India

By Santosh Kumar Pathak
New Delhi, Sep 22 (IANS) The Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), which is the key driving force behind the country's ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), is a prominent organisation which has ardent followers and staunch critics in equal proportion.


However, the recent meeting of RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat with Muslim intellectuals and his Tursday's meeting with the head of All India Imam Organisation at a mosque in Delhi, which was followed by a visit to a madrasa here, have drawn everyone's attention -- in the political as well as apolitical circles.

Bhagwat on Thursday visited a madrasa in the old Delhi area where he interacted with the teachers and students. Earlier, he met the chief of the All India Imam Organisation, Imam Umer Ahmed Ilyasi, at a mosque in Kasturba Gandhi Marg.

On August 22, the RSS chief had met a group of Muslim intellectuals.

The recent developments are being termed as RSS' attempt to strengthen the communal harmony in the country.

Also, the meetings, interactions and the deliberations have been happening in the backdrop of allegations by the Opposition leaders, including former Congress chief Rahul Gandhi, that the BJP and the RSS are trying to fan communal tension in the country.

Several questions have been popping up of late following Bhagwat's hobnobbing with the key personalities of the Muslim community. The prominent among them are:

* Is RSS' stance towards Muslims changing?

* What could be the agenda of RSS behind these meeting?

* What exactly Mohan Bhagwat is trying to achieve?

To get a deeper insight into the recent developments, IANS reached out to RSS Prachar Pramukh Sunil Ambekar, who maintained that the Sangh has always opposed terrorism and separatism.

He said: "Everyone should strive to create a spirit and environment of cordiality by opposing extremism. This is everyone's collective responsibility."

"RSS never had any problems with anyone's ways of worship or offering prayers," he added.

Responding to questions doing the rounds around Bhagwat's meeting with the Muslim intellectuals, Ambekar said: "The RSS is always ready for holding discussions for the betterment of the society and the nation. The Sangh has always kept its doors open for this purpose. Even on the Ayodhya issue, we had held discussions with everyone."

"To promote cordiality, we always insist on holding discussions with various sections of the society. There is nothing new in this. It's part of a routine process," he said.

RSS leader and patron of Muslim Rashtriya Manch (MRM), Indresh Kumar, said that right from former RSS chief K.S. Sudarshan's tenure, the members of Muslim and Christian communities have been trying to understand the Sangh not through any religious or political leaders, but on their own.

"That is why an organisation like MRM came into existence," he said.

Meanwhile, sources in the know of things also said that in the coming days, the RSS chief may hold deliberations with the Christian religious leaders as well as intellectuals of the minority community.

It is being said that to communicate seamlessly with the religious leaders and intellectuals of both Muslim and Christian communities, the RSS has set up a committee of four senior Sangh leaders. Besides Indresh Kumar, the panel comprises senior leaders Krishn Gopal, Manmohan Vaidya and Ram Lal.

In fact, the RSS had initiated an effort to bring a change in the mindset of the Muslim community since the era of former Prime Minister late Atal Bihari Vajpayee. However, the overall scenario was much different then as key issues such as Ram Janmabhoomi was yet to see any solution.

Also, several matters were pushed into the cold storage since the government was functioning on the back-up of alliance parties.

In fact, the MRM has held several functions wherein communications were established with the members of Muslim as well as Christian community. Sources said that those programmes have been mostly successful.

--IANS
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New Delhi, Sep 22 (IANS) The Defence Ministry on Thursday signed a Rs 1,700 crore deal for acquisition of additional dual-role capable surface to surface BrahMos missiles.

"Providing further impetus to Aatmanirbharta in defence production, the Ministry of Defence signed a contract today with BrahMos Aerospace Pvt Ltd (BAPL) for acquisition of additional dual-role capable surface to curface BrahMos missiles at an overall approximate cost of Rs 1,700 crore under Buy-Indian Category," the ministry said in a statement.

The induction of these dual-role capable missiles is supposed to significantly enhance the operational capability of Indian Navy.

The BAPL is a joint venture between India and Russia making crucial contribution to augment the new generation surface-to-surface Missiles (SSMs) with enhanced range and dual role capability for land as well as anti-ship attacks.

This contract is going to give further boost to indigenous production of critical weapon system and ammunition with active participation of indigenous industry, said the ministry.

--IANS
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New Delhi, Sep 22 (IANS) Union Minister for Road Transport and Highways Nitin Gadkari on Thursday laid the foundation stones for eight National Highway projects worth Rs 3,000 crore at Rajamahendravaram in Andhra Pradesh.

Gadkari said once the projects are completed, they will provide green field road connectivity to Kakinada SEZ, SEZ Port, Fishing Harbour and Kakinada Anchorage Port, which will smoothen the export of rice, sea food, oil meals, iron-ore, bio-fuel, granite etc., through Kakinada Port.

The Minister said the road projects include construction of five flyovers at Kaikaram, Morampudi, Undarajavaram, Tetali and Jonnada and after their completion, it would provide hassle-free and safe traffic movement for places like Namavaram, Satellite City, Mandapeta, Ramchandrapuram, Kakinada, Undarajavaram, Nidadavolu, Tanuku Town and Kaikaram.

Special safety features will be ensured for the rectification of blackspots.

The Minister said the other three projects that include 4-laning of Vakalapudi-Uppada-Annavaram and Samarlakota-Achampeta Junction and construction of 2-lane with paved shoulders from Rampachodavaram to Koyyuru will provide road connectivity to religious locations such as Samarlakota, Annavaram Bikkavolu, Ryali and Pithapuram.

He said it would also provide road connectivity to tribal areas such as Araku & Lambasinghi and important tourist destinations of Andhra Pradesh such as Arakku Valley and Caves.

It would also provide safe, better and fast intra-state connectivity through Kakinada and Alluri Sitharama districts, he added.

--IANS
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New Delhi, Sep 22 (IANS) The Supreme Court on Thursday sentenced former Ranbaxy promoters Malvinder Singh and Shivinder Singh to 6 months imprisonment in a case connected with the sale of shares of Fortis to Malaysia-based IHH Healthcare.

A bench, headed by Chief Justice U.U. Lalit, declined to lift its stay on the open offer by IHH Healthcare Berhad for a 26 percent stake in Fortis Healthcare. It asked the Delhi High Court to issue remand in the case and also ordered a forensic audit of the Fortis-IIH deal. "Everything goes back to the executing court," it said.

The former promoters of Fortis Healthcare Ltd were embroiled in a court battle after Daiichi Sankyo, a Japanese firm, had challenged the Fortis-IHH share deal to recover the Rs 3,600 crore arbitration award that it had won before a Singapore tribunal against the Singh brothers.

Due to a legal fight between Daiichi Sankyo and the former promoters of Fortis Healthcare, the IHH-Fortis deal is stuck.

The top court also slapped the Singh brothers with a fine in the contempt case filed against them by the Japanese firm.

Daiichi Sankyo moved the court to enforce the arbitral award passed by a Singapore tribunal in 2016.

The Delhi High Court, in January 2018, ruled that the arbitration award won by Daiichi Sankyo against the Singh brothers for concealing information about the erstwhile Ranbaxy Laboratories, was enforceable in India.

In 2018, IHH Healthcare had acquired a 31 percent controlling stake in Fortis, which triggered a mandatory open offer to acquire another 26 percent of Fortis shares from the market. However, the open offer could not move forward due to ongoing legal proceedings with respect to the transaction based on a plea filed by Daiichi Sankyo.

--IANS
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Patna, Sep 22 (IANS) Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar and RJD national President Lalu Prasad Yadav will meet Congress chief Sonia Gandhi in Delhi on September 25.

Both the leaders of Bihar will go to New Delhi for the meeting.

Nitish Kumar is currently flexing his muscles to unite opposition parties in the country. He went to Delhi for the three days and met several leaders including Rahul Gandhi, Sitaram Yechury, D. Raja, Arvind Kejriwal, Mulayam Singh Yadav, Akhilesh Yadav and others. As Sonia Gandhi was not present at that time, he did not meet her.

Following the meeting with Sonia Gandhi, Nitish Kumar will go to Haryana's Fatehabad for former Deputy Prime Minister Chaudhary Devi Lal's birth anniversary. It is expected that leaders of opposition parties of the country will assemble there during the rally.

The Indian National Lok Dal (INLD), headed by Om Prakash Chautala, used to organise a rally every year on the occasion of the birth anniversary of "Tau" Devi Lal.

--IANS
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New Delhi, Sep 22 (IANS) Delhi Lt Governor Vinai Kumar Saxena has ordered an internal inquiry into the alleged irregularities in engagement of guest teachers in Delhi government schools and embezzlement of funds as salary paid to non-existent or 'ghost' guest teachers.

LG Secretariat has asked the Chief Secretary to advise Director (Education) to immediately verify the engagement, physical attendance, drawl of salaries of all guest teachers engaged by AAP Government in Delhi government schools.

The LG Secretariat has also asked to submit the status report within 30 days.

"LG has observed that the instances of non-existent guest teachers and embezzlement of funds are of 'serious concern' and cannot occur without 'connivance of the principals/vice principals/accounts staff," the note from the LG Secretariat to the Chief Secretary reads.

"Such instance of fraudulent drawl of government funds should be met with exemplary and deterrent action. The mechanism of internal audit should be strengthened so that such instances do not go unnoticed and unpunished," the LG office note reads.

The LG had earlier granted permission to the Anti-Corruption Branch (ACB) for conducting investigation against four serving and retired vice principals for fraudulently drawing guest teachers' salary in the name of 'non-existent guest teachers' in Govt. Boys Senior Secondary School (GBSSS-I) in Mansarovar Park, Delhi.

The case pertains to the payment of Rs 4.21 lakh to three persons namely Samiksha Arya - Rs 1,35,900; Uma Shastri - Rs 1,42,078 and Chottey Lal- Rs 1,43,678, despite the fact that "neither of the three names were appointed in the school, a source said.

--IANS
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Chandigarh, Sep 22 (IANS) Condemning the decision of Punjab Governor Banwarilal Purohit to withdraw his assent for holding a special Assembly session, state Finance Minister Harpal Singh Cheema on Thursday called it a "black day" in the history of Indian politics.

Cheema told the media here that the way the Governor acted on the directions of the BJP and withdrew the permission for the special Assembly session indicated that the BJP "is trying to crush the country's Constitution and the institutions based on the beliefs of B.R. Ambedkar".

Accusing Purohit of working at the behest of the BJP, he said the former sought permission from the Additional Solicitor General after ignoring the Punjab Attorney General's office to withdraw his earlier order.

On the other hand, the Aaam Aadmi Party (AAP) government led by Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann "is following the constitution of India in letter and spirit," Cheema added.

The Minister asserted that the AAP will not bend before the BJP as the Congress did.

The AAP government has now convened an Assembly session on September 27 to protect democracy and the country's constitution, he said, adding that during this Assembly session, the issues of electricity and stubble burning will be discussed.

Attacking the Congress for skipping Gujarat and Himachal Pradesh during its 'Bharat Jodo' campaign, Cheema said that the former have surrendered before the BJP and working as their spokespersons to avoid investigation by central probe agencies.

Slamming the saffron party, the Punjab Minister said the BJP is afraid of the growing popularity of AAP and they have now accepted this fact that only Arvind Kejriwal-led AAP is going to defeat the Central government in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections.

"It is proved beyond doubt that today the BJP is only scared of the AAP. They somehow want to halt the progress of our party. But I want to reiterate that the BJP will never be successful in its divisive agenda and soldiers of Arvind Kejriwal will continue to work for the betterment of the country," Cheema added.

Launching a scathing attack on the Opposition, the Punjab Minister said the Congress leaders, including Opposition leader Partap Singh Bajwa, are working as a 'B-team' of the BJP.

Instead of supporting the AAP government, which is fighting against their (BJP's) nefarious agenda of 'Operation Lotus', the Congress leadership "is relentlessly supporting the BJP on this issue and questioning the state government".

--IANS
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New Delhi, Sep 22 (IANS) The Supreme Court on Thursday said closure of the facility only on the ground of want ofa prior environmental clearance (EC) would be against public interest, and the Environment Protection (EP) Act does not prohibit ex post facto EC.

A bench of Justices Indira Banerjee and J.K. Maheshwari said: "Ex post facto EC should not ordinarily be granted, and certainly not for the asking. At the same time, ex post facto clearances and/or approvals cannot be declined with pedantic rigidity, regardless of the consequences of stopping the operations."

"This court cannot lose sight of the fact that the operation of a Bio-Medical Waste Treatment Facility is in the interest of prevention of environmental pollution. The closure of the facility only on the ground of want of prior Environmental Clearance would be against public interest," it said, as it declined to entertain an appeal against a final order dated May 10, 2017 passed by the National Green Tribunal (NGT), dismissing an application under the National Green Tribunal Act 2010.

The appellant had sought a direction for closure of the Common Bio-Medical Waste Treatment Facility run by a private firm, on the ground of alleged non-compliance of the provisions of the Environmental Impact Assessment Notification 2006, as amended on April 17, 2015.

The top court said the NGT rightly found that when the facility was being operated with the requisite consent to operate, it could not be closed on the ground of want of prior EC. Citing an apex court judgment, the bench said this court cannot be oblivious to the economy or the need to protect the livelihood of hundreds of employees and others employed in the units and dependent on the units for their survival.

"It is reiterated that the EP Act does not prohibit ex post facto EC. Some relaxations and even grant of ex post facto EC in accordance with law, in strict compliance with rules, regulations, notifications and/or applicable orders, in appropriate cases, where the projects are in compliance with environment norms, is not impermissible," the top court said.

The bench said ex post facto environmental clearance should ordinarily not be granted routinely, but in exceptional circumstances, taking into account all relevant environmental factors.

"To protect future generations and to ensure sustainable development, it is imperative that pollution laws be strictly enforced. Under no circumstances can industries, which pollute, be allowed to operate unchecked and degrade the environment," it said.

--IANS
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Guwahati, Sep 22 (IANS) At least ten leaders of the Popular Front of India (PFI) were arrested on Thursday by raids conducted in various places in Assam by the National Investigation Agency (NIA), officials said.

Among the arrested was PFI's North East Regional Secretary Aminul Haque, who was arrested by NIA from the Hatigaon area in Guwahati early on Thursday, an Assam Police source said.

Haque is known to have been detained several times in the past for questioning.

The other arrested persons were identified as Abdul Razzak, Robiul Hussain, Nazrul Islam Bhuyan, Rafiqul Islam, Abu Sama Ahmed, Farhad Ali, Khalilur Rahman, Mufti Rahmatullah, and Bazlul Karim.

Meanwhile, Assam Police, in a statement, claimed that the PFI leaders were making all-out efforts to foment communal strife throughout the state.

It said that the PFI leaders were "indulging in whipping up communal passion and sentiments of the religious minority by criticising every policy of the Government with communal overtones which include Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA), NRC (National Register of Citizens) and 'D'-Voter, the new state Education Policy, Cattle Protection Act, extension of AFSPA, TET examination, Agnipath scheme, eviction of encroached Govt. lands with a view to term these actions of the Government as an attack on the Muslim community".

Police also said that the PFI leaders had been allegedly extensively using cyberspace to provoke the people for defying the state government, divide the society on religious lines, and obstructing the government in execution of policies.

"These leaders of PFI were also misleading and inciting the people against the government by taking up issues which occurred outside the state and miscampaigning through social media platforms. These include highlighting arrests made in UP, Bihar, and Delhi, challenging the Karnataka High Court verdict on the Hijab issue, Bilkis Bano issue, court verdict on the Gyanvapi mosque, criticising the Supreme Court verdict on the Ram Janambhoomi-Babri Masjid issue, etc," the police statement said.

--IANS
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New Delhi, Sep 22 (IANS) Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) chief Mohan Bhagwat on Thursday visited Madrasa Tajweedul Quran in the old Delhi area, and interacted with the children there.

Madarsa director Mahmudul Hasan told IANS that RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat reached the madrasa around 10 a.m.

"You have the responsibility of the country... so you have to work for the country by reading and writing," Bhagwat told the students.

He stayed at the madrasa for about an hour and met the teachers besides the children.

Bhagwat also reviewed the education infrastructure and sought some details such as the number of children enrolled there.

The RSS chief who has been holding discussions with the Muslim intellectuals to strengthen the communal harmony, also met Umer Ahmed Ilyasi, the chief of All India Imam Organisation, at Kasturba Gandhi Marg mosque on Thursday.

Recently, Bhagwat called on a group of Muslim intellectuals, including former chief election commissioner S.Y. Qureshi, former Delhi L-G Najeeb Jung, former vice chancellor of Aligarh Muslim University Lt. Gen. (Retd) Zameer Uddin Shah, former MP Shahid Siddiqui and industrialist Saeed Sherwani.

--IANS
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