LIVE! Rare rocks for Ram temple to come from Nepal

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Sat, 28 January 2023

Rare rocks for Ram temple to come from Nepal

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21:10 Rare rocks for Ram temple to come from Nepal

Two rare rocks from which the idol of Lord Ram will be carved out and placed in the sanctum sanctorum of Ram Temple will reach here from Nepal on Thursday, a senior functionary of the temple trust has said.

"Vishwa Hindu Parishad's national secretary Rajendra Singh Pankaj started from Mustang district of Nepal on Wednesday with the consignment of two sacred rocks and is expected to arrive in Ayodhya on Thursday," said Prakash Gupta, office in-charge of Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust.

"These Shaligram rocks, that are 60 million-years-old, will reach Ayodhya from Nepal on two different trucks. One rock weighs 26 tonnes and the other weighs 14 tonnes," he said.

Idol of Lord Rama in his child form carved from this stone will be placed in the sanctum sanctorum of the Ram Temple, which is expected to be ready by Makar Sankranti festival in January next year, officials said.

The two rocks were found in the Gandaki river at a place close to Saligrama or Muktinath (place of salvation) in Nepal's Mustang district, they said.

Meanwhile, a two-day meeting of the building construction committee of the Ram Temple began in Ayodhya from Saturday.

The meeting was chaired by construction committee chairman Nripendra Mishra and attended by Trust Secretary Champat Rai and Trustee Anil Mishra.

According to the sources, the progress of the temple construction was reviewed and discussions were held on the installation and carving of the new idol of Lord.

Rai told PTI, "Issues related to temple construction were discussed and this meeting will continue on Sunday also."

The last meeting of the construction committee was held on January 5, and this was the second meeting held in a month.

External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Saturday said that the Indus Water Treaty is a technical matter and future course of action will depend on talks between Indus Commissioners of India and Pakistan.

"It will not be right for me to speak publicly about what is happening in Pakistan. This is a technical matter, Indus Commissioners of both countries will talk about the Indus Water Treaty. We can only discuss our future steps after that," he said.

India issued notice to Pakistan for modification of the Indus Waters Treaty (IWT) of September 1960 after Islamabad's actions adversely impinged the provisions of the treaty.

The notice was conveyed on January 25 through respective Commissioners for Indus Waters as per Article XII (3) of the IWT.

The objective of the notice for modification is to provide Pakistan with an opportunity to enter into intergovernmental negotiations within 90 days to rectify the material breach of the IWT. This process would also update IWT to incorporate the lessons learned over the last 62 years.

India has always been a responsible partner in implementing the IWT. Pakistan's actions, however, have encroached on the provisions of IWT and their implementation and forced India to issue an appropriate notice for modification of IWT.

Highlighting sea-change in India's foreign policy, Jaishankar said that the country's influence has reached beyond the Indian Ocean to the Pacific Ocean.

Speaking at the publication ceremony of the book "Bharat Marg" written by Jaishankar, he said, "Nowadays India's influence has reached beyond the Indian Ocean to the Pacific Ocean, this is why I speak on history, big countries always think only about themselves, this is a deficiency in their DNA."

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday strongly cautioned against efforts to sow differences and create chasm amongst people in the country on one pretext or the other and said such attempts will not succeed.

Addressing an NCC rally at the Cariappa Ground in Delhi Cantonment, Modi said the mantra of unity was the only way for India to achieve grandeur.

"Bhaanti, bhaanti ki baatein nikaal kar, Maa Bharti ke santaano ke beech main doodh mein daraar karne ki koshishe ho rahi hai. (Several issues are raked up to create divisions among the children of Mother India), the prime minister said in Hindi.

Despite such efforts, there will never be differences among the people of India, he said.

"Maa ke doodh main kabhi darar nahi ho sakti," he said.

The mantra of unity is the ultimate antidote. This is the only way India will achieve grandeur, the prime minister emphasised. -- PTI

The Delhi University on Saturday formed a 7-member committee to investigate the ruckus outside the Arts Faculty building over the screening of a BBC documentary on the 2002 Gujarat riots.

The committee, headed by DU Proctor Rajini Abbi, has been asked to submit its report to Vice Chancellor Yogesh Singh by 5 pm on January 30.

In a notification, the university said the vice-chancellor has constituted the committee to enforce discipline and maintain law and order on the campus.

The other members of the committee are Professor Ajay Kumar Singh of the Department of Commerce, Professor Manoj Kumar Singh, Joint Proctor, Professor Sanjoy Roy of the Department of Social Work, Professor Rama, Principal of Hansraj College, Professor Dinesh Khattar, Principal of Kirorimal College, and Gaje Singh, Chief Security Officer, it added.

"The Committee may specifically look into the incident of the 27th of January, 2023 which occurred outside the Faculty of Arts and opposite gate No. 4, University of Delhi," the notification said.

A commotion erupted at the Delhi University on Friday as students attempted to screen the controversial BBC documentary, even as police and the university administration intervened to scuttle the move.

Twenty-four students affiliated with the National Students' Union of India (NSUI) were detained from the Delhi University's Arts Faculty and a heavy police deployment was maintained in the North Campus.

The university claimed that "outsiders" were trying to screen the documentary and the police was called to maintain law and order. -- PTI

Billionaire Gautam Adani's group on Saturday ruled out any changes in price or the dates of the Rs 20,000 crore follow-on share sale at the conglomerate's flagship firm despite its stocks being hammered below the offer price after a scathing report by a US short seller.

"Adani Enterprises Limited's further public offer (FPO) is going as per schedule and the announced price band. There is no change in either the schedule of the issue price," a group spokesperson said.

The FPO got subscribed just one per cent on the opening day on Friday. Against an offer of 4.55 crore shares of Adani Enterprises Ltd, only 4.7 lakh shares were subscribed, according to information available from the BSE.

Adani Enterprises fell almost 20 per cent to below the offer price of its secondary sale as all the seven listed companies of the conglomerate took a beating in the aftermath of Hindenburg Research alleging that the group was "engaged in a brazen stock manipulation and accounting fraud scheme over the course of decades".

The Group has dismissed the report as malicious and bogus aimed at torpedoing the FPO.

Adani Enterprises is selling shares in a price band of Rs 3,112 to Rs 3,276. On Friday, its share price closed at Rs 2,762.15 on the BSE.

"All our stakeholders including bankers and investors have full faith in the FPO. We are extremely confident about the success of the FPO," the spokesperson added.

The FPO closes on January 31.

On Wednesday, Adani Enterprises raised Rs 5,985 crore from anchor investors.

The company allotted 1.82 crore equity shares to 33 funds at Rs 3,276 apiece, taking the transaction size to Rs 5,985 crore, according to a circular uploaded on the BSE website.

Foreign investors who picked up the shares included Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, BNP Paribas Arbitrage, Societe Generale, Goldman Sachs Investment (Mauritius) Ltd, Morgan Stanley Asia (Singapore) Pte, Nomura Singapore Ltd and Citigroup Global Markets Mauritius.

A slew of domestic institutional investors, including LIC, SBI Life Insurance Company, HDFC Life Insurance Company and State Bank Of India Employees Pension Fund, also participated in the anchor book.

A car collided head-on with a scooter in Delhi's Keshav Puram and drove on, dragging along for a distance one of its two riders, whose head got stuck between its mangled bonnet and the windshield. Both the riders died of injuries.

The incident took place around 3 am on Friday when the victims were returning home on the two-wheeler after watching a movie, police officials said.

This comes weeks after a 20-year-old woman was killed in the early hours of the New Year after her scooter was hit by a car, which dragged her for 12 km from Sultanpuri to Kanjhawala in the national capital.

In Friday's accident, the Tata Zest car dragging the rider stuck on its bonnet and the scooter under its bumper was intercepted by police around 350 metres from the spot of the accident as it accelerated towards Inderlok in a bid to flee, the officials said.

Two of the car's five occupants were held, while the rest managed to flee but were apprehended later, a senior police official said, adding that all of them are students and were driving around after attending a wedding.

Police said all five were under the influence of alcohol.

They said the impact of the collision had flung the pillion rider of the scooter to the roof of the car and then he fell on the road.

Both the injured riders, Kailash Bhatnagar (41) of Shastri Nagar and Sumit Khari (21) of Loni in Ghaziabad, were rushed to a hospital. Bhatnagar was declared brought dead at the hospital, while Khari died during treatment, police said. The victims used to work at a jeans manufacturing unit.

Deputy Commissioner of Police (northwest) Usha Rangnani said a police control room (PCR) van saw the incident and chased the offending vehicle down. It was intercepted at a distance of about 350 metres from the spot within 11 seconds and its driver Parveen Nagar alias Silli (20) of Trinagar and Diviansh Puri (20) of Shalimar Bagh were apprehended.

Tunes based on Indian classical music will be the flavour of the Beating Retreat ceremony which will also include the country's "biggest drone show" comprising 3,500 indigenous drones, officials said on Saturday.

For the first time, a 3-D anamorphic projection will be done on the facade of North Block and South Block during the grand event at Vijay Chowk on Sunday, the Defence Ministry said in a statement.

The Beating Retreat ceremony marks the formal end of Republic Day celebrations.

"Tunes based on Indian classical ragas will be the flavour of Beating the Retreat ceremony this year," the ministry said.

The ceremony will be graced by President Droupadi Murmu. The president is the Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces.

"As many as 29 captivating and foot-tapping Indian tunes will be played by the music bands of the Army, the Navy, the Air Force and the State Police and Central Armed Police Force (CAPF)," the statement said

The ceremony will also be attended by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Defence Minister Rajnath Singh.

It will also witness the country's biggest drone show, comprising 3,500 indigenous drones, the statement added.

"The magnificent drone show will light up the evening sky over the Raisina Hill, weaving myriad forms of national figures, events through smooth synchronisation.

"It will depict the success of start-up ecosystem, technological prowess of the country's youth and pave the way for future path-breaking trends," it said.

The ceremony will begin with the massed band's "Agniveer" tune which will be followed by the enthralling tunes like "Almora", "Kedar Nath", "Sangam Dur", "Queen of Satpura", "Bhagirathi", "Konkan Sundari" by pipes and drums band, the defence ministry statement said.

Indian Air Force's band will play "Aprajey Arjun", "Charkha", "Vayu Shakti", "Swadeshi", while fascinating "Ekla Cholo Re", "Hum Taiyyar Hai", and "Jai Bharati" will be played by the band of Indian Navy.

The Indian Army's band will play "Shankhnaad", "Sher-e-Jawan", "Bhupal", "Agranee Bharat", "Young India", "Kadam Kadam Badhaye Ja", "Drummers Call", and "Ae Mere Watan Ke Logon", it said.

The event will come to a close with the ever-popular tune "Sare Jahan se Accha".

The principal conductor of the ceremony will be Flt Lt Leimapokpam Rupachandra Singh. While the Army Band will be led by Sub Maj Diggar Singh, the Naval and Air Force band commanders will be M Anthoni Raj and Warrant Officer Ashok Kumar respectively.

Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma Saturday said women should embrace motherhood at the "appropriate age" between 22 and 30 years as it otherwise leads to medical complications.

Speaking at a government function here, Sarma iterated his government's commitment to stop underage marriages and motherhood.

His comments come in the backdrop of the state government deciding to bring stringent laws and evoking the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act to check child marriages and underage motherhood.

"Thousands of husbands will be arrested in the next five-six months as it is a crime to have sexual relations with a girl below 14 years of age, even if he is her legally wed husband," Sarma said.

The legal age for the marriage of a woman is 18 years and those who marry younger girls will also be brought to book. "Many (men who marry girls) could face life imprisonment," he said.

Speaking about motherhood, Sarma said, "Women should not wait too long to become mothers as it leads to complications. The appropriate age for motherhood is 22 years to 30 years".

Women who have not married yet should do it soon, he said with a smile.

"We have been speaking against early motherhood. But at the same time, women should not wait too long either as many do ... God has created our bodies in a manner that there is an appropriate age for everything," he added.

The Assam cabinet on Monday decided to book men who marry girls below 14 years of age under the POCSO Act. Those who marry girls in the age group of 14-18 years will be tried under the Prohibition of Child Marriage Act, 2006.

The decision was taken to curb the high rate of maternal and infant mortality in the state, whose primary cause is child marriage, Sarma had said after the cabinet meeting.

An average of 31 per cent of the marriages in the state are in the prohibited age group, he said. -- PTI

Superstar Shah Rukh Khan says the humongous box office success of Pathaan is making him feel like a proud father.

Pathaan, which released on Wednesday, has raised Rs 313 crore worldwide till now.

The actor said he is "loving it" that the audience is enjoying the spy action thriller and to celebrate the movie's dream run at the ticket window the superstar hosted an impromptu #AskSRK session on Twitter.

In response to a fan's query about how he is taking in the love coming his way, Shah Rukh said: "As happy as a father is when he sees his child being appreciated."

Another fan pointed out the record breaking box office numbers of the film, but Shah Rukh said he is not concerned about the money the movie makes.

"Bhai numbers phone ke hote hainhum toh khushi ginte hain#Pathaan (Brother, numbers are for phone... I count the happiness.)" he said.

Prior to the film's theatrical release, the 57-year-old actor had organised a special screening for his family, including children Aryan, Suhana and AbRam.

Replying to an admirer, who wanted to know his youngest son's reaction to the movie, Shah Rukh said: "I don't know how but he said papa it's all Karma. So I believe it."

Breaking the usual trend of movie promotions through interviews and public events, the team of the Yash Raj Films' project largely relied on social media for publicity.

One of the Twitter users praised the actor for delivering a blockbuster without press interactions.

To this, the actor had a witty response: "Maine socha Sher interview nahi karte toh iss baar main bhi nahi karunga!!! Bas Jungle mein aakar dekh lo (sic). (I thought lions don't give interviews, so this time I decided I will also not. Will just come to the jungle.)"

During the session, Shah Rukh credited producer Aditya Chopra and director Siddharth Anand for being the main architects behind Pathaan.

"Rest of us just followed their instructions," he added.

The film also features John Abraham, Deepika Padukone, Dimple Kapadia and Ashutosh Rana in pivotal roles.

Praising his co-actors Kapadia and Rana, the superstar said both of them were "lovely and gentle" to work with.

"Ashutosh ji and Dimpleji are very magnanimous actors and lovely and very gentle to work with. And they were too funny in the hologram scene ha ha," he tweeted.

One of the major highlights of the actioner is a cameo appearance by Shah Rukh's good friend and contemporary Salman Khan, who reprises his role of spy Tiger from YRF's Tiger franchise.

Many fans asked him about his on screen reunion with Salman, with whom he has featured in movies such as Karan Arjun, Kuch Kuch Hota Hai, Hum Tumhare Hain Sanam, Tubelight and Zero.

SRK called Salman "greatest of all time".

"Salman bhai is woh kya kehte hain aaj kal young loghaan.GOAT. ( greatest of all time)".

Pathaan follows the titular spy (Shah Rukh) who comes out of exile to stop terrorist group Outfit X, led by Jim (Abraham), from launching a debilitating attack on India.

The popular Mughal Gardens at the President's official home, Rashtrapati Bhavan, has been renamed to Amrit Udyan.

"On the occasion of the celebrations of 75 years of Independence as 'Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav', the President of India has given a common name to the Rashtrapati Bhavan gardens as 'Amrit Udyan':," Navika Gupta, Deputy Press Secretary to President said.

16:40 Ram Temple there but no Ramrajya: Togadia

Antarashtriya Hindu Parishad chief Pravin Togadia on Saturday said that although the Ram temple is coming up in Ayodhya, there is no 'Ramrajya' in the country yet.

Speaking at an event here in Purey Ramdeen village late on Friday evening, Togadia said, "Ram temple is coming up in Ayodhya but the 'Ramrajya' which should have come is nowhere to be seen."

"Now I want that thousands of Hindus of the country to get houses, children should get a good education, youth must get employment and farmers should get good prices for their crops," he said.

"Hindus worked together to awaken all and started a campaign to build the Ram temple. Hindus went from village to village to get the support of people and donations to build the Ram temple," said Togadia.

He said his campaign is that Hindus should be prosperous and safe in the country.

"To make our country prosperous, all Hindus should come forward and unite to get back the lost prosperity of Hindus," he said.

Togadia also participated in another programme in Musafirkhana. -- PTI

Bahujan Samaj Party supremo Mayawati on Saturday said the central government should clear the air over financial irregularities allegations levelled by Hindenburg Research against the Adani Group.

Hindenburg Research, a US-based investment research firm that specialises in activist short-selling, has alleged that Adani Group was "engaged in a brazen stock manipulation and accounting fraud", a charge the conglomerate described as malicious, unsubstantiated, one-sided and having done with malafide intention to ruin its share-sale.

Mayawati said, "For the past two days, a negative report of American firm Hindenburg in relation to Adani Group and its effects on stock market etc is in discussions more than the Republic Day. The hard-earned money of crores of people of the country is involved but the government is silent."

"After the allegation of cheating etc in shares, Adani's property and world ranking has decreased, but people are more worried about what will happen to the huge investment made by the government in his group. What will happen to the economy? Restlessness and worry is natural. The solution is needed," she said in a series of tweets.

The BSP chief asked the government to clear the air by issuing a statement to address the worries of the people.

"At the beginning of the budget session of Parliament starting from January 31, the government should issue a detailed statement on this matter in both the Houses so that the restlessness, especially among the urban middle class, is reduced," she added.

Hindenburg said its two-year investigation reveals that "the Rs 17.8 trillion (USD 218 billion) Indian conglomerate Adani Group has engaged in a brazen stock manipulation and accounting fraud scheme over the course of decades."

Adani Group said it was shocked to see the report that came out without any attempt to contact it to get the factual matrix. "The report is a malicious combination of selective misinformation and stale, baseless and discredited allegations that have been tested and rejected by India's highest courts," the ports-to-energy conglomerate said in a statement. -- PTI

The students' association of the Film and Television Institute of India screened the controversial BBC documentary on the 2002 Godhra riots on the campus of the premier acting school in Pune, said the student body on Saturday.

"On 26/01/23, we screened the banned BBC documentary The Modi Question at FTII," said a statement issued by the FTII Students' Association.

The Centre had last week directed social media platforms Twitter and YouTube to block links to the documentary India: The Modi Question. The Ministry of External Affairs has trashed the documentary as a "propaganda piece" that lacks objectivity and reflects a colonial mindset.

Throughout history, the association's statement said, the banning of literature, music, and in recent times, media, has been a sign of a crumbling society.

"The act of scrutiny should be welcomed by our elected representatives. Instead, they quickly tag it as false propaganda and try to shove it under the rug. They should know that the sure-fire way for something to be watched is to ban it.

"However, the BBC documentary barely scratches the surface of the kind of violence that has been perpetuated throughout the country for a dedicated, singular, vicious purpose. It would be startling to us if anyone in India was surprised by the happenings in this documentary," said the students' association.

FTII Registrar Sayyid Rabeehashmi said, "It is being reported that a group of students screened the documentary. The matter will be looked into."

Over the past few days, students at many educational institutes, including the Jawaharlal Nehru University, Delhi University and Ambedkar University in the national capital, have tried to screen the controversial BBC documentary.

In Kerala, the Congress screened the programme on Thursday. -- PTI

Superstar Shah Rukh Khan's Pathaan took its total worldwide gross collection to Rs 313 crore as the film continued to perform outstandingly at the ticket window.

According to Yash Raj Films (YRF), the SRK-Deepika Padukone starrer raised Rs 38 crore nett in Hindi format, while dubbed formats earned Rs 1.25 crore nett on the third day. Pathaan was also released in Tamil and Telugu on January 25.

"The total India collection on day three was Rs 39.25 crore nett (Rs 47 crore gross). Meanwhile, overseas collection was also astronomical as it collected Rs 43 crore gross. The total worldwide collection on day three was an insane Rs 90 crore worldwide gross box office," the studio said in a press note.

Pathaan, which is Shah Rukh's first big screen release in over four years, had raised Rs 106 crore globally on its opening day, followed by Rs 113.6 crore on day two.

The total India gross box office collection after three days stands at Rs 201 crore gross and total overseas collection is at Rs 112 crore gross.

"It is incredible that Pathaan has registered the biggest all-time opening in India and overseas, considering the collections of the film in the first 3 days of release which is dubbed as the opening weekend for any film.

"Pathaan has been blessed by Indians across the globe and what is happening with this film is unprecedented and historic," Akshaye Widhani, CEO of Yash Raj Films, said in a statement.

Directed by Siddharth Anand, Pathaan follows the titular spy (Shah Rukh) who comes out of exile to stop terrorist group Outfit X, led by Jim (John Abraham), from launching a debilitating attack on India.

The Bharatiya Janata Party on Saturday announced its first list of 48 candidates for the Tripura Assembly polls, fielding Union minister Pratima Bhoumik from Dhanpur.

State Chief Minister Manik Saha has been nominated as a BJP candidate from Town Bordowali.

Party leaders Anil Baluni and Sambit Patra on Saturday announced the BJP's candidates for the Tripura assembly polls at a press conference in the party headquarters here.

Bhoumik is a Union minister in the BJP-led government at the Centre. She is an MP from Tripura.

In the last assembly polls in 2018, the BJP for the time had formed a government in Tripura, considered the left bastion. The CPI(M) had ruled the state unabated for 25 years.

The BJP top brass was in talks with TIPRA, a regional party founded by former Congress leader and royal scion Pradyot Deb Barman, for a prepoll alliance, which has now been ruled out.

The Communist Party of India-Marxist is contesting the state elections in alliance with the Congress this time. -- PTI

Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra on Saturday joined her brother Rahul Gandhi at the Bharat Jodo Yatra at Lethpora in Jammu and Kashmir as the party's foot march entered its penultimate day.

Priyanka Gandhi walked alongside the former Congress president amidst tight security arrangements before the yatra stopped for a break at Lethpora.

The yatra resumed from Awantipora where People's Democratic Party president Mehbooba Mufti and her daughter Iltija Mufti joined Gandhi, the Lok Sabha member from Wayanad in Kerala, for the march.

Gandhi also paid homage to the 40 CRPF personnel who were killed in a suicide car bomb attack at Lethpora by laying a bouquet at the spot where the security force's bus was blown up in February 2019.

The yatra is scheduled to halt at Panthachowk for the night.

The march which started from Kanyakumari on September 7, is scheduled to reach Pantha Chowk in the outskirts of Srinagar later in the day, after a single stop near Birla School in Galandar area of Pampore.

After a night's halt there, the yatra would resume on Sunday morning from Pantha Chowk and will culminate near Nehru Park on Boulevard Road in the city.

On Monday, Gandhi will unfurl the tricolour at the party headquarters at M A Road here, following which a public rally at SK Stadium here for which 23 opposition political parties have been invited. -- PTI

Former Supreme Court judge Rohinton Fali Nariman has slammed Union Law Minister Kiren Rijiju for his "diatribe" against the collegium system for appointment of judges, and said the government sitting on the names of judges recommended by the collegium was "deadly" for democracy.

Nariman also said that if the last bastion of independent judiciary falls, then the country would enter the "abyss of a new dark age". What is the independence of the judiciary if independent and fearless judges are not being appointed, he said.

He was speaking on Friday at the Mumbai University while delivering the seventh Chief Justice M C Chagla Memorial Lecture.

The former apex court judge also called for a special five-judge bench to be formed and for it to pass a judgment that once a name is sent by the collegium to the government and if the latter has nothing to say within a period of 30 days, then it will be taken as it has nothing to say.

"This sitting on names is a very deadly thing against democracy of this country. Because what you are merely doing is you are waiting for a particular collegium and hoping that the next collegium changes its mind. Appointment must be done within a reasonable time period," Nariman said.

"It is how a constitution works. If you don't have fearless and independent judges say goodbyeThere is nothing leftAs a matter of fact, according to me if finally this last bastion falls or was to fall we would enter the abyss of a new dark age, in which R K Laxman's Common Man will ask himself only one question: if the salt has lost its savour, wherewith will shall it be salted?..." he said.

Nariman was part of the Supreme Court collegium till he retired in August 2021.

Rijiju has time and again questioned the collegium system of appointment of judges, noting that it was "opaque and not transparent". Recently, Vice President Jagdeep Dhankar said that the striking down of the National

Judicial Appointments Commission (NJAC) Act by the Supreme Court was a severe compromise of parliamentary sovereignty.

"We have heard a diatribe by the Union law minister of the day against this process (appointment of judges). Let me assure the law minister that there are two very basic constitutional fundamentals he must know," Nariman said.

"One fundamental is that unlike the United States, a minimum of five unelected judges are trusted with the interpretation of the Constitution. So, this constitution bench is trusted to interpret the constitution and once they have done this it is your bounden duty as an authority to follow that judgment," Nariman said.

"You may criticise itas a citizen I may criticise itno problembut never forget you are an authority and as an authority you are bound by the judgmentright or wrong," he added.

On the issue of the basic doctrine structure, Nariman said it was sought to be undone twice in the past over 40 years ago and since then nobody has said a word against it except very recently.

"So let us be clear that this is something that has come to stay and thank god it has come to stay," he said.

Nariman added that in the United States, judicial appointments do not involve any decision-making process from the judiciary at all, but India adopted a different approach.

"Fortunately for us, what India did was initially till the 1990s, the President in consultation with judges that he thinks fit appoints judges in consultation with the Chief Justice of India. By and far what the Chief Justice of India said or recommended was followed," he said. -- PTI

Security forces led by the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) seized more than 160 improvised explosive devices (IEDs) during an anti-Naxal operation in Bihar, officials said on Saturday.

The recovery was made from near the Laduiya Pahad area in Aurangabad district of the state on Friday.

The patrol team first found 13 pressure IEDs and later recovered 149 such bombs, weighing about one kilogram each, from a nearby cave in the area, the officials said.

The operation was jointly conducted by the CRPF and the Bihar Police.

The anti-Maoist operation was undertaken as part of the task of de-mining Left Wing Extremism (LWE) affected areas of Bihar, which security forces have said are now largely dominated by their troops. -- PTI

Representative image

13:05 Minor confrontation between Assam Rifles, NSCN-IM in Nagaland

An Assam Rifles team and a group of NSCN (IM) cadres were engaged in a "minor confrontation" in Intanki National Park in Nagaland, an army source said on Saturday.

The incident, which happened on Friday evening, lasted for around 40 minutes, though it did not escalate, he said.

"Multiple Assam Rifles teams were out for patrolling for durations varying from 72 to 96 hours in the run-up to Republic Day celebrations. One such patrolling team, while returning after completing the assigned task, took a break at Intanki National Park around 4 PM on Friday.

"During the break, the patrol party observed NSCN (IM) cadres moving on the same route and the two parties had a minor confrontation," he said.

According to the ceasefire agreement, the Assam Rifles patrolling team leader "decided to disengage his troops and ensured that the incident did not escalate", the source said.

A purported video of the incident showed a discussion between the two sides in which the paramilitary personnel claimed that they had lost their way.

The authenticity of the video, however, could not be independently verified.

Notably, a framework agreement was signed between the Centre and the Nationalist Socialist Council of Nagalim (Isak-Muivah) in 2015 to arrive at a mutually-acceptable way of addressing the Naga political issues.

The framework agreement came after over 80 rounds of negotiations since the ceasefire pact was sealed in 1997 following decades of insurgency, which started in Nagaland soon after Independence in 1947.

However, the final solution is yet to see the light of the day. -- PTI

12:31 IAF probing if mid-air collision led to crash

The Indian Air Force will probe if there was a mid-air collision which led to crash of two fighter planes of the Indian Air Force -- Sukhoi-30 and Mirage-2000 -- in Madhya Pradesh's Morena district.

The IAF court of inquiry to establish whether there was a mid-air collision or not. The Su-30 had two pilots, while Mirage 2000 had one pilot during the crash. Initial reports suggest two pilots are safe, while an IAF chopper reaching the location of the third pilot soon, defence sources told news agency ANI.

Additional Director General of Police (ADGP) Adarsh Katiyar told PTI that the cause of the crash is not clear yet.

"It is not clear whether the planes collided against each other or not," he said.

11:44 2 IAF fighter jets crash in MP

Two Indian Air Force aircraft -- a Sukhoi-30 and a Mirage 2000 -- have crashed near Morena in Madhya Pradesh on Saturday.

Search and rescue operations are underway and details of casualties are awaited.

The two aircraft had taken off from the Gwalior air base where an exercise was going on.

Videos from the scene, shot by locals in Morena, showed debris of the aircraft on the ground.

A man was detained here for allegedly threatening to carry out serial bomb blasts in Ahmedabad, Gujarat on Republic Day, police said on Saturday.

Om Prakash Paswan, a resident of Devrar village, was taken into custody by a team of the Gujarat Police Friday night, Station House Officer of Maniyar police station Praveen Singh said.

Officials said the office of the Police Commissioner, Ahmedabad had received a letter on January 25 threatening to blow up various places in the city including a railway station and a bus stand.

During probe by the Gujarat Police, it emerged that four people were involved in sending the letter, of whom one was a resident of Ballia, Uttar Pradesh, they said.

In this regard, a team of the Gujarat Police arrived at Maniyar police station on Friday and from there it, along with the local police, travelled to Devrar village, officials said.

The main accused, Paswan, was nabbed from his house, they added.

Police sources said Prakash worked in the private sector and had come home three days ago from Ahmedabad.

Police said he had no criminal record so far. -- PTI

To keep China's COVID-19 death figures low, the Chinese government has besides censorship, implemented a change in rules and procedures to compel doctors to hide COVID-related mortalities or delay updating them on death certificates, Voices Against Autocracy (VAA) reported.

Authorities in China have also stopped adding to the official count, COVID deaths that have occurred outside hospitals.

China amid growing global pressure, revealed that around 60,000 COVID-related deaths were reported between early December and mid-December, 2022.

The number is big considering that China maintained a death toll of around 5,000 since the beginning of the coronavirus pandemic.

According to VAA, many felt the actual number was much higher and accused Beijing of underreporting.

Even the World Health Organisation (WHO) urged China for 'more detailed' data as it expressed concerns over the under-representing of the severity of the viral outbreaks in the country.

COVID-19 infections in China began to surge towards December end and hospitals began to fill up.

Many patients did not find beds and were seen sleeping on floors.

Even, funeral homes and crematoriums were completely filled, and bodies were seen in the queue for days.

The Chinese government, however, remained silent on the rising number of COVID-19 patients.

The government stopped issuing routine health bulletins, leading to confusion over the COVID-19 situation.

A social media post by an eminent Chinese scientist and government official Wu Zunyou, however, revealed that over 80 per cent of China's population was COVID-infected.

According to VAA, the Chinese government has issued notices and circulars to instruct doctors to not mention COVID as a reason for death.

"On the death certificate, we fill in one main cause of death, and two to three sub-causes of death, so we basically leave out COVID," a doctor in a Shanghai-based hospital said.

A doctor from Liaoning Province, Liu Chen (pseudonym), said that the government rules bar them from counting the death of COVID patients due to aggravation of underlying diseases as COVID deaths.

"T stanhat is thedard we all have to follow. So, from the top to the bottom, no one knows the exact mortality rate of COVID," he said, as quoted by VAA.

According to complaints received from people, deaths following COVID in China are being labelled as 'heart diseases', 'pneumonia' or 'underlying disease'.

According to Song Guo-cheng, a researcher at National Chengchi University, the latest death figures announced by Beijing are still suspicious.

"The information obtained from various sources and online reports is in sharp contrast with the COVID figures disclosed by the Chinese Communist Party. This underscores that the CCP is still playing with the data, covering up the true scale of the outbreak," Song said. -- ANI

At least five people, including two doctors, were killed in a fire in a private nursing home in Jharkhand's Dhanbad on Saturday, an official said.

The deceased include the medical establishment's owner Dr Vikas Hazra, his wife Dr Prema Hazra, the owner's nephew Sohan Khamari and domestic help Tara Devi.

A fire broke out at the store room of the nursing home-cum-private house in Bank More area of Dhanbad, around 170 km from Ranchi, around 2 am, he said.

Dhanbad Sub-divisional Magistrate (SDM) Prem Kumar Tiwary told PTI, "At least five people, including the owner and his wife, died due to suffocation following a fire in the store room. One person is also injured."

"The cause of the fire is yet to be ascertained and further investigation is underway. Four deceased have been identified, while the fifth person is yet to be identified," he added. -- PTI

Representative image only

09:51 3 booked for insulting national anthem in UP

Three youths were booked for allegedly insulting the national anthem in the Eidgah locality area in Meerut, police said on Saturday.

A video had gone viral in which three youths could be seen dancing while the national anthem is being played.

During investigation, two of them were identified as Adnan and Ruhal, Station House Officer of Railway Road police station Sanjay Kumar Sharma said.

He said a case was registered against the three youths and Adnan was detained for questioning.

In the 29-second video, a youth donning a black jacket is seen offering a salute and then obscenely dances and his friends laugh as the national anthem plays in the background.

Sachin Sirohi, a former city president of Hindu Jagran Manch, said it was an insult to the national anthem and demanded that a sedition case be registered against the accused persons. -- PTI

09:06 No security lapse at Rahul's yatra: J-K Police

After the Congress alleged lapses in security arrangments in the Rahul Gandhi-led Bharat Jodo Yatra, the Jammu and Kashmir Police on Friday said that it was not consulted before taking any decision on discontinuation of the yatra after 1 km by the organisers.

Taking to Twitter, the Jammu and Kashmir Police said, 'JKP was not consulted before taking any decision on discontinuation of Yatra after conducting 1 km yatra by organizers. The rest of yatra continued #peacefully. There was no security lapse at all. We will provide foolproof security (sic).'

'Only authorised persons identified by organisers and the frisked crowd were allowed inside towards the route of Yatra (sic),' the police added.

The police further stated, 'Organisers and managers of BJY did not intimate about large gatherings from Banihal joining the Yatra, which thronged near the starting point (sic).'

'Full security arrangements were in place including 15 Coys of CAPFs and 10 Coys of JKP, comprising of ROPs and QRTs, route domination, lateral deployment and SFs were deployed for high-ridge and other deployments (sic),' it added.

On Friday, Congress in-charge of Jammu-Kashmir and Ladakh, Rajani Patil alleged security lapses in Congress leader Rahul Gandhi-led Bharat Jodo Yatra, and accused the administration of the Union Territory of failing to manage the crowd. -- ANI

A Delhi court on Friday granted 14 days' interim bail to P Sarath Chandra Reddy, arrested by the Enforcement Directorate in a money laundering case related to the alleged Delhi excise scam on humanitarian grounds.

"...The applicant or accused P Sarath Chandra Reddy is hereby granted interim bail for a period of 14 days for performing last rites of his deceased grandmother'," special judge M K Nagpal said.

The court directed Reddy to furnish a personal bond of Rs 2 Lakh with one surety in the like amount.

The other bail conditions included the accused not tampering with evidence, not leaving the limits of Hyderabad, not indulging in criminal activity, not seeking an extension of the bail and keeping his mobile phone and its location switched on continuously, the court said.

"A copy of this order be also sent to the jail superintendent concerned, along with the release warrant of the accused, for his information, compliance and records," the court said.

It noted section 45 of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act prohibited bail to an accused unless and until the conditions in the said section were satisfied.

"But it is well settled that such like conditions are not to be applied when the bail has been sought by an accused on humanitarian grounds and, in such a case, bail can be granted to an accused despite the bars and rigours contained under the said section," the court said. -- PTI

Mumbai Airport Customs seized 8.3 kg of gold/ANI

01:18 11 foreigners held at Mumbai airport with 8.3 kg gold worth Rs 4.14 cr

Eleven foreign nationals were held on Friday at Mumbai Airport allegedly with 8.3 kilograms of gold worth Rs 4.14 crore, a customs official said.

The passengers had arrived from Sharjah in the early hours of the day and were held on the basis of specific intelligence, he added.

"They had concealed gold in wax form in their body cavities," he said. -- PTI

Representational image/PTI Photo

00:54 CPM's sitting, former MLAs join BJP in Tripura

Communist Party of India-Marxist MLA Moboshar Ali and former MLA Subal Bhowmik, both from Tripura, joined the Bharatiya Janata Party on Friday as the top brass of the ruling party met in Agartala to finalise its candidates for the state assembly polls.

Both lauded the BJP and claimed that the state has seen development in many sectors under Prime Minister Narendra Modi's leadership of the country.

They joined the party in the presence of Chief Minister Manik Saha and several other BJP leaders, including Sambit Patra and Mahesh Sharma, who are handling its affairs in the state, besides its chief spokesperson Anil Baluni.

Saha said Modi's "act east" policy has impressed everyone in the northeast and their induction in the party will help it.

People's support is with the BJP and it will again form the government. Assembly polls in the state are scheduled for February 16.

A four-year-old boy, who went to meet his brother in jail, was allegedly stamped on the cheek by the prison staff at Lakhimpuri Kheri of Uttar Pradesh, the police said, adding that an investigation is underway.

Jail superintendent, Lakhimpur Kheri, Vipin Kumar Mishra said the people are rountinely stamped at correctionals to separate vistors from inmates.

"Generally, two stamps are placed at our two entry gates. It is likely that the red stamp was applied (on the boy) at the second entry gate in a bid to ascertain him as a visitor. The red stamp is applied on inner side of a visitor's hand," the superintendent added.

He said that it was also possible that the child touched his cheek with his stamped hand and the wet mark smudged his face.

"We will look into the matter. We are in the process of taking the child's statement. If found that the child's face was stamped on purpose, strict action would be taken," the jail superintendent added. -- ANI

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