1. Having 'Black People' of South as Part of India Proves We 'Aren't Racist': Former BJP MP Tarun Vijay
Vijay's controversial comments during a panel discussion on an international news channel sparked an outrage with the Congress saying it was shocking while the DMK said it was funny.
Seeking to defend India against the charge of racism following attacks on African students, he said:
If we (Indians) were racist, why would we have the entire south? Which is you know... completely Tamil, you know Kerala, you know Karnataka and Andhra. Why do we live with them? We have blacks, black people all around us.
DMK MP TKS Elangovan said Vijay's comments were funny as not all people in the south India are dark-skinned and cited the example of late Tamil Nadu Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa. His party's spokesperson said his comments offered a glimpse of a divide between north India and south India.
(Source: DNA)
2. In Uttar Pradesh, Cops Halt Church Prayer After Hindu Group Alleges Conversion
Police stopped a prayer attended by more than 150 people, including 11 American tourists, at an Uttar Pradesh church on Friday after the right-wing Hindu Yuva Vahini complained that the event was a cover for religious conversion.
The youth group, set up by Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath in 2002, filed a complaint against Yohannan Adam, the pastor of the church at Dathauli of Maharajganj district.
The organisation accused him of converting Hindus to Christianity, a charge the pastor denied.
No prior permission was taken before the meeting. We stopped the meet after a complaint was registered. A probe is underway and appropriate action will be taken if the charges are correctAnand Kumar Gupta, Police Officer
(Source: Hindustan Times)
3. One Ends, Another Begins: Now, Trinamool MP Dola Sen Creates Ruckus On Board Air India Flight
Trinamool Congress MP Dola Sen on Friday reportedly created a ruckus on board an Air India flight from Delhi to Kolkata, delaying it by nearly 40 minutes. Sen, according to news agency ANI, refused to adhere to security protocol, despite being asked to by the airline staff.
The MP had booked front row seats on makemytrip.com and had paid extra for those seats, said Air India. But she could only be booked on emergency exit seats, which also have similar leg room.
Air India staff requested Dola Sen to shift her senior citizen, wheelchair-bound mother from the seat near the emergency exit, but the MP refused to do so and created a ruckus, news agency ANI reported quoting sources.
(Source: The Indian Express)
4. Soon, Drunk Drivers Will Have to Pay Damages on Own
Insurance companies will not pay any compensation to victims in accidents caused by drunk driving.
Instead, the person driving under the influence will have to cough up the entire amount for causing death or injury, according to the Motor Vehicles (Amendment) Bill introduced in the Lok Sabha on Friday.
However, the Road Transport Ministry has not included the provision of trying drunk drivers for "culpable homicide not amounting to murder" in case of death caused by them in a crash, which is a non-bailable offence and attracts 10-year jail term.
Though the ministry had accepted the recommendation of a parliamentary panel, it referred the suggestion to the MHA as it requires an amendment in the IPC.
(Source: The Times of India)
5. EVMs, Paper Trail Machines in Bhind Demo Not Tempered: Election Commission
The EVMs and the paper trail machines used during a demonstration exercise for a Madhya Pradesh bypoll were not tempered, a probe constituted by the Election Commission has found. The probe committee was sent to Ater constituency of Bhind district after media reports claimed the vote went to the BJP, irrespective of the button pressed on the EVM, during the demonstration.
“The team has found no anomaly or tampering in EVM and VVPAT used during demonstration in Ater (Bhind) on 31 March,” a statement issued by the poll watchdog said.
It said during the demonstration, four buttons of ballot unit BU were pressed: Button no one: ‘Handpump’ symbol, button no 2: ‘lotus’, button no 3: again ‘handpump’ symbol and button no 4: ‘hand’ symbol.
(Source: The Indian Express)
6. Why Not Ban Gau Rakshaks, Supreme Court Asks Centre, Six States
The mob violence unleashed by self-declared cow vigilante groups in the country has come under the judicial scanner as the Supreme Court asked the Centre and six states on Friday to respond why such elements should not be banned for creating disharmony among communities and castes.
A bench of Justices Dipak Misra, AM Khanwilkar and MM Shantanagoudhar directed the Centre and the states of Gujarat, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra, Karnataka and Jharkhand to respond within three weeks on a PIL seeking a ban on "gau rakshak dals" – often lawless groups that have assaulted alleged cow smugglers.
The court's direction comes days after 55-year-old farmer Pehlu Khan died following an assault by cow vigilantes in Alwar, Rajasthan.
(Source: The Times of India)
Also Read: How to Become a Gau Rakshak Celebrity
7. AAP Says L-G Baijal Cancelled Its Delhi Office Space Allotment, Alleges Discrimination
Lieutenant Governor Anil Baijal has cancelled the allotment of office space to the Aam Aadmi Party on DDU Marg near ITO by the Arvind Kejriwal government, a development that could lead to another round of confrontation between the Delhi government and the L-G office.
While the development invoked sharp criticism from AAP leaders, L-G office sources said the decision was taken in the light of a report by the three-member Shunglu committee that red-flagged the decision because the lieutenant governor’s approval was not taken despite land being a reserved subject under the Centre’s purview.
(Source: Hindustan Times)
8. Alwar Lynching Case: NHRC Issues Notice to Centre, Rajasthan Govt
The National Human Rights Commission on Friday said the alleged lynching of dairy farmer Pehlu Khan by Gau Rakshaks in Alwar is a ‘painful’ incident. It has issued notices to the Centre and the Rajasthan government for the ‘serious violation’ of human rights by ‘self proclaimed’ volunteers. The commission has asked for a detailed report of the matter and also enquired about the action taken against the miscreants.
The NHRC also issued a notice to the Union Home Secretary and asked for a response within four weeks of the measures being taken to deal with such incidents of violence. The commission has called for action against such occurrences as they are causing an unfavourable atmosphere in the society.
(Source: The Indian Express)
9. In Crackdown, I-T Searches 100 Locations Across India
As part of its crackdown against unaccounted money, the income tax department on Friday conducted search and surveys at around 100 locations across Chennai, Delhi, Uttar Pradesh, Mumbai and Hyderabad which included entities allegedly linked to Anand Kumar, BSP chief Mayawati's brother.
The tax department's operations covered 33 locations in Chennai and other parts of Tamil Nadu with state health minister Vijayabaskar and actor Sarathkumar also being surveyed.
The byelection in RK Nagar held by the late J Jayallaithaa has been in the news for allegations of money being spent in large amounts to influence voters.
(Source: The Times of India)
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