Sunday, 29 November 2015

4 Arrested for Creating Ruckus During Pakistani Play in Gurgaon

GURGAON:  Four people, claiming to be members of the Shiv Sena party, were today arrested for creating a ruckus during the performance of a play by Pakistani artists in this millennium city, police said.

The play 'Banjh' (barren) by seven Pakistani artists, including two women, was being staged late on Saturday evening in sector 29 when several people climbed onto the stage shouting anti-Pakistan slogans and disrupted the performance.


Officials said the situation was brought under control by members of the audience and a few policemen who arrived at the scene.

The play continued after the brief interruption.

The play, performed by Mass foundation members from Pakistan's Lahore, pertained to the fighting between Indian and Pakistani troops for uninhabited areas such as the Siachen glacier.

Play director Amir Nawaz said its performances were disrupted in Pakistan too.

"Acting on a complaint by Municipal Corporation Public Relations Officer Satbir Rohilla regarding criminal trespass by a group of people in a cultural programme organised by the Municipal Corporation on Saturday evening, involving artistes from Pakistan, the Gurgaon police have registered an FIR against four persons," Gurgaon Deputy Commissioner of Police (East) Deepak Saharan said in a statement.


Those arrested under sections 451 and 34 of Indian Penal Code were named as Ajay, Gautam, Sumit and Jitu -- all residents of different localities of Gurgaon.

Govt not responsible if someone throws stones at a dog: V.K. Singh

 

Union Minister V.K. Singh on Thursday blamed a family feud for the burning alive of two Dalit children in Haryana and drew an analogy that if someone throws stones at a dog, the government is not responsible."If someone throws stones at a dog, the government is not responsible. It was a feud between two families, the matter in under inquiry," Singh told reporters.

His comment came after two children were burnt alive while their parents were critically injured when the house of the Dalit family in Haryana's Faridabad district was set on fire on Tuesday. "Failure of administration should not be put on government's head," he added. The statement has drawn him major flak across the nation and the Congress has demanded his resignation and that a case be slapped against him under the Prevention of Atrocities on Scheduled Castes Act Section 3 and 4.

.“The statement passed by V.K. Singh is demeaning, disparaging, insulting. The inhumane remarks about our Dalit brothers and sisters are derogatory, condemnable and reprehensible. It reflects the anti-Dalit mindset of the Modi government and his ministers,” Congress spokesperson Randeep Surjewala said. Two children of a Dalit family were burnt alive and their parents suffered injuries allegedly after their house was set on fire while they were sleeping at Sunped village on the outskirts of Delhi.

Seven persons have been arrested in connection with the case so far and three policemen have also been suspended for dereliction of duty. Senior Congress leader Manish Tewari described the dog analogy used by Singh as "preposterous and abominable". "...comparing the death of two little children who were burnt alive to possibly the stoning of a dog... what could be more preposterous and abominable than that. This reflects the mindset of the government.

"To recall, the Prime Minister of India made a similar analogy about two years back in an interview to Reuters when he said that if a pup gets crushed under the wheels of a car that needs to be emphasised too. That remark was in the context of the Gujarat pogrom," he said.

CPI(M) Politburo member Brinda Karat described Singh’s remarks as “arrogance of casteism” and demanded registration of a criminal case against him, while raking up Modi’s puppy remark made when he was Gujarat Chief Minister.
“His statement is a clear casteist statement and it comes under the provisions of the prevention of crime against SC Act. Therefore, this gentleman has to be booked under the Act for casteism and casteist comments.”

Minister clarifies
VK Singh, however, later clarified his statement was not intended to draw an analogy between the Faridabad incident and the stoning of a dog. "My statement wasn't intended 2draw an analogy. My men & I put our lives on the line 4the nation irrespective of caste,creed & religion," he tweeted.

"As citizens of this gr8 nation v r sensitive but also responsible. Agenda of India is bigger than any single neighborhood or individual," he said in another tweet.However, an unsparing Congress chief spokesman Randeep Surjewala said, “It is condemnable, it is shocking, it is inhumane to say the least. General V.K. Singh has insulted not only the entire Dalit community of this country but all Indians. It reflects the mindset of the Modi government which insults Dalits, which insults the minorities and looks down upon the people who are poor and downtrodden.”

He demanded that Prime Minister Narendra Modi sack him and tender an apology on Singh’s behalf. Surjewala said a criminal case should be registered against the minister under Prevention of Atrocities on Schedule Castes Act.Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal called Singh’s statement as “shameful” and that it was prosecutable under SC/ST Act. “A case should be registered against him immediately,” he added.

Swaraj Abhiyan leader Yogendra Yadav termed Singh’s remarks as “absolutely shocking”, particularly as it came from a person coming from Haryana and “belonging to a community whose members are allegedly involved in the crime”. “The dog remark crosses all limits. He should resign forthwith or be dismissed,” he said.

RJD spokesman Manoj Jha said, “This is a sad day ... using a kind of disgusting simile of dog ... stoning of dog about that burning alive. “Where are we taking our country. Where is the rule of law. I mean, he is a cabinet minister...Prime Minister speaks about moratorium...I think there should be a moratorium on people like V K Singh. They are taking India to barbaric medieval ages,” he said.

BJP MP Udit Raj said, “V.K. Singh has issued an official statement. But if he has made the remarks in the context of what happened at Sanped village, I disagree with him.”
BJP stands by Singh
The BJP jumped to VK Singh’s defence nd asked the media to not “blown it out of proportion”
"As far as statement of the minister V K Singh ji is concerned, he has himself given a clarification of the same. He has said he was misquoted. He never meant what was in fact showed in the media. He really condemns the incident, which happened in Faridabad... I think we should not blow the whole thing out of proportion," BJP spokesperson Sambit Patra told reporters here.
When asked about AAP's announcement that it will file an FIR demanding Singh's arrest, he said the Arvind Kejriwal-led party is not answering questions about Delhi, where it is the ruling party, and is interfering everywhere else.
“Ask the AAP, what it did when a child from Odisha, Avinash, died of dengue because he could not get admitted to a hospital and his parents committed suicide,” Patra questioned.
“It is better that they take care of the state for which they have mandate.”
When some reporters asked about some comments about media that they claimed Singh had made, Patra said he was not aware of any such remarks but added that the BJP holds the media in high esteem. -- Agencies


In goodwill gesture,Pak food chain offers free meal to Indians


The owner of an American restaurant chain in Pakistan is offering free meals to any Indian visiting the country on a short-term visa, in a novel reaction to reports that a Pakistani family was refused accommodation by hotels in Mumbai.Iqbal Latif, who runs 26 franchises of international food chain Dunkin' Donuts in Islamabad, Lahore and Peshawar, took a leaf out of Mahatma Gandhi's book to show how neighbours should be treated.


Latif's free-meal offer to Indians went into effect last week and the response has been overwhelmingly positive, the report said.

"It's not a big deal, but an effort to invoke the teachings of Gandhiji who preached love and coexistence all his life," Latif told Dawn News."We served 2,432 people in Peshawar, Islamabad and Lahore. They all loved it," Latif said.


Latif took the initiative after reading reports that hotel owners of Mumbai's Bhendi Bazaar area refused accommodation to a family of six people from Karachi last week, following which they had to spend the night on the streets.
The family was reportedly being refused accommodation as they did not possess the 'Form C' -- which is to be submitted to a government department if people from outside the country come to the city on visa and stay in their lodges and hotels.


"I felt bad when I saw this that a family had to spend [a] part of [the] night [on a] footpath near a police station and another part at a pavement at the railway station," he said.
Latif said since he took the initiative sales have gone up by 30 per cent. On the first day, 17 meals were served to Indians in a outlet in Islamabad's Diplomatic Enclave.

He said he was initially apprehensive about displaying Indian flags in Peshawar, but visitors waved in approval. "Where is the hate and stone throwing of Shiv Sena? Only a degenerated mind does it. We need to tell (Sena) to grow up. Love conquers all," he said.

Latif said his pro-peace initiative has not met any interference by Pakistan's intelligence agency. He said his friends from the army called him to appreciate the gesture.

"Across the border, there is no hate. We all love India. 1.4 billion people love each other. We are only marginalised by a few hate mongers on both sides. I propose such initiatives on the people-to-people level [to] help make bridges," he said.


J&K MLA Abdul Rashid 'salutes' Muhammad Ali Jinnah for creating Pakistan


Delhi: Independent MLA of Jammu and Kashmir Sheikh Abdul Rashid, of whom ink was thrown in the national capital on Monday, 'saluted' Pakistan's founder Muhammad Ali Jinnah.
"We believed in the India of Mahatma Gandhi not of Togadia and Hindu Mahasabha. I salute Jinnah that he created a separate Pakistan because he knew that they will not let Muslims live in India,” he said.
“Mr Modi should say sorry to the nation,” he added.
Meanwhile, a handful of activists allegedly belonging to a right-wing organisation blackened the face of independent MLA of J&K Assembly using paint, ink and mobil oil protesting against his hosting a beef party in Srinagar earlier this month.
Popularly known as 'Engineer Rashid', he was holding a press conference at Press Club along with relatives of the two truck drivers who were burnt by a mob at Udhampur in Jammu region on October nine.
One of the victims - 19-year-old Zahid - died at Safdurjung hospital yesterday morning.
As he finished his press conference, he was held at the gate of the Press Club by some TV journalists for a one-to-one interview when some activists shouting slogans "gow mata ka apman, nahi sahega Hindustan (India will not tolerate any disrespect to cow)" pounced on him and painted him with black colour, mobil oil and blue ink, as per PTI.
Two people were detained by the police and whisked away to Parliament Street Police station while Rashid had to take refuge inside the Press Club till additional force came in.
On October 08, Rashid was thrashed by some BJP legislators in the J&K Assembly for throwing a beef party, triggering an uproar from the Opposition which staged a walkout.
As BJP MLAs assaulted him, several NC and Congress MLAs had rushed to save him.
On the other hand, BJP MLA Ravinder Raina had said Rashid had hurt the sentiments of Hindus.
Rashid, the legislator from Langate, had hosted the beef party in the lawns of MLA hostel, with the guests being served beef kebabs, 'ristas' (meat balls) and beef patties. 
(With PTI inputs)
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J&K MLA Engineer Rashid wanted to meet Pakistan envoy Abdul Basit after ink attack



Delhi, October 20: A day after Jammu and Kashmir MLA, Engineer Rashid was attacked by ink, he wished to meet Pakistan’s high commissioner to India Abdul Basit on Tuesday. According to the reports, Rashid and independent legislator said, “If I get an invitation(from Pak Envoy) then can anyone stop me from meeting him?” (Also Read: Ink attack on Engineer Rashid: 2 Hindu Sena activists arrested)
However Rashid who is close to the seperatist leader, Mirwaiz Umer Farooq of Hurriyat had withdrawn the case against two attackers who threw ink on him on Monday. Expressing his disappointment for not being able to meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi Rashid said that India was proving Mohammed Ali Jinnah’s two nation theory right.

Rashid said, that the ink attack on him, “is not a big issue. The core issue needs to be resolved”. The little known Hindu Sena claimed responsibility for the ink attack on Rashid who hosted a beef party on Monday afternoon at Press Club. Earlier Rashid was also beaten up by the Bhartiya Janta Party leaders in assembly. However on Tuesday, Pakistan’s envoy Abdul Basit had an hour-long meeting with Mirwaiz Umer Farooq.

During the meeting Farooq was informed that, Pakistan’s Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif will raise the issue of Kashmir with US President Barack Obama during his visit to the US on Thursday. Meanwhile, Abdul Basit has rubbished reports stating that he would be meeting Rashid.


Kashmiri writer Marghboob Banihali returns his Sahitya Akademi award


Stepping up their protests against intolerance in the country, another writer Marghoob Banihali has now returned his Sahitya Akademi award. The renowned Kashmiri poet and writer made the announcement on Monday saying that he is returning the award in protest against the murder of Kashmiri Muslim truck Zahid Bhat over rumours of cow slaughtering. Zahid succumbed to his injuries on Sunday after he was attacked in Udhampur on October 9. Banihali joins a group of over 30 prominent literary figures to have returned their awards in protest.


Modi government ‘anti-Dalit’: AAP


The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) on Sunday termed the Narendra Modi government at the Centre “anti-Dalit” and also called for the sacking of Union Minister V.K. Singh over his remarks in the wake of the Faridabad burning case.
The party also attacked Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar over the killing of two children and a teenager from the Dalit community recently in separate incidents in the State.
The SC/ST cell of the AAP held a candle-lit protest at Jantar Mantar in Delhi. The party has filed a police complaint against Mr. Singh over his controversial comments.
“BJP and the Centre have been anti-Dalit and we will expose the party across the country,” said Dilip Pandey, convenor of AAP’s Delhi unit.
Referring to the death of a 15-year-old Dalit under mysterious circumstances in Haryana’s Sonepat, AAP leader Saurabh Bhardwaj said that the party does not trust the Haryana government or the Special Investigation Team constituted by it to probe the matter.
“The Chief Minister says that the death was a suicide. It prejudices the whole case. Union Minister V.K. Singh has made a shameful statement. If need arises, we will protest against Singh, the Haryana Chief Minister and even against the Prime Minister,” he said.
Delhi’s Social Welfare Minister Sandeep Kumar, said, “There are growing atrocities against Dalits. We, people from Scheduled Caste, will fight the injustice against us.”


Pakistani citizens visiting India are safe: Indian embassy



Amid incidents of targeting Pakistanis in India by Shiv Sena activists, the Indian embassy in Islamabad on Thursday said there is no security issue for nationals of his country visiting India and visas were being issued as per normal regulations
“There is no delay in issuing visas to Pakistanis citizens and our activities are continuing as per routine,” Indian High Commission spokesperson Balbir Singh said.
About recent attacks by Shiv Sena, Singh assured that here is no threat to Pakistani citizens visiting India.

“It is media hype and the situation on the ground is very different in India,” he was quoted as saying by The Dawn.The paper also quoted a Foreign Office (FO) official as saying that the ministry of foreign affairs was in constant contact with the Pakistan High Commission in New Delhi.
The official said it is important for Pakistani citizens n India to remain in touch with the High Commission due to he recent activities of Shiv Sena.

“We are observing the situation and if it remains the same due to the activities of Shiv Sena, the FO may issue a travel advisory for our citizens,” he said.In the latest attacks, Shiv Sena activists stormed the Mumbai headquarters of the Board of Control for Cricket in India BCCI) office, forcing cancellation of a meeting between the cricket chiefs of the two countries. Last week, the Mumbai book launch of Pakistan’s former foreign minister Khurshid Kasuri was opposed by Shiv Sena, who smeared ink on Observer Research Foundation’s Sudheendra Kulkarni for hosting the event. Earlier this month, threats from Shiv Sena led to organisers cancelling legendary Pakistani singer Ghulam Ali’s how in Mumbai despite the ruling BJP assuring that the event would not be stopped.


People in Valley will think Jinnah was right, says former J&K CM Farooq Abdullah


Targeting Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Abdullah said he should worry more about the country than about the Bihar elections.


Former J&K Chief Minister Farooq Abdullah said on Monday that people in Kashmirmay start to think that Mohammad Ali Jinnah was right about his two-nation theory.

“The trend that has started, it is the most difficult phase for the people of Kashmir… I am afraid that people in Kashmir will start to think that Quaid-i-Azam Jinnah was right about his two-nation theory,” he said, referring to the recent incidents in Dadri, Udhampur, Mumbai and today’s attack on MLA Engineer Rashid in New Delhi.

Targeting Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Abdullah said he should worry more about the country than about the Bihar elections. “I warn you that this country belongs to everyone. The day you start to think it only belongs to you, you should be ready to see this country fragmenting into pieces,” he said.

“PM should know that he is not the PM of only one community. He is the PM of 1.3 billion people. He should stand up. Instead of fighting the Bihar elections, he should think of how to save Hindustan from such elements,” said Abdullah. “Very serious action must be taken if you want to uproot these elements,” he said. “If you wait, this spark will turn into a fire that will be beyond control,” he added. “What you did in Dadri or anywhere else, India is not this. Today, these people have tarnished the image of India, not only in India but across the world. India, today, feels threatened by these elements,” he said.
“I have to say with regret that Muslims, all the minorities are living in danger. They are scared. They feel threatened — for their lives, for the lives of their children,” said Abdullah. “This didn’t happen earlier. This didn’t happen during Vajpayee’s time.”



Police Foils Muharram Procession In Srinagar To 'Prevent Major Gathering'


SRINAGAR -- The Police on Saturday foiled the Muharram procession in Srinagar when they were trying to gather at Ghanta Ghar in lalchowk to take out a major procession.
The police stopped the processions and detained the mourners to prevent major gatherings.
Muharram processions have been disallowed in parts of Srinagar since 1990, especially in some of the uptown areas. Smaller congregations in downtown Srinagar and on the city's outskirts are permitted.


Punjab unrest: Paramilitary forces deployed in Amritsar, Ludhiana and Jalandhar over desecration of Guru Granth Sahib


The members of SGPC take out a protest march against desecration of their holy book - Guru Granth Sahib in Faridkot; in Amritsar.IANS
Paramilitary forces have been deployed in Amritsar, Ludhiana and Jalandhar cities of Punjab amid protest over the sacrilege of the holy book of Sikhs – Guru Granth Sahib. 
Meanwhile, Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal has called an emergency meeting of cabinet ministers on Tuesday to discuss the ongoing protest by several Sikh groups in Punjab.
Meanwhile, the Punjab Police has arrested three people in connection with the desecration of the holy book. Two granthis (Sikh priests) and one woman have been taken into custody. The woman has been identified as Balwinder Kaur of Ludhiana and one of the granthis is Jagdeep Singh from Nijjapura village of Amritsar district.
Jagdeep Singh, 30, was arrested for the alleged desecration of the holy book, a crime he admitted to have committed, Amritsar's Senior Superintendent of Police (Rural) Jasdeep Singh Saini said, according to IANS report. 
Balwinder Kaur and another granthi has been taken into custody in connection with the Ghawaddi Village desecration case in Ludhiana district, The Asian Age reported. The woman is accused of tearing pages from the holy book at the gurdwara in Ghawaddi village.
The protesters took to violence after they found over 100 pages of Guru Granth Sahib scattered on the roads en route to a gurdwara at Bargari village on 12 October. The torn pages of the holy book was found spread across several villages in Faridkot.

Violent protests erupted in Kotkapura area of Faridkot district as police resorted to firing in the air to disperse the protesters, killing two of them in the process. The death of the two men triggered further violence in the area and the Sikhs are still out in the streets to protest against the sacrilege.

Uddhav Thackeray attacks BJP on Pak, Ayodhya, beef; rules out break-up

Mumbai: Breaking his silence over his party's strained ties with BJP, Shiv Sena presidentUddhav Thackeray on Thursday attacked the coalition partner on issues like Pakistan, beef, Ram temple and inflation but ruled out walking out of the Maharashtra government any time soon.
He also said that the Dadri lynching incident brought shame to the country, and not Sena's campaign against cultural or sporting ties with Pakistan.

"If you can get along with (Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister) Mufti Mohammad Sayeed, then you should also listen to Shiv Sena," Uddhav said, addressing the Sena's traditional Dussehra rally at Shivaji Park in Dadar here this evening.

Referring to speculation of Sena parting ways with BJP, which has criticised it over the Shahryar Khan and Sudheendra Kulkarni incidents, he said, "We know for how long to remain in power. Allow us to work, now that we are in power."

Ridiculing BJP on the Ayodhya issue, he said, "We have been hearing: "Mandir wahin banayenge... Lekin tareekh nahi batayenge (we have been hearing that temple will be built, but not when it will be built)."

Voicing a strong Hindu agenda of the Sena, Uddhav said, "If Hindu is going to be finished, will this country survive? Declare this country as Hindu Rashtra and implement common civil code, instead of searching in people's homes for beef," he said in a reference to the lynching of a 50-year-old man in Dadri in Uttar Pradesh over beef eating rumours.
The country's image was maligned because of the Dadri lynching incident and not because of the ink attack on Kulkarni, he said, referring to Sena's protest against the launch function of the book penned by former Pakistan foreign minister Khurshid Kasuri in Mumbai.

"If you have the courage, then enter Pakistan," he said, claiming that Pakistan was keeping tabs on the Sena rally. Why speak on cow (beef), instead speak on inflation," the Sena president said. "Why is it not possible to control prices of essential commodities? A government that can't stop price rise is useless. If governments can fall on the issue of onion prices, one can't say what will happen over rising inflation," he warned, against the backdrop of skyrocketing prices of pulses. 

"First give protection to dal (rising prices) and then to Pakistan," Uddhav said, adding, "why should it cause stomach ache for BJP if we speak against Pakistan."

On Sena's opposition to Ghulam Ali's scheduled concert in Mumbai, he said, "I told organisers that I like songs of Jagjit Singh and Ghulam Ali. However, I also reminded them about killing of Indian soldiers by Pakistan." On the Sena workers' ink attack on former BJP ideologue Kulkarni for hosting Kasuri, he said, "We applied ink to the red monkey."

Uddhav also criticised Union ministers VK Singh over his remark on the killing of Dalit children and Kiren Rijiju for his comment on north Indians.

"Our Hindutva entails calling Param Veer Chakra awardee Abdul Hameed a hero, a soldier, a son of the soil who saved Kashmir from Pakistani Army," he said. MIM leader Owaisi bowed his head at Aurangzeb's burial place, Uddhav said, adding "I am ready to bow my head at the 'kabr' of Abdul Hameed."
"We won't leave Marathi manoos and Hindutva at any cost," he said, and recalled that the then President Zail Singh had thanked the late Bal Thackeray for protecting Sikhs in Mumbai and Maharashtra when anti-Sikh riots broke out in 1984.

"Balasaheb also protected Kashmiri Pandits and Amarnath pilgrims," Uddhav said.
"Let me know now if you agree to my continuing in the post of Sena chief. I will step down if you say so," Uddhav said, putting the question to the crowd.

Aurangzeb Road in Delhi was named after APJ Abdul Kalam, similarly Aurangabad in Maharashtra should be renamed as Sambhajinagar, he said. Uddhav also paid tributes to Veer Savarkar, and asked, "Did any Congressman suffer for freedom like him." Savarkar should get Bharat Ratna, he demanded.

"Those who objected to death penalty for Yakub Memon committed contempt of court," he said.

He expressed disgust over prolonged incarceration of Lt Col Prasad Purohit and Sadhvi Pragya Singh Thakur in the 2008 Malegaon blast case, saying "Hang them if they are guilty, but prove their guilt first."

He also said killers of Govind Pansare and Narendra Dabholkar should be hanged if they are guilty "but first prove charges against them".

On NCP chief Sharad Pawar's statement that the Sena of yore doesn't exist now, Uddhav said, "Pawar, who appeased Sonia Gandhi for 15 years, should not teach us self respect."

Sena leader Sanjay Raut, who also addressed the rally, taunted BJP over the treatment meted out to LK Advani.
"People look up to you as long as you are CM or PM. We see what is the condition of L K Advani today," he said.
Referring to the 'shastra puja' at the rally venue on the occasion of Dussehra, he said, "Next year, there should be an AK-47 and a couple of canons here. Our fight is against Pakistan.
"Also keep a tin of oil paint. That is also a weapon. The whole world recently saw that," Raut said, in an apparent reference to the ink attack on Kulkarni.
"You (BJP-led government) are laying red carpet for Pakistan which is killing our soldiers," he said.
On the criticism over his own visit to Pakistan some years ago, Raut said, "I had gone with Atalji (former PM Atal Bihari Vajpayee), not during UPA regime and I had discussed the Pak trip with Balasaheb.
"Pakistan is a part of akhanda (united) Hindustan, which was cut off from us with machination," he said, adding if 50 Sena MPs get elected, "we will drag not only Dawood Ibrahim but also Nawaz Sharif" to India.
"It was the dream of Balasaheb that there should be a Shiv Sena chief minister in Maharashtra. Making a Sena leader PM of the country will be the real tribute to Balasaheb," he said.
Senior Sena leader Ramdas Kadam, who is also a cabinet minister in the state government, spoke of 'rising population' of Muslims in India. "How come the population of only Muslims increased? Is only a single-point agenda being undertaken," he asked said.
On state BJP chief Raosaheb Danve's assurance that protection will be given if an Indo-Pak cricket match is held in Mumbai, he said, "Danve should check (Prime Minister) Modi's statements in the past."
Kadam also referred to the "opposition from some cats to holding Sena rally at Shivaji Park". One such "cat" lives nearby, Kadam said, in an apparent reference to MNS chief Raj Thackeray, whose residence borders the Shivaji Park.
Before the rally, BJP minister Prakash Mehta went to the Thackeray family residence Matoshree in suburban Bandra and met Uddhav. Mehta presented Uddhav a frame which had currency notes from Re 1 to Rs 1000 denomination and also the birth dates of the late Bal Thackeray, his wife Meenatai, Uddhav and Aaditya Thackeray.
Soon after his arrival at Shivaji Park with the wife Rashmi and son Aaditya, the Sena president offered tributes at the memorial of his father.
The rally comes against the backdrop of Sena's strident campaign against visiting Pakistani personalities, and also the Kolhapur and Kalyan Dombivali Municipal Corporation polls in Maharashtra, due on November 1. The Sena and BJP are fighting the civic polls separately.
The simmering tension between the Sena-BJP was evident on Wednesday when the local Shiv Sena leaders put up a poster outside the party headquarters showing the picture of Modi bowing before Bal Thackeray.
While the Sena distanced itself saying that it's not an official poster and removed it, Manohar Joshi, senior Sena leader and former Lok Sabha Speaker, had said, "The party workers have given a message (to BJP) through the poster."
Shiv Sena had boycotted all the functions at which Prime Minister Narendra Modi was present in Mumbai on October 11. Uddhav got the invitation for the Prime Minister's function a day before, and didn't attend it.
Sena leaders had slammed the BJP for not taking the party in confidence for the programme and taking all credit for the metro and Ambedkar memorial projects.
On Monday, the Sena activists barged into Board of Control for Cricket in India office in Mumbai and gheroed its chairman Shashank Manohar demanding cancellation of talks on Indo-Pak cricket series. On this, Uddhav said at the rally, "We protested in a democratic manner at Manohar's office and did not spill blood."
The Sena is the junior partner in the Maharashtra cabinet. However, in the cash-rich civic body of Mumbai, BJP is the junior partner. 



Monday, 23 November 2015

Double Game Franchised Al-Qaeda and ISIS?

By Sajjad Shaukat

Everyone knows that Al-Qaeda and Afghan Taliban were created by the American CIA to fight against the former Soviet Union in Afghanistan.

In this regard, former British Foreign secretary, Robin Cook stated, “Throughout the 1980s, he [Bin Laden] was armed by the CIA and funded by the Saudis to wage jihad against the Russian occupation of Afghanistan.”

The then US National Security Advisor Zbigniew Brzezinski met Al-Qaeda leader Osama Bin Laden and said about the militants (Mujahideen), “We know of their deep belief in God, and we are confident their struggle will succeed…because, you are fighting against the infidel Russians.”

However, after fulfilling their interests, Washington had left Afghanistan in particular and Pakistan in general to face the fallout of a prolonged conflict—terrorism and instability. These Mujahideen who pulled the Russians out of Afghanistan, later become the Taliban, Al- Qaeda (New version) and the Muslim Brotherhood, ISIS or ISIL etc. They got the label of terrorists.

After the disintegration of the Soviet Union, American former President Bush (The Senior) in connivance with his Zionist-advisers took the Islamic fundamentalism as a great threat. Since then, sometimes, Bin Laden and Al-Qaeda have continuously been used by the US and some western countries as a scapegoat to malign Pakistan for ‘de-nuclearisation,’ as the latter is the only nuclear country in the Muslim World. Sometimes, bogey of Al-Qaeda is raised to achieve their goals of external policy, and sometimes to pacify their public including the opposition. In all cases, the purpose behind has been to safeguard the interests of the Zionists and Israel.

As regards the US double game, in December 2001, Bin Laden was within the reach of US troops in Tora Bora. But, they did not pursue him, and as per direction of their leader opened the door for his escape to Pakistan.

The Christian Science Monitor in its February 06, 2002 edition, while describing the battle at Tora Bora, concluded that “Bin Laden escaped to Iran.” It had coincided with the US concerns that Iran is harboring Al-Qaeda refugees. As part of the deliberate game, America’s war-mongering diplomacy against Tehran was justified.

On November 13, 2009, a Reuters report quoting Labeviere’s book “Corridors of Terror” (Released in November 2003) points to negotiations between Bin Laden and CIA, which took place two months prior to the September 11, 2001 attacks-at the American Hospital in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, when Bin Laden was under a kidney dialysis treatment.

Meanwhile, while making Osama and Al-Qaeda as scapegoats, a number of fake video messages were telecast on various TV channels and websites by some Zionists to obtain Israel’s anti-Muslim goals. For example, during the November 2004 elections in the US, a fake video tape helped the ex-president George W. Bush to get lead over John Kerry.

It is well-known that in a tape released on December 27, 2001, the authenticity of which is not in question, Osama denied any involvement in the September 11 tragedy. However, later, two video tapes appeared to validate his guilt in relation to 9/11, because the main aims of the Bush administration were to provoke American public against the Muslims and to justify global war on terror—the occupation of Afghanistan and Iraq to possess energy resources of Central Asia and Iraq, including proxy wars in other Middle Eastern countries and to get their support for a propaganda campaign against Pakistan and Iran. Besides other actions of Bush era such as America’s state-sponsored terrorism in the volatile Islamic countries, persecution of Muslims through torture, detentions and arrests, CIA and FBI-operated facilities, radicalising the western Christians against the Muslims, while providing a golden chance to Tel Aviv to accelerate the systematic genocide of the Palestinians—protecting the real architects of the 9/11 tragedy.

Recall, just after the September 11 disaster, Bush and Zionist-controlled media deliberately developed chauvinism among the Americans. There had been an organised campaign against the Muslims in the US and other western countries. Its main themes were that Islam and the Muslims were the true cause of terrorism.

Anti-Muslim move could also be judged from an article, titled: ‘Their Target: The Modern World’, published in the special issue of American weekly, ‘Newsweek’ in which Prof. Francis Fukuyama (The author of ‘The End of History and the Last Man’) wrote, “The real enemy: radical Islamists intolerant of all diversity and dissent, have become fascists of our day and that is what we are fighting against.”

It was because of the dual strategy of Bush through war on terror—on global and regional level, which continued by various tactics of state terrorism and on the other side, response of Al-Qaeda militants by clandestine terror attacks, as shown through a number of the past suicidal missions such as on Indonesian resort island of Bali, Saudi Arabia, Spain and a series of bomb attacks on London’s transport network etc., including those ones in other Afro-Asian countries have clearly pointed out that Al-Qaeda was organized on world level. But, the outfit lost control on its affiliated militant groups. Al-Qaeda’s decimated old guard may no longer be able to mount elaborately detailed plots, executed by other trained terrorists of various new groups which claim their links with Al-Qaeda, but, are not under its direct command. For example, in Somalia—splitting away of a hardliner-faction Al-Shabaab is an offshoot of the Islamic Courts Union. The US defined Al-Shabaab as Al-Qaida allies. The reality is that there have been militant groups in Africa which have described themselves as being Al-Qaida. Some have been associated with the core of Bin Laden’s ideology and were involved in early Al-Qaida spectaculars in Africa.

In this connection, about the two bombs which blew the 18-story headquarters of the British-owned HSBC bank and the British consulate in Istanbul in November, 2003, Turkish officials had remarked that these were the work of homegrown extremists.

In March 2004, the former CIA Director, George Tenet said, “Al-Qaeda has become a loose collection of regional networks working autonomously-[they] pick their own targets, they plan their own attacks…in this new phase of franchise terrorism, Al-Qaeda has been described as an idea rather than an organization.”

In fact, there are several groups of Al-Qaeda, ISIS and Taliban like Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP). Some of them are being used by secret agencies like CIA, Israeli Mossad and Indian RAW to obtain the collective and individual designs of their countries against Pakistan, Middle East and other Muslim countries. But, like the double game of America, Israel and India, Al-Qaeda, ISIS and TTP also play double game. The leaders of these militant outfits work for these secret agencies, while, they motivate the common Muslims for suicide attacks and terror-related activities as part of Jihad. Otherwise, Jihad does not permit suicide attacks. Like other religions, Islam is a religion of peace and prohibits any sort of terrorism.

Iraq-based ISIS which itself broke away from Al-Qaeda, proclaimed a worldwide caliphate by its leader Abu Baker al-Baghdadi, on 29 June 2014. ISIS’s criminal actions had widely been criticized in the world, with many Islamic communities judging the group to be unrepresentative of Islam. One of ISIS’s goals has been to establish a radical Sunni Islamic state in Iraq and Syria Jordan, Palestine etc. (Levant region). It has been used by the US and Israel for distorting the image of Islam and for inciting the feelings of western Christians and Kurds against Muslims. For the purpose, like Al-Qaeda, it is widely known for its violent acts and propaganda which includes Internet videos of beheadings etc. However, besides some Islamic countries, a majority of the religious extremists (Muslims) from the western world joined the ISIS. In this context, oblivion on the part of the west about ISIS recruits from their countries is questionable.

Nevertheless, if the double game of President Bush (The Senior) and George W. Bush franchised Al-Qaeda on global level, President Obama’s dual policy franchised both Al-Qaeda and ISIS as part of the anti-Muslim campaign and left no stone unturned in advancing the agenda of the Zionists, Israeli lobbies and the neoconservatives in the pretext of global war on terror. Secretly, Obama authorized CIA to create ISIS. His perennial covert support to the Israeli atrocities on the Palestinians, Gaza blockade, silence over the supply (Smuggling) of oil by ISIS to some European countries, toppling the elected government in Egypt, creation of more collapsed states such as Libya, Syria, Yemen etc., CIA-assisted Al-Qaeda (Al-Nusra Front) and ISIS militants, continued sectarian violence and prolonged engagement of its troops (NATO) in Afghanistan might be cited as instance. Moreover, the Middle East was deliberately thrown in worst form of terrorism and civil wars for achieving the goal of a greater Israel.

US-led Israeli entities were frustrated by the recent developments such as Russian airstrikes on the ISIS terrorist’s installations in the northern Syria, Israeli-occupied Golan Heights, across the Lebanon-Israeli border, Russian coalition with Iran, Iraq and Syria in support of President Bashar al-Assad, retreat of the CIA-rebels and mercenaries, their failure to topple the Assad regime, arrest of Israeli Col. Shahak in Iraq, his admission, proving links of Al-Qaeda and ISIS with America and Israel (Israeli Mossad), including the Vienna meeting where the US Secretary of State John Kerry agreed to keep the Syrian president in power, not to allow ISIS militant group to reign in Syria and America’s decision of sending 50 special forces to Syria to help in rooting out ISIS terrorists have clearly exposed the double game.

Thus, Russian President Vladimir Putin, in fact, exposed the US fake war on terror, saying that the New World Oder agents—the Zionist regime in America and Israel have no cloths.  

Besides, some recent developments such as decision of the Canadian-nominated new prime minister Justin Trudeau to withdraw Canadian fighter jets from the US-led mission against ISIS, British Prime Minister David Cameron’s announcement to abandon plans to carry out airstrikes against ISIS positions in Syria, after his failure to receive support from Labour MPs, reluctance of NATO countries to support America’s fake global war on terror and double game of striking the ISIS activists, acceptance of Syrian refuges by the European countries, especially Germany and the EU rule to boycott goods produced in Israeli settlements on the West Bank prove that Mossad used ISIS to conduct the November 13 terror-attacks in Paris  to revive the global war on terror, and to obtain the aims of the neo-conservatives, Zionists and Israel, as they needed the assistance of the whole Europe against the Muslims.

The Swedish Foreign Minister Margot Wallstrom’s statement, hours after the Paris attacks caused a stir in Jerusalem, as she said that “to counteract the radicalization, we must go back to the situation in the Middle East of which not the least the Palestinians see that there is no future: we must either accept a desperate situation or resort to violence.”

Meanwhile, the mastermind of the Paris attacks was killed by the French forces, including a woman who blew herself up during a shootout with police.

In the post-November 13 phenomena, Europe has been put on high alert and Paris terror assaults are being taken as attacks on the whole continent. After arrests and killings of the suspected persons and masterminds of the Paris catastrophe—having connections with ISIS, western citizens feel panic, while the Muslims there are facing harassment owing to their persecution.

Manipulating the terrorism-acts in Paris and its aftermath, Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu and their media are propagating that same radical Islam which is behind Israel is also behind Paris attacks. Like the drastic aftermath of the 9/11 tragedy, they want to hold all the Muslims responsible for the mayhem in order to divert the attention of the west from the real culprits. Notably, the French authorities said that they have killed the masterminds of the Paris attacks. But, reports from Tel Aviv say that the real mastermind is in Syria.

It is of particular attention that in 2009, when more than 12 Pakistani students were arrested in UK in connection with terrorism, the then British Prime Minister Gordon Brown had sated that the most dangerous plot had been foiled by the police. But, afterwards, British authorities released the students and admitted that they had no link with terrorism. In this context, earlier, Zionist-controlled media and US-led some European powers were propagating that any conspiracy to attack the US homeland and Europe with chemical weapons or dirty nuclear bomb would be prepared in Pakistan’s tribal areas. Now, after the Paris terror attacks, they have changed the side of their propaganda machinery towards Syria, raising same misconceptions to misguide the west.  

Indicating the double game, Hans J. Morgenthau, and Palmer and Perkins opine, “Just as power became the instrument of ambitious nationalism and state’s leaders, it has now become the tool of ideologies. The true nature of the policy is concealed by ideological justifications and rationalization. Therefore, the ideology provides a mask behind which the ulterior motives are concealed.”
Although, European rulers and leaders, particularly of France know that who are playing double game, yet they cannot point out owing to diplomatic decorum. Hence, France has decided to join the Russian coalition to eliminate ISIS in Syria and Iraq. Meanwhile, it is a good sign that other countries like UK are considering a broader alliance (Including Russia) in this respect. Because of internal criticism in relation to phony war on terror and on ISIS, even President Obama has also announced to join such a larger alliance.   

Nonetheless, fanatics and extremists are found in every religious community. Therefore, taking note of the double game which franchised Al-Qaeda and ISIS, moderate and peace-loving Muslims, Jews, Christians and Hindus must play their positive role in thwarting the conspiracy of those plotters who intend to take the world to “Clash of Civilizations.” Instead of engaging themselves in controversial debate on the alternative media (Internet), they must utilize it for the larger interest of humanity.

Sajjad Shaukat writes on international affairs and is author of the book: US vs Islamic Militants, Invisible Balance of Power: Dangerous Shift in International Relations

Email: sajjad_logic_pak@hotmail.com

Courtesy Veterans Today