LIVE! 'Sedition charges being distributed like prasad'

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Fri, 07 February 2020

'Sedition charges being distributed like prasad'

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23:47 Sedition charges being distributed like 'prasad': Kanhaiya

Communist Party of India leader Kanhaiya Kumar on Friday rued that sedition charges were being "distributed freely like prasad" though a police officer arrested along with terrorists was not deemed fit to be booked for treason.

The former JNU student leader, who was booked for sedition four years ago, was referring to suspended Jammu and Kashmir DSP Devinder Singh.

"Sedition charges are being distributed freely like prasad. Social workers are being booked.... In Karnataka, school children have been booked for merely staging a play. And this is when a police official arrested along with terrorists is yet to be charged with the same," he said while addressing a rally in Bihar's Katihar as part of his state-wide "Jan Gan Man Yatra" against the CAA-NPR-NRC issue.

Kumar, who made an unsuccessful electoral debut in the Lok Sabha polls last year against BJP's Giriraj Singh, termed the saffron party as 'Godsewadi', followers of Mahatma Gandhi's assassin Nathuram Godse.

"These Godsewadis, these rioters have placed guns in the hands of youths while (Union Home Minister) Amit Shah has secured the plum post of BCCI secretary for his son.

"The people in power send their children to Oxford, Cambridge and other elite institutions abroad while the ordinary young men and women in the country have to contend with an educational system wherein a three-year degree course takes five years to get completed," he said.

A person who becomes a member of any legislative body for just one term is guaranteed a handsome pension for life, while government employees get post-retirement benefits irregularly after a lifetime of service, Kanhaiya said and termed this "unfair".

Charging the NDA government with adopting a "provoke and mislead" policy, he wondered why the need for a fresh amendment was felt by the Centre despite the citizenship law having been amended by the Atal Bihari Vajpayee government.

Kanhaiya sought to defend the use of epithets like "takloo" (the bald one) and "tadipaar" for Shah (an allusion to the Supreme Court order whereby the BJP leader was asked to stay out of Gujarat a decade ago) by claiming "I do so to make things easier to understand. I do not wish to use foul language against anybody."

"I am often accused of claiming to be a student despite being in my 40s. Let me make it clear, I am no more with the JNU, having completed my PhD. And I am only 35. But the problem with my friends who are supporters of the BJP is, they have fallen in love with Modi. And love makes you blind, prevents you from seeing reason," he added. -- PTI

A United Kingdom court on Friday directed Reliance Group chairman Anil Ambani to pay USD 100 million towards a conditional order granted to three Chinese banks pursuing the recovery of over USD 680 million owed to them as part of a loan agreement.

In what is in effect a deposit to be paid into court pending a full trial in the case, Judge David Waksman has set a six-week timeline for such a payment to be made as he concluded that he did not accept Ambani's defence that his net worth was nearly zero or that his family would not step in to assist him when "push came to shove".

"In my overall conclusion, Mr Ambani has not satisfied me that he can't make any payment at all," Judge Waksman said as he expressed particular criticism of a "lack of candour" and "transparency" on the part of Ambani's defence in reference to his financial means.

The Reliance Group indicated that it plans to appeal against the ruling, which will involve a process of seeking permission to appeal. -- PTI

Former Union minister M J Akbar told a Delhi court Friday that scribe Priya Ramani's accusations of sexual misconduct against him in the wake of #MeToo movement in 2018 were "figment of her imagination" and caused him "great humiliation" and

"irreparably damaged his reputation".

Akbar made the allegations before Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Vishal Pahuja through his lawyer during the final hearing of a private criminal defamation complaint filed by him against Ramani after his name cropped up on social media as

the #MeToo campaign raged on in India.

Akbar resigned as Union minister on October 17, 2018.

Ramani in 2018 accused Akbar of sexual misconduct around 20 years ago when he was a journalist. She worked at the Asian Age from January to October in 1994.

Senior advocate Geeta Luthra, appearing for Akbar, said that if there was any grievance, it had to be raised then and there before the appropriate authority.

"Allegations are a figment of her (Ramani's) imagination. Things that I (Akbar) took 49-45 years to build, without any sense of responsibility, were trashed," Luthra said.

"Can you expect a man to answer to something which you allege happened 20-25 years ago? Why now? What is the public good that you are claiming? If there is a grievance, it has to be raised then and there before the appropriate authority... I don't

want to jump onto a political bandwagon," she added.

"My whole life has gone without any controversy... Can you mar anybody's life without any impunity, without any evidence? We can't be a social media country," she said.

While referring to an article written by Ramani, which was allegedly termed Akbar a "predator" and a "pervert", she said the allegations were "false narrative".

"This has caused great humiliation to Akbar and his reputation has been irreparably damaged. He developed a reputation and that's why he was a Minister (of State) of External Affairs. He wrote extensively on South Asia. In that sense, the country

needs such people," she said.

She further added, "You (Ramani) are a person who is saying things without bothering. You are tarnishing someone's image without bothering."

The court will further hear the matter on February 28.

Akbar has denied all the allegations of sexual harassment against the women, who came forward during #MeToo campaign against him.

Ramani accused Akbar of sexual misconduct when he was a journalist, a charge denied by him.

Akbar had earlier told the court that the allegations made in an article in the 'Vogue' and the subsequent tweets were defamatory on the face of it as the complainant had deposed them to be false and imaginary and that an "immediate damage" was

caused to him due to the "false" allegations by Ramani.

Ramani had earlier told the court that her "disclosure" of alleged sexual harassment by Akbar has come at "a great personal cost" and she had "nothing to gain" from it.

She had said her move would empower women to speak up and make them understand their rights at workplace.

Several women came up with accounts of the alleged sexual harassment by him while they were working as journalists under Akbar.

He has termed the allegations "false, fabricated and deeply distressing" and said he was taking appropriate legal action against them. -- PTI

The government on Friday said it had offered to bring back people belonging to neighbouring countries, including Pakistan, from the novel coronavirus-hit Wuhan where 80 Indian students are still remaining after evacuation of 647 Indians and seven Maldivians.

On February 1, 324 Indians were brought back from Wuhan by first Air India special flight, while another batch of 323 Indians and seven Maldivians were evacuated from the Chinese city on February 2 through a second special flight.

External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar informed Rajya Sabha that the time when the two flights were going, India had told all students and larger community in Wuhan that it was prepared not only to bring back Indians but also all the people of our neighbouring countries who want to come back.

"So, this was an offer which was made to all our neighbours. And, of these, the seven nationals of Maldives chose to avail the offer.

"But I would like the honourable members to know that the offer was made to everybody," he informed Rajya Sabha in response to queries if Pakistan had requested India to bring back its citizens.

Jaishankar further said there are about 80 Indian students who are still in the coronavirus-hit Chinese city of Wuhan. This includes 10 students who had come to the airport when the flights were sent. But they were running fever and so the Chinese authorities, after screening, did not allow them to board the flight.

"About 70 odd people chose voluntarily to stay in Wuhan and not get evacuated in the two flights," the minister said.

Meanwhile, India has cancelled all visas issued to foreign nationals coming from China as it stepped up efforts to combat the spread of novel coronavirus after 150 passengers were identified with symptoms of the deadly virus and sent to isolation units. -- PTI

22:23 Manmohan, Rahul meet Lanka PM Rajapaksa

Former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Friday met Sri Lankan Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa and discussed a host of issues.

Rajapaksa was the Sri Lankan president from 2005-2015, while Singh was the prime minister from 2004-14.

Gandhi and Singh were accompanied by senior Congress leader Anand Sharma during the meeting with Rajapaksa, who arrived here this evening on a five-day visit.

After his official engagement in Delhi, Rajapaksa will travel to Varanasi, Sarnath, Bodh Gaya and Tirupati. -- PTI

An IndiGo flight heading to Kolkata on Friday returned to Ahmedabad after one of the Pratt and Whitney (PW) engines in the Airbus A320neo aircraft faced a snag mid-air, according to senior government officials.

"One of the engines of 6E125 Ahmedabad-Kolkata flight developed high vibrations mid-air. Therefore, pilot returned the aircraft to Ahmedabad," the officials stated.

In a relief to IndiGo, aviation regulator DGCA on January 13 had decided to extend the deadline for the budget carrier to replace all 135 unmodified PW engines on A320neo aircraft from January 31 to May 31.

Four Air Turn Back (ATB)/In-flight Shut Down (IFSD) events were witnessed on Airbus A320Neo planes operated by Indigo in a week during October last year due to the failure of third stage LPT (low pressure turbine) blades.

Therefore, stating that "desperate measures" were required to "put things in order", the Directorate General of Civil Aviation had on November 1 told IndiGo to replace the PW engines in 97 A320neo aircraft "at all costs" by January 31 or they would be grounded.

IndiGo on Friday said, "This morning, an IndiGo aircraft operating Ahmedabad to Kolkata was returned to Ahmedabad. During the flight, the pilot momentarily observed a caution message and followed the laid down Standard Operating Procedures."

"Taking a precautionary measure, the pilot landed back at the Ahmedabad airport. The aircraft was back in operation after inspection," it added. -- PTI

The Kerala government on Friday withdrew the 'state calamity' warning issued in the wake of the novel coronavirus (nCoV) scare as no new positive cases of infection have been detected over the last few days, even as over 3,000 people are still under observation.

State health minister K K Shailaja said as of today 61 people are in isolation wards of various hospitals across the state.

India's all three positive coronavirus cases so far-- reported from Thrissur, Alappuzuha and Kasaragod districts-- are Keralite students, two of them medicos, of a university at Wuhan, the epicentre of the nCoV.

The state had on February 3 declared the novel coronavirus epidemic as a "state calamity" with a third student testing positive for the infection. -- PTI

An estimated 80 Indian students are still living in the coronavirus-hit Chinese city of Wuhan, external affairs minister S Jaishankar told the Rajya Sabha on Friday, adding that 70 of them chose to stay behind at the time of the evacuation operation.

"By our estimate, there are about 80 Indian students who are currently still in Wuhan," Jaishankar said, adding that a total of 10 among these 80 students had expressed willingness to return to India but could not board the special Air India flight after they failed the screening process at the airport.

The minister said that the Indian Embassy in China is in touch with all the students in Wuhan and the Central government is regularly monitoring their situation.

As many as 640 Indians and 7 Maldivians had returned to New Delhi last week on two special Air India flights from Wuhan -- a Chinese city of more than 11 million people, which has been the epicentre of the new strain of coronavirus.

Jaishankar informed that India extended the offer of evacuating people from Wuhan to all its neighbouring countries including Pakistan, but only Maldives chose to take up the offer.

"We were prepared to bring back not only our people but also those from all our neighbourhood who would have liked to. This was an offer which was made to all our neighbours but only seven nationals of Maldives chose to avail the offer," Jaishankar said.

Coronavirus originated in China in December, last year, and has since then killed 636 people in that country alone, while cases have been registered in several countries across the world, including India. -- ANI

The Supreme Court on Friday took cognisance on its own to "stop involvement of children and infants in demonstrations" following the death of an infant on January 30 at Shaheen Bagh in New Delhi.

The apex court website showed that the issue would be taken up for hearing on February 10 by a bench headed by Chief Justice S A Bobde.

The matter assumes importance as a letter was recently written by a 12-year-old National Bravery Award winner to the Chief Justice of India seeking directions to prevent children from participating in demonstrations as it "amounts to cruelty".

A 4-month-old baby had passed away in his sleep on the night of January 30 after returning from Shaheen Bagh where his parents had taken him during the anti-CAA protest.

Zen Gunratan Sadavarte, a recipient of the 2019 Indian Council for Child Welfare National Bravery Award, said in the letter to the CJI's office that the parents of the baby and the organisers of the anti-CAA protests at Shaheen Bagh had "failed" to protect the rights of the kid, resulting in his death.

Sadavarte, a student of Class 7 from Mumbai, has also alleged that the protesters at Shaheen Bagh include infants and children, who are exposed to conditions unfavourable to them, which is violation of their rights.

"The Shaheen Bagh protesters at New Delhi, include women, senior citizens, newborns and children, ignoring the fact that new born babies need a lot of attention and care as they cannot express their pains in particulars thereafter also ignoring the conditions unfavourable to the children, they are brought to the protest place which is violative of their child rights and natural justice," the letter said.

It also alleged that the police failed in stopping children from participating in such agitations harmful to their health.

It expressed surprise over the fact that even the death certificate of the 4-month-old does not mention the cause of death.

Sadavarte received the National Bravery Award for guiding 17 people to safety when a fire broke out at Parel's Crystal Tower. -- PTI

The Bharatiya Janata Party is not interested in bringing down the Uddhav Thackeray-led Maha Vikas Aghadi government which would "collapse due to its own burden", said Leader of Opposition in the Maharashtra assembly Devendra Fadnavis on Friday.

The MVA government was formed after the Shiv Sena snapped ties with the BJP and joined hands with the Congress and NCP.

"We will not try to bring this government down. We are confident this government will collapse due to its own burden," Fadnavis told reporters.

He said the BJP will discharge its duty of an opposition party honestly.

"We are not vying for the government to fall. We are not interested in bringing the government down," he added. -- PTI

A day after a photojournalist was allegedly beaten up by policemen, the Bombay News Photographers Association said it would boycott Sunday's Maharashtra International Police Marathon in Mumbai.

Ashish Raje, a senior photojournalist with a city tabloid, was allegedly beaten up by the police at an anti-Citizenship (Amendment) Act protest on Thursday.

Raje is the treasurer of the BNPA and and joint-secretary of the Mumbai Press Club.

"To intensify the united protest, the BNPA has decided to boycott the coverage of Maharashtra Police Marathon. The BNPA held a meeting at Mumbai Press Club and also held a demonstration against the police atrocities," said a statement issued by the Mumbai Press Club on Friday.

The BNPA also sought that "the police officers should be suspended immediately" from service.

"We are satisfied that home minister Anil Deshmukh has directed a probe in the unwarranted assault. We will continue to review the probe process and continue our protest till a proper action is taken," said BNPA president Vivek Bendre.

BNPA secretary Rajanish Kakade said the entire photojournalist fraternity will stay away from the marathon. -- PTI

19:29 Kejriwal gets EC notice for Hindu-Muslim jibe

The Election Commission on Friday issued a show cause notice to Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal for posting a "Hind-Muslim" video on his Twitter handle to target the opposition, saying prima facie it has the potential of disturbing communal harmony.

Kejriwal has been asked to respond to the notice before 5.00 pm on Saturday, the day of polling in Delhi.

The video purportedly shows that other parties and media are allegedly talking of "Hindu-Muslim", "CAA" and "mandir-masjid", but Kejriwal was talking of development, schools and women safety. -- PTI

In a rare move, a word from Prime Minister Narendra Modi's speech in Rajya Sabha was expunged from records.

Rajya Sabha Chairman M Venkaiah Naidu expunged the word used by Modi on Thursday during his reply to the discussion on a motion thanking the President for his address to the joint sitting of both Houses of Parliament at the start of the Budget session.

"Chairman was pleased to direct expunction of a certain portion of the proceedings of Rajya Sabha dated February 6 at about 6.20 and 6.30 pm," a statement issued by the Rajya Sabha Secretariat said.

Naidu routinely expunges any remark found unsuitable from Rajya Sabha's records after going through the proceedings of the day.

This has been done on several occasions but rarely was any remark of Modi expunged.

Modi had made the remark as he launched a strong defence of the National Population Register saying the country's population register was being updated with demographic information for better targeting of government's welfare schemes.

He had targeted the opposition Congress for making a U-turn, saying the party had brought the NPR in 2010 and was later updated in 2015 by adding photographs and some biometric information.

Naidu also expunged a word from Leader of the Opposition and senior Congress leader Ghulam Nabi Azad's statement made after Modi had finished his speech.

Azad had stated that the Congress was in favour of giving citizenship to persecuted migrants from Pakistan but was against framing of a law based on religion. -- PTI

App-based bike taxi aggregator Rapido will provide free rides to voters in the national capital on Saturday to help them reach polling booths, a spokesperson for the company said.

Voting for the 70-member Delhi assembly will be held at over 13,000 polling booths across the city, from 8 am to 6 pm on Saturday, an official of the Delhi CEO office said.

"Rapido will be doing its bit for the democracy to help voters exercise their right to vote. It is offering free rides to the election polling booth for all voters in Delhi. The company will waive 100 per cent ride fee for all rides up to three Kms to the election booth, anywhere in Delhi," the spokesperson said.

Rapido co-founder Aravind Sanka said, "We see elections as a key part of our democracy and Constitution and would like to do our bit for the society."

Rapido is offering 100 per cent waiver to voters in Delhi on the election day, to eliminate transportation issues as a reason for not voting, he added. -- PTI

The Congress on Friday demanded an apology from Union minister Harsh Vardhan for making "unparliamentary" remarks in Lok Sabha against Rahul Gandhi, who alleged that the Bharatiya Janata Party "orchestrated" the ruckus in the House to prevent him from questioning the government.

There was an uproar in the Lower House of Parliament after the Union health minister made the remarks against the former Congress chief, leading to the Lok Sabha being adjourned for the day at 2 pm.

Gandhi and other Congress MPs complained to Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla and demanded action against Vardhan for making "unwarranted" remarks.

BJP members also prevented Gandhi from exercising his right to ask questions, the opposition party alleged and added that if Congress MPs have violated parliamentary norms, they will express regret.

"The orchestrated ruckus in Parliament today was designed to prevent me from questioning the government. The youth of India can clearly see that the PM has no clue about how to tackle the unemployment crisis.

"To protect him, the BJP will keep disrupting Parliament, preventing debate," Gandhi said on Twitter.

The Congress leader also said that "we are being stifled and we are not being allowed to speak in Parliament". "They have suppressed our voices," he had said earlier.

Gandhi told reporters outside Parliament that Vardhan passed the remarks when he was seeking to raise the issue of the people of his Lok Sabha constituency Wayanad not getting access to medical facilities in the absence of a medical college."But I was prevented from doing so," he said.

Congress leader in Lok Sabha Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury said Gandhi along with him and some other MPs met the speaker and handed over a complaint against Vardhan for action against him.

"Gandhi pleaded that his rights and privileges should be restored and opportunity should be given to him to ask questions.

"I have proposed that the minister concerned should apologise for his unparliamentary behaviour and have said that our member in the Well went there due to the emotional outburst triggered after the minister's remarks. If found to be wrong, we will also express regret," he said.

"This was a pre-conceived way to defame Rahul Gandhi," Chowdhury alleged, while listing out a detailed chronology of events that led to the ruckus in Lok Sabha.

Congress leader Anand Sharma said his party and Gandhi at no stage have expressed any intent to cause any hurt to the prime minister.

He said the Question Hour is very formal and a special occasion, and Gandhi's question was listed. He cannot be denied his right and the minister cannot violate his right, Sharma said. -- PTI

Bharatiya Janata Party national general secretary Kailash Vijayvargiya and senior leaders Mukul Roy and Joy Prakash Majumder were on Friday taken into preventive custody during the start of a pro-Citizenship Amendment Act rally in Kolkata.

Police said the rally was being held without permission, but the saffron party asserted that it has informed the authorities about it.

The Mamata Banerjee government has started an "autocratic" rule in West Bengal but the BJP cannot be intimidated, Vijayvargiya told reporters while being taken to a police vehicle at Talligunge Phari area.

"We were taking out a rally in support of the CAA which has received overwhelming support from all over the country. But the police of Mamata Banerjee is not allowing us to take out a peaceful, democratic rally," said BJP's West Bengal minder.

Vijayvargiya said they won't resist being taken to the city police headquarters "as we believe in democratic protest."

Police sources said the three, along with several supporters, were taken into custody as the party was organising the rally without permission.

BJP sources, however, said they had given prior intimation to police for the rally from Tollygunje phari to Hazra Crossing. -- PTI

Sri Lankan Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa on Friday arrived in New Delhi on a four-day state visit to India where he would hold talks with the top Indian leadership on a number of key areas including trade, defence and maritime security cooperation.

The visit is the Rajapaksa senior's first overseas trip since his brother Gotabaya was elected President in November.

He will have meetings with President Ram Nath Kovind, Prime Minister Modi and External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar.

"The scheduled meetings will build on the strong relationship that already exists between the two countries," Mahinda's office said in a statement on Thursday.

Mahinda hopes to finalise the implementation of the USD 450 million line of credit pledged by Prime Minister Modi to President Gotabaya Rajapaksa during his visit to New Delhi in November, according to the statement.

"With the aim of enhancing engagement in sub-regional maritime security cooperation, the two delegations are expected to discuss key areas under the defence and maritime security initiatives that include the Sri Lanka-India annual defence dialogue and the trilateral maritime security cooperation with India and the Maldives," it said.

Rajapaksa also intends to visit the religious sites of Varanasi, Sarnath, Bodhgaya and Tirupathi, it said.

Two Tamil ministers in the Rajapaksa government -- Douglas Devananda from the north and Armugam Thondaman from the central tea plantation districts -- are expected to be in the 10-member delegation, the statement added. -- PTI

A day before the Delhi polls, chief minister Arvind Kejriwal on Friday paid obeisance at the famous Hanuman Temple near Connaught Place.

He along with his wife Sunita offered prayers at the temple located on the Kharak Singh Marg.

Delhi elections will be held on Saturday and the result will be declared on February 11. -- PTI

17:11 How Shah arrived at 45 seats for Delhi polls

Just hours ahead of the campaigning for Delhi assembly polls coming to an end on Thursday, Union Home Minister Amit Shah made a claim that his party would get 45 seats in the polls.

The central leadership has asked its seven Members of Parliament in Delhi to secure 6-7 seats in their respective Lok Sabha constituency.

According to sources, the BJP has reached the figure of 45 seats taking into consideration the mandate of Lok Sabha polls in which the party secured 65 of 70 Assembly seats coming under 7 parliamentary segments.

The outcome of Delhi Assembly polls, to be held on Saturday, will be more a reflection on the in-charge of Assembly seats than a direct reflection on the ability of BJP's central leadership.

The party has put the onus on its recently elected seven MPs to secure maximum possible seats in their respective areas.Sources said the central leadership -- BJP chief JP Nadda and Amit Shah -- has clearly defined the roles of sitting MPs and asked them to ensure the Aam Aadmi Party-led government is dislodged in the national capital.

The party leadership is of the view that in the 2019 Lok Sabha polls, the BJP had secured all seven seats in the national capital, winning in 65 of the 70 assembly segments and that this could easily be replicated in the Assembly election.

"Though the party had ridden piggyback on the popularity of Prime Minister Narendra Modi in the Lok Sabha polls, the BJP still feels that it can repeat the performance. With the grassroots workers and local leaders putting in hard work, we are sure that the party will be able to secure a majority," sources added.

As part of this strategy, the local MPs have been asked to lead from the front and closely monitor the developments, party meetings and strategy in their respective constituencies.

Besides Delhi MPs, there are ministers and senior party leaders who have been made in-charge of different Assemblies.

"All the in-charges have to submit a report every day to the party and how they perform will be taken into account as well," said a senior party leader.The assembly elections in Delhi are scheduled to take place on Saturday (February 7). The counting of votes will take place on February 11. -- ANI

Finance and Corporate Affairs Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Friday said that the Central government is clear about its commitment towards infrastructure investment.

"Our commitment towards infrastructure investment is very clearly laid out," said Sitharaman while addressing media persons.

Earlier, she had said the Central government is pursuing disinvestment to inject greater transparency and discipline in loss-making public sector companies.

At the same time, funds raised by privatising state-owned firms will be used for creating and upgrading infrastructure across the country, which will stimulate consumer demand and create long-term assets.

Sitharaman said the listing of companies on stock exchanges disciplines a company, provides access to financial markets and unlocks its value.

It also gives an opportunity for retail investors to participate in the wealth so created, she said while addressing industry leaders at a post-Budget interaction organised by the Ministry of Finance.

For the next financial year 2020-21, the disinvestment target includes Rs 90,000 crore to be raised from an initial public offer in Life Insurance Corporation (LIC) and a stake sale in IDBI Bank.

The government has been bullish on privatising loss-making companies like Air India while other companies can opt for strategic disinvestment or get listed to diversify ownership.

The Centre is also expected to divest stakes in Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd (BPCL), Container Corporation of India, and Shipping Corporation of India (SCI) soon.The aggressive disinvestment target is also the basis for the government to contain fiscal deficit at 3.5 per cent of gross domestic product (GDP) in FY21.

It had to let fiscal deficit slip from 3.3 per cent estimated earlier to 3.8 per cent in the revised estimate presented in the Union Budget 2020.

Besides stimulating the rural economy, said Sitharaman, the Budget lays a clear emphasis on commerce and industry with measures like staggering tax burden for start-ups.

"Budget 2020 sets a roadmap for the next five years keeping macroeconomic fundamentals in mind. We made sure that the demand for increasing consumption and investment in long-term asset building is taken up," she said. -- ANI

16:31 Pakistan Army's jet crashes, pilot injured

A Pakistani pilot on Friday suffered injuries in a jet crash near Shorkot district Jhang of Punjab. The trainer jet of Pakistan Air Forces crashed in the region. The exact region of the crash is still unknown. According to the PAF spokesperson, the pilot ejected safely and no loss of life or property has been reported on the ground.

16:21 Mamata smiles as guv sticks to prepared speech

West Bengal Governor Jagdeep Dhankhar on Friday did not deviate from the written speech prepared by the state government for his address at the beginning of the budget session and said intolerance, bigotry and hatred are the "new norms in the country".

Dhankhar in his speech also said rejection of all forms of dissent is the "new fashion in the name of patriotism". His sticking to the written speech averted any chance of a showdown with the government.

Dhankhar had said on Thursday that he would "create history" with his address. He had also said that as the constitutional head of the state, he had given his suggestions and hoped it would be incorporated in his speech. According to norms, the governor reads out the speech prepared by the state government during the budget session, which contains the government's policy decisions.

"At present our country is at a critical juncture. The basic values and principles of our Constitution are under challenge...Spreading misinformation is the order of the day and rejection of all forms of dissent is the new fashion in the name of patriotism," Dhankhar said while reading out his speech.

Dhankhar expressed his condolence over "the tragic loss of innocent lives" in the country over panic on the proposed nationwide NRC.

"There is a general air of intolerance, bigotry and hatred that is straining the variegated thread of unity tying together all the linguistic, religious and ethnic diversities in the country," he said. Before adopting any drastic measures, all sections of people must be taken into confidence. "The state government is strongly against division of people in the name of steps like National Population Register (NPR), NRC or CAA," he said.

The TMC legislators were seen donned in anti-CAA, NRC T-shirts, badges and aprons during his address. After his speech, Dhankhar met Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and Speaker Biman Bandyopadhyay at the latter's chamber in the Assembly premises.

The governor had said on Wednesday that he might make changes to the speech, which drew sharp reactions from the ruling Trinamool Congress which said that he was "deliberately trying to create problems". "I will act as per the Constitution," he had said, adding that he would never cross the "Lakshman Rekha". -- PTI

Image: WB Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, Speaker Biman Bandyopadhyay and governor Jagdeep Dhankhar

15:29 Sinful to execute Nirbhaya convicts: Court

A Delhi court Friday dismissed the Tihar jail authorities' plea seeking a fresh date for execution of the four death row convicts in the Nirbhaya gang rape and murder case. Additional Sessions Judge Dharmendra Rana took note of the Delhi High Court's February 5 order permitting the convicts to exercise their legal remedies within one week.

"It is criminally sinful to execute the convicts when law permits them to live. The High Court on February 5 has permitted the convicts, in the interest of justice, to exercise their legal remedies within one week from same order," the court said. "I concur with the counsel for convicts that death warrants cannot be executed merely on the basis of surmises and conjectures. The application is bereft of merit and the same is dismissed. State is at liberty to move appropriate application as and when required," the judge said.

The court was hearing the application moved by Tihar jail authorities seeking issuance of fresh death warrants against them. The trial court had on January 31 stayed "till further orders" execution of the four convicts in the case -- Mukesh Kumar Singh (32), Pawan Gupta (25), Vinay Kumar Sharma (26) and Akshay Kumar (31), who are lodged in Tihar Jail.

-- PTI

15:15 Will build infra with PSU disinvestment: FM

The government is pursuing disinvestment to inject greater transparency and discipline in loss-making public sector companies, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said on Friday.

Sitharaman said the listing of companies on stock exchanges disciplines a company, provides access to financial markets and unlocks its value.

For the next financial year 2020-21, the disinvestment target includes Rs 90,000 crore to be raised from an initial public offer in Life Insurance Corporation and a stake sale in IDBI Bank.

The government has been bullish on privatising loss-making companies like Air India while other companies can opt for strategic disinvestment or get listed to diversify ownership.

The Centre is also expected to divest stakes in Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd (BPCL), Container Corporation of India (Concor) and Shipping Corporation of India (SCI) soon.

The aggressive disinvestment target is also the basis for the government to contain fiscal deficit at 3.5 per cent of gross domestic product (GDP) in FY21.It had to let fiscal deficit slip from 3.3 per cent estimated earlier to 3.8 per cent in the revised estimate presented in the Union Budget 2020.

Besides stimulating the rural economy, said Sitharaman, the Budget lays a clear emphasis on commerce and industry with measures like staggering tax burden for start-ups. -- ANI

15:07 Bharatan: The film industry insider

Another update on the demise of Raju Bharatan: The veteran cricket journalist and writer on film music died following a prolonged illness in Mumbai on Friday. He was 86 and is survived by his daughter, son-in-law and grandchildren.

Bharatan worked with "The Illustrated Weekly of India" for 42 years. He also directed "The Victory Story" (1974), the first full-length cricket documentary for Films Division.

The author of six books, Bharatan first penned "Rivals in the Sun: A survey of the 1952 tour of England" (1952), followed by "Indian Cricket - The Vital Phase" (1977). Bharatan also wrote the biographies of legendary singers Lata Mangeshkar, Asha Bhosle and noted music director Naushad.

Condoling Bharatan's death, former India spinner Bishan Singh Bedi tweeted saying, "Raju Bharatan of Illustrated Weekly is no more. He reported on Crkt & Films with equal elan & commitment. RIP Raju!."

Read Bharatan's pieces for Rediff.com on the Hindi film industry here:

The Classic Dilemma of Being Manna Dey

How Mohammed Rafi regained his confidence

80 songs to celebrate Lata's 80th birthday!

Why Lata Mangeshkar cancelled song recordings

The real reason why Guru Dutt's marriage collapsed

Image: Music composer OP Nayyar.

15:05 Noted cricket scribe Raju Bharatan dies

Raju Bharatan -- the legendary writer on Hindi film music and cricket -- sadly passed into the ages today. Though its then editor Khushwant Singh cornered the glory, it was Mr Bharatan's stewardship of a special cricket issue of the Illustrated Weekly Of India that sold over 400,000 copies -- then and now, a record for an Indian magazine. Mr Bharatan was knowledgeable and prolific, and wrote with felicity on both cricket and Hindi film music for over 65 years. We were honoured to publish some of his features and his interviews, links to which you can find below.

First up, the sports stories he wrote for Rediff.com.

The other side of the coin.

Sachin goes the Umrigar way

Victim of Marine Drive high tide

And a heart for any fate...

Eye of the Tiger

Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Friday that it was because of people's support that the Bodo peace accord was signed, heralding a new dawn of peace in Assam.

Addressing a massive public rally to celebrate the signing of the accord on January 27 that is expected to bring lasting peace to the troubled state, Modi said now the time was to work together for peace and development of the North- East.

"We will not allow violence to return," he asserted. The prime minister also sought to assuage the concerns of people of the region over implementation of the new citizenship law.

"Canard is being spread that lakhs of people settlers will come from outside after the enactment of CAA. Nothing of that sort will happen," he said. "The Bodo accord is a victory for all communities and sections of society. There are no losers," he said. -- PTI

The Kerala government led by Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan on Friday has come under the spotlight for depicting the assassination of Mahatma Gandhi on the cover of the state finance budget 2020-21 document.

Issuing a clarification on the same, Issac justified that it is a political statement.

"Definitely, it is a political statement, the cover of my budget speech. It is a painting by a Malayalam artist of Mahatma Gandhi's murder scene. We are sending out a message that we will not forget who murdered Gandhi."

He also alleged that history is being re-written and National Register of Citizens is being used to divide the country on communal lines.

"This is important at the times when history is being re-written. There is an attempt to erase some popular memories and use NRC to divide the population on communal lines. Kerala will stand united." -- ANI

14:18 Modi on danda remark: I'm protected by mothers

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday made a jibe at Congress leader Rahul Gandhi's "danda" remark and said that some leaders talk about beating him with sticks but he is protected by the blessings of "all mothers of India".

"Kabhi kabhi log danda marne ki baatein karte hain. Lekin jis Modi ko itne badi matra mein mata aur beheno ka suraksha kawach mila ho us par kitne bhi dande gir jaye, usko kuch nahi hota. At times some leaders talk about beating me with sticks, but I'm saved by the blessings of all mothers of India. I pay my respects and thank all of you. I am here to instill a new belief in all Assamese people," he said while addressing a public meeting in Kokrajhar.

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi had said that youth will hit Prime Minister Narendra Modi with sticks if he is unable to address the issue of unemployment in the country.

The Supreme Court on Friday issued a notice to the Central government on a plea challenging the Constitutional validity of the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) and effective implementation of the Assam Accord.A bench of Chief Justice of India (CJI) SA Bobde also sought Centre's response on the plea filed by Assam Social Justice Forum.

The petition sought appropriate directions for taking effective steps for the implementation of Assam Accord, 1985 in letter and spirit and for conservation and preservation of the of a distinct culture, heritage and traditions of the indigenous people of Assam.

The Assam Accord, 1985, had fixed March 24, 1971, as the cut-off date for deportation of all illegal immigrants irrespective of their religion.The Bench also sought Centre's response on another fresh batch of pleas challenging CAA and tagged them along with other petitions pending in the matter.

One of the petitions, filed by the Association of Advocates from Maharashtra among others, sought to declare the Citizenship Amendment Act as discriminatory, arbitrary, and illegal and consequently set aside the impugned act as ultra-vires the Constitution of India.

On the other hand, over a hundred petitions have been filed in the apex court, for and against the amended citizenship law, which is facing opposition and protests across the country. -- ANI

Image: PM Narendra Modi addresses a public meeting in Kokrajhar, Assam.

A man flying from Delhi to Pune was admitted to an isolation ward of the civic-run Naidu Hospital here on Friday for possible exposure to novel coronavirus after he vomitted mid-flight, an official said.

The passenger was admitted to the hospital after the flight arrived at the Pune airport in the morning, an Air India official said.

"The passenger was traveling from Delhi to Pune on Air India flight. He complained of nausea and vomitted on board. After the plane landed at the Pune airport, he was immediately isolated and shifted to Naidu Hospital," the official said.

According to the Pune Airport authorities, the flight was sanitized later. Naidu Hospital is one of the three hospitals in Maharashtra, where quarantine facilities have been set up to deal with suspected cases of coronavirus. No confirmed case of the deadly virus, which has so far killed 630 people in China, has been detected in Maharashtra yet. -- PTI

Image: The Indian Army has set up a quarantine facility in Manesar near Delhi.

Congress general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra on Friday questioned the basis on which former Jammu and Kashmir chief ministers Omar Abdullah and Mehbooba Mufti were booked under the Public Safety Act and said they deserve to be freed and not incarcerated indefinitely.

Priyanka tweeted saying the two Jammu and Kashmir leaders have upheld the Constitution and abided by the democratic process and never ascribed to violence and divisiveness.

"On what basis has PSA been slapped on Omar Abdullah and Mehbooba Mufti? They upheld the Constitution of India, abided by the democratic process, stood up to separatists, and never ascribed to violence and divisiveness.

"They deserve to be freed, not incarcerated indefinitely without any basis," she said on Twitter. Mufti and Abdullah, besides two political stalwarts from the PDP and its arch-rival National Conference, were booked under the stringent PSA by the administration on Thursday, officials in the union territory said. -- PTI

13:49 Don't want to respond to PM's remarks: Rahul

Congress MP Rahul Gandhi reacts to the ruckus in Parliament today and PM's allusion to his intellect yesterday during the vote of thanks in the Lok Sabha.

Gandhi said he wasn't allowed to speak in the House and does not want to respond to PM Modi's (taunts). Read: PM's tubelight jibe at Rahul

On the ruckus in the house today, Rahul said, "There is an issue in Wayanad about them not having a Medical College so I wanted to raise. BJP obviously doesn't like it if I speak. We are not allowed to speak in Parliament. See the visuals, Manickam Tagore (Congress MP) didn't attack anyone rather he was attacked."

Treasury and opposition members nearly came to blows in Lok Sabha on Friday when Union Health Minister Harsh Vardhan condemned in "no uncertain words" the "outlandish" remarks made by Congress leader Rahul Gandhi against Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

During Question Hour, when Gandhi asked a question related to establishment of medical colleges, Vardhan said before giving the answer, he would like to make a statement on the Congress leader's recent comment on the prime minister. Vardhan said he "condemns in no uncertain words" the "outlandish" remarks of Gandhi. "Sir, please excuse me. Before I begin answering this question of dear Shri Rahul Gandhi ji. I want to condemn in no uncertain words the outlandish language that he has used against the prime minister of the country," he said.

Speaker Om Birla asked the minister to stick to his answer. As Vardhan continued reading out the statement, Congress MPs came to the Well strongly protesting against the minister's move. One of the Congress members from Tamil Nadu, Manickam Tagore, came to the treasury benches and attempted to reach Vardhan, who was sitting in the second row, reports PTI.

Immediately, BJP member from Uttar Pradesh, Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh, held Tagore by his arm to prevent him from reaching the union minister. Congress MP from Kerala Hibi Eden tried to intervene. Several MPs from both sides and union ministers, including Smriti Irani, prevented them from coming to blows.

"Guys, what are you doing. What is going on," Irani was heard saying. Unnerved by the commotion, Vardhan continued reading his statement. "In a recent speech, he (Gandhi) used words like 6 mahina baad, iss desh ka yuva, Narendra Modi ko dande maar maar ke desh se bahar karenge. (After six months, youth of the country would beat Modi with sticks and throw him out)," Vardhan said.

13:27 Delay sending wrong message: Nirbhaya's mom

Nirbhaya's mother Asha Devi on Friday expressed disappointment over postponing the execution of death warrants of the convicts and said the delay is sending a wrong message to the world.

Determined to keep the fight on, she said, "We keep getting disappointed by the system. This delay in the hanging the convicts is sending out a wrong message to the world. I will continue my fight till the convicts are hanged.

"The judicature also promised that they will bring new guidelines for the women and girls pertaining to such matters. The whole country is witnessing how a mockery has been made of President's law processes. We are constantly struggling in this case," she added while speaking to ANI in New Delhi.

Nirbhaya's father Badrinath Singh also expressed sadness over the delay in the hanging of the convicts and said, "The lawyer of the convict should be ashamed of himself. He is making fun of the president's rule again and again. Being a lawyer he is doing such things."

Delhi's Patiala House Court on Friday will hear a plea of Tihar Jail authorities seeking issuance of fresh death warrants against the convicts of 2012 Delhi gang-rape case.

The court had yesterday directed the convicts to file their response by today on the plea by Tihar Jail authorities.The prison authorities moved the application under Section 413 and 414 of the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC) and sought to fix a new date for the execution.

This came after President Ram Nath Kovind rejected the mercy petition of convict Akshay Thakur. So far, mercy petitions of Vinay Sharma and Mukesh Singh have also been rejectedA Delhi court had earlier stayed till further orders the execution of the four convicts -- Akshay Thakur, Mukesh Singh, Pawan Gupta, and Vinay Sharma -- which was earlier scheduled to take place on February 1.

12:46 No right to scold MPs, Speaker chides Supriyo

Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla on Friday chided Union minister Babul Supriyo for making certain remarks against Congress leader Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury, saying no right has been given to the minister to scold any member in the House.

Supriyo made certain remarks, which the Speaker immediately expunged from records, against Chowdhury and there were also protests from Congress members over the minister's remarks. Birla also told Parliamentary Affairs Minister Pralhad Joshi to make Supriyo understand Parliamentary proceedings.

Supriyo -- who is the Minister of State for Environment, Forest and Climate Change -- was replying to a supplementary related to air pollution during Question Hour.

"Mantri ji, aapko adhikaar nahi diya (gaya hai) daatne ka (minister, you have not been given right to scold)," Birla said. The Speaker also cut short Supriyo's reply. Amid the protests, the minister said he has known Chowdhury for a long time and was withdrawing the remarks.

Earlier, about the written reply related to national clean air programme, Chowdhury -- leader of Congress in Lok Sabha -- said it was just a statement of intention and alleged that the government has failed in addressing the issues.

In response, Supriyo remarked that since Chowdhury is following 'Fit India' regime, he might be doing more Yoga and might not have had time to read the answer. Congress leader Rahul Gandhi was present in the House. -- PTI

12:41 PM arrives in Guwahati

Prime Minister Narendra Modi arrives in Guwahati. The PM will address a public meeting at an event in Kokrajhar shortly, to celebrate the signing of the Bodo Agreement. He was greeted by Assam CM Sarbananda Sonowal at the airport.

A day before the Delhi Assembly polls, the Shiv Sena on Friday heaped praises on Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal for his government's "ideal" work in the last five years, and said the Centre should have replicated the 'Delhi model' of development in other states.

The Sena said Prime Minister Narendra Modi or Union Home Minister Amit Shah should have felicitated Kejriwal for fulfilling the promises in Delhi, but instead of doing that senior BJP leaders and ministers are raking up the 'Hindu vs Muslim' issue in a bid to win the elections.

"PM Modi and Amit Shah are leaving no stone unturned in Delhi Assembly elections. They (BJP) could not come to power in Maharashtra and lost in Jharkhand. Therefore, the BJP wants to win Delhi and there is nothing wrong in it," the Sena said in an editorial in the party mouthpiece 'Saamana'.

"With the aim of winning the Delhi polls, 200 MPs from across the country, chief ministers of all the BJP-ruled states and the entire Union Cabinet are in the arena. Despite that Kejriwal has clearly emerged stronger than them," it said.

There could be differences of opinion on Kejriwal's views and style of functioning, it said, adding, "But despite having limited power in hand and the hurdles created by the Centre, his government's work in the fields of healthcare, education, civic amenities is ideal." PM Modi and his cabinet should have replicated this 'Delhi model' in other states and utilised Kejriwal's vision across the country, the Sena said.

"Instead, all efforts were being made to prove Kejriwal wrong. If anybody is doing good work in a state and even if that person does not follow your ideology, the country's leader should still praise him and implement his good work elsewhere. But there is no magnanimity left in politics now," the Uddhav Thackeray-led party added.

"Children from poor families study in government-run schools in Delhi and such schools have turned ideal. The mohalla clinics there are doing good work. Water and electricity tariffs were either waived or halved. It means the promises that Kejriwal had given were fulfilled.

"PM Modi or Amit Shah should felicitate Kejriwal for fulfilling the promises, but instead of doing that senior BJP leaders and ministers are raking up 'Hindu vs Muslim' issue in their bid to win the elections," the saffron party said. -- PTI

12:39 Shikara Review

"Shikara is a story that the screen should have told long ago. It is an attempt to cure that epidemic of social media opinion and provoke us to leave our rhetorical positions for once and see the issue purely as a great tragedy which happened for more reasons than we give to ourselves," says Utkarsh Mishra.

Read the Rediff.com review here.

Lok Sabha proceedings were adjourned for nearly an hour on Friday following ruckus over Union Minister Harsh Vardhan's remarks on Rahul Gandhi's recent statement against Prime Minister Narendra Modi. During Question Hour when Rahul rose to ask a question, Harsh Vardhan said he would like to first "unequivocally condemn the outlandish remarks of the Congress leader against Prime Minister Narendra Modi" made during an election rally. This led to a sharp reaction from opposition benches forcing the chair to adjourn the House till 1 pm. -- PTI

12:28 How can Omar be threat in PM's custody: Cong

After National Conference leader Omar Abdullah and People's Democratic Party leader Mehbooba Mufti were booked under the Public Safety Act, senior Congress leader Kapil Sibal said that it is shocking and added that the Prime Minister must tell "how can somebody be a threat while he is in your custody."

"It is shocking because after August 5 when they were arrested, they continue to be in detention under Section 107 of the Code of Criminal Procedure. Since they have been in detention since August 5 and we are now in the beginning of February, I want to ask the Prime Minister how can you impose PSA because they have been under your detention?" Sibal told ANI.

"PSA is imposed if there is an immediate threat to the security and the public safety of Jammu and Kashmir. The Prime Minister must tell us that how can somebody be a threat while he is in your custody. Again, this is political because they know that the situation in Jammu and Kashmir is not normal, the internet is still not open, people are not able to express their views. The people of Jammu and Kashmir are silent. This silence perhaps has a meaning and if everything is normal then allow Jammu and Kashmir to be as it was and immediately direct that elections be held for the state Assemblies instead of the Union Territories that you have declared," he added.

Both former Jammu and Kashmir chief ministers were detained after the government abrogated Article 370 last year. In December last year, Farooq Abdullah's detention was extended for three more months under the PSA.

11:51 SC to hear 'Clear Shaheen Bagh' plea on Monday

The Supreme Court said it would hear on February 10 the pleas against protests at Shaheen Bagh as it did not want to "influence" the Delhi assembly elections by hearing the matter on Friday.

Polls in the national capital will be held on Saturday.

"We understand there is a problem and we have to see how to resolve it. We will take it up on Monday. We will be in a better position by then," a bench comprising justices S K Kaul and K M Joseph said.

When an advocate appearing for one of the petitioners said that voting for Delhi election is scheduled on February 8, the bench said, "That is exactly why we are saying come on Monday. Why should we influence it?" The bench also asked the petitioners to come prepared on Monday to argue on why the matter should not be remitted back to the Delhi High Court. -- PTI

The ongoing coronavirus outbreak will dampen economic growth in China this year but the scale of the impact remains uncertain and will depend on the duration and intensity of the health crisis, Fitch Ratings has said.If the government was to launch a large-scale stimulus to offset the effects of the epidemic, it can have an adverse effect on other policy goals such as reducing financial risk.

"However, we believe that the government is only likely to do so if the economic impact of the virus proves to be substantially larger than the SARS outbreak in 2003," said Fitch in a statement.

Huge uncertainties remain over the impact of the coronavirus on China's economy. "We believe it is still too early to make definitive adjustments to our GDP forecasts at this stage and instead have examined some illustrative scenarios."

The SARS outbreak provides a useful benchmark but there are significant differences between that epidemic and the latest one. Notably, the novel coronavirus (2019-nCoV) has spread faster than SARS, and official travel and workplace activity restrictions have been more aggressive.

These factors suggest that the impact of the current outbreak on economic activity on a daily basis may be more intense than SARS, but the impact on GDP will also depend on the length of time taken to contain the virus.

SARS influenced economic behaviour significantly between early March and late May 2003. The service sector was the hardest hit but industrial output growth also slowed.

The much harsher official 'lock-down' restrictions in place will also imply that if the 2019-nCoV epidemic were to last three months, its economic impact will very likely be more severe than SARS.The tough official restrictions on economic activity can, however, result in a more rapid containment than SARS.

Three years ago, Narendra Damodardas Modi said: 'You are free to criticise me. Constructive criticism makes our democracy stronger and is vital.' Two years ago, he reiterated: 'I want this government to be criticised. Criticism makes democracy strong.'

In 2020, the Karnataka police, which acted on a complaint by an ABVP activist, appears to be treating the honourable PM's words (and democracy) as a joke.

The joke plays on in loop: The police have turned up five times at the school to question over 80 students, most of whom had nothing to do with the play.

Among the searching questions they have asked: Did the school coerce them into making statements against the prime minister?

What role did teachers play in organising the play?

Was the script changed to accommodate the 'insulting' dialogues?

Where did they practise?

Why was a flag used?

Teaching lessons is the objective behind every school. For the moment, a state seems intent to teach a lesson -- that students of Classes 4, 5 and 6 can wage war against the mighty Indian nation, writes Krishna Prasad. Read the column here.

11:16 MNS flags off poster war with Sena

A poster put up by the MNS outside Matoshree, the residence of Maharashtra CM and Shiv Sena leader Uddhav Thackeray. The poster reads,"Respected CM, if you are serious about action against illegal infiltrators, start by cleaning your Bandra locality first which is filled with infiltrators."

10:48 Nehru is BIG, deal with it, Mr Half-Truth

Narendra Modi mentioned Jawaharlal Nehru as many as 23 times in just one part of his speech recorded for posterity by the Lok Sabha on Thursday.

The incumbent Prime Minister did so while falling back on the first Prime Minister to justify in the Lok Sabha the Citizenship (Amendment) Act.Modi seized on the word "minorities' in the 1950 pact between Nehru and his then Pakistan counterpart Liaquat Ali Khan to defend the exclusion of Muslims from the CAA. "Such a big secular person like Nehru, such a great thinker, such a big visionary; and everything to you, why did he not use then all citizens instead of minorities there? There must have been some reason,' he said, looking towards the Congress benches.

The Prime Minister did not mention that the very first line of the Nehru-Liaquat pact mentioned irrespective of religion. The first line of the April 8, 1950, agreement reads: The Governments of India and Pakistan solemnly agree that each shall ensure to the minorities through its territory, complete equality of citizenship, irrespective of religion, a full sense of security in respect of life, culture, property and personal honour, freedom of movement within each country and freedom of occupation, speech and worship, subject to law and morality.

Read the report here.

10:41 RSS invites Goa Archbishop for 'Bharat' event

The RSS has invited Archbishop of Goa and Daman, Rev Filipe Neri Ferrao, to a lecture and interaction with intellectuals on the Sangh's concept of India to be held near here.

RSS general secretary Suresh Bhaiyyaji Joshi will address a gathering on February 8 at Dona Paula near Panaji, Goa RSS chief Laxman Behre told PTI on Friday.

"We have invited intellectuals, including editors of prominent newspapers, and the Archbishop for the lecture by Bhaiyyaji Joshi on RSS' concept of 'Vishwaguru Bharat'," he said. All opinion makers in the state have been invited to attend the programme, Behre said.

"If anyone has questions after hearing the lecture, they can drop them in a box kept at the venue and Bhaiyyaji will respond to the queries on February 9 at the same place," he added. The RSS has been active in Goa with its 'dussehra sanchalans' being held at 13 locations last year, he added. -- PTI

Image: RSS general secretary Suresh Bhaiyyaji Joshi

10:36 Modi to visit Kokrajhar today

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will visit Kokrajhar today to participate in the celebrations of the signing of the Bodo agreement. The Prime Minister will address a rally in Bodo-dominated Kokrajhar town of Assam.

In a tweet yesterday, Modi had said that the accord marks the start of "a new era of peace and progress".This will be the first visit of Prime Minister Modi since the state has been witnessing anti-Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) protests.

The visit comes days after the state government signed a tripartite agreement with representatives of all factions of the banned National Democratic Front of Bodoland (NDFB) at the Ministry of Home Affairs in New Delhi.

The signing of the Bodo agreement led to the surrender of over 1,500 militants of the major insurgent group NDFB.

The Bodo groups have been demanding a separate state of Bodoland for the last 50 years. The movement has resulted in extensive violence and loss of hundreds of lives over the years. -- ANI

Image: Kokrajhar decked up with 70,000 earthen lamps to welcome PM

Narendra Modi.

10:33 India's envoy to the US meets Trump

Ambassador of India to the United States, Taranjit Singh Sandhu presents his credentials to US President Donald Trump, at the Oval office of the White House in Washington DC.

10:13 PM forgets Gandhi, Mandela: PC on PSA for Omar

Senior Congress leader P Chidambaram on Friday slammed the government for invoking the Public Safety Act against former Jammu and Kashmir chief ministers Mehbooba Mufti and Omar Abdullah and said detention without charges is the worst abomination in a democracy.

Mufti and Abdullah, besides two political stalwarts from the PDP and its arch-rival National Conference, were booked under the stringent Public Safety Act (PSA) by the administration on Thursday, officials in the union territory said.

In a series of tweets, Chidambaram said, "Shocked and devastated by the cruel invocation of the Public Safety Act against Omar Abdullah, Mehbooba Mufti and others". "Detention without charges is the worst abomination in a democracy. When unjust laws are passed or unjust laws are invoked, what option do the people have than to protest peacefully?" the former home minister tweeted.

Hitting out at Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Chidambaram said, "the PM says that protests will lead to anarchy and laws passed by Parliament and legislatures must be obeyed. He has forgotten history and the inspiring examples of Mahatma Gandhi, Martin Luther King and Nelson Mandela". Unjust laws must be opposed through peaceful resistance and civil disobedience. That is satyagraha, he added. -- PTI

Free-to-use mobile app Agora launched its first #Photojournalism photo competition to give photographers a way to shed light on specific issues. The competition gathered more than 12,321 submissions from amateur and professional photographers all over the world. Take a look at the winning works.

Image: Photographer @dimasrachmadan writes: I was so moved by this interaction. The child doesn't want to leave his dad. The soldier takes something out of his bag to give his son in order to make him feel better. Photograph:AGORA Images

09:46 Sensex, Nifty drop in line with Asian market

Indian equity benchmarks Sensex and Nifty edged lower in opening deals on Friday, tracking subdued Asian market. The 30-share BSE Sensex was trading lower by 56.87 points or 0.14 per cent at 41,249.16, while the broader NSE Nifty fell 13.60 points or 0.11 per cent to 12,124.35 in early morning trade.

On Thursday, the Sensex had settled 163.37 points, or 0.40 per cent, higher at 41,306.03 and the Nifty had closed up 48.80 points, or 0.40 per cent, at 12,137.95 after the RBI left the policy rates unchanged but maintained its accommodative stance to boost growth. Both equity benchmarks Sensex and Nifty had logged their fourth straight gains on Thursday. -- PTI

The Supreme Court will today hear the Centre's appeal challenging the Delhi high court verdict dismissing its plea against stay on the execution of the four death row convicts in the 2012 Nirbhaya gangrape and murder case. The matter will come up for hearing before the 3-judge bench, comprising Justices R Bhanumathi, Ashok Bhushan and AS Bopanna, around 12.30 pm.

On behalf of the Centre, Additional Solicitor General KM Natraj had moved the top court seeking an urgent hearing on its appeal challenging the Delhi High Court verdict which held on Wednesday that the Nirbhaya death row convicts have to be executed together and not separately.

The Centre told the top court that Tihar Jail authorities are unable to execute the convicts in the case despite the fact that their review petitions have been dismissed and curative petitions and mercy pleas of three of them have been rejected.

The high court had set a week's deadline for them to avail the remaining remedies. If the convicts choose not to make any type of petition in seven days from now, the institutions/ authorities concerned will deal with the matter, as per the law, without further delay, it said.

After she and National Conference leader Omar Abdullah were booked under the Public Safety Act, Peoples Democratic Party chief Mehbooba Mufti made a scathing attack on the Narendra Modi government at the Centre, saying it was expected from an "autocratic" regime.

"Ms Mufti received a PSA order sometime back. Slapping the draconian PSA on 2 ex-J&K CMs is expected from an autocratic regime that books 9 year olds for 'seditious remarks'. Question is how much longer will we act as bystanders as they desecrate what this nation stands for," a tweet from Mufti's official account, which is currently operated by her daughter Iltija since her detention last year, said.

The tweet came after Mufti along with former chief minister and National Conference leader Omar Abdullah were booked under the PSA by the ministry of home affairs on Thursday.

Meanwhile, reacting to the development, former Union Minister and senior Congress leader P Chidambaram too slammed the Modi government for slapping PSA on Omar and Mufti.

Ehsanullah Ehsan, the Taliban terrorist responsible for shooting Nobel Peace prize winner Malala Yousafzai in 2012 and carrying out the deadly Peshawar Army school terror attack in 2014-in which 132 students were killed-has escaped from prison, according to an audio clip released by him.

In the audio clip, which surfaced on social media on Thursday, Ehsanullah Ehsan said that he escaped the confinement of Pakistani security agencies on January 11, claiming Pakistani forces failed to keep their promises made to him during his surrender in 2017.

"With the help of God, I succeeded to escape on January 11, 2020 from the confinement of the security forces," he is heard saying in the clip.

Without revealing his current location, Ehsan said that he would soon make a detailed statement about his confinement.

Malala Yousafzai, 22, was shot for campaigning for girls' education in 2012 in Pakistan's Swat Valley.

In the audio clip, Ehsanullah Ehsan said that he surrendered to the Pakistani security agencies on February 5, 2017 under an agreement but the forces failed to keep their promise made before the surrender.

"I followed the agreement for about three years. But these shrewd security institutions put me in prison along with my children in violation of the agreement," he said, adding that he finally decided to flee from the forces.

The authenticity of the audio and veracity of Ehsanullah Ehsan's claim was not verified by the security forces or the Pakistan government.

-- PTI

07:58 Al Qaeda's Yemen chief killed by US forces

The White House on Friday announced the killing of Al Qaeda leader Qassim al-Rimi and his deputy Ayman al-Zawahiri, in counter-terrorism operation conducted by US forces in Yemen.

Qassim al-Rimi, is the leader of the terror organisation in the Arabian Peninsula. "At the direction of US President Donald Trump, the US conducted a counterterrorism operation in Yemen that successfully eliminated Qasim al-Rimi, a founder and the leader of Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula and a deputy to Al Qaeda leader Ayman al-Zawahiri," a White House tweet read.

The US officials claimed that Rimi had committed crimes against civilians in Yemen and has conducted several attacks on the United States forces.

"Under Rimi, AQAP committed unconscionable violence against civilians in Yemen and sought to conduct and inspire numerous attacks against the United States and our forces," the statement read.

The White House has further stated that Washington will continue to protect the interests of American people and its allies.

-- ANI

00:03 Imran Khan launches fresh anti-India rhetoric

In his fresh anti-India rhetoric, Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan said on Thursday that his country's battle-hardened army will teach India a "hard lesson" in case of "any misadventure" by New Delhi.

Addressing a rally in Mirpur in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir on the 'Kashmir Solidarity Day', Khan asked the Indian leadership to avoid threats of attacks.

"Narendra Modi, the statement you gave on this country, and the Indian army chiefthis is my message to you both: You have already made a mistake on August 5," Khan said, referring to the abrogation of Article 370 that granted special status to Jammu and Kashmir.

Khan said that more than "200 million people of Pakistan and its battle- hardened army will teach India a hard lesson", state-run Radio Pakistan reported.

"If you are under the false impression that you will take any action against Pakistan to strengthen your Hindu voter base, it will be the last mistake you make," said Khan.

He was referring to Prime Minister Modi's address to the National Cadet Corps in New Delhi last month where he said the Indian armed forces won't take more than a week to ten days to make Pakistan bite the dust.

"He (Modi) thought he would end the issue of Kashmir altogether but the way the issue has been internationalised, there is talk of Kashmir where it was never before discussed," Khan said, adding that Pakistan would always stand by the people of Kashmir and fight alongside them.

Pakistan's military top brass also termed the recent statements by India as "irresponsible" and said they would thwart any attack by the Indian Army.

Army spokesman said that the 229th Corps Commanders Conference held a meeting chaired by Army chief General Qamar Javed Bajwa on Thursday during which they reviewed geo-strategic environment, with special focus on internal security and situation on borders.

"Provocative statements of Indian leadership are irresponsible rhetoric with implications for region. Pakistan Armed Forces are forces of order and peace and fully prepared to thwart any misadventure, whatever the cost," the spokesman quoted the commanders saying in the meeting.

Meanwhile, Foreign Office spokesperson Aisha Farooqui said on Thursday that Kashmir was the core issue of Pakistan's foreign policy.

"We take the cause of Jammu and Kashmir very seriously. It is the core issue of Pakistan's foreign policy. The observation that the Foreign Office is not taking it seriously is not accurate," she said at the weekly press briefing, dismissing the criticism within the country over its handling of the issue.

Farooqui said that Pakistan took the case of the people of Jammu and Kashmir to all international fora including at the UN Security Council, UN General Assembly, Human Rights Council, OIC, Global Refugee Forum and World Economic Forum.

"Pakistan and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs have never been shy or negligent towards this core issue of our foreign policy. We are dedicated in taking it forward," she asserted. -- PTI

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