India

New Delhi, Sep 15 (IANS) Communications, Electronics, IT and Railways Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw has advised the telecom department to send a new consultation paper to TRAI for significantly increasing the quality-of-service parameters, making them three to four times of what it is today.

Addressing an event here on Wednesday, Vaishnaw said the telecom sector will witness more reforms in the coming years but at the same time, he called upon the industry to do its bit and reciprocate by significantly improving quality of service.

The minister further said that the journey of 5G is going to be very exciting and noted that many countries took multiple years to reach 40 per cent to 50 per cent coverage, the Ministry of Communication said in a statement.

"But we are targeting a very aggressive timeline and the Government has given a target of 80 per cent coverage in a short time frame which should be achieved as per the deadline," he added.

--IANS
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New Delhi, Sep 15 (IANS) The Congress Election Authority Chairman Madhusudan Mistry on Thursday clarified that there was no flaw in the electoral system, and from September 20, two days ahead of the notifications for the party president's election, the delegate list will be made available to the candidates at the party office.

The clarification came after five of its MPs wrote to make the delegate list public.

The five MPs had written to Mistry expressing concern about the 'transparency and fairness of the party chief's election, and had sought that the list of PCC delegates that make up the electoral college be provided to all electors and potential candidates'.

In reply to these MPs, Mistry said that any delegate, who has the QR-based card, was an eligible voter and each candidate can get the proposer amongst the delegates and require 10 proposers.

Mistry said in reply, "For the first time, we are issuing QR-code based identity cards to all the delegates across the 28 states and nine Union Territories that have Congress committees. Those who want to file a nomination should check if they have a delegate identity card available with them. Only people with valid identity cards will be allowed to sign the nomination papers for the position of Congress President."

Appreciating the concern for free, fair and transparent election, Mistry said that the first avenue open for any delegate to file a nomination for the Congress President's post is -- they can look for the names of the 10 supporters (delegates) in their state at the Pradesh Congress Committee office.

"The name and the serial number are available in the state list. The nomination signed by 10 supporters (delegates) will be sufficient for validity of the nomination," Mistry said.

After the election of the president, the Congress delegates will vote for the CWC members, which are 12 in numbers while 11 are nominated by the Congress President. Mistry clarified that there was consensus in election of the PCC delegates except in Andaman where election was conducted by the CEA, the new President will have authority to nominate new state presidents wherever resolutions are moved to authorise the incoming president.

--IANS
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New Delhi, Sep 15 (IANS) Senior advocate Dushyant Dave on Thursday told a two-judge bench of the Supreme Court that it should not have heard the batch of petitions challenging the Karnataka High Court on hijab, instead the case should have been referred to a larger bench.

Dave, representing some of the petitioners', submitted before a bench comprising Justices Hemant Gupta and Sudhanshu Dhulia that they should have not heard the case, instead referred the case to a larger bench.

Dave, who apparently appeared annoyed with the limited time allocated to him to argue the case, said, "please don't restrain us in time for arguing..." He added that the matter affects millions of people and he wants to show the Constituent Assembly debates and the warning of Sardar Patel. Dave said he would not be able to finish his arguments today and this case is a serious matter. The bench agreed with Dave and he is expected to begin his arguments in the afternoon session, and permitted other lawyers to argue the matter in the morning session.

Advocate Shoeb Alam, representing some of the petitioners, submitted before the bench that the impact of the Karnataka government order is - "I will give you education, you give me your right to privacy". He added that the state cannot ask the person to surrender the right to privacy. Alam said on one hand, I have my right to education, a secular education, and on the other hand, I have my right to privacy, culture, etc., under Article 21. He emphasized that the state has an affirmative obligation and duty to facilitate education, and shared some statistics of Muslim girls in schools.

Senior advocate A.M. Dar, representing some petitioners, submitted that he will enlighten the court on the Quran. The bench told him that other lawyers, appearing for the petitioners, had submitted that courts are not equipped to interpret the Quran. Justice Gupta told Dar, "please don't take us through all verses of Quran".

The top court will continue to hear arguments in the afternoon session on the petitions challenging the Karnataka High Court's judgement of March 15 upholding ban on hijab in the pre-university colleges.

--IANS
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Prayagraj (Uttar Pradesh), Sep 15 (IANS) The Allahabad High Court has said that every prisoner has a fundamental right to file the bail application without delay.

The court granted bail to a person who had been languishing in jail and could not approach the court as he was financially weak and abandoned by his family after his imprisonment.

Making these observations, Justice Ajay Bhanot granted bail to one Anil Gaur a.k.a. Sonu, against whom murder case had been registered at police station Neodiya of Jaunpur district and was in jail since December 6, 2017.

According to counsel for the applicant, the applicant was not named in the FIR. There was no direct evidence against the applicant and he had no motive to commit the murder.

At best, it is a case of circumstantial evidence, he contended.

"The failure of justice in the said cases was occasioned by poverty, social exclusion, legal illiteracy, impersonal administration and denial of legal aid. Exactions of poverty are more severe than punishments in law. For them the glorious dawn of the 75th year of Independence has lost the sheen of freedom's ideals and the substance of the republic's promise," observed the court while granting bail to the applicant.

"Injustice is the birthmark of a slave nation. Justice is the birth right of a free people and our constitution says they shall have it," the court remarked.

The court also took note of the fact that there are several cases where bail applications were filed after inordinate delays because the prisoners did not have access to legal aid.

Taking a note of it, the court further observed, "The courts, too, have a duty to ensure that prisoners appearing in criminal proceedings have access to legal aid. Courts cannot remain mute spectators when legal aid is denied to prisoners in legal proceedings before them."

As per the applicant, he did not have access to legal aid to file his bail applications in a timely manner before the trial court as well as high court.

The counsel for the applicant submitted that the right of the applicant to legal aid is a fundamental right and is also a statutory right vested in him by the Legal Services Authorities Act, 1987.

In its decision dated September 12, the high court found that the applicant was in jail since December 6, 2017. He was able to file a bail application before the trial court in 2019, even after a delay of more than one year.

He could approach the high court for bail only in 2022 -- three years after the trial court refused him the bail.

--IANS
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Varanasi, Sep 15 (IANS) The Anjuman Intezamia Masjid (AIM), the Gyanvapi mosque management committee, said that they would file revision petition before the Allahabad high court.

Rekha Pathak, a woman plaintiff in the Gyanvapi mosque-Shringar Gauri case, has already filed a caveat in the court to ensure that her side would be heard before any relief is given to AIM, when it files a revision petition against rejection of its application in the matter by the Varanasi district judge on Monday.

AIM joint secretary S M Yasin said that the timing to file a revision petition in the court by the panel of lawyers would be decided after going through the Monday's order in detail.

Committee lawyer Merajuddin Siddiqui said that the AIM would challenge the court order that said that the suit is not barred by the Places of Worship (Special Provisions) Act, 1991, The Waqf Act, 1995 and the UP Shri Kashi Vishwanath Temple Act, 1983.

--IANS
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Gurugram, Sep 15 (IANS) The Gurugram police have arrested a 19-year-old college student for allegedly blackmailing and sexually assaulting a minor girl, a class 11 student of a private school in the city, the police said.

The complainant and father of the 16-year-old girl told the police that the girl knew the accused as they had studied in the same school.

The girl's father said that his daughter had become friends with the accused.

"They used to talk often and after passing out of class 12, the accused cleared school in 2021 and joined a college in Delhi. The accused started stalking my daughter too."

The father alleged that during a mobile chat the accused got a nude photo of his daughter on WhatsApp. After which he (accused) started blackmailing her and pressuring her to meet him.

"During a meeting, the suspect sexually and physically assaulted her and when she resisted, he threatened to kill her," the girl's father said in his police complaint.

Following the complaint, an FIR was registered against the accused under Sections 323 (causing hurt), 354-D (stalking), 506 (criminal intimidation) of the IPC and Section 6 of the POCSO Act at the women police station, West.

"We have arrested the culprit. Further probe is underway," said a police officer.

--IANS
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Shahjahanpur (Uttar Pradesh), Sep 15 (IANS) Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) activists in Uttar Pradesh's Shahjahanpur district made a group of Muslim pilgrims from West Bengal apologise for offering namaz by the roadside before they were allowed to continue their journey to Ajmer Sharif Dargah (Rajasthan).

A video clip, purportedly of the incident, showed some men holding their ears in a gesture of apology. A couple of them were seen doing sit-ups.

The incident took place earlier this week.

Superintendent of Police (Shahjahanpur), S. Anand confirmed that a few people from West Bengal travelling to Rajasthan in a bus were found offering namaz on the road under Tilhar police station limits in Shahjahanpur.

The Muslim pilgrims were issued challans and then left for their journey ahead, he added.

Additional Superintendent of Police, Sanjeev Vajpayee, told reporters, "Eighteen people, who were on their way to Ajmer Sharif Dargah, were brought to the Tilhar police station with the complaint that they were offering namaz on the roadside. These people were released after they gave a written apology and were issued a challan."

Local VHP leader Rajesh Awasthi, who reported the matter to police, said, "I was on my way to some place when I saw some men offering namaz on the roadside."

Awasthi added that he told them that they were in Uttar Pradesh, where offering namaz in the open was prohibited.

In a video that surfaced on social media, the VHP members were purportedly heard asking some passengers of a bus to hold their ears and apologise.

--IANS
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Srinagar, Sep 15 (IANS) Two terrorists killed in an ongoing encounter between terrorists and security forces at Nowgam area in central Kashmir's Srinagar district on Wednesday have been identified, Police said.

The Police added that acting on specific information generated by them regarding the presence of terrorists in Dangerpora area of Nowgam, a joint cordon and search operation was launched by the Police and the Army.

"During the search operation, as the joint search party approached towards the suspected spot, the hiding terrorists fired indiscriminately upon the joint search party which was retaliated effectively leading to an encounter," Police said.

In the ensuing encounter, two terrorists were killed and their bodies were retrieved from the site of encounter.

They have been identified as Aijaz Rasool Najar of Pulwama and Shahid Ahmad alias Abu Hamza.

"As per Police records, both the killed terrorists were categorised terrorists and were linked with proscribed terror outfit Ansar Ghazwat-ul-Hind. Both the killed terrorists were involved in several terror crime cases, including attacks on Police/security forces and civilian atrocities. Besides, they were also involved in recent attack on an non-local labourer namely Muneer-ul-Islam of West Bengal on September 2, 2022, at Ugergund Newa area of Pulwama," Police added.

Incriminating materials, arms and ammunition, including one AK-series rifle, two pistols and one grenade were recovered from the site of encounter.

--IANS
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New Delhi, Sep 15 (IANS) The reconstituted National Medical Device Promotion Council (NMDPC) under the Department of Pharmaceuticals held its first meeting in New Delhi and was updated on the steps taken up by Central Drugs Standard Control Organisation (CDSCO) and the state licensing authorities for the smooth transition to licensing of class-A and class-B medical devices from October 1.

The NMDPC deliberated on the important issues of the Medtech (medical technology) industry.

The Council under the chair of the Secretary, Department of Pharmaceuticals, has members from stakeholder departments, organisations, functions of which have a bearing on the growth of the sector and has representation from several medical device industry associations, representing the sector in India.

The Department of Pharmaceuticals presented the latest status of the various initiatives taken by it for the sector to the Council such as 100 per cent FDI in MedTech sector on automatic route, PLI scheme for medical devices, medical devices parks in four states, assistance for common infrastructure facility of superconducting magnetic coil testing facility, etc.

The Department of Health and Family Welfare (DoHFW) updated the preparedness for transition to licensing of class-A and class-B medical devices from October 1 under Medical Devices Rules, 2017. The Council appreciated the various efforts done by the CDSCO/DoHFW in rolling out the licensing process of class-A and class-B medical devices.

The Council also heard the views of the industry as well as AERB (Atomic Energy Regulatory Board) and National Accreditation Board for Testing and Calibration Laboratories (NABL) on the requirement of NABL accreditation of in-house laboratories of the manufacturers of specific medical devices on the radiation safety requirements at the manufacturing sites. The industry suggested various issues to be taken up in the subsequent Council meeting.

The Industry Associations' representatives were encouraged to actively engage with states, which were sanctioned medical devices parks by the Department of Pharmaceuticals for creating common infrastructure facilities and come forward to invest in the proposed parks to boost domestic manufacturing.

The industry's support was also solicited for the proposed National MedTech Expo, 2022, being organised by the Department in December 2022 at New Delhi's Pragati Maidan to showcase the strengths and capabilities of Indian medical devices industry involving start-ups, innovators, domestic manufacturers, hospitals etc.

--IANS
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New Delhi, Sep 15 (IANS) With a view to regulate the pre-owned vehicles market in the country, the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways (MoRTH) has issued a draft notification to promote ease of doing business and transparency in the sale and purchase of registered vehicles through dealers.

The pre-owned car market in India has been gradually gaining ground. In recent years, the advent of online marketplaces, which are involved in buying and selling of pre-owned vehicles, has further given a boost to this market.

In the current ecosystem, many issues were being faced, including during transfer of vehicle to subsequent transferee, disputes in regard to third party damage liabilities, difficulty in determination of defaulter etc.

MoRTH has proposed amendments in Chapter III of Central Motor Vehicle Rules, 1989, to build a comprehensive regulatory ecosystem for the pre-owned car market.

The key provisions of the proposed rules include an authorisation certificate for the dealers of registered vehicles to identify the authenticity of a dealer. Furthermore, the procedure for intimation of delivery of vehicle between the registered owner and the dealer has been detailed.

The powers and responsibilities of a dealer in possession of registered vehicles have also been clarified. Dealers have been empowered to apply for renewal of registration certificate/renewal of certificate of fitness, duplicate registration certificate, NOC, transfer of ownership, of motor vehicles in their possession.

As a regulatory measure, maintenance of an electronic vehicle trip register has been mandated which would contain details of the trip undertaken viz. trip purpose, driver, time, mileage etc.

As per the Ministry, these rules are expected to aid in recognising and empowering intermediaries/dealers of registered vehicles as well as provide adequate safeguards against fraudulent activities to the selling or purchasing of such vehicles.

Comments and suggestions have been invited from all stakeholders within a period of 30 days.

--IANS
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