Visa issue unlikely to impact India-US ties: Indian expert

June 4, 2014

Visa IssueWashington, Jun 4: Narendra Modi led Bharatiya Janata Party's (BJP) stunning election victory had put behind the issue of US visa for him and it's unlikely to impact bilateral ties with the US, according to a noted Indian strategic expert.

After his election victory, the new Indian prime minister had made it clear that how India engages with US bilaterally would not be impacted by how an individual was treated, Commodore (retd.) C Uday Bhaskar, Distinguished Fellow, Society for Policy Studies, said Tuesday.

But Modi, whose US visa was revoked in 2005 for his alleged complicity in the 2002 Gujarat riots, was unlikely to visit the US in a hurry, he said in a talk on "India-US Ties Under Narendra Modi" at the Hudson Institute, a Washington think tank.

In Bhaskar's view the UN general assembly session in September would be the first contact between the US and Indian leaders.

Modi's first priority was the seven-nation South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) and Japan. Modi has little foreign policy experience yet he "hit the ground running" with an invitation to SAARC leaders to attend his swearing-in ceremony.

"With that one act Modi has energised a moribund SAARC," Bhaskar said and he expected the new Indian leader to do the same with "moribund" India-US relations.

Comparing the landmark India-US nuclear deal to the Nixon-Kissinger opening to China, Bhaskar said it had not only "ended India's nuclear isolation but also brought India into the larger global politico-diplomatic grid." He also expected the new Indian parliament to revisit the nuclear issue as India's tough liability law has practically stalled the deal.

Bhaskar was sure the two sides will be able to find a modus vivendi to resolve the issue.

Modi was "very very aware of the global business environment," he said and knows India needs to engage with the US to regain its 8-9 percent growth rate from the current 4.4 percent.

India-US bilateral trade had shown remarkable growth to touch nearly $100 billion in recent years and it may well be touching $500 billion in four-five years, Bhaskar said.

India's defence modernisation plan with an allocation of $1.5 trillion also offered another opportunity, he said. The two sides also need to be talking about technology, cyber and space.

Despite many differences, "India and the US need to engage with each other as it shapes the grid in Asia and at the global level," Bhaskar noted.

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News Network
March 2,2020

New Delhi, Mar 2: The Supreme Court on Monday dismissed a curative petition filed by convict Pawan Kumar Gupta who was sentenced to death in the 2012 Nirbhaya gang rape and murder case.

A five-judge bench headed by Justice N V Ramana said that no case is made out for re-examining the conviction and the punishment of the convict.

Other members of the bench were justices Arun Mishra, R F Nariman, R Banumathi and Ashok Bhushan.

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Agencies
May 26,2020

New Delhi, May 26: The in-fighting among the residents of housing societies over feeding of stray dogs is nowhere near ending, with yet another attack on a pregnant Russian woman again in the national capital region this time in Noida.

The Russian woman residing in a condominium in Noida's Sector 71 was allegedly attacked by two men for feeding foundling canines inside the complex.

"We have initiated an inquiry and a case has been registered against the men for voluntarily causing hurt and criminal intimidation," Amit Kumar Singh, Station House Officer of Phase 3 police station told IANS.

The police said that the victim is married to an Indian man and they live in that society.

The issue was raked up on social media by one of the residents of the society. Her post had even solicited a response and help from the Noida Police Commissioner.

Kaveri Rana Bharadwaj wrote, "Mob led by Vikas Sharma, and Mr. Chauhan beat up a pregnant woman in Jagriti Apartment, Sector 71 Noida. Request you to immediately arrest these men and provide security to the scared woman!"

When contacted, a member of the Resident Welfare Association (RWA) of the society said that the allegations levied by her are false and that he, along with a handful of other people, had only asked her not to feed the dogs.

Vikas Sharma divulged, "The woman was called at the society gate by the members of the RWA. When she was asked not to feed the street dogs, she became aggressive, started fighting with the residents of the society and even pushed a 70-year-old woman. The complaint that she registered against us is false. We did not even touch her."

He added that there are 70-80 street dogs in the society who have lately become extremely aggressive. "The lady was asked not to feed them as people feared stepping out of their houses and getting bitten."

In another incident on Tuesday, a Greater Noida man beat up a Chinese woman for allegedly fostering a stray dog which bit his canine.

Greater Noida District Commissioner of Police Rajesh Kumar Singh told IANS that the man named Amar Pratap Singh of ATS Paradiso misbehaved with the woman after his dog was bit by another dog who she used to feed every day.

The incident happened in the wee hours of the day when the accused took his dog out for a walk. "After his dog was bitten, in a fit of rage, he misbehaved with the Chinese woman." A Non-Cognizable Report (NCR) has been registered and no arrests have been made so far, the police said.

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News Network
March 28,2020

Amaravati, Mar 28: The state governments of Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka carried out a joint quarantine operation to help over a thousand migrant labourers from various districts of Andhra Pradesh.
The Andhra Pradesh administration received the information that 1,334 migrant labourers were trying to return to the state after obtaining passes from the Deputy Director of Fisheries in Mangalore, Karnataka.
The labourers, according to a press release by the Andhra Pradesh government, were headed towards the Nangili Toll Plaza in Kolar district, from where they would enter the state to return to their native places.
"The Chittoor Collector, Superintendent of Police and Sub-Collector rushed to the spot to coordinate with their counterparts from Kolar, Karnataka. The migrant workers were not permitted to enter AP due to the lockdown and the guidelines of the Union as well as state government," according to the release.
Instead, both the governments decided to initiate a joint quarantine operation in Kolar while taking precautionary measures to ensure that none of the labourers are carriers of the COVID-19 infection.
The Andhra government also reassured the Kolar administration that it will provide doctors, healthcare and all other facilities. It has also issued directions for logistical support, food, water, transport to take the labourers to quarantine facility, and medical team, consisting of 12 doctors, 22 supervisors and other staff, to be provided.
While the Prime Minister had imposed a nationwide lockdown, including the suspension of inter-state travel to prevent the spread of coronavirus, migrant workers and labourers around the country have started returning back to their native places fearing joblessness and cash crunch.
Andhra Pradesh as of Saturday 9:30 am, had 14 confirmed cases of coronavirus while Karnataka's count stood at 55, according to the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare.

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