal defeated Sunil Kumar Yadav of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), who polled 25,061 votes, which is 32.75 per cent of total votes polled. Congress candidate Romesh Sabhawarl could get only 3,220 votes.

So far, the AAP has won 55 seats and is leading on seven seats. The BJP has won seven seats and is leading on two. The Congress is nowhere in the reckoning.

As per the details on the website of Election Commission of India at 8.27 pm on Tuesday, the AAP has secured 53.60 per cent votes, BJP 38.49 per cent, BSP 0.71 per cent, CPI 0.02 per cent, CPI-M 0.01 per cent, Congress 4.27 per cent, JDU 0.90 per cent, LJP 0.35 per cent, NCP 0.02 per cent, and NOTA 0.46 per cent.

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