India

New Delhi, May 9 (IANS) The Supreme Court on Tuesday agreed to hear, on May 15, a plea against the Kerala High Court's refusal to stay the film "The Kerala Story" - the fourth time when the apex court would consider the plea related to the movie.

A bench, headed by Chief Justice of India D.Y. Chandrachud and comprising Justice P.S. Narasimha, agreed to examine the matter on Monday after a plea for urgent hearing was mentioned before the bench by senior advocate Kapil Sibal on behalf of the petitioners.

The plea challenged the May 5 order passed by the high court declining any relief, saying there was nothing offensive against Islam or Muslims in the film.

Meanwhile, it is learnt that producers of the movie have moved a petition in the apex court challenging the ban on film by the West Bengal government and also the decision not to release the film in theatres in Tamil Nadu. The plea has claimed that it is against artistic freedom. They are likely to mention the matter on Wednesday for urgent hearing.

On the day of the release of the film, the Kerala High Court, while hearing petitions seeking the ban of the film, categorically, in the midst of the hearing, pointed out that in a secular state like Kerala, nothing is going to happen.

"Nothing is going to happen if the film is screened in Kerala. On examining the teaser and the preview of the film, there is nothing which is against any religion and Islam is not portrayed in poor light. There is a reference to IS and, in the country, there have been several films which refer to IS," said the court.

"Fail to understand how this film would be against society as even the Censor Board has given the certification. The premise of the film is fictional in nature and when fictional themes have been cleared in the past, how can one prevent the screening of this film," it asked.

The apex court had, as many as three times, rejected a plea to stop the release of the film, saying that it must also be considered that a filmmaker invests a lot of money and time in making a film and actors also put in a lot of work.

The film, produced by Sunshine Pictures Private Ltd and directed by Sudipto Sen, was released on Friday across the country.

--IANS
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By Sujit Chakraborty
Sabroom (Tripura), May 9 (IANS) After three years of closure, one of the two 'Border Haats' (markets) in Tripura along India-Bangladesh border resumed trading on Tuesday with the participation of vendors and buyers of the two countries.


District officials of south Tripura and Bangladesh's Feni districts were present on the opening day of the business of the Purba Madhugram (Bangladesh)-Srinagar (South Tripura) 'Border Haat'.

Additional District Magistrate and Collector Dhanbabu Reang and Bangladesh's Feni District's Additional District Magistrate Abhishek Das said that the 'Border Haat' would function on each Tuesday and 27 vendors including women from each side would participate in the border market.

"As per the decision of the officials of the two district authorities, 1200 people each from India and Bangladesh would be allowed to enter into the 'Border Haat' after verifying their government identity cards," Reang told the media.

Bangladeshi vendor Mohammad Tushar said that the 'Border Haat' boosts them a lot to maintain their livelihood and prevent smuggling of local produce on either side.

A top official of the Tripura Industries and Commerce Department said that after a recent meeting between the district officials of Feni and South Tripura, it was decided to resume the business of the Purba Madhugram (Bangladesh)-Srinagar (South Tripura) 'Border Haats' from Tuesday."Efforts were on to restart another Border Haat -- Kasba (Bangladesh)-Kamlasagar (Tripura) in Sepahijala district," the official told IANS.

The four Border Haats, two each in Tripura and Meghalaya, have remained closed since March 2020 after the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic and the consequent lockdowns, causing immense loss to the people living in the bordering villages.

Both the Tripura and Meghalaya governments have been pressing the Centre to take up the matter with the Bangladesh government to resume the Border Haats.

The two Border Haats in Meghalaya -- at Balat (East Khasi Hills district) and Kalaichar (South West Garo Hills district) - were, however, reopened last year and both are functional once a week now.

The fifth Border Haat between India and Bangladesh was inaugurated on May 6 along Bholaganj under the Companiganj upazila of Sylhet district and East Khasi Hills district of Meghalaya.

The opening of the new Border Haat in Meghalaya border was welcomed by people on both sides of borders with great enthusiasm.

The new Border Haat would function on Wednesdays and Saturdays between 10 in the morning to 4 in the afternoon.

Officials of the Tripura Industries and Commerce Department said that the officials in Sepahijala and South Tripura district administrations had on a number of occasions approached their Bangladesh counterparts to reopen the Border Haats as the Covid-19 induced situation has almost been tamed now.

Jaipur-based think-tank CUTS International, which has done several studies on border trade, had also recommended to the Indian government to resume these border markets the necessary precautions against Covid-19, as these markets boost the economy, cement ties between the people of the two countries and also check illegal trade.

These border markets, spread in around 5,625 sq. metre area of the two countries' territories or "no-man's land", operate once a week on a fixed day.

In the weekly market, on an average, at least 25 vendors, including women from both sides of the border, sell their products.

According to the officials, 10 more "Border Haats" were approved along the India-Bangladesh border at Tripura and Meghalaya. Out of them, six are in Meghalaya, and four in Tripura.

Both Indian and Bangladeshi governments are keen to reopen more "Border Haats" in the four northeastern states -- Tripura, Meghalaya, Assam and Mizoram, which share a 1,880-km border with Bangladesh.

The first Border Haat was inaugurated in 2011 in the West Garo Hills district of Meghalaya at Kalaichar and Kurigram in Bangladesh.

Border Haat may be small in terms of the volume of trade but they contribute immensely in bonding of people on both sides of border, knowledge sharing and deepening people-to-people connectivity which is an essential building block in cementing ties between the two neighbouring countries, said CUTS International Executive Director Bipul Chatterjee.

(Sujit Chakraborty can be contacted at sujit.c@ians.in)

--IANS
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New Delhi, May 9 (IANS) The Delhi High Court has granted bail to businessman P. Sarath Chandra Reddy, accused in a money laundering case in connection with the alleged excise policy scam, on medical grounds.

On granting bail, Justice Dinesh Kumar Sharma said that the sick and weak holds the right to proper and effective treatment.

The judge said that decent and basic treatment can be given to the accused in jail, but the current case requires specialised treatment and monitoring, which the court cannot expect.

Since there was also no material on record showing Reddy as a flight risk, the court said that his health is in bad condition and he qualifies as sick/infirm to be released on bail.

The judge however, imposed certain conditions such as not allowing Reddy to travel without permission or tamper with evidence, surrendering his passport, appearing before the investigation officer whenever asked and keeping his mobile phone in working condition.

Justice Sharma also made it clear that the order was passed in view of the accused's medical condition without going into the merits of the case and shall not be taken as a precedent.

Reddy was granted bail on furnishing a personal bond in the sum of Rs 1 lakh with two sureties of the like amount to the satisfaction of the trial court.

Backing up Reddy, his counsel Senior advocate Vikas Pahwa said that medical records showed he was "sick and infirm" and was entitled to bail under Section 45 of Prevention of Money Laundering Act.

The court said: "It is also a settled proposition that right to life is facet of Fundamental Right enshrined by the Constitution. Right to live with dignity includes right to live a healthy life. The person who is sick or infirm has a right to have adequate and effective treatment.

"Though jails and designated hospitals provide good basic treatment, but we cannot expect them to provide specialised treatment and monitoring as required in the present case."

--IANS
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Mumbai, May 8 (IANS) A total of 25 students from Maharashtra, who were stuck in the strife-torn northeastern state of Manipur, reached Mumbai via Guwahati by a special flight, officials said here on Monday.

The flight from Guwahati landed here late on Monday night.

Earlier, the stranded students were airlifted from Imphal to Guwahati, a distance of around 500 km, to catch their flight to Mumbai on Monday evening.

Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde spoke to his counterparts in Assam and Manipur to seek their help for the safe transfer of students from the state who were in a limbo there.

Shinde said late Sunday night that he had spoken with two students -- Vikas Sharma and Tushar Awhad.

Similarly, Deputy CM Devendra Fadnavis was also been in touch with the students and asked them not to worry as they will be brought back safely.

Most students from this state study in the NIT or IIIT-Manipur there, and their plight was highlighted by Nationalist Congress Party President Sharad Pawar and Leader of Opposition Ajit Pawar on Saturday.

Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma and Manipur Chief Minister N. Biren Singh arranged for the students to be shifted from Imphal to Guwahati by a special flight on Monday morning, said an official.

Joint Secretary of Protocol Department Ramchandra Dhanawade, Protocol Officer Abdul Aziz Baig and their team welcomed the students on behalf of the government.

The students also thanked the state government for their safe return with a handmade placard which they carried.

The students who came home are -- Aditya Gajbhiye, Tushar Awad, Ayush Dubey, Shivsampat Tagirisa, Gautam Chaurasia, Sajan Paunikar, Mohit Khadpe, Bhushan Pawara, Vriksal Ganveer, Vikas Sharma, Tanmay Madhav, Madikonda Avinash, Rohit Kori, Ayush Ravi, Gyandeep Chute, Pratik Kodag, Punarvasu Ingole, Saijit Nikam, Ananya Banerjee, Shantanu Kumbhirkar, Krish Kalgude, Phalgun Mahajan, Madhurika Indoorkar, Ronil Nader and Ashwagandha Parade.

--IANS
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New Delhi, May 8 (IANS) A Delhi court on Monday extended AAP leader and former Delhi Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia's judicial custody till May 23 in connection with the Delhi excise policy case being investigated by the Enforcement Directorate (ED).

The ED has alleged that Sisodia was the mastermind behind the entire excise policy case and that he had deliberately leaked the policy to the co-accused to generate financial kickbacks.

Sisodia is currently in judicial custody.

The ED had arrested Sisodia on March 9 after the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) arrested him on February 26 this year.

Last month, Special CBI Judge M. K. Nagpal of Rouse Avenue Court had denied bail to Sisodia, holding that the evidence, prima facie, "speaks volumes" of his involvement in the offence.

Last week, High Court judge Dinesh Kumar Sharma sought the ED's response to Sisodia's bail plea and another application seeking interim bail on the ground of his wife's ill-health and listed the matter for further consideration on May 11.

In the case being probed by the CBI, Delhi court extended Sisodia's judicial custody till May 12.

--IANS
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New Delhi, May 8 (IANS) The Supreme Court on Monday agreed to examine a plea by the victim in the Air India urination case seeking direction to the Director General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) and airline companies to frame regulations to address incidents of passenger misconduct on board aircraft.

The plea stressed on explicit zero tolerance policy with respect to "unruly/disruptive behaviour", which could mandate reporting it to the law enforcement, failing which action would be taken against airlines in all cases.

A bench, headed by Chief Justice of India D.Y. Chandrachud and comprising Justices P.S. Narasimha and J.B. Pardiwala, issued notice to the Centre, the DGCA and all airlines, including Air India.

The bench sought assistance of Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, who was present in the case, formulating standard operating procedure (SOP) and scheduled the matter for hearing in July.

The petitioner has also requested the apex court to direct the media to desist from reporting on criminal proceedings, to prevent further shaming and embarrassment for the 72-year-old victim and the perpetrator.

The petitioner contended that Air India, along with the DGCA, have failed to treat the petitioner with care and responsibility after an unruly passenger urinated on the petitioner after having been served excessive alcohol on the flight.

The plea said the wide-ranging national press reportage full of conjecture and surmises has severely undermined the petitioner's right as a victim under Article 21 of the Constitution, and in fairness also affected the rights of the accused as well.

"Their rights of free and fair trial have also been substantially affected due to the selective leaking of the AIR SEWA complaint of the petitioner, the FIR and selective witness statements being released to the media to match a specific narrative," said the plea filed through advocate Rahul Narayan.

The plea added the incident caused the petitioner to go into shock and distress during the 12-hour long flight and the crew was both unhelpful and uncooperative.

The plea submitted there has been a sharp rise in unruly passenger behaviour globally, as the International Air Transport Association (IATA) published a report in December 2022 urging governments to take practical approaches regarding identifying and handling unruly passengers.

The plea added that the Civil Aviation Requirements of May 2017 (CAR) of the DGCA should consider "drunkenness" or "inebriation" on its own to be considered unruly/ disruptive behaviour on an aircraft.

"The DGCA, via CAR dated May 2017, has laid out guidelines for the handling of unruly/disruptive passengers. However, it does not have an explicit zero-tolerance policy with respect to 'unruly/ disruptive behaviour'. Also, these guidelines do not consider being drunk or inebriated on its own as unruly disruptive behaviour," said the plea.

The plea contended that the authorities should frame the guidelines on alcohol policy on international flights of Indian carriers to protect passengers and airline staff, including setting limits on the quantity of alcohol served, without any discrimination based on the class of travel.

For the November 26, 2022 incident, accused Shankar Mishra was arrested from Bengaluru on January 6. Delhi Police lodged an FIR against Mishra under various sections of the IPC and section 23 of the Aircraft Act for peeing on the woman in the business class of the flight. The accused was granted bail later.

--IANS
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New Delhi, May 8 (IANS) Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal will on Monday co-chair the discussions for the sixth India-Canada ministerial dialogue on trade and investment (MDTI) in Ottawa, Canada, along with his Canadian counterpart Mary Ng.

MDTI is a bilateral mechanism which provides institutional mechanism to discuss a broad spectrum of trade and investment related issues and cooperation areas.

The dialogue will focus on various themes including strengthening the bilateral trade relationship between India and Canada, investment promotion and cooperation, green transition -- including critical minerals discussion and new areas of cooperation such as promoting B2B engagements.

The ministers will also review India-Canada CEPA (Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement) negotiations.

At the last MDTI meeting in March 2022, both ministers had launched the CEPA negotiations with a possibility to have an interim agreement or EPTA (Early Progress Trade Agreement).

Since then, seven rounds of negotiations have been held.

Goyal will also be visiting Toronto from May 9 to 10, where he will have various engagements to promote trade and investment.

These engagements will include meetings with CEOs of key Canadian companies, round table of Indian and Canadian CEOs, interaction with Canadian and Indian companies based in Canada and financial sector round table among other meetings.

--IANS
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Chandigarh, May 8 (IANS) Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on Monday inaugurated the first-of-its-kind Indian Air Force (IAF) Heritage Centre here.

The country's first IAF Heritage Centre, spanning over an area of 17,000 sq ft, has been set up in the Government Press building in Sector 18 to preserve the rich heritage of the IAF and to inspire the young minds to join the armed forces.

Punjab Governor and Chandigarh Administrator Banwarilal Purohit, Air Chief Marshal V.R. Chaudhari and Chandigarh MP Kirron Kher were also present on the occasion, among others.

Following the approval of the Defence Minister, a memorandum of understanding on the heritage centre was signed between the Chandigarh administration and the IAF on June 3, 2022, in the presence of Punjab Governor Purohit.

The centre reflects the role of IAF in various wars through murals and memorabilia and is equipped with informative exhibits like augmented reality, virtual reality, hologram, flying simulators, aero engines, electro mechanical enclosures, multimedia and interactive kiosks, highlighting the various facets of the IAF.

The main attractions of the heritage centre are five vintage aircraft and SAM-III Pechora missiles safeguarding the Indian sky since decades.

Air Force 'Kanpur-l' is installed inside the centre, which was designed and built by late Air Vice Marshal Harjinder Singh in 1958. This aircraft is a testimony to be seen as a moment of glory for future generations to understand the significance of self-reliance, innovation and the dream of 'Make in India'.

A GNAT aircraft (Sabre Slayer) 1971 Fame is displayed on the main roundabout of Chandigarh while vintage aircraft like MiG-21, HPT-32 and MiG-23 are installed in the centre which will serve as a popular tourist attraction.

The centre displays the glorious history of IAF with the help of murals depicting various war campaigns of IAF, starting with the role of IAF in the Indo-Pak war of 1948 to electro mechanical 3D-Dioramas depicting the latest operations of IAF such as the Balakot strike.

An augmented reality enclosure and a virtual reality enclosure will give the visitors a 3D real-time experience in the theme of the historic battle of Longewala.

An audio-visual gallery will present the journey of IAF through time, tracing its evolution from its inception to the modern day.

Holographic projection depicting aircraft interceptions and various aircraft on inventory of IAF will also be shown.

The centre has scale models from the Republic Day tableau on display such as indigenous Tejas fighter aircraft, Prachand helicopter and AEW&C Netra aircraft as IAF's initiative towards the vision of the 'Aatmanirbhar Bharat'.

--IANS
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Srinagar, May 8 (IANS) A slight intensity tremor, measuring 3.1 on the Richter scale, jolted Kashmir on Monday but authorities said no report of any casualty or damage to property was reported from anywhere.

The Met department said that an earthquake measuring 3.1 on the Richter scale occurred in Kashmir at 2.28 p.m. with its epicentre in Baramulla region.

The latitude of the earthquake was 34.16 degrees north and longitude 74.56 degrees east. It occurred at a depth of 10 km.

Earthquakes have wrought havoc in Kashmir in past as the place is situated in seismologically highly sensitive region.

--IANS
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Etawah (Uttar Pradesh), May 8 (IANS) Samajwadi Party leader Shivpal Singh Yadav has alleged that BJP ministers who were engaged in civic poll campaigns, are pressurising officials.

Shivpal told reporters that all the BJP ministers who were campaigning in the state, knew that the public was not going to vote for them but they still continue to pressurise the officers.

"The Bharatiya Janata Party is nervous because people are not voting for them. All the ministers and the deputy chief ministers who are engaged in the election campaign, are coming here only to pressurise the officers as they know the public is not going to vote for them. But the public will not tolerate this."

Yadav further said, "The biggest mafia and brokers are in the BJP only and the chief minister needs to get it investigated."

When asked about EVMs, Shivpal Yadav said: "It's the responsibility of the election commission to ensure that the machine works properly and to conduct a fair election."

Shivpal also questioned the current government on the law-and-order situation in the state and alleged that even MPs and MLAs were not being heard.

--IANS
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